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Old 25th Aug 2014, 12:15 pm   #1
Ian - G4JQT
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Default How to type Symbols (eg ohms)

Split from this thread: https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...d.php?t=108783

(Incidentally, how do I type the omega symbol on the forum? [alt 234] doesn't work.)

Last edited by AC/HL; 26th Aug 2014 at 10:42 pm. Reason: Thread split
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Old 25th Aug 2014, 3:21 pm   #2
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Default Re: Unusual resistors?

I wouldn't bother, ohm spelt out always works, some fonts have something different, and ohm is one less key press than alt 234 !
 
Old 25th Aug 2014, 9:18 pm   #3
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Default Re: Unusual resistors?

According to my ancient MS-DOS manual, to use the <ALT> 234 method of typing Ω, the numbers must be entered using the numeric keypad. You will need to press the <NUM LOCK> key if the numeric keypad is not active. This holds true on my XP Laptop, where the numeric keypad lies within the QWERTY keys, but I usually use it with a seperate keyboard when at home. The code for µ is <ALT> 230.

Last edited by emeritus; 25th Aug 2014 at 9:29 pm.
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Old 26th Aug 2014, 12:54 pm   #4
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Default Re: Unusual resistors?

Ω µ

Thanks for that!

Much quicker than copy/paste from a WP.

Or you can just use R as in 100R, 4R7 etc.
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Old 26th Aug 2014, 1:08 pm   #5
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Default Re: Unusual resistors?

Tried that already. Caps lock using numerical keypad:

[alt 234] = Û ( U with ^ above it on my screen)

[alt 230] µ (yes!)

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Old 26th Aug 2014, 1:32 pm   #6
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Default Re: Unusual resistors?

[Alt 234] = Û corrresponds with the "Multilingual (Latin 1)" character set (code page 850). You need to change to the "United States" character set (437). Not sure how to do this under Windows. Under MS-DOS it involves using the "chcp" command.
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Old 26th Aug 2014, 1:42 pm   #7
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Quote:
Or you can just use R as in 100R, 4R7 etc.
Even simpler then my way!
 
Old 26th Aug 2014, 6:06 pm   #8
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Arrow Re: Unusual resistors?

This alternate character set problem tripped me up a few years back. I was then using Windows 2000 - and still am! I recall that a tweak of the registry was required. On this PC, Alt-234 gives Ω; Alt-251 gives √; Alt 171 gives ½. There are other differences too. If I recall correctly, these symbols are not displayed using the Num. Lock - Alt. sequence with the standard installation of Windows 2000 and Windows XP. (Can't vouch for later Windows systems).

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Old 26th Aug 2014, 7:44 pm   #9
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Default Re: Unusual resistors?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Skywave View Post
This alternate character set problem tripped me up a few years back. I was then using Windows 2000 - and still am! I recall that a tweak of the registry was required. On this PC, Alt-234 gives Ω; Alt-251 gives √; Alt 171 gives ½. There are other differences too. If I recall correctly, these symbols are not displayed using the Num. Lock - Alt. sequence with the standard installation of Windows 2000 and Windows XP. (Can't vouch for later Windows systems).Al.
And that totally fails to consider that most people are going to be viewing your keyboard-codes on a web-based forum where you have no control whatsoever over what their local font-settings/code-pages are.

Not everyone's using Microsoft.

Not everyone's using a UK/US-English native codepage or preferred local display rendition.

If you do want to use inline non-standard symbols it's far better that you should use two-byte Unicode: most browsers [and associated text-to-speech programs used by those with visual impairments] make a decent attempt at rendering these.
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Old 26th Aug 2014, 11:15 pm   #10
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Default Re: How to type Symbols (eg ohms)

I just go to RUN and enter charmap. Lots of other interesting things there too like:-
∑ √ ⅞ ۞ ♫ ☺

Just SELECT and COPY
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Old 26th Aug 2014, 11:35 pm   #11
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Default Re: How to type Symbols (eg ohms)

I think I may have an answer to the [Alt] 234 = Û question.

Firstly, my OS is Windows XP, and my browser is Chrome.

