Double spacing, the bane of my existance. I am under the impression that it is a nasty hangover from the era of the typewriter, and all but banished from modern life. My girlfriend and I had a big conversation in the car the other day because I told her that "no-one double spaces any more", but she was told that it is standard receptionist/secretary practice. So after unlearning to double space, she now has to relearn to double space, and is sceptical of any more typographical advice from me!

So, two q's. Why the heck did double spacing originate, and why do offices continue to do so?