POLL: period space or period space space?

[Baked]

Originally posted by: TheNinja
period space space - if your'e an uneducated idiot.

One Space or Two?

Q. Please help. I have confusion regarding the correct spacing after periods and other closing punctuation. My company uses the font Arial and consistently uses a flush-left margin. We are an engineering company. My job consists in preparing documents and letters for customers. Everything I read in manuals and from technical writers directs me to use one space after periods. I find that it works very well, except occasionally, when an extra space helps readability. Knowledgeable engineers have embraced the one space use as being consistent with the font design and automation of reports. Others are unpleased with the one space, they think they have difficulty reading. (I, too, had an adjustment period which I forced myself to endure until it became automatic to read easily.) We are preparing technical information. What do you think? Thanks for your wonderful support and especially the quick answers. I greatly appreciate your service.

A. The view at CMOS is that there is no reason for two spaces after a period in published work. Some people, however?my colleagues included?prefer it, relegating this preference to their personal correspondence and notes. I?ve noticed in old American books printed in the few decades before and after the turn of the last century (ca. 1870?1930 at least) that there seemed to be a trend in publishing to use extra space (sometimes quite a bit of it) after periods. And many people were taught to use that extra space in typing class (I was). But introducing two spaces after the period causes problems: (1) it is inefficient, requiring an extra keystroke for every sentence; (2) even if a program is set to automatically put an extra space after a period, such automation is never foolproof; (3) there is no proof that an extra space actually improves readability?as your comment suggests, it?s probably just a matter of familiarity (Who knows? perhaps it?s actually more efficient to read with less regard for sentences as individual units of thought?many centuries ago, for example in ancient Greece, there were no spaces even between words, and no punctuation); (4) two spaces are harder to control for than one in electronic documents (I find that the earmark of a document that imposes a two-space rule is a smattering of instances of both three spaces and one space after a period, and two spaces in the middle of sentences); and (5) two spaces can cause problems with line breaks in certain programs.

So, in our efficient, modern world, I think there is no room for two spaces after a period. In the opinion of this particular copyeditor, this is a good thing.

The Chicago Manual of Style, Fifteenth Edition

 

[dainthomas]

One space is for noobs. I use two.

Edit: Aaaagh! Anandtech stole my space!! :|

 

[jjones]

I took a typing class in school, this was back in the early 70's, and I don't remember ever learning to use a double space after a period. In fact, I've never even noticed the difference in all the years I've been reading printed materials. So, as far as I'm concerned, you all can do whatever you want; one space or two, it apparently makes no difference to me. I'll continue to use one space and if that upsets some of you, good, my day is complete.

 

[jemcam]

I use two spaces out of habit because I was taught that way in typing class over 30 years ago.

 

[PrinceofWands]

The standard used to be two spaces after every closing punctuation mark. It has now changed to one space.

 

[thomsbrain]

oh for christ sake.

pick up a book. one space.
pick up a newspaper. one space.
pick up your bank statement. one space.
pick up a research article printed in an academic journal. one space.
HTML doesn't even recognize two spaces.

and no, the word processor does not "correct" it to two spaces. there would be no way for the processor to tell the difference between an abbreviation and the end of a sentance. what it does correct for is missed capital letters, but that doesn't affect the spacing.

that two space crap is a hold-over from the type-writer days and any school still teaching it needs to take their heads out of their buttholes and smell the silicon.

but i guess if a few ATOT mouth-breathers can't read english without arbitrary aids (do you guys need "big text," too?), then the world's professional writing community must be wrong.

 

[EKKC]

one space.
until they make a double spacebar

 

[Sqube]

Word processors don't correct to two spaces unless you manually have them globally replace ._ with . _ _. That said, I do one space on the intartubes and two spaces whenever I'm writing papers or things of that nature.

It's how I was taught and it's habit now. I don't think it looks worse and I don't really see how adding an extra space is such an incredibly huge amount of work. That's just me though.

 

[Paperdoc]

I gotta disagree with many of you! The original rule was period - space. That was in the days of monospaced type on a mechanical typewriter, and the space was exactly the same width as any letter. But with the proportional spacing used in most fonts on computers now, the width of a blank space is only about half the average letter. And on top of that, the width of the period also is small. So period - space looks to me like too little space between the last letter and the first letter (of successive sentences) and I prefer the look of period - space - space.

