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Cardinal Sign

Posted: Tue Jun 23, 2009 12:27 pm
by Stela
Hello…

Can someone tell me what the Cardinal ( # ) sign means?

Example:

#FileName = "Connector.html"
#Type = "MYSQL"
#HTTP = "True"

Thanks!

Re: Cardinal Sign

Posted: Tue Jun 23, 2009 12:40 pm
by califdon
It means different things in different contexts. Depends on whether it's in a source file (what language?) or configuration file, etc. Most commonly, and almost surely in the context you showed, it indicates that anything following it on that line is only a comment and will be ignored.

Re: Cardinal Sign

Posted: Tue Jun 23, 2009 4:50 pm
by pickle
I've never heard it called the "cardinal" sign. Only the "pound" sign.

What ~califdon said is right.

Re: Cardinal Sign

Posted: Tue Jun 23, 2009 8:03 pm
by McInfo
It's also called an octothorpe. I like to think "eight thorns", but that is probably incorrect since thorpe appears to be related to a cluster of houses.

Edit: More at World Wide Words

Edit: This post was recovered from search engine cache.

Re: Cardinal Sign

Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 1:46 am
by Stela
Well, I only used the google translator, in portuguese that sign is called "cardinal".

Thanks for the answers :D

Re: Cardinal Sign

Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 2:31 am
by VladSun
In Bulgaria it's called "диес" [die's]. Especially when referring to the telephone keypad button # :)

Re: Cardinal Sign

Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 3:09 am
by Weirdan
VladSun wrote:In Bulgaria it's called "диес" [die's]. Especially when referring to the telephone keypad button # :)
Here it would be "диез" [die'ʒ], but more commonly when referring to music notation sign.

Re: Cardinal Sign

Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 3:13 am
by onion2k
pickle wrote:I've never heard it called the "cardinal" sign. Only the "pound" sign.

What ~califdon said is right.
I hate it when people call # a pound sign. This is a pound sign: £

</british>

Re: Cardinal Sign

Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 4:13 am
by papa
It's called square in Swedish... :P

Re: Cardinal Sign

Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 4:21 am
by jayshields
I must be the only one thinking I'm looking at a different character.

# is a hash...

Re: Cardinal Sign

Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 10:39 am
by califdon
jayshields wrote:I must be the only one thinking I'm looking at a different character.

# is a hash...
Nah, that's what you smoke.