$j =~ s/\\/\\\\/g;
  $j =~ s/\?/\\\?/g;
  $j =~ s/\$/\\\$/g;
  $j =~ s/\*/\\\*/g;
  $j =~ s/[.]/\\./g;
  $j =~ s/[)]/\\\)/g;
  $j =~ s/[(]/\\\(/g;