Special ascii characters useful to musicians & liturgists

[FrGareth]

OK. I admit it. I use Windows Vista.

I started off on a ZX81, progressed to a BBC Micro, then used Unix machines professionally (PhD in astrophysics before seminary).

But for the sake of compatibility with the rest of the world, the most enlightened and exalted users of Macs excepted, I am now on my 4th windows machine.

I'm not finding that Merseysider's original ALT-U tip works for me on Vista/Office 2007.

Instead, CTRL+SHIFT+: gives an umlaut and there are similar combos for other diacriticals (search for "diacritical" in Word Help).

Also beware, because making keystrokes work is tricksy!

The Alt+nnn codes only work if you use the NUMERIC keypad AND Num Lock is on.

Also don't confuse Alt with "Alt Gr" (the latter will get you acute accents on vowels with maximum ease).

Beware (and I just found this out the hard way without knowing how to undo what I'd done): Holding "Alt Gr" while pressing 4, 8, 6 and 3 on a numeric keypad with Num Lock OFF will rotate your screen. (One to annoy your colleagues with when away from their desks.)

For Gwyn's sake I must sadly relate that these don't work for w and y, which are Welsh vowels so for future copying, have: Ŷ ŷ Ŵ ŵ
[Gwyn - I was indeed in Staples Cardiff last Saturday!]

Oh for the days when fonts were for baptism and characters were colourful parishioners....

FrGareth

[musicus]

OK. I admit it. I use Windows Vista.

Absolvo te. 10 Hail Marys and an Our Father...

Beware (and I just found this out the hard way without knowing how to undo what I'd done): Holding "Alt Gr" while pressing 4, 8, 6 and 3 on a numeric keypad with Num Lock OFF will rotate your screen. (One to annoy your colleagues with when away from their desks.)

I just tried this with a colleague's Windows PC and it didn't work. (They are using Windows XP - does this trick require Vista?)

[keitha]

I tried this on my office laptop and none of it worked. That was on Windows XP. I am now on my own laptop (which has Vista), and I think we have some success!

[MaryR]

Beware (and I just found this out the hard way without knowing how to undo what I'd done): Holding "Alt Gr" while pressing 4, 8, 6 and 3 on a numeric keypad with Num Lock OFF will rotate your screen. (One to annoy your colleagues with when away from their desks.)

Oh yeah! That's great fun!

But I can't tell you what I'm operating on, except that it's Windows something or other. :-/ I'm going to have such fun in the office tomorrow.

[docmattc]

There was a topic to this thread folks, and rotating your colleagues screens wasn't it!

[SOP]

but it isn't a million miles away from the topic and is providing some light relief.

We could argue about which ascii characters are the most useful if you prefer. You should know us by now, we will argue about anything given the chance.

Please don't over-moderate the forum.

[mcb]

¿əsɐəǀd ‘əɯ dǀəɥ ɦpoqəɯos uɐᴐ

[SOP]

No.

[TimSharrock]

what about some Syriac? ܕܓܡ

[presbyter]

ոհ նո, նոտ տհիս ագաին

very useful characters for liturgical musicians in Armenia

[presbyter]

characters for Finale and Sibelius users

анд тхис ис фор Финале анд Сибелиус усерс ин Руссиа

[presbyter]

cαν βε θσεδ βυ βοτη Ορτηοδοξ ανδ Cατηολιc

I'll get me coat..............

[musicus]

There was a topic to this thread folks, and rotating your colleagues screens wasn't it!

Sorry.

Now, does anyone know a shortcut for the trademark (TM) symbol. Admittedly, I only ever use it ironically, but it would be a useful one to know.

[mcb]

Now, does anyone know a shortcut for the trademark (TM) symbol.

On a Mac, ⌥-shift-2 (alt-shift-2)

[presbyter]

™ - hey! He's correct! But I'm not so sure why I might want to ™ any music