diff --git a/src/file.h b/src/file.h
index c8e7ef6b..fc5422c6 100644
--- a/src/file.h
+++ b/src/file.h
@@ -131,7 +131,7 @@ public:
 
     off_t getBytesWritten() const { return bytes_written; }
 
-    // FIXME - these won't work when using the `--stdout' option
+    // FIXME - these won't work when using the '--stdout' option
     virtual void seek(off_t off, int whence)
     {
         assert(!opt->to_stdout);
diff --git a/src/help.cpp b/src/help.cpp
index cd1111ec..f65d2ab2 100644
--- a/src/help.cpp
+++ b/src/help.cpp
@@ -136,7 +136,7 @@ static void show_all_packers(FILE *f, int verbose)
         const char *sn = pn.names[i].sname;
         if (verbose)
         {
-            con_fprintf(f, "  %-30s %s\n", fn, sn);
+            con_fprintf(f, "    %-32s %s\n", fn, sn);
         }
         else
         {
@@ -187,7 +187,7 @@ void show_help(int verbose)
 
     con_fprintf(f,
                 "  -q     be quiet                          -v    be verbose\n"
-                "  -oFILE write output to `FILE'\n"
+                "  -oFILE write output to 'FILE'\n"
                 //"  -f     force overwrite of output files and compression of suspicious files\n"
                 "  -f     force compression of suspicious files\n"
                 "%s%s"
@@ -202,7 +202,14 @@ void show_help(int verbose)
     if (verbose > 0)
     {
         fg = con_fg(f,FG_YELLOW);
-        con_fprintf(f,"\nBackup options:\n");
+        con_fprintf(f,"\nCompression tuning options:\n");
+        fg = con_fg(f,fg);
+        con_fprintf(f,
+                    "  --brute             try all available compression methods & filters\n"
+                    "  --ultra-brute       try even more compression variants\n"
+                    "\n");
+        fg = con_fg(f,FG_YELLOW);
+        con_fprintf(f,"Backup options:\n");
         fg = con_fg(f,fg);
         con_fprintf(f,
                     "  -k, --backup        keep backup files\n"
@@ -312,15 +319,22 @@ void show_help(int verbose)
                     "\n");
     }
 
-    con_fprintf(f,
-                "file..   executables to (de)compress\n"
-                "\n");
-    fg = con_fg(f,FG_YELLOW);
-    con_fprintf(f,"This version supports:\n");
-    fg = con_fg(f,fg);
-    show_all_packers(f, verbose);
+    con_fprintf(f, "file..   executables to (de)compress\n");
+
+    if (verbose > 0)
+    {
+        fg = con_fg(f,FG_YELLOW);
+        con_fprintf(f,"\nThis version supports:\n");
+        fg = con_fg(f,fg);
+        show_all_packers(f, verbose);
+    }
+    else
+    {
+        con_fprintf(f,"\nType '%s --help' for more detailed help.\n", progname);
+    }
+
     con_fprintf(f,"\nUPX comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; for details visit http://upx.sf.net\n"
-//                "\nUPX comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; for details type `upx -L'.\n"
+//                "\nUPX comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; for details type 'upx -L'.\n"
                 "");
 
 #if defined(DEBUG) || defined(TESTING)
@@ -423,7 +437,7 @@ void show_version(int x)
 #if defined(WITH_LZMA)
     fprintf(fp, "Copyright (C) 1999-2006 Igor Pavlov\n");
 #endif
-    fprintf(fp, "UPX comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; for details type `%s -L'.\n", progname);
+    fprintf(fp, "UPX comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; for details type '%s -L'.\n", progname);
 }
 
 
diff --git a/src/main.cpp b/src/main.cpp
index 2196f77b..31a4f17a 100644
--- a/src/main.cpp
+++ b/src/main.cpp
@@ -183,7 +183,7 @@ static void e_method(int m, int l)
 static void e_optarg(const char *n)
 {
     fflush(con_term);
-    fprintf(stderr,"%s: invalid argument in option `%s'\n", argv0, n);
+    fprintf(stderr,"%s: invalid argument in option '%s'\n", argv0, n);
     e_exit(EXIT_USAGE);
 }
 
