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Yahoo! Voice Click Hyphens Countries Footers Order WWW Verbs Vocabulary Jargon Keys Media Newsletters Brevity
Pronouns Help Click Keys Percentages Locations Ellipses Titles Links Ampersands Footers Dimensions Commas Deadwood
Person Tense Days Links Glossaries Dimensions Feedback Lists Emphasis Readability Dates Copyrights Headings Commas
Modifiers Numbers Voice Jargon Commas Conjunctions Typography Email Dates Voice Jargon Numbers Sentences
Readability Summaries Footers Underlining Slashes Abbreviations Files URLs Lists Infinitives Headings Page Days Page
Titles Cities Proper Names Dictionaries Number Ranges Apostrophes Person Web Newsletters Presentations Spelling States
Abbreviations Underlining Slashes Time Zones Boxes Dictionaries Help Verbs Actions Error Messages Medium Voice Brand
Audience Newsletters Months Topics Emails Subject Lines Percentages Locations Misspellings Tips Front Page Nouns Casual
Voice Topics Adjectives Commas Titles Help Consistency Years Instructions Click Hyphens Money Participles Ellipses
Misspellings Sentences Action Click Hyphens Voice of Yahoo! Buttons Phone Numbers Titles Dates Voice Jargon Lists
Infinitives Headings Page Days Page Titles Cities Proper Names Dictionaries Number Ranges Apostrophes Person Web
Newsletters Help Click Keys Dimensions Feedback Lists Emphasis Readability Dates Copyrights Headings Commas Modifiers
Numbers Voice Jargon Fractions Apostrophes Front Page PowerPoint Commas Decades Ranges Lists Bullets Periods
Quotation Marks Misspellings Conjunctions Tense Person Plurals Hyphens Modifiers Infinitives Italic Jargon Abbreviations
Money Possessives Numbers Quotations Locations Serial Commas Feedback Footers Definitions titles Buttons Ranges
References Semicolons Error Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters Months Topics Emails Subject Lines
Percentages Locations Ellipses Titles Links Footers Dimensions Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Links Glossaries
Formats Help Hyphens Countries Order WWW Dimensions Voice Jargon Numbers Currency Acronyms Person Pronouns Titles
Consistency Plurals Acronyms Years Page Titles Copyrights Headings Capitalization Misspellings Slashes Summaries Lists
Bullets Infinitives Sentences Action Keys Help Links Commas Lists Emphasis Semicolons Prompts Adjectives Dashes
Readability Dates Copyrights Headings Software Commas Modifiers Numbers Voice Jargon Commas Email Dates Voice Jargon
Numbers Sentences Newsletters Centuries Commas Money Jargon Readability Summaries Footers Underlining Slashes
Abbreviations Files URLs Lists Infinitives Headings Page Days Page Titles Cities Proper Names Dictionaries Number Ranges
Apostrophes Person Web Conjunctions Typography Newsletters Underlining Help Consistency Years Instructions Click
Hyphens Money Participles Ellipses Misspellings Sentences Action Click Hyphens Voice of Yahoo! Boxes Buttons Phone
Numbers Verbs Actions Links Glossaries Tips Notes Percentages Locations Ellipses Titles Links Ampersands Footers
Dimensions Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Links Glossaries Tips Notes Nouns Pronouns Commas Page Titles Cities
Slashes Zones Decades Possessives Currency Days Jargon Sentences Click Serial Commas Feedback Links Periods
Dictionaries Hyphens Tips Web Front Page Person Punctuation Capitalizing URLs Readability Privacy Policy Footers Phone
Numbers Definitions titles Buttons Ranges References Semicolons Dashes Money Dates Tense Infinitives Conjunctions
Prepositions Buttons Voice Nouns Files WWW Negatives Jargon Sentences Consistency Buttons Feedback Casual Voice
Topics Years Titles Plurals Copyrights Countries Error Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters Months Topics
Emails Subject Lines Percentages Locations Misspellings Correlatives Sentences Action Click Page Titles Ampersands Footers
Dimensions Commas Topics Tense Help Underlining Slashes Numbers Verbs Actions Percentages Locations Hyphens Modifiers
Infinitives Italic Jargon Ellipses Titles Links Ampersands Footers Procedures Dimensions Commas Deadwood Person Tense
Days Time Zones Boxes Dictionaries Help Verbs Actions Tips Front Page Nouns Help Casual Voice Topics Adjectives Commas
Quotations Jargon Cities Proper Names Possessives Apostrophes Footers Ellipses Titles Links Ampersands Modifiers Verbs
Conjunctions Correlatives Commas Abbreviations Tense Click Keys Error Messages Voice Brand Numbers Dictionaries Topics
Deadwood Consistency Tense Help Jargon Cities Decades Front Page Apostrophes Quotation Marks Formats Ellipses Years
Feedback Emails Newsletters Centuries Commas Money Jargon Sentences Click Serial Commas Feedback Links Dictionaries
Hyphens Tips Web Front Page Person Punctuation Colons Capitalizing URLs Privacy Policy Help Links Glossaries Tips Notes
Consistency Years Instructions Click Hyphens Money Participles Ellipses Misspellings Sentences Action Click Hyphens
Percentages Files Sizes Links Copyrights Headings Tense Misspellings Words Storage TV Nouns Question Marks Definitions
titles Buttons Ranges References Semicolons Prompts Adjectives Dashes Slashes Front Page Sentences Spelling Subjects
Titles Numbers WWW Underlining Slashes Numbers Verbs Actions Percentages Locations Ellipses Movies Titles Links
Ampersands Footers Dimensions Time Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Time Zones Boxes Dictionaries Help Verbs
Actions Tips Front Page Nouns Casual Voice Copyrights Error Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters Phone
Numbers Months Topics Emails Presentations Punctuation Subject Lines Percentages Locations Plurals Ellipses
Consistency Buttons Feedback Casual Voice Boxes Headings Footers Periods Plurals Percentages Copyrights Newsletters
Time Readability Dates Words Copyrights Headings WWW Commas Modifiers Numbers Voice Blogs Jargon Commas
URLs Participles Serial Commas Feedback URLs Links Periods Dictionaries Hyphens Tips Web Front Page Ellipses
Misspellings Lists Infinitives Blogs Headings Email Tense Apostrophes Verbs Time Numbers Titles Conjunctions Web
Zones Tips Acronyms Hyphens Modifiers Infinitives Italic Jargon Headlines Dimensions Titles Consistency Tense Help
Jargon Cities Decades Front Page Apostrophes Quotation Marks Formats Ellipses Years Emails Tense Links Yahoo! Voice
Editorial Style
Guide
YES Guide Version 1.book Page i Thursday, November 3, 2005 3:09 PM
Editorial Style
Guide
YES Guide Version 1.book Page ii Thursday, November 3, 2005 3:09 PM
First Printing: November, 2005
Copyright © 2005 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved
Yahoo! Inc.
701 First Avenue
Sunnyvale, CA 94089
YES Guide Version 1.book Page iii Thursday, November 3, 2005 3:09 PM
Yahoo!’s Editorial Mission
INTRODUCTION
Introduction
Dear Fellow Yahoos,
If you're referring to this guide, you're probably involved in the editing, creation,
aggregation, organization, or presentation of content associated with the Yahoo!
brand. Congratulations! That's a huge opportunity, and accordingly, a huge
responsibility.
Hundreds of millions of people trust Yahoo! to give them what they need and want,
when and where they want it. Yahoo!'s success absolutely depends on
maintaining that trust. How do we do that? It's simple: We do what we say, and
say what we do. We really understand consumers’ expectations, and we deliver
on those expectations consistently, with quality, clarity, and relevance. Every time.
And that demands your vigilance.
Consumers expect far more information, in much less space, in far less time, than
ever before. In a medium where every pixel counts and attention spans are short,
there's no room for wasted space or time. Economy of language is essential. We
must elevate all our writing and editing to the level of craft. In other words, Yahoo!
can afford nothing short of truly great editorial, and we count on you to provide it.
I hope this guide serves you well, so that you may in turn serve our audience well.
Nothing can better differentiate our brand and reinforce trust than being of
service—consistently creating authentic experiences that not only answer, but also
anticipate, consumers' needs. You are entrusted to steward our brand and build
on the foundation of trust that years of such service have produced.
So good luck! Surprise and delight me. And don't disappoint me. No pressure.
Srinija Srinivasan
Editor in Chief
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Introduction
From the Editorial Director
As editors and writers at Yahoo!, we are often ruled by a paradox.
To flourish, creativity—the sublime expression of human freedom and innovation—
requires more than just inspiration and energy, it requires discipline and structure.
With the Yahoo! Editorial Style Guide, we aspire to provide you with both the
inspiration and the structure to enlighten your creativity and empower you to create
a differentiating and singular online experience.
Because we reveal our editorial brand and voice in the sum of our choices and
myriad editorial details—from our Front Page down deep to the least-visited pages
on our network—this guide seeks to define those common editorial elements and
more.
Inside you will find not only the usual editorial “rules of the road,” but also helpful
usage guidelines, a detailed glossary, lessons on writing in the Yahoo! voice, and
some groundbreaking guidelines that focus on our new original content efforts. For
example, you’ll find a new series of guidelines titled “Editorial Standards for
Original Content and Journalism," created in close collaboration with Yahoo! News
and the YMG legal team in Santa Monica.
The Yahoo! Editorial Style Guide would not exist without the efforts of the Editorial
team and the more than 100 Yahoo! employees worldwide who took the time to
review drafts of this guide in various states and submit comments that have
improved it immeasurably.
No style guide is ever complete and every style guide is only as good as it is truly
useful. So please share this resource—which is also available on our Editorial
intranet site—with your colleagues and let us know how we can keep it as fresh
and relevant as possible.
Bill Gannon
Editorial Director
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PREFACE
Preface
How to use this guide
The Yahoo! Editorial Style Guide is organized into five major parts:
Writing the Yahoo! Way. The Yahoo! voice is distinctive and requires an
understanding of the audience, the message, and the medium.
Mastering the Mechanics. Even the most experienced writer or editor needs
to be reminded occasionally of the mechanics required for good
communication. Some preferred Yahoo! mechanics may be different from those
you're used to. This section starts with the basic building blocks (words and
numbers) and goes on to explain best practices for putting them together to
form well-constructed sentences and paragraphs.
Techniques, Tips, and Tricks. Avoid common errors, including the ubiquitous
typo, by following these techniques, tips, and tricks used by writers and editors
everywhere.
Resources for Writers and Editors. Find out more about writing or editing for
specific Yahoo! properties or about writing and editing in general. Learn how to
create your own style guide.
Reference. Refer to the Yahoo! Glossary on page 177 for the correct spelling,
capitalization, hyphenation, and use of common words and expressions—many
unique to Yahoo!.
When to use other authorities
The Yahoo! Editorial Style Guide is your first stop for matters of style and voice. If
you have a question about writing or editing that’s not answered here, refer to these
sources, or contact an editor. For contact information, see Getting Editorial help on
page 167.
Associated Press Stylebook. The Yahoo! style does deviate from the AP style
in some cases. You'll find these exceptions noted throughout this guide. The
stylebook is available online. See Getting Editorial help on page 167 for
information on accessing the stylebook online.
Chicago Manual of Style.
American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language-Fourth Edition.
(http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary).
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Preface
Be sure to consult the dictionary for the correct usage, hyphenation, and spelling
of words and phrases not found in the above resources. Pay particular attention to
any usage notes that may follow the definition of a word.
Tip
You can check the spelling and usage of a word in the American Heritage
Dictionary by using a Yahoo! Search Shortcut.
Some words (like minuscule) have a variant spelling (miniscule), but the actual
dictionary entry is always the preferred spelling. And that's what you should use.
Finally, you can always ask an editor for help with any issue related to grammar,
spelling, punctuation, language usage, and the Yahoo! voice and style.
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CONTENTS
Contents
Writing the Yahoo! Way
Writing in the Yahoo! Voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
What is the Yahoo! voice? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Qualities of the Yahoo! voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Yahoo! voice spectrum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Professional voice. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mid-Range voice. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Casual voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating the Yahoo! voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Specifying voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Writing for the Audience. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Analyzing your audience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Choosing the right words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Considering culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Achieving the right readability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Microsoft Word to ascertain readability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interpreting readability scores. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Flesch Reading Ease Score . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Using the scores to improve your writing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Writing for the Medium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Writing for online reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Instructing users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Referring to onscreen elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Referring to keys. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Describing user actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Keyboard actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Mouse actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Writing effective emails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
General content guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Service announcements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Differences between HTML and text emails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Contents
Email mechanics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Subject lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
To and From names and addresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Footers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Writing newsletters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Writing help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Two kinds of help—one standard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Writing effective questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Writing effective topics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Overviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Procedural help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Glossaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Notes, cautions, and tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Writing user interface text. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Writing headings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Adding link text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Wording link text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Capitalizing and punctuating link text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Other interface elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Choosing the correct words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Capitalization and punctuation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Footers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Contents of footers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Formatting footers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Partner copyright footers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Feedback and error messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Writing effective page titles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Writing Front Page text. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Headlines and summaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Links on the Front Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Titles on the Front Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lists of titles on the Front Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ampersands (&) and exclamation points on the FP . . . . . . . . . . .
"In the News" box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Marketplace promos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Integrating third-party content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Editorial Standards for Original Content and Journalism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Attribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sourcing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Use of anonymous or undisclosed sources or blind quotes . . . . .
Promises of anonymity or confidentiality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Newsgathering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Contents
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CONTENTS
Corrections and clarifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Plagiarism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Quotations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Datelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Bylines and end notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Digital storytelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Still image manipulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Use of file images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Taste and graphic images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Yahoo! Editorial Code of Ethics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Seek truth and report it . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Minimize harm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Act independently . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Be accountable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editorial and content decision-making at Yahoo! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Acknowledgment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mastering the Mechanics
Handling Numbers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Large and small numbers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Computer- and software-related numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Storage, memory, and processor speeds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Software version numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Days of the week . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Months . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ordering and punctuating dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Decades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Centuries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dimensions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fractions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Money and currency. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Percentages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Phone numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ranges of numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Contents
Dealing With Words and Near-Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
A or an . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Abbreviations and acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Capitalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Yahoo! properties, services, and products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Personal titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Headlines and titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hyphenated compounds in headlines and titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Titles of works. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
89
90
91
92
92
92
93
93
Capitalization styles of titles of works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Visual treatment of titles of works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Directions, states, regions, and locations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Compass directions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
U.S. states and districts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
U.S. regions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Regions outside the U.S. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Person and pronouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Referring to companies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Referring to users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Wrestling with him or her and other pronoun problems . . . . . . . 100
Is who correct? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Typography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
File names and types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
URLs and web-related words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Putting Words Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Punctuation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Apostrophes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Possessives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Omitted letters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Colons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Commas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Commas in a series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Commas and independent clauses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Commas and quotations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Commas and locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Commas and numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
107
108
108
109
109
Ellipses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Exclamation points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Hyphens and dashes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Forming compound modifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Adding prefixes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Periods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
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Contents
Direct quotations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Definitions and words as words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Titles of some works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Punctuation and quotation marks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Semicolons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Constructing sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Consider order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Keep it positive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Constructing paragraphs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating lists. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Introducing lists. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Punctuating and capitalizing list elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Including lists within lists. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Numbered lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Bulleted lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gender-neutral writing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Guidelines for gender-neutral writing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tips for avoiding personal pronouns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Replacing gender-specific words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
114
114
115
115
CONTENTS
Quotation marks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
116
116
116
117
118
119
119
119
120
120
120
121
121
122
124
Techniques, Tips, and Tricks
Proofreading Anything . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
It really does matter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Before you start . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proofreading techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
What to look for . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
129
129
130
131
Shortening Any Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Clearing out deadwood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Removing one-word deadwood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Removing deadwood phrases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Start strong, stay strong . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Avoid "there is," "there are," and "it is" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Replace weak verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Stay active . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cut the crap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Replacing common phrases. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
133
133
134
135
135
136
136
137
138
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Contents
Avoiding Common Pitfalls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Commonly confused or confusing words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Words that can confuse writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Words that can confuse readers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Correlative conjunctions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Maintaining parallel structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Matching the verb and subject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dangling and misplaced modifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Change of person. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Change of tense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Old "rules" that don't apply any more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Splitting infinitives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ending with a preposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Starting with a conjunction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Common misspellings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
149
150
157
158
158
159
160
160
161
162
162
162
163
163
Resources for Writers and Editors
Yahoo! Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Getting Editorial help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Property style guides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Policy and compliance guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Brand and legal guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
UI guidelines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Glossaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
167
167
168
168
168
168
Other Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Reference material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Books about general writing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Books about writing for the Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Organizations for writers and editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Web sites and newsletters for writers and editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
169
169
169
170
170
Creating a Style Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Starting with a style guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contents of a style guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Audience and voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Calls to action . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
xii
171
171
172
172
172
173
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Contents
CONTENTS
Use of person . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Data formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Capitalization and typography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Reference
Yahoo! Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
xiii
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Modifiers Conjunctions Typography Email Dates Voice Jargon Numbers Writing in the Yahoo! Voice Sentences Readability
Summaries Footers Underlining Slashes Abbreviations Files URLs Lists Infinitives Headings Page Days Page Titles Cities
Proper Names Dictionaries Number Ranges Apostrophes Person Web Newsletters Presentations Spelling States
Formats Help Hyphens Countries Order WWW Dimensions Voice Jargon Numbers Currency Acronyms Person Pronouns
Titles Consistency Plurals Acronyms Years Page Titles Copyrights Headings Capitalization Misspellings Slashes Summaries
Lists Bullets Infinitives Sentences Action Keys Help Links Commas Lists Emphasis Semicolons Prompts Adjectives Dashes
Readability Dates Copyrights Headings Software Commas Modifiers Numbers Voice Jargon Commas Email Dates Voice
Jargon Numbers Writing for the Audience Sentences Newsletters Centuries Commas Money Jargon Readability Summaries
Footers Underlining Slashes Abbreviations Files URLs Lists Infinitives Headings Page Days Page Titles Cities Proper Names
Dictionaries Number Ranges Apostrophes Person Web Conjunctions Typography Newsletters Underlining Help Consistency
Years Instructions Click Hyphens Money Participles Ellipses Misspellings Sentences Action Click Hyphens Voice of Yahoo!
Boxes Buttons Phone Numbers Verbs Actions Links Glossaries Tips Notes Percentages Links Ampersands Footers Dimensions
Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Links Glossaries Tips Notes Nouns Pronouns Commas Writing tor the Medium Page
Titles Cities Slashes Zones Decades Possessives Currency Days Jargon Sentences Click Serial Commas Feedback Links
Periods Dictionaries Hyphens Tips Web Front Page Person Punctuation Capitalizing URLs Readability Privacy Policy Footers
Phone Numbers Definitions titles Buttons Ranges References Semicolons Dashes Money Dates Tense Infinitives Conjunctions
Prepositions Buttons Voice Nouns Files WWW Negatives Jargon Sentences Consistency Buttons Feedback Casual Voice
Topics Years Titles Plurals Copyrights Countries Error Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters Months Topics
Emails Subject Lines Percentages Locations Misspellings Correlatives Sentences Action Click Page Titles Ampersands Footers
Dimensions Commas Topics Tense Directions Underlining Slashes Numbers Verbs Actions Percentages Locations Hyphens
Modifiers Infinitives Italic Jargon Ellipses Titles Links Footers Procedures Dimensions Commas Deadwood Person Tense
Days Time Zones Boxes Dictionaries Help Verbs Actions Tips Front Page Nouns Help Casual Voice Topics Adjectives Commas
Quotations Jargon Cities Proper Names Possessives Apostrophes Footers Ellipses Titles Links Ampersands Modifiers Verbs
Conjunctions Correlatives Commas Abbreviations Tense Click Keys Error Messages Voice Brand Numbers Dictionaries Topics
Deadwood Consistency Tense Help Jargon Cities Decades Front Page Apostrophes Quotation Marks Formats Ellipses Years
Feedback Emails Newsletters Centuries Commas Money Jargon Sentences Click Serial Commas Feedback Links Dictionaries
Hyphens Tips Web Front Page Person Punctuation Colons Capitalizing URLs Privacy Policy Help Links Glossaries Tips Notes
Consistency Years Instructions Click Hyphens Money Participles Ellipses Misspellings Sentences Action Click Hyphens
Percentages Files Sizes Links Copyrights Headings Tense Misspellings Words Storage TV Nouns Question Marks Definitions
titles Buttons Ranges References Semicolons Prompts Adjectives Dashes Slashes Front Page Sentences Spelling Subjects
Titles Numbers WWW Underlining Slashes Numbers Verbs Actions Percentages Locations Ellipses Movies Titles Links
Ampersands Footers Dimensions Time Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Time Zones Boxes Dictionaries Help Verbs Tips
Front Page Nouns Casual Voice Copyrights Error Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters Phone Numbers
Months Topics Emails Presentations Editorial Standards for Original Content and Journalism Punctuation Subject Lines
Percentages Locations Plurals Ellipses Consistency Buttons Feedback Casual Voice Boxes Headings Footers Periods Plurals
Percentages Copyrights Newsletters Time Readability Dates Words Copyrights Headings WWW Commas Modifiers
Numbers Voice Blogs Jargon Commas URLs Participles Serial Commas Feedback URLs Links Periods Dictionaries Hyphens
Tips Web Front Page Ellipses Misspellings Lists Infinitives Blogs Headings Email Tense Apostrophes Help Verbs Time
Numbers URLs Directions Titles Conjunctions Web Zones Tips Acronyms Hyphens Modifiers Consistency Tense Help Jargon
Cities Decades Front Page Apostrophes Quotation Marks Formats Days Ellipses Years Emails Tense URLs Yahoo! Voice
Writing the
Yahoo! Way
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YES Guide Version 1.book Page 17 Thursday, November 3, 2005 3:09 PM
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
What is the Yahoo! voice? It’s the way we express ourselves in words, protect the Yahoo! brand,
and build and sustain trust.
Qualities of the Yahoo! voice. It’s human, friendly, and trustworthy.
Yahoo! voice spectrum. From Casual to Professional, the Yahoo! voice is adaptable.
Creating the Yahoo! voice. Some guidelines apply, regardless of where you are along the voice
spectrum.
Specifying voice. Write it down.
WRITING IN THE YAHOO! VOICE
Writing in the Yahoo! Voice
What is the Yahoo! voice?
It's how we express ourselves in words. It's Yahoo! branding for everything written
across the network. Just as the Yahoo! logo must be used carefully to protect our
brand, so must our words be used carefully to protect the Yahoo! voice.
The voice applies to every communication with our users and visitors, including the
Yahoo! network, emails, newsletters, and other media.
Our business is built on collecting and using people's data. We can't get that data
unless consumers trust us. Consumers trust us because our voice is trustworthy.
Trust is built with care over time, but it can be broken with carelessness in a
moment.
Qualities of the Yahoo! voice
Yahoo! is a smart, trusted friend who'll give the straight scoop in a way that is
suitable to the audience, the audience's expectations, and the audience's reasons
for visiting. The voice we use in our products and services should fulfill this
promise.
Our content should always reflect the perspective of the individual visiting our sites.
The Yahoo! voice is human, friendly, and trustworthy. It is also inclusive, open,
passionate, informed, balanced, straightforward, respectful, and occasionally
irreverent. Most important, the words we choose should always maintain a
balanced, relevant, and respectful tone.
17
Yahoo! voice spectrum
Yahoo! voice spectrum
Every part of Yahoo! speaks with the Yahoo! voice—but some properties and parts
of some properties may need to speak differently from others. Because of the
breadth and depth of the Yahoo! network, the voice can range from professional
and straightforward to playful and quirky.
Yahoo! Finance and Yahoo! Movies should sound human and relevant because
these are core Yahoo! values. But Finance should feel informed, balanced,
straightforward, and respectful, while Movies should feel friendly, inclusive, open,
passionate, and irreverent.
The Yahoo! voice ranges from "professional" to "casual," with a mid-range voice in
between.
Professional voice
The Professional voice should sound businesslike but also accessible and friendly.
To achieve this, use simple, straightforward language. No technical buzzwords or
jargon.
Example
Welcome to Yahoo! Merchant Solutions. Whether you're an experienced web retailer
or new to online selling, we make it as easy as possible for you to get world-class
results from your Yahoo! Merchant Solutions plan.
Appropriate language for the Professional voice can include contractions, slang
common to business situations or within the audience's domain of expertise, and
sentence fragments.
Because it is straightforward, without unnecessary words, Professional voice is
well suited to service announcements, help topics, instructions, and UI text.
