Larry, all posts were in jest.
I believe the author is only counting the links facing out. I am sure it was just a way to name a mold. There had to be some way to ID there different molds that appear similar to a novice.

The words below are from Bill Borlands Blue Book. I think he was the 1st to try and ID the old molds and put pictures and a name in a book. Yes, I have said some bad things about Borland, but he also did a lot of good things for the hobby. I refer to his Blue book all the time.

HH in his fine book Nevada Gaming Checks and Chips (picture section) ID's the same 3 molds as:
FChain = flat
OChain = Oval
RChain = Raised
No reference to the number of links.

Yes, you are correct, I can not spell or use correct grammer. I own up to it. <g>