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two spaces or one



 
 
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  #21  
Old April 4th, 2010, 12:31 AM posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
Suzanne S. Barnhill
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 31,786
Default two spaces or one

I would have no idea which thumb I use for spacing; apparently it's the
right, but I would have assumed you use whichever is handiest at the time,
same as for shifting.

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
http://word.mvps.org

"bj" wrote in message
...
When I was first taught to *type* the teacher was most insistant about
2-spaces & even got cranky because I used my *left* thumb to press the
spacebar (I still do, more than 50 years later).

My early *hand*-writing school years were in several different
states/countries/languages; no telling what I was told.
bj

"CyberTaz" wrote in message
.. .
Hi Stephen;

One more voice to the choir after having watched this conversation...
Whenever it arises :-) I'm always tempted to ask one fundamental
question;

If you think back to when you first were taught to print sentences, did
your
teacher instruct you to put "2 spaces" between sentences or was the
instruction to leave "space" between sentences?

Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac





  #22  
Old April 4th, 2010, 05:12 AM posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
LVTravel[_3_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 105
Default two spaces or one



"Suzanne S. Barnhill" wrote in message
...
I would have no idea which thumb I use for spacing; apparently it's the
right, but I would have assumed you use whichever is handiest at the time,
same as for shifting.

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
http://word.mvps.org

"bj" wrote in message
...
When I was first taught to *type* the teacher was most insistant about
2-spaces & even got cranky because I used my *left* thumb to press the
spacebar (I still do, more than 50 years later).

My early *hand*-writing school years were in several different
states/countries/languages; no telling what I was told.
bj

"CyberTaz" wrote in message
.. .
Hi Stephen;

One more voice to the choir after having watched this conversation...
Whenever it arises :-) I'm always tempted to ask one fundamental
question;

If you think back to when you first were taught to print sentences, did
your
teacher instruct you to put "2 spaces" between sentences or was the
instruction to leave "space" between sentences?

Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac






Actually in typewriter days it was always the right thumb, even for
southpaws that were trained as touch typists. And yes, my typing teacher,
Miss Becky Moore, would really get on your case if you used anything other
than your right thumb.

  #23  
Old April 4th, 2010, 02:58 PM posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
Suzanne S. Barnhill
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 31,786
Default two spaces or one

I guess my typing teacher taught me well, then, even if I still can't type
on the top row without looking. It's a funny thing about that, actually: I
*can* type many characters on the top row without looking, but if something
hides the top row (as when I'm copying from a book that sticks out over the
edge of the desk and shades the top row of the keyboard (which is on a lower
keyboard tray), then I will inevitably miss when I go for a hyphen or
parenthesis. It's bound to be purely psychological, since I can hit them
unerringly without looking otherwise.

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
http://word.mvps.org

"LVTravel" wrote in message
...


"Suzanne S. Barnhill" wrote in message
...
I would have no idea which thumb I use for spacing; apparently it's the
right, but I would have assumed you use whichever is handiest at the
time, same as for shifting.

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
http://word.mvps.org

"bj" wrote in message
...
When I was first taught to *type* the teacher was most insistant about
2-spaces & even got cranky because I used my *left* thumb to press the
spacebar (I still do, more than 50 years later).

My early *hand*-writing school years were in several different
states/countries/languages; no telling what I was told.
bj

"CyberTaz" wrote in message
.. .
Hi Stephen;

One more voice to the choir after having watched this conversation...
Whenever it arises :-) I'm always tempted to ask one fundamental
question;

If you think back to when you first were taught to print sentences, did
your
teacher instruct you to put "2 spaces" between sentences or was the
instruction to leave "space" between sentences?

Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac






Actually in typewriter days it was always the right thumb, even for
southpaws that were trained as touch typists. And yes, my typing teacher,
Miss Becky Moore, would really get on your case if you used anything other
than your right thumb.


  #24  
Old April 4th, 2010, 03:56 PM posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
CyberTaz
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,362
Default two spaces or one

Exactly the point...