Mid-Range voice
Most of our properties express the Yahoo! voice in a balanced fashion, neither too
dry nor too sassy. The Mid-Range Yahoo! voice uses conversational language and
a sense of fun, without going over the top.
Here's an example from Yahoo! Mobile where the voice is right in the middle.
Example
Yahoo! Mobile has teamed up with Yahoo! Shopping to provide you with the latest
reviews, helpful shopping guides, and the best deals on mobile devices and
accessories.
18
Creating the Yahoo! voice
The Casual voice is the "strong" voice of Yahoo!. It's well-suited for Yahoo!'s
entertainment properties, where the tone can be smart, friendly, lively, and a bit
edgy, but not "in your face," sarcastic, or arrogant.
Ask Yahoo! and Yahoo! Picks are typical of the Casual voice. The Buzz Report is
the Casual voice dialed up to the maximum. It's like dishing about pop culture with
pals around the water cooler, and the light, entertaining tone reflects Yahoo!'s
sense of fun.
The Casual voice is also appropriate for Yahoo! Movies and Yahoo! Games, as
shown in this excerpt from Yahoo! Games.
Example
With the "Manticore of Darkness" card, you can send one Beast, Beast-Warrior, or
Winged Beast-Type Monster Card from your hand or your side of the field to the
Graveyard to Special Summon this card from the Graveyard. Yeah, we don't know
what it means either.
WRITING IN THE YAHOO! VOICE
Casual voice
Language appropriate for the Casual voice includes contractions, slang, made-up
words and phrases, and sentence fragments. Humor is also appropriate.
This example from Yahoo! Movies also illustrates the Casual voice.
Example
Halle Berry bares her claws against corporate bad girl Sharon Stone. Mee-oww!
Creating the Yahoo! voice
Regardless of the strength of the voice and the medium, you should keep the
following points in mind. They apply to all communication.
Avoid technical jargon. See Choosing the right words on page 22 for tips on
recognizing and eliminating technical jargon.
Focus on the audience. Technology is still scary to many people. Our goal is
to make the Internet seem friendly, approachable, and human.
Use a conversational tone. Our content should sound very conversational:
intelligent, knowledgeable, resourceful, fun, clever, interesting, interested, but
never cynical.
Keep it simple, short, and direct. Use active verbs whenever possible. Avoid
unnecessary language. Review all copy to be sure that every sentence and
word is essential. You'll find tips and techniques throughout this guide for
creating clear, concise communication.
19
Specifying voice
Make it comprehensive. If you explain a technical point, label it as such and
provide links to the background necessary to understand it. Use examples when
explaining key features. Offer numbered step-by-step instructions where
appropriate.
Be consistent. Strive for a consistent tone across all content. This guide to
Yahoo! style is the foundation for creating consistency in all you write or edit.
Have fun. If we don't make people smile, we're doing something wrong.
Avoid using stereotypical sales-speak. The game is invitation, not
intimidation. We don't want to sound arrogant or sarcastic. One way to
accomplish this is to avoid excessive use of exclamation points or displaying
words in all capital letters. Another is to avoid self-serving statements (such as
"we strive to," "our products are designed to," and "in an effort to improve") that
offer no information or benefit to the reader.
Before
Yahoo! Small Business was designed to provide a one-stop shop of best-of-breed,
user-friendly products and services to broaden your reach and increase your sales!
After
Broaden your reach and increase sales with Yahoo!'s comprehensive web-based
solutions.
Specifying voice
The voice to use for a specific product, service, or feature should be documented
in a style guide. See Creating a Style Guide on page 171.
For Yahoo! global sites, the essential characteristics of Yahoo! are the same, but
each region has a different audience with its own product needs.
20
Writing for the Audience
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
Analyzing your audience. Know thy reader. It’s the first commandment of writing.
Choosing the right words. Jargon is relative. Your audience may understand the domain jargon
that comes with their area of expertise, but you should consider technical jargon incomprehensible
to everyone.
Considering culture. Yahoo! properties are accessible worldwide. How will your message be
interpreted in another culture?
Analyzing your audience
One of the first questions User Experience and Design (UED) asks for any design
project is "Who is the target user?" This characterization requires consideration not
only of the person's age, computer and Internet experience, and usage profile, but
also of cultural differences.
Before writing, consider the following questions about the property and its users:
Who are the users of the product or service?
What qualities do users expect and want most from the product or service?
What should be the voice of the product or service?
WRITING FOR THE AUDIENCE
Achieving the right readability. Are you writing at a graduate-school level for a high-school
dropout? Readability scores can help you identify potential problems in your prose if you
understand how to interpret and use them.
Where will the content appear and how will it be read? Online or in print?
Which qualities of the Yahoo! voice are most important? Innovative, fun,
trustworthy, human, relevant, friendly, inclusive, open, passionate, informed,
balanced, straightforward, respectful, irreverent?
People visit and return to a web site for specific information, entertainment,
community, or transactions. If the site doesn't serve at least one of these needs,
users will leave. Take into account the user's reasons for visiting the site by
answering these questions:
Which user needs does the product or service address?
How will you focus your writing on your users' needs?
Does the product or service use content from an external source that follows
different style guidelines? If so, how will you reconcile the two?
21
Choosing the right words
In all of your writing, avoid the engineering jargon of the Internet, including
acronyms and technical terms. Yahoo! is savvy, but not "techie." We're constantly
striving to improve the user experience through plain, direct language.
Before
You can toggle through different news searches for stories, photos, videos, Full
Coverage, and Premium Archives--the links are lined up across the top of the results
page.
(“Toggle” is not only a techie term, but also used incorrectly)
After
To view different news searches for stories, photos, videos, Full Coverage, and
Premium Archives, click the links at the top of the results page.
Many words that are familiar to your readers may become jargon in the context of
a web page.
Before
We display breadcrumbs after each search result showing you exactly where in
Yahoo! News (or elsewhere at Yahoo!) a news story was found.
After
"Breadcrumbs" show where in Yahoo! News (or elsewhere at Yahoo!) we found
a news story. Look for them at the top of the page.
22
To avoid intimidating people who are just beginning to explore the Web, use simple
words where possible. If it's necessary to use a technical term or acronym, explain
or define it.
Before
Right-click the Messenger icon in your system tray (usually in lower right corner of
your screen).
After
Right-click the Messenger icon in the Windows taskbar. The icon is usually on the right
of the taskbar at the bottom of your screen.
Right-click the Messenger icon
Words that are commonplace among developers can creep into your writing. Be on
the lookout for these words and find simple substitutes.
Before
Add a News Tracker Search by filling out the following parameters. Click Save when
you're done.
After
Add a News Tracker Search by filling out this form. Click Save when you're done.
Better with graphic
Right-click the Messenger icon in the Windows taskbar. The icon is usually on the right
of the taskbar at the bottom of your screen.
Some words (like system and machine) are ingrained in our vocabulary, but for the
novice web user, may be ambiguous.
Before
Will the MarketTracker work on my system?
After
Will MarketTracker work on my computer?
Can I use MarketTracker on my computer?
23
Considering culture
Jargon relating to a subject may be familiar to only some of your readers. For those
readers who may be unfamiliar with a word or expression, you can include a link to
a glossary or other page defining terms.
Example from Yahoo! Finance
Yahoo! Insider Trades tracks trading activity and planned sales by insiders for publicly
traded U.S. companies
(Links to definition of "insider")
Considering culture
Products at Yahoo!, particularly platform properties, are intended to be used
worldwide. It's important that product teams consider cultures outside their own as
they design for their users.
Some questions to consider:
When the interface is translated, does the same terminology apply from one
culture to the next?
Does a particular icon or color conflict with attitudes in that culture?
What customs or traditions in the culture may affect users' interaction with or
perception of the product?
Achieving the right readability
According to the National Adult Literacy Survey, conducted by the U.S. Department
of Education, nearly 50 percent of all adults in the U.S., or 90 million people, read
at the eighth-grade level or below.
Note
For a brief discussion on how reading ability affects a user's web
experience, see "Making the Web Friendlier for Lower-Literacy Users,"
Intercom, The Magazine of the Society for Technical Communication,
June 2004.
Many factors, including sentence structure (such as the use of passive voice,
described in Stay active on page 136), sentence length, and word choice affect
how easy or hard text is to read and understand. But layout and formatting, overall
content organization, illustrations, and other factors can also increase (or
decrease) readability.
24
Using Microsoft Word to ascertain readability
One way to ascertain readability is by using readability formulas. Readability
formulas have been used (and misused) for decades, and two of the most enduring
(Flesch Reading Ease Score and Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level) are included in
Microsoft Word. You can use Word for a variety of statistics related to readability,
including:
Average number of sentences per paragraph
Average number of words per sentence
Average number of characters per word
Number of passive sentences
Flesch Reading Ease Score
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level
1 From the Tools menu, select Options.
2 Click the Spelling & Grammar tab.
3 Turn on the Check grammar and spelling option.
4 Make sure the Show readability statistics option is selected.
Note
Word can check grammar and style when doing a spell-check. However,
many of Word's suggested changes or "improvements" conflict with this
guide and with general principles of clear communication. If you don't want
to be subjected to Word's dicta on style and grammar, turn off these
features. To do so, in the Options dialog box, click Settings and uncheck
the options under Grammar and Style.
To turn on readability scores:
After turning on readability statistics, you can see readability scores only after
doing a spell-check on text (all or selected parts of a document). Although you can
check selected text, you'll get the most accurate readability scores with longer text.
For short text, a few multisyllable words, no matter how comprehensible to your
audience, can negatively impact a readability score.
To view readability scores:
Spell-check the document or selected text.
25
Interpreting readability scores
Using Microsoft Word you can ascertain the Flesch Reading Ease Score and the
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level. Both readability scores are based on the average
number of syllables per word and average number of words per sentence.
Note
Word's readability scores are based on paper-based text only. They are
most useful to make "before" and "after" comparisons, especially if editing
involves an extreme makeover.
Some authorities suggest that it's better to write at a readability level that's below
the reading skill level of the intended audience. Text with a lot of short sentences
will score well below its actual audience's reading ability.
Flesch Reading Ease Score
This readability score rates text on a 100-point scale; the higher the score, the
easier it is to understand the text. Microsoft recommends that you aim for a score
of approximately 60 to 70 for most standard documents. But keep in mind that for
onscreen reading, you may want to set your sights on a slightly higher score.
Short, choppy, text with little variation in length will score as "easy to read" with this
measure, but may not produce compelling copy. To see if you've used many short
sentences, check the average sentences per paragraph and average number of
words per sentence.
Here are how some web sites score in the Flesch Reading Ease Score, according
to www.readability.info:
ESPN.go.com article
17.4 (although this doesn’t seem likely)
Intuitive.com home page
64
Nickelodeon home page
84.2
NY Times article
70.4
PC World article
59.4
White House press release
84.4
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level
The Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level rates text on a U.S. grade-school level. For
example, a score of 8.0 means that an eighth grader can understand the text. Most
readability experts suggest that for most standard documents, you should aim for
a score of approximately 7.0 to 8.0. Again, the recommendations are for reading
paper-based documents; you may want to achieve a lower grade level for online
copy.
26
As a point of comparison, look at how some writers' text score using this measure.
(Most text with dialog scores considerably lower than the recommended grade
level because dialog is usually a series of short paragraphs that can skew the
score.)
Ernest Hemingway
4.9
William Shakespeare
7.6
Virginia Woolf
7.7
James Joyce
12
Using the scores to improve your writing
Use the scores as predictors. Most authorities agree that although readability
scores may be flawed in accurately indicating the reading level of text, they are
reliable predictors of difficulty.
Use the scores for comparisons. If you'll be doing a complete (or near
complete) rewrite of text, check the readability scores, number of passive
sentences, etc., before editing. Then view the numbers again after the edit as a
sanity-check, to be sure that you're not making the text harder to read.
Accept that editing alone won't greatly improve readability. Editing can
improve readability—up to a point. Lowering the Flesch-Kincaid score from a
grade level of 12 to 7 or 8 is almost impossible without an extreme makeover of
the text. Changing a few words and shortening a few sentences is seldom
enough to move this measure by any significant amount. For suggestions on
how to shorten your prose and remove unnecessary verbiage, see Shortening
Any Text on page 133.
Although readability scores may have limited use for online text, they do provide
insight into the readability of your words. Keep in mind the following when trying to
apply the scores to improve your writing:
Consider other readability factors. Look at the average number of sentences
per paragraph, the number of passive sentences, and other stats available from
Word. Also consider that sometimes readability can be improved by changing
the format, rather than the text.
Don't go too far. Don't try to achieve a level of readability by writing short,
choppy, uninteresting text that's inconsistent with the Yahoo! voice.
27
Writing for the Medium
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
Writing for online reading. It's different from writing for print.
Instructing online users. Keep it short, direct, and relevant.
Writing email, newsletters, help, and UI text. Each has its own requirements and challenges.
Make sure your writing is appropriate for the message and the medium delivering it.
Writing text for the Yahoo! Front Page. It has its own guidelines.
Integrating third-party content. Can you make a change?
Writing for online reading
Reading on paper is different from reading online. It's more difficult to read text
onscreen. You have less than 10 seconds for your readers to understand what the
page is about and what they're supposed to do next. For more on this topic, see
“Be Succinct!" at www.useit.com/alertbox/9703b.html.
Online audiences have short attention spans, so use as few words as possible to
get the point across. Make every word count and focus on the point.
Cut any paper-based text by 50%. Beware of cutting so drastically that you
make the text ambiguous or that you deviate from the Yahoo! voice.
Make each paragraph short, with a compelling opening sentence. For
information on writing effective paragraphs, see Constructing paragraphs on
page 118.
Move vital but tangential or supplemental material to a secondary position.
Convert repeating categories of information into tables.
According to a study by Jakob Nielsen, "People rarely read Web pages word by
word; instead, they scan the page, picking out individual words and sentences."
Write to facilitate scanning by breaking up text with:
Bulleted lists (like this one). Creating lists on page 119 gives guidelines for
constructing effective, well-formed lists.
Tables can make information easier to read and access while adding white
space to a page.
Meaningful headlines and subheadings can break up paragraphs of text and
visually group onscreen elements.
WRITING FOR THE MEDIUM
Delete fluff. Objective text is often more usable, and is seen as more
trustworthy, than promotional copy.
29
Instructing users
Bold text catches the readers' attention.
Short paragraphs are generally more effective than longer blocks of text. See
Constructing paragraphs on page 118 for an example of the advantages short
paragraphs provide over a single long paragraph.
Pull quotes, which are snippets of an article or other text that are pulled out and
set off in an eye-catching manner, can also aid in scanning while providing
visual relief and interest.
Instructing users
Regardless of medium—email, newsletters, onscreen, or otherwise—use
consistent terminology when instructing users to take some action or perform
steps.
Note
If a property has an established style for instructing users and uses that
style consistently, follow it. However, if there is no established style, the
style isn't used consistently, or the property is new or changing
dramatically, follow the guidelines in this section.
Referring to onscreen elements
When referring to the label or text of onscreen elements, such as action buttons,
radio buttons, and checkboxes, follow these guidelines:
Use the same capitalization. Use the same capitalization in text as the
capitalization of the onscreen element. For example, if a button label uses Title
style capitalization, use that when referring to the button. See Capitalization on
page 91 for the rules for using the capitalization styles.
Visually distinguish labels. To distinguish a label or onscreen text from
surrounding text, use bold for the label or text of the onscreen elements. It's also
acceptable to enclose labels and onscreen text in quotation marks, although
bold is preferred. Just be sure you're consistent in their use.
Use consistent terminology. If it's necessary to include the type of element
(list, button, checkboxes, etc.), use consistent terminology. See Yahoo!
Glossary on page 177.
30
Instructing users
Before
You can create additional profiles (up to 5) by clicking CREATE A NEW PUBLIC
PROFILE.
(Actual button text doesn't include "a" and capitalization is Title style)
After
You can create additional profiles (up to five) by clicking the Create New Public
Profile button.
Better
To create additional profiles (up to five), click Create New Public Profile.
Referring to keys
When referring to keys on the keyboard, use the following terms. Depending on the
property's standard, key names should be in quotes, bold, or plain text without
quotes.
arrow keys
Backspace
Break
Caps Lock
Clear
Ctrl
Del or Delete
the Down Arrow key
End
Enter
Esc
Home
Insert
the Left Arrow key
Num Lock
Option (Macintosh only)
Page Down
Page Up
Pause
Print Screen
Reset
Return (Macintosh only)
the Right Arrow key
Scroll Lock
Select
Shift
the spacebar
the Tab key
the Up Arrow key
For keys that must be pressed simultaneously, separate the keys with a
plus sign (+).
Example
Get your friend's attention by pressing Ctrl+G. The window will shake and buzz.
Alt
31
Instructing users
Describing user actions
Use consistent language when instructing the user to perform some action,
whether it is on the keyboard or with a mouse.
Keyboard actions
When describing a user keyboard action, use the following words:
Use press to describe the action the user takes on the keyboard; don't use hit a
key.
In general, use type to describe entering text, although type in can be used
when describing entering text into a text box. Enter is also an acceptable
alternative to type.
Before
Enter your ID and hit the Enter key.
(Don't use "hit" for a keyboard action)
After
Type your ID and press the Enter key. (Users "press" a key. If there's no chance
Type your ID and press Enter.
for confusion, you can omit the word "key")
Mouse actions
When describing the actions the user can take with a mouse, use these guidelines:
If the user can perform no other action on the object (and the object is
obviously clickable), use click, double-click, right-click, etc., without the word on.
This includes radio buttons, action buttons, links, icons, menu items, tabs, and
the like.
32
Before
Click on the Edit link.
(No need for "on" if object is a link)
After
Click the Edit link.
Click Edit.
(Users "click" a link. If there's no chance
for confusion, you can omit the word "link")
Writing effective emails
If the user could perform some other action on the object, such as open or
delete it, use click on, double-click on, right-click on, etc. The object might be a
photograph, file name, folder, or similar object.
Before
Click the photo you want to edit.
After
Click on the photo you want to edit.
(Include "on" if object is a photo or file)
Don't use hover or mouseover. Use roll, move, pass your mouse over, or an
equivalent phrase.
Don't use press or hit to describe the mouse action; use click or click on instead.
Reserve the use of press for keystrokes.
Before
Press the I SEE THE VIDEO button when you see the video clip.
After
When you see the video clip, click I See the Video.
Don't include the words with your mouse when describing an action with the
mouse. It's understood.
Before
Right-click on the file with your mouse.
Customers view marketing email as a disposable commodity. Much goes into the
trash without being read or doesn't even make it to the inbox. Usability research
shows that recipients don't read email messages; they skim them.
Email isn't like a web site. It's more immediate and more personal, but has more
limited real estate. Email isn't like direct mail. It's more disposable and less tactile.
After
Right-click on the file.
33
General content guidelines
Follow these guidelines (from the presentation "The Formula for Creating
Compelling Email") for writing emails:
Condense messages to a single goal.
Deliver on expectations quickly. Let splash pages and the rest of the web site
provide more information.
The purpose of an email is almost always to get someone to do something else.
Give them a reason to take the next step.
Nearly 70% of customer activity happens on the day of the send, so make your
offer of immediate importance. Put a deadline on it and create an expectation
that the customer has to act now.
Convey your brand identity with tone, voice, color, and images. Be sure that all
content fits the Yahoo! tone and style.
Make sure that the voice is appropriate for the message. For example, the voice
of a marketing email generally is different from the Professional voice of a
service announcement.
Differentiate your message from that of your competitors. Identify the
relationship and personality, and then deliver it consistently.
Deliver a consistent message.
Provide easy access to information. Organize information in "chunks"—visual
groupings of information—to connect related pieces of data and separate nonrelated data. Provide visual clues to help the reader identify the "chunks."
Prioritize information so the most important information to the customer is first
or otherwise highlighted visually.
Re-purpose, but don't re-use, existing information found on the web site. Print
and/or web content is rarely effective for email.
Make the copy concise. Get to the point, but don't belabor it.
Make the tone friendly and helpful. Keep it individual. The audience for every
message is one person.
Be mindful of email size—a user won't wait for lengthy emails to appear.
Leverage the familiar to establish trust.
Personify the target. Touch your customers emotionally.
Decide what character you want to express and then stick to it.
Explanation is better than implication. But in plain, concise language.
34
Service announcements
Service announcements are sent to Yahoo! users, customers, members, or others
to notify them of a change to a product or service.
Use these rules when writing service announcements:
Don't use the announcement to sell or promote a product or service. Avoid sales
pitches or marketing-speak.
The subject line must clearly identify the email as a service announcement so
that it's not mistaken for spam. For example, start the subject line with a phrase
like "Important notice about" or "Important Notice: Your."
The text of the email should be short, direct, clear, and concise, with no room
for ambiguity. If the reader must take an action, clearly explain the step or steps.
Use the Professional voice and maintain a courteous and respectful tone.
Anticipate common questions or concerns and direct readers to the appropriate
place to express them or to find answers. If possible, include an email address
for feedback and a link to more information.
Differences between HTML and text emails
Emails are sent as either HTML or plain text. Text emails don't include graphics,
special characters, or hypertext links, so they can't be identical to their HTML
counterparts.
Follow these guidelines for text emails:
Take care referring to URLs. When including a URL in a text email, don't use
the word click. Instead, use go to, visit, or other wording.
Group information visually. To group information visually, use lines of
asterisks, hyphens, or equal signs to set off headings or sections of the email.
Using all capital letters for important parts of headings is acceptable in text
emails as long as it's not overdone.
Keep it short. The maximum text line length is 68 characters.
Example
To review and change your Yahoo! Auctions notifications, visit the preferences
page: http://user.auctions.shopping.yahoo.com/show/prefs?select=notify
35
Text emails can use a variety
of characters to “chunk” info
Judicious use of
All Caps is OK
in text emails
Email mechanics
Regardless of the format of the email, pay special attention to the subject line, To
and From names, and the footer.
Subject lines
The subject line is important—it determines whether your email will be read or
deleted. Follow these guidelines for subject lines:
Identify your offer and/or summarize your message.
Avoid overusing uppercase, exclamation points, and superlatives that might be
mistaken for spam in the subject line. All uppercase letters triggers spam guards
in some email programs.
36
Try to keep the subject line text under 45 characters.
Put key words at the start of the subject line because some mail readers cut off
long subject lines.
Include one compelling and specific detail in the subject line; prices and
recognizable names are often effective. Used sparingly, words like deal, sale,
special, favorites, bestsellers, and hottest can also be effective.
Ampersands and common abbreviations are OK in subject lines to keep the
length short.
Don't include ending punctuation (except a question mark when appropriate).
Of course, if the last word in the subject line is Yahoo!, include the exclamation
point.
Be consistent with capitalization. Use either Sentence style or Title style caps.
If using Title style, watch for words that should be initial cap, but are commonly
overlooked, like with and from. See Capitalization on page 91 for the rules that
apply to capitalization styles.
Examples
Sign up now for Fantasy Football
Buyer Appreciation on Yahoo! Auctions
(Sentence style caps)
(Title style caps)
To and From names and addresses
Include a To name and a From name and address. This information enhances the
credibility and professionalism of the communication.
Footers
Unsubscribe instructions, disclaimers, and links to the Yahoo! Privacy Policy are
added to the email footer automatically. Occasionally, an incorrect footer is used
for an email. Always check to be sure that the correct footer (including the correct
product or service name) is included.
Example
To: Yahoo! Fantasy Sports Fans
From: Yahoo! Fantasy Sports
37
Writing newsletters
Writing newsletters
When writing newsletters, you need to take into account the same factors as you
do with emails. See Differences between HTML and text emails on page 35 for
details.
Text newsletters
can use a variety
of characters to
“chunk” info
Judicious use of
All Caps is OK in
text newsletters
38
Writing help
Writing help
Help is part of a larger body of aids known as "user assistance." User assistance
can include embedded help (the text that appears on a page to assist the user in
entering the correct information or selecting the appropriate option), tutorials,
wizards, tooltips, manuals, and more.
Note
Although it is beyond the scope of this style guide, all forms of user
assistance should adhere to the principles of clear communication and
style described in this guide. The guidelines in this section apply to online
help; that is, the topics and information displayed when a user clicks a help
(or similar) link on a Yahoo! page.
Two kinds of help—one standard
To simplify the discussion of help, most authorities divide it into two general
categories:
Procedural (or task-based) help, which explains to the reader how to do
something. It's typically written as a series of steps and its title is written as a
question.
