### Author:  [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)
#### Post date: [June 19, 2002, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/1 "2002-06-19T18:52:12Z")
I once heard a member of these boards lament that one member could make a typographical symbol that he couldn’t (frankly, I think the one guy just had a better keyboard;).)
Well, anyways I know it is a little crude, but I think I found a way to get whatever [unique] symbol that you want: simply _cut_ and _paste_ from somewhere else on the web!
Here, I found all sorts of neat symbols in one strange [non-English] site:
¢‚ä[‚¶£‚Æ“Ç‚ñ‚Å‚‚¾‚³‚¢‚È¡
¢‚¤‚¶‚¡£‚Æ‚©“Ç‚Ü‚ê‚é‚Ɣ߂µ‚¢‚Å‚·¡€
I especially like the new Euro symbol at the end. I got that at another site.
\
🙂
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### Author:  [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)
#### Post date: [June 19, 2002, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/2 "2002-06-19T19:05:05Z")
You should be careful about those. You never know who won’t be able to use them. But if you insist on using those, it’s pretty easy to do. They all have codes. For instance,
€ for €, the Euro symbol.
¢ for ¢, the cent sign.
é for é, an “e” with an acute accent mark.
And so on.
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### Author:  [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)
#### Post date: [June 19, 2002, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/3 "2002-06-19T19:10:08Z")
BTW, in case you don’t know how to cut and paste, it goes like this:
1.) Drag your mouse over the text that you want, until only the text you want to save is highlighted.
2.) Press **Ctrl** and **C** simultaneously.
3.) Using your mouse again, place the cursor (that little flashing vertical line) where you want to _“paste”_ the text.
4.) Hit **Ctrl** + **V** simultaneously–and magically your text will reappear :D!
This method also works for copying icons (like wordpads, images, etc.) Simply highlight the icon and follow the same proceedure. This last item, though, is only for your personal use. Don’t recopy icons to the SDMB!
TTFN:)
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### Author:  [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)
#### Post date: [June 19, 2002, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/4 "2002-06-19T19:14:19Z")
Hmmm, sorry **Achernar** , but I think we posted our threads simultaneously. You make a good point though. Let me try that.
£ 500 is alot of money in England!
How is that?
BTW, what is this code for: :j . I never see anyone use it.
🙂
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### Author:  [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)
#### Post date: [June 19, 2002, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/5 "2002-06-19T19:15:55Z")
Sorry, that should be ;j
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### Author:  [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)
#### Post date: [June 19, 2002, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/6 "2002-06-19T19:27:23Z")
©right
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### Author:  [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)
#### Post date: [June 19, 2002, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/7 "2002-06-19T19:29:41Z")
Sorry, I don’t normally like to play around with things, but where else am I going to get the chance to learn this stuff?
I think that should be &c.
This one would be weird: &ersand
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### Author:  [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)
#### Post date: [June 19, 2002, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/8 "2002-06-19T19:34:28Z")
©
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### Author:  [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)
#### Post date: [June 19, 2002, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/9 "2002-06-19T19:42:19Z")
I’m still trying to figure out where you can find the list for all those codes. I guess most of them should be self-evident.
&schwa &edh þ êumflex &deutsch
Well, I think I have done enough on this thread for now…
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### Author:  [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)
#### Post date: [June 19, 2002, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/10 "2002-06-19T19:44:27Z")
Well, that is not until I try one more time for the above examples…
ð ê &d &ae
Well, that is _really_ it. I’m done:).
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### Author:  [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)
#### Post date: [June 19, 2002, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/11 "2002-06-19T20:02:23Z")
The comprehensive official source of these codes can be found on the [Character entity references in HTML 4](http://www.w3.org/TR/html401/sgml/entities.html) page. To use the codes listed there, just put an ampersand (&) before and a semicolon (😉 after. Have fun!
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### Author:  [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)
#### Post date: [June 24, 2002, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/12 "2002-06-24T04:08:30Z")
I always thought it might be useful to have a sign so one could tell the sex of a member, but then we’d really have to have **3** of those to be politically correct, right?
**My** name, if one didn’t relate it to the **Hugo** novel might be mistaken for either sex, for instance.
Quasi
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### Author:  [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)
#### Post date: [June 24, 2002, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/13 "2002-06-24T04:28:54Z")
Well, I actually didn’t entirely finish practicing my symbols. So why don’t I try some more.
Some of these look more entertaining than useful, but let’s see:
◊ ♠ ♣❤ ♦
It is kind of hard using the numbers. I still prefer the simple abbreviations:
&infin &radic &there4 &alpha &omega &oplus
Hmmm. Very interesting. 🙂
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### Author:  [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)
#### Post date: [June 24, 2002, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/14 "2002-06-24T04:31:54Z")
Let’s try that last line again.
∞ √ ∴ α ω ⊕
I left out the semicolon, I think. I think I was right the first time–it _is_ easier to just have a better keyboard!😉
🙂
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### Author:  [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)
#### Post date: [June 24, 2002, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/15 "2002-06-24T04:35:17Z")
Š
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### Author:  [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)
#### Post date: [June 24, 2002, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/useful-symbols/114927/16 "2002-06-24T10:08:36Z")
> [@](#):
>
> Press Ctrl and C simultaneously.
I hate to be so melancholic about this (then why don’t I stop? but see, that’s the nature of melancholia), but a superior instruction is to hold down control while pressing C. Many moons ago, when I was training users, some of the funniest sights were of them trying to press the keys simultaneously, sometimes with two hands. And besides, the odds that they will be pressed at identical Planck moments is pretty slim. Okay, the phlegs may tilt their heads and move on. The sanguines may throw a party. And the cholerics may grimace.