@@ -191,7 +191,7 @@ static void e_optarg(const char *n)
 static void e_optval(const char *n)
 {
     fflush(con_term);
-    fprintf(stderr,"%s: invalid value for option `%s'\n", argv0, n);
+    fprintf(stderr,"%s: invalid value for option '%s'\n", argv0, n);
     e_exit(EXIT_USAGE);
 }
 
@@ -201,10 +201,10 @@ void e_envopt(const char *n)
 {
     fflush(con_term);
     if (n)
-        fprintf(stderr,"%s: invalid string `%s' in environment variable `%s'\n",
+        fprintf(stderr,"%s: invalid string '%s' in environment variable '%s'\n",
                         argv0, n, OPTIONS_VAR);
     else
-        fprintf(stderr,"%s: illegal option in environment variable `%s'\n",
+        fprintf(stderr,"%s: illegal option in environment variable '%s'\n",
                         argv0, OPTIONS_VAR);
     e_exit(EXIT_USAGE);
 }
@@ -227,7 +227,7 @@ void check_not_both(bool e1, bool e2, const char *c1, const char *c2)
     if (e1 && e2)
     {
         fprintf(stderr,"%s: ",argv0);
-        fprintf(stderr,"cannot use both `%s' and `%s'\n", c1, c2);
+        fprintf(stderr,"cannot use both '%s' and '%s'\n", c1, c2);
         e_usage();
     }
 }
@@ -264,14 +264,14 @@ void check_options(int i, int argc)
     check_not_both(opt->to_stdout, opt->output_name != NULL, "--stdout", "-o");
     if (opt->to_stdout && opt->cmd == CMD_COMPRESS)
     {
-        fprintf(stderr,"%s: cannot use `--stdout' when compressing\n", argv0);
+        fprintf(stderr,"%s: cannot use '--stdout' when compressing\n", argv0);
         e_usage();
     }
     if (opt->to_stdout || opt->output_name)
     {
         if (i + 1 != argc)
         {
-            fprintf(stderr,"%s: need exactly one argument when using `%s'\n",
+            fprintf(stderr,"%s: need exactly one argument when using '%s'\n",
                     argv0, opt->to_stdout ? "--stdout" : "-o");
             e_usage();
         }
@@ -333,7 +333,7 @@ static void set_output_name(const char *n, bool allow_m)
 #if 1
     if (done_output_name > 0)
     {
-        fprintf(stderr,"%s: option `-o' more than once given\n",argv0);
+        fprintf(stderr,"%s: option '-o' more than once given\n",argv0);
         e_usage();
     }
 #endif
@@ -356,7 +356,7 @@ static void set_script_name(const char *n, bool allow_m)
 #if 1
     if (done_script_name > 0)
     {
-        fprintf(stderr,"%s: option `--script' more than once given\n",argv0);
+        fprintf(stderr,"%s: option '--script' more than once given\n",argv0);
         e_usage();
     }
 #endif
@@ -508,10 +508,13 @@ static int do_option(int optc, const char *arg)
         set_cmd(CMD_HELP);
         break;
     case 'h'+256:
-#if 0
-        /* according to GNU standards */
-        set_term(stdout);
-        opt->console = CON_FILE;
+#if 1
+        if (!acc_isatty(STDOUT_FILENO))
+        {
+            /* according to GNU standards */
+            set_term(stdout);
+            opt->console = CON_FILE;
+        }
 #endif
         show_help(1);
         e_exit(EXIT_OK);
@@ -716,7 +719,7 @@ static int do_option(int optc, const char *arg)
         opt->backup = 1;
         break;
     case 541:
-        if (opt->backup != 1)           // do not overide `--backup'
+        if (opt->backup != 1)           // do not overide '--backup'
             opt->backup = 0;
         break;
     // overlay
diff --git a/src/p_armpe.cpp b/src/p_armpe.cpp
index 164d9cb0..8dfb9c83 100644
--- a/src/p_armpe.cpp
+++ b/src/p_armpe.cpp
@@ -554,7 +554,7 @@ void PackArmPe::pack(OutputFile *fo)
     if (ih.entry && ih.entry < rvamin)
         throwCantPack("run a virus scanner on this file!");
     if (!opt->force && ih.subsystem == 1)
-        throwCantPack("subsystem `native' is not supported (try --force)");
+        throwCantPack("subsystem 'native' is not supported (try --force)");
     if (ih.filealign < 0x200)
         throwCantPack("filealign < 0x200 is not yet supported");
 
