TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:RE: Matching the CAPITALIZATION of the interface From:"Bonnie Granat" <bgranat -at- granatedit -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Fri, 18 Feb 2005 10:56:16 -0500
>
> (A) In the PARAMETERS section of the ACCESS form,
> select blah blah
> blah...
> OR
> (B) In the Parameters section of the Access form,
> select blah blah
> blah...
>
> One side of this discussion is that you match the interface, and
thus
> (A) is best practice; in fact, not to do so is to
> editorialize that we
> don't like the redesign. The other side is that (B) is
> quieter in text,
> and that readers won't have any trouble translating what's
written to
> what's on screen.
>
> I have a strong opinion on this matter, and there are
> hundreds of such
> references in my book and thousands in the doc set hanging in the
> balance. What do YOU think?
>
To Andreas' solution, I would add that you could also look into the
possibility of rephrasing the steps so that "of the X form" doesn't
have to be repeated. You can establish that everything that takes
place does so on the X form. Also, if this is in Windows, I suggest
use of the terminology presented in the Microsoft Manual of Style
(MMOS). For example, using "Under X, select the thing you want."
By "small caps," I also include those of a different font, which
may be much smaller than those in the body font.
Bonnie Granat | www.GranatEdit.com
bgranat -at- granatedit -dot- com
Cambridge, Massachusetts, US
WEBWORKS FINALDRAFT - EDIT AND REVIEW, REDEFINED
Accelerate the document lifecycle with full online discussions and unique feedback-management capabilities. Unlimited, efficient reviews for Word
and FrameMaker authors. Live, online demo: http://www.webworks.com/techwr-l
Doc-To-Help 7.5 Professional: New version with new features, improved performance and reliability, plus much more! Download your free trial today at www.componentone.com/techwrlfeb.
---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as:
archiver -at- techwr-l -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Send administrative questions to lisa -at- techwr-l -dot- com -dot- Visit http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.
