Grammar Rules

I read a lot about writing style and grammar. This popped up in my inbox today: The rule stands: One space after a period. Period.

Exhibit A: Associated Press Stylebook is as direct and simple as possible: “Use a single space after a period at the end of a sentence.”

Exhibit B: Grammar Girl. For a writer, what's the next-best thing to a hard and fast grammar rule? A woman who writes, blogs and creates podcasts about grammar rules, complete with a cool superhero name—Grammar Girl. I'm not sure whether she wears a cape, but I like to imagine that she does. For me and my word nerd friends, she's the bomb. And Grammar Girl's verdict echoes the AP Stylebook: One space after a period. She goes on to say, “I know it's a hard habit to break if you were trained to use two spaces, but if you can, give one space a try.”

Exhibit C: A little background from Wikipedia: “Double space (English Spacing). This convention stems from the use of the monospaced font on typewriters. If the ribbon were too dry the visibility of the period would be reduced significantly. Adding two spaces after the period ensured that the reader would know where the end of the sentence was if the period didn't strike properly. This historical convention was carried on by tradition until it was replaced by the single space convention in published print and digital media today.”

I remember it wasn’t too long ago that I made the switch to just one space. I remember it wasn’t too difficult to switch my habits. Now its definitely second nature and having two spaces is just strange. The gap is so big. But I guess its standard convention now.