Divine Write Copywriting Forum

Hi,
I'm having an interesting debate with the graphic designers I work with about the spacing around forward slashes.
I would normally have no spaces ie and/or, technical/mechanical
but they think it should be and / or, technical / mechanical
Is there a rule about this or does anyone have any advice? They seem to think that as the words get longer they start to look like one big long non-sensical word rather than an either/or. I can kind of see their point but I don't think it's correct.
Thanks.
KD

Hi KD. Have to say I agree with your designers on this one. I don't know the technical rule (if there is one), but IMHO, it's easier on the eye if you use spaces.

Does anyone know of a rule, or does it just come down to personal preference (or usability data)?

Cheers.

This is interesting because I just received and print editing job late last week. Going over it, I've noticed there's quite a few forward slashes within the copy currently, some with the space, some without. I just want to clarify whether you're saying the 'space' rule is for the Internet or print or both?

Gioff

Don't have any print examples handy, but I suspect I'd find it easier to read with the space in print, as well. Anyone else?

This is an issue that will resolve itself in time. Language changes - and yesterday's rules get broken all the time. Always the objective should be for the reader to easily understand what the writer intended - without having to backtrack due to some unintended ambiguity.
My personal preference would be for common instances involving short words like 'and/or' (for example) to be used without spacing the forward slash.
At the other end of the scale - if two terms or options are separated by a forward slash and either of them contains more than one word - spacing the forward slash is imperative.
Between the extremes I'd go with whatever looks best.
For the record, I've worked with typographers who are so particular they would apply selective kerning to text spacing in some instances. So (for example) ‘stay/venue’ would have extra space between ‘stay’ and the forward slash.
Also for the record (new topic) – with regard to email addresses – my preference is for increased character spacing throughout. This is because – unlike commonly used words which most people read through shape recognition – email addresses need to be read character by character.

Nice answer! Thanks Steve.

Yes, thanks Steve. I tend to agree. I can't see the point of the spacing if it's just for and/or, especially as it is common but as the words get longer they can be harder to read. I think a bit of extra space might be the answer for me in the short term - not a whole space, just some extra.
Cheers

Hi all,

I never add a space before or after slashes. It looks wrong to me when they're added.

Steve's right - language changes all the time. What's "right" is what MOST of the world's using (except when it comes to UK/USA spelling, etc). Often you can Google both versions to see which comes up the most on the Web, and use that as a guide. But in this case Google reads "and / or" the same as "and/or" so isn't much help.

A final arbiter could be the Australian Govt Publishing Service Style Guide, but I've left mine at work!

Paul

In most computer programs I've written in, words that contain a forward slash are not split appropriately at the end of a line; the two words are treated as if they are one. The only way I've found that works around the problem is to space only after the forward slash. It doesn't look as pretty, but the words are readable and line breaks are not a problem. So, the ball's in your court. Do you love or hate the idea? Or do you have another idea that is a better fix?

Thanks LarissaR. Interesting point. Think I'd rather have a biggish space at the end of the line (when the whole combination is taken to the next line) than a space after every slash (but not before). Unless, of course, you're only talking about adding the post-slash space AFTER the wrapping occurs incorrectly - ie. during editing?

I mean for every one, mostly because I like consistency but also because I'm lazy. When dealing with thin columns the large-word-forward-slash can be much too cumbersome for them, and if I edit any lines above that change where the line breaks I really don't want to have to check everything after it. The other problem is, if there is a space both before and after the slash, the slash may very well break to the next line. That just looks ugly and makes it hard to read as an "and/or" statement because it's not connected to the first word. So, that's my method. If my word processor programs can't be smart enough to see a slash and turn it into a break (and why is that, anyway?), then I'm just going to put a space after every forward slash for big word combinations and call it good.

Chuckle! Sounds like a good method, actually. I've never really noticed whether Word 2007 (or any version, for that matter) handles an end-of-line slash. I'll have to keep an eye on it. Very creative solution!

Thanks for the kudos! The same thing happens in Adobe's InDesign, so it's not limited solely to Microsoft. Both companies probably have a suggestion forum so maybe this can be solved in future editions. Until then, work it how you gotta, right?