My wife who is 5 years younger than me is saying she was taught one space after a period. Since I can remember, I've done two but only recently is msft word telling me I'm wrong. Feels like the comma wars.
This has come up now because I got 5 points off a college paper for bad spelling/punc/grammar and it gotta believe it's the punctuation....
@L_D_G According to every major style guide in both academic and business writing, one space is recommended after a period or other punctuation mark at the end of a sentence.
@L_D_G I learned it as two spaces in 8th grade typing class using an IBM Selectric II.
@L_D_G Putting two spaces after a period was good typography on dumb typewriters that weren't capable of justified text. Those machines are long gone. Now the extra spaces just get in the way.
@L_D_G The old custom when using a typewriter was to put two spaces after a period. But since we switched from typewriters to computers, that can set different sizes of type with different spacing, you are only supposed to use one space.
@L_D_G
Always 2 spaces after a period-I was an English major and English teacher, middle school to college.
My daughter ( in college-English major) says now it’s 1 space 🤷🏻♀️ I still use 2😏
@mockingbird @L_D_G And as an Old (TM), I find it much easier to read text with two spaces after the period. But the reduction has to do with variable spacing fonts on the computer.
Yes, the 2 spaces after a period came to be in the typewriter days. However, it also enables the READER to clearly see when one sentence ends & another begins. When you have to read a full page or lengthy description, it's hard to read.
Yes, the 2 spaces after a period came to be in the typewriter days.However, it also enables the READER to clearly see when one sentence ends & another begins.When you have to read a full page or lengthy description, it's hard to read.
@QueenOfEverything @L_D_G
Thank you. Thank you. 😉
@QueenOfEverything @mockingbird @L_D_G
I agree. But the computer changes the width of the spaces to justify the ends of the lines if you have both right and left margins justified, so you lose the advantage. And they made it one space for all typing even if the right margin isn't justified.
But I don't think anyone should criticize anyone else for using two spaces. They should just be consistent.
@AlphaCentauri @mockingbird @L_D_G
I didn't know the computer changes the width of the spaces with right & left margins justified.
omg- i'm soooo old!
Way back in the times of yore, I wrote a lot of radio commercials & copy. So I wrote copy to be easily read by on air talent.
It affected my writing for the reast of my life. I don't write long paragraphs... I create easy to understand short paragraphs with 1-2 key points.
I'm sure my punctuation violates the proper rules.
😎
@L_D_G
Two spaces went away more than a decade ago when computer software set column width and specs like flush left, flush right, both left and right, ragged right etc. In doing this, the computer adds or subtracts space as needed to make the type spread out the required length. Having two spaces after periods PLUS the added space leads to big white gaps. All the major style guides changed over the past decade to just one space after a period, including AP style.
I'm reading the replies and feel like I'm taking crazy pills.
My guess is that there was a time in the early days of (commercial) computers where we still adhered to typewriter rules before it changed at some level.
BUT I did plenty of writing and PowerPoints when getting my BS 10 years ago and NOTHING. That is the discrepancy I am having trouble with when everyone says two spaces went away with typewriters.