Some RTF readers use various bits of RTF syntax to mark property changes. In particular, they assume that property changes will occur only after a group start, which is not correct. Because there is a variety of ways to represent identical property changes in RTF, RTF readers should look at the changes in the properties and not at any particular way of representing a property change. In particular, properties can be changed explicitly with a control word or implicitly at the end of a group. For example, these three sequences of RTF have exactly the same semantics, and should be translated identically:
{\b bold \i Bold Italic \i0 Bold again}
{\b bold {\i Bold Italic }Bold again}
{\b bold \i Bold Italic \plain\b Bold again}