[bksvol-discuss] Re: The Em-Dash in print
- From: Grandma Cindy <popularplace@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 25 Oct 2007 18:20:50 -0700 (PDT)
Cool.
Cindy
--- Bob <rwiley@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> Cindy, I really enjoyed that description.
>
> I used to work with impact printers with computers
> that did sort of the same
> thing electronically.
>
> The great thing for me was that with those printers,
> you could attach an
> elastic band (we once used a garter) and applied
> software to convert text to
> braille using the periods on the printer. For about
> twenty cents you could
> have fantastic braille.
>
> Bob
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Grandma Cindy" <popularplace@xxxxxxxxx>
> To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Thursday, October 25, 2007 4:39 PM
> Subject: [bksvol-discuss] The Em-Dash in print
>
>
> > Sue et all.
> >
> > Yes, in print the em dash is twice as long as
> hyphen
> > or plain dash. It comes from the days when print
> was
> > physically set by printers, i.e., people, into big
> > printers. I don't know if you've ever had sight,
> so I
> > don't know if you've ever seen the difference
> between
> > the letter em and the letter en--the former has
> two
> > sort of loops or humps and the latter has one.
> That's
> > why an en dash is shorter than an em dash.
> >
> > I once had an opportunity to work with a real
> > printer, meaning the machine, and to set type.
> When I
> > was in library school there was still on in the
> > basement. I set type for my Christmas cards on
> > it--great fun but time-consuming.
> >
> > Anyway, in the olden days--and perhaps those of
> you
> > who had sight at one time have seen pictures of
> > old-time printers and their machines--there were
> trays
> > of letters and punctuation marks of various fonts.
> The
> > typesetter, a person, would select the letters
> from
> > the trays, and an em dash or a hyphen as needed,
> and
> > put them onto a sort of hollow wide horizontal
> stick
> > called a composing stick (I looked that up). I
> can't
> > remember know how that was carried or put onto the
> > printing press--maybe the sticks themselves were
> taken
> > off the carrying handle and set into the press.
> Then,
> > as I recall, once all the type was set into the
> press
> > it was inked and paper was put onto rollers and
> rolled
> > over the type to create newspapers, etc.
> >
> > Unfortunately, it was many years ago that I made
> my
> > cards, and the illustrations of Ben Franklin and
> other
> > printers in action don't show much action. I've
> done a
> > little googling to see if I could get a better
> > description but so far haven't been able to and
> don't
> > want to spent any more time looking.
> >
> > Anyway, all that's probably more than any of you
> > wanted to know. I probably should have stopped
> after
> > my first sentence in answer to Sue's question.
> sigh
> >
> > Cindy
> >
> > --- siss52 <siss52@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> >
> >>
> >> Hi All,
> >>
> >> Evan, I am beginning to feel ambivalence about
> this
> >> cottin pickin' em-dash
> >> as well. For me it doesn't matter. I mean, I am
> a
> >> Braille reader and this
> >> dash seems to translate into one dash or hyphen
> on
> >> bookshare.org. So I have
> >> a question. <big sigh> In print, does the
> em-dash
> >> look a lot different
> >> from a double dash or two hyphens? On my Braille
> >> display when I validate a
> >> file in Word, it looks like a capital hyphen. My
> >> display is an 8-dot cell,
> >> and that is how it looks. So I am wondering how
> it
> >> looks in print. Also,
> >> what does a Daisy speech file say if someone
> wants
> >> to know?
> >>
> >> Sorry to bring this up, but it is my concern for
> >> students that set me off.
> >> <lol> A student should know the difference in
> the
> >> single hyphen that is
> >> used for compound words and a dash which, in
> Braille
> >> Grade II, is a double
> >> hyphen. I usually validate fiction, but still, I
> am
> >> concerned.
> >>
> >> Sue S.
> >>
> >
> >
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