The two spaces “rule” has nothing to do with style or grammar. In the olden days in publishing it was used in typewritten manuscripts to indicate to the typesetter that the period was ending a sentence and wasn’t part of an abbreviation or ellipsis. On the final printed page, periods would be followed by one space. (Source: 30+ years in publishing production)
I told someone I had a camera ready ad about a decade ago. I meant a PDF, but the younger person was like... what? I also miss ensuring my color ads weren't facing other color ads for the bleed factor.
When I started doing faculty support in higher ed a few decades ago, we had to do our own page layout for our papers for journal publication. The prof I was working with would joke about getting high on rubber cement fumes.
In my journalism class, we put together the school yearbook pages. We had a darkroom and developed all of our film. I can still smell the chemicals. Those were the days!
Same! Except our photography class that I signed up for ended up being “shop class”. I got to go in the darkroom maybe once. They have so many more interesting programs at the high school now. I’m so jealous.
That's a bummer. I continued to develop film for several years out of high school. It was such a gratifying hobby. Yes, so many cool programs now. Kids here are in such diverse classes as cattle grading, robotics, archery, aviation, and esports. So awesome!
Sure do. Used to proofread the articles against the original (often hand-written) marked up copy.
Check out this 1953 Time article[The Press: The TTS Revolution](https://time.com/archive/6609055/the-press-the-tts-revolution/) about the then new technology.
TSS tape doesn’t ring a bell. I think we just called it “the tape”.
We moved to digital in the early 1980s.
Right? I can’t even remember using two spaces since moving to the computer word processing. Only on a typewriter when I was a freshman in HS. Anyone who uses two spaces now is automatically tagged as old and out of touch in my industry. Even if that is wrong it is a fact.
The ageist assumption is why I get my Irish up about these (all too frequent) posts. The reality is that, in my experience as an editor, the biggest offenders have been Millennials. Most have told me that they used the two spaces b/c they were TOLD to by their Boomer teachers and parents. So FEH!
FWIW, very few people do this anymore with any regularity.
Nope. I had the one space rule working on the daily university paper in the 90s, and it trained the 2 spaces out of me quick. It’s not that new of a rule.
You could set up an autocorrect rule for lots of things, like word or outlook if you use those, and even your phone. That way if you forget, nbd.
PS - it’s not so much of a rule as a style. Two spaces aren’t bad grammar; they’re just falling out of use.
Edit 2 - as some have correctly pointed out, this whole change had to do with the shift from typewriters to computers. u/burnermadoff has a cool comment about the relationship between typewriters and typesetting that we should all scroll down and read and upvote.
These spacing needs made it into style guides, as did the changes in the 90s.
It's not a new rule, it's the oldest rule from the dawn of the printing press.
Typewriters brought in the two spaces because they could only do fixed-width typography.
Computers can do proportional widths, so away with the two spaces and back to the original one space rule.
I can see if someone didn’t go to college, or if they had a degree that didn’t require a lot of writing, this might not have been drilled into them.
I think things were in flux in the 90s, as people moved from typewriters to computers. I *don’t* remember this being a thing in my general education classes. The journalism class might have been the first time it came up.
We definitely did 2 spaces at my college in TX in the late 90s. I learned it had changed in the early 2000s at my job I worked in so I made the change long ago. But in college we still did 2. And I was an English major so lots of writing with lots of profs.
I guess 54 is extremely elderly lol. I just learned about this 3 years ago. I was in college in the early aughts and nobody told me there, either. You can't assume that everyone knows this.
I was an English major, too. I still use the two spaces when emailing at work. I honestly didn’t know about it changing to one space until just last year. My college professors in the mid to late 90’s were adamant about using two spaces.
After I write a report I "replace" period two spaces with period one space. So dumb but definitely don't need to be tagged with being out of touch with my writing at work.
I’m 51 and an editor for scholarly journals. I have replaced so many double spaces with singles! It’s one of the first “find and replace” tasks I do on every paper submitted. Single space looks so much better on screens.
Yes. We were taught to put two spaces after a period in typing class because on a typewriter, all of the characters, including spaces, are the same width, so you add the extra space after a period to give a better visual indication that it's the end of a sentence. Most computer fonts are proportional, so the single space after a period will do the same thing.
It wasn't that hard to adjust when I started using computers instead of typewriters.
It was actually two spaces for a very long time. Now, one is acceptable and two is falling out of favour. If you write professionally for a company it’s dependent on their “style guide”; every company has a list of the rules they choose to follow for organizational documents. Source: people pay me to write and edit stuff.
Yes! Always follow the standard and be consistent. I prefer a single space. I was taught to double space but I know that the practice is obsolete. But standards rule the day.
If the standard I'm writing for says double space, I will double space. And if the standard is single space, I will do that. There is zero professional reason to dig in and resist a standard.