diff --git a/src/p_elf.h b/src/p_elf.h
index 5c0c92f1..cd8d8f47 100644
--- a/src/p_elf.h
+++ b/src/p_elf.h
@@ -192,7 +192,7 @@ struct Shdr
         SHF_EXECINSTR  = (1 << 2),  /* Executable */
         SHF_MERGE      = (1 << 4),  /* Might be merged */
         SHF_STRINGS    = (1 << 5),  /* Contains nul-terminated strings */
-        SHF_INFO_LINK  = (1 << 6),  /* `sh_info' contains SHT index */
+        SHF_INFO_LINK  = (1 << 6),  /* 'sh_info' contains SHT index */
         SHF_LINK_ORDER = (1 << 7),  /* Preserve order after combining */
     };
 }
diff --git a/src/p_lx_elf.cpp b/src/p_lx_elf.cpp
index b8319f9a..a0879cbd 100644
--- a/src/p_lx_elf.cpp
+++ b/src/p_lx_elf.cpp
@@ -776,12 +776,12 @@ bool PackLinuxElf32::canPack()
 
     // additional requirements for linux/elf386
     if (get_native16(&ehdr->e_ehsize) != sizeof(*ehdr)) {
-        throwCantPack("invalid Ehdr e_ehsize; try `--force-execve'");
+        throwCantPack("invalid Ehdr e_ehsize; try '--force-execve'");
         return false;
     }
     unsigned const e_phoff = get_native32(&ehdr->e_phoff);
     if (e_phoff != sizeof(*ehdr)) {// Phdrs not contiguous with Ehdr
-        throwCantPack("non-contiguous Ehdr/Phdr; try `--force-execve'");
+        throwCantPack("non-contiguous Ehdr/Phdr; try '--force-execve'");
         return false;
     }
 
@@ -794,7 +794,7 @@ bool PackLinuxElf32::canPack()
                 return false;
         if (1!=exetype && phdr->PT_LOAD32 == get_native32(&phdr->p_type)) {
             if (phdr->p_offset != 0) {
-                throwCantPack("invalid Phdr p_offset; try `--force-execve'");
+                throwCantPack("invalid Phdr p_offset; try '--force-execve'");
                 return false;
             }
             exetype = 1;
@@ -901,12 +901,12 @@ PackLinuxElf64amd::canPack()
 
     // additional requirements for linux/elf386
     if (get_native16(&ehdr->e_ehsize) != sizeof(*ehdr)) {
-        throwCantPack("invalid Ehdr e_ehsize; try `--force-execve'");
+        throwCantPack("invalid Ehdr e_ehsize; try '--force-execve'");
         return false;
     }
     acc_uint64l_t const e_phoff = get_native64(&ehdr->e_phoff);
     if (e_phoff != sizeof(*ehdr)) {// Phdrs not contiguous with Ehdr
-        throwCantPack("non-contiguous Ehdr/Phdr; try `--force-execve'");
+        throwCantPack("non-contiguous Ehdr/Phdr; try '--force-execve'");
         return false;
     }
 
