Monday, July 6, 2009

Spaces

There is certainly a difference betweeen a character and a space. Twitter, like many web text applications, cannot hold more than one space in a row except for the 'unused' space at the end of a shorter post, and this limit upon use of space is reflected in the output of the process. However, 'unused' space allows for a line of the output (a line derived from posts of 130 characters or less) to be all or mainly space.

Yet, a line with all space can not be guaranteed because Twitter does not allow a blank post.

Posts that do not contain any words of 10 or more characters guarantee at least one space in the output.

Where this space occurs or these spaces occur can not be guaranteed, but if the space occurs in between words, the space and the characters on either side of it assume special significance in the output due to their aesthetic:

assume sig

me signifi

To ensure a post includes at least one specific instance of a space with particular words on either side, the words can be:

the same three-character (or less) word repeated:

eg. got got got got etc. will always include 'got got' in its output:

got got go

ot got got

[although this doesn't follow with repeated words of between 4 and 7 characters. In those cases the appearance of at least one space with specific characters on either side of it can be guaranteed - e.g. an input of four four four four etc. ensures an outcome that includes the space/character combination r f]

The following combinations of alternating words ensure that two kinds of spaces will be included:

one-two-one-two etc. e.g. a no a no
(includes a no and no a)

two-two-two-two etc. e.g. an in an i
(includes an in and in an)

one-three-one-three etc. e.g. got a got
(includes got a and a got)

two-three-two-three and one-four-one-four combinations ensure that either one or other space will appear.

Bigger combinations up to those that include seven-character words guarantee in the output space/character combinations for either one or other type of space.

Combinations including words of more than seven characters do not guarantee a middle space, eg. me significance me significance me etc. might come up as:

_significa

In all the above examples, exact output can not be guaranteed, but certain appearances can be. The possibilities can be known and mapped out before the Twitter post is published, but not the exact outcome. This rule can be used for other kinds of desired combinations that don't include spaces, but the use of space, as with much poetry, is of special significance.

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