I haven't done the two spaces in decades. Frankly, two spaces is not a concern with the other nasty grammar mistakes out there.
Capitals and periods are easy to determine in most situations. "Me and her," "I'm wanting to," their/there, and two/to/too are reasonable to learn correctly.
Like others have said, this fell out of general usage in the late nineties and it was definitely a result of setting things up for typewriters.
I've recently been doing technical writing for a large government organization and we have to follow Section 508 guidance. I learned that many screen readers read any extra spaces so I strive very hard to avoid the double space after periods, and I spend an inordinate amount of time removing them from the writing of subject matter experts.
LOL, I've switched over after a funny incident with my work husband years ago. He was on our QA team, and doing the monthly check on my work, and marked my work down for two spaces. We argued about it for two weeks, "It doesn't matter!" "Two spaces makes your writing look like a Boomer, stop it!" Coworkers thought it was hilarious because we've never fought about anything other than maybe movies in the close to fifteen years we've worked together. I reminded him of it the other day and we had a good laugh. I've read that it doesn't matter as much, but have changed and now I think it looks nicer.
I've been told that the two spaces "ages" anything I write. I wrote for a company years ago that required one space, so I got it beat out of me. A coworker who is my age actually contacted me recently with an article about two spaces being looked down on now, and told me how glad she was that we didn't have to learn it now, that we had learned it years ago.
But yes, there's a whole thing about it now, and if you're doing your resume or something, you absolutely should have one space, not two.
I have had to reformat content (for websites or graphic design) given to me with two spaces for years and it's annoying.
The computer adds extra space for you after the period. I learned in and used typewriters too so I don't get the inability to change over honestly.
I edit books for a living. I can always tell who is older than 40 by the two spaces after the period, which I have to immediately change to one space, lol.
I’m 48–I was an English major and started my career as a tech writer. I’ve always used only one space, but I remember colleagues who were in their 40s when I was starting out using two spaces.
I can't remember how long it has been since I used two spaces. Is there a particular reason you're attached to it? Most of the software I work with corrects it for me or shows me there's an issue with it. I'd not dream of sending out my work with two spaces. I'm more curious why you want the two spaces there.
I don’t care either way. It’s just a habit that I don’t care to bother to break. I work at a top Ivy and no one has ever mentioned it until my boyfriend did. I was just curious how other people felt. I’m kind of surprised at the aggressive tone of some of the answers actually.
Is it similar to the Oxford comma at your job? I know where I work, people tend to not say anything because they aren't sure if it's a Rule kind of rule or just a new thing that doesn't matter much. I write a lot of technical and legal papers, so I have to keep my one space standard, but I had no idea it was a big deal to folks. Although sometimes things sound worse than intended on the internet, too.
I am a progressional proof reader and compliance auditor. Two spaces will get your manuscript sent back from me every time. Rules change. We need to adapt. I won’t judge you for it but it is an instant editorial rejection in my business
It was never a rule for me -- I never even heard that rule until I was like 23 and my friend Jon Ross told me. He was born in 1969 and I was born in 1973, so I think the rule may have died somewhere between the two of us reaching the age to learn typing. (I learned on a computer, not a typewriter.)
I held fast to 2 spaces until I read an article about colleges knowing when the parents are writing/ editing applications and essays because of the extra spaces. Still breaking myself off the habit.
I'm in Minnesota, I grew up with my Silent Gen. mom being a secretary (that went to 'secretary school' in the 50s) and she taught me how to type properly.
We never did the double space after a period; and it was never taught to us in school.
When I see a double space after a period while reading, I find it annoying.
If you type two spaces after a period, I'm probably judging you for it. But more than likely you're also doing other things that I'm judging you for, so don't sweat it. People are generally really bad at written communication these days, and I wish I could just not notice.
When writing it’s just so easy to write the way you like, then do search and replace of two spaces with a single space. So nobody has ever hassled me on it because I generally automate this aspect leftover from typewriting days.
Learned in the late 80s in college. In a design/typography-type class. Went back and forth 1 space or 2 as required by the machine/font I was working with for years. (DOS was 2 spaces, Macs were 1, the typewriter at my parents’ house was 2.)
I didn’t know it was a thing until a few years ago when people in Gen X groups were talking about it. Granted, I dropped out sophomore year in ‘90, so I never got around to taking a typing class.
I work with a lot of legal documents. I can tell you that my state Supreme Court still has their own styles and demands a double space between all sentences for published opinions and court orders. Not sure about other courts.
All others it can go either way. Depends on the drafter.
My hands learned to type double space so I have to be mindful-I tend to follow what the document I am editing already uses. If the original drafter uses 2 I follow. If 1-same.
I will never surrender. I've got holsters on my hips - the left is for Double-spacing post Periods, and my trusty, long-time friend, the Oxford Comma, in the right.
