What on earth is a `?

In welsh it's used to show that a letter i missing before the word, i.e.

'ave it! (Obviously, 'ave it not being a welsh term)

though isn't it also used in english, Guns 'n' Roses
 
Use ` all the time .... although that's because I work on Unix boxes and have to do quite a bit of scripting where it can be wrapped around a series of commands to place their output into a variable ....

e.g.

num_errors=`grep ERROR backup.log | wc -l`
echo "Number of backup errors : " $num_errors

:)
 
memyselfandi said:
No, ~ is a tilde
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On a US keyboard the ~ key is located where the ` key is on a UK one, so often something will say to press the tilde key meaning the key above tab/left of 1, which on a US keyboard is the tilde key, on a UK layout it's the grave/backquote key.

Opening the console in a game being a common example of where you are told to use the tilde key when you actually need to press the ` key.
 
csmager said:
As it is in English. However, that's the apostrophe (') we all know and love, not the backquote/grave accent (`) that's being discussed.
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Sure thing, but some of my work involves typesetting and there's a difference between ' before a word and ' after. Or at least there is where I work.
 
Lydzor said:
I believe it's an open speech mark, but people nowadays use " as open and closed.
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Indeed.

On other keyboards it is placed on more accessible places. On my Swisss keyboard ` and ' are parrrel. On my US I think they are vertically aligned if I recall.



I us e the ` and ' as open and close quotation marks in Latex all the time. '***' will result in 2 closing quotation marks.
 
nikebee said:
I've never known it to be intended as an accent, like an acute/grave/circumflex - surely thats what the ALT-keys are for to preform letters like á,à,á ?

As I said, I've always known it as a backquote for programming?
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Depends on your keyboard and software. Typically in other european countries, (I think in france it is like this but can't verify), to type "A grave" you would type the ` key and then A together.

my swiss keyboard has a funny, but usable, combination of French and German letters that you don't need the alt key, located t the right.
 
Hate said:
Well, on my mac keyboard i've got the fantastic oldskool word processing §

and a plusminus ±
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± is very useful though, with some extra effort.
When emailing a friend how much something costs, instead of ~£100 you can say £100 ± 15, like a standard deviation.
 
joey1211 said:
Sure thing, but some of my work involves typesetting and there's a difference between ' before a word and ' after. Or at least there is where I work.
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Yes, but there is a differences between ` and ' and `` and ' ' and ".
I typesetting, you force the direction so you don't get the problems of word etc. :
E.g., in word you have to use double quotes to get proper quotation direction. In English you often want single quotation marks. If you use use single quotation marks combined with apostrophe you have problems unless you use typesetting like Latex.


`Hi there, it's a bitter cold day is it not'
Would fail at "it's", closing the quotation when merely an apostrophe is needed.


`And he said to me "It's a miracle that thou hast survived", and I said onto him "It's a miracle we have not scorned against thee, lacking in thy darkest hours" flagrantly.'

A more complicated use of single and double quotation marks. Speech within speech should be shown with single then double marks. For high level quotation, one should alternate the usage... `..."...`..."...`... ... ...'..."....'..."...'
 
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