What keystroke combo is necessary to produce a letter with a macron over it?
(Similar examples: option-U + U = ü; option-N + N = ñ.)

In Lion, if it's a vowel, no sweat: just hold down the vowel key and select the option with the macron over it.

But if I want to put a macron over the letter X (shorthand for "mean"), there is no way that I can find. And there's no such item among the various symbols, technical or math characters.

I've searched the Net and several suggestions have popped up, none of which seem to work for me (Word 2011).

A solution to that problem and the following one would be gratefully received.

I have no idea how to get any UTF-8 symbol into a text even if I know the code number.

Use Character Viewer, available in System Preferences>Language & Text>Input Sources (at least, in Snow Leopard). I have the box to "Show Input Menu In Menu Bar" checked so that I can get at it easily whenever I like. Or, go to Edit>Special Characters to make it visible.

In Character Viewer, select the By Category tab, then go to European Scripts and select Latin. By scrolling down, you'll get to the selections with X. Select the one you want and either drag it into your document or click Insert to put it at the insertion point.

AFAIK, there is no keyboard combo that will do it for X. Caveat: you may have a problem with Word. See font issue with MS Word 2008, solved

For more references, see this Apple search page.

Nice try. But I did all that already ... to no avail.
Still, there must be some way of doing what I want.
If not, if anyone has such in a document and can transfer it here intact, I'll see if I can cut-and-paste it.

Also, still wanting/waiting to know how to create UTF-8 characters in a document using the code numbers.

This works in OS X 10.6.8 (as well as in the listed OSs), but the macron is offset a bit.

Edit: I just tried it in Excel X...no luck.

grelber,

I don't know if this will work in Word.

* in your document, switch to Arial Unicode MS as the font

* go to System Preferences -> Language & Text -> Input Sources and select Unicode Hex Input from the alphabetical list

* if needed, under Input source options, select Allow a different one for each document

* if needed, select Show Input menu in menu bar

* return to your document and select Unicode Hex Input from the Input menu

* type X

* hold down the option key (alt)

* type +0305

* release option key

* return to the previous font and Input source you were using

Yes, it's offset so that it looks more like a superscript.

Merci. I'll give it a try later on today.
But if, having done so, I can't cut-and-paste the symbol (and therefore have to go through those machinations each and every time I need x-macron), it won't be a true solution.

By the bye, I notice that PubMed (et al) replaces the symbol with the phrase "x with macron" whenever it appears in scientific publications ... which raises the issue that if it can be printed in journals, ... [well, you get the idea].

I also assume that your instructions are the standard method for using UTF-8 code. Correct me if I'm wrong.

EDIT:
Hot snot! (Forgive the expression.)
It worked ... although when holding down the alt key and typing (what appears to be +0305), nothing appears on the line; when alt key released, the following showed up: xÌ… . (Does it render ~ show up when I cut-and-paste it in this reply? It does for me here, as well as in other documents.)

If you want a commercial solution (well worth it), try PopChar .

I immediately thought of you when I saw US Academic Keyboard Layout (freeware).

Thanks, that would appear to be the bee's knees.

However, what's the reliability/safety of the source (macupdate.com), re downloads?
I'm not familiar with it, and it has an ad on that page for MacKeeper, which others have sternly warned of.

I have downloaded from MacUpdate many times and never had a problem.

I've used MacUpdate since the demise of VersionTracker, and I've never experienced any issues with either it or anything I've d/l'ed through it.

But if you prefer to be (overly, in my estimation) cautious, you can click on the "Visit Developer's Site" link on the MacUpdate page and d/l the app directly from the University of Bucharest's Web site by clicking on the line that says "Keyboard layout for linguistic and dialectal texts (US Academic Unicode 6, revised in March 2012)."

Hmmm... I don't see that MacKeeper ad, even with all my extensions disabled.

And, to be technically correct, one doesn't download from MacUpdate, but rather via MacUpdate; the MacUpdate download link redirects to whatever location the developer serves the software from. (In this case, it's a Dropbox account's Public folder.)

Not to belabor the point, but again, you won't be downloading the app "directly from the University of Bucharest's Web site;" you'll be downloading it, via a link on that page, from the same Dropbox folder I referred to above.

I downloaded "US Academic U6, version 3, (radically) updated and (radically) revised (February–March 2012)" but have no clue what to do with it.

The installation instructions (below) don't tell me HOW to install the 191KB executable file provided (US Academic U6.keylayout).

INSTALLATION
Any keylayout may be installed (MAC OS X 10.2 or later) in either:
1. Library/Keyboard Layouts (recommended; available to all users of the given computer); or
2. Users/User[i.e. you]/Library/Keyboard Layouts. In this latter case, the keylayout is available to only the logged-in user.

Neither of the Library destinations seem to have anything in their folders labeled Keyboard Layouts. So, what's that all about?

I reluctant to attempt any drag-and-drop operation (if that would even work) without knowing the consequences of my actions in advance. So any help would be gratefully received.

> Neither of the Library destinations seem to have anything in their folders labeled Keyboard Layouts. So, what's that all about?

That's not uncommon and is remedied by simply creating a "Keyboard Layouts" folder in your location of choice. (For what it's worth, my 10.6.8 installation has got /Library/Keyboard Layouts, but it's empty.)

Next, drag the executable file into it, restart your iMac, look for an appropriately named option under /Apps/SysPrefs > Language & Text > Input Sources, select it, and see what you get.

(That's my read on the situation, anyhow.)

I can add that my 10.7.3 installation also includes an empty Keyboard Layouts folder within both my /Users/me/Library directory and the /Library at the root level which serves all accounts...

Exactly. Why?! There are many, many keyboard layouts and hundreds of font suites. How come they don't show up where they're supposed to be? Was Alice right?

Because Apple parked them elsewhere (bundled in System/Library/Keyboard Layouts I believe), out of easy reach of grubby users who would only mess things up... The other two Keyboard Layout folders are intended for 3rd party additions like this US Academic layout.

I thought as much. Similar to 'hiding' User/Library.
Thanks for the confirmation.

grelber,

Does the US Academic Keyboard Layout meet your needs?

If so, this link may be redundant. It provides some information on combining diacritics in Unicode aware applications. Be aware that there may be display problems.

Extended Keyboard Accent Codes

Combining Macron is Shift + Option + A

I haven't installed/played with it yet.
Given that my search for xÌ… has been resolved, there's no rush for me to do so.
But the option+shift+A is the combining macron route there too.

EDIT: I notice that here and earlier, once submitted, the xÌ… renders with the macron slightly offset to the right. It doesn't do so in the composition of the post or its editing; and in my documents it renders properly.