To Touch Or Not To Touch: That . . . Question.

My friend says no space before and after an ellipsis. I say NO TOUCHING! Do you do it or not?

I was shocked and dismayed not to find the ellipsis mentioned in Strunk & White's famous The Elements of Style. And, I could find no reference to it in the AMA Manual of Style or in Besser's Handbook of Writing Skills. But, fortune led me to The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage, which can now boast all the news and all the punctuation advice that's fit to print. Here is their elliptic counsel:

"The symbol for omission … [ellipsis mine] consists of three periods. Separate them with thin spaces (. . .) . . . [ellipsis mine]. Use an ordinary space before and after the three dots. If an omission falls at the end of a sentence, place the regular period right after the last word, followed by a space, then the ellipsis" (page 119).

PS: It's really a style choice. That's why I found it in a style manual, rather that a punctuative law book.

Thank … for … question.