How many spaces do you put between sentences?

[Pacfanweb]

Two, that's the correct way.

 

[JC86]

I was also taught to use two, although I often see people use one. I was doing this online typing test the other day in a competition with my girlfriend and when I clicked the two spaces after every period option on the test setup page, she thought I was weird, apparently it's not as common as I thought yet judging from the poll, two seems to be the traditional and widely used way of doing it.

 

[Cerpin Taxt]

There's another forum on which I post, and one of the most intelligent and articulate users on the forum (indeed, that I've ever encountered anywhere on the web, for that matter) would always put a space BEFORE exclamation points and question marks !

(like that)

He is actually a native Austrian, but stated that the period-before-exclamation-and-question marks format was what he had been taught and used all his life. It's not like he is an ignorant individual, either. During his education he simultaneously pursued a Ph.D in mathematical physics and a Juris Doctorate in United States Law, successfully attaining both. That's no easy feat.

 

[fierydemise]

Learned 2

 

[indamixx99]

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

Originally posted by: DrVos
Most typographers consider double spaces a quaint holdover from the dark ages of monospaced typewriters- where every letter and punctuation mark occupied the same amount of space. Because of this limitation, the practice of adding double space became helpful in visually separating sentences. Modern word processors use typefaces that are proportionally sized and spaced and do not require extra spacing after the period. Its allowable to use both methods of spacing, but many designers will say that a single space looks better because it mitigates the appearance of "rivers" in a block of text.

+1

Proportional fonts and the leading/spacing provided in computer word processors today don't require that two spaces be used any longer. One space is now the accepted rule and using two spaces makes for stilted text.

+2 :thumbsup:

DrVos hit the nail on the head

 

[oog]

depends on the typeface

 

[Aharami]

I was taught two is the correct amount after a period. One after any other punctuation mark.

 

[grrl]

Originally posted by: Garth
There's another forum on which I post, and one of the most intelligent and articulate users on the forum (indeed, that I've ever encountered anywhere on the web, for that matter) would always put a space BEFORE exclamation points and question marks !

They do the same thing here in Korea, and put a space after a double quote (the first one) but no space before a left bracket.

 

[MartyMcFly3]

I was taught to use 2, but never liked the look of it so I always just used one. The teachers never noticed (or didn't care enough to comment about it)

 

[OrganizedChaos]

until i read this thread i never noticed or heard of using 2.

 

[BoomerD]

I learned to type in the 60's when it was "period, space, space, next sentence"
Nowadays, with computer fonts, the standard is single space after a period.
It's been difficult to stop adding the 2nd space...but slowly but surely...
My typing teacher used to carry one of the hardwood pointers they used back in the day before laser pointers were invented...every time he'd see you making an obvious mistake...WHACK! It usually didn't take long to correct errors in format and style...

 

[Kelemvor]

There should always be 2 spaces between sentences. I always do it that way since that's how I learned. Of course some website take multiple spaces and condense them into just one so it doesn't matter... But when typing a document or anything, always 2.

 

[meltdown75]

2 forever & always. :heart:

TLA, TLF, TID, TIND

 

[oddyager]

Think of all the paper you 2-spacers are wasting!!! Would someone please think of the trees.

 

[meltdown75]

Originally posted by: oddyager
Think of all the paper you 2-spacers are wasting!!! Would someone please think of the trees.

people still write on paper?

 

[Pugnax]

ONE!
Two spaces was just for old typewriters. One space looks so much better too! I cry when I see two spaces after a period

 

[trmiv]

The standard is now one. I was taught two spaces, and I'm so used to it now that I add two spaces without thinking about it.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

Two is correct according to every style manual I have ever seen. I see no good reason for using only one.

 

[moshquerade]

Originally posted by: Don Vito Corleone
Two is correct according to every style manual I have ever seen. I see no good reason for using only one.

we've had this question before, and once again, i agree with Don.

 

[Pugnax]

Originally posted by: Don Vito Corleone
Two is correct according to every style manual I have ever seen. I see no good reason for using only one.

From wikipedia:

Additionally, many computer typefaces are designed proportionately to alleviate the need for the double space (the opposition would of course reply that this does nothing to satisfy the aforementioned saliency issue). Most widely accepted contemporary style guides categorically require that only one space be placed after full stops and similar punctuation marks, and they characterise modern practice as avoiding it.[5]
...
^ "6.11 Space between sentences In typeset matter, one space, not two (in other words, a regular word space), follows any mark of punctuation that ends a sentence, whether a period, a colon, a question mark, an exclamation point, or closing quotation marks." The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, 2003.

^ "Use one space (not two) after these punctuation marks [sc. period, question mark, exclamation point, or colon], as the practice of using two spaces is just another holdover from using a typewriter." Schriver, Karen A, Dynamics in Document Design, Wiley, NY, 1997, p. 502; "In typewritten (as distinct from typeset) material, it was customary to place two spaces after a colon, semicolon, full stop or other sentence closing punctuation. Programs for word processing and desktop publishing offer more sophisticated, variable spacing, so this practice of double spacing is now avoided because it can create distracting gaps on a page." AGPS Style Manual, 2002, 6th edition, p. 117.

 

[MikeyLSU]

I was taught 2 growing up, so 2. But late in High School we were told it was also acceptable to just use 1. I think that is when the standard became either/or.

This was the 1998-1999 timeframe.

 

[rivan]

http://www.vanguard.edu/facult.../index.aspx?doc_id=796

APA Style basics:# Spacing after Punctuation: Space once after all punctuation. This includes using one space (not two!) following punctuation marks at the ends of sentences.

 

[sash1]

Originally posted by: Don Vito Corleone
Two is correct according to every style manual I have ever seen. I see no good reason for using only one.

o rly? because MLA, which i believe every school follows, says the only one space is correct.

going along with this, Chicago, another formatting style, also says the one space is correct, not two.

 

[Anubis]

Originally posted by: Delita

Originally posted by: blinky8225
One space is correct. The two space rule is a vestige of the typewriter age.

Winnar!!

YES

modern comps hell even non modern Word procession programs make the 1 space after a period more like 1.5 automatically 2 just looks stupid

 

[zinfamous]

2 spaces every other paragraph. ....just to see if the readers notice.