I considered the possibility that a comma (or two) had been omitted, but gave Axiom the benefit of the doubt, and assumed they said what they meant (or should that be "meant what they said"?
).
Actually, if they meant the clause "to the 9 o'clock position" to be a clarification of the term "midway," they should've used TWO commas. So, it would look like this: "
VOLUME: Set this midway, to the 9 o'clock position, for initial setup." And, adding an "i.e.," also set off by commas, REALLY would have made it clear: "
VOLUME: Set this midway, i.e., to the 9 o'clock position, for initial setup."
Further explanation (for extra credit
): "
i.e." is the abbreviation of the Latin phrase "
id est" which, literally translated, means "
it is." However,the abbreviation is generally interpreted to mean "
that is (to say)." So, inserting those words into our "VOLUME" sentence, the meaning becomes crystal clear. "
VOLUME: Set this midway, that is to say, to the 9 o'clock position, for initial setup."
I don't know who would be prouder, my brother, who was my 9th grade English teacher, or Mrs. Nesbitt, who was my 9th grade Latin teacher. I must've paid attention when I was in 9th grade, something I ceased doing by the time I reached 12th grade.
