Double hyphen instead of m-dash

[spiros]

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Double hyphen instead of m-dash

I find it quite strange that so many electronic or even print media have yet to discover the existence of m-dash and use double hyphen instead.

Here is an example from yahoo:

So why would the Chinese government--or anyone, for that matter--go to such trouble to paint such gigantic stripes on such remote territory? People analyzing the photos suggest the Chinese military may have constructed them as space-targeting grids.
http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/miles-mysterious-striped-network-grids-discovered-chinese-desert-171915802.html

I guess, they don't know how to enter it. In that case, see: Shortcuts for n-dash and m-dash in Word, IE, Firefox or any other Windows application

[valeon]

MS Word may automatically correct a single hyphen or n-dash followed by a space character and a new word to an m-dash just when a space character is put after that word.
e.g. the string "- word " is converted to "– word ".

[spiros]

Which option achieves that in which Word version? “Long vowel sounds with dash”?

I am aware of Tools -> Autocorrect options -> AutoFormat As You Type tab, Hyphens (--) with dash (—) option in Word 2003. The difference is that two hyphens need to entered, then space, and then a letter.

[valeon]

I am using MS Office 2000 :-) This is done when using the Greek keyboard. There is also the tool you mention, but when using the English keyboard.