The Straight Dope

Go Back   Straight Dope Message Board > Main > About This Message Board

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 03-24-2000, 07:50 PM
mangeorge mangeorge is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Mar 1999
Location: Berkeley, CA
Posts: 14,037
The "underlines" between words, usually in names?
Peace,
mangeorge

------------------
I only know two things;
I know what I need to know
And
I know what I want to know
Mangeorge, 2000
Reply With Quote
Advertisements  
  #2  
Old 03-24-2000, 08:02 PM
Patty O'Furniture Patty O'Furniture is offline
Guest
 
Join Date: May 1999
Some sites don't permit users to register screen names that contain spaces, so instead of signing up as Cecil Adams, you'd have to resort to Cecil_Adams or CecilAdams.

I don't know what the technical reasons are for this, but it's quite common. I had to use the underscore-instead-of-space in screen names for my Yahoo mailbox & a few other sites. I was surprised to see it was not a requirement of this message board..
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 03-24-2000, 08:45 PM
tomndebb tomndebb is offline
Mod Rocker
Moderator
 
Join Date: Mar 1999
Location: N E Ohio
Posts: 34,377
A different application, but based on the same software issues, occurs on many newsgroups. They do not have software to support bolding or italics, so they either use *asterisks* or _underscores_ to set off text such as book titles and magazine articles.

------------------
Tom~
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 03-24-2000, 09:57 PM
Jois Jois is offline
Guest
 
Join Date: Oct 1999
Even though I have seen *this* used many times it still looks wrong_and_I_keep_waiting-for something else to happen.

Plus my typing skills are marginal and * and _ really slow me down!

Glad SDMB doesn't require it!


------------------
Are you driving with your eyes open or are you using The Force? - A. Foley
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 03-24-2000, 10:03 PM
mangeorge mangeorge is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Mar 1999
Location: Berkeley, CA
Posts: 14,037
Well thanks, y'all. Kinda obvious, once you know. I, too, am glad it's not needed here.
Peace,
mangeorge
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 03-26-2000, 08:53 PM
Jois Jois is offline
Guest
 
Join Date: Oct 1999


°
°

Tee hee!
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 03-27-2000, 03:45 PM
AskNott AskNott is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Mar 1999
Location: Anderson, IN,USA
Posts: 13,670
My computer teacher kept pronouncing * as "ass-te-rick." Not wanting to embarrass her in front of the class, I told her during a break to remember the quote, "I regret that I have but one asterisk for my country."

------------------
AskNott

"Measure twice, cut once. Dang! Measure again, cut again.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 07:50 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.7.3
Copyright ©2000 - 2013, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.

Send questions for Cecil Adams to: cecil@chicagoreader.com

Send comments about this website to: webmaster@straightdope.com

Terms of Use / Privacy Policy

Advertise on the Straight Dope!
(Your direct line to thousands of the smartest, hippest people on the planet, plus a few total dipsticks.)

Publishers - interested in subscribing to the Straight Dope?
Write to: sdsubscriptions@chicagoreader.com.

Copyright © 2013 Sun-Times Media, LLC.