WordPress Plugin: Double-Space It!
by on March 16th, 2005 
12 Comments
Double-Space It is a plugin that allows you to double space after sentence-ending punctuation.
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My understanding is that this practice is an anachronism. The web is full | of | reasons not to use this plugin.
I like the plug-in because I’ve always been a stickler for correct form, however it throws errors at me whenever I edit or add a new post to the blog…
Warning: Cannot modify header information – headers already sent by (output started at /…/double_space_it.php:36) in /home/…/wp-admin/admin.php on line 6
That “on line 6″ bit changes to 7, 8, and 9. I stuck the … in there to mask the actual path to the blog.
Would be nice if there was a way to eliminate the error messaging (or tell me how to do it?), as it knocks me out of blog admin and I have to reload from my bookmark to get access again.
Other than that, it works =)
If you are a stickler for correct-form, you should be aware that double-spaces after a sentence is a typewriter convention, although it is sometimes extended to mono-spaced fonts. Generally, though, anything digital (or even IBM Selectrics with proportionally-spaced fonts) does not require — and should not use — double spaces.
Thank g-d I never had to take those ancient typewriter classes in high school; oddly enough, I know collect old manual typewriters. Anyway.
If you’re like me, and like the extra space to help you separate sentences when skimming large amounts of text, the plugin’s for you.
NinjaDoll, do you have any other plugins installed or is your install modified? I’ve been unable to reproduce your error.
Written text is still written text. We write so others can read. If two spaces at the end of a sentence make the text more attractive and easier to read then it is the wiser convention.
“Should not” is a very bold statement coming from someone who hyphenated “correct” and “form.”
Learn, I don’t have any other plug-ins installed though I am using a style sheet gleaned from Alex King’s site (mars-spirit). To my knowledge there isn’t a conflict but I am a noob when it comes to css (I’m more familiar with html).
I do, however, teach creative writing and edit theses and professional papers.
The “m” still looks like an “rn.” No matter, I get that all the time. :-)
I hesitate to ask because I really like the look of your site, but could you also try reverting to the default style and try again? I’d like to rule out 3rd party mods. Oh! And which version of WP are you using? I used the WP 1.5 docs to create the plugin, so I’m not sure how backwards compatible it is. That’s not a CSS error, thankfully.
I just grabbed a random book off my bookshelf. It’s 40 years old, with a proportionally spaced type. Double spaces after each period. Another book, 60 years old, seems to have single spacing.
Single spacing after sentences is bearable, but it doesn’t seem to be THE standard in the publishing industry. It may have, in fact, been an innovation in response to the typewriter. But geeks, of all people, should have a clue that not all innovations are bad!
KB
Learn, I’m using WordPress 1.5. The font is verdana, and yes, the “m” looks odd. I’ll try the default style and see if it helps and I’ll let you know, thanks for the suggestion!
I’ve just tried the classic and default styles and the problem persists :/
I wonder if it has to do with the fact that the headers are sent by WP and I have some headers with punctuation in them (ellipses, etc.). Whatever the cause, I still like that it gives me the double-space. I won’t worry too much over it for my site but if you hear from anyone else about it I’ll be curious what it takes to fix it.
Thank you for the plug-in!
How bizarre. The plugin is dead-simple, so I’m really at a loss as to what’s wrong. It’s like a “Hello World” program. :-\
I just updated the plugin so that it applies to comments as well.