“I just chose words carefully” (unsung.aresluna.org)

Article summary

The article discusses the challenges of typesetting in monospace and how one author, rs1n, carefully chose words to create a 17,000-word guide to Super Metroid with perfectly justified text. This was done without the use of any special programs, simply by selecting words that added up to the line length. The article also touches on the concept of avoiding widows and orphans in text layout. The author of the guide achieved this feat in the late 1990s using an ASCII editor.

Main themes

• monospace typesetting
• text layout
• widows and orphans
• attention to detail
• human vs AI effort
• typography
• writing and design craftsmanship

What commenters say

• Some people have a strong attention to detail and will go to great lengths to achieve a specific aesthetic in their writing, such as justifying text in monospace.
• The concept of avoiding widows and orphans in text layout is not unique to the author of the Super Metroid guide and is actually a common consideration in typography.
• The use of AI and other tools may render such manual efforts obsolete, but some argue that the value lies in the human touch and care that goes into creating something.
• Others disagree, suggesting that the effort put into justifying text in monospace is not necessarily a sign of quality or care, but rather an exercise in futility.
• The distinction between genuine human effort and AI-generated content is becoming increasingly important, with some arguing that it is difficult to distinguish between the two.
• The discussion around widows and orphans in text layout has sparked a broader conversation about the importance of attention to detail in writing and design.
• Some commenters have shared their own experiences with manually justifying text or avoiding widows and orphans, highlighting the dedication and craftsmanship that goes into such efforts.
• The role of technology, such as LaTeX, in facilitating or replacing human efforts in text layout and design is also a topic of discussion.