Reference help, which encompasses everything else. It can include summaries,
overviews, and explanations of a service or feature; definitions of terms; system
requirements, among other subjects. In internal Yahoo! parlance, reference help
is often referred to as "topics."
Don't combine both procedural and reference help in a single help article; each
article should contain either procedural or reference information.
Regardless of the type of help you're writing, you should be consistent in your
presentation, terminology, typography, and voice. Effective communication for user
assistance also requires concise, tight writing.
When writing help questions, follow these guidelines:
Write questions as if the user were asking them.
Write all questions in the same person; that is, all in first person ("How do I close
my account?") or all in second person ("Closing your account").
If possible, avoid starting many sequential questions with the same word or
words, forcing the reader to plow through several words to get to the part of the
question that is unique.
Note
At present, the list of help questions is derived from the full text of the
questions; therefore, in the following example, "How do I" must be
repeated with each question.
Writing effective questions
39
Writing help
Before
How do I ...
How do I edit my Billing and Premium Services?
How do I change my membership information?
How do I change my address and contact information?
How do I create a listing in People Search?
How do I close my Yahoo! account?
After
How do I ...
Edit my Billing and Premium Services?
Change my membership information?
Change my address and contact information?
Create a listing in People Search?
Close my Yahoo! account?
Make sure that each item in the list can complete the question.
Before
How do I ...
How do I post an ad?(Doesn't complete "How do I …")
How do I edit or delete my ad?(Doesn't complete "How do I …")
Find my ad?
Post lots of ads easily?
After
How do I ...
Post an ad?
Edit or delete my ad?
Find my ad?
Post lots of ads easily?
Avoid ending a question with Yahoo!, especially if the punctuation could be
misunderstood.
Writing effective topics
Help topics can provide an overview of a property, product, or feature; instructions
(procedures) for completing a task; or reference information (such as a glossary
and definitions).
40
Writing help
Regardless of the type of topic you're writing, be brief and to the point. .
Before
The first thing that you will need to do is choose a name and description for the Mood.
After
First, choose a name and description for the Mood.
When writing topics or answering questions, follow these guidelines:
Use simple, friendly language. Make answers short and direct. Use
straightforward words and avoid jargon. Use contractions for a friendly tone.
Avoid hype and marketing-speak.
Don't overuse simply and just in instructions. Overuse of these words can sound
condescending.
If a question has a "yes" or "no" answer, state that first and then explain the
answer.
Example
Is there another way to use FTP without a special utility?
Yes. If you're using Windows, you can access a text-based FTP utility from a DOS
prompt.
Be consistent. Use the same style and format throughout a property's help
topics. For example, if you use quotation marks around a prompt (such as the
name of a command button), do it the same way in all sections of the property's
help topics.
Break up long passages of text into easy-to-read groups.
Tip
To break up text into shorter paragraphs, use the <p> paragraph tag or
equivalent.
Overviews
If an overview of a product or feature is necessary, write for online reading and
scannability. See Writing for online reading on page 29.
When linking to another page, use words, not URLs, for the link. For an
example, see Adding link text on page 47.
41
Writing help
Procedural help
Break procedures of more than two actions into numbered steps.
Tip
Use HTML tags (or equivalents) for a numbered lists. Don't use manually
entered numbers and indentions.
Before
You can keep track of the weather in your selected city by first checking the weather
box on the Choose Content page. Once you've selected Finish, you'll automatically be
directed to the Yahoo! News homepage. Next, you find the weather section on the
front page and select Edit. This will take you to Weather on the Front Page. Choose
which city appears on the Front Page and click Finished when you're done. If a city
you want to appear on the front page of News is not listed, you can edit your weather
cities here.
After
To keep track of the weather in a selected city:
1. On the Choose Content page, check the Weather box and click Finish.
2. In the Weather section on the Yahoo! News home page, click Edit.
3. On the next page, select the city you want to display and click Finished.
If the city you want isn't listed, click the Edit button to add it to the list.
Avoid creating a procedure consisting of a single numbered step. Incorporate the
step into the introduction to the procedure, or if the step is long, set it off as a bullet
point.
Before
To display timestamps within the IM window:
1.
Click the View menu in the IM window and select Timestamps.
After
To display timestamps within the IM window, click the View menu in the IM window
and select Timestamps.
42
Writing help
Introducing procedures
If it's necessary to include an introduction to a procedure, start with an infinitive (the
“to” form of a verb).
Before
You can browse your Address Book contacts using Messenger:
1. Make sure the Address Book is visible.
2. …
After
To browse your Address Book contacts using Messenger:
1. Make sure the Address Book is visible.
2. …
Before
You can change the default text font for your instant messages by following these
steps:
After
To change the default text font for your instant messages:
43
Writing help
Inserting comments in a step
A lengthy comment to a step should be indented below the step so that it aligns on
the left with the text, and not the number, above it. Short comments can be included
in the step itself.
Before
From Yahoo! Travel, click on the Flights link and fill out the form.
o Step 1: Select the type of flight you are searching for by clicking the radio button
(Round-Trip, One-Way, Multi-Destination). If you are booking a Round-Trip flight, you
may opt to add a Hotel by clicking on the checkbox next to "Add a hotel and save!"
o Step 2: Enter the origin and destination of your trip. You may enter city names (e.g.,
Los Angeles) or airport codes (e.g., LAX).
o Step 3: If you know the dates you would like to travel, select "Search specific dates"
and enter the Departure date and Return Date. If you are flexible on the dates of travel,
select "Search a date range" and specify the starting date and ending date of the date
range you would like to search.
After
From Yahoo! Travel, click the Flights link and fill out the form.
1. Select the type of flight you want by clicking the Round-Trip, One-Way, or MultiDestination button. If you are booking a round-trip flight, you can add a hotel by
checking the box next to Add a hotel and save!
2. Enter the origin and destination of the trip. You can enter city names (e.g., Los
Angeles) or airport codes (e.g., LAX).
3. If you know the dates you would like to travel, select Search specific dates and
enter the departure date and return date. If your travel dates are flexible, select
Search a date range and specify the starting date and ending date of the date
range.
Glossaries
Follow these guidelines when writing glossaries:
Capitalize entries as they appear normally; don't make all entries initial caps
unless that's they way they appear elsewhere, outside the glossary.
Make sure that the definition of a glossary entry matches the number and part
of speech of the entry. For example, if you're defining a verb, start the definition
with an infinitive (the to form of a verb).
44
Writing help
Alphabetize entries. If you're unsure of how to alphabetize, enter the words in a
Microsoft Word table or Excel spreadsheet and let the application do the work.
Don't repeat the defined term at the start of the definition.
Before
Yahoo! Wallet: Yahoo! Wallet is a service that allows you to enter and store your
credit card information safely and securely with Yahoo!.
After
Yahoo! Wallet: A service that allows you to enter and store your credit card
information safely and securely with Yahoo!.
Notes, cautions, and tips
Use a note to highlight information of importance to users. Use a caution to warn
readers of potential problems. Use a tip or hint to offer a shortcut, an alternative, or
other helpful information.
Example
Tip
To close a portfolio, click
next to the portfolio name.
In general, follow the conventions established by existing help text when writing
notes, cautions, or tips. If capitalization or typography are inconsistent, or if there
are no existing notes, cautions, or tips, follow these rules:
Capitalize the word Note, Caution, or Tip.
Make the word Note, Caution, or Tip bold.
Example
Note: You can create as many sites as you want.
Example
Tips
o Try searching for flowerpotz in all of Shopping.
o Try searching for flowerpotz across the Web.
o Check your spelling or try different words that mean the same thing.
If the text follows the word Note, Caution, or Tip on the same line, include a
colon, in bold, and capitalize the first word following the colon. If the text is on a
separate line, the colon is unnecessary, but punctuation should be consistent
throughout the property.
45
Writing user interface text
See Guiding Principles: Visual Design
(http://gooey.yahoo.com/visde/principles/principles.html) for more information on
these and other guidelines:
Clearly confirm user-initiated actions. Clearly communicate system errors or
failed actions. Avoid actions that are not user-initiated or that are unexpected,
such as pop-ups.
Map read-order and visual weight to relevance. Content that is determined to be
most relevant should read first. Content that is least relevant should read last.
In presenting relevant content, apply the 80/20 rule: 80% of users' needs will be
fulfilled by 20% of the content. Determine what is typically most relevant in any
context and present that content with the greatest visual weight.
Create a consistent page-to-page experience. Ensure consistent placement of
persistent page elements. Design with flexible precision for consistent overall
experience. Take no detail for granted.
Determine an appropriate aesthetic interpretation of the Yahoo! voice for a
product's visual design based on knowledge of the specific target audience.
Clearly label pages and content. Be consistent with wording. The words used in
linking should be consistent with the words used on the resulting pages.
Design for scanning. Be concise and compact but avoid compromising clear
communication.
Avoid foolish consistencies. Consistency should yield to clarity and usability.
Place explanations related to the use of personal information close to the
request for personal information.
Be courteous; use polite language.
Make choices clear and obvious. Empower users with choice. Communicate
value rather than limiting choices.
Clearly attribute content provided by third parties.
Writing headings
Follow these guidelines for writing headings:
Use Title style capitalization for headings. See Capitalization on page 91 for the
rules for capitalizing words in Title style.
Don't include closing punctuation for a heading unless the heading is phrased
as a question when a question mark is required. If a heading is a sentence
fragment, use no punctuation.
46
Adding link text
When writing text that will become a link, pay special attention to the words you use
and how you capitalize them.
Wording link text
Follow these guidelines for the wording of links:
Keep the link text short and descriptive of where the link leads.
Avoid using click here, go here, and the like in link text.
Before
Click here to log in, to view and edit your interests.
After
Log in to view and edit your interests.
Before
To learn more about Yahoo!'s Privacy Policy for mobile devices, please click here.
After
Learn more about Yahoo!'s Privacy Policy for mobile devices.
Avoid using More… (or other text ending in an ellipsis) as a link because it
doesn't tell users where the link takes them or what action they should take.
Learn more is better, and using an active, descriptive link is best.
Before
You can check out Yahoo! SiteBuilder located at the following URL:
http://webhosting.yahoo.com/ps/sb/
After
Check out Yahoo! SiteBuilder.
Capitalizing and punctuating link text
Capitalization and punctuation of link text should be consistent throughout a
property. If no standards have been developed (or if they aren't followed
consistently), use these guidelines:
Don't include the actual URL as the link text, unless the URL is used for
branding or brand recognition (such as finance.yahoo.com).
47
If the entire link is a sentence or sentence fragment, use Sentence style
capitalization for the text. See Capitalization on page 91 for the rules governing
Sentence style caps.
If the link is embedded in other text (such as within a sentence), don't capitalize
the link.
Capitalize a proper noun, title, or other text that is normally capitalized in the link
text.
Don't include closing punctuation unless the link is phrased as a question; in
that case, close with a question mark. If the text is a sentence fragment, use no
punctuation.
Examples
Where are my orders? Where are my shopping carts?
Help improve Yahoo! Shopping by participating in our user studies.
Send us feedback
Other interface elements
Use a prompt when you want a visitor to do something—follow a link, click a button,
make a choice, enter a keyword, submit a page, and so forth.
Examples
Send us feedback.
Check your email.
Create a group.
Choosing the correct words
Keep prompts active and to the point. The prompt should clearly and concisely
communicate the action in language appropriate for the target audience.
Use a verb that communicates the action you want, such as search, move, submit,
check, sign in, join, sign out, create. Avoid using verbs that end in "ing."
Note
For a list of terms to use, see Glossary: User-Facing Terms
(http://ue.corp.yahoo.com/drupal/glossary/18).
Consider these suggestions (adapted from Glossary: User-Facing Terms) when
choosing between delete and remove or create and add:
Use delete when the action will permanently delete an item or object. For
example, deleting a contact from the Yahoo! Address Book or deleting the
Address Book.
48
Use remove when the action will remove an item or object from its current
position or location, but doesn't delete it permanently. The item or object is
available to be added to its previous (or other) location. For example, in the
Yahoo! Calendar, removing a country from the Your Holidays list, which moves
the country to the list of available countries.
Use create when the action will create a new item or object. For example,
creating a Sub Account or creating a portfolio on Yahoo! Finance.
Use add when the action will add an item or object to a list or group of existing
objects. For example, adding a task to the task list in Yahoo! Calendar, adding
a folder in Yahoo! Notepad, or adding a module to a My Yahoo! page.
Capitalization and punctuation
Capitalization and punctuation of prompts should be consistent throughout a
property. If no standards have been developed (or if they aren't followed
consistently), use these guidelines. (See Capitalization on page 91 for a definition
of the capitalization styles.)
Sentence style capitalization. If a complete
sentence, include closing punctuation;
otherwise, use no punctuation.
Command button text
Title style capitalization. No closing punctuation.
Instructions, introductory text
If a complete sentence, use Sentence style
capitalization and include closing punctuation
(such as a period or question mark). Otherwise,
use no punctuation. If the text is very short
(three or fewer words), Title style capitalization
is acceptable as long as all similar text uses the
same capitalization style.
Radio button title and text
Sentence style capitalization. If a complete
Text entry box names
Title style capitalization. If a complete
Checkbox text
49
Examples of command/action buttons
Title style capitalization
Examples of UI text
Title style caps for
short headings
Title style caps for
titles of lists and
radio buttons
Sentence style caps for
instructions
Sentence style
caps for text of
radio buttons
Footers
GUI (Graphic User Interface), Legal, and Production have agreed on a "lowest
common denominator" footer for use on Yahoo! properties.
Note
50
Guidelines for the contents and appearance of footers are currently under
development.
Contents of footers
Footers on Yahoo! must contain the following:
Dated notice of copyright. The copyright date should be for the current year
only. In general, a range of copyright dates (such as 1999–2005) should be
phased out as pages are updated. Exceptions can be made for static pages or
pages that are less likely to be changed annually (such as Help pages). In those
cases, a modified version of the copyright notice, omitting the year, can be used.
Link to the Privacy Policy.
Link to Terms of Service.
Disclaimer pertaining to the collection of data, which must appear on all
yahoo.com pages, even those that don't collect personally identifiable data.
Footers on Yahoo! can also contain:
Partner notice of copyright.
Help links. (The word "Help" is enough.)
Feedback link.
Links to Company Information, Suggest a Site, etc.
Short disclaimers.
Footers on Yahoo! should not contain:
Marketing messages or links.
Excessive additional text or repetitive links to related sites or properties. The
Yahoo! footer should generally denote the end of the page's content and not the
beginning of a "bottom of the page" navigation system.
Separate links by a space and a single hyphen, not periods or slashes.
Before
Privacy Policy. Terms of Service. Email Us. Help
After
Privacy Policy - Terms of Service - Email Us - Help
Formatting footers
51
All pages ending in yahoo.com, even those that do not collect personally
identifiable information, must also include a disclaimer. This disclaimer, previously
required only on data collection pages, must include the two sentences shown in
this example:
Example
Copyright © 2005 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright Policy - Terms of Service
NOTICE: We collect personal information on this site. To learn more about how we use
your information, see our Privacy Policy.
Partner copyright footers
Partner copyrights should be on a separate line from the Yahoo! copyright notice.
(In the past, we mandated that partner copyrights follow Yahoo! copyrights, but
currently no order is specified.) Do not combine the copyright notices into one
entry.
Before
Copyright © 2005 Yahoo! Inc. and Reuters. All rights reserved.
(Don't combine Yahoo! and partner copyrights)
After
Copyright © 2005 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2005 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
Feedback and error messages
For feedback not involving an error, follow these guidelines:
Provide feedback in a consistent, straightforward manner.
Clearly confirm user-initiated actions.
Error messages can create a resilient, trust-building safety net underneath your
web site's applications. As an inherent part of the user interface design and the
user experience, they must have the same user-centered design as the overall
product UI. To ensure that error messages are user-friendly, specify them as much
as the rest of the interface.
In general, error messages are displayed in red bold text, near the top of the page,
below the ad and title bar. Because many users scroll the page so that the title bar
is at the top of the browser window, they may not see the message. If the error
involves filling out a required field, pre-fill the form as much as possible with the
information the user provided and draw attention to the missing field(s).
52
Use the following guidelines when writing error messages:
Be specific. Messages that are too general make it difficult for the user to know
what has gone wrong. Avoid simple and condemning messages.
Before
Invalid data
After
Enter a day from 1 to 31.
Be constructive and positive. Rather than condemning users for what they
have done wrong, messages should, where possible, indicate what users need
to do to set things right.
Before
ZIP code is of the wrong length.
After
Please enter a 5-digit ZIP code.
Be user-centered. Be courteous to the user. Use polite language. One way to
achieve a friendly tone is to use second person—you and your. But don’t use
these pronouns is the result could be interpreted as suggesting blame,
especially in error messages.
Be consistent. Maintain consistent grammatical form, terminology, and
abbreviations.
Before
Email Address Not Found, Please Try Again
After
Email address not found. Please try again.
Even Better
We can't locate the email address you gave us. Please make sure you have the
correct address and try again.
Use the appropriate capitalization style. Messages in a combination of
uppercase and lowercase letters are easier to read than all uppercase text. Use
Sentence style capitalization. (See Capitalization on page 91 for the rules
governing Sentence style caps.) Use All Caps messages for brief, serious
warnings.
53
Avoid technical jargon. Just as you do everywhere else, avoid jargon in
feedback and error messages.
Before
Are you sure you want to navigate away from this page?
After
Are you sure you want to close this window?
Writing effective page titles
Often, the page title is the first part of a page users with a slow Internet connection
see. The page title should provide a clear, concise description of the page.
Note
See also Web Dev’s “Best Practices for Page Titles"
(http://twiki.corp.yahoo.com/view/Devel/BestPracticesForPageTitles).
The text in the HTML title of the page appears in many places in the user's browser
and desktop, such as:
Title bar of most browsers
Windows taskbar
Favorites and Bookmarks
The title is used by default in the user's Favorites and Bookmarks list. Consider
how it will look in a long list of bookmarks.
54
The page title is
used by default
for Favorites or
Bookmarks
In IE the page
title appears on the
Favorites menu
and in the Favorites
pane
Back and Forward buttons and History pane
Before
Yahoo! Groups
After
Yahoo! Groups: Cultures & Community
55
Writing Front Page text
Look at these Yahoo! Directory categories for examples of effective page titles:
Hitchhiking
Music Reviews
English Dictionaries
As the most visited page on the Web and the front door to the Yahoo! network, the
Yahoo! Front Page (www.yahoo.com) presents a unique set of concerns. All
placements (paid and internal) are subject to a level of scrutiny above and beyond
Yahoo!'s general technical and editorial specifications. See Front Page Mantel
Design and Code Specs for additional information
(http://ue.corp.yahoo.com/gui/prod/mainsite/mantles/specs/mantelguide/guide/ind
ex.html).
Space is very tight on the Front Page. Abbreviations, acronyms, ampersands,
numerals for numbers under 10, and other nonstandard usage may be necessary
to fit text into the available space. However, clarity is still crucial. Avoid unusual
abbreviations, truncated sentences that can obscure meaning, and otherwise
accepted terms that a general audience may not understand.
Headlines and summaries
Headlines and summaries can be rewritten for posting as long as they don't
misrepresent the content on the page that will be displayed.
Links on the Front Page
Follow these guidelines for the text of links on the Front Page:
Use closing punctuation only if the link is a complete sentence; otherwise, use
no punctuation.
If the link includes closing punctuation (such as a period), don't include the
punctuation in the link.
Use Sentence style capitalization for the link text. (See Capitalization on
page 91 for the rules governing Sentence style caps.)
56
Before
Get the inside scoop from Entertainment Tonight.
Get the Inside Scoop From Entertainment Tonight
After
Get the inside scoop from Entertainment Tonight
(Period part of link)
(Title style capitalization)
(Period not part of link;
Sentence style caps)
Titles on the Front Page
When including the title of a movie, book, song, video, etc. in a headline or other
text (except in lists), follow these guidelines:
If the title isn't a link, use single quotation marks around the title.
If the title is a link, don't use quotation marks around the title.
Before
Watch the trailer for 'The Matrix' on Yahoo! Movies.
Watch the trailer for "The Matrix" on Yahoo! Movies.
(No need for quotes if the
title is a link)
After
Watch the trailer for The Matrix on Yahoo! Movies.
Watch the trailer for 'The Matrix' on Yahoo! Movies.
(Use single quotes if the
title isn't a link)
Lists of titles on the Front Page
Before
Now in Theaters:
"Finding Nemo”
"Bruce Almighty"
Now in Theaters:
'Finding Nemo’
'Bruce Almighty'
After
Now in Theaters:
Finding Nemo
Bruce Almighty
(No need for double quotes in a list of titles)
(No need for single quotes in a list of titles)
(No need for quotes when the list consists only of titles)
Don't use single or double quotation marks in a list of titles of movies, books, songs,
videos, etc.
57
Ampersands (&) and exclamation points on the FP
Ampersands can be used in headlines on the Front Page only where space is
limited. If an ampersand is used in a series of three or more items, don’t include a
comma before it.
Example
Pitt & Jolie visit Canada dinosaur exhibit
Avoid extensive use of ampersands (&) and exclamation points.
Before
1-800-CONTACTS saves you up to 70% on your contact lenses!
(Unnecessary !)
After
1-800-CONTACTS saves you up to 70% on your contact lenses.
"In the News" box
The "In the News" box uses Sentence style capitalization and no closing
punctuation for headlines. (See Capitalization on page 91 for the rules governing
Sentence style caps.)
“In the News” uses
Sentence style caps and
no closing punctuation
58
Integrating third-party content
Marketplace promos
In Marketplace promos, capitalize the first word after a hyphen.
“Marketplace” capitalizes
the first word after a
hyphen
Integrating third-party content
Yahoo! can't change content from a third party, even if it's hosted on our site. For
example, Yahoo! News carries Associated Press and Reuters news feeds. These
news articles use a more traditional print-oriented style that omits things like serial
commas. These differences should not affect how we write at Yahoo!. Just be
aware that they exist.
For guidelines for paid content, go to: Guidelines for Paid Content Integration
(http://produce.yahoo.com/edit/advertorial.html).
59
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
Background and Introduction. A little history behind these standards.
Attribution. It’s important to clearly identify the sources of quotes and information not produced by
your own reporting.
Sourcing. Yahoo!’s standards for identifying sources, including standards for anonymity and
confidentiality.
Newsgathering. What’s legal when gathering information may vary from state to state, but some
things are not permissible. Read about them.
Corrections and clarifications. If we make a mistake, we acknowledge it.
Plagiarism. It’s a direct violation of Yahoo! editorial standards.
Quotations. When to use those pesky quotation marks.
Datelines. They identify where the substantive information in a story was gathered.
Bylines and end notes. When and where to include them.
Digital storytelling. The use and misuse of images.
Yahoo! Editorial Code of Ethics. The four major pillars of the Code of Ethics and the details
behind each one.
Editorial and content decision-making. The bases for making decisions related to original
content and journalism.
Acknowledgment. Anyone producing original content for Yahoo! is required to sign this
acknowledgment.
EDITORIAL STANDARDS FOR ORIGINAL CONTENT AND JOURNALISM
Editorial Standards for
Original Content and Journalism
Background
Despite its deep expertise in a range of aggregation, taxonomies, and related
editorial issues, Yahoo! has undertaken relatively little original content creation or
original journalism to date.
In Q1 2005, Yahoo! announced its decision to establish a Media Center of
Excellence in Santa Monica under SVP Lloyd Braun. Shortly after the
announcement, it was clear Yahoo! would expand into new original content and
journalism areas.
These new original journalism and content forms require that Yahoo! adopt new
editorial standards to empower these important new efforts in news reporting,
editing, blogging, and other forms of digital storytelling.
61
Introduction
While journalism standards vary widely from publication to web site to broadcast
network and even across the 90 partners in Yahoo! News, there are a set of
established best practices we can draw from.
For any standard to be successfully adopted, Yahoo! writers, journalists, bloggers,
content producers, reporters, editors, and business-owners must develop shared
values, clear guidelines, and practical protocols that serve our dual goals of
journalistic and commercial success.
Introduction
The policies and standards outlined in these Editorial Standards are an attempt to
set forth current best practices for journalists at Yahoo!. They are not intended to
be all-encompassing, and Yahoo! reserves the right to make changes to these
Standards from time to time based on changes in the law, journalism, technology,
and business needs.
These policies and standards apply to all content-related decision-making at
Yahoo! by writers, journalists, bloggers, content producers, reporters, editors, and
others who manage and post content. Failure to abide by these policies and
standards may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination of
employment.