I had thought I had reset all the language options to "English (United Kingdom)" when I first got my laptop, but delving around in the "Regional and Language Settings" tab in the Control Panel, I found that, under the "Advanced" tab, the language was still "English (United States)". I changed this to "English (United Kingdom)" and restarted as instructed. I then found that, on entering the forum, I now got [Alt] 234 = Û !

I went back to the Control Panel, selected the "Regional and Language Settings", reset the language under the Advanced" tab to "English (United States)", restarted as instructed, and on re-entering the forum, found that [ALT] 234 = Ω was restored.


I have attached a screen shot of the control panel menu, and two pages from the 1994 MS-DOS manual showing the characters that can be generated by the [ALT] XXX method with the United States [437] and Multilingual (Latin 1) [850] character sets. According to the options in the "Advanced" menu, the 8 character sets of 1994 have been greatly expanded, but the original sets have retained their original numbering.
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Last edited by emeritus; 26th Aug 2014 at 11:50 pm.
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Old 27th Aug 2014, 10:44 am   #12
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Question Re: Unusual resistors?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Skywave View Post
This alternate character set problem tripped me up a few years back. I was then using Windows 2000 - and still am! I recall that a tweak of the registry was required. On this PC, Alt-234 gives Ω; Alt-251 gives √; Alt 171 gives ½. There are other differences too. If I recall correctly, these symbols are not displayed using the Num. Lock - Alt. sequence with the standard installation of Windows 2000 and Windows XP. (Can't vouch for later Windows systems).Al.
Quote:
Originally Posted by G6Tanuki View Post
And that totally fails to consider that most people are going to be viewing your keyboard-codes on a web-based forum where you have no control whatsoever over what their local font-settings/code-pages are.
Be that as maybe. I have been using that arrangement for over ten years now and have never had anyone come back to me with a comment along the lines of "What are those strange symbols in your script?"
Moreover, this site is a web-based forum and I have just displayed some of those Alt chars., produced by the method I have explained. So, did you receive, read and understand them? Anyone else have a problem with them?

Al.
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Old 27th Aug 2014, 3:56 pm   #13
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Default Re: How to type Symbols (eg ohms)

alt-z types Ω on a Mac
alt-m types µ
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Old 28th Aug 2014, 3:13 pm   #14
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Default Re: How to type Symbols (eg ohms)

In Linux, use the "Alt Gr" key to get various symbols: altgr+Q gives you Ω, altgr + m gives you µ, altgr + ( gives you ±. There are others, of course .....
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Old 28th Aug 2014, 3:29 pm   #15
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Default Re: How to type Symbols (eg ohms)

They only give a code for a symbol, what that is rather depends on what is decoding it. Unicode is consistent, the rest are not. I will stick to ohms (or R) etc..
 
Old 24th Sep 2014, 6:38 pm   #16
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Default Re: How to type Symbols (eg ohms)

To get a consistent encoding on websites, it is also possible to get these characters by using the HTML special character code. For example, &#937 for omega or &#181/&#956 for micro. The code needs to be followed by a semicolon ';'. The text editor here and on other forums converts them automatically to the correct character.

&#937: Ω
&#181: µ
&#956: μ

A browser search for 'html character codes' will find you more codes.
The 'R' notation seems the simplest though!

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Old 24th Sep 2014, 8:14 pm   #17
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Default Re: How to type Symbols (eg ohms)

Quote:
Originally Posted by WaveyDipole View Post
To get a consistent encoding on websites, it is also possible to get these characters by using the HTML special character code. For example, &#937 for omega or &#181/&#956 for micro. The code needs to be followed by a semicolon ';'. The text editor here and on other forums converts them automatically to the correct character.

&#937: Ω
&#181: µ
&#956: μ

A browser search for 'html character codes' will find you more codes.
The 'R' notation seems the simplest though!
This still depends on the viewer's native character-set options including those you have decided to encode your original text in.

Someone whose browser-locale-defined character-set is, say, Hebrew, is likely to see a rendition entirely different to what you may think you have typed.

[I speak from a decade or so's exchanging documents with techies from one of the world's largest firewall/network-security-providers who are based in Tel Aviv].
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