Floating period

[jmt356]

On some keyboards, I have seen a key for a floating period--that is, a period that is slightly raised above the line. It's usually used to separate two words or phrases, but not to indicate the end of a sentence. Does anyone know what this character is called so I can Google "how to type "X" on my keyboard" (where "X" is the name of the character I'm looking for)?

[Roderunner]

Would it be the one 2 to the right of 'L' key.?

[Bigaldoc]

I've not seen a character such as that on an American keyboard.

But, how about this one ······· as opposed to ...... ?

That first one is Unicode 00B7 and if you're macro aware you could easily program its use with a hot key.

[Bigaldoc]

I should have added so you don't have to ask. I use the FREE UtilFr – Clavier+ 10.6.2

And with hot keys I'm able to easily type € £ ä ½ and many others.

[Leif]

And if you just want to use the keyboard without additional software, try Alt+0183 to give the same · as Al.

(Hold down the Alt key and enter
0183
using the numeric keypad on the right, not the numbered keys along the top of the keyboard.)

[stuck]

I would have searched the Windows Character Map, or if inside a Word doc clicked on Insert |Symbol.

Ken

[Bigaldoc]

You and Leif already know this, Ken, but just in case JMT doesn't:

[jmt356]

What is the name of that symbol called? Floating period? Is it not on the international keyboard so that I can avoid the hassle of using unicode or a macro?

[HansV]

As you can see in Bigaldoc's screenshot, it is named Middle Dot.
I am not aware of a keyboard layout that includes the middle dot.
As mentioned by Leif, you can type Alt+0183 (using the digits on the numeric keypad) to insert it.
In Microsoft Word, you can also type B7 followed by Alt+x.
Using a utility such as Clavier, mentioned by Bigaldoc, you can assign a shortcut key to middle dot (or any other character).

[John Gray]

In the old days when people got taught proper maths, the "middle dot" was actually a decimal point, as in 3·14159, not a full stop, as in 2.71828.
The latter full stop/period usage is almost universal now, because typewriter and computer keyboards do not have a key bearing a proper decimal point...

And yes, I know that some lands use the 'decimal comma' - but I doubt that this was centrally positioned in the vertical plane!

[HansV]

In the old days when I studied mathematics, the middle dot was used to indicate multiplication: 3·4 = 12.
A cross × is (was) also used: 3×4 = 12, but mathematicians prefer the shorter · (and omit it altogether if possible).

[John Gray]

In the old days when I studied mathematics, the middle dot was used to indicate multiplication: 3·4 = 12.

Agreed - there was a dual usage; but the specification of any decimal number like 1·41421, or even 2·99792458×10⁸ was highly unlikely to be interpreted as a multiplicative action!

[jmt356]

I have an HP G62 laptop which has no embedded keyboard and no num lock (that I can find). Does this mean I can't use alt+0183 (using the digits on the numeric keypad) to insert Middle Dot?

[HansV]

Most laptops that do not have a separate numeric keypad have one embedded in the main keyboard; it can be activated by pressing the Fn key then one of the function keys. If your laptop doesn't have that, you can still use the Character Map accessory to select the middle dot character and to copy it to the clipboard, ready to be pasted into any application. Character map can be selected by clicking Start > (All) Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Character Map. If you use it frequently, you may want to pin it to the Start menu or to the taskbar, or create a desktop shortcut.