Attribution
Yahoo! will adhere to established best practices in journalism regarding the
attribution of original or secondary source material. As the New York Times policy
on attribution states, "When we use facts gathered by any other organization, we
attribute them."
Yahoo! will be truthful about the source of information collected and transparent in
the reportorial process. Specifically, facts and quotations in a story that were not
produced by our own reporting must be attributed in a clear and specific manner.
The phrase "clear and specific manner" of attribution means Yahoo! users must be
able to easily distinguish between what the Yahoo! reporter (the terms "reporter"
and "writer" are used interchangeably in this document) directly witnessed and
what the reporter obtained from other sources such as wire services, other Internet
sites, email, other news organizations reporting, broadcast reports, individuals, etc.
Yahoo! expects our reporters, when applicable, to personally witness as much as
they can of the story they are reporting, and to talk to as many participants as
practical in a given situation. Reporters should report from the scene of events they
are covering whenever possible.
62
Sourcing
Sourcing
In general, Yahoo! reporters and editors should be prepared to explain what they
did to get the story—explain how they got the story—and who told them what they
learned and why the sources are credible.
A Yahoo! reporter's first goal and expectation is to get all sources on the record and
to severely limit the use of anonymous and confidential sources.
Yahoo! reporters are urged to get concrete and specific documentation and utilize
on-the-record sources who have had direct access to information, who have seen
a document, who have listened to a tape or seen a video, or who were otherwise
witness to an event.
Sometimes, with advance approval from supervising editors, a relevant document
can serve as a primary or secondary source. In these cases, Yahoo! will always
reveal how we received the document and will seek to place the entire document
online for our users to review directly.
While routine stories may occasionally be based on a single official named source,
significant or controversial stories should be based on multiple sources. Generally
speaking, the more controversial or potentially newsworthy the story, the higher the
bar for multiple sources and clear attribution.
When seeking comment from persons who are the subject of a story, Yahoo!
reporters should give story subjects and their intermediaries (press aides, etc.) a
reasonable amount of time and opportunity to respond via email, phone, etc.
If they are observing events via broadcast, video, audio, media feed, or the
Internet, they should make the manner in which they are witnessing the event clear
and specific to Yahoo! users. If a reporter was not present at a scene described in
a story, broadcast, or video of any kind, their report of the event should make that
fact absolutely clear.
Yahoo! reporters should not provide sources with promises of exclusivity, specific
positioning on news pages, or pledges that Yahoo! will refrain from additional
reporting or efforts to verify the information they may or may not provide to Yahoo!.
Yahoo! reporters should generally be able to answer these questions about any
source on any story they file: Does the source know enough about the issue to
provide credible information? Does the source have a vested interest in getting the
story out? Are you reporting on the vested interest in the story? Is there an
independent source to call—someone without an interest in the story? Do a variety
of sources tell you the same thing?
63
Sourcing
Use of anonymous or undisclosed sources or blind quotes
Yahoo! reporters and editors should press sources to be identified on the record
and seek alternative methods of sourcing and attributing information only in rare
and very specific circumstances.
If a source is not on the record, it is important Yahoo! reporters establish ground
rules at the beginning of the discussion, whether it be an interview or a simple
conversation.
In establishing ground rules, Yahoo! will adhere to the same specific definitions
used by major news organizations and adopted as journalistic best practices. The
following is from The Washington Post:
On the record: For quotation, attributable to the source by name.
On background, or not for attribution: These both mean the same
thing: information that can be attributed to "a police department
official" or "a player on the team" who is not named.
Deep background: This is a tricky category, to be avoided if possible.
Information accepted on "deep background" can be included in the
story, but not attributed. That means there is no way to help readers
understand where it is coming from, which is why we discourage the
use of deep background. You can also use information received on
deep background as the basis for further reporting.
Off the record: This is the trickiest of all, because so many people
misuse the term. By our definition, off-the-record information cannot
be used, either in the paper or in further reporting. But many sources,
including some sophisticated officials, use the term when they really
mean "not for attribution to me."… If they really mean off the record as
we define the term, then in most circumstances, we should avoid
listening to such information at all. We do not want to be hamstrung
by a source who tells us something that becomes unusable because
it is provided on an off-the-record basis…. One alternative to off-therecord is "for guidance." A source may be willing to give us information
for our guidance or to prompt further reporting, on the understanding
that we will not use his comments as the basis for putting something
in the paper."
Original news content reporting that relies on undisclosed or confidential sources
requires Yahoo! reporters to make a serious attempt to verify the information from
another source. There may be situations in which Yahoo! will base its reporting on
a single undisclosed or confidential source, but these occasions should be
extremely rare and we should do so only after deliberations involving the general
manager of News, the Managing Editor, or the Editorial Director and, if necessary,
legal counsel.
64
Sourcing
When using unidentified or confidential sources - a common occurrence in political
reporting or reporting on the military, for example - Yahoo! reporters should explain
why we could not identify the source in question. Reporters should note in
appropriate circumstances when a source "spoke only on the condition that he or
she not be named."
Spokespersons, by virtue of their role and title, should be on the record when they
give briefings or contact Yahoo! reporters or editors with information. If they decline
to be quoted by name in such situations, reporters should ask for a publishable
explanation as to why, and tell readers what happened, if appropriate.
Yahoo! will not use "sources said." Instead, an anonymous source must be
identified by his/her affiliation and any information we have regarding his/her
respective motivation or stance on an issue.
As The Washington Post notes:
"When we use an unnamed source, we are asking our readers to take an extra
step to trust the credibility of the information we are providing. Our obligation is
to serve readers, not sources. This means avoiding attributions to 'sources' or
'informed sources.' Instead we should try to give the reader something more,
such as 'sources familiar with the thinking of defense lawyers in the case,' or
'sources whose work brings them into contact with the county executive,' or
'sources on the governor's staff who disagree with his policy.'"
The New York Times further explains:
"When we agree to anonymity, the reporter's duty is to obtain terms
that conceal as little as possible of what the reader needs to gauge
reliability. We should distinguish conscientiously between high-level
and lower-level executives or officials. We should not use blind
attribution - 'sources said,' for example - which is more a tease than a
signpost. Attribution should never amount to a truism: since 'source'
merely means a provider of information, 'one source said' is
equivalent to 'somebody said.' And 'informed' or 'reliable source' is no
improvement."
As a general rule, Yahoo! should not report anonymous quotes that attack a
person, entity, or product. Any exceptions should be approved by the general
manager of News, the Managing Editor, or the Editorial Director.
Yahoo! will not allow the use of pseudonyms or nondisclosure of known sourcespecific information. Yahoo! reporters and editors will take care to always prevent
our users from being misled about the identities or motivations of story subjects. In
the rare situation when someone requests to be identified by less than his/her full
and complete name, Yahoo! supervising editors must participate in any and all
such decisions, and users must be informed in the body of the story why we are
not using full names.
65
Sourcing
The New York Times Guidelines on Integrity notes:
"No reader should find cause to suspect that the paper would
knowingly alter facts. For that reason, The Times refrains outright
from assigning fictional names, ages, places or dates, and it strictly
limits the use of other concealment devices. If compassion or the
unavoidable conditions of reporting require shielding an identity, the
preferred solution is to omit the name and explain the omission…As
a rare last resort, if genuine given names would be too revealing, real
or coined single initials (Dr. D, Ms. L) may be used after consultation
with senior editors. The article must gracefully indicate the device and
the reason."
Promises of anonymity or confidentiality
Confidential sources must be used with great caution.
Yahoo! reporters may grant anonymity or confidentiality only after consulting in
advance when possible with, and obtaining the approval of, the general manager
of News, the Managing Editor, or Editorial Director, who must be provided with the
identity of the source in question so that editors and reporters can jointly assess
the appropriateness of this act. Sources should understand this policy.
In the event that reporting circumstances (such as distant geographical location or
limited availability of a source) make advance approval of a supervising editor
impractical, a Yahoo! reporter may gather information from a source with the
understanding that a supervising editor must agree to the grant of anonymity or
confidentiality or the information will not be used.
Promises of confidentiality may be deemed binding contracts. Accordingly, any
such promises should be specific: Is the Yahoo! reporter promising total
confidentiality? Confidentiality unless there is a subpoena? Confidentiality if the
reporter is threatened with imprisonment? Yahoo! reporters should be aware that
protection of confidential sources and other issues are not always assured under
state or federal law.
There must be a forceful reason for promising confidentiality (for example, when
the source is a "whistleblower"). Confidential sources should have direct
knowledge of the information they are giving Yahoo! - or they must be the
authorized representatives of an authority, known to Yahoo!, who has such
knowledge.
In some cases, sources will be asked to meet directly with Yahoo! editors and may
be asked to supply additional information or documentation.
Any editor, producer, or staffer who learns a source's identity should maintain
exactly the same confidentiality as the reporter. Confidential source material
should be specifically labeled and secured.
66
Newsgathering
Newsgathering
First and foremost, in the course of gathering and reporting on the news, Yahoo!
reporters must respect and obey the laws of the United States and all other
jurisdictions in which we operate.
For example, like other citizens, Yahoo! reporters cannot enter homes or other
private areas (such as hotel rooms, offices, hospital rooms) without the consent of
the owner/occupant.
Also, state and federal eavesdropping laws prohibit, to varying degrees, the use of
hidden cameras or microphones. This area of the law is very complex and changes
frequently. Some states permit one party to a conversation to record a
conversation; others do not. Federal law generally prohibits electronic interception
of a communication without the consent of at least one party to the conversation.
As a general rule, Yahoo! does not identify the victims of sexual assault, or minors
who have been arrested or charged with a crime or are under criminal
investigation. Any exceptions to this rule must be approved by the general
manager of News, the Managing Editor, or the Editorial Director.
Yahoo! reporters should not misrepresent themselves in the course of their
journalistic activities. Yahoo! reporters will always properly and fully identify
themselves in the course of their professional journalistic duties.
Any investigative reporting that involves use of hidden cameras or microphones, or
other "undercover" techniques; the use of private investigators; or "ride alongs"
with authorities, must be approved by the general manager of News, the Managing
Editor, or the Editorial Director.
In editing at the news desk or at higher levels, the description of a source should
not be altered without consultation with the reporter and editor who made the
confidentiality commitment.
Yahoo! reporters should always consider their own safety and exercise caution in
dangerous or high-risk situations. Any reporter who is concerned about their safety
has the right to refuse an assignment and should consult with the general manager
of News, the Managing Editor, or the Editorial Director.
Corrections and clarifications
Yahoo! recognizes that with the creation of original content comes the ethical
responsibility to correct any and all errors of fact or omission promptly, fully, and
candidly.
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Corrections and clarifications
Yahoo! will create a corrections or clarifications page within Yahoo! News and
require content-producing entities within the Yahoo! Network to post corrected
content contextually (updating posts within a blog for example) in a timely and
forthright manner.
The prompt investigation of errors and the timely posting of corrected content will
be the shared responsibility of the Managing Editor, Editorial Director, the
supervising producer of Yahoo! News, and the product manager of Yahoo! News,
in consultation with legal counsel if necessary.
Individuals reporting errors will be treated with the highest level of respect and
taken seriously. Often those reporting errors are directly affected by a story and our
respectful treatment of their comments can help eliminate any formal complaints.
Yahoo! should adopt the credibility standards researched and created by "Best
Practices for Newspaper Journalists" by Robert J. Haiman for the Freedom
Forum's Free Press/Fair Press Project. Specifically:
Publish corrections prominently and in the same place every day and make the
corrections location easy to find via primary product navigation. It will be
encouraging to users if we publish corrections as prominently as the error or
publish them with consistency and transparency. We could also consider
publishing the corrections issues by our licensed news partners for greater
credibility and consistency.
Provide an easy way for users to report errors and ask for corrections via an
email alias and explanation of our corrections policy on the corrections page.
Track our own errors: Yahoo! employees who spot errors of fact or omission and
report them to an email alias will be eligible for an annual corrections rewards
program. Yahoo! reporters who report errors of fact or omission in their own
published work will be commended for their integrity and candor.
Make the corrections detailed enough to be fully understandable, including
repeating the error to help the reader remember the original story. Corrections
should inform, not mystify. Each correction should explain how the error
occurred and/or who was responsible, if not by name then at least by job title or
function.
Apologize for any errors and simply state that Yahoo! regrets the error.
Yahoo! will publish clarifications when all facts published may have been correct
but the overall impression was misleading, or important details were omitted, or
significant nuances were missed.
Any Yahoo! reporter who receives correspondence from a lawyer or legal papers
such as a complaint or subpoena should immediately inform the general manager
of News, the Managing Editor, or Editorial Director, who will in turn pass the
information on to legal counsel.
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Plagiarism
Plagiarism in any form is a direct violation of Yahoo! editorial standards. Two
circumstances could give rise to a charge of plagiarism:
Intentional plagiarism
Misuse of sources or unintentional plagiarism
Intentional plagiarism occurs when one knowingly appropriates the work of others
and passes it off as his/her own. This can include:
Copying entire documents and presenting them as your own;
Cutting and pasting from the work of others without properly citing the authors;
Stringing together the quotes and ideas of others without connecting their work
to your own original work;
Asserting ideas without acknowledging their sources, reproducing sentences
written verbatim by others without properly quoting and attributing the work to
them.
Unintentional plagiarism, or the misuse of sources, is the accidental appropriation
of the ideas and materials of others due to a lack of understanding of the
conventions of citation and documentation.
In addition to being unethical, plagiarism and the unauthorized copying of written,
graphic, audio, and video material may also violate copyright laws.
In general, "fair use" is a narrow exception to liability for violating copyright laws. It
allows use of a brief excerpt from copyrighted material without permission for
purposes of news reporting, commentary, and other specified purposes. The fair
use exception only applies where the amount of copyrighted material taken is the
minimum necessary to make the author's point, and does not diminish the value of
the copyrighted work.
Plagiarism
Copyright infringement and fair use are complicated and technical areas of the law.
If a Yahoo! reporter has any question with respect to the permissibility of their use
of possibly copyrighted material, they should consult with the general manager of
News, the Managing Editor, or the Editorial Director and, if necessary, the Yahoo!
legal department.
Quotations
Yahoo! reporters should take great caution in each use of quotation marks or in
specific use of the word "said." Yahoo! writers should only use the word with direct
attribution and use content within quotation marks with great care and precision.
69
Datelines
As The Washington Post notes:
"…standing alone, it should be used only when the reporter heard the
source say the words quoted, either in person, on television or radio.
When we quote a written statement of any kind, we should explain
what we are doing accurately in our attribution [e.g. "…the White
House said in a written statement."]
When we put a source's words inside quotation marks, those exact words should
have been uttered in precisely that form. Sometimes we will want to avoid
humiliating a speaker by paraphrasing in grammatical form an ungrammatical
statement, or by presenting in a form acceptable for publication a statement that
includes profanities. When we do so, however, we should not use quotation
marks."
At The New York Times, the standards on quotations are similar:
"Readers should be able to assume that every word between quotation marks
is what the speaker or writer said. The Times does not "clean up" quotations. If
a subject's grammar or taste is unsuitable, quotation marks should be removed
and the awkward passage paraphrased."
Datelines
At Yahoo!, datelines will be exclusively reserved to indicate when a Yahoo! staff
member has been deployed and is/was present in a location specific to the story in
question. Accordingly, content generated from Sunnyvale, Santa Monica, or other
Yahoo! offices does not require datelines.
Datelines should be used to indicate where the substantive information in a story
was actually gathered but not necessarily where the events described in the story
took place.
Ideally, the location of the news event and the dateline location share the same
geographical point. But writers should never use a dateline where a news event
has occurred unless they are/were physically present and reporting from that
specific location.
If reporters collaborate on a story from separate locations or editors insert
significant facts or additional material to a datelined story, that fact must be stated
in an italic note at the bottom of the story.
Bylines and end notes
Providing bylines conforms to industry best practices. Bylines are generally
regarded as necessary to establish professional, transparent, and accountable
journalistic practices.
70
Digital storytelling
Any significant reporting by a stringer, staff member, or contract/freelance
employee should be credited in a byline or a tagline at the end of a story or content.
Yahoo! editors or reporters who take notes from broadcasts of news events on the
Internet, radio, or television; conduct basic research; check routine facts; or copyedit for space and production needs should not be credited with a byline. Instead,
an italic end note should give users the names and locations of any other significant
contributors to a story.
Yahoo! does not engage in "augmentation" or "rip and stitch." Yahoo! editors and
producers do not add sounds or images or other digital content that did not exist
when the video footage was shot or when the audio was recorded.
Yahoo! does not add sounds or enhanced audio or video effects that were obtained
at another scene or from another time/place or created from special effects
software.
Yahoo editors and producers should be judicious in the use of music and special
sound effects in creating original journalism. If music is added to a story, the viewer
must understand sounds have been added and done in a way to enhance the
digital storytelling form.
Yahoo! editors and producers should use special editing sparingly and carefully.
Slo-mo, special lighting, and unusual angles can all send subtle or even not-sosubtle messages to the viewer about a person's guilt, power, or authority. Just
highlighting an individual or object in a photograph can attract undue attention to
that aspect of a photograph.
Studies have also found that bylines can help emerging newspapers and news
brands establish credibility. There is ample anecdotal evidence that users/readers
like knowing who wrote what they are reading and that no one is "hiding" behind
some nameless corporate logo.
Raw video or audio should not be streamed without first being reviewed by an
editor or producer.
Still image manipulation
Electronic photo editing technology introduces concerns about the use of image
manipulation by editors at Yahoo! including Yahoo! News and Full Coverage.
Such technology provides the ability to easily alter image content or create a
photograph that could deceive our users and ultimately damage the credibility of
the Yahoo! brand and Yahoo! News and other Yahoo! properties as trusted sources
of information and news.
71
Yahoo! editors and producers should exercise extreme care when altering an
image. For example, photo cropping should not be done with specific intent to alter
an image in a way that changes its substance or context.
Occasionally, Yahoo! also has had, and is likely to continue to have, the need to
alter image backgrounds to make the image more suitable for display- a practice
that is permissible under that circumstance.
Accordingly, any manipulation or alteration of image content is prohibited with two
exceptions:
Correction of technical defects in a photo with permission of the content partner.
Minor alterations of backgrounds in images for display purposes.
All producers and editors at Yahoo! who crop or post photos should be trained in
Yahoo! Editorial Standards and acknowledge they are aware of licensing
agreements that specifically prohibit any manipulation or alteration of the content
of images.
Use of file images
From time to time a content provider will send a file image with a story. Any and all
such images should be clearly marked as such and contain the date when the
photograph was made by the news partner, in the following format: "(name of
content provider) File Photo - month, year".
Yahoo! will not publish or "air" unattributed video or audio provided to us by
companies, organizations, non-profits, or governmental agencies.
Yahoo! will disclose the origin of information and label all material provided by
corporate or other non-editorial sources.
For example, graphics on some video tape could denote "Google News video" or
clearly indicate by a voiceover that states, "this video was provided by Google
News."
Yahoo! editors and producers will use file or archive tape or video footage
sparingly, and will clearly label the time and source of any archival video.
Taste and graphic images
Matters of taste and propriety are usually in the eye of the beholder. However,
Yahoo! reporters are urged to use good judgment in their reporting, and should not
include graphic or salacious material that would needlessly offend a general
audience, simply for its "shock value."
72
Yahoo! Editorial Code of Ethics
Seek truth and report it
Yahoo! writers and journalists (includes bloggers, content producers, and editors)
should be honest, fair, and accurate in gathering, reporting, and interpreting news
and information.
Anyone who discovers a breach of journalistic ethics as described in this document
has the responsibility to ensure that it is brought to the attention of the Editorial
Director or the Editor in Chief of Yahoo!.
Specifically:
Yahoo! writers and journalists test the accuracy of information from all sources
and exercise care to avoid inadvertent error. Deliberate distortion is never
permissible.
Yahoo! writers and journalists identify sources whenever feasible. Our users are
entitled to as much information as possible on sources' reliability.
Yahoo! writers and journalists confirm that headlines, blurbs, video teases and
promotional material, photos, audio, graphics, sound bites, and quotations do
not misrepresent. They should not oversimplify or highlight incidents out of
context.
Yahoo! writers and journalists never distort the content of news photos or video.
Image enhancement for technical clarity is always permissible.
Yahoo! writers and journalists always label montages and photo illustrations.
Yahoo! writers and journalists never re-enact news, never stage news photos,
or "craft" news events.
Yahoo! writers and journalists avoid stereotyping by race, gender, age, religion,
ethnicity, geography, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, or
social status.
Yahoo! writers and journalists support the open exchange of views, including
views they find repugnant.
Yahoo! writers and journalists seek to give voice to the voiceless; official and
unofficial sources of information should be held to be equally valid.
Yahoo! writers and journalists do not engage in advocacy news reporting.
Yahoo! analysis and commentary should be labeled and not misrepresent fact
or context.
Yahoo! writers and journalists carefully distinguish content from commerce,
distinguish news from advertising, and shun hybrids or micro sites that blur the
lines between the two.
73
Minimize harm
Ethical journalists treat sources, subjects, and colleagues as human beings
deserving of respect.
Yahoo! writers and journalists show compassion for those who may be affected
adversely by news coverage. They exercise special sensitivity when dealing
with children and inexperienced sources or subjects.
Yahoo! writers and journalists display sensitivity when seeking or using
interviews, photographs, or video of those affected by tragedy or grief.
Yahoo! writers and journalists recognize that gathering and reporting
information may cause harm or discomfort.
Yahoo! writers and journalists recognize that private people have a greater right
to control information about themselves than do public officials and others who
seek power, influence, or attention.
Yahoo! writers and journalists recognize that only an overriding public need can
justify intrusion into anyone's privacy.
Yahoo! writers and journalists demonstrate good taste and avoid pandering to
lurid curiosity.
Yahoo! writers and journalists do not identify juvenile crime suspects or victims
of sex crimes.
Act independently
Yahoo! writers, journalists, bloggers, content producers, reporters, editors, and
business-owners should engage in journalism that is free of conflicts of interest or
obligation to any interest other than the public's right to know.
Yahoo! writers and journalists avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived.
Yahoo! writers and journalists are free of associations and activities that may
compromise integrity or damage credibility.
Yahoo! writers and journalists refuse gifts, favors, fees, free travel, and special
treatment, and shun secondary employment, political involvement, public office,
and service in community organizations if they compromise journalistic integrity.
Yahoo! writers and journalists disclose unavoidable conflicts.
Yahoo! writers and journalists deny favored treatment to advertisers and special
interests and resist their pressure to influence news coverage.
Yahoo! writers and journalists are wary of sources offering information for favors
or money and avoid bidding for news.
74
Editorial and content decision-making at Yahoo!
Journalists are accountable to their readers, listeners, viewers, and each other.
Yahoo! writers and journalists clarify and explain news coverage and invite
dialogue with the public over journalistic conduct.
Yahoo! writers and journalists encourage the public to voice grievances against
the news media.
Yahoo! writers and journalists admit mistakes and correct them promptly.
Yahoo! writers and journalists abide by the same high standards to which they
hold others.
Editorial and content decision-making at Yahoo!
The following standards will be applied to content-related decision-making at
Yahoo! by writers, journalists, bloggers, content producers, reporters, editors, and
others who manage and post content.
News and content decisions should not show favoritism to advertisers or to their
requests for coverage or themed content packages. It should be clear to all
advertisers that they have no influence over news or editorial content decisions.
Content should be generated based on journalistic merits and not on its value
as an advertising vehicle. The most important professional responsibility of a
journalist at Yahoo! is to report the news. Everything else comes second.
Editors and content producers should carefully consider instances when ratings
and demographics drive coverage decisions and ensure that news coverage
remains journalistically sound and serves the public interest.
Editors and content producers should protect the integrity of coverage against
any potential conflict of interest arising from Yahoo's own commercial or other
interests. Any questions about a possible violation should be reported to the
Editorial Director or the Editor-in-Chief.
Be accountable
Yahoo! General Managers and content producers should foster a high degree
of communication, collaboration, respect, and trust among business leaders
and editorial staff members. Business managers should be encouraged to
understand that journalistic independence and credibility are among Yahoo!'s
most important core values.
Editors and content producers should not accept gifts, favors, or other
compensation from those who might seek to influence coverage.
Yahoo! editors and content producers should be prepared to explain to users
why and how they made decisions, especially if the public might perceive that
journalistic independence has been compromised.
75
Acknowledgment
Acknowledgment
By signing below, I acknowledge that I have read and understand the Yahoo!
Editorial Standards for Original Content and Journalism (“Editorial Standards”) and
agree to abide by the policies and standards included in the Editorial Standards in
my work for Yahoo!. I understand that failure to abide by these Editorial Standards
can lead to disciplinary action up to and including termination of my employment
with Yahoo!.