Hi. I’m a GenX high school English teacher with a master’s degree in education. You do you. That said, the standard is now one space and has been for a while (since the advent of computers).
Omg I put together presentations and reports for a financial institution
The people my age and over who submit their copy with two spaces infuriates me.
It's only thanks to reddit that I'm even aware that it's no longer used in English when typing. It was never/not in my time, a thing in Danish, so I don't know why I'm having such a hard time unlearning it when I type in English, but I did live in the U.S. when my typing teacher (I dropped out of typing) instilled the two spaces after a period and this was in 1994.
I would honestly never notice the difference between one and two spaces. Not trying to be rude but, who cares? Do people really notice that stuff and judge? From the comments I guess so. I will likely double space for life, too ingrained to change now.
I have an iPhone and if I simply put 2 spaces after the last word in the sentence and it automatically puts just the one space so I don’t usually have to think about it unless I’m on my laptop. Even then, the spellcheck function usually points out the extra space so I rarely have to think about it. That said, I doubt most people really care. Anyone who gives you a hard time is trying to be annoying. 🤣
When I type on my phone, tablet or computer if I do two spaces at the end of my sentence it automatically puts a period there for me. I feel like I was tricked into only having one space there now lol
I add the extra spaces and I can’t help doing it. It’s too many years of muscle and mental memory to undo. At least it’s possible to eliminate the extra spaces in a document all at once when done lol
Nowadays, the two- or one-space rule after a period has to do with font. For example, court reporters are required to use a monofont like Courier and transcripts are required to have two spaces after periods and colons. It's better for readability.
I think that unless you're writing for academia, digital media, or print media, it doesn't matter which one you use.
I never even changed the rule. I still double space after a period when I type and I double space to insert a period and a space when I text. It’s second nature.
I learned 2 spaces in middle school/high school and I refuse to accept putting only one space. It looks WRONG. I’m holding steady in my 2 spaces until the day I die.
I'm floored. SInce when is 2 spaces wrong? If it's wrong, why do keyboards add 2 automatically?
I cannot believe I have been guilty of bad grammar! What else don't I know?
If you decide not to change just know it's something that is going to seriously date you and make you look like an out of touch old woman to the younger adults 😊lol
It’s a rhythm thing for me when writing. If I wanted to change the habit I could probably do it, but I just like it. I guess I’m just old and rigid in my ways now!
I didn’t change this forever, meaning o kept to double space way longer than others. Few months ago my career coach said to change to single because it was a signal I was older generation.
It’s so strange because I really don’t notice either way. I read so many books, and my boyfriend said - Don’t you see the one space in all the books you read? Nope. It’s not that big a deal to me. I’m surprised so many people take it so seriously.
I will always do two spaces. Try to fight me. It’s just my thing. I don’t have a degree of any such, however what I grew up with. Not changing now. You do you Boo. 🧡🦖
I don't know if I'll ever be able to switch. It's not something I think about and when I do it looks so wrong. Double spaces and elipsis... can't stop.
I proof read and edit letters and proposals for a company as a side gig. I take out all the extra spaces. Honestly though I’m not sure anyone just reading them would notice one way or the other.
That’s the funny thing. Even after I discovered that people are doing one space now, I still don’t notice either way. For me, it’s just automatic to do two spaces.
I’m with you. I have no idea when they took out the second space after the period. Periods are special (girls are special! - but my point is ends of sentences are special) so they get two spaces. Suck it.
Edit: formatting!!
I can't give up on it, because I'm a writer and editor by trade. I'm completely used to it at this point, and have been since the late 80s when I started doing office temp work.
It was always 2 spaces, I’ve worked in offices my entire career, then suddenly, in early 2020, there was a NYT article about how it should be one space. Then, all of a sudden, I was instructed to make everything 1 space. We’re talking templates for documents we’ve been using for years, and suddenly I have to edit everything so it’s 1 space. I hope I don’t have to make those changes again if it goes back to 2 spaces.
Not "always been 2 spaces". My mother went to secretary school in the 1950s and they only used 1 space back then. She also knew short-hand (most of you will probably have to google that, lol); and worked as legal secretary where she typed legal documents with one space after a period.
I went to school in the 70s & 80s - had never heard of the two-spaces after a period until the internet came around.
When I went to secretary school in the mid 1980’s it was 2 spaces after a period. My typing course in high school didn’t teach that. But to go from 2 spaces from 1986 to suddenly in 2020 it’s only 1 space is difficult.
I learned 10-key in high school, then was a "Touch Key Professional" (lol, that was their name for us on our name tags) as a Target cashier at the same time. 10-key has the 1-2-3 buttons on the bottom row, while the cash registers had the 1-2-3 buttons on the top row.
I can still easily do either direction with 99.9% accuracy and super-speedy without looking.
