Re: OK what does ` mean - seriously seems to be not documented.

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Selgor here.

DerekParnell said...

Ok ... back in the old days, when output went to devices such as a teletype the two bytes had a specific meaning for the device. The CR device control code would cause the print head to move back to the leftmost position on the print carriage (thus the name CARRIAGE_RETURN). Now this physical act took a second or two or three to actually happen, depending on the device in use. So while the device was moving the carriage back into position, it would get a LF device control code from the program, which would cause the device to scroll the paper up one line's worth (thus the name LINE_FEED).

This means that if your program only did a CR, then the next printed line would over type the previous one (no LF). And if you only did a LF then the printer would attempt to print at the same cursor position, but one line down (no CR).

But now that we have modern devices that don't rely on such line-based, mechanical operations, the use of CRLF is not really required, however most printers still emulate the device code operations. As for use in text files to delimit or mark the end of lines, it really is anachronistic and redundant.

Brilliantly explained Derek.

Those were the days that one really had to know coding..programming . BASIC, COBOL, FORTRAN, PASCAl, PROLOG etc. . And Punch Cards and mark read sensed cards , even before them.

The "bad old days" (?) of computing.

The pioneer years , as someone once quoted.

Again Derek, very well written .

Cheers , Selgor.

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