Tabs are interpreted differently by different editors , sometimes even differently within the same editor based on context . Spaces , however , are spaces , and are WYSIWYG . This leads can lead to format clobbering over time from things like porting code or having commits from multiple people . Given that most smart editors or even advanced notepads are capable of handling columnaligned navigation using spaces with the there seems little reason to actually use the tab character . Many larger software developers , such as Google , declare space as the standard for a reason . edit terminology clarity , ish <| sep |> Yeah picture like that lets go out and find the dude and kill him ! Hope we get the adress right .