It wasn't until the introduction of the typewriter that the concept of "a"
space took on any finite dimension. The objective of "space between
sentences" is for the purpose of visual clarity, but the appropriate amount
of space is subjectively predicated on what precedes & follows the space. I
seriously doubt that '2 spaces' ever dripped from the tongue or even crossed
the mind of Guttenberg.

As so often happens, laxity in communication is what has triggered this
seemingly unending but totally unfounded debate. My 'guess' is that the
actual original instruction was "Press the spacebar twice after a period."
because pressing the spacebar once often did not create a sufficient amount
of space. The compensatory workaround for *increasing the amount of space*
became loosely translated into "type 2 spaces".

Logically there can't be "2 spaces" -- the size of the 1 space is either
more or less, narrower or wider. To accomplish the objective on a typewriter
necessitates pressing the space bar a second time, whereas the precise
adjustment of that space is intrinsic to proportional fonts.

Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac



On 4/3/10 5:35 PM, in article , "bj"
wrote:

When I was first taught to *type* the teacher was most insistant about
2-spaces & even got cranky because I used my *left* thumb to press the
spacebar (I still do, more than 50 years later).

My early *hand*-writing school years were in several different
states/countries/languages; no telling what I was told.
bj

"CyberTaz" wrote in message
.. .
Hi Stephen;

One more voice to the choir after having watched this conversation...
Whenever it arises :-) I'm always tempted to ask one fundamental question;

If you think back to when you first were taught to print sentences, did
your
teacher instruct you to put "2 spaces" between sentences or was the
instruction to leave "space" between sentences?

Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac




  #25  
Old April 4th, 2010, 04:51 PM posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
bj[_4_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 29
Default two spaces or one

"LVTravel" wrote in message
...


Actually in typewriter days it was always the right thumb, even for
southpaws that were trained as touch typists. And yes, my typing teacher,
Miss Becky Moore, would really get on your case if you used anything other
than your right thumb.


(My other reply went off on cyber-vacation.)

I think we must have had the same teacher, or a clone thereof.
:-)
bj
(left-thumb-spacing since 1957)

  #26  
Old April 4th, 2010, 05:38 PM posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
Twayne[_3_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 135
Default two spaces or one

In ,
Stephen Larivee typed:
What is the preferred way of typing today, to put one or
two spaces at the end of a sentence?


It would seem that, with fixed-width fonts, a doublespace is
used. With proportional spaced fonts it's often only necessary
to use one.

But you'll find a lot of various opinions - some even the
opposite of what I just gave. I learned two on the typewriter
and still use it; no one has ever complained and most seem to
not care anyway. I'd say it's up to the person at the keyboard
and what he thinks it looks like.

HTH,

Twayne`


  #27  
Old April 4th, 2010, 05:43 PM posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
Twayne[_3_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 135
Default two spaces or one

In ,
Dave Symes typed:
In article ,
Tom Willett wrote:
[Snippy]

The bottom line is, who really cares? Except maybe those
who chastise others for top posting ;-)


Top posting is a heinous crime, for which you should be
flogged around the fleet.


On some sites. But here the concensus seems to be that it
doesn't matter. I bottom post unless there is already a top
post; then I top post to keep it all aligned.
It's a silly thing for anyone to argue about or even
debate, actually. Netiquette & most gurus believe in the trim
& inline, then bottom if no inline. Personally I couldn't
care which. I stay out of trouble by simply using what the
concensus is. Oh, and ignoring dummies who troll to make an
arguement out of it.

I agree - who really cares?

HTH,

Twayne`

Dave

And no emoticon get-out, it's a serious business y'know.

:-\~




  #28  
Old April 4th, 2010, 05:45 PM posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
Twayne[_3_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 135
Default two spaces or one

In ,
Suzanne S. Barnhill typed:
For some reason my similar reply to this post (made eleven
minutes before yours) is not showing up, and one posted by
Terry is struck through and marked as "unavailable." Looks
like we're having server upsets again. sigh


Had one a moment ago. I've found that if you go on to the next
post, then come back to the lined thru one, often it'll show
the second time. Just a reload doesn't work though. From
Here, anyway.

