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Subject:Formatting: Blank Pages From:Daniel Strychalski <dski -at- CAMEONET -dot- CAMEO -dot- COM -dot- TW> Date:Sun, 19 Mar 1995 01:56:14 +0800
I am surprised that so many people like the idea of leaving pages blank and
putting the word "Notes" at the top.
I just checked a bunch of (others') manuals. One of my favorites, it turns
out, has all its chapters starting on *left-hand* pages, with a few blank
*right-hand* pages to maintain this format. Never even noticed it before,
because otherwise the work adheres to time-tested conventions: blank pages
*totally* blank, all pages numbered consecutively, and excellent in-margin
aids (all in the footer in this case; wherever you put them, they're de
rigueur). I also found some excellent reference books and handbooks, never
meant to be read straight through, in which each chapter starts on the page
following the previous one, whether that puts it on the left or on the right.
It works fine. So I tend to side with the environmentalists.
We don't always have a choice, though. Looseleaf manuals, fergzampl. What to
do? "This page intentionally left blank" seemed a little strange the first
time I saw it and a little silly after I thought about it, but it doesn't jar
on me. When I see "Notes," though, I think, "Who are YOU to be telling ME
where to put MY notes?" As a reader, I dislike it intensely. It also makes me
think of people I've known to whom the faintest pen or pencil mark in any
book is the ultimate sacrilege. Extreme, maybe, but inviting scribbles in a
work doesn't imply a whole lot of pride or self-respect, IMHO.
Again, what to do? No method fits all cases. What is appropriate depends on
the tone of the work. "This page," etc., fits right into a super-serious,
super-technical manual; until someone comes up with something better, no one
should feel guilty about using it in such material (bad as it is, I find it
preferable to "Notes"). For something less heavy, how about a graphic device,
like the slug you see at the end of each article in many magazines, to
indicate the end of a chapter? A miniature company logo, maybe. Your boss
will probably love it.
With the tools we have now (most of us, at any rate), it seems we could be
more imaginative. Anything but "Notes." Please.
_]||/|[_ \o_>/\ Dan Strychalski dski -at- cameonet -dot- cameo -dot- com -dot- tw