_________________________________________
Name (Print)
_________________________________________
Name (Signature)
________________________________________
Date
cc: Personnel File
76
Modifiers Conjunctions Typography Email Dates Voice Jargon Numbers Handling Numbers Sentences Readability Summaries
Dictionaries Number Ranges Apostrophes Person Web Newsletters Presentations Spelling States Abbreviations Underlining
Slashes Time Zones Boxes Dictionaries Help Verbs Actions Error Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters
Months Topics Emails Subject Lines Percentages Locations Misspellings Tips Front Page Nouns Casual Voice Topics
Adjectives Commas Titles Help Consistency Years Instructions Click Hyphens Money Participles Ellipses Misspellings
Sentences Action Click Hyphens Voice of Yahoo! Buttons Phone Numbers Titles Dates Voice Jargon Lists Infinitives Headings
Page Days Page Titles Cities Proper Names Dictionaries Number Ranges Apostrophes Person Web Newsletters Help Click
Keys Dimensions Feedback Lists Emphasis Readability Dates Copyrights Headings Commas Modifiers Numbers Voice Jargon
Fractions Apostrophes Front Page PowerPoint Commas Decades Ranges Lists Bullets Periods Quotation Marks Misspellings
Conjunctions Tense Person Plurals Hyphens Modifiers Infinitives Italic Jargon Abbreviations Money Possessives Numbers
Quotations Locations Serial Commas Feedback Footers Definitions titles Buttons Ranges References Semicolons Error
Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters Months Topics Emails Subject Lines Percentages Locations Ellipses
Titles Links Footers Dimensions Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Links Glossaries Formats Help Hyphens Countries
Order WWW Dimensions Voice Jargon Numbers Currency Acronyms Person Pronouns Titles Consistency Plurals Acronyms
Years Page Titles Copyrights Headings Capitalization Misspellings Slashes Summaries Lists Bullets Infinitives Sentences
Action Keys Help Links Commas Lists Emphasis Semicolons Prompts Adjectives Dashes Readability Dates Copyrights
Headings Software Commas Modifiers Numbers Voice Jargon Commas Email Dates Voice Jargon Numbers Sentences
Newsletters Centuries Commas Money Jargon Readability Summaries Footers Underlining Slashes Abbreviations Files URLs
Lists Infinitives Headings Page Days Page Titles Dealing With Words and Near-Words Cities Proper Names Dictionaries
Number Ranges Apostrophes Person Web Conjunctions Typography Newsletters Underlining Help Consistency Years
Instructions Click Hyphens Money Participles Ellipses Misspellings Sentences Action Click Hyphens Voice of Yahoo! Boxes
Buttons Phone Numbers Verbs Actions Links Glossaries Tips Notes Percentages Links Ampersands Footers Dimensions
Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Links Glossaires Tips Notes Nouns Pronouns Commas Page Titles Cities Slashes Zones
Decades Possessives Currency Days Jargon Sentences Click Serial Commas Feedback Links Periods Dictionaries Hyphens Tips
Web Front Page Person Punctuation Capitalizing URLs Readability Privacy Policy Footers Phone Numbers Definitions titles
Buttons Ranges References Semicolons Dashes Money Dates Tense Infinitives Conjunctions Prepositions Buttons Voice
Nouns Files WWW Negatives Jargon Sentences Consistency Buttons Feedback Casual Voice Topics Years Titles Plurals
Copyrights Countries Error Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters Months Topics Emails Subject Lines
Percentages Locations Misspellings Correlatives Sentences Action Click Page Titles Ampersands Footers Dimensions Commas
Topics Tense Directions Underlining Slashes Numbers Verbs Actions Percentages Locations Hyphens Modifiers Infinitives
Italic Jargon Ellipses Titles Links Footers Procedures Dimensions Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Time Zones Boxes
Dictionaries Help Verbs Actions Tips Front Page Nouns Help Casual Voice Topics Adjectives Commas Quotations Jargon
Cities Proper Names Possessives Apostrophes Footers Ellipses Titles Links Ampersands Modifiers Verbs Conjunctions
Correlatives Commas Abbreviations Tense Click Keys Error Messages Voice Brand Numbers Dictionaries Topics Deadwood
Consistency Tense Help Jargon Cities Decades Front Page Apostrophes Quotation Marks Formats Ellipses Years Feedback
Emails Newsletters Centuries Commas Money Jargon Sentences Click Serial Commas Feedback Links Dictionaries Hyphens
Tips Web Front Page Person Punctuation Colons Capitalizing URLs Privacy Policy Help Links Glossaries Tips Notes Consistency
Years Instructions Click Hyphens Money Participles Ellipses Misspellings Sentences Action Click Hyphens Percentages Files
Sizes Links Copyrights Headings Tense Misspellings Words Storage TV Nouns Question Marks Definitions titles Buttons
Ranges References Semicolons Prompts Adjectives Dashes Slashes Front Page Sentences Spelling Subjects Titles Numbers
WWW Underlining Slashes Numbers Verbs Actions Percentages Locations Ellipses Movies Titles Links Ampersands Footers
Dimensions Time Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Time Zones Boxes Dictionaries Help Verbs Tips Front Page Nouns
Casual Voice Copyrights Error Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters Phone Numbers Months Topics Emails
Presentations Punctuation Subject Lines Percentages Locations Plurals Ellipses Consistency Buttons Feedback Casual Voice
Boxes Headings Footers Periods Plurals Percentages Putting Words Together Copyrights Newsletters Time Readability
Dates Words Copyrights Headings WWW Commas Modifiers Numbers Voice Blogs Jargon Commas URLs Participles Serial
Commas Feedback URLs Links Periods Dictionaries Hyphens Tips Web Front Page Ellipses Misspellings Lists Infinitives Blogs
Headings Email Tense Apostrophes Help Verbs Time Numbers URLs Directions Titles Conjunctions Web Zones Tips
Acronyms Hyphens Modifiers Infinitives Italic Jargon Headlines Dimensions Titles Consistency Tense Help Jargon Cities
Decades Front Page Apostrophes Quotation Marks Formats Ellipses Directions Years Emails Tense Links URLs Yahoo!
Mastering the
Mechanics
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
Large and small numbers. Simple rules for the general use of words or numerals for numbers
large and small. Go figure.
Ages. Solutions to dealing with the age-old problem of people and things and their years on this
Earth.
HANDLING NUMBERS
Handling Numbers
Computer-related numbers. Abbreviations are common when describing computers and their
innards. Are you using the right ones?
Dates. Not the kind found on Yahoo! Personals.
Dimensions and units of measurement. There’s lots afoot in this section on dealing with lengths,
but not the whole nine yards—just the most commonly requested info.
Fractions. Half examples, half rules for presenting fractions and mixed numbers.
Money and currency. Dollars to donuts, you’re unfamiliar with some of these guidelines—but they
all make perfect cents.
Percentages. Just two rules to remember, but 100 percent of them may be new to you.
Phone numbers. If you’re including the area code in a phone number, follow these guidelines (and
use parentheses).
Ranges of numbers. If you’re not at home on the range of numbers and which characters to use,
check out this section.
Time. You won’t need a second opinion on how to write a.m. —it’s in here.
Large and small numbers
Follow these general guidelines for numbers:
In general, spell out whole numbers and ordinals (first, second, and so on)
below 10. Use digits for 10 and above.
Note
If space is extremely tight (as on the Front Page or in email subject
lines), digits can be used for numbers and ordinals below 10.
Examples
Yahoo! GeoCities offers three web hosting packages.
Read reviews of more than 350 restaurants in your city.
Raiders earn first place in AFC West.
"Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" ranks 13th at the box office.
79
Large and small numbers
Large and very large numbers can be expressed in digits followed by million,
billion, and so forth. If expressing a number greater than 999 in numerals, use
a comma.
Examples
The Web has more than 60 million users.
More than 1,200 delegates attended the convention.
Avoid starting a sentence with a number. If it can't be avoided, spell out the
number. Years are the lone exception to the rule that a number should not be
used to start a sentence.
Before
450 gamers participated in last night's chat.
After
Last night, 450 gamers participated in the chat.
If it's necessary to spell out numbers greater than 20, use a hyphen to connect
the first part of the number (ending in y) to the number following it, if any.
Examples
twenty-one
one hundred forty-three
If a sentence contains two or more numbers and one is 10 or higher, use digits
for all numbers. Spelling out one number and using digits for another gives the
appearance of inconsistency. (This is an exception to AP style.)
Examples
The delegation included 3 women and 11 men.
(Use digits for both)
The most popular vote-getters included three women and nine men.
For a compound adjective that includes a number, use digits for the number,
regardless of its size. (This is an exception to AP style.)
Examples
Please enter a 5-digit ZIP code.
Enter a 6-character password.
80
Ages
Follow these guidelines when writing about the age of a person or thing:
When referring to the age of a person, always use numerals.
When referring to the age of an object, spell out the number if it is nine or less;
use numerals for 10 or more.
When making a general reference to the age of a person, use numerals and
an “s” without an apostrophe.
HANDLING NUMBERS
Ages
Examples
The 12-year-old boy was adopted by a couple in their 40s.
The girl was only 4 years old.
You can restrict a 5-year-old to a different set of web sites.
The company, which is four years old, targets 5- to 10-year-olds.
Computer- and software-related numbers
Technical requirements for products or features often include numbers related to
computers and software. And sometimes those numbers need special treatment.
Storage, memory, and processor speeds
Use the following abbreviations to describe storage and memory sizes or
processor speeds.
GB (gigabyte)
GHz (gigahertz)
KB (kilobyte)
KHz (kilohertz)
MB (megabyte)
MHz (megahertz)
Follow these rules when describing storage or memory requirements:
Don't put a space between the number and the abbreviation for the unit.
Examples
Your email storage limit has been increased from 4MB to 100MB.
You can purchase an additional 2GB of storage.
We recommend a 1GHz Pentium III with 128MB of memory and 250MB of disk
storage.
81
Dates
Don’t include an “s” following the abbreviation.
Before
You can purchase an additional 2GBs of storage.
After
You can purchase an additional 2GB of storage.
(Don’t include an “s”)
Repeat the abbreviation in a list.
Example
Get a 25MB, 50MB, or 100MB mailbox.
Software version numbers
Maintain a consistent style when referring to software version numbers. When
referring to version numbers, use or newer or or older.
Examples
We recommend Internet Explorer 4 or Netscape Navigator 4 or newer.
If you’re using Internet Explorer 3 or older, you must upgrade.
Dates
Each part of a date is governed by its own set of guidelines. And there are a few
rules to follow when you’re putting the parts together.
Days of the week
Avoid abbreviating days of the week. If it's necessary to abbreviate, use the first
three letters, without a period: Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun
Months
Follow these guidelines when spelling out months:
Capitalize the names of months.
When possible, spell out the name of the month completely, except if the month
is used with a specific date. In that case, you can abbreviate only the following:
Jan., Feb., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec.
82
Dates
Just a few rules when dealing with years:
Years are the lone exception to the rule that a number should not be used to
start a sentence.
Use the abbreviations A.D. and B.C. if the date may be unclear otherwise.
Include the periods, but don’t put a space after the first. Put A.D. before the year;
B.C. after the year.
HANDLING NUMBERS
Years
The alternative abbreviations C.E. and B.C.E. for "common era" and "before the
common era" can be appropriate when writing about religions other than
Christianity. Include the periods, but don’t put a space after the first.
Examples
He was born around 20 B.C. and died in A.D. 25.
Around 1500 B.C.E. people in the Indus valley wrote the Vedic texts of Hinduism.
Ordering and punctuating dates
When writing a specific date, try to use the name of the month (July, May,
etc.), rather than a numeral because the order of the month and day varies from
country to country.
December 6, 2005
U.S. style
Everywhere else
12/6/05
6/12/05
If it's necessary to use numerals for a full date, separate the parts with
slashes, rather than hyphens or other marks.
If using only a month and day, don't use the ordinal (first, 1st, second, 2nd,
15th, etc.) for the day.
If using only a month and year, don't separate them with a comma.
When including the month, day, and year, include a comma after the day and
year.
Examples
February 14 is Valentine's Day.
January 1970 was an extremely cold month.
(No need for comma)
To edit an email listing created after September 1, 1998, sign into your account.
(Comma needed after day and year)
83
Dimensions
Decades
To indicate a decade, add an "s" without an apostrophe.
Example
The cities were reconstructed in the 1930s.
To abbreviate a decade, precede the last two digits with an apostrophe.
Examples
These cities were built during the ‘30s and '40s.
His pitching career came to an end in the mid-'70s.
Centuries
Use digits for the ordinal and lowercase century.
Example
By the start of the 20th century, international fairs were getting disorganized.
Dimensions
The Associated Press Stylebook recommends that you "use figures and spell out
inches, feet, yards, etc., to indicate depth, height, length and width. Hyphenate
adjectival forms before nouns…. Use an apostrophe to indicate feet and quote
marks to indicate inches (5' 6") only in very technical contexts."
This rule is both too restrictive and incomplete for many situations involving
dimensions. For example, describing a photo as "8 inches by 10 inches" doesn't
reflect the way these dimensions are commonly expressed.
The Yahoo! Editorial Style Guide's enhancements to the AP style are:
Use figures when referring to dimensions—height, width, length, and depth.
For English units of measurement (inches, feet, yards, etc.) use either the
symbol, if one exists (double quote for inches, single quote for feet), the full
word, or the abbreviation (in, ft, yd, etc.). Whichever you choose, use it
consistently throughout the product, service, feature, page, or communication.
If you’re using a symbol, don’t put a space between the figure and the symbol.
You can abbreviate a unit of measurement with or without a period—just be
consistent in all abbreviations.
Don't use an "s" to form the plural for abbreviations for dimensions. The plural
and singular forms are the same. For example, use the abbreviation "in." for
both "inch" or "inches."
84
Fractions
Examples
Yao Ming, the 7-foot-6-inch center, carried the flag for the Chinese Olympic team.
At 7’ 6” Yao Ming is the tallest player in the NBA.
Order 4"x6" or 8"x10" prints.
HANDLING NUMBERS
When describing two or more dimensions of an object (such as a photograph or
poster), repeat the symbol for each figure. Separate the dimensions by either
an "x" or the word "by." If using an "x," a space before and after is optional—as
long as you're consistent.
For other situations not covered by these guidelines, contact an editor. See Getting
Editorial help on page 167.
Fractions
Follow these guidelines when writing fractions and mixed numbers:
If a fraction stands alone (that is, there’s no whole number associated with it),
spell out and hyphenate the fraction.
Don't spell out a mixed number. If the number can't be written in decimal
notation (or if it's inappropriate to use decimal notation), use digits for the whole
number and a character (such as ½) for the fractional part. Don't include a
space between the whole number and fraction.
If a character isn't available to express the fractional part, use digits for the
whole number followed by a hyphen and the fractional part written as x/y.
Examples
a two-thirds majority
four-fifths of the states
2½
3-7/8
Money and currency
Follow these guidelines when referring to prices:
On pricing pages, for prices that are a dollar or more, use numerals.
On pricing pages, for prices under a dollar, use numerals and include the dollar
sign and leading zero. In subject lines, headlines, and body text rewrite to cents.
Use either the word cents or the cents sign.
85
Percentages
On pricing pages, include 0 cents but leave off 0 cents in subject lines,
headlines, and body text.
Examples
You will be charged $20.00.
Yahoo! Web Hosting for Only $20 a Month
New Ringtones for 99 Cents
(Email subj. line, headline, body text)
(Email subj. line, headline, body text)
Avoid using slashes as an abbreviation for "per" with money amounts, except in
subject lines and other places where space is at an absolute premium.
Examples
Web hosting packages start at $35 per month.
Web Hosting From $35/Month
(Body text)
(Email subject line or headline)
If it's necessary to specify U.S. currency, use the format US$xxx (without a
space). This is the only use of the abbreviation for United States that doesn't
include periods.
Example
Yahoo! Express requires a US$299.00 non-refundable, recurring annual fee.
Percentages
You can use either the word percent or the percent sign (%) in text—as long as
you're consistent in your choice.
When choosing between the word percent and the percent sign, consider the
following:
AP style is to use digits for the number and spell out the word percent. This style
works well if you're including a single percentage in the text.
Example
Motor vehicles account for about 43 percent of U.S. oil consumption.
(Spell out "percent" when showing a single percentage)
86
Phone numbers
Example
Motor vehicles account for about 43% of U.S. oil consumption. Electric energy
production accounts for 23%, and lawn mowers account for less than 1%.
(Use % sign to aid in comparing percentages)
HANDLING NUMBERS
If a passage (a single sentence or paragraph) contains two or more
percentages, use digits and the percent sign to make it easier for your reader to
compare the numbers. (This may be a deviation from the AP style, which is
silent on the issue of multiple percentages in a passage.)
Phone numbers
Phone numbers should be formatted as: (area code) nnn-nnnn. If an international
calling code is necessary, add it to the beginning. For U.S. phone numbers, include
the area code but not the "1" that some people may have to dial.
Example
(800) 555-1212
Ranges of numbers
Ranges of numbers (such as times, dates, games scores, and pages) can be
separated by an en dash or the word to. See Hyphens and dashes on page 110 for
more information about the en and em dashes.
When writing a range of numbers, follow these guidelines:
Use an en dash without a space on either side for a range of numbers.
If you precede the range with the word from, don't use an en dash to separate
the numbers—use the word to instead.
For an open range of numbers, such as a date range with no ending date, use
an em dash (simply called a "dash").
Examples
Join us at the Open House July 6–7. Hours: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
(en dashes)
This offer is valid from July 1 to July 31, 2005.
(use "to" with "from")
Read more about importing addresses on pages 95–99.
(en dash)
Greece takes the title in a 2–1 upset over Spain.
(en dash)
James Van Allen (1914—) lent his name to the invisible particles.
(em dash)
87
Time
Time
Follow these guidelines when writing time:
Use digits to indicate all times except noon and midnight. Don’t include the
number 12 with the word noon or midnight.
If space allows, use periods with the abbreviations a.m. and p.m. (lowercase,
with a space after the number but no intervening space between the letters).
Avoid the redundant in the morning or in the afternoon when including a.m. or
p.m. with a time.
Abbreviate time zones in all capital letters, without periods. Include the time
zone if there is a possibility of ambiguity or confusion.
Examples
10:15 a.m.
Midnight ET
8:00 p.m. PST
88
Dealing With Words and Near-Words
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
A or an. The definitive word on choosing the indefinite article.
Abbreviations and acronyms. A brief summary of forming the plural of common abbreviations
and acronyms.
Directions, regions, and locations. They’re all over the map.
Person and Pronouns. Do you know who "we" is? Do you know who "you" is?
Titles of compositions and other works. Should you put it in quotes? Italic? How (and when) to
set off titles of books, movies, songs, and other works.
Typography. Bold and italic text attract your readers but used together, can distract them.
File names and types. How to handle file names, file name extensions, and various file and media
types.
Words relating to the Web. Are you still using outdated citations for URLs?
A or an
It’s all about the sound. If a word begins with a consonant sound, precede it with a.
If it begins with a vowel sound, precede it with an. It’s that simple, although some
vowels and consonants can have either a consonant or a vowel sound.
Examples
a history lesson, a humorous story, an honor bestowed, an hourlong session
a one-hour delay, an only child
a utopian society, a united front, an unabated force, an unabridged dictionary
a euphemism, a eulogy, an enemy
a 1980s hit, an ‘80s hit, an 18-hole course
DEALING WITH WORDS AND NEAR-WORDS
Capitalizing words. And not capitalizing words.
89
Abbreviations and acronyms
Even when they start with the same letter, acronyms (which are pronounced like
words) and initialisms (where each letter is pronounced separately) can take a
different indefinite article.
Examples
a HUD official, an HBO special
a MIDI file, an MP3 player
a NATO agreement, an NFL quarterback
a RAM controller, an RSS feed
a SIDS-related death, an SEC ruling
Abbreviations and acronyms
An abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase. Depending on the
abbreviation, it may be written in uppercase, lowercase, or a combination of upper
and lowercase letters (like Kbps) and may or may not include one or more periods.
An acronym is based on the first letters of the elements of a name or phrase,
producing a pronounceable word. Examples include AIDS, NATO, NASA, and
JAMA. An initialism is also based on the first letters, but is read as individual
letters (like ATM, CEO, and YMCA).
Note
For usage, spelling, etc. of specific abbreviations, acronyms, and
initialisms commonly used at Yahoo!, see Yahoo! Glossary on page 177.
For guidelines for using abbreviations for measurements, see Dimensions
on page 84.
Use these guidelines when including abbreviations, acronyms, or initialisms in your
writing:
If the shortened form may be unfamiliar to your readers, spell it out the first time
it's used or include the abbreviation, acronym, or initialism (in parentheses)
following the spelled-out form.
Examples
Now web results include sites that support RSS. RSS stands for "Really Simple
Syndication" and is a method used to access web content.
Now web results include sites that support Really Simple Syndication (RSS). RSS
is a method used to access web content.
90
Capitalization
Form the plural of abbreviations, acronyms, and initialisms by adding an "s"
without an apostrophe, unless omitting the apostrophe could cause confusion
(for example, if adding an "s" forms a new word). Abbreviations of units of
measurement are exceptions; see Dimensions on page 84 for details.
Capitalization
This guide uses the following rules for the three capitalization styles.
Sentence style. Capitalize the text as if it were a sentence:
Capitalize the first word and all other words that are normally capitalized (such
as proper nouns).
If the first word is a proper noun that begins with a lowercase letter (like
eBay, iPod, and iMac), capitalize the first letter; for the other letters, replicate
the capitalization style of the proper noun (EBay, IPod, and IMac).
Title style. This style has a few more rules than Sentence style.
Capitalize the first and last words, regardless of length or part of speech.
Capitalize all other words except:
Articles (a, an, and the). Unless it’s the first word, an article is lowercase.
Examples
ISPs
URLs
PDAs
MP3s
the Oakland A's
Prepositions of three or fewer letters (such as of, in, and for). But capitalize
prepositions of four or more letters (like over, from, and with).
Conjunctions of three or fewer letters (like and, or, and but). But capitalize
conjunctions of four or more letters (like also and since).
Tip
Verbs (even short ones like is, be, and do) should always be
capitalized.
If the first word is a proper noun that begins with a lowercase letter (like
eBay, iPod, and iMac), capitalize the first letter; for the other letters, replicate
the capitalization style of the proper noun (EBay, IPod, and IMac). If it isn’t the
first word, use the capitalization style of the proper noun.
All Caps style. Every letter in every word is a capital. In general, this style should
be avoided.
91
Capitalization
Don't use All Caps for emphasis in a prompt, teaser, or headline. To indicate
emphasis, use bold, italic, or a graphic design. However, All Caps does have
many uses: It should be used for file types and many abbreviations and
acronyms. All Caps can be acceptable for important parts of headings in text
emails, as long as it's not overdone. See Differences between HTML and text
emails on page 35 for an example of All Caps in a text email.
Examples: Sentence style
The long wait is finally over
Palmeiro to release test info to Congress
EBay announces increase in seller fees
Sales of iPods tumble
Examples: Title style
The Long Wait Is Finally Over
Palmeiro to Release Test Info to Congress
EBay Announces Increase in Seller Fees
Sales of iPods Tumble
Yahoo! properties, services, and products
Several Yahoo! properties (such as Messenger) are capitalized even when not
preceded by Yahoo!. Other properties (like Yahoo! Message Boards) have generic
equivalents (message boards) that are lowercase.
See Yahoo! Glossary on page 177 for the correct capitalization of specific Yahoo!
properties, services, and products.
Personal titles
Capitalize a formal personal title only when it's used directly before the individual's
name. This includes titles pertaining to government positions (like president,
senator, mayor, ambassador, chief justice), religious groups (pope, cardinal,
monsignor, etc.), and other organizations (chairman, treasurer, general manager,
and so on).
Examples
He was appointed ambassador to the United Nations by President Bush.
The president returned to the Oval Office to greet the pope.
Headlines and titles
Headlines and titles on the Yahoo! network should be in Title style caps.
92
Capitalization
Hyphenated compounds in headlines and titles
If a hyphenated compound appears in a title or headline, capitalize the second
element unless it's an article (a, an, or the), preposition (like to or of), or
coordinating conjunction (like and, but, or or). Generally, if the second element can
stand alone as a word, capitalize it.
Titles of works
When writing a title of a composition or other work, consider two things:
Capitalization style. Depending on the type of work, the title should be in Title
or Sentence style caps.