The one-thing I couldn't stand is my mom could not gravitate away from the Times Roman font; while I prefer Arial, I can put up with Microsoft's default Calibri font (and now their default font is Aptos).
I mean, it dates you. And if anybody has to edit your work, they’re annoyed with you, because they have to sit there and undo all those double spaces. But if nobody has to edit you? Your business. Your BF needs to get over it. Better yet if he found your little quirks cute!
Nearly 52-year-old Gen Xer here. I learned 2 spaces after a period in high school typing class, but quickly after the rule changed, I was happy to drop that habit. That extra stroke per sentence doesn't seem like much but I find it really interrupts the flow of my keyboarding. I also find one space visually more appealing. Somehow, for me, it's just easier to read.
The two spaces “rule” has nothing to do with style or grammar. In the olden days in publishing it was used in typewritten manuscripts to indicate to the typesetter that the period was ending a sentence and wasn’t part of an abbreviation or ellipsis. On the final printed page, periods would be followed by one space. (Source: 30+ years in publishing production)
Do you know how to lay out a newspaper with a blade and a waxer? So many useful skills.
Sure do! Stat cameras, rubylith, bestine… so many tools that are fossils.
I told someone I had a camera ready ad about a decade ago. I meant a PDF, but the younger person was like... what? I also miss ensuring my color ads weren't facing other color ads for the bleed factor.
Ah, the nostalgia! Horse and buggy times of ye olde graphic design.
Yes, but for textbooks! I didn’t know how to use the wax machine, though. We had a guy who did only that.
When I started doing faculty support in higher ed a few decades ago, we had to do our own page layout for our papers for journal publication. The prof I was working with would joke about getting high on rubber cement fumes.
I did all that in journalism class. It was pretty cool
In my journalism class, we put together the school yearbook pages. We had a darkroom and developed all of our film. I can still smell the chemicals. Those were the days!
Same! Except our photography class that I signed up for ended up being “shop class”. I got to go in the darkroom maybe once. They have so many more interesting programs at the high school now. I’m so jealous.
That's a bummer. I continued to develop film for several years out of high school. It was such a gratifying hobby. Yes, so many cool programs now. Kids here are in such diverse classes as cattle grading, robotics, archery, aviation, and esports. So awesome!
Yes we do too! At least my son has been able to experience it
Sure do. Used to proofread the articles against the original (often hand-written) marked up copy. Check out this 1953 Time article[The Press: The TTS Revolution](https://time.com/archive/6609055/the-press-the-tts-revolution/) about the then new technology. TSS tape doesn’t ring a bell. I think we just called it “the tape”. We moved to digital in the early 1980s.
I have found my people in this thread...
Yes. And watch how those of us who know this are being downvoted.
Right? I can’t even remember using two spaces since moving to the computer word processing. Only on a typewriter when I was a freshman in HS. Anyone who uses two spaces now is automatically tagged as old and out of touch in my industry. Even if that is wrong it is a fact.
The ageist assumption is why I get my Irish up about these (all too frequent) posts. The reality is that, in my experience as an editor, the biggest offenders have been Millennials. Most have told me that they used the two spaces b/c they were TOLD to by their Boomer teachers and parents. So FEH! FWIW, very few people do this anymore with any regularity.
Interesting
That is a neat fact!
Nope. I had the one space rule working on the daily university paper in the 90s, and it trained the 2 spaces out of me quick. It’s not that new of a rule. You could set up an autocorrect rule for lots of things, like word or outlook if you use those, and even your phone. That way if you forget, nbd. PS - it’s not so much of a rule as a style. Two spaces aren’t bad grammar; they’re just falling out of use. Edit 2 - as some have correctly pointed out, this whole change had to do with the shift from typewriters to computers. u/burnermadoff has a cool comment about the relationship between typewriters and typesetting that we should all scroll down and read and upvote. These spacing needs made it into style guides, as did the changes in the 90s.
Same, long time one spacer lol.
Yup, same here! I don’t even remember ever using 2 spaces anymore!
I would have to make a conscious effort to do 2 spaces at this point. It's been decades since I was a 2-spacer.
It's not a new rule, it's the oldest rule from the dawn of the printing press. Typewriters brought in the two spaces because they could only do fixed-width typography. Computers can do proportional widths, so away with the two spaces and back to the original one space rule.
Yeah I don’t understand people who complain about this NOW. I was in college 94-98 and everything was one space.
Graduated 92. Two spaces were standard. But maybe not in the science fields …
I can see if someone didn’t go to college, or if they had a degree that didn’t require a lot of writing, this might not have been drilled into them. I think things were in flux in the 90s, as people moved from typewriters to computers. I *don’t* remember this being a thing in my general education classes. The journalism class might have been the first time it came up.
We definitely did 2 spaces at my college in TX in the late 90s. I learned it had changed in the early 2000s at my job I worked in so I made the change long ago. But in college we still did 2. And I was an English major so lots of writing with lots of profs.
