Document 564

Changing interparagraph spacing in typeset paragraphs

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The beginning of an unindented paragraph can be somewhat difficult to see. If you remove indention for all paragraphs in your document, you may also want to increase the spacing between paragraphs so that new paragraphs are more easily seen.

The space between paragraphs is defined by the length \parskip. The default space is 0pt plus 1pt, which means the spacing between lines can increase by as much as 1pt, depending on how LaTeX fits the text vertically on the page. The increase translates to about one tenth to one twelfth of the height of a line of text, depending on the base font point size.

If you have removed paragraph indention, a reasonable space between paragraphs is about the height of a line of text, with additional stretch or shrinkage to allow LaTeX to fit text on a page the best way possible.

Therefore, if your base font point size is 10pt, you might use 10pt plus 1pt minus 1pt as the value for \parskip. Follow these instructions to make the modification:

1. From the Typeset menu, choose Preamble.
2. Click the mouse in the entry area and place the insertion point on a new line
3. Type \setlength{\parskip}{10pt plus 1pt minus 1pt}.
   Adjust the values according to your needs.
4. Choose OK.
5. Typeset preview the document to make sure the spacing is correct.

See also

• Removing indention from typeset paragraphs

Last revised 01/20/06

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