Visual treatment. Should the title be in quotation marks or italic? Or does it not
merit special treatment?
Capitalization styles of titles of works
The following titles should appear in Title style caps. (For the rules governing Title
style caps, see Capitalization on page 91.)
Art work
Book, chapter, heading, or other part of a book
CD, record album, song
Game (including computer games, video
games, and board games)
Lecture
Magazine or magazine article. Lowercase the
word magazine unless it’s part of the
publication’s title.
Movie
Newspaper or newspaper article. Capitalize the
word the in a newspaper’s title if it’s part of the
paper’s preferred name.
Opera
Play
Poem
Software
Speech
Television program
Examples
Prime-Time Nielsen Ratings
'Sopranos' to Air Its Fifth-Season Finale
Books > Shopping and Services > Booksellers > How-to
93
Capitalization
Visual treatment of titles of works
The visual treatment of titles (whether or not to enclose them in quotation marks or
display them in italic), depends on the type of work and the location of the title on
the page.
Note
See also Titles on the Front Page on page 57.
The following titles require no special treatment; don’t enclose them in quotation
marks and don’t italicize them:
Games. Including computer games, video games, board games.
Magazines. However, titles of magazine articles should be in quotation marks.
Newspapers. However, titles of newspaper articles should be in quotation
marks.
Software.
Examples
He downloaded two games, Resident Evil 2 and Trial by Fire.
“The Dukes of Hazzard” garnered tepid reviews from The New York Times and Time
magazine.
For all other titles of works, follow these guidelines:
Enclose titles in double quotation marks.
Examples
Check out the "Fantastic Four" trailer.
Win tickets to see "King Kong."
See live coverage of the "Memoirs of a Geisha" premiere.
Titles in lists. In lists (serial, bulleted, or numbered) made up entirely of titles,
the titles don't need to be in italic or enclosed in quotation marks.
Example
—South Park
—Law and Order
—The Honeymooners
Titles in lists of unlike items. Use double quotation marks when including a
title in a list of unlike items.
Example
"Gilligan’s Island," golf clubs, antiques
94
Directions, states, regions, and locations
Titles in Yahoo! Directory or Yahoo! Movies. Titles don't need to be enclosed
in quotation marks when used in listings in the Directory or Yahoo! Movies.
However, titles used in comments and movie descriptions should be enclosed
in double quotation marks.
Titles in headlines. In some cases, such as within headlines, titles can be
enclosed in single quotation marks or indicated with italic.
Using the correct capitalization and punctuation for compass directions, cities and
states, and regions near and far can help avoid confusion.
Compass directions
For simple compass directions, use lowercase: north, south, east, west, northeast,
northwest, southeast, southwest, northern, southern, eastern, western.
Example
Clouds cover western Oklahoma, but sun is expected in areas to the east.
U.S. states and districts
When referring to names of U.S. states, follow these guidelines, which are adapted
from AP style:
Examples
'Happy Gilmore' breaks box-office record
Original Great Gatsby manuscript found
When referring to the U.S. capital, use Washington, D.C. (note comma and
periods) or District of Columbia. Washington (without D.C.) is acceptable if there
is no chance for confusion with the state. Do not abbreviate Washington when
referring to the U.S. capital.
When a state name is used alone, without a city, spell out the name of the
state.
When including a single city and state, spell out the state; include a comma
before and after the state. See Commas and locations on page 109 for an
example.
In a list of cities and states, abbreviate the state names according to the AP
abbreviations for states, which are different from postal abbreviations. (See the
table below.) Include the period. If an abbreviation consists of two parts (like
N.J. and W.Va.), don’t put a space after the first period. Note that eight state
names are never abbreviated in text.
95
If space is at a premium, you can abbreviate the state name (whether or not it
is preceded by a city) using AP state abbreviations. If space is extremely tight,
postal abbreviations (shown in parentheses in the table below) are acceptable.
96
State
Abbrev. (Postal)
State
Abbrev. (Postal)
Alabama
Ala. (AL)
Alaska
Alaska (AK)
Arizona
Ariz. (AZ)
Arkansas
Ark. (AR)
California
Calif. (CA)
Colorado
Colo. (CO)
Connecticut
Conn. (CT)
Delaware
Del. (DE)
Florida
Fla. (FL)
Georgia
Ga. (GA)
Hawaii
Hawaii (HI)
Idaho
Idaho (ID)
Illinois
Ill. (IL)
Indiana
Ind. (IN)
Iowa
Iowa (IA)
Kansas
Kan. (KS)
Kentucky
Ky. (KY)
Louisiana
La. (LA)
Maine
Maine (ME)
Maryland
Md. (MD)
Massachusetts
Mass. (MA)
Michigan
Mich. (MI)
Minnesota
Minn. (MN)
Mississippi
Miss. (MS)
Missouri
Mo.(MO)
Montana
Mont. (MT)
Nebraska
Neb. (NE)
Nevada
Nev. (NV)
New Hampshire N.H. (NH)
New Jersey
N.J. (NJ)
New Mexico
N.M. (NM)
New York
N.Y. (NY)
North Carolina
N.C. (NC)
North Dakota
N.D. (ND)
Ohio
Ohio (OH)
Oklahoma
Okla. (OK)
Oregon
Ore. (OR)
Pennsylvania
Pa. (PA)
Rhode Island
R.I. (RI)
South Carolina
S.C. (SC)
South Dakota
S.D. (SD)
Tennessee
Tenn. (TN)
Texas
Texas (TX)
Utah
Utah (UT)
Vermont
Vt. (VT)
Virginia
Va. (VA)
Washington
Wash. (WA)
West Virginia
W.Va. (WV)
Wisconsin
Wis. (WI)
Wyoming
Wyo. (WY)
U.S. regions
Some regions in the U.S. and city neighborhoods are so well-known that they have
become proper nouns—complete with initial caps.
Usage
Bay Area
Generally used to refer to the San Francisco Bay
Area. If there’s a possibility for confusion, include
the city.
Deep South
Capitalize when referring to the southeast U.S.
region consisting of Alabama, Georgia,
Louisiana, Mississippi, and South Carolina.
Down East
Capitalize when referring to Maine. According to
AP style, use only for the state, and not to denote
New England.
East
Capitalize when referring to the eastern region of
the U.S.
East Coast
Capitalize when referring to the region bordering
on the Atlantic Ocean.
East Side, Lower East Side, Upper Capitalize when referring to the area of
East Side
Manhattan east of Fifth Avenue.
Eastern Shore
Capitalize when referring to the region on the
east side of the Chesapeake Bay.
Midwest, Midwesterner
Capitalize when referring to the Midwest region,
which consists of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas,
Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North
Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.
North, Northern, Northerner
Capitalize when referring to the northern part of
the U.S., especially the states that fought for the
Union during the U.S. Civil War.
Northeast
Capitalize when referring to the Northeast region,
which consists of Connecticut, Maine,
Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey,
New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and
Vermont.
South Side of Chicago
Capitalize.
Region
97
Region
Usage
South, Southern, Southerner
Capitalize when referring to the South region,
which consists of Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware,
Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland,
Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South
Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West
Virginia.
Southern California
Capitalize when referring to the area of California
or its culture.
West, Western, Westerner
Capitalize when referring to the West region,
which consists of Alaska, Arizona, California,
Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New
Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and
Wyoming.
Capitalize when referring to the film or book
genre, but lowercase the music genre otherwise
know as country (AP style).
West Coast
Capitalize when referring to the area of the U.S.
bordering on the Pacific Ocean—California,
Oregon, and Washington.
Examples
High winds slammed portions of the Northeast and the South and will hit the Midwest.
She is considered a Northern liberal in spite of her Southern roots.
Of all the West Coast areas, Southern California is best known for western music.
Regions outside the U.S.
Capitalize the following international areas:
98
Region
Usage
Central America
Capitalize
Eastern Hemisphere
Capitalize
Far East
Capitalize when referring to the easternmost
region of Asia, including China, Hong Kong,
Japan, North and South Korea, eastern region of
Russia, and Taiwan.
Latin America
Capitalize
Middle East
Capitalize
Person and pronouns
Usage
North America
Capitalize
North Korea
Capitalize
Northern Hemisphere
Capitalize
Northern Ireland
Capitalize
South America
Capitalize
South Korea
Capitalize
Southeast Asia
Capitalize when referring to the region of the
Indochinese Peninsula and the islands to the
southeast.
Southern Hemisphere
Capitalize
South Pacific
Capitalize
West Indies
Capitalize
Western Hemisphere
Capitalize
Person and pronouns
Use these guidelines and tricks to pick the correct pronoun when referring to
people or things.
Referring to companies
To select the correct pronoun when referring to a company, including Yahoo!, use
these rules:
Region
When referring to Yahoo! the company, use the first-person plural pronouns
we, us, our, and ours.
Examples
View our tutorials.
Contact us about Yahoo! Plus.
99
Person and pronouns
When referring to any other company, use the third-person singular pronouns
it and its. In the U.S., a company is treated as a collective noun and requires a
singular verb and singular pronoun. Referring to a company in the plural (they,
their, theirs) is chiefly a British convention.
Before
The company are anticipating an increase in their third-quarter spending.
After
The company is anticipating an increase in its third-quarter spending.
Referring to users
When referring to users, members, consumers, subscribers, or anyone else
reading your text, follow these guidelines:
In general, use the second person (you, your, and yours).
Although this guide employs the word users to refer to anyone accessing the
Yahoo! network, the word user can sound too techie or cold. Depending on
context, consider using member, consumer, reader, subscriber, customer,
participant, visitor, or similar word. In some cases, partner contracts may
impose requirements on how to refer to users.
Refer to a user who has a Yahoo! ID, account, etc., as current member,
customer, etc., and not as existing member, customer,...
Note
See also Change of person on page 160.
Wrestling with him or her and other pronoun problems
A common error concerning pronouns occurs when two or more pronouns are used
together. Is it her and me, she and I, or her and I? The rule is: Use the nominative
case (I, he, she, we, or they) for the subject of a verb. (If you’re using formal
English, also use the nominative case after any form of the verb to be.) Use the
objective case (me, him, her, us, or them) for the object of a verb or preposition (like
about, of, to, or with).
Even die-hard grammarians use a simple trick to select the correct pronouns:
Break up the sentence and try it with each pronoun individually.
Examples
It was a surprise to her and me.
(It was a surprise to her and to me)
She and I were surprised by her popularity. (She was surprised and I was surprised)
100
Typography
Is who correct?
Who and whom are two special pronouns that often confound writers—if they
consider them at all. Who is the nominative case (it can be the subject of a verb)
and whom is the objective case (and the object of a verb or preposition).
Examples
Who will top the list?
He is the youngest of those who finished the race.
One way to help you choose the correct form is to recast the sentence, substituting
he and him for who or whom. If him sounds correct, use whom. (It also helps to
remember that both him and whom end in “m.”)
Examples
The person who was first won the prize. (Substituting “he”: He was first in line)
I wonder whom he gave the prize to.
(Substituting “him”: He gave the prize to him)
Sometimes, it’s just better to rewrite a sentence to avoid a potential grammatical
error or a grammatically correct, but awkward or formal-sounding, construction. It’s
especially true when who or whom starts a sentence. Who generally sounds
correct at the beginning of a sentence, but isn’t always.
Before
Whom should I give the ticket to?
(Grammatically correct, but awkward-sounding)
After
Who should get the ticket?
(Grammatically correct, and natural-sounding)
When faced with selecting between who or whom, don’t panic. You have a 50-50
chance of being correct. And it’s often best to rewrite the sentence. Or contact an
editor for advice (see Getting Editorial help on page 167). And if all else fails, use
who.
Typography
In the web world, typography refers to the appearance of text. Bold, italic, and
underline all change the appearance of text, but not all are suitable for online
reading.
Follow these rules for enhancing the appearance of online text:
Reserve underlining for link text; don't use it for any other purpose. Online
readers are accustomed to clicking underlined words, and using this
typographical device for other purposes may lead to confusion.
101
File names and types
Use bold or italic to indicate emphasis. Don't use all capital letters for
emphasis. (Judicious use of all caps is acceptable in plain text emails and
newsletters. See Differences between HTML and text emails on page 35.)
Examples
Play in official Yahoo! tournaments—join a new one every day!
Make absolutely sure you filled in your email address.
Italic can also be used to indicate titles of compositions, although quotation
marks are preferred. See Titles of works on page 93 and Titles on the Front
Page on page 57.
Examples
Yet another Star Wars site
Read the latest reviews of Quake II.
Use bold and italic sparingly. Don't combine them to increase emphasis.
Before
Sign up now for a free account!
After
(Both bold and italic)
(Use either bold or italic, but not both)
Use italic for foreign words. Keep in mind that some non-English words and
phrases have entered mainstream American usage (like Cinco de Mayo, in
vitro, hors d’oeuvre, and à la mode) and don’t require special treatment. If in
doubt, consult the dictionary.
Example
On September 16, Mexicans celebrate the overthrow of the gachupines, native
Spanish rulers who exploited the people.
File names and types
When referring to file names and file types, use these guidelines:
Write file names in lowercase.
When referring to a file name extension (generally three letters separated from
the file name by a period), use lowercase letters. Don't include the period that
separates the file name from the extension. Enclose the extension in quotation
marks.
102
URLs and web-related words
Write file types in all capital letters.
Examples
You can upload GIF and JPEG files.
A JPEG file usually has a file name extension like "jpg" or "jpe"; for example,
photo123.jpg.
The data is exported to a CSV (comma-separated values) file.
Double-click the ymsgr_1643.exe file to begin the installation.
When writing a URL or the name of a web site, follow these guidelines:
Don't include http:// at the start of URLs that include WWW.
Follow the site's convention for capitalization. If there's no clear convention,
use all lowercase for URLs, including Yahoo! URLs used for branding or brand
recognition (like finance.yahoo.com).
Don't use quotation marks around a URL.
Before
Would you like to set your home page to 'http://www.yahoo.com/'?
After
Would you like to set your home page to www.yahoo.com?
If you refer to the name of a web site (like AmericanGreetings.com) but not its
URL, follow its preferred capitalization style. Don’t use quotation marks around
the name.
URLs and web-related words
Example
The Top 10 Yahoo! Picks include Hardy-Boys.com and joshreads.com.
Note
For the spelling, hyphenation, and usage of other words related to the
Web, see Yahoo! Glossary on page 177.
103
Putting Words Together
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
Punctuation. It can clarify or obscure your meaning. The most common punctuation marks are
listed in this chapter in alphabetical order.
Sentences. Use these guidelines to create clear, effective sentences.
Paragraphs. Constructing an effective paragraph is a little challenging when you're writing for and
online audience.
Lists. Formatting text in lists can help simplify complicated steps, add welcome white space to a
page, and keep things in order for your readers.
Gender-neutral writing. Still referring to your reader with gender-specific pronouns and
stereotypes? Stop now before she is offended.
Punctuation
This section contains the most common usage rules for the most-used punctuation
characters, listed in alphabetical order.
Apostrophes
Use an apostrophe to show possession or the omission of letters or numbers. For
additional information, check out:
For an explanation of the difference between commonly confused possessives
and contractions (like its and it's), see Words that can confuse writers on
page 150.
For use with decades, see Decades on page 84.
Possessives
Use an apostrophe to indicate possession.
For regular plural nouns, place the apostrophe after the "s." For irregular
plurals, place the apostrophe before the "s."
PUTTING WORDS TOGETHER
For the use of the apostrophe to form the plural of abbreviations or
acronyms, see Abbreviations and acronyms on page 90.
105
Punctuation
Examples
many players' scores
alumni's contribution
children's needs
women's clothing
pantries' contents
For singular common nouns ending in "s," add "'s" unless the next word
begins with "s."
Examples
The business's concerns
The business' single concern
The campus's largest building
The campus' science building
For singular proper names ending in "s," use only an apostrophe.
Examples
George Lucas' latest film
Robert Burns' poetry
Massachusetts' schoolchildren
Yahoo! Movies' rankings
Don't use an apostrophe when forming any possessive pronoun, including its,
yours, hers, ours, and theirs.
Omitted letters
Apostrophes can signal the omission of one or more letters in a word. The most
common use is in forming contractions of verbs (such as don't, it's, they're).
Common contractions sound more friendly than the spelled-out verb and are
generally preferable as long as they don't confuse the reader.
Keep in mind that spelling out a verb (like cannot, do not, and must not) provides
some benefits. Do not can be useful for emphasis in warning messages, for
example. And cannot, does not, and other negative forms can be clearer and
appear more formal and authoritative than their contractions.
106
Punctuation
Apostrophes are also useful to indicate an omission of letters so that the resulting
text more closely resembles the common pronunciation of words or phrases. This
use is particularly appropriate for the Mid-Range and Casual Yahoo! voice.
Examples
Knowing when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em, poker upped the ante with its World
Series.
This flick will be rockin' and reelin' in theaters next month.
Colons
Although a colon is a rather versatile mark of punctuation, it is most often used to:
Introduce an element (or a series of elements) that amplifies or illustrates the
information that precedes it.
Introduce a list (like this one), table, or illustration.
Follow these guidelines when dealing with colons:
If the colon appears within a sentence, capitalize the first word after the colon
if it is a proper noun (of course) or it is the first word of an independent clause
(that is, a group of words that could function alone as a complete sentence). Use
a single space following the colon.
Put colons outside quotation marks unless they apply to the quoted matter.
Don’t use a colon immediately before or after a dash: A colonectomy or
dashectomy is definitely in order.
Commas
Commas are used to separate items in a series and independent clauses joined by
a conjunction. They’re also useful for introducing a quotation, separating parts of
geographic locations, and making large numbers easier to read.
Commas in a series
"To my parents, Ayn Rand and God."
That classic example shows the confusion that can ensue when a comma is
omitted before and. It is purportedly from a real book's real dedication page.
Including the comma before and (called a "serial comma") clears up the ambiguity.
Examples
One thing is certain: The team came here to win.
Two things are certain: death and taxes.
He had one thing to say about “Oliver Twist”: “Please, sir, no more.”
107
Punctuation
Follow these rules when writing a series of items:
In a series consisting of three or more elements, separate the elements by
commas. When a conjunction (like and or or) joins the last two elements in a
series, include a comma before the conjunction. (This is an exception to AP
style, which doesn't recommend a comma before and or or in a simple series.)
Examples
You can show and hide Time Guides on your day, week, and month views.
Discuss sports, health, current events, and more.
Sign in to your Yahoo! account and confirm your name, birth date, and gender.
Use a comma to separate a series of adjectives equal in rank. Don't use a
comma if the last adjective outranks its predecessors.
Examples
He walked down an unlit, dirty alley.
The site features beautiful summer dresses.("Summer dresses" is a noun phrase)
Commas and independent clauses
When a conjunction such as and or but links two independent clauses (that is,
clauses that could stand alone as separate sentences), use a comma before the
conjunction.
Before
An even better sight comes when hidden zones are tapped and a fountain of force
gems sprays the screen with dozens of goodies.
After
An even better sight comes when hidden zones are tapped, and a fountain of force
gems sprays the screen with dozens of goodies.
Commas and quotations
Follow these guidelines for punctuation when citing a quotation:
Use a comma to introduce a complete, one-sentence quote.
Example
The young man said, "I'm out to watch the next Triple Crown winner."
108
Punctuation
Don't use a comma before an indirect or partial quote.
Example
The young man was "out to watch the next Triple Crown winner."
Use a comma instead of a period at the end of a quote that is followed by an
attribution.
Example
"I'm out to watch the next Triple Crown winner," said the young man.
Don't use the comma if the quoted statement ends with a question mark or
exclamation point and is followed by an attribution.
Example
"Why are you here?" the reporter asked the young man in the hat.
Commas and locations
Use a comma to set off states and nations used with cities.
Examples
The band traveled from Paris, Texas, to Fargo, North Dakota.
The juggler flew from Dublin, Ireland, to Paris, France, and back.
Commas and numbers
Ellipses
Ellipses (three periods in a row) can be used:
To indicate an omission of one or more words in sine quoted matter. However,
not all omissions from quoted matter require the use of ellipses. If in doubt,
contact an editor. See Getting Editorial help on page 167.
To indicate a pause in speaking or an incomplete thought by either the writer or
the speaker.
And a few don'ts:
Don't use ellipses in place of a colon when introducing a list, table, or illustration.
Use commas for numbers greater than 999 expressed in numerals. See Large and
small numbers on page 79 for an example.
Don't overuse ellipses on a page.
109
Punctuation
Avoid using "More…" as a link because it doesn't tell users where the link takes
them or what action they should take. "Learn more" is better, and using an
active, descriptive link is best.
Exclamation points
Follow these rules for using exclamation points:
When referring to the company, its brands, products, or services, always include the
exclamation point when writing Yahoo!. The exclamation point is part of the
brand name and isn't being used as punctuation. If Yahoo! ends a sentence,
include the ending punctuation (period or question mark). If you’re referring to
an employee of Yahoo!, omit the exclamation point. See Yahoo! on page 194
for additional guidelines.
Use it for emphatic expression.The exclamation point is an effective piece of
punctuation, if—and only if—used sparingly. When overused, the exclamation
point loses its impact.
Example
She couldn't believe her eyes!
If the exclamation point ends a quotation, don't use a comma or a period after
the exclamation point.
Before
"Smarty Jones is going to win!", he screamed.
(Uses both comma and !)
After
"Smarty Jones is going to win!" he screamed.
(No need for comma)
Hyphens and dashes
The following three marks are commonly confused and sometimes used
interchangeably, but they really are different with different uses:
Use a hyphen (-), the shortest of the three, to form compounds and separate
prefixes from root words. See the subtopics that follow for more information on
the use of the hyphen.
Use an en dash (–) —longer than a hyphen, shorter than an em dash—to mean
to, up to and including, or through to indicate a range of numbers, dates, game
scores, pages, etc. See Ranges of numbers on page 87 for examples. The
decimal character reference for an en dash is &#8211.
110
Punctuation
Use an em dash (—), simply called a "dash," to indicate a break in a sentence;
to link independent clauses (in place of a colon or semicolon); or to indicate an
open range, such a date range with no ending date (see Ranges of numbers on
page 87 for an example). The em dash (decimal character reference &#8212)
is the longest of the three marks.
Examples
Trust Yahoo! Web Hosting—an industry leader—to help.
There are four settings—Kids, Teens, Mature Teens, and Full Access.
Don't put a space before or after a hyphen. A space before and after an en
dash or em dash is optional as long as the use is consistent within a product,
service, or property. Headlines, for example, often look better without a space.
(See the use of spaces for Marketplace promos on page 59.)
For text emails or other times when the en dash or em dash is unavailable, use
two hyphens (--), with or without a surrounding space. Be consistent in your
use of spaces in the communication.
Note
Be sure to check the Yahoo! Glossary on page 177 for the hyphenation of
commonly used words and phrases.
Forming compound modifiers
A compound modifier is two or more words that function as a unit. When the
compound modifier precedes a noun, hyphen joins the parts of the compound so
that your readers understand your intent. Consider the difference, for example,
between red and green ties and red-and-green ties.
When faced with a compound modifier, follow these rules:
Examples
The email campaign had a better-than-average response.
Go to the sign-in page.
Take advantage of the 30-day free trial.
You choose your 10-digit account number and private 4-digit PIN.
Many compound adjectives (which modify a noun) are hyphenated before a
noun, but not hyphenated otherwise. However, if the compound adjective
occurs after a form of the verb to be (like is, was, were), the hyphen is retained,
even if the compound doesn't precede a noun.
Use a hyphen or hyphens to form a single adjective from two or more words
preceding a noun. For compound adjectives that include a number, see Large
and small numbers on page 79.
111
Punctuation
Examples
It's an easy-to-use tool.
You'll find it easy to use.
The tool is easy-to-use.
(Hyphenate before a noun)
(No hyphen required after verb)
(Hyphenate after the verb "is")
Some combinations of modifiers don’t require hyphenation. A common example
is an adverb modifying an adjective. Don't use a hyphen following the adverb
very and all adverbs ending in "ly."
Examples
a very exciting product
a completely new promotion
(No hyphen required following "very")
(No hyphen required following "-ly" adverb)
See Hyphenated compounds in headlines and titles on page 93 for information
about capitalizing compound modifiers.
Adding prefixes
See the Yahoo! Glossary on page 177 for the hyphenation of words and phrases
commonly used at Yahoo!. If the word or phrase isn't listed, consult a dictionary
(http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/).
Tip
You can check the hyphenation of a word in the American Heritage
Dictionary by using a Yahoo! Search Shortcut.
