Microsoft KB Archive/29728

Width Tables and Microspace Justification

PSS ID Number: Q29728 Article last modified on 11-02-1994

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MS-DOS

= SUMMARY =

Word can adjust full-character widths so that the right margin lines up, even if a printer does not have the ability to do microspace justification.

= MORE INFORMATION =

With microspace justification, Word sends space increments of less than a full character width to the printer so that the space appears equal between each word.

Using proportionally spaced fonts, width tables tell Word the width of each character so that it knows how much space to send. If the width table is incorrect, Word will send too much or too little space and the margins will appear to be off because Word does not control the actual width of the character that the printer prints.

For instance, if you give the wrong measurement in the width table for “M”, the actual width of the character will not change when it is printed; that width is controlled by the character set defined in the ROM of the printer.

Word will calculate that it can get more or less text on the line (depending on whether the measurement was too big or too little) because the character appears to be the width you specified. Because Word adjusts only the space between characters and not the space between words, this will cause uneven margins even if you specify justified margins.

Character-spacing control codes (in the last section of the printer driver) are sent to tell the printer how to space; however, the printer handles character spacing.

With proportionally spaced fonts, Word uses widths defined in the printer driver (Wtps) for fixed-pitch fonts. Word uses width tables to calculate internally the line length and how many characters the printer is going to print on the line with a specific line length.

Once this width is calculated, Word knows how much space to insert between the words so that the text appears justified.

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================================================================ Copyright Microsoft Corporation 1994.