RMS

Root Mean Square. Square being the kind of sail and “Mean” or firmness of the method by which it’s attached to the underpinning, or Root

Just kidding Gol. Herewith---

http://www.google.ca/#hl=en&output=search&sclient=psy-ab&q=What+does+RMS+in+the+name+of+a+ship+mean%3F&oq=What+does+RMS+in+the+name+of+a+ship+mean%3F&aq=f&aqi=q-A1&aql=1&gs_l=hp.12..33i29.2389.2389.0.4939.1.1.0.0.0.0.264.264.2-1.1.0.crf1.1.0.0.mWKUydGJd3Q&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&fp=7dbc73e3d462cd55&biw=1677&bih=912

Root Mean Square was the first thing I though of when I saw the title. Were you in the metal working trades, engineering, or something like that, Dale?

It stands for Royal Mail Ship and is the prefix used for seagoing vessels that carry mail under contract to the British Royal Mail. Any vessel designated as RMS has the right to both fly the pennant of the Royal Mail when sailing and to include the Royal Mail "crown" logo with any identifying device and/or design for the ship. It was used by many shipping lines, but is often associated in particular with the Cunard Line, Royal Mail Lines and Union-Castle Line, which held a number of high-profile mail contracts, and which traditionally prefixed the names of many of their ships with the initials "RMS". Of course, right now, everyone is busy remembering the RMS Titanic, which is probably how the query arose.

Yea Rog I was pretty deeply into electronics

Oh. We used the term as a specification for surface finish on metal in machine shops. We were more likely to translate it as "Real Mean Scratches".