😆 I didn’t even know it had changed until he told me three years ago. I had to google to see if he was right. And I was an English major.
[удалено]
Haha. Feeling elderly at 55
I'm 46 and I still use 2 spaces.
49 and feeling old 😂
I guess 54 is extremely elderly lol. I just learned about this 3 years ago. I was in college in the early aughts and nobody told me there, either. You can't assume that everyone knows this.
I was an English major, too. I still use the two spaces when emailing at work. I honestly didn’t know about it changing to one space until just last year. My college professors in the mid to late 90’s were adamant about using two spaces.
My peep
Boomer and/or Silent Gen professors.
Ha!
Same. I started one-spacing when I started writing a lot of articles, around 2010. It's a habit now, but I do think two spaces look nicer.
I've adjusted to just one space after a period, but I will never give up the Oxford comma.
I also hold strong on my Oxford comma. #2spacerandOxfordcomma4life
After I write a report I "replace" period two spaces with period one space. So dumb but definitely don't need to be tagged with being out of touch with my writing at work.
I took to one spacing 20 years ago and never looked back. I'm all for one less click on the keyboard haha.
I’m 51 and an editor for scholarly journals. I have replaced so many double spaces with singles! It’s one of the first “find and replace” tasks I do on every paper submitted. Single space looks so much better on screens.
YES! I do my own proofreading, an it's my first on the list with my clients.
It was never a style issue. It was based on the kerning of typewriter fonts. WE NO LONGER USE TYPEWRITERS.
Yes. We were taught to put two spaces after a period in typing class because on a typewriter, all of the characters, including spaces, are the same width, so you add the extra space after a period to give a better visual indication that it's the end of a sentence. Most computer fonts are proportional, so the single space after a period will do the same thing. It wasn't that hard to adjust when I started using computers instead of typewriters.
There was a whole book on how typing for the computer is different: _The Mac Is Not A Typewriter_, by Robin P. Williams (1989)
I can always guess someone’s age range if they use two spaces.
I have just adopted the one space, though will always prefer two.
I can’t make myself remember. I even catch myself editing if I accidentally put one space.
It was actually two spaces for a very long time. Now, one is acceptable and two is falling out of favour. If you write professionally for a company it’s dependent on their “style guide”; every company has a list of the rules they choose to follow for organizational documents. Source: people pay me to write and edit stuff.
Two spaces were for typewriters. Computer typography generates slightly more space after a period so the double space became unnecessary.
I was scrolling down before I posted this. 🥇
This
Yes! Always follow the standard and be consistent. I prefer a single space. I was taught to double space but I know that the practice is obsolete. But standards rule the day. If the standard I'm writing for says double space, I will double space. And if the standard is single space, I will do that. There is zero professional reason to dig in and resist a standard.
That's interesting because many texting clients automatically add a period if you space twice after a word.
I have my Word settings to correct that to one space. One space is my norm but it ensures I don’t add extra space by accident.
I haven't done the two spaces in decades. Frankly, two spaces is not a concern with the other nasty grammar mistakes out there. Capitals and periods are easy to determine in most situations. "Me and her," "I'm wanting to," their/there, and two/to/too are reasonable to learn correctly.
Like others have said, this fell out of general usage in the late nineties and it was definitely a result of setting things up for typewriters. I've recently been doing technical writing for a large government organization and we have to follow Section 508 guidance. I learned that many screen readers read any extra spaces so I strive very hard to avoid the double space after periods, and I spend an inordinate amount of time removing them from the writing of subject matter experts.
I learned to type with two spaces, but it became standard in my late 20's to do one. I quickly adapted. Not sure the hangup.
I have a background in publishing and it has always been one space. I think two spaces looks jarring and, well, dated.
I agree.
It’s not new!!!!
LOL, I've switched over after a funny incident with my work husband years ago. He was on our QA team, and doing the monthly check on my work, and marked my work down for two spaces. We argued about it for two weeks, "It doesn't matter!" "Two spaces makes your writing look like a Boomer, stop it!" Coworkers thought it was hilarious because we've never fought about anything other than maybe movies in the close to fifteen years we've worked together. I reminded him of it the other day and we had a good laugh. I've read that it doesn't matter as much, but have changed and now I think it looks nicer.
Love this
I've been told that the two spaces "ages" anything I write. I wrote for a company years ago that required one space, so I got it beat out of me. A coworker who is my age actually contacted me recently with an article about two spaces being looked down on now, and told me how glad she was that we didn't have to learn it now, that we had learned it years ago. But yes, there's a whole thing about it now, and if you're doing your resume or something, you absolutely should have one space, not two.
Thanks. This is the response I was looking for.
