Question mark character on keyboard

I am a former PC user that just got a power mac g4 as a gift and I have a question: I am getting incorrect characters when i type..I cannot get the question mark character..Where can i find the basic character commands..Does it have to do with type settings.
Help please!
Power mac g4 Mac OS X (10.3.2) incorrect text characters

Open the International pane of System Preferences and click on the Input Menu tab. When this tab is open, select the correct keyboard layout from the list of layouts. If you're using Canadian English on a pre-Tiger system, you need to use the U.S. layout, or install the Canadian English layout into your /Library/Keyboard Layouts/ folder. If multiple layouts are checked, choose to show the Input Menu in the menu bar, and choose the correct layout from that menu.
(10785)

Similar Messages

Can t find the question mark on the keyboard

hi
I ve just installed tiger 2 days ago and I can t type the question mark any more.. it gives me either this ^ (with shift) or § (with alt)..
any ideas..

gallinette:
Boot from the Tiger install disk.
Go to Utilities menu.
Launch Disk Utility.
Select your HDD (manufacturer ID) in sidebar.
Select First Aid tab in main panel.
Click or Repair disk button.
If DU reports disk needs no repairs, quit DU.
If DU reports errors, click Repair again and again until DU reports disk repaired.
If DU reports errors it cannot repair you will need to use a utility like Tech Tool Pro or Disk Warrior
In this case, because of your keys being out of order, I believe Disk Warrior will do a better job.
While booted from internal HDD go to Home > Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility.
Launch Disk Utility.
Select your HDD (manufacturer ID) in sidebar.
Select First Aid tab in main panel.
Click or Repair Disk Permissiions button.
Quit DU.
Please don't hesitate to post back with further questions or comments, or to report on how procedure worked for you.
Good luck.
cornelius
Message was edited by: cornelius

Keyboard problem - Delete sometimes writes a question mark character

This is a problem I've had for awhile but it's just now really beginning to bug me.
My old macbook sometimes wrote invisible characters when I pressed the delete key. It shows up most often on gchat--I delete something and when I press enter there is an extra '?' character that wasn't originally in my text.
When I transferred everything to the new computer I bought, the same issue arose. I'm pretty confident that it is a software issue, probably a saved setting somewhere that I accidentally changed years ago, but if someone could direct me beyond the usual reset PRAM/SMC, which doesn't solve the problem, that'd be great. Thanks!
Message was edited by: epodojil

Open the International pane of System Preferences and click on the Input Menu tab. When this tab is open, select the correct keyboard layout from the list of layouts. If you're using Canadian English on a pre-Tiger system, you need to use the U.S. layout, or install the Canadian English layout into your /Library/Keyboard Layouts/ folder. If multiple layouts are checked, choose to show the Input Menu in the menu bar, and choose the correct layout from that menu.
(10785)

Topics with ampersands (&) show up as question marks (?) inside Help's Search tab

See the attached image.
In the image:
Item A shows the Topic Title inside RH.
Item B shows what I'm typing in the Search tab of the HTML Help file. (I'm typing "GD&T").
Item C shows the list results. Notice that when I type "GD&T" in the search tab, the results return "GD?" ion the list of results.
In short the "T" is missing and the ampersand character shows a question mark character instead.
How can I get it to show an ampersand in this list and not delete the letter following the ampersand.
Thanks in advance,
Jared
Latest RH7
Vista 32 bit.

Some co-workers of mine eventually helped fix this.
In the Topic Title field for topic titles that have the & symbol, you need to type & in place of just an & symbol. This causes the & to appear within the Search tab list results. Note however that if you add this topic onto the Table of Contents, it will display & there, so you will need to rename the TOC to just use &.

Firefox is not displaying alt codes correctly, substituting a black diamond with a white question mark in their place.

Alt codes (such as ® for "registered" and  for "trademark") are being displayed as a small black diamond with a white question mark inside of it. This has also started happening to more simple characters such as exclamation marks, dashes and apostrophes.
Any ideas?

