Bullwinkle58
Posts: 11302
Joined: 2/24/2009
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quote:
ORIGINAL: pws1225
Okay Mr. Moose, which key is the hyphen and which one is the dash? The one next to the "0" key looks exactly like the one above the "+" key on the numeric keypad. I never have understood why there's a difference between the two.
Most humble regards, Paul (a non-moose-like, mostly humanoid-like person)
I never use the numeric keypad; I had to look closely to see what you mean.
From ancient memory they are different ASCII symbols with different hexadecimal code underneath. To your box they're as different as an 'A' and a '5'.
I think my keyboard is standard, if that still means anything. My hyphen is lower-case key to right of '0'. The upper-case on that key is the underscore. Very useful in computer coding.
There are two kinds of dashes, explained here by Wiki:
"Not to be confused with hyphen or minus sign.
A dash is a punctuation mark that is similar to a hyphen or minus sign but that differs from both of these symbols primarily in length and function. The most common versions of the dash are the en dash (–) and the em dash (—), named for the length of a typeface's lower-case n and upper-case M respectively.
Usage varies both within English and in other languages, but the usual convention in printed English text is:
Either version may be used to denote a break in a sentence or to set off parenthetical statements, although writers are generally cautioned to use a single form consistently within their work. In this function, en dashes are used with spaces and em dashes are used without them:[1]
[Em dash:] A flock of sparrows—some of them juveniles—alighted and sang.
[En dash:] A flock of sparrows – some of them juveniles – alighted and sang.
The en dash (but not the em dash) is also used to indicate spans or differentiation, where it may be considered to replace "and" or "to" (but not "to" in the phrase "from … to …"):[2]
The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was fought in western Pennsylvania and along the present US–Canadian border (Edwards, pp. 81–101).
The em dash (but not the en dash) is also used to set off the sources of quotes:
In matters of grave importance, style, not sincerity, is the vital thing. — Oscar Wilde"
A hyphen looks very much like an en dash. But it isn't. Most word processors have AutoCorrect settings for how dashes will be formatted on the fly.
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