On Linux, there is the compose key, on Mac, there is the option/alt key, and both are very convenient. On Windows, there are the alt key codes but these are very inconvenient, instead you can use the program AllChars (<a href="http://allchars.zwolnet.com">allchars.zwolnet.com</a>) which imitates the behaviour of the compose key. I use these methods and have learnt the few combinations that represent the common unicode characters (dashes and quote marks apart from accented letters).<br>
<br>I would argue that using the proper characters increases readability of the source code: e.g. J\"urgen Strau\ss{} is harder to read than Jürgen Strauß.<br><br>The tricky thing about the various dashes is that, with a monospaced font, it is hard to work out what sort of dash you are looking at (they're all the same length).<br>
<br>Andrew<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On 4 May 2010 13:15, Wilfred van Rooijen <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:wvanrooijen@yahoo.com">wvanrooijen@yahoo.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
I'd have to somehow input the character directly, and I am sure that there are ways to do that, but those will not increase readability of the source code :-))</blockquote></div><br>