大家好,我想讨论一下在数字出版时代不换行空格(no-break spaces,U+00A0)的问题。
我工作在一个官方双语(法语和英语)的国家。在英语国家,不换行空格和半角空格很少见。你可能会在 1·Chronicles 的各部分之间发现不换行空格。
相比之下,我们大多数来自法语区的翻译人员希望遵循法语的空格规则。在法语世界,标点符号(; ! : ? « »)前后需要空格。不换行空格通常用作大数字中的千位分隔符,例如 1·000(数字设置 - 千位分隔符被重置 - #3 by jeffh)。出版标准各不相同,但这种情况的理想候选者通常是普通不换行空格(U+00A0)和窄不换行空格(U202F)。这可以防止结束标点符号被挤到下一行,尤其是在多栏布局中。这些空格使文本能够在世界各地的计算机上流畅显示。标准空格(U+0020)、细空格(U+2009)和发丝空格(U+022A)宽度各异,但无法提供必要的孤行保护。
一些工具选择将不换行空格可视化为淡点或灰色方框。Paratext 会自动将不换行空格(U+00A0)替换为一个巨大的波浪号(~,U+007E)。在当前的版本中,输入 00A0 并按下 ALT-X 会将本应是不换行空格的地方替换为普通空格(0020),这完全是错误的。这个巨大的波浪号非常分散我们翻译人员的注意力,因此大多数时候,法语翻译人员被指示使用普通空格,或者不在标点符号前使用空格,并理解排版人员会在打印前的最后一刻根据他们的决定来标准化空格。我完全意识到,在预览模式下,巨大的波浪号会被替换为不换行空格,并且可以通过 Print Draft 更改或 ptxPrint 进行替换。有创意的技术人员可以配置 PTX print 在这些字符前插入空格,但那样它们在 Paratext 中就完全看不见了。
来自 Paratext 文档:
因此,Paratext 不再支持使用不换行空格。如果你想在文本中使用不换行空格,你应该在不换行空格的位置输入波浪号。这些可以在排版时转换为不换行空格。在文本中输入的波浪号在预览视图中显示为不换行空格。
如果这是很少见的情况(就像在英语中那样),我也不会担心,但在法语文本中,几乎每段都会出现。我的担忧是:1) 波浪号对于花费时间在标准视图中的翻译人员以及那些从他们肩膀后阅读的人来说是分散注意力的;2) 在数字出版和共享的时代,这种限制站不住脚。
技术上,~one~can~get~by~and~publish~via~the~intervening~tildes。现场工作人员对波浪号的反应是忽略不换行空格直到排版,这已经不可行,因为文本不仅由排版人员准备用于打印。单本书在当地出版,数字版本被放入 DBL 并提供,并且制作了 Scripture Apps。这意味着在 Paratext 版本中具有“最终”空格变得越来越重要,而 Paratext 仍然没有“真正”支持这一点。(我今天刚发现窄不换行空格(U202F)没有视觉指示器,但谢天谢地它不会被波浪号化。)关于 U+202F 的不一致显示/处理(它应该更窄)在这里有讨论(项目中删除 Unicode 202F ("narrow no break space"))
LibreOffice 使用灰色方框来区分不换行空格和普通空格。Word 的显示/隐藏功能使用空心圆圈表示不换行空格,使用居中点表示普通空格。
Paratext 开发人员是否考虑过在界面中弃用波浪号,并使用更清晰、更不分散注意力的东西?这需要更改 USFM,还是只需更改 Paratext?翻译人员已经习惯于文本中灰色的元数据,如 USFM 标记。在标准视图中使用淡灰色的点 · 来区分特殊空格和普通空格会有帮助,对吧?改用灰色方块将显示不换行特性和长度,我想这就是 LibreOffice 选择它们的原因。这将是一个跨文化兼容性的巨大胜利,我希望其他在法语世界工作的人能发表意见。@jeffh @dhigby @anon023887 ?
