# What's Up With People Still Double-Spacing After a Period **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 12, 2009, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858 "2009-04-12T17:19:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2009, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/41 "2009-04-12T21:32:37Z")
About a year or two ago somebody else complained about double spacing after a period (or a full stop for all you Brit dopers 🙂 ) and that was the first time that I’ve ever heard that sing spacing is the norm. I was born and raised on two spaces, and I’ll die typing two spaces! But on a serious note, MS Word apparently accepts both. I don’t get any squiggly lines when I hit the space-twice. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2009, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/42 "2009-04-12T21:44:07Z")
Seeing we get to express our opinions here, I find it irritating to follow text written without the double space after periods and full colons. Single spaces between sentences and major clauses are the eyesore to me. I still put the spaces in, even when software (like the program that runs this message board, as but one example) takes them out. If I could figure out how to permanently disable whatever it is that takes them out on things like the message board, I’d be a happier person. It makes the sentences and clauses much easier to find as your eye scans the page. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2009, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/43 "2009-04-12T22:08:07Z")
> [@Nobody](#): > > About a year or two ago somebody else complained about double spacing after a period (or a full stop for all you Brit dopers 🙂 ) and that was the first time that I’ve ever heard that sing spacing is the norm. I was born and raised on two spaces, and I’ll die typing two spaces! But on a serious note, MS Word apparently accepts both. I don’t get any squiggly lines when I hit the space-twice. I remember that thread it was the first time I had heard that double spacing was out. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2009, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/44 "2009-04-12T22:14:38Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > I do it, but it’s not just out of habit. It seems to make the sentences stand out on their own, and thus make a paragraph easier to read, more so than just a single period. The primary objection is that proportional fonts, which is what current word processors overwhelmingly use, are generally set up so that a single space after a period accomplishes the same thing as two spaces in a monospace font. It’s already standing out, you don’t need to any more. And since web publishing generally winds up stripping one of the spaces anyway, what’s the point? > [@](#): > > I don’t understand the hate. It’s not like I’m typing something ENTIRELY IN CAPITAL LETTERS, or typing Indian-style by adding spaces before the punctuation mark ,with no space afterwards. My hate comes from more than the two periods _per se_. Some of my typists use one space and some use two spaces, and when two of them work on a single document the inconsistency is an irritant. Even worse are those who are ostensibly trained but are just plain sloppy and give me documents with one, two, and often three spaces between sentences. For me, the problem is consistency across typists, and given that the current state of word processing is geared toward a single space, I would much rather we all just starting using that. My automatic formatting macros are set up to strip all but one space after end punctuation. I still get a visceral sense of satisfaction whenever I run them. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2009, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/45 "2009-04-12T23:19:37Z")
Actually, double spacing after sentences in PHP and Cascading Style Sheets produces a bizarre result – the first of two consecutive spaces is converted to a Unicode symbol that displays variously as a degree symbol or a dark filled diamond with a white question mark superimposed in it, depending on the CSS setting and the browser used. I learned to type in the last years of the Eisenhower presidency, and it’s even worse for me to try to convert to single spacing. So when I’m preparing text that will go into PHP/CSS format, I run a global search and replace function at the end, converting [space][space] to [space] (and [space][return] to [return], which also causes the same bizarre effect if left unrepaired). ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2009, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/46 "2009-04-12T23:40:32Z")
> [@Nobody](#): > > But on a serious note, MS Word apparently accepts both. I don’t get any squiggly lines when I hit the space-twice. By default, yes. But you can actually configure it to accept only one or the other; I used to do this to make sure all my documents _had_ two spaces. ---
**Author:** ![Dusty\_Rose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ba8739/32.png) [@Dusty\_Rose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dusty_Rose)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/47 "2009-04-13T00:04:05Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > I grew up with typewriters, not keyboards, and learned to double space after periods. I still do so, even though it’s edited out online. I think that even with the newer fonts, sentences look better and are easier to read with a double space after a period. > > However, the new standards are different, so I’m trying to just live with it. It’s not a big deal. > > I did somewhat alter my typing habits when I was playing Zork and similar games. For those who don’t know, text games would allow the user to enter several commands at once, separated by periods. No space was needed after periods. So when I’m confronted with a black screen and white text, I’m likely to enter: > > ```auto > > n.w.take weed.e.e.take shillelagh.w.s.take lamp.w.w.take all.w.open door.d. > > ``` Duuude! I LOVED Zork. First computer game I got hooked on! The unicorn and the carousel about drove me mad!! What a blast from the past. 😃 On topic: I double space after periods, too. Old habits, ya know? ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/48 "2009-04-13T00:39:06Z")
> [@Reply](#): > > By default, yes. But you can actually configure it to accept only one or the other; I used to do this to make sure all my documents _had_ two spaces. You mean to make sure that ones you typed had two spaces? ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/49 "2009-04-13T00:41:23Z")
