1 Basic ideas about molecular shape -- 1.1 Shapes of biopolymers -- 1.2 Conformational principles -- 1.3 Shapes in equilibrium -- 2 The building units -- 2.1 Pyranose (six membered) forms -- 2.2 Furanose (five membered) forms -- 2.3 Other forms -- 2.4 Conformation and configuration: isomers and derivatives -- 2.5 Sugar shapes in hydrolysis of carbohydrate chains -- 2.6 Prediction of shapes -- 2.7 Natural building units -- 3 The linkages -- 3.1 Linkage structures and patterns -- 3.2 Linkage conformation -- 3.3 Chain conformation: order versus disorder -- 4 Simple carbohydrate chains of the periodic type -- 4.1 Conformational families -- 4.2 Occurrence, properties and function of the ribbon family -- 4.3 Occurrence, properties and function of the hollow helix family -- 4.4 Loosely jointed linkages and chains -- 5 More complex carbohydrate chains -- 5.1 Periodic chains with mixed linkages -- 5.2 Interrupted chain sequences -- 5.3 Aperiodic sequences -- References