I've always put two spaces after a period, but it turns out that's absolutely wrong. If the only writing of mine that you ever read was my blog you wouldn't have noticed my two-space habit, because blogspot.com automatically changes all double spaces to single spaces when one publishes a post. I thought their space deletion was a glitch, but now I realize it was an autocorrection. Dang.
It was shocking to suddenly switch from thinking I was the smart one doing it right to realizing I was the dumb one doing it wrong, but I am now doing my best to adjust and change. Even as I type these sentences, though, my thumbs can't resist their reflexive double-tap after a period. This will be difficult.
PS- Thank you M. Scott Jones for pointing this out to me.
Tuesday 11 5 24 morning call
9 hours ago
10 comments:
Hey, that's what I learned in school too! I never got the memo about the switch to one space either. Stoopid.
Yeah they taught me two spaces after a period too in Personal Typing class in high school. We had special mechanical machines called "typewriters" that were sort of a keyboard to printer gadget that did not require a computer or electricity.
Apparently the typewriter fonts had letters of equal width, which made for crowded "m"s, lonely "l"s, and an overall uneven appearance that required larger gaps at the end of sentences to keep things readable. Now most fonts pack the letters together more efficiently so you don't need the extra space.
Well, I learned two spaces too. I prefer it and will continue to do so! It's cool and a mark of distinction. Since MSWord (THE authority) accepts two spaces without correction, it must me right!
I'm gonna stick with two spaces. Here's what I read in the MLA Handbook. "As a practical matter, however, there is nothing wrong with using two spaces after concluding punctuation marks unless an instructor or editor requests that you do otherwise."
I refuse to not double space. (Space, Space) It's outrageous we are only hearing about this now. (Space, Space) I demand a lawyer.
I first encountered the switch from double to single spacing when I worked for a newspaper in high school in the early '90s, and it went against everything I'd learned previously. The explanation they gave me was that when you justify text to fit a printed column or page, double spaces after a period get stretched out too far, so the convention in printing is for there to be only one space after a period.
Is it April Fool's Day already?
Andy- It's for real, dude!
I was about to write EXACTLY what Mary Garland wrote, but she beat me to it.
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