> [@ivylass](#): > > It’s how I learned to type in high school and I will continue to do it. It’s a habit with me and one space at the end of a sentence looks wrong to me. Yet almost every newspaper, magazine, or book you read uses one space after a period. ---
**Author:** ![hobscrk777](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a6a055/32.png) [@hobscrk777](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hobscrk777)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/50 "2009-04-13T00:46:00Z")
> [@Walloon](#): > > Yet almost every newspaper, magazine, or book you read uses one space after a period. Shh… ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/51 "2009-04-13T01:18:08Z")
> [@Nobody](#): > > You mean to make sure that ones you typed had two spaces? Huh? Yes. Are you making a distinction between what Word would automatically fix and what Word would highlight and I would have to fix? ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/52 "2009-04-13T01:26:27Z")
I still do it not only because it is habit, but because it is useful. If I’m splitting up text for some reason, I can searchfor that patern which I can be certain represents the end of a sentence and not something else, as a period followed by a single space might be. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/53 "2009-04-13T01:26:45Z")
Any white space makes a document easier to read, and the double space is a nice emphasis to the end of sentence. I don’t often say this, but I do think it is a silly thing to get upset about. (I notice single spaces on hard copies and think it makes the writer look semi-literate, on par with 'The criteria is … ". I never said I was consistent.) ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/54 "2009-04-13T02:04:21Z")
> [@appleciders](#): > > Yep, I’m 21 and I learned to do that in elementary school. It just looks cleaner in my mind… Agreed. In part, this depends on the type font being used. I remember reading one style guide which pointed that out as well. ---
**Author:** ![Alan\_Smithee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2acd7d/32.png) [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/55 "2009-04-13T05:13:18Z")
I learned to type on computers. I was in college, or maybe grad school, when I noticed that the MLA recommended two spaces after a sentence. Ever a stickler for the rules, I trained myself carefully to type two spaces after every sentence. At first it was strange and felt wrong, but I was determined and I persevered, making myself go back and add spaces to every sentence in a paper until I learned to do it that way naturally. It was only a few years later that I encountered the old SDMB thread complaining about double-spacing. Sigh . . . I just can’t win. ---
**Author:** ![KittyCat444](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/848f3c/32.png) [@KittyCat444](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KittyCat444)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/56 "2009-04-13T05:34:49Z")
Even when I was in preschool and kindergarten, I remember that when I was learning to write with paper and pencil, I was taught to put one finger-space after a comma, two finger-spaces after a period. (I’m 24 years old by the way, and I always space twice after a period.) ---
**Author:** ![Max\_the\_Immortal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Max\_the\_Immortal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_the_Immortal)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/57 "2009-04-13T05:55:13Z")
This is the first I’ve heard about anyone objecting to double-spacing after a period, and I learned to type in the mid-90s. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/58 "2009-04-13T12:59:03Z")
> [@KittyCat444](#): > > Even when I was in preschool and kindergarten, I remember that when I was learning to write with paper and pencil, I was taught to put one finger-space after a comma, two finger-spaces after a period. (I’m 24 years old by the way, and I always space twice after a period.) That’s still how kids are taught- at least in my kids’ schools. I understand that books and periodicals single-space, but they have different priorities at stake- they’re trying to conserve space. When I write, I don’t have that concern, and the double-space is just ingrained. Reading it back, it looks much better. Single spaces after a period just looks too crammed in, or something. And today’s fonts and word processing doesn’t really make the double-space obsolete. If they did, enough space would automatically be inserted to set the next sentence off from the previous one as if the typist had inserted two spaces. Even with proportional fonts, one space after a period looks insufficient to me. It looks kind of lazy, almost but not quite as bad as u got 2 chek this out! C ya l8r! ---
**Author:** ![hobscrk777](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a6a055/32.png) [@hobscrk777](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hobscrk777)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/59 "2009-04-13T13:10:35Z")
> [@j666](#): > > Any white space makes a document easier to read, and the double space is a nice emphasis to the end of sentence. ```auto S u re ly t h i s i s t r u e o n l y t o a c e r t a i n e x t e n t, r i g h t? ``` ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858/60 "2009-04-13T13:18:59Z")
> [@Reply](#): > > Huh? Yes. Are you making a distinction between what Word would automatically fix and what Word would highlight and I would have to fix? No, I just wanted to make sure that I understood what you meant, that’s all. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-people-still-double-spacing-after-a-period/492858.md?page=4)