Consider the following example:
\documentclass{article}
\begin{document}
Nulla et lectus vestibulum urna fringilla ultrices.
Phasellus eu tellus sit amet tortor gravida
\begin{equation}
N(\alpha) = \sigma_1(\alpha) \cdots \sigma_d(\alpha)
\end{equation}
Nulla et lectus vestibulum urna fringilla ultrices.
Phasellus eu tellus sit amet tortor gravida placerat.
\begin{equation}
N(\alpha) = \sigma_1(\alpha) \cdots \sigma_d(\alpha)
\end{equation}
Nulla et lectus vestibulum urna fringilla ultrices.
\end{document}
I noticed that before and after each equation latex uses a different amount of vertical white space. How can I make latex use a fixed amount of white space, say 10pt, before and after each equation?
I found the following code, but I am unsure how to use it properly and I haven't had any success playing around with the numbers.
\setlength\abovedisplayskip{8.0pt plus 2.0pt minus 5.0pt}
\setlength\belowdisplayskip{8.0pt plus 2.0pt minus 5.0pt}
\setlength\abovedisplayshortskip{8.0pt plus 3.0pt minus 3.0pt}
\setlength\belowdisplayshortskip{8.0pt plus 3.0pt minus 3.0pt}