Special characters
All alphanumeric characters are supported in member names. There is partial support for non-alphanumeric characters. This table identifies whether a character is supported, restricted, or not supported.
- Supported characters can be used in member names.
- Restricted characters work in member names in most environments. However, there are certain circumstances, described in the table below, where these characters may affect certain functions.
- Not supported characters cannot be used within member names.
| Character name | Symbol | Support level | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| + 255 | (null) | Not Supported | The key combination + 255 can be used to specify a null space. This can have unpredictable results and is not recommended to get around the not supported use of leading or trailing spaces in member names. |
| Ampersand | & | Restricted | In Microsoft operating systems message boxes, this character is eliminated,
and the next character is underlined. Using this character will not otherwise
affect functionality. If you attempt to copy or submit an invalid journal that includes this character in a member name or description, the process correctly fails but an empty grid is displayed, and a runtime error may show. |
| Apostrophe | ‘ | Supported | The apostrophe is found on the same key as the tilde on a North American keyboard. Refer to the single quote entry for the character found on the same key as the double quote. |
| Asterisk | * | Restricted | The asterisk cannot be used as a column delimiter in text files.
Asterisks have a special meaning within structure files. They indicate that a member does not have a parent or preceding member. For instance, in this import file:
Reading from the bottom up, Cost Center has Division as parent, Division has TC Eliminations as parent, TC Eliminations has Total Company as parent, but Total Company has no preceding member. |
| @ | Supported | ||
| Back slash | \ | Supported | |
| Caret | ^ | Supported | |
| Colon |
: |
Not Supported | Excel does not support certain references with this character. |
| Comma | , | Restricted | Used by the GetCellValue and GetTextNote macro functions in Excel. |
| Curly Brackets | { } | Supported | |
| Dash | - | Supported | |
| Dollar | $ | Supported | |
| Double Quote | " | Not Supported | |
| Equals | = | Supported | |
| Exclamation Point | ! | Not Supported | |
| Forward slash | / |
Supported |
|
| Greater than | > | Restricted | If you attempt to copy or submit an invalid journal that includes this character in a member name or description, the process correctly fails but an empty grid is displayed, and a runtime error may show. |
| Less than | < | Restricted | If you attempt to copy or submit an invalid journal that includes this character in a member name or description, the process correctly fails but an empty grid is displayed, and a runtime error may show. |
| Minus | - | Supported | |
| Parentheses | ( ) | Supported | |
| Percent | % | Supported | |
| Period | . | Supported | |
| Plus | + | Supported | |
| Pound | # | Supported | |
| Question Mark | ? | Supported | |
| Semi-colon | ; | Supported | |
| Single Quote | ' | Not Supported | |
| Space (internal) | (Space) | Supported | Member names can contain an internal blank space (ex: [Opening
Balance]) but cannot begin or end with a blank space. |
| Space (leading or trailing) | (Space) | Restricted | Leading and trailing spaces are trimmed off. |
| Square Brackets | [ ] | Not Supported | |
| Tilde | ~ | Not Supported | |
| Underscore | _ | Supported | |
| Vertical Line | | | Supported |