Editing German language (section)

===Present===
Before the [[German spelling reform of 1996]], ''ß'' replaced ''ss'' after [[vowel length|long vowels]] and diphthongs and before consonants, word-, or partial-word-endings. In reformed spelling, ''ß'' replaces ''ss'' only after long vowels and diphthongs. Since there is no [[capital ß]], it is always written as SS when capitalization is required. For example, ''Maßband'' (tape measure) is capitalized ''MASSBAND''. An exception is the use of ß in legal documents and forms when capitalizing names. To avoid confusion with similar names, a "ß" is to be used instead of "SS". (So: "KREßLEIN" instead of "KRESSLEIN".) A [[capital ß]] has been proposed and included in [[Unicode]], but it is not yet recognized as standard German. In [[Switzerland]], ß is not used at all.

Umlaut vowels (ä, ö, ü) are commonly transcribed with ae, oe, and ue if the umlauts are not available on the keyboard used (''but see below regarding the use of non-German [[QWERTY]] keyboards to type umlauted characters and the Eszett''). In the same manner ß can be transcribed as ss. German readers understand those transcriptions (although they look unusual), but they are avoided if the regular umlauts are available because they are considered a makeshift, not proper spelling. (In Westphalia and Schleswig-Holstein, city and family names exist where the extra e has a vowel lengthening effect, e.g. ''Raesfeld'' ˈraːsfɛlt, ''Coesfeld'' [ˈkoːsfɛlt] and ''Itzehoe'' [ɪtsəˈhoː], but this use of the letter e after a/o/u does not occur in the present-day spelling of words other than [[proper noun]]s.)

There is no general agreement on where these umlauts occur in the sorting sequence. Telephone directories treat them by replacing them with the base vowel followed by an e. Some dictionaries sort each umlauted vowel as a separate letter after the base vowel, but more commonly words with umlauts are ordered immediately after the same word without umlauts. As an example in a [[telephone directory|telephone book]] ''Ärzte'' occurs after ''Adressenverlage'' but before ''Anlagenbauer'' (because Ä is replaced by Ae).  In a dictionary ''Ärzte'' comes after ''Arzt'', but in some dictionaries ''Ärzte'' and all other words starting with  "Ä" may occur after all words starting with "A". In some older dictionaries or indexes, initial ''Sch'' and ''St'' are treated as separate letters and are listed as separate entries after ''S'', but they are usually treated as S+C+H and S+T.

It is possible for those using [[Microsoft]] [[Windows]] programmes on PCs that have non-German QWERTY keyboards to type letters with umlauts, be they capitalized or lower-case, as well as the Eszett ([[ß]]), by following a convention pre-programmed via the number keys as well as the number lock (Num Lock) and Alt keys. (There may be alternatives, depending upon the software being used, see e.g., the article on the Eszett, [[ß]]). Ensuring that the Num Lock key light is on above the said key on the right-hand side, one can depress the Alt key either side of the spacebar and then simultaneously enter a four-digit number using the number keys. The character will be revealed on screen immediately after the Alt key is released.

The sequence for the lower-case letter “a” with an umlaut (that is, ä) would therefore involve typing in the four-digit number 0228, i.e., Num Lock (light on) + Alt (depressed) + 0228 (manually entered) + release of Alt Key. The four-digit numbers and other characters are therefore: 0196 for an umlauted upper-case A (Ä), 0214 for an umlauted upper-case O (Ö), 0220 for an umlauted upper-case U (Ü), 0223 for the Eszett ([[ß]]), 0246 for an umlauted lower-case o (ö), and 0252 for an umlauted lower-case u (ü).

Such a convention can also be used for the opening inverted commas (quotation marks) that appear in the guise of a “99” on the bottom of the line (rather than as a “66” at the top as in English) at the beginning of a sentence or clause by using the four-digit number 0132, as in „''Guten Morgen''!”.