我从这篇帖子(不换行空格问题)中了解到,波浪号化是为了对抗 Internet Explorer 的一个交替问题。即使现在,网页中两个连续的空格也需要至少一个转换为 NBSP。是的,视觉上区分空格很难,但团队仍然必须标准化它们。
~ Matthew_Lee
语言技术顾问
SIL 喀麦隆
更糟糕的是,Paratext 帮助将不换行空格视为需要根除的祸害(见下文)。
为什么我在文本中看到波浪号而不是空格?
不换行空格是看起来像空格但不允许…
不换行空格是看起来像空格但不允许在该位置换行的字符。打开包含不换行空格的文本时,如果你发现这些空格似乎被波浪号字符(~)替换了,这是故意的。Paratext 通过显示波浪号使不换行空格可见。
关于这一点我至少需要知道什么?
早期版本的 Paratext 偶尔会错误地在不换行空格的位置插入普通空格。因此,如果你在文本中某个你确信不需要不换行空格的地方看到偶尔出现的波浪号,你可以直接用空格替换波浪号。
如果我想一次性解决这个问题怎么办?
如果你没有有意在文本中插入任何不换行空格或波浪号,因此想要删除所有不换行空格和波浪号,请遵循选项 1 中的说明。如果你不确定波浪号或不换行空格是否有意插入,请在删除所有之前咨询你的 CAP 支持人员,否则你可能需要手动重新输入它们。
Option 1 (To get rid of all no-break spaces and tildes):
Click the tab of your project to make it the active tab.
From the Tools menu, point to Advanced and then select Replace No-Break Spaces With Normal Spaces.
Read the warning message and click Yes if you are sure you wish to continue.
If your project has been following the USFM manual and so has been manually inserting tildes either to represent no-break spaces or for some other function, follow the instructions in Option 2. Doing this sooner rather than later prevents Paratext from inserting any more occasional unwanted tildes.
Option 2 (To get rid of no-break spaces, but keep all tildes):
Click the tab of your project to make it the active tab.
From the Tools menu, point to Advanced and then select Replace No-Break Spaces With Normal Spaces But Keep Tildes.
Read the warning message and click Yes if you are sure you wish to continue.
See also:
Important information about no-break spaces and tildes
Hi all, I’d like to discuss non-breaking (no-break) spaces (U+00A0) in the age of digital publishing.
I work in a country that is officially bilingual between French and English. In English-speaking countries, non-breaking and half spaces are rare. You might find a non-breaking space in between the parts of 1·Chronicles.
In contrast, most of our translators from the French-speaking regions want to follow French spacing rules. In the French-speaking world, spaces are required before/around punctuation with 2 marks (; ! : ? « »). No-break spaces are often used as a thousands separator in large numbers, like 1·000 (Number Settings - Thousands Separator gets reset - #3 by jeffh). Publishing standards vary, but the ideal candidates for this case are the common no-break space (U+00A0) and the narrow no-break space (U202F). This prevents a closing punctuation mark from getting bumped to the next line, especially in multiple-column layouts. These spaces keep text flowing across the world’s computers. The standard space (U+0020), thin space (U+2009), and hair space (U+022A) have varying widths, but don’t provide the necessary orphan protection.
Some tools choose to represent no-break spaces visually as a faint dot or a grey box. Paratext automatically replaces no-break space (U+00A0) with a ginormous tilde (~, U+007E). In current versions, entering 00A0 and pressing ALT-X replaces what should be a no-break space with simple (0020) spaces, which is outright wrong. This giant tilde is very distracting to our translators, and so most of the time, francophone translators have been instructed to either use simple spaces or not to use spaces before punctuation, with the understanding that the typesetter will standardize the spaces at the last minute following their decisions before printing. I am fully aware that the ginormous tildes are replaced with no-break spaces in preview mode, and can be replaced via Print Draft changes or ptxPrint. A creative techie could configure PTX print to insert spaces before such characters, but then they wouldn’t be seen in Paratext at all.
