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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613 |
Spoilin' fer somethin', Mr. M, that's fer sure!
you're trying to justify two somewhat disparate current senses
tsuwm, c'mere a minute--I have something for you.
the connection between these senses seems a bit more clear: imposing control or order.
Ok, I get it now. Thanks!
Sigh--I predict that one of these days, this particular new word will make it into dictionaries: I cannot tell you how many times I have metathesized thanks into thnaks.
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Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 3,439
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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tsuwm to the rescue yet once again! Hoo-Ah... and a big Thank You!from me, too!
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Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,757
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2000
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or is that the complete line on this family of words?
As I was hinting in my earlier post, it's possible there has been etymylogical confusion over the years between the two L roots of adjuxtare (to put side by side) from which we get adjust, and justus (right). Howsowhomwhichever, the common thread between the printing jargon and the more normal usage is clearly to do with adjustment or making right.
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624
Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624 |
When linotype machines were in use, or even earlier when type was set by hand (anyone remember the California job case?), you had to put in spacers to make all the lines come out the same length. There would be spacers between words or letters, and also between lines and paragraphs, for horizontal and vertical justification, so that the type would one rectangular block that could be set into the printing press.
You can still get letterpress type hand and machine set. There are specialist firms that do it. The main customers are people who want that "printed" look, blurs and overimpression and all.
I was using a California case as late as 1975. Actually, it referred to the layout of the type within the case rather than the case itself, but hey, who's worried? You had three basic space units: Ems, ens and thins. The Em was the same width as a capital M in the font being used. The En was half the width of the Em and the thin was actually an abritrary width. We also had variations around the En - thin area. There were quite strict rules about handset justification which spilled over into machineset justification. All thrown out with the advent of the word processor, of course. Most printing, in all areas, is absolute rubbish today in terms of quality, but even I'm beginning not to notice any more. It's not a losing battle, it's been lost, game, set and match.
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Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,757
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,757 |
not a losing battle, it's been lost
Reminds me of the lovely sign in a printshop:
"You can have the job done quick, cheap or right - pick two!"
Hope this isn't a yart, er, I mean gert :)
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624
Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624 |
Well, today you can get the job done cheap. You can get it done quick. But you'll never get it done right!
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Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 3,439
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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thin was actually an abritrary width.
Hmmmmm! I was taught that "thins" were the lower case i, upper case I and lower case l.
When counting points for a headline the em ( W/w and M/m) were counted as two points (the widest letters) en (average sizes of letters) as one point and the thins (I/i and l) as a half point. Then computers came in and made it all automatic and nobody cares anymore - sigh- I am feeling rather obsolete right now.
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Joined: Mar 2001
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addict
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addict
Joined: Mar 2001
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Thanks for the memories, wow! I had completely forgotten the lost art of counting headlines, which we had to do in my first journalism classes, many moons ago, when we put out the college paper. How things have changed! 
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624
Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624 |
Hmmmmm! I was taught that "thins" were the lower case i, upper case I and lower case l
Yes, you are correct in theory, but handset cases never had the correct thins in them after they'd been dissed into once by some ignorant and uncaring apprentice. Or handsetter for that matter! And if the handsetter was short of thins, he or she just grabbed a handful from a case of the same point size, regardless of the font.
Thins in the lino fonts came in one size for each point size, nothing to do with the width of any of the l or the i in any given font. I suppose we could have bought them for each font, but the two papers I worked for didn't bother. The lino thin mats were so fragile that we used to buy them by the hundred and people were threatened with death if they didn't hammer them flat when they got bent. You were only supposed to diss them permanently when the lugs broke off.
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