Full Stop Right Or Wrong?

[woodelf]

I always thought that after a full stop, whether on its own or bottom of a question mark or a colon, there had to be two spaces after it - typing of course - but now I've been told that only one space is necessary and even the rule!...which is right or wrong? one space or two? Ta Muchly.

[woofgang]

I was always taught one space, both in handwritten work, when typing and in composing type for printing.

[Tilly2]

A finger space between handwritten sentences equates to two spaces.

[chrissa1]

Are you talking vertically or, horizontally, Tilly?

[douglas9401]

I'm losing the will. To live.

[ladybirder]

237 I was taught figures had to be spelled out up to 10 then numbers thereafter. Sounds about right really. You wouldn't want to write sixteen, seventeen, eighteen ...

[Tilly2]

Chrissa, I'm talking one sentence after another, so, horizontally, I suppose.

[chrissa1]

Cheers, Tilly.

[ichkeria]

"I've also never heard of this before today. Looks like it was only taught to those who formally took a typing class. "

Exactly: and who "types" these days.
I can only repeat: look at any printed text: a prize for anyone who can find two spaces between sentences :-)

[woofgang]

Golly a whole finger space? If I had done that when writing essays at school, i would have been accused of trying to spin out an essay that was too short.

[zylaphone]

2 - I learned this my time at secretarial college

[zylaphone]

Oops "at my time at"

[Cloverjo]

I always leave one space. I've just been reading a magazine supplement from one of the Sunday papers and their writers all used no spaces after commas and full stops. It all looked a bit cramped to me.

[Arksided]

I went to a Grammar School but was never taught double spacing, however I might have being AWOL that day ;-)

[rabet]

As a literary editor for twenty-five years, I would say one, as after every punctuation mark.

[Gromit]

Typewriters had monospaces, that is all letters and all spaces were the same. So having two spaces after the stop made sense because it separated the sentences.
But you should not do it when writing on a computer keyboard, because the type is proportional. You are in effect compensating for a problem that no longer exists. Computer type is automatically properly spaced, so adding another space is actually making it worse.

[Tilly2]

Why would two spaces make it worse? What do you mean....worse?

[jno]

my sister, who learnt to type professionally, was taught two; she is disgusted that I, who learnt amateurishly, only use one. There's no universal rule, however. If you look at most books and newspapers, they use only one; but some publications may prefer two.

[Gromit]

Tilly2

When you learned to type you used a monospacing typewriter.
But word processing type is proportionally spaced, so the computer automatically gets the spacing right every time.

Read here about the difference between proportional spacing and monospacing.

https://www.techwalla.com/articles/proportional-vs-monospace-fonts

[Tilly2]

I was never taught to type. I just picked it up, out of necessity. Thanks, anyway, Gromit.

[woodelf]

OK You Guys - shouted in a million feet high letters - that's enough, unless you want to carry on! I never thought such a response...I'll stick to two spaces and Thank You All ABers, none better.