Keep in mind that many prefixes don't require a hyphen. In general, include a
hyphen if the prefix ends with the same letter as the first letter in the base word. If
a prefix comes before a proper name, use a hyphen.
bipartisan
bimonthly
(See bimonthly on page 178 for alternatives to this
often-confused word.)
midsemester
mid-Atlantic
nonaligned
non-nuclear
prearrange
pre-empt
semifinal
semi-invalid
pre-fill
Prefixes in titles and headlines may not require hyphenation—Pre-Production
could actually be Preproduction and Multi-User could be Multiuser. Always
consider the prevailing conventions of the industry or interest group.
112
Punctuation
Periods
Follow these guidelines for periods:
Use a period (or other terminating punctuation) at the end of any header or
prompt that is a complete sentence, including very short imperative sentences.
Examples
Start a Yahoo! Group today.
Sign up!
Check your results.
If headers, prompts, or list items are sentence fragments, do not use a period
at the end. Use no punctuation for short items or an ellipsis (...) for longer
fragments. Use ellipses sparingly.
Before
antiques, Beanie Babies, golf clubs.
more information.
(Unnecessary period)
(Unnecessary period)
After
antiques, Beanie Babies, golf clubs
more information...
If Yahoo! (including the exclamation point) ends a sentence, include the period
following the exclamation point.
Example
Services are partly paid for by ads you see while using Yahoo!.
(Include period)
Example
Offices are open daily throughout the U.S.
(Only one period to end sentence)
When using periods following the initials in a person’s name, don’t include a
space between the first and second initial. When referring to a person solely by
initials, do not include periods (for example, JFK, FDR, LBJ).
Examples
The JFK Library was designed by I.M. Pei.
(No space between initials)
If an abbreviation that includes a period (such as U.S. or U.K.) ends a
sentence, don’t include a second period.
Use a single space after a period that ends a sentence.
113
Punctuation
Quotation marks
Use quotation marks for:
Direct quotations
Definitions and words as words
Titles of some works
Direct quotations
When quoting a person, text, or other source directly, use these guidelines:
Use quotation marks to surround the exact words of a speaker or writer.
Examples
"There are very few people," he said, "who understand the logic."
According to the article, his works are "total fictions, not based on anyone’s life."
To indicate quotes within quotes, use single quotation marks.
Example
"I remember my first conversation with him," Gonzales said. "He never came in and
said, 'I want my job back.' He said, 'What can you do for me?' He was very genuine,
very professional."
Definitions and words as words
When defining a word or phrase in a sentence or introducing an unfamiliar word or
phrase, put it in quotation marks on the first reference only. (Foreign words should
be in italic.)
Example
The browser will accept a "cookie" and open a new window. A cookie is a small
amount of data from a web site and stored on your computer.
When referring to a word or phrase, enclose it in quotation marks.
Example
The longest word in the English language is “smiles.”
Many writers confuse “ensure” and “insure.”
114
Punctuation
Titles of some works
In general, use quotation marks for the titles of books, lectures, movies, operas,
plays, poems, songs, speeches, television programs, and works of art. In some
circumstances, the use of single quotation marks may also be acceptable for
composition titles.
For more information, including a complete list of titles that should be in quotation
marks, see Titles of works on page 93 and Titles on the Front Page on page 57.
Examples
He loved "Nightmare on Elm Street."
"Miami Vice" starred Philip Michael Thomas.
Punctuation and quotation marks
Follow these rules for using punctuation with quotation marks.
In general, put periods and commas inside quotation marks.
Example
The "Private," "Public," and "Show as Busy" permissions determine how the events
appear to others viewing your shared calendar.
If quotation marks are used to indicate a character or string that the user is to
type exactly, put any punctuation mark outside the closing quotation mark.
Alternatively, reword the instruction so that the punctuation isn't near the
quotation marks or use bold for the string.
Put dashes, semicolons, question marks, and exclamation points in quotation
marks if they apply to the quoted matter only. Put them outside if they apply to
the whole sentence.
Examples
The coach asked, "Are you ready to win?"
What does it mean to be "left high and dry"?
For more information about punctuation and quotes, see Commas and quotations
on page 108, Ellipses on page 109, and Exclamation points on page 110.
Example
For current traffic conditions, type the location followed by the word "traffic".
115
Constructing sentences
Semicolons
Follow these guidelines for the use of semicolons:
Place semicolons outside quotation marks unless they apply to the quoted
matter.
Example
He said, "I'm out to watch the next Triple Crown winner"; he wasn't the only one.
Depending on the font size, semicolons may not be easy to see on a web page.
In this case, use an em dash (which is longer than a hyphen or en dash) instead.
See also Hyphens and dashes on page 110.
Use a semicolon or em dash to separate related independent clauses (that is,
clauses that could stand alone as separate sentences) that are not separated
by a conjunction (such as and or but) or the word which. Don’t capitalize the
word immediately following the semicolon unless it’s a proper noun.
Example
He was there to watch the next Triple Crown winner; he wasn't the only one.
When writing or editing sentences, make sure that they are well-formed. Consider
both the order of elements in every sentence and the number and placement of
words and expressions.
Consider order
Use these guidelines when considering the order of the parts of a sentence:
Put the most important part of the sentence at the beginning.
Before
On the message list page, you have an overview of which posts received
recommendations.
After
See which posts received recommendations on the message list page.
116
If you introduce a list and then explain each list item, maintain the order.
Before
Yahoo! Plus offers you two types of accounts: Member Accounts and a Primary
Account. A Primary Account belongs to the account holder. A Member Account has
many of the same benefits as a Primary Account.
(Member Accounts is introduced 1st; Primary Account is explained 1st)
After
Yahoo! Plus offers you two types of accounts: A Primary Account and Member
Accounts. A Primary Account belongs to the account holder. A Member Account
has many of the same benefits as a Primary Account.
(Order of introduction and explanation is the same)
Keep if…then in the correct order. Tell the reader the condition (if…) first, and
then the consequence (then…). By placing the conditional first, you give the
reader a reason to continue reading or move on to the next sentence.
Before
Click the Edit link if your email address is incorrect.
After
If your email address is incorrect, click the Edit link.
(Put the condition, which starts with "if," first)
Before
You can request a new password if you forgot your current one.
Keep it positive
Avoid sentences with more than one negative word (such as no, not, nothing, no
one), which can be difficult to read and understand.
Before
You can’t moblog if you haven’t registered your phone with Yahoo! Mobile.
After
Before you can moblog, you must register your phone with Yahoo! Mobile.
After
If you forgot your password, you can request a new one.
(Put the condition, which starts with "if," first)
117
Constructing paragraphs
Before
You may not activate Yahoo! Parental Controls when there are no Member accounts
created.
After
Before you can activate Parental Controls, you must set up a Member account for
each person.
Constructing paragraphs
When writing a paragraph, keep in mind that you have only a few seconds to
capture your readers' attention. Follow these basic guidelines when writing for
online reading:
Every paragraph should have a single idea or topic.
Place the topic sentence or conclusion first. Readers will skip any additional
ideas if they aren't caught by the first few words in a paragraph. This "inverted
style" is common in journalism and unlike other writing, doesn't build to a
conclusion.
Keep paragraphs short—to as few as two or three sentences. "Writing for the
Internet" (www.askoxford.com/betterwriting/osa/internet/?view=uk), part of the
One Step Ahead series, found that paragraphs of around 30 words and
sentences with fewer than 17 words work well for reading onscreen.
Before
Creating a portfolio on Yahoo! Finance is fast, easy, and free. You can create and
maintain as many portfolios as you like with a single Yahoo! ID. If you don't yet have
a Yahoo! ID, you will need to register for one before you can create a portfolio
(registration is free and also allows you to take advantage of the many other products
and services on the Yahoo! network including email, chat, games, and more). Yahoo!
currently offers several different ways to track your portfolio (select a link to learn
more):
(Too many ideas in one paragraph)
After
Creating a portfolio on Yahoo! Finance is fast, easy, and free. You can create and
maintain as many portfolios as you like with a single Yahoo! ID.
If you don't have a Yahoo! ID, you must register for one before you can create a
portfolio. (Registration is free and allows you to take advantage of the many other
Yahoo! products and services including email, chat, games, and more.)
Yahoo! offers several ways to track your portfolio (click a link to learn more):
118
Creating lists
Creating lists
Lists can be embedded in sentences (like this list of list types), numbered, or
bulleted.
Numbered and bulleted lists can facilitate scanning, shorten text, draw a reader's
attention, relate items, and show order or precedence.
Introducing lists
It's OK to introduce a numbered or bulleted list with a sentence fragment ending in
a colon. In this case, make sure each list element can complete the sentence.
Before
To avoid this in the future you can:
o Reduce the overall size of your site.
o You can sign up for either premium GeoCities or Yahoo! Web Hosting services.
After
To avoid this in the future:
o Reduce the overall size of your site.
o Sign up for either premium GeoCities or Yahoo! Web Hosting services.
Punctuating and capitalizing list elements
Follow these guidelines for the elements in a numbered or bulleted list:
If one or more elements are complete sentences, capitalize the first word of
every list element and use a period at the end of each list element.
If all the list elements are sentence fragments, don't use any terminating
punctuation. The first word can be either uppercase or lowercase, as long as
every list element is capitalized in the same way in every list in the service,
property, or document.
119
Creating lists
Including lists within lists
Avoid embedding a list within an element in a numbered or bulleted list. If it's
necessary to include a bulleted list within an element in a bulleted list, use a
different bullet style for the embedded list.
Example
Yahoo! Desktop Search:

Indexes only the content that the operating system gives you access to

Gives you control of indexing of your browsing history and cache

Lets you control indexing of your files, including:
o Only index files that are marked for indexing
o Only index specific file types
o Only index files under a specific file size
Numbered lists
Use a numbered list when the order or number of list elements is important, such
as the steps in a procedure. In all other cases, use a bulleted list.
Before
Yahoo! Express guarantees:
1. All Yahoo! Express submissions will be evaluated within seven business days.
2. You will receive an email response within seven business days, stating whether
your listing is accepted or declined. If your listing is denied, you will be told why.
After
Yahoo! Express guarantees:
o All Yahoo! Express submissions will be evaluated within seven business days.
o You will receive an email response within seven business days, stating whether
your listing is accepted or declined.
o If your listing is denied, you will be told why.
Bulleted lists
Use bulleted lists for related items. Each item in the list should carry the same
weight and importance; for example, all items are movie titles or features of a new
product. Each item should be approximately the same word length.
120
Gender-neutral writing
The items in a bulleted list should be parallel; that is, each should start with the
same part of speech.
Before
You can personalize almost every aspect of My Yahoo! including:
o the content on your page
o the order of content on your page
o if your page has 2 or 3 columns
(non-parallel list item)
o the colors and background of your page
o your My Yahoo! greeting
o how many pages of content you have
(non-parallel list item)
After
You can personalize almost every aspect of My Yahoo! including:
o Content on your page
o Order of content on your page
o Number of columns (2 or 3) on your page
o Colors and background of your page
o Your My Yahoo! greeting
o Number of pages of content
Gender-neutral writing uses language that doesn't stereotype either sex nor
appear to refer to only one sex when that's not the intent. By using gender-neutral
writing, you eliminate one factor that may interfere with your readers' reception and
understanding of your message.
Many of these suggestions are taken from the article “Gender-Neutral Technical
Writing" (www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/magazine/writing/genderneutral.html) in
TECHWR-L Magazine.
Here are some things you shouldn't do:
Don't use "he" as a generic pronoun; use it only to refer to a man or boy.
Don't use "she" as a generic pronoun; use it only to refer to a woman or girl.
Don't use "they" or "them" as a singular pronoun unless you're sure that your
audience won't mind. In informal writing, it's OK to use "they" or "them" for the
singular if there's no way to avoid using a pronoun. This usage is gaining in
popularity and acceptance, but a lot of people dislike it or stumble over it.
Avoid phrases like "he or she," "he/she," or any variation of "s/he."
Guidelines for gender-neutral writing
121
Don't use a feminized noun (such as manageress) when the normal noun
(manager) covers both sexes. Some nouns, previously referring only to males
(like actor), are now accepted as referring to either sex.
Don't use a noun that might imply a single gender. See Replacing genderspecific words on page 124.
Tips for avoiding personal pronouns
Avoiding singular personal pronouns (he, she, him, her, his, and hers) is possible,
but may require rewriting text. Here are some techniques for avoiding genderspecific pronouns:
Use imperative mood (that is, use a command or request, with the subject you
implied) or second person (you).
Before
An IM user can send a message to his friend.
After
Send a message to your friend.
Use plural nouns and pronouns.
Before
Send a message to your friend asking them to download Yahoo! Messenger.
After
Send a message to your friends asking them to download Yahoo! Messenger.
Repeat the noun. Sometimes repeating the noun has the added benefit of
making your meaning clearer.
Before
Chatting with a friend is a great way to stay up-to-date with his news.
After
Chatting with a friend is a great way to stay up-to-date with your friend's news.
Better
Chatting is a great way to stay up-to-date with a friend.
122
Eliminate the pronoun completely.
Before
When you're chatting with a friend, you can send them a graphic to show them how
you feel.
After
When you're chatting with a friend, you can send a graphic to show how you feel.
Before
You need to select a friend to message him or her.
After
You need to select a friend before sending a message.
To send a message, first select a friend.
Substitute a or the for the pronoun.
Before
Send a message to your friend to see if his download was successful.
After
Send a message to your friend to see if the download was successful.
Use passive voice when the actor is unimportant.
After
Send a message to your friend to see if the software was downloaded.
Recast the sentence. Sometimes you just have to rewrite the sentence
completely to eliminate gender-specific words.
Before
When you select an Influencer, songs he/she rates highly will be more likely to play
on your station.
After
Songs rated highly by an Influencer are more likely to play on your station.
Before
Send a message to your friend to see if he downloaded the software.
123
Before
If you know a friend whose phone you can send ring tones or logos to, put his/her
GSM (PCS) chip in your phone, send the media you want to his/her telephone
number (using your phone), save the ring tone, and then swap your GSM chip back
into your phone.
After
If a friend has a phone you can send ring tones or logos to, put your friend's GSM
(PCS) chip in your phone. Using your phone, send the media you want to your
friend's telephone number, save the ring tone, and then put your GSM chip back in
your phone.
In messages to the user, include or repeat the user's ID, if known and
technically feasible.
Before
%s may be offline. If so, the message will still be sent, and they will see it the next
time they log in.
After
%s may be offline. If so, the message will be sent, and %s will see it after signing in.
Replacing gender-specific words
Some words may imply one gender to some readers. Replace these words with a
general-neutral equivalent.
124
Instead of
Use
actress
actor
businessman
businessperson, executive, business executive. Or, be
specific: stockbroker, shopkeeper, store owner, etc.
chairman
chair, chairperson, head, coordinator, facilitator, director,
moderator
craftsman
crafts person, artisan, skilled worker
draftsman
drafter
fireman
firefighter
layman
layperson
Instead of
Use
mailman
letter carrier, mail carrier, postal worker, postal employee
man (noun)
person, individual, people, human
man (verb)
operate, staff
man, mankind
humanity, people, the human race, humankind
manmade
synthetic, manufactured, artificial, constructed, handmade,
made, fabricated, hand-crafted, machine-made, created,
produced, simulated
manpower
workforce, staff, personnel, human resources, workers,
employees, labor, labor force
policeman
police officer
postman
letter carrier, mail carrier, postal worker, postal employee
salesman, saleslady
salesperson, sales representative, sales rep, sales clerk
spokesman
spokes person, representative
stewardess, steward flight attendant
waitress
waiter, server, wait staff, waitperson
125
Modifiers Conjunctions Typography Email Dates Voice Jargon Numbers Proofreading Anything Sentences Readability
Summaries Footers Underlining Slashes Abbreviations Files URLs Lists Infinitives Headings Page Days Page Titles Cities
Proper Names Dictionaries Number Ranges Apostrophes Person Web Newsletters Presentations Spelling States
Formats Help Hyphens Countries Order WWW Dimensions Voice Jargon Numbers Currency Acronyms Person Pronouns
Titles Consistency Plurals Acronyms Years Page Titles Copyrights Headings Capitalization Misspellings Slashes Summaries
Lists Bullets Infinitives Sentences Action Keys Help Links Commas Lists Emphasis Semicolons Prompts Adjectives Dashes
Readability Dates Copyrights Headings Software Commas Modifiers Numbers Voice Jargon Commas Email Dates Voice
Jargon Numbers Sentences Newsletters Centuries Commas Money Jargon Readability Summaries Footers Underlining
Slashes Abbreviations Files URLs Lists Infinitives Headings Page Days Page Titles Shortening Any Text Cities Proper Names
Dictionaries Number Ranges Apostrophes Person Web Conjunctions Typography Newsletters Underlining Help Consistency
Years Instructions Click Hyphens Money Participles Ellipses Misspellings Sentences Action Click Hyphens Voice of Yahoo!
Boxes Buttons Phone Numbers Verbs Actions Links Glossaries Tips Notes Percentages Links Ampersands Footers Dimensions
Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Links Glossaries Tips Notes Nouns Pronouns Commas Page Titles Cities Slashes Zones
Decades Possessives Currency Days Jargon Sentences Click Serial Commas Feedback Links Periods Dictionaries Hyphens Tips
Web Front Page Person Punctuation Capitalizing URLs Readability Privacy Policy Footers Phone Numbers Definitions titles
Buttons Ranges References Semicolons Dashes Money Dates Tense Infinitives Conjunctions Prepositions Buttons Voice
Nouns Files WWW Negatives Jargon Sentences Consistency Buttons Feedback Casual Voice Topics Years Titles Plurals
Copyrights Countries Error Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters Months Topics Emails Subject Lines
Percentages Locations Misspellings Correlatives Sentences Action Click Page Titles Ampersands Footers Dimensions Commas
Topics Tense Directions Underlining Slashes Numbers Verbs Actions Percentages Locations Hyphens Modifiers Infinitives
Italic Jargon Ellipses Titles Links Footers Procedures Dimensions Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Time Zones Boxes
Dictionaries Help Verbs Actions Tips Front Page Nouns Help Casual Voice Topics Adjectives Commas Quotations Jargon
Cities Proper Names Possessives Apostrophes Footers Ellipses Titles Links Ampersands Modifiers Verbs Conjunctions
Correlatives Commas Abbreviations Tense Click Keys Error Messages Voice Brand Numbers Dictionaries Topics Deadwood
Consistency Tense Help Jargon Cities Decades Front Page Apostrophes Quotation Marks Formats Ellipses Years Feedback
Emails Newsletters Centuries Commas Money Jargon Sentences Click Serial Commas Feedback Links Dictionaries Hyphens
Tips Web Front Page Person Punctuation Colons Capitalizing URLs Privacy Policy Help Links Glossaries Tips Notes Consistency
Boxes Headings Footers Periods Plurals Percentages Avoiding Common Pitfalls Copyrights Newsletters Time Readability
Dates Words Copyrights Headings WWW Commas Modifiers Numbers Voice Blogs Jargon Commas URLs Participles Serial
Commas Feedback URLs Links Periods Dictionaries Hyphens Tips Web Front Page Ellipses Misspellings Lists Infinitives Blogs
Decades Front Page Apostrophes Quotation Marks Formats Ellipses Years Emails Tense Directions URLs Links Yahoo!
Techniques, Tips,
and Tricks
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
Proofread everything. Every word, phrase, and punctuation mark. Errors on a web page can
affect credibility.
Have the right info at hand. You have to know what's right before you can find what's wrong.
Techniques for proofing anything. Tips from the print world and experienced proofreaders can
help.
PROOFREADING ANYTHING
Proofreading Anything
Common errors. These errors, minor and major, are just a start for your proofreading checklist.
It really does matter
The Web Credibility Project, conducted by the Stanford University Persuasive
Technology Lab, found that one of the top 10 factors reducing a site's credibility is
typographical errors.
"Typographical errors and broken links hurt a site's credibility more than most
people imagine." (Fogg, B.J. May 2002. "Stanford Guidelines for Web Credibility."
A Research Summary from the Stanford Persuasive Technology Lab. Stanford
University. www.webcredibility.org/guidelines.)
"It's clear from the data that Web users do not overlook simple cosmetic mistakes,
such as spelling or grammatical errors. In fact, the findings suggested that
typographical errors have roughly the same negative impact on a Web site's
credibility as a company's legal or financial troubles." (Fogg, B.J., Kameda, T.,
Boyd, J., Marshall, J., Sethi, R., Sockol, M., and Trowbridge, T. (2002). "StanfordMakovsky Web Credibility Study 2002: Investigating what makes Web sites
credible today." A Research Report by the Stanford Persuasive Technology Lab &
Makovsky & Company. Stanford University. www.webcredibility.org.)
Before you start
Before you start proofreading, make sure you know the preferred style for the
property, product, and medium. Use the style guide for the property as well as the
Yahoo! Editorial Style Guide and other approved resources.
129
Proofreading techniques
Proofreading techniques
Techniques for proofreading are an attempt to get you to see what is actually on
the screen or the page, not what you think or imagine is there. They slow down your
reading, forcing you to concentrate on every word, sentence, and punctuation
mark.
According to an article on the University of Virginia's web site, "when you read
normally, you often see only the shells of words—the first and last few letters,
perhaps. You 'fix your eyes' on the print only three or four times per line, or less.
You take in the words between your fixation points with your peripheral vision,
which gets less accurate the farther it is from the point. The average reader can
only take in six letters accurately with one fixation. This means you have to fix your
eyes on almost every word you have written and do it twice in longer words, in order
to proofread accurately. You have to look at the word, not slide over it."
Try these techniques when proofreading:
Print it. Don't rely on reading any text onscreen to catch errors. In fact, most of
these techniques require that you print anything you're proofing.
Wait. Put some time between the completion of the writing or editing and the
final proofreading. A day or two is best, but even a few hours can be helpful.
Ask someone else. One of the most effective ways to proofread is to delegate
the responsibility to someone else.
Stand on your head. Or at least turn the paper upside down. Some writers
proofread a page by turning it upside down and reading it.
Read backward. Start on the right and read leftward. Similar to reading upside
down, this technique also forces you to concentrate on individual words.
Read aloud. Read the text aloud to yourself or ask someone to read the text to
you. This technique is especially helpful for text with many or large numbers or
unfamiliar or foreign words.
Cover the page. Or at least part of it. For paragraphs, cover all but the line
you're reading so that you're not distracted by surrounding elements.
Read out of order. If the text is in paragraphs, read the second paragraph, then
the fourth, then the first.
Use a spell checker. Copy the text and paste it into a Word document. One
note of warning about spell checkers: They don't find words that are spelled
correctly, but used incorrectly. MS Word's spell checker will not flag variants of
some words as errors. For example, it accepts both minuscule and miniscule as
correct, although the latter is a variant of the former. But it flags judgement as a
misspelling, although it's a variant of judgment. If you're unsure of the correct
spelling, consult the dictionary. (See Common misspellings on page 163 for a
note about variant spellings.)
130
What to look for
Note
If you use Microsoft Word for writing, editing, or proofreading text, be
careful if you then copy and paste the text into a tool for display on the
Web. Check for special characters or formatting that may have changed
during the process.
PROOFREADING ANYTHING
Change the look. If your text is in Microsoft Word, changing the way the text
appears can help in proofing. Change the background color, which changes the
background onscreen only, not when you print the document. (To change the
background in Word, select Background on the Format menu.) Or just change
the text font or color.
What to look for
Carefully read every title, subheading, and sentence. When proofreading, be on
the lookout for these common errors:
Errors of consistency, including inconsistent capitalization of titles or subject
lines
Grammatical errors
Spelling errors
Missing ! in Yahoo!
Missing period at the end of the last sentence in a paragraph
Missing serial commas (the comma that comes before and or or in a series of
three or more items)
Hyphenated email (that is, e-mail—which is incorrect)
Misspelled web site (it should always be two words)
Out-of-sequence alphabetical lists
Poor line breaks such as a line consisting of single word or a single line of text
at the top or bottom of a page
Footnote markers (like asterisks) in the body of the text without a corresponding
footnote; footnotes without a corresponding marker in the body of the text
131
Shortening Any Text
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
Clearing out deadwood. You can shorten nearly anything you read or write.
Start strong, stay strong. Avoid these weak openings for your sentences and keep the verbs
strong.
Replacing common phrases. These phrases add length, and not much else, to most writing.
Deadwood is a superfluous word or phrase that can be omitted without loss of
meaning. Deadwood in writing can take the form of bloated phrases or needless
repetition. Removing deadwood not only shortens text but also makes your writing
clearer. Once you learn to recognize these constructions, it's easy to eliminate
them.