 

[eits]

Originally posted by: Geocentricity

Originally posted by: Pepsi90919

It is natural to period space space

no it isn't

QFT. What lazy generation is this person from? I learned how to type in elemtary school back in the 90s and even then the rule is period space.

you must have learned from the villiage idiot, then.

it's period-space-space. it's period-space whenever it's an abbreviation.

 

[moshquerade]

i was taught period space space.

 

[EstimateMe]

period space space...

 

[eits]

Originally posted by: sash1
i learned two spaces way back in the day. i don't know anyone who uses two spaces anymore. i just think it looks bad, and i've gotten so used to just using one space.

i can't believe the poll, do that many people actually double space after a period still? because no one is doing it in this thread.

apparently, you don't know most of the properly educated people, then.

 

[FeuerFrei]

I am regularly bothered by AT's lack of spaciousness between sentences. I type with 2 spaces following my periods. Otherwise, sentences run together.

If you use one space, you never learned how to type.

 

[MrPickins]

People who are so passionate about punctuation make me LOL!

And eits, get over yourself.

 

[eits]

Originally posted by: DougK62
You guys can argue until you're blue in the face, but it doesn't change the fact that one space after a period is correct when using modern fonts. Sorry, you lose.

wrong as hell.

the reason why it's proper to use two spaces after a period is because it's easier to tell where the next sentence starts. that's the way it's been for a LONG time. that's how it still is. the only difference is that, now, it's become acceptable to use a single space rather than two. it's kinda like using commas between a series of things. it's proper to use commas between the series of items and before the "and"... now, it's become acceptable to leave out the comma before the "and" (for example: proper - "sarah, doug, and james went to the store"... improper, yet acceptable - "sarah, doug and james went to the store."). the reason it's improper is because it's harder to tell whether you're talking to sarah and telling her that doug and james went to the store or if sarah went to the store with doug and james.

 

[psydancerqt]

didnt we already have this conversation?

 

[eits]

Originally posted by: TheNinja
period space space - unless you are an idiot.

exactly.

 

[JS80]

welcome to the present. computers =/= typewriters

 

[eits]

Originally posted by: dullard

Originally posted by: BD2003
Absolutely period space space. Regardless of whether or not it's *needed*, it enhances flow. It makes it easier to tell commas from periods. It allows you to distinguish between ends of sentences and abbreviations.

So, you can't read ATOT very well, I suppose. Because Anandtech parses the second space. You must be so horrified by this experience that you won't stay here for long. Opps. 7 years. Must not be that bad then.

it'd be easier to read if it were proper. since that's not the case, we've all adapted to the lazy, improper form of proper spacing at the end of a sentence.

 

[misle]

Originally posted by: TheNinja
period space space - unless you are an idiot.

I worked IT in a Publications office for 6 years. It is period space.

Period space space is left over from typewriters and is no longer standard.

 

[MrPickins]

Originally posted by: eits

Originally posted by: DougK62
You guys can argue until you're blue in the face, but it doesn't change the fact that one space after a period is correct when using modern fonts. Sorry, you lose.

wrong as hell.

the reason why it's proper to use two spaces after a period is because it's easier to tell where the next sentence starts. that's the way it's been for a LONG time. that's how it still is. the only difference is that, now, it's become acceptable to use a single space rather than two. it's kinda like using commas between a series of things. it's proper to use commas between the series of items and before the "and"... now, it's become acceptable to leave out the comma before the "and" (for example: proper - "sarah, doug, and james went to the store"... improper, yet acceptable - "sarah, doug and james went to the store."). the reason it's improper is because it's harder to tell whether you're talking to sarah and telling her that doug and james went to the store or if sarah went to the store with doug and james.

You know what also makes it easier to tell where the next sentence is starting?

Try capitalization.

 

[Shawn]

ALWAYS period space. putting 2 spaces is for type writers.

 

[eits]

Originally posted by: MrPickins
People who are so passionate about punctuation make me LOL!

And eits, get over yourself.

gotta get over your mom,(space)first.(space space)OOOOOH!

 

[MrPickins]

Originally posted by: eits

Originally posted by: MrPickins
People who are so passionate about punctuation make me LOL!

And eits, get over yourself.

gotta get over your mom,(space)first.(space space)OOOOOH!

Ooooh, buuurrrrn. :roll: