***Asterisks***

[d...@hpfclg.uucp]

**Nothing** **irritates** **me** **more** **than** **asterisks**
**placed** **around** **words** **to** **emphasize** **them**.
**It** **only** **makes** **the** **text** **more** **difficult**
**to** **read**.

**David** **Pinedo**
hpfcla!dp

[*ja...@hp-dcde.uucp]

**Of** **course**, **two** **asterisks** **on** **each** **side** **are**
**much** **too** **noisy**, **especially** **if** **used** **to** **excess**.

However, a *single* pair of asterisks, when used sparingly, give it a nice kick.

-Jack Applin
(hplabs!hp-dcd!jack)

[Larry Wall]

In article <550...@hpfclg.UUCP> d...@hpfclg.UUCP writes:
>**Nothing** **irritates** **me** **more** **than** **asterisks**
>**placed** **around** **words** **to** **emphasize** **them**.
>**It** **only** **makes** **the** **text** **more** **difficult**
>**to** **read**.

If NOTHING irritates you more than @i(that), you must be the //happiest\\
person in the whole _ w_ o_ r_ l_ d.

'Twere nice if cultural differences were our only differences.

Larry Wall
{allegra,burdvax,cbosgd,hplabs,ihnp4,sdcsvax}!sdcrdcf!lwall

[E. A. Flinn]

How else do you emphasize words? I don't know how to
underline in this system.

[Randy King]

And where have *you* been? The asterisk is an netwide accepted
means of denoting inflection. Accept it or buzz off. Oh, excuse
me, that should read *buzz* *off*.

[Jeff Sargent]

Have you ever thought of CAPITALIZING words to emphasize them? You must have
cut your programming teeth on a pre-ASCII system with only capitals, where
some other means of emphasis (e.g. asterisks) is required. (I know; Purdue
still has a trio of CDC 6000's, and I maintain the terminal system on them!
In our local graffiti file, asterisks [one on each side of the word] are the
normal way of emphasizing things.) However, on a full-ASCII system, capitals
work WONDERS for emphasis (see?).
--
-- Jeff Sargent
{allegra|ihnp4|decvax|harpo|seismo|ucbvax}!pur-ee!pucc-h:aeq
...drifting along with the tumbling terminals....

[John Hobson]

>> I couldn't (I mean this (sincerely, deep down (as only one who has
>> suffered (it was the summer of '42 (.........)))))))))))))))))))
>>
>> Moriarty

Aha! Another LISP programmer! Get him, boys!

John Hobson
AT&T Bell Labs--Naperville, IL
ihnp4!ihuxq!amigo2

[Dave Decot]

Well, there seem to be some conventions developing in the use of various
emphasizers. There are three kinds of emphasis in use, in order of popularity:

1) using CAPITAL LETTERS to make words look "louder",
2) using *asterisks* to put sparklers around emphasized words, and
3) s p a c i n g words o u t, possibly accompanied by 1) or 2).

I usually use 1 or 2, whichever makes it clearer. For instance, if I'm
talking about something that's already capitalized, or want to emphasize the
word "I", *I* put asterisks around it.

For underlining titles of books & so forth, I use \slashes/. The intended
effect is that the word was underlined, but the line slipped out from
underneath at the ends.

Dave Decot

[Randy King]

>> I couldn't (I mean this (sincerely, deep down (as only one who has suffered
>> (it was the summer of '42 (.........)))))))))))))))))))
>>
>> Moriarty

Syntax error at line 1

[Randy King]

JefF WriTeS ThAT UpPeRCAsE IS bEtTEr fOr eMPHaSiS thaN asTerIsKS. i DOn't
kNoW ABoUT ThAt, jeFF! IN ThE hanDs oF a MAd cAsE SwItChER (Or Is tHaT A
swItCh/CaSE) IT cOUld gEt ConFuSiNG. bUt **EvEn stIlL** ThE oL' asTErIsK
ComEs ThRoUgH.

raNdY kiNg
aT&T/Cp-mG
iHnP4!mGwEeD!rjK

[Erik E. Fair]

Capitalizing whole words gives the impression that you're shouting.
THAT'S UNNECESSARY!

Erik E. Fair

dual!fa...@BERKELEY.ARPA
{ihnp4,ucbvax,cbosgd,decwrl,amd70,fortune,zehntel}!dual!fair
Dual Systems Corporation, Berkeley, California

[James]

Try CAPS!
--
Jim Kalmadge
IX 1c415
8-367-0475
ihuxw!kalm

[Jeff Meyer]