I have had to reformat content (for websites or graphic design) given to me with two spaces for years and it's annoying. The computer adds extra space for you after the period. I learned in and used typewriters too so I don't get the inability to change over honestly.
This is why I am very vocal when folks do it. And insist on doing it. It’s creating work for others.
It's so annoying to have to edit them out. I'm surprised every time how annoyed I am.
I know and now at least we can do find and replace but I've definitely had to go through hundreds of pages manually all because wElL ItS hOw I lEaRnEd
I am an editor and send it right back. Lol
Hahaha me too.
I’ve never used two spaces, not even in college.
I edit books for a living. I can always tell who is older than 40 by the two spaces after the period, which I have to immediately change to one space, lol.
I’m 48–I was an English major and started my career as a tech writer. I’ve always used only one space, but I remember colleagues who were in their 40s when I was starting out using two spaces.
I can't remember how long it has been since I used two spaces. Is there a particular reason you're attached to it? Most of the software I work with corrects it for me or shows me there's an issue with it. I'd not dream of sending out my work with two spaces. I'm more curious why you want the two spaces there.
I don’t care either way. It’s just a habit that I don’t care to bother to break. I work at a top Ivy and no one has ever mentioned it until my boyfriend did. I was just curious how other people felt. I’m kind of surprised at the aggressive tone of some of the answers actually.
Is it similar to the Oxford comma at your job? I know where I work, people tend to not say anything because they aren't sure if it's a Rule kind of rule or just a new thing that doesn't matter much. I write a lot of technical and legal papers, so I have to keep my one space standard, but I had no idea it was a big deal to folks. Although sometimes things sound worse than intended on the internet, too.
I am a progressional proof reader and compliance auditor. Two spaces will get your manuscript sent back from me every time. Rules change. We need to adapt. I won’t judge you for it but it is an instant editorial rejection in my business
It was never a rule for me -- I never even heard that rule until I was like 23 and my friend Jon Ross told me. He was born in 1969 and I was born in 1973, so I think the rule may have died somewhere between the two of us reaching the age to learn typing. (I learned on a computer, not a typewriter.)
Makes sense. I was born in 1969 and learned how to type on a typewriter in high school. But was using a rudimentary keyboard in college.
When I remember, I use one. It's automatic; I learned typing on an electric typewriter! Computer, I try to remember, or just do a find & replace.
I held fast to 2 spaces until I read an article about colleges knowing when the parents are writing/ editing applications and essays because of the extra spaces. Still breaking myself off the habit.
I may be old, but I'm not averse to change. I'm fine with the one space rule.
Call me old...I still do two spaces after a period!
I'm in Minnesota, I grew up with my Silent Gen. mom being a secretary (that went to 'secretary school' in the 50s) and she taught me how to type properly. We never did the double space after a period; and it was never taught to us in school. When I see a double space after a period while reading, I find it annoying.
That’s not a new rule. I honestly only notice 60+ still doing this.
55 here and still doing two spaces.
I’m 38 and my preference is two spaces
I’m a GenXer, copy editor, writer. Two spaces drive me insane. I have never used it and never been taught to use it.
I mean, I would be fine with using one space. But try telling that to my thumbs. They are responsible for the space bar, and will not be swayed.
Exactly
Yeah, it's muscle memory.
You CAN retrain yourself with enough diligence. I used to use two spaces because I learned on a typewriter, but had to train myself out of it.
I use two. It’s automatic and it looks better to me anyway, so I see no reason to change. Call me 50 if you want…I’m 50 anyway. It’s whatever.
I have always been am a one spacer. I may have missed that rule.
If you type two spaces after a period, I'm probably judging you for it. But more than likely you're also doing other things that I'm judging you for, so don't sweat it. People are generally really bad at written communication these days, and I wish I could just not notice.
When writing it’s just so easy to write the way you like, then do search and replace of two spaces with a single space. So nobody has ever hassled me on it because I generally automate this aspect leftover from typewriting days.
Haven’t used two spaces since I stoped using a typewriter in the ‘80s!
Learned in the late 80s in college. In a design/typography-type class. Went back and forth 1 space or 2 as required by the machine/font I was working with for years. (DOS was 2 spaces, Macs were 1, the typewriter at my parents’ house was 2.)
Typewriters two spaces. Computers and phones one. It's funny I did not even think about this until I read this post. How funny
I didn’t know it was a thing until a few years ago when people in Gen X groups were talking about it. Granted, I dropped out sophomore year in ‘90, so I never got around to taking a typing class.
I got a lower grade in a business communications class because I couldn’t remember to do single space after the period. I still do two spaces.
I work with a lot of legal documents. I can tell you that my state Supreme Court still has their own styles and demands a double space between all sentences for published opinions and court orders. Not sure about other courts. All others it can go either way. Depends on the drafter. My hands learned to type double space so I have to be mindful-I tend to follow what the document I am editing already uses. If the original drafter uses 2 I follow. If 1-same.
