Re: Multiple spaces converted into one

Thanks Chris for your response.  You wrote:

> Although I agree with the stylistic practice of placing a
> double space at the end of a sentence, I would argue against
> Amaya doing this as a matter of course.

I wasn't suggesting that Amaya or that a CSS function insert spaces or
do anything at all.

> This is a matter of style, not content.

I think it is content.  If I say the space is part of my semantic
content, I don't think anyone else should say it is simply a
presentational "style".  An example would be poetry or prose, in which
spaces between words can be an important part of the poem itself, as it
appears on the page.  Multiple spaces can also be important in technical
data, including program code, data etc.

If text is typed or pasted from somewhere else, I think the natural
behavior of Amaya or any other HTML editor should be to ensure that it
is reproduced in any HTML viewer, complete with multiple spaces.

If two spaces between sentences was regarded as a "style" and the second
space implemented by some CSS function, then there is a reasonable
chance that a copy to clipboard operation on the text would result in
only single spaces being copied.

Some HTML editors, such as Mozilla Composer, do what I want.  They
insert non-breaking spaces when the user types or pastes text with two
or more consecutive spaces.  When that part of the document is viewed
with Composer or with any other HTML viewer, a copy to clipboard from
that area results in the original sequence of ordinary spaces.

This means that the complete system, made of three tools - HTML editor,
HTML file and HTML viewer - behaves as a black box which imposes no
distortions between what the user puts in, what is represented on screen
whilst editing and what is represented on any HTML viewer.  There is a
distortion, of course, imposed on the input material in converting it to
HTML, because of HTML's stipulation of collapsing multiple whitespaces
into one.  HTML has a non-breaking space construct so that it's internal
whitespace rules need not impose any distortion on the communication
between author and reader.

I am suggesting that the following change be made to Amaya:

Rather than collapsing multiple spaces in typed or pasted text, that the
second and subsequent spaces be converted to non-breaking spaces.

I don't think this needs to be an option - I think this should be
Amaya's normal behavior.  It doesn't impose any burden on users, as far
as I can see, since those who want one space between sentences will type
or paste one space.

  - Robin

Received on Sunday, 3 September 2006 00:42:42 UTC