item delimiter

[Rob Cozens]

>>What is the "safest" char to use as an item delimiter when you 
>>don't know anything about the text?

IMFO, the answer is "none"...because an itemDelimiter is useless in 
parsing text unless it is provided to you along with the text to be 
parsed, and if you are creating delimited text you obviously know 
something about the text to begin with.  :{`)

If you are building a general-purpose list processing handler, let 
the caller supply the delimiter.

One issue not mentioned is whether the itemDelimiter will ever be 
visible to the user.

In my soon-to-be-released database, it is my preference that a user 
with direct editing privileges be able to readily identify the end of 
field delimiter; so for years I have used numToChar(240), which 
displays as a black apple in the DB's font.

So my quest is not for the "safest" delimiter, but the best VISUAL 
delimiter.  Can anyone tell me what numToChar(240) will get me on 
Windows & Unix platforms, or suggest a better visual itemDelimiter?
-- 

Rob Cozens
CCW, Serendipity Software Company
http://www.oenolog.com/who.htm

"And I, which was two fooles, do so grow three;
Who are a little wise, the best fooles bee."

from "The Triple Foole" by John Donne (1572-1631)