On Tuesday 16 August 2005 9:33 am, Mark Volkmann wrote:

> Right.  There's a reason why newspapers wrap lines in articles the way
> they do.  It's easier for us to read.  I think the same applies to
> reading source code.

Though one should not follow print media guidelines too closely.  People 
generally have their eyes farther away from their monitors than they do from 
print media that is being read, which means that the natural scan arc of the 
eye can take in a wider line on a monitor than on book or newspaper.  Of 
course, confounding that is the fact that paper has a clarity and crispness 
advantage over monitors.

I did a project for a Catholic priest this spring, helping compile a 
historical archive, and we went round and round more than once on the fact 
that formatting online content like a print manuscript looks funny; the 
columns are too narrow.


Kirk Haines