I need help understanding a poor sentence

[kill_bill_gates]

Hi,

I want to join a contest but the instructions they've given are faulty(I'm not talking about this particular sentence)!!! I need help understanding the following statement because the whole program is ready except for this part...

Here it is:

".........The length of mail is always the side parallel to the written address............................. the length plus the distance around the other sides of a package equals 84 inches or less."

what does the underlined statement mean?

[sevenhalo]

I have a feeling, length is the depth of the package; and the rest is 2Width + 2Height

[BobTheBuilder.]

Sounds like the length of the package and the perimeter of the other sides. In other words the perimeter when looking at the side that you would use to measure the width and the perimeter that you would use when looking at the side you would use to measure the height of the package.

Sorry that's the best I can explain it!

[kill_bill_gates]

this is the shape I've got

So what you mean sevenhalo according to this shape is: 2(thickness + height). right?

[sevenhalo]

I'm not a mathematician by any means, so take my advice with caution. Just reading the word problem, it sounds like (using the example you gave and picture):

length + 2(thickness + height)

[kill_bill_gates]

I've already tried that

[EDIT] Figured it out. Thanks a lot. It's like what sevenhalo thinks.

[zaza]

Hm, actually it sounds to me that what you are supposed to do is orient the package such that you are looking at the address in the correct way. Now, the dimension from left to right is denoted the Length. The other dimension that you can see, perpendicular to this, is the Depth. The third dimension, "in-out", is the thickness. The 84 inches, I suspect, would refer to the perimeter 2*length + 2*depth.

But that's only my opinion.