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Figure 7-10 demonstrates the results: a very readable text block whose proportions will remain as consistent as can reasonably
be expected. For another approach to using ems in CSS, see Chapter 6, “Grid Design for the Web.”
Paragraph indents
Figure 7-10. A readable line length for #main
Now that #main has a nice, comfortable width, I’m going to turn my attention to the paragraphs within it. For as long as they
have existed, web browsers have typically rendered paragraph elements with a default bottom margin, usually somewhere
between 1em and 2em. This has the effect of a blank line between paragraphs, a custom that is certainly not unheard of in
print. Just as likely to be seen in print, however, is a convention of delineation that is relatively rare on the Web: paragraph
indents.
Where a blank line can sometimes be disruptive to continuous text, an indent on the first line of a paragraph can mark a
new passage while maintaining the text’s cohesion. Still, it should be used with caution on the Web. Paragraph indents as an
alternative to blank lines work well in print because of the other ways the text is physically broken up, such as multiple
columns and pagination. Lengthy writing on the Web should likewise occasionally give the reader’s eyes the sort of relief a
blank line can provide, and thus, paragraph indents on the Web are happiest in the company of brevity.