From Paratext Documentation:
Because of this, Paratext no longer supports the use of no-break space. If you want to use no-break spaces in your text, you should enter tilde in place of the no-break space. These can be converted to no-break spaces at typesetting. Tildes entered in the text are displayed as no-break spaces in the Preview view.
If this was something rare (as it is in English), I wouldn’t be concerned, but it comes up nearly every paragraph of a francophone text. My concern is that 1) the tildes are distracting for the translators who spend their time in standard view, and for those reading over their shoulders and 2) that this restriction doesn’t hold up in this age of digital publishing and sharing.
Technically,~one~can~get~by~and~publish~via~the~intervening~tildes. The field staff’s response to the tildes of ignoring the no-break spaces until typesetting is no longer viable, as the texts are not only prepared for printing by typesetters. Individual books are published locally, digital versions are put into the DBL and made available, and Scripture Apps are made. This means that having “final” spacing in the Paratext version is increasingly important, and Paratext still doesn’t “really” support this. (I just discovered today that narrow no-break space (U202F) has no visual indicator, but thankfully doesn’t get tildefied.) Inconsistent display/handling of U+202F, which should be narrower, is discussed here (Deletion of Unicode 202F ("narrow no break space") in project)
LibreOffice uses a grey box to distinguish no-break spaces from normal spaces. Word’s Show/Hide feature uses an open circle for non breaking spaces and a centered dot for normal spaces.
Would Paratext devs consider scrapping the tilde in the interface and using something more legible and less distracting? Would this require a change to USFM, or just Paratext? Translators are already used to greyish metadata in their text like USFM markers. A faint grey dot · in standard view would be helpful to distinguish special spaces and normal spaces, right? Going with the grey squares instead would show both non-breakingness and length, which I suppose is why LibreOffice chose them. This would be a big win for cross-cultural compatibility, I hope someone else working in the francophone world can weigh in. @jeffh @dhigby @anon023887 ?
I understand from this post (Non-breaking space issues) that the tildefication was introduced to combat an Internet Explorer alternation problem. Even now, two consecutive spaces in a webpage require that at least one is transformed to NBSP. Yes, it is hard to visually distinguish spaces, but teams still have to standardize them.
~ Matthew_Lee
Language Technology Consultant
SIL Cameroon
To make things worse, the Paratext help treats no-break spaces as a scourge to be eradicated (see below).
Why do I see tildes in place of spaces in my text?
No-break spaces are characters that look like a space but which do not allo…
No-break spaces are characters that look like a space but which do not allow a line to break at that location. On opening a text with no-break spaces, if you find that those spaces appear to have been replaced with tilde characters (~), this is deliberate. Paratext makes no-break spaces visible by displaying them as tildes.
What is the least I need to know about this?
Earlier versions of Paratext occasionally and wrongly inserted no-break spaces where a normal space was needed. Therefore, if you see an occasional tilde in a place in the text which you are quite sure does not require a no-break space, you can just replace the tilde with a space.
What if I would like to take care of the problem all at once?
If you have NOT knowingly inserted any no-break spaces or tildes in your text and therefore want to remove all the no-break spaces and tildes, follow the instructions in Option 1. If you are not absolutely sure whether or not the tildes or no-break spaces were intentionally inserted, check with your CAP support person before removing all of them, otherwise you may have to manually re-enter them.
Option 1 (To get rid of all no-break spaces and tildes):
Click the tab of your project to make it the active tab.
From the Tools menu, point to Advanced and then select Replace No-Break Spaces With Normal Spaces.
Read the warning message and click Yes if you are sure you wish to continue.
If your project has been following the USFM manual and so has been manually inserting tildes either to represent no-break spaces or for some other function, follow the instructions in Option 2. Doing this sooner rather than later prevents Paratext from inserting any more occasional unwanted tildes.
Option 2 (To get rid of no-break spaces, but keep all tildes):
Click the tab of your project to make it the active tab.
From the Tools menu, point to Advanced and then select Replace No-Break Spaces With Normal Spaces But Keep Tildes.
Read the warning message and click Yes if you are sure you wish to continue.
See also:
Important information about no-break spaces and tildes