N/A Two spaces or one?!?

HPNPilot1200

HPNPilot1200

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I was chatting with a pilot-friend before about which was correct:

a) 2 spaces between sentences (when typing)
b) 1 space between sentences

For some reason I've always used 2 and can't get out of the habit... :dunno:

How many spaces do you use?!?
 
Two spaces after a period. My original post explained seperations of paragraphs, not sentences. My bad.....:(
 
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same. two spaces after a period.
 
It depends. If you are trying to be formal, or presenting an official document of some sort, two spaces is correct. Otherwise, it doesn't really matter. Funny thing, as I type this, I realize that I always use 2 spaces, since this is obviously neither formal or for show.
 
ahh...but wait - there may be more to this that I didn't realize. According to MLA and Chicago standards, there is actually a rule they use.

Chicago states (from their FAQ at http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/cmosfaq/cmosfaq.OneSpaceorTwo.html) that only one space is correct.

MLA allows one or two spaces after a period (no online reference, its coming out of my MLA handbook from college).

I do not have the APA style, and am too lazy to check APAstyle.org (which I believe is the official source), so I cannot say what their rule is.
 
In the old days, when there were machines called typewriters, we were taught to put two spaces at the conclusion of a sentence. One develops the habit, over time. When I began layout and design of brochures some years ago -- and followed the old rule -- I was told by a media director(and confirmed by several others) that when word processors buried the typewriters the old rule was altered to 1 space at the end of a sentence. I've since followed the suggestion, though I'm sensitive to being in error if that be the case.

HR
 
Fixed font typing (typewriters, old word processors, etc) used 2 spaces to make the break more apparent between sentences.

Using automatic justification, alignment and variable width fonts, the computer will do whatever it needs with spacing between words to make the right and left margins vertical or nearly so. If you add a second space between sentences, or even between words for that matter, it will sometimes put weird looking unnecessary spacing between words for alignment purposes. Putting a second space after a sentence especially on some of the older word processors would occasionally result in a huge amount of space between sentences. (Ex: Seven inches of line available for typed text and only 5-6 words widely spread across the entire line like you just held the spacebar down between words and daydreamed for a while before typing the next word)

Typing on a typewriter, I'll use 2 spaces for readability. On a word processor, I use 1 space so it doesn't look like a complete idiot typed it. The computer will hide the second space quite well on it's own anyway.


And every time a subject like this comes up, I pull out my Little Brown Book for reference and all I can think is :eek: :eek: :eek:
 
I use two. (Unless I'm composing in LaTeX, which ignores all my white space and does the proper amount of spacing all by itself.) ;)

--Kath
 
kath said:
I use two. (Unless I'm composing in LaTeX, which ignores all my white space and does the proper amount of spacing all by itself.) ;)

--Kath
Click to expand...
Now I have to reply to this to find out what it is that I actually do! Ok, it's only one space after the period. No extra space - which is what I've always done. Might even be what I was taught!

Tom
 
Two spaces after a period is the proper way. It leaves a gap after the period to help indicate the start of a new sentence.
 
Of course, when you post on here, the extra spaces go the way of the dodo. (I just left 5 spaces preceeding the "(" and it formatted it to 1.)
 
Yes, that's an HTML convention. Extra spaces are removed - the assumption is that more than one space is garbage data in the HTML file.

I could add in a new vB code for an NBSP (non breaking space) which WOULD let you have multiple spaces...but ... I'm not gonna. ;)
 
Greebo said:
Two spaces after a period is the proper way. It leaves a gap after the period to help indicate the start of a new sentence.
Click to expand...
According to who? ;)
 
Hmm. However, according to MS Word, both are correct.

English is confusing. Lets invent a new language! ;)
 
The two-space convention is a holdover from the days of monospace fonts on typewriters. When typesetting and using proportional fonts as when using a word processor, use only one space after terminating punctuation (periods, exclamation points, question marks, etc.). Contrarary to what you learned in high-school typing class (if you clattered away on a typewriter), you should also insert only one space following a colon.

See, for example:
http://desktoppub.about.com/cs/typespacing/a/onetwospaces.htm
http://www.webword.com/reports/period.html
http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/cmosfaq/cmosfaq.html

For more help with general usage conventions, see also:

http://www.bartleby.com/64/
 
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I used to use two spaces, but today's word processors work fine with one. In any case I try to use one for online stuff like webboards, but old habits die hard.
 
Bruce -

Have you ever made a post to here or "the red board" without including a reference link?:dunno:
 
One space.
You've already got 3 things demarcating each sentence end. You got the period, one space, and should have a capital letter coming (although a near epidemic of left hand little finger paralysis or something related does appear to be rampant with the net typists these days).
 
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Greebo said:
According to the English teachers you and I both had growing up. ;)
Click to expand...

Who were teaching you on a typewriter, where two spaces are correct. Your computer knows better. In fact, some programs will automatically turn your two spaces into one.
 
Thanks for all the responces.

Chuck--yes please lets invent another language...as I've posted a few weeks (or months...) back I somehow include aviation phraseology in some sort of verbal or written communication somehow :yes:

For now...I'll stick to 2 until I can figure out how to adjust to 1!

Thanks!
 
I wouldn't go trying to adjust your habits just yet. You might end up hurting something. As was stated more than a few times, word processors do exactly what they want based on the fonts chosen and certain rules they apply. Modern w/p using proportional fonts no longer make you look like a monkey typist. So don't bend or break your habits.
Type away!
 
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