@@ -919,7 +919,7 @@ PackLinuxElf64amd::canPack()
         if (phdr->PT_LOAD64 == get_native32(&phdr->p_type)) {
             // Just avoid the "rewind" when unpacking?
             //if (phdr->p_offset != 0) {
-            //    throwCantPack("invalid Phdr p_offset; try `--force-execve'");
+            //    throwCantPack("invalid Phdr p_offset; try '--force-execve'");
             //    return false;
             //}
             exetype = 1;
diff --git a/src/p_tmt.cpp b/src/p_tmt.cpp
index 40b3476d..6f390661 100644
--- a/src/p_tmt.cpp
+++ b/src/p_tmt.cpp
@@ -168,7 +168,7 @@ int PackTmt::readFileHeader()
 
     fi->seek(adam_offset,SEEK_SET);
     fi->readx(&ih,sizeof(ih));
-    // FIXME: should add some checks for the values in `ih'
+    // FIXME: should add some checks for the values in 'ih'
 
     return UPX_F_TMT_ADAM;
 #undef H4
diff --git a/src/p_tos.cpp b/src/p_tos.cpp
index 6983626c..99517287 100644
--- a/src/p_tos.cpp
+++ b/src/p_tos.cpp
@@ -307,19 +307,19 @@ bool PackTos::checkFileHeader()
     if ((f & F_PROTMODE) != F_PROT_P)
     {
         if (opt->force < 1)
-            throwCantPack("no private memory protection; use option `-f' to force packing");
+            throwCantPack("no private memory protection; use option '-f' to force packing");
     }
     if (f & F_SHTEXT)
     {
         if (opt->force < 1)
-            throwCantPack("shared text segment; use option `-f' to force packing");
+            throwCantPack("shared text segment; use option '-f' to force packing");
     }
 #if 0
     // fh_reserved seems to be unused
     if (ih.fh_reserved != 0)
     {
         if (opt->force < 1)
-            throwCantPack("reserved header field set; use option `-f' to force packing");
+            throwCantPack("reserved header field set; use option '-f' to force packing");
     }
 #endif
     return true;
diff --git a/src/p_unix.cpp b/src/p_unix.cpp
index fa5d7e60..6cb48ec6 100644
--- a/src/p_unix.cpp
+++ b/src/p_unix.cpp
@@ -62,7 +62,7 @@ bool PackUnix::canPack()
 #if defined(__unix__)
     // must be executable by owner
     if ((fi->st.st_mode & S_IXUSR) == 0)
-        throwCantPack("file not executable; try `chmod +x'");
+        throwCantPack("file not executable; try 'chmod +x'");
 #endif
     if (file_size < 4096)
         throwCantPack("file is too small");
diff --git a/src/p_vmlinz.cpp b/src/p_vmlinz.cpp
index ff47ea57..92c224ae 100644
--- a/src/p_vmlinz.cpp
+++ b/src/p_vmlinz.cpp
@@ -208,7 +208,7 @@ int PackVmlinuzI386::decompressKernel()
         if (fd_pos != file_size)
         {
             //printf("fd_pos: %ld, file_size: %ld\n", (long)fd_pos, (long)file_size);
-            throwCantPack("trailing bytes after kernel image; use option `-f' to force packing");
+            throwCantPack("trailing bytes after kernel image; use option '-f' to force packing");
         }
 
 
@@ -227,7 +227,7 @@ int PackVmlinuzI386::decompressKernel()
         &&  0x0F==ibuf[19] && 0xA2==ibuf[20]  // cpuid
         ) goto head_ok;
 
-        throwCantPack("unrecognized kernel architecture; use option `-f' to force packing");
+        throwCantPack("unrecognized kernel architecture; use option '-f' to force packing");
     head_ok:
 