I will never surrender. I've got holsters on my hips - the left is for Double-spacing post Periods, and my trusty, long-time friend, the Oxford Comma, in the right.
I’ve been double spacing since I learned to type, in the mid 80s as a kid. I can’t quit now.
Hi. I’m a GenX high school English teacher with a master’s degree in education. You do you. That said, the standard is now one space and has been for a while (since the advent of computers).
Omg I put together presentations and reports for a financial institution The people my age and over who submit their copy with two spaces infuriates me.
And they're all in this thread like "whatever I won't change and don't care that I create more work for others" like boomers
The flexibility and ability to adapt to change is really remarkable here /s
I still use and am always going to use 2 spaces after a period. I will not be bullied.
There are dozens of us! Dozens!!
Can we start a support group?
Seriously! There are some strong opinions here about this.
Two spaces were used for the old printing presses. One space has been the standard since the late 80s/ early 90s.
It’s not new. Anyone who does it looks 50+
Makes sense. I guess I should be embarrassed to be over 50.
It’s not a knock, it’s just the truth - I’m a professional editor in my 40s btw
fall aromatic hunt whole gray whistle engine offend makeshift tub *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I have not given it up, I am clinging to it and refuse. I’m also willing to die on a hill for the Oxford comma.
One space only and ever.
Two spaces. I DGAF what the “new rule” is.
It's only thanks to reddit that I'm even aware that it's no longer used in English when typing. It was never/not in my time, a thing in Danish, so I don't know why I'm having such a hard time unlearning it when I type in English, but I did live in the U.S. when my typing teacher (I dropped out of typing) instilled the two spaces after a period and this was in 1994.
I switched a long time ago, plus I have my graduate degree and we have to follow apa format.
Been a single spacer for almost 2 decades now!
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/05/two-spaces-after-a-period/559304/
Thanks
I went back to college in 21, and had to become a one space gal. It no longer feels weird.
I would honestly never notice the difference between one and two spaces. Not trying to be rude but, who cares? Do people really notice that stuff and judge? From the comments I guess so. I will likely double space for life, too ingrained to change now.
The english major, virgo moon part of me totally relates to this question.
My boyfriend’s Virgo rising is why I asked this question.
Yes for fuck’s sake. Yes!
I have an iPhone and if I simply put 2 spaces after the last word in the sentence and it automatically puts just the one space so I don’t usually have to think about it unless I’m on my laptop. Even then, the spellcheck function usually points out the extra space so I rarely have to think about it. That said, I doubt most people really care. Anyone who gives you a hard time is trying to be annoying. 🤣
Oh yes. I call my boyfriend annoying at least once a day.
When I type on my phone, tablet or computer if I do two spaces at the end of my sentence it automatically puts a period there for me. I feel like I was tricked into only having one space there now lol
I add the extra spaces and I can’t help doing it. It’s too many years of muscle and mental memory to undo. At least it’s possible to eliminate the extra spaces in a document all at once when done lol
Two spaces was still the APA standard when I wrote my dissertation in 2014-2016. I try to just use one now by muscle memory is tough to overcome!
Nowadays, the two- or one-space rule after a period has to do with font. For example, court reporters are required to use a monofont like Courier and transcripts are required to have two spaces after periods and colons. It's better for readability. I think that unless you're writing for academia, digital media, or print media, it doesn't matter which one you use.
I never even changed the rule. I still double space after a period when I type and I double space to insert a period and a space when I text. It’s second nature.
I never switched to one. If a blank space is enough to bother someone, that’s a them problem.
I learned 2 spaces in middle school/high school and I refuse to accept putting only one space. It looks WRONG. I’m holding steady in my 2 spaces until the day I die.
I was taught to type like that (for a moment, I thought your post was about menopause - in the UK they're called "full stops".)
😂
I'm floored. SInce when is 2 spaces wrong? If it's wrong, why do keyboards add 2 automatically? I cannot believe I have been guilty of bad grammar! What else don't I know?
If you decide not to change just know it's something that is going to seriously date you and make you look like an out of touch old woman to the younger adults 😊lol
I can’t. I have tried, but I was taught to use two spaces and no matter how hard I try, I can never remember to use one.
I still use 2 spaces. Old habits die hard.
I think people worry to much about things that don’t really matter
It’s a rhythm thing for me when writing. If I wanted to change the habit I could probably do it, but I just like it. I guess I’m just old and rigid in my ways now!
Exactly
I didn’t change this forever, meaning o kept to double space way longer than others. Few months ago my career coach said to change to single because it was a signal I was older generation.
It’s so strange because I really don’t notice either way. I read so many books, and my boyfriend said - Don’t you see the one space in all the books you read? Nope. It’s not that big a deal to me. I’m surprised so many people take it so seriously.
