Microsoft has released an update to the Word text editor with a single innovation — the program now marks double spaces after a period as an error. From now on, if two spaces are present at the beginning of a sentence, Microsoft Word will underline them and suggest replacing them with a single space. With this update, Microsoft has settled a long-standing debate among users about whether double spaces are considered an error or not, reports .
The tradition of placing two spaces after a period originated from the era of typewriters. At that time, monospaced fonts were used, with equal spacing between characters. Therefore, to ensure readers clearly saw the end of a sentence, a double space was always inserted after the period. With the advent of computers and text editors featuring modern fonts, the need for two spaces after a period disappeared, yet some people still adhered to this old tradition.
A significant reason for continuing to use two spaces after a period was the belief that they increased reading speed. In 2018, scientists reported research findings proving that a double space indeed speeds up reading by about 3%. However, this positive effect was only observed in individuals who had gotten used to using double spaces themselves. For so-called 'single spacers', who are in the majority, the increased distance between the period and the start of the sentence had no impact.
Microsoft believes that some people will continue to use two spaces regardless. At least, conservative managers might require this. Therefore, developers have left users the option to ignore the error notification and ensure that double spaces are not underlined.
Currently, the update marking double spaces as an error is available to users of the desktop version of Microsoft Word. The company has mostly received positive feedback regarding this change.
Source: 3dnews.ru