Thanks for your reply cor-el.
My posting actually included the alt code syntax, and is now rendered as the corresponding special character. I guess this isn't a surprise!
And no, it was rendered just fine. This morning when I went into the browser to see the problem, it was not mis-displaying as it had been...it had somehow changed and was behaving very nicely. That's all fine, but I'm a little bit wary of this FF browser functionality now...steady as she goes.
Also, I did check the (View > Character Encoding) you recommended, and after experimenting a bit discovered that using "Unicode (UTF-8)" made the wierd black diamond/white question mark character come back in all of the same places it was occuring...up until this morning. I've set my browser default to "Western (ISO-8859-1)" now, and everything is displaying as it should.
Thanks for your reply and suggestions. I hope others will learn from these experiences.

Incorrect keyboard language? (upside question mark for example)

Whenever I type out a message and use the 'SYM' button to reach a question mark or exclamation mark, the character that I want isn't available. Here's a few examples:
? = inverted question mark
! = inverted exclamation mark
/ = \
( ) = not available
It seems that the language of the keyboard does not match what is printed on the physical keys.
My regional language settings are English UK and I can't seem to find anything relating to this in any of the user guides.
Can anyone help?
Cheers
Post relates to: Pre p100ueu (O2)

See:
* http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306993 - HOW TO: Use the Language Bar in Windows XP
* http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-vista/The-Language-bar-overview - The Language bar (overview)
* http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/The-Language-bar-overview The Language bar (overview)
It is possible that you have switched the keyboard layout by accident.<br />
Windows remembers that setting per application.
* Make sure that you have the Language bar visible on the Windows Taskbar.
* You can do that via the right-click context menu of the Taskbar: Toolbars > Language Bar.
* Check the keyboard language (keyboard layout) setting for the application that has focus via the icon on the Language bar.
* You need to do that while Firefox has focus because Windows remembers the keyboard layout setting per application.
* The default keys to rotate the layout is a combination (Ctrl+Shift or Alt+Shift) that can easily be used in Firefox to activate a menu item.
* To avoid an unintentional switch assign a specific key sequence (Alt/Ctrl+Shift+number) to select keyboard layouts and remove the key combination to rotate layouts (Alt+Shift or Ctrl+Shift)
* Control Panel > Regional and Language Options > Keyboards and Languages > Change keyboards > Advanced key settings > Change key sequence

Have a flashing folder with a question mark on start-up but cannot hold option as wireless keyboard won't connect, how do I get it to connect if I cannot turn on the machine?

Hello all, I've registered here because I can't work out how to get my keyboard and mouse to connect.
The issue is that when I turn my mid-2010 iMac on it doesn't load up, but instead shows a flashing folder with a question mark. I've Googled this and have some idea how to fix it, the first step in all guides to fixing the problem states that you should hold the option key upon start-up. The problem I'm having is that I've just had to change the batteries on my keyboard and mouse and they are now not connecting. I can't see how to get the keyboard and mouse connected with the Mac stuck on the flashing folder screen, and I can't get the Mac past said screen without using the keyboard. Does anyone know how I can connect the two devices?
Thanks.

The flashing folder with the ? mark indicates that a bootable system can't be found. You'll need to borrow a wired keyboard so you can boot into the Recovery volume (boot with the Command + R keys held down). From there you can reinstall the system and try a normal reboot.

Special character showing as upside down question mark on oracle report

We have an oracle report which selects data from a database table. Report shows a name field and names with a special character is showing as upside down question mark.
The name is Simon John ễễ BaileyŠğčẫ
But when we run the oracle report the name is showed with 6 upside down question marks
I am not sure if these characters are unicode? (beyond western european character set)
Oracle database: 11.2.0.1 with nls_characterset = AL32UTF8
Oracle Reports Server: 10.1.2.3.0 with the following locale settings:
LANG=en_US.UTF-8
LC_CTYPE="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_NUMERIC="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_TIME="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_COLLATE="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_MONETARY="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_MESSAGES="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_PAPER="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_NAME="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_ADDRESS="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_TELEPHONE="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_MEASUREMENT="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_IDENTIFICATION="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_ALL=
Any ideas, suggesstions, is this font related issue?
Thanks for your help.

