GNU bug report logs - #19605
quotes: cp: use ASCII single-quotes in "cp -v"

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Message #23 received at 19605 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Bob Proulx <bob <at> proulx.com>
To: 19605 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Cc: 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson <jidanni <at> jidanni.org>
Subject: Re: bug#19605: cp -v vs LC_ALL vs. quote marks
Date: Fri, 16 Jan 2015 10:49:51 -0700

Pádraig Brady wrote:
> Dan Jacobson wrote:
> > All I know is in xterm I click three times and all of '...' including
> > the quotes gets copied, which is fine with me. Just keep it all 0x27.
> 
> Ah right that's an xterm specific feature. See XTerm*on3Clicks here:
> http://lukas.zapletalovi.com/2013/07/hidden-gems-of-xterm.html

Actually no.  Triple click to select the full line is a standard
feature of X Windows since forever.  I use it all of the time in
Firefox and Chromium for instance.  Every X widget should support it
natively.

Since triple clicks copy the entire line then the `...' being part of
the entire line will get copied too.  But I don't think the ` is the
worst part of that.  The worst part is the -> part.  You wouldn't want
to be pasting that part into a shell.  Selecting the entire line would
be useful for pasting as plain text such as into an editor.  (I am not
suggesting changing the -> but just pointing it out.)

FWIW regardless of the historical font (that I have never seen in my
lifetime) of ` and ' being symmetrical I have never liked the use of
the `...' in quote context.  I would prefer to have the quoted strings
use '...' too.  I know several projects have gone that way.  It looks
better and is more useful both at the same time.

Bob

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