covering the week's top tech starts with
a slight linux bias with the advent of
word processors we saw a great debate
take shape should you enter a single
space or a double space after a period
the double space was a holdover from the
days of the typewriter and even now some
people still do it if you're one of them
you might want to prepare yourself for a
certain update that's on the way to
Microsoft Word Microsoft has decided to
drop the mic siding with those who
prefer a single space as test builds of
Microsoft Word now treat a double space
after a period as a typo when you allow
the word processor to correct the error
it'll change it to a single space
automatically according to the verge
while this feature is only in testing
for now it won't be long before it rolls
out to the entire word using audience on
desktop the good news however is that
you won't be stuck forever looking at
those error lines underneath your double
spaces if you don't want to in a
statement to the verge Microsoft's
partner director of program management
Kirk Gregerson said that the double
spaces of the world of sorry the double
spaces of the world the double spacers
of the world will be able to ignore the
error flag and continue overusing their
space bar if they so choose
Gregerson said as the crux of the great
spacing debate we know this is a
stylistic choice that may not be a
preference for all writers which is why
we continue to test with users and
enable these suggestions to be easily
accepted ignored or flat-out dismissed
we wanted to know how the free
alternative Libre Office was leaning in
a libre office community forum user
Shankar Plaza calls two spaces needless
extra work saying if you had to take two
breaths for everyone it'd be a tad
laboring note and designer and
typographer Hanks Amir Hoff says in any
part of the European mainland mainland
it was never done or abandoned over
fifty years ago
double spaces will come back to bite you
in some form as it turns out libre
office already defaults to to change
double spaces into single spaces and has
for the past several versions at least
though as pierre you've sim Sam yin
points out it can be changed in the
tools autocorrect autocorrect options
menu on the
options tab by checking on ignore double
spaces so there you have it
Microsoft isn't quite pushing out the
double spaces yet but they're following
Libre offices lead and it feels like a
big win for the single spacers expect to
see this feature land in Microsoft Word
months ahead