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Newsgroups: comp.text.desktop
Subject: Readability of right justified text
Message-ID: <22908@sun.uucp>
Date: Wed, 8-Jul-87 12:33:49 EDT
Article-I.D.: sun.22908
Posted: Wed Jul  8 12:33:49 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 11-Jul-87 17:08:50 EDT
Distribution: comp
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Inc. - Mtn View, CA
Lines: 30
Approved: desktop-request%plaid@sun.com

Date: Wed, 8 Jul 87 07:37:22 edt
From: decwrl!decvax!savax!nhqvax::fleischmann

A number of people have recently commented on the readability/non-
readability of right justified text.  In siting studies to support
either side, people should remember to determine whether the text used
for the study was generated using true typesetting equipment that
controlled the kerning (space between each character) and intra-word
spacing or some fixed-width printer that justifies by only increasing 
the intra-word spacing.
 
I have seen a number of studies done by people that only used text
generated by fixed-with printers off word-processing systems that tend
to "fragment" a line by putting large gaps between words so that it no
longer reads as a sentence but as a series of individual words.  These 
documents become very difficult to read.
 
On the other hand.  True typesetting systems can justify by 
controlling not only the intra-word spacing but the intra-character 
spacing for that line so that the eye does travel from word to word in 
a smooth and consistant fashion.
 
/marc
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