Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!lll-lcc!ames!mailrus!iuvax!rutgers!apple!desnoyer From: desnoyer@Apple.COM (Peter Desnoyers) Newsgroups: comp.lang.c Subject: Re: Imposed indentation standards don't work Message-ID: <23257@apple.Apple.COM> Date: 4 Jan 89 02:19:38 GMT References: <3229@ingr.uucp> <253@athertn.atherton.com> <9166@smoke.brl.mil> <4520@xenna.Encore.COM> Organization: Apple Computer Inc, Cupertino, CA Lines: 16 On the subject of tabs vs. spaces: In some environments (e.g. MPW on the Macintosh) tab size is an attribute of a file. It is perfectly reasonable to use a tab-stop of four in this case, as it will be accepted by any editor as well as the printer. On Unix and some other systems, tab size is not inherent in a file, but rather in options/commands to the various editing, viewing, and printing utilities used with it. In addition, some of these utilities (lpr) may only understand 8-space tabs. All in all, the best solution under Unix is probably to use a tab-stop of 8, regardless of how many spaces you indent. (What? your editor doesn't indent for you and you have to type those spaces by hand?!) Peter Desnoyers