On 26-3-2010 0:16, Lawrence D'Oliveiro wrote: > In message<mailman.1139.1269442366.23598.python-list at python.org>, > python at bdurham.com wrote: >>> BOM_UTF8 = '\xef\xbb\xbf' >> Since when does UTF-8 need a BOM? It doesn't, but it is allowed. Not recommended though. Unfortunately several tools, such as notepad.exe, have a tendency of silently adding it when saving files. -irmen