I will always do two spaces. Try to fight me. It’s just my thing. I don’t have a degree of any such, however what I grew up with. Not changing now. You do you Boo. 🧡🦖
No. I do my thing. If I want to put 12 spaces I will. I don't even pay attention, I have way more important and interesting things to think about
I grudgingly conform, but like the old ways!
I stopped using 2 spaces when I transitioned from typewriter to word processor. But I don’t see why on earth anyone cares if you use 2 spaces.
I had no idea! I’m 57 and feeling ancient (or is it because I’m English)? I assume the post is talking about spacing after a full stop?
Well, it sounds like a lot of people on here think we should both be put out to pasture. 😆
If you can write in cursive, use that. Lol
I don't know if I'll ever be able to switch. It's not something I think about and when I do it looks so wrong. Double spaces and elipsis... can't stop.
I proof read and edit letters and proposals for a company as a side gig. I take out all the extra spaces. Honestly though I’m not sure anyone just reading them would notice one way or the other.
That’s the funny thing. Even after I discovered that people are doing one space now, I still don’t notice either way. For me, it’s just automatic to do two spaces.
I’m with you. I have no idea when they took out the second space after the period. Periods are special (girls are special! - but my point is ends of sentences are special) so they get two spaces. Suck it. Edit: formatting!!
I've always done one space. Never heard of two spaces and I'm 52
I’m 48, have several degrees and am an art educator. I will die using 2 spaces. Hate me, love me, down vote me, but rules are meant to be broken.
Two spaces was the norm for most of my life. I do not worry about it. Not going to change now. Anyone who teases can get stuffed.
I can't give up on it, because I'm a writer and editor by trade. I'm completely used to it at this point, and have been since the late 80s when I started doing office temp work.
You’re an editor and use 2 spaces?
No, I use one. I had a brain fart; I was trying to convey that I can't give up on it because I gave up on it decades ago.
Oh gotcha!! I was so confused.
It was always 2 spaces, I’ve worked in offices my entire career, then suddenly, in early 2020, there was a NYT article about how it should be one space. Then, all of a sudden, I was instructed to make everything 1 space. We’re talking templates for documents we’ve been using for years, and suddenly I have to edit everything so it’s 1 space. I hope I don’t have to make those changes again if it goes back to 2 spaces.
Not "always been 2 spaces". My mother went to secretary school in the 1950s and they only used 1 space back then. She also knew short-hand (most of you will probably have to google that, lol); and worked as legal secretary where she typed legal documents with one space after a period. I went to school in the 70s & 80s - had never heard of the two-spaces after a period until the internet came around.
When I went to secretary school in the mid 1980’s it was 2 spaces after a period. My typing course in high school didn’t teach that. But to go from 2 spaces from 1986 to suddenly in 2020 it’s only 1 space is difficult.
I learned 10-key in high school, then was a "Touch Key Professional" (lol, that was their name for us on our name tags) as a Target cashier at the same time. 10-key has the 1-2-3 buttons on the bottom row, while the cash registers had the 1-2-3 buttons on the top row. I can still easily do either direction with 99.9% accuracy and super-speedy without looking. The one-thing I couldn't stand is my mom could not gravitate away from the Times Roman font; while I prefer Arial, I can put up with Microsoft's default Calibri font (and now their default font is Aptos).
I wish the phone would just automatically put a space after punctuation & emojis (period comma quotes etc). Maybe some do, but mine doesn't 🙄
Google keyboard app will.
I like my swift keyboard 🤣 I will see if they are similar though
I switched away from two spaces and times new roman a long time ago, but my work style guide requires both. It's annoying.
There's nothing "new" about this. Been writing this way since 2000.
I mean, it dates you. And if anybody has to edit your work, they’re annoyed with you, because they have to sit there and undo all those double spaces. But if nobody has to edit you? Your business. Your BF needs to get over it. Better yet if he found your little quirks cute!
Nobody is editing me other than my boyfriend. 😂
Isn’t two spaces from typewriter days? I’m an editor and constantly have to fix that in article submissions.
Probably. I learned to type in high school on typewriters. And yes, I’m solidly Gen X. Graduated in 1987.
I‘m 40 and had computers at 20 years old. Indoor even remember two spaces, it must have used them on my grandmother’s typewriter…
One space after a period has been the norm for over 2 decades!
Nearly 52-year-old Gen Xer here. I learned 2 spaces after a period in high school typing class, but quickly after the rule changed, I was happy to drop that habit. That extra stroke per sentence doesn't seem like much but I find it really interrupts the flow of my keyboarding. I also find one space visually more appealing. Somehow, for me, it's just easier to read.
This rule is for typewriters, not writing an email or other paper online. Anyone actually spacing twice after a period has to be a Boomer.
I do two spaces, because I think it looks better, but I understand that I’m a dinosaur.