<big><big>[Line]-break</big></big>forces a hard return, in drafts and in kosmail, without adding the extra vertical space that hitting the ENTER / RETURN key would for starting a new paragraph. Ordinarily, the same effect is do’able just by holding down SHIFT and hitting RETURN, but sometimes the DK system won’t let that easier way work.
UPDATE. This command only work in diary drafts, kosmail, and group descriptions. And it ONLY works there if typed correctly: i.e., without blankspaces between the command characters.
It does nothing in comments regardless of how you type it. If you want a line-break in comments so there’s no excess vertical space between lines that hitting enter/return causes, simply holding down shift and THEN hit return/enter,
This html command is especially valuable for poetry, and for lists when you don’t want to use the bullet-point or numbered-item formatting buttons, such as when you don’t want your list indented from the left margin. Compare:
With bulletpoint button:
Without:< b r >
■ one< b r >
■ two< b r >
■ three
<big>(</big>I like blockpoints. If you do too, you can copy it from here, or find that copyable typographic character and lots of others, including regular bullet-point, at wikipedia page on typographic symbols and https://dev.w3.org/html5/html-author/charref <big>)</big>
<big>Line-break can also to be used to create more than the usual vertical space you get from hitting ENT/RET multiple times</big> at any point in your text where you want it but the DK system doesn’t cooperate.
For folks experienced with html, note that this command doesn’t need you to type a “shut-off” command with forward-slash — the system adds that itself when necessary! — it only needs the initial character-string, which is (omit blanks — they’re only there so the command will actually display in this diary! )<big><big>:
< b r >
Here’s a poetry example, </big></big>showing the actual typing:
Twas brillig and the slythy toves< b r >Did gyre and gimble in the wabe< b r >All mimsey were the borogroves
in order to get
Twas brillig and the slythy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe
All mimsey were the borogroves
BUT if it’s easier to see what you’re doing if you hold down SHIFT and hit ENT/RET after typing each < b r >, your typing will look like what’s below, and it’ll work out the same!
Twas brillig and the slythy toves< b r >
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe< b r >
All mimsey were the borogroves
<big><big>For times when you want a lot of extra vertical white-area</big></big> between one set of paragraphs and the next set, or to isolate a sentence or phrase or whatever, you can get various variations by typing this command right at the end of the preceding sentence/paragraph … OR if you first hit ENT/RET and then type it ... OR by running a row of several of this command along a line … OR a row with ENT/RET between each, etc.
E.g., ABOVE, I typed a row of 4 of’em at the end of the paragraph, and only hit ENT/RET afterward in order to next type THIS sentence and paragraph. Below I’ll type 3, but each on it’s own line, i.e., each followed by ENT/RET…
<br>
<br>
<br>
...so you have some comparison of differences. Experiment to figure out more! :)
TIP: BE SURE TO NOT BOLD, ITALICIZE, OR UNDERLINE the command character-strings, or it may not work.
h/t jrfrog
Commenters please do add more information you consider useful! :)