You mean the operating system where the Oracle reports server resides?

Special Character being replaced by Question Marks in Java Mapping

Hi All,
I need some help on Java Mapping related to special characters.
The problem is that i'm using a Java Mapping to add some information to the XML inside the Interface Mapping. This works fine on our development environment but, in our production environment, it replaces the special character with question marks (eg.: á --> ??).
I'm suspecting of some configuration on the Java Virtual Machine that sets the encoding, but i don't have access to it. Does anyone have any clues about this problem?
Thanks a lot,
Leonardo

Hi Leonardo
Have a look at this forum thread, this might help you to solve your problem.
Java Map Causing error because of ampersand &

Export arabic character into csv file turns into question mark in sql dev

Hi,
I am trying to export a table's output that contains some arabic and english mixed data, when I try to export it in csv, all the arabic characters change into question mark (?) but the same export is working fine on .xls or .xlsx.
Since we have to export a huge data and csv is much faster thar .xls, kindly let me know why it is happening and what is the solution for this.
Well, we are on Oracle 11gR2 and Sql Dev is 3.1
Appreciate your time and experience sharing.
Regards.

Hi,
Since you say it works for xls but not csv, and the only applicable preference setting ( Tools|Preferences|Database|Utilities|Export|Encoding ) should apply to all export formats, I would imagine this is a bug. Especially if the encoding specified in Preferences is consistent with the client OS settings. I was not able to find any prior bug logged against the Export utility for this issue.
I logged a bug for this:
Bug 13993410 - FORUM: ARABIC CHARACTER ENCODING RESPECTED FOR XLS BUT NOT CSV
Regards,
Gary
SQL Developer Team

Character set conversion UTF-8 -- ISO-8859-1 generates question mark (?)

I'm trying to convert an XML-file in UTF-8 format to another file with character set ISO-8859-1.
My problem is that the ISO-8859-1 file generates a question mark (?) and puts it as a prefix in the file.
?<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<ns0:messagetype xmlns:ns0="urn:olof">
<underkat>testv��rde</underkat>
</ns0:messagetype>
Is there a way to do the conversion without getting the question mark?
My code looks as follows:
public class ConvertEncoding {
     public static void main(String[] args) {
          String from = "UTF-8", to = "ISO-8859-1";
          String infile = "C:\\temp\\infile.xml", outfile = "C:\\temp\\outfile.xml";
          try {
               convert(infile, outfile, from, to);
          } catch (Exception e) {
               System.out.println(e.getMessage());
               System.exit(1);
     private static void convert(String infile, String outfile,
                                        String from, String to)
                         throws IOException, UnsupportedEncodingException
          //Set up byte streams
          InputStream in = null;
          OutputStream out = null;
          if(infile != null) {
               in = new FileInputStream(infile);
          if(outfile != null) {
               out = new FileOutputStream(outfile);
          //Set up character streams
          Reader r = new BufferedReader(new InputStreamReader(in, from));
          Writer w = new BufferedWriter(new OutputStreamWriter(out, to));
          /*Copy characters from input to output.
           * The InputSreamreader converts
           * from Unicode to the output encoding.
           * Characters that cannot be represented in
           * the output encoding are output as '?'
          char[] buffer = new char[4096];
          int len;
          while((len = r.read(buffer))!= -1) { //Read a block of output
               w.write(buffer, 0, len);
          r.close();
          w.flush();
          w.close();
}

