dhosek@sif.claremont.edu (Hosek, Donald A.) (06/29/90)
In article <SPQR.90Jun28110236@manutius.ecs.soton.ac.uk>, spqr@ecs.soton.ac.uk (Sebastian Rahtz) writes... >people sometimes forget that the spacing between lines may depend on >the font in use. times may need more or less spacing than garamond, or >whatever. if you think your `single-spaced' document looks cramped, >then maybe you should investigate the font, and see whether the >default baselineskip is correct? Good point Sebastian. --- Here are some general pointers with regard to leading and whether extra leading should be used (in LaTeX, the default \baselineskip for each size is set in the definitions of \small, \normalsize, etc.) - The term leading refers to the additional space placed between lines when setting metal type. There is no direct equivalent to this in TeX which specifies the distance between baselines rather than the leading. In traditional typesetting, the baselineskip, as TeX refers to it would be set at the design size. - The purpose of extra leading is to keep the eye from being distracted by the lines above and below the line it is reading and also to make it easier for the reader to find the next line when it finishes the current line. - Lines averaging longer than around 10-12 words usually need more leading. - Sans serif fonts generally need more leading than serifed fonts (the serifs help guide the eye horizontally). - Fonts with a large x-height generally call for more leading than fonts with a small x-height. -dh --- Don Hosek TeX, LaTeX, and Metafont Consulting and dhosek@ymir.claremont.edu production work. Free Estimates. dhosek@ymir.bitnet uunet!jarthur!ymir Phone: 714-625-0147