Re: Commas...

[Barbara Miller <millercm -at- MILLER-COMM -dot- COM>]

Gary asks:

>Can anyone advise, what is the current standard for using commas now, in
>technical and marketing communication? Do you include or omit a comma
>before the _and_ in a series?

Associated Press Style, which newspapers generally use, does not use the
serial comma before the _and_. Chicago Manual of Style, which is used in
business and technical communication, does use it. Marketing communication
can take it's cue from either--just be consistent.

>Also, someone recently said they learned in college to put two spaces
>after a period, preceding the next sentence. Is there a consensus on one
>or two spaces?

My understanding was that the two spaces after a period was a typeWRITING
convention and one space after, a typeSETTING convention. Since word
processed and desktop-published material emulates typesetting (proportional
type) rather than typewriting, one space after a period is the current
standard. Check _Words into Type_ for typesetting standards (sorry, I don't
have the author's name). There's more to the standards than the two spaces
after a period.

------------------------------------------------
Barbara J. Miller
BJMillerCommunications
millercm -at- Miller-Comm -dot- com
http://Miller-Comm.com
------------------------------------------------

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