apldyalog

Is there a special meaning to underbar variables names in APL


I'm trying to transcribe the FMT function from Formatting APL to Dyalog.

FMT function

However I'm not sure of the meaning of the underbar S and I don't see a mechanism to enter underbar variable names into Dyalog.

So two questions in one: How does one enter underbar variable names into Dyalog and do they have some implied meaning (eg transpose of S)?


Solution

  • Underscored letters are just standard variables - documentation here- although typically replaced in the font with circled letters.

    Whilst I'm not sure how to type them on other platforms, in the terminal you can layer the _ and S together in replace mode - typically toggled to by the Insert key (IN keycode). So type _ then left arrow to move cursor over the '_' and then the letter (S).

    ⎕FMT can also generate these with {⎕FMT '_',(⎕UCS 8),⍵}'S'