<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article contains special characters . Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols . </Td> </Tr> <P> A power symbol is a symbol indicating that a control activates or deactivates a particular device . Universal power symbols are described in the International Electrotechnical Commission 60417 standard, Graphical symbols for use on equipment, appearing in the 1973 edition of the document (as IEC 417) and informally used earlier . </P> <P> The well - known on / off power symbol was the result of the logical evolution in user interface design . Originally, most early power controls consisted of switches that were toggled between two states demarcated by the words On and Off . As technology became more ubiquitous, these English words were replaced with the universal symbols line "" and circle "o" (typically without serifs) to bypass language barriers . This standard is still used on toggle power switches . </P> <P> The symbol for the standby button was created by superimposing the symbols "" and "o"; however, it is commonly misinterpreted as the numerals "0" and "1". Yet the IEC holds these symbols as a graphical representation of a line and a circle . </P>

Where did the on off symbol come from
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