HTH,

Twayne`


"Jay Freedman" wrote in message
...
Stephen Larivee wrote:
What is the preferred way of typing today, to put one or
two spaces at the end of a sentence?


Preferred by whom?

This is the subject of one of those never-ending wars,
akin to PC-vs.-Mac. Neither side will give in soon.

One side maintains that one space is "correct" or at least
sufficient when writing in proportional fonts, and that
the two-spaces practice is a holdover from the fixed-pitch
typewriter era. The other side maintains that two spaces
look better and improve readability even in proportional
fonts. Word takes a more hands-off approach. You can set
either
preference in the Spelling & Grammar options dialog, but
an infraction will only be marked, not automatically
changed. --
Regards,
Jay Freedman
Microsoft Word MVP FAQ: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups
to the newsgroup so all may benefit.




  #29  
Old April 4th, 2010, 05:48 PM posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
Twayne[_3_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 135
Default two spaces or one

In ,
CyberTaz typed:
Hi Stephen;

One more voice to the choir after having watched this
conversation... Whenever it arises :-) I'm always tempted
to ask one fundamental question;

If you think back to when you first were taught to print
sentences, did your teacher instruct you to put "2 spaces"
between sentences or was the instruction to leave "space"
between sentences?

Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac


Yeah, but ... wouldn't you consider cursive writing to be moot
compared to a set of keys?




On 4/3/10 12:59 PM, in article
, "Stephen Larivee"
wrote:

I had wondered if one of these choices had emerged as the
standard for word processing. I was going to try to adapt
to the "one space after the period" if that were the
standard of today. Apparently you can still do it either
way so I will stick with the way I have been typing/word
processing for many years now, two spaces after the
period, with no guilt feelings about violating current
usage.

Thank you, everyone, for all the input!!

"LVTravel" wrote in message
...


"Stephen Larivee" wrote in message
...
What is the preferred way of typing today, to put one or
two spaces at the end of a sentence?

OK, now since you posted over 10 hours ago and have
gotten quite a bit of advice, here is the definitive
answer. It totally depends on your target audience and
personal preference in that order. If you are doing a
document that is going to be published and are told to
use a particular style publication manual then you need
to use it for your work.

If this is correspondence to a business associate, where
neatness counts, find out what the company policy may be.
After all you are working for the company. If they don't
care, as long as it is neat and readable, then you
shouldn't care either.

I came up through the typewriter days and had to double
space after the period all the time. I now normally
single space on a computer as this is just one less
keystroke I have to make between sentences. I still
forget sometime and do put double spaces between
sentences some times. Again mostly it will be personal
choice.

Have a great day.




  #30  
Old April 4th, 2010, 06:01 PM posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
Terry Farrell
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 3,004
Default two spaces or one

What really annoys me about bottom posting is that many perpetrators NEVER
trim the post. I agree that keeping at least the previous answer when you
reply is necessary, but sometimes replies are so far down the page I just
refuse to scroll down to read the answer.

Top posting a simple answer to a simple question seems to work really well
in here where most users top post.

Terry Farrell

"Twayne" wrote in message
...
In ,
Dave Symes typed:
In article ,
Tom Willett wrote:
[Snippy]

The bottom line is, who really cares? Except maybe those
who chastise others for top posting ;-)


Top posting is a heinous crime, for which you should be
flogged around the fleet.


On some sites. But here the concensus seems to be that it doesn't matter.
I bottom post unless there is already a top post; then I top post to keep
it all aligned.
It's a silly thing for anyone to argue about or even debate, actually.
Netiquette & most gurus believe in the trim & inline, then bottom if no
inline. Personally I couldn't care which. I stay out of trouble by simply
using what the concensus is. Oh, and ignoring dummies who troll to make an
arguement out of it.

I agree - who really cares?

HTH,

Twayne`

Dave

And no emoticon get-out, it's a serious business y'know.

:-\~




 




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