
Contents > Getting Started Building ColdFusion MX Applications > CFML Basics > Working with CFML expressions > Building expressions Specifying pound signs to denote functions or variables

Specifying pound signs to denote functions or variables

In ColdFusion, you specify pounds signs to denote functions and variables within a string of text. You use pounds signs to show the results of the function or variable on the page. Pounds signs instruct the ColdFusion server to evaluate the function (or variable) between the pound signs and display the value. The value of the function (or variable) appears in the browser as a result.

The following list identifies some common ways to use pound signs:

In the following example, you include the pound signs to return the value to a page:
```
<cfoutput> Hello #variables.my_first_name# </cfoutput>
```
If you omit the pound signs, the text, not the value, appears on the page.
In the following example, you do not include the pound signs because you are using cfset to assign one variable's value to another value:
```
<cfset my_full_name = variables.my_first_name & " " & 
variables.my_last_name>
```
To display a pound sign on a page, you must designate the pound sign as a literal character. You do this by using two pound signs (##); for example:
```
<cfoutput>
##1: Your name.
</cfoutput>
```
The result is the following output:

#1. Your name.

For more information and examples on using pound signs in expressions, see Developing ColdFusion MX Applications.


Contents > Getting Started Building ColdFusion MX Applications > CFML Basics > Working with CFML expressions > Building expressions Specifying pound signs to denote functions or variables

Version 6.1

Comments are no longer accepted for ColdFusion MX 6.1. ColdFusion 8 is the current version.

Send me an e-mail when comments are added to this page | Comment Report

Current page: http://livedocs.adobe.com/coldfusion/6.1/htmldocs/cfml_b17.htm