Yes the next character is the '<'
The file that I read from is generated by an integration platform. I send a plain file to it (supposedly in UTF-8 encoding) and it returns another file (in between I call my java class that converts the characterset from UTF-8 to ISO-8859-1). The file that I get back contains the '��' if the conversion doesn't work and '?' if the conversion worked.
My solution so far is to skip the first "junk-characters" when reading from the inputstream. Something like:
private static final char UTF_BOM = '\uFEFF'; //UTF-BOM = ?
String from = "UTF-8", to = "ISO-8859-1";
if (from != null && from.toLowerCase().startsWith("utf-")) { //Are we reading an UTF encoded file?
/*Read first character of the UTF-Encoded file
It will return '?' in the first position if we are dealing with UTF encoding If ? is returned we skip this character in the read
try {
r.mark(1); //Only allow to read one char for the reset function to work
char c;
int i = r.read();
c = (char) i;
if (String.valueOf(UTF_BOM).equalsIgnoreCase(String.valueOf(c))) {
r.reset(); //reset to start position
r.skip(1); //Skip first character when reading from the stream
else {
r.reset();
} catch (IOException e) {
e.getMessage();
//return null;
}

How do I change my keyboard so that I can type the question mark key please?

I bought a new MacBook Air, in Spain, and I would like to use the keyboard properly in English, but for example the question mark key types a -, the = key a )...!!! Please can someone tell me how to change the settings?

annabella zoldo wrote:
Only British is selected
Uncheck the box for British and check the box for Spanish ISO.

Character recognition results in question marks using CuteFTP

I'm have trouble with character recognition when I upload my site to Network Solutions using CuteFTP. Some returns, apostrophies, etc. appear as question marks. I have tried changing the prefernces to Macbinary and to binary without any change. Any suggestions?

For my own education...
Would my solution have worked?
I realize that it's not a true fix. It's a
workaround. However, I'd like to know if it would
have made a difference.
Yes, if you confine your text to pure ascii, without any "smart" punctuation, that may work. However, the templates often have other non-punctuation characters in them already that cause the same kind of problem and removing all of them could be really tedious.

How to fix the " flashing question mark after the finder icon when starting up" withou an apple keyboard?

Hi
I am wondering How to fix the " flashing question mark after the finder icon when starting up" without an apple keyboard. I have 2 of those .7Ghz emacs so just wanna fix them
Thx

Hi,
>I am using a wireless standard keyboard so maybe the emac doesn't regognise it
Installation of driver software may be required. Do not expect any wireless device to automatically work with a Mac unless guaranteed to do so. In a case like this, use a wired USB keyboard (a PC keyboard should be OK) and a wired mouse to begin with.
>I have installed Ubuntu 13.00 on the HDD from another computer.
Is it a version for PowerPC?
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/PowerPCFAQ
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/PowerPCDownloads
>a list of eMac hotkey's that can be used before OS boot from a standard Windows keyboard?
Could the following article be of interest?
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/970299
If/when starting from a bootable CD, press and hold the C key.
Jan

TS3048 I have just purchased a new apple cordless keyboard. The numeric line of keys along the top are not functioning as they should. For example I am unable to get a question mark or a forward slash. I have tried holding down both shift and alt keys.

I have just purchased a new apple cordless keyboard. The numeric line of keys along the top are not functioning as they should. For example I am unable to get a question mark or a forward slash. I have tried holding down both shift and alt keys.

Thanks for prompt response - I tried what you suggested but I'm afraid it has not helped. It seems as though the line of number keys along the top aren't actually doing what is printed on them. Some are OK, but the further towards the right hand side of the keyboard you go, the less predicatable it becomes. So whilst the second key from the left gives me 1 and ! when holding the shift key, by the time I get to the 6 when I press and hold shift I get ^ rather than & symbol which is what is actually printed on the key. The & symbol is actually on the next key along - and when I hit the key with 8 I get * rather than the ( which is printed on they key but actually located on the next key along. Things get even more muddled by the time I am over on the right hand side as rather than a question mark (I have had to type the word as I cannot find the symbol anywhere!) I get this _ and the other symbol marked on the key is a comma, but I get - instead. It is going to drive me mad if every time I want to type something it is a guessing game....! What do you suggest - question mark

Question mark character on keyboard

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