         // FIXME: more checks for special magic bytes in ibuf ???
diff --git a/src/p_w32pe.cpp b/src/p_w32pe.cpp
index a6e6cb1e..534211d4 100644
--- a/src/p_w32pe.cpp
+++ b/src/p_w32pe.cpp
@@ -649,7 +649,7 @@ void PackW32Pe::pack(OutputFile *fo)
     if (ih.entry && ih.entry < rvamin)
         throwCantPack("run a virus scanner on this file!");
     if (!opt->force && ih.subsystem == 1)
-        throwCantPack("subsystem `native' is not supported (try --force)");
+        throwCantPack("subsystem 'native' is not supported (try --force)");
     if (ih.filealign < 0x200)
         throwCantPack("filealign < 0x200 is not yet supported");
 
diff --git a/src/packer.cpp b/src/packer.cpp
index 8757f17f..ba4d660a 100644
--- a/src/packer.cpp
+++ b/src/packer.cpp
@@ -538,7 +538,7 @@ void Packer::checkOverlay(unsigned overlay)
         return;
     info("Found overlay: %d bytes", overlay);
     if (opt->overlay == opt->SKIP_OVERLAY)
-        throw OverlayException("file has overlay -- skipped; try `--overlay=copy'");
+        throw OverlayException("file has overlay -- skipped; try '--overlay=copy'");
 }
 
 
@@ -732,7 +732,7 @@ void Packer::checkAlreadyPacked(const void *b, int blen)
     //if (!tmp.fillPackHeader((unsigned char *)b + boff, blen - boff))
     //    return;
     //
-    // This also would require that the buffer in `b' holds
+    // This also would require that the buffer in 'b' holds
     // the full PackHeader, and not only the 4 magic bytes.
 
     throwAlreadyPacked();
diff --git a/src/snprintf.cpp b/src/snprintf.cpp
index 952a417f..41b73a14 100644
--- a/src/snprintf.cpp
+++ b/src/snprintf.cpp
@@ -333,7 +333,7 @@ static double my_modf(double x0, double *iptr)
 static void fmtfp (char *buffer, size_t *currlen, size_t maxlen,
                    LDOUBLE fvalue, int min, int max, int flags)
 {
-    /* avoid warnings with `gcc -Wshadow' */
+    /* avoid warnings with 'gcc -Wshadow' */
 #undef index
 #define index iindex
     int signvalue = 0;
diff --git a/src/ui.cpp b/src/ui.cpp
index 5cd70d03..7f547c28 100644
--- a/src/ui.cpp
+++ b/src/ui.cpp
@@ -241,7 +241,7 @@ void UiPacker::startCallback(unsigned u_len, unsigned step,
     s->bar_len = 64;
     s->pos = -2;
     s->spin_counter = 0;
-    s->bar_pos = 1;             // because of the leading `\r'
+    s->bar_pos = 1;             // because of the leading '\r'
     s->pass_digits = 0;
 
     cb.reset();
@@ -481,7 +481,7 @@ void UiPacker::doCallback(unsigned isize, unsigned osize)
 #if 0
         s->screen->putString(s->screen,msg,s->b_cx,s->b_cy);
 #else
-        // FIXME: this doesn't honor `--mono' etc.
+        // FIXME: this doesn't honor '--mono' etc.
         int attr = FG_CYAN | s->s_bg;
         s->screen->putStringAttr(s->screen,msg,attr,s->b_cx,s->b_cy);
 #endif
diff --git a/src/work.cpp b/src/work.cpp
index 544e2f93..1326b79b 100644
--- a/src/work.cpp
+++ b/src/work.cpp
@@ -108,7 +108,7 @@ void do_one_file(const char *iname, char *oname)
         if (opt->to_stdout)
         {
             if (!fo.openStdout(1, opt->force ? true : false))
-                throwIOException("data not written to a terminal; Use `-f' to force.");
+                throwIOException("data not written to a terminal; Use '-f' to force.");
         }
         else
         {