> Word and Google Docs inaccurately convert hyphens into en dashes
In Word's case, and I think GDocs as well, it is a switchable autocorrect setting, that mostly (not perfectly, because you can't do it purely structurally without semantic analysis) does it correctly, not inaccurately, AFAICT.
> En dashes are ugly bastards that have very little benefit. Word and Google Docs inaccurately convert hyphens into en dashes, and I never have gotten a satisfactory answer why. I used to see en dashes to connect a compound modifier to yet another word, like “billiard-ball–size hail” (that’s an en dash between “ball” and “size”), but I could never trace this “rule” to any style guide.
I’m fairly sure that the Chicago Manual specifies this rule (my older Chicago Manual isn’t handy, and the non-exhaustive information in the public FAQ [0] doesn’t cover it, though it does address the closely-related rule on using an en-dash to connect a modifier to an open compound.)
> Another popular case was a proper noun connected to another word, like “New York–based author.”
I’m pretty sure that’s not because New York is a proper noun, but because it is an open compound.
> Computers require contortions to create em and en dashes
They require a tiny bit of setup to make it easy, outside of the applications which already make it easy.
> Also, I’m on mobile so can’t verify, but it looks like the author is using an en dash throughout his post when an em dash is called for.
Some style guides call for an en-dash (usually, set open) in the places where the more common rule is to use an em-dash (usually, set closed.)
> I’m pretty sure that’s not because New York is a proper noun, but because it is an open compound.
You are correct -- it's not because it's a proper noun. The rule I recall is that if a proper noun is also a compound modifier, the en dash is warranted. (I think this is in Chicago.) The example you gave from Chicago's FAQ is sort of the same rule but with the en dash coming at the beginning.
And the author of the original blog post caveated his use of the en dash (instead of the em dash), which I missed when I read it the first time, and speaks to your point of some style guides calling for an en:
> Choosing between the en dash or em dash is not a big deal. In my writing (as a manager corresponding with government officials and politicians, and also as a marketer communicating with real people) I use ‘space-n-dash-space’ instead of the em-dash – just to keep everyone happy.
In Word's case, and I think GDocs as well, it is a switchable autocorrect setting, that mostly (not perfectly, because you can't do it purely structurally without semantic analysis) does it correctly, not inaccurately, AFAICT.
> En dashes are ugly bastards that have very little benefit. Word and Google Docs inaccurately convert hyphens into en dashes, and I never have gotten a satisfactory answer why. I used to see en dashes to connect a compound modifier to yet another word, like “billiard-ball–size hail” (that’s an en dash between “ball” and “size”), but I could never trace this “rule” to any style guide.
I’m fairly sure that the Chicago Manual specifies this rule (my older Chicago Manual isn’t handy, and the non-exhaustive information in the public FAQ [0] doesn’t cover it, though it does address the closely-related rule on using an en-dash to connect a modifier to an open compound.)
> Another popular case was a proper noun connected to another word, like “New York–based author.”
I’m pretty sure that’s not because New York is a proper noun, but because it is an open compound.
> Computers require contortions to create em and en dashes
They require a tiny bit of setup to make it easy, outside of the applications which already make it easy.
> Also, I’m on mobile so can’t verify, but it looks like the author is using an en dash throughout his post when an em dash is called for.
Some style guides call for an en-dash (usually, set open) in the places where the more common rule is to use an em-dash (usually, set closed.)
[0] https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/qanda/data/faq/topics/H...