Be careful not to cut too deeply into the material, creating text that is choppy,
confusing, or inconsistent with the Yahoo! voice.
Be on the lookout for:
SHORTENING ANY TEXT
Clearing out deadwood
Deadwood, which adds little or no value to your text
Words or phrases that not only add to the length of your writing but also weaken
your message
Common phrases that are bloated with unnecessary, redundant, or highfalutin
words
Keep in mind that "deadwood" depends on context. In some cases, you may want
to retain some of these words or phrases for emphasis or to maintain the Yahoo!
voice.
Removing one-word deadwood
These words can often be deleted without loss of meaning. However, they can be
effective for emphasizing an important fact or concept.
actively
actual
already
always
any
appropriate, appropriately
associated
automatic, automatically
currently
easily
existing
fairly
much
never
particular
133
Clearing out deadwood
pre-defined
previously
quickly
quite
rather
really
several
simply
suitable
totally
very
Before
To review the items you have previously deleted, click the View Deleted button.
After
To review deleted items, click the View Deleted button.
Before
Always make sure you entered the right address and that it is spelled correctly.
After
Make sure you entered the right address and that it is spelled correctly.
Removing deadwood phrases
Not all deadwood is a single word. Some phrases or clauses are unnecessary and
push the most meaningful or important part of a sentence farther from the forefront.
Consider these guidelines when writing or editing:
Don't use if you want to, if you wish to, if you need to, if you would like to, or in
order to. Use to or recast the sentence.
Before
If you'd like to block explicit content for every search, you can set this in
preferences.
After
To block explicit content for every search, go to preferences.
You can block explicit content for every search in preferences.
134
Start strong, stay strong
Replace you can with the infinitive (the "to" form of a verb) and rewrite the
sentence.
Before
You can change your avatar by clicking the Customize button to the right of your
avatar.
After
To change your avatar, click the Customize button to the right of your avatar.
Replace you can choose to, you can decide to, and the like with a direct verb.
After
You can then search for airlines, hotels, or car rental chains.
Then search for airlines, hotels, or car rental chains.
Replace expressions containing you will need to or you need to with you must
or the imperative.
SHORTENING ANY TEXT
Before
You may then choose to search for airlines, hotels, or car rental chains.
Before
The first thing that you will need to do is choose a name and description for the
Mood.
After
First, choose a name and description for the Mood.
Start sentences with strong subjects and verbs, which will shorten your text and
place the most important words closer to the start of a sentence.
Avoid "there is," "there are," and "it is"
Sentences starting with there is, there are, and it is push the subject farther away
from the front, are generally weak openers, and add to sentence length. Look for
ways to rewrite the sentence without loss of meaning or clarity.
Eliminating these weak openings often gives you the opportunity to use a stronger
verb, but requires recasting the sentence.
135
Before
There are several ways to prevent our crawler from indexing your site or portions of
your site:
After
To prevent our crawler from indexing your site or portions of your site, do any of the
following:
Replace weak verbs
Some verbs dilute the strength of your message. Look for words like allow, enable,
can, and let, which are weak verbs that often add to the length of a sentence.
Substitute a direct verb with more strength.
Before
You can save the car you built by clicking save the car you built.
After
Save the car you built by clicking save the car you built.
To save the car, click save the car you built.
Rewriting the sentence is often necessary to avoid weak verbs.
Before
Yahoo! Bill Pay is a service that lets you pay your bills anytime, anywhere.
After
With Yahoo! Bill Pay you can pay your bills anytime, anywhere.
Use Yahoo! Bill Pay to pay your bills anytime, anywhere.
Pay your bills anytime, anywhere with Yahoo! Bill Pay.
Stay active
When grammarians talk of "voice," they're referring to a property of verbs that
indicates the relation between the subject and the action expressed by the verb. In
active voice, the subject of a sentence does the action; in passive voice, the subject
is acted upon.
136
Passive voice
The directory is updated weekly.
Active voice
We update the directory weekly.
Use of the passive voice can confuse readers and cause them to lose interest in
your message. It also adds to the length of sentences.
Before
Comparison charts can also be generated for up to four symbols by inputting valid
symbols into the comparison form (separated by spaces), or by checking the available
index options and clicking the Compare button.
After
To generate comparison charts for up to four symbols, enter the symbols on the
comparison form (separated by spaces), or check the available index options and click
the Compare button.
SHORTENING ANY TEXT
Using active voice does shorten sentences, but more importantly it clearly
delineates the actor—who or what did or does something.
Passive voice is not grammatically incorrect and in fact is acceptable or even
preferable in some circumstances. It's OK to use passive voice when the actor is
unimportant or purposely ambiguous.
Example
The directory is broken up into 13 main categories with numerous subcategories.
Tip
If you use Microsoft Word for proofreading, it can detect some, but maybe
not all, passive sentences and let you know the number used in selected
text. See Using Microsoft Word to ascertain readability on page 25.
Cut the crap
Eliminate unnecessary modifiers and self-serving expressions.
Before
We established Yahoo! Express as part of a suite of services that Yahoo! has created
to service small business needs.
After
Yahoo! Express is part of a suite of services that meet small business needs.
137
Replacing common phrases
In general, readers are uninterested in how or why a service or feature was
developed. You can safely omit this information.
Before
This feature was developed so that members who want to skip the day-to-day
discussions of the group and instead receive only important updates from the group
moderator can do so.
After
If you select Special Announcements, you'll skip the day-to-day discussions of the
group and receive only important updates from the group moderator.
Better
To skip the day-to-day discussions of the group and receive only important updates
from the group moderator, select Special Announcements.
Many common and redundant phrases can be replaced with shorter, more direct
and familiar words. However, don't choose the shorter phrase if confusion or
ambiguity could result or if the longer phrase is more consistent with the Yahoo!
voice.
Before
If you have the need to send messages larger than 3MB in size, check out Yahoo! Mail
Plus.
After
If you need to send messages larger than 3MB, check out Yahoo! Mail Plus.
Better
To send messages larger than 3MB, check out Yahoo! Mail Plus.
Be on the lookout for these phrases and others that include superfluous words,
needless redundancy, and a high-blown vocabulary.
Before
Make sure that your phone model is capable of receiving text messages.
After
Make sure your phone model can receive text messages.
138
Use
a few of the
a few
a large number of
many, most
a large part of
many, most
a large proportion of
many, most
a lot of
many
a number of
some, many
according to our data
we find
accordingly
therefore, so
add a new
add
adequate number (of)
enough
advance planning
planning
afford the opportunity to
give the chance, enable, let, allow. Consider
deleting the phrase.
after the conclusion of
after
ahead of schedule
early
all of the
all
almost all
most
along the lines of
like, similar to
along with
with
any of the
any
arrive at a conclusion
conclude
as a consequence of
because (of)
as a result of
because (of)
as long as
if
as of this moment
now
as well as
and
SHORTENING ANY TEXT
Instead of
139
140
Instead of
Use
ascertain the location of
find
assemble together
assemble
at a fast rate of speed
fast
at a time when
when
at such time as
when
at the conclusion of
after
at the moment
now
at the present time
now
at the rate of
at
at this point in time
now
be a combination of
combine
be able to
can
be capable of
can
be deficient in
lack
be in a position to
can, be able
because of the fact that
because
biography of his life
biography
both of the
both
by a factor of two
two times, double, twice
by means of
by, with
by virtue of the fact that
because
came back
returned
change the size of
resize
circle around
circle
circular in shape
circular
close proximity to
close to, near
Use
cognizant of
know
come back
return
come to a conclusion (an end)
conclude, end, finish
come to an agreement
agree
complete list
list
complimentary gift
gift
conduct a search of
search, find
consensus of opinion
consensus
create a new
create
despite the fact that
although
determine the location of
find
display a list of
list
does not have
lacks
drop-down list
list
due to the fact that
because
during the time that
while
each and every
each, every
each of the
each
each time
when
edit an existing
edit
end result
result
entirely new
new
every one of the
all, every
exactly identical
identical
exactly the same as
identical
few of the
few
SHORTENING ANY TEXT
Instead of
141
142
Instead of
Use
fewer in number
fewer
final completion
completion
final conclusion
conclusion
final result
result
find the location of
find, locate
for a period of
for
for the most part
mainly
for the purpose of
for, to
for the reason that
because
for this reason
thus, therefore
forward progress
progress
found to be
is
free gift
gift
give a summary of
summarize
give consideration to
consider, examine
give indication of
show, indicate, suggest
give rise to
cause
half of (the)
half
happen(s) to be
am, is, are
has a tendency to
tends
has been proven to be
is
has the ability to
can
has the option to
can
has the need to
need to, must
honest truth
truth
if conditions are such that
if
Use
in all cases
always. Consider deleting the phrase.
in an effort to
to
in case of
if
in conjunction with
with
in connection with
about
in excess of
more than
in large measure
largely
in many cases
usually
in no case
never
in order that
to, so
in order to
to, so
in recognition of the fact
therefore
in reference to
about, regarding
in some cases
sometimes, occasionally
in some instances
sometimes, occasionally
in spite of the fact that
although, despite, in spite of
in such a manner as to
to
in terms of
in
in the case of
for
in the course of
during
in the event that (of)
if
in the field of
in
in the near future
soon
in the neighborhood of
near, about, nearly
in the vicinity of
near, about, nearly
in view of the fact that
because
SHORTENING ANY TEXT
Instead of
143
144
Instead of
Use
involve the use of
use
is able to
can
is capable of
can
is contingent upon
depends on
is deficient in
lacks
is designed to be
is
is found to be
is
is in a position to
can
it appears that
apparently
it is clear that
clearly
it is essential that they (it)
they (it) must
it is evident that
evidently
it is interesting to note that
note that
it is obvious that
obviously
it is our opinion that
we think
it is possible that
perhaps
it is possible to
you can
it should be kept in mind
keep in mind, remember
it should be noted
note
join together
join
joint cooperation
cooperation
keep track of
track
learn how to
learn to
located at
at
located on
on
longer in length
longer
Use
majority of the
most
make a backup copy of
back up
make a change
correct, edit, change, modify
make a copy of
copy
make a decision
decide
make a purchase
purchase, buy
make a statement saying
say, state
make additions
add
make an adjustment in
adjust
make an approximation
estimate, approximate
make an effort
try
make an inquiry regarding
ask about, inquire about
make changes
make corrections
make edits
make modifications
make use of
use
manner in which
how
many of the
many
more complete
complete
more or less
approximately, about, roughly
most of the
most
necessary requirement
requirement
new breakthrough
breakthrough
on a daily (weekly, monthly, etc.)
basis
daily, weekly, monthly, etc.
SHORTENING ANY TEXT
Instead of
145
146
Instead of
Use
on a few occasions
occasionally, sometimes
on the basis of
from, because, by
on the order of
approximately, about, roughly
on the part of
by
one of the, two of the, three of the,
etc.
one, two, three, etc.
owing to the fact that
because
perform a search
search
personal opinion
opinion
postpone until later
postpone
present a list of
list
present time
now
previous to
before
prior to
before
provide a description of
describe
provide a list of
list
provided in
in
provided that
if
put an end to
end, stop
reach a conclusion
conclude
rearrange the order of
rearrange, change the order of
recur again
recur
refer to
see
repeat again
repeat
return back
return
revert back
revert
Use
run the risk (of)
risk
send an email message, send an
email
email
serve the function of being
is
several of the
several
share the same
share
shorter in length
shorter
situated on
on
some of the
some
subsequent
next
subsequent to
after
succeed in (finding)
find
sufficient amount of
enough
surrounded on all sides
surrounded
temporary loan
loan
the majority of
most
total number of
number of
unable to
can't
usual habit
habit
utilize
use
will be able to
can
with reference to
about
with the exception of
except, except for
would be able to
could
SHORTENING ANY TEXT
Instead of
147
Avoiding Common Pitfalls
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
Commonly confused or confusing words. Word pairs (or trios) that you may be using incorrectly
and a few words that your reader may be misinterpreting.
Correlative conjunctions. If you use either…or in your writing, you need to read this. Not only for
the correct placement of this correlative conjunction, but also for the correct verb to use with it.
Dangling and misplaced modifiers. This pitfall can be simply avoided. Or avoided simply.
Change of person. Changing from talking to your reader to talking about your reader can lead to
confusion.
Change of tense. Don't leave your reader wondering if something will happen, is happening now,
or has already happened by changing the tense of your verbs.
Old rules that don't apply. You probably didn't know that some grammarians actually care about
these things.
Common misspellings. We all mispell at least one of these words at some time.
Commonly confused or confusing words
Follow these basic guidelines for your writing:
Avoid words with many disparate meanings.
When in doubt, look up the word in a dictionary and pay special attention to
usage notes.
Keep in mind that even if you use a spell checker, you could have a perfectly
spelled document that contains confused or confusing words.
AVOIDING COMMON PITFALLS
At times, even the best writers confuse some words, especially when two words
sound alike but are spelled differently. And even when using words correctly, a
careful writer can create a sentence that is misleading or misinterpreted.
149
Words that can confuse writers
Several words, especially homophones (words that sound alike, but are spelled
differently and have different meanings), are commonly confused by writers.
affect, effect
Both affect and effect have several meanings, which
can affect which word you choose. The most common
distinction: Use affect as a verb; use effect when you
need a noun.
Example
Color affects your web site's effect on visitors.
all ready, already
All ready means "completely prepared"; already
describes something that has occurred before a
specific time.
Example
If you've already entered your account information,
you're all ready to start.
Tip If you're struggling with choosing between all
ready and already, consider if you really
need to include either word.
Before
If you've already entered your account information,
you're all ready to start.
After
If you've entered your account information, you're
ready to start.
all right, alright
150
Never use alright; it's always all wrong.
capital, capitol
The building where a legislative assembly meets is a
capitol. That is the only meaning of capitol. If you
mean the city where it meets, money or other
resources, or anything else, use capital.
Example
In the state capital, the governor spoke of raising
more capital for schools before he tripped and
tumbled down the capitol steps.
Tip A capital idea for remembering the
difference: A capitol is an office building—
the one and only meaning of capitol.
compliment(ary),
complement(ary)
A compliment is a form of praise; a complimentary
remark is, too. And if it’s free, as most praise is, it’s
complimentary. A complement completes or
supplements something. And two things that go well
together are complementary.
Tip Remember that a complement is an element
that completes or supplements.
continuous(ly), continual(ly)
Use continuous for anything that is uninterrupted; use
continual for actions that recur regularly or frequently.
Example
Continual monitoring of the servers helps to ensure
continuous operation of the web site.
Example
As a thank-you for your compliments concerning our
cheeses, we’re sending you a complimentary bottle of
wine, which we hope you’ll find complements the
Gouda.
151
every day, everyday
Every day is an adverb; use it when you mean "each
and every day." Use everyday, an adjective, when
you mean "ordinary."
Example
Find specialty and everyday items on Yahoo!
Auctions every day.
Tip Try substituting "each day" in the sentence,
and if it sounds right, use every day.
farther, further
Use farther to refer to distance and further to refer to
time or degree.
Example
To further his career in football, he understood that
he'd have to throw the ball farther and faster.
it's, its
It's is a contraction of "it is." Its is a possessive
pronoun.
Example
It's the first time the company has raised its prices.
Tip Try substituting "it is" in the sentence, and if
it sounds right, use it's. And remember that
possessive pronouns (like hers, yours, ours)
never include an apostrophe.
lay, lie
Both words have a multitude of meanings and can be
verbs or nouns. But, they are most often confused
when referring to "putting oneself to rest" (use lie in
this case) and "putting something down" (this calls for
lay). Because idioms for both abound, check with a
dictionary to be sure you're using the correct word.
Example
Before you lie down for a nap, I suggest you lay down
your drink.
Tip Remember that a bricklayer lays bricks.
152
less, fewer
Use less to refer to an amount; fewer to refer to things
that can be counted.
Example
She took less time processing the entries because
there were fewer of them than before.
let's, lets
Let's is a contraction for let us; it requires an
apostrophe. Lets means “allows.”
Example
Let's see if this password lets us log in.
lightening, lightning
Lightening means "making or becoming lighter,”
either in weight or color; lightning is an electrical
discharge into the atmosphere.
Example
SBC Yahoo! DSL provides a lightning-fast connect,
lightening traffic on your phone line.
maybe, may be
Example
This may be the best team ever; maybe they have a
shot at the title.
peak, peek
A peak is a pinnacle, top, or summit. A peek is a quick
or furtive look.
Example
Take a sneak peek at how celebs stay in peak
condition.
If you mean "perhaps," use maybe; otherwise, use
may be, which is a verb.
153
principal, principle
Principal is a noun and adjective referring to a person
or thing of highest rank or importance. Principle is
only a noun referring to law or doctrine.
Example
The students showed the principal the 10 principles of
behavior that were the principal reasons for the
protest.
Tip Is there anyone who doesn't know "the
principal is your pal"? The word to use when
referring to the top administrator of a school
ends in "pal." So does the word meaning the
top person or thing.
reign, rein
A monarch reigns, but you rein in a horse using its
reins.
Example
During his reign as manager, he tried to rein in the
players' salaries. When that failed, he gave the
negotiators free rein.
rite, right
Though both words have several meanings, rite is
generally used to mean a ceremonial or customary
act. If you don't mean that, use right.
Example
Graduation parties are an annual rite, and many
seniors seem to think it's their right to have one. To
them, it's a rite of passage and a rite of spring, but I
don't think they're right.
See right on page 157 for a caution about using right.
154
stationary, stationery
If it’s not moving, it’s stationary. Unless it’s the paper
you write on; then it’s stationary stationery.
Example
The exercise equipment manufacturer’s logo—a
stationary bike—appears on the corporate stationery.
Tip A mnemonic to help you remember: A letter
is written on stationery, which is sold by a
stationer.
that, which
Use that to add necessary information about its
antecedent (the word it modifies) or to distinguish or
limit something from a larger class or group.
Otherwise, use which.
Examples
Advanced email search is a powerful tool that allows
you to search using more fields.
Advanced email search, which is a powerful tool,
allows you to search using more fields.
(that is, it needs a comma before it), you
probably want which; otherwise, use that.
Before
Yahoo! depends solely on our content providers to
provide information which is accurate.
After
Yahoo! depends solely on our content providers to
provide information that is accurate.
then, than
When referring to time or if you mean “therefore,”
“accordingly,” or “next,” use then. When making a
comparison, use than.
Tip If the phrase sounds better with a pause
Example
Download the second file (it’s smaller than the first),
and then open it.
155
they're, their, there
They're is a contraction for they are. Their is a
possessive pronoun like his or hers. For everything
else (and that's a lot), use there.
Example
There are many times when they're ready to update
their web site.
See also Avoid "there is," "there are," and "it is" on
page 135.
who, which
Use who to refer only to people; use which to refer
only to an animal or thing. Some authorities insist that
using which to refer to a person isn't incorrect, just
impolite.
Example
The director, who has an unmistakable style, created
"The Scream," which had considerable impact.
Both who and which can take whose as the
possessive form.
Example
The director, whose style is unmistakable, created
"The Scream," whose impact was considerable.
If you’re struggling with choosing between who or
whom, see Is who correct? on page 101.
who's, whose
Who's is a contraction of who is or who has. Whose is
the possessive form of who or which.
Example
The customer, who's always right, has forgotten
whose computer he used to log on.
156
you're, your
You're is always a contraction of you are. Your is the
possessive form of you.
Example
Now you'll show up online whenever you're on your
mobile phone and away from your PC.
Tip If you wrote "you're," try substituting you are.
If it doesn't work, the word you want is your.
Words that can confuse readers
Avoid words that have so many meanings that they can mislead readers. Think
carefully before using once, right, and since in any sentence.
once
Once can have several meanings and can be a noun, adjective,
adverb, or conjunction. When it comes at the beginning of a sentence,
it can lead readers down one path, only to throw them in another
direction.
After
After you click Submit, you're done. Be sure to click Submit one time.
Depending on the context, consider substituting as soon as, one time,
after, when, or formerly.
right
If you mean "correct," use correct, not right. Some authorities urge
writers to reserve right for the direction and for all other meanings,
substitute other words and expressions when possible. But that's not
always possible or desirable.
Before
After entering the right name, assign the user an access right from the
right list.
Before
Once you click Submit, you're done. Be sure to click Submit once.
After
After entering the correct name, assign the user an access
privilege from the list on the right.
157
Correlative conjunctions
since
Since can relate to either time or causation. If there's any possibility of
confusion with the temporal sense of the word, use because.
Before
Since he was five he wanted to play Little League Baseball.
After
Because he was five, he wanted to play Little League Baseball.
Ever since he was five, he wanted to play Little League Baseball.
A correlative is a pair of conjunctions that connect two parts of a sentence that are
not adjacent to each other. The most common correlative pairs are either … or and
neither… nor, but both… and and not only…but also are also correlatives.
Maintaining parallel structure
Maintain a parallel structure between elements joined by correlatives. This means
that either element joined by the correlative conjunction can be used correctly in
the sentence.
Tip
Try reading the sentence as two separate sentences, each with a joined
element. If the sentences are grammatically and syntactically correct,
you've placed the correlatives correctly.
Before
Scores are either updated in real-time or every few minutes.
(Without the correlatives, the sentences would read, "Scores are updated in
real-time" and "Scores are every few minutes")
After
Scores are updated either in real-time or every few minutes.
Before
The funds will either be debited from your account on the pay date or when the payee
actually cashes the check.
After
The funds will be debited from your account either on the pay date or when the payee
actually cashes the check.
158
Take special care with the correlative conjunction not only…but also. It's frequently
misplaced or used incompletely. But using that correlative correctly can produce a
style that sounds stilted or formal. In that case, you should consider rewriting the
sentence.
Before
You can change not only your password but your email address, too.
After
You can change not only your password but also your email address.
You can change your password and your email address.
Before
Not only do we have the Weekend Box Office, but Daily and All Time Box Office charts
as well.
After
We have not only the Weekend Box Office but also Daily and All Time Box Office
charts.
Make sure that the subject and verb agree when using correlatives or other
conjunctions. Many grammar books go into excruciating detail about matching
subject and verb when the subject is a compound consisting of two or more
elements separated by or or nor. There really is only one rule: The verb must agree
in number and person with the word closer to it.
Examples
Either you or I am going to win the auction.
(Grammatically correct, but
Either Mary or you are going to win the auction.
awkward-sounding, sentences)
Neither you nor I am going to win the auction.
Neither Mary nor you are going to win the auction.
Because the grammatically correct verb may sound unnatural to your readers,
consider changing the verb or verb tense when the subjects are joined by or or nor.
Matching the verb and subject
Examples
Either you or I will win the auction.
Either Mary or you will win the auction.
Neither you nor I will win the auction.
Neither Mary nor you will win the auction.
159
Dangling and misplaced modifiers
Dangling and misplaced modifiers
A dangling modifier is a word or phrase, usually at the beginning of a sentence, that
doesn't refer unmistakably to the word it logically modifies.
Before
When requesting a map, the airport codes below can be used interchangeably with
street addresses (except as noted).
(Airport codes make the request)
After
When requesting a map, you can use the airport codes below interchangeably with
street addresses (except as noted).
(You, the reader, make the request)
Be careful positioning modifiers because their position can affect the meaning of a
sentence. In some cases, their position can also affect emphasis.
Before
We will only notify you when there is a change. (But we won't do anything else)
After
We will notify you only when there is a change. (We won't notify you for any other
reason)
Change of person
We, you, he—first, second, third person. Customer, subscriber, member—third
person. If you're referring to your reader as you, whether explicitly or implied, don't
switch to third person. The words you and user shouldn't be used interchangeably
in the same text.
Before
Become a Premium GeoCities and Yahoo! Web Hosting member. Both provide
increased storage space over free membership. In addition to increased storage
space, users are eligible to purchase extra space in the following amounts:
(Subject of 1st sentence is 2nd person—an implied "you";
subject in last sentence is 3rd person—users)
After
Become a Premium GeoCities and Yahoo! Web Hosting member. Both give you more
storage space than you get with a free membership. You'll also be eligible to purchase
extra space in the following amounts:
(Subject throughout is 2nd person—"you")
160
Change of tense
Don't use the imperative (which has an implied subject of "you") with first person.
Before
Check the box to hide my online status from other users.
(Uses both 2nd person "you," implied by the imperative and
1st person, implied by "my")
After
Check the box to hide your online status from others.
Hide my online status from others.
(2nd person)
(1st person)
Change of tense
In general, write in the present tense. Regardless of the tense you choose, don't
change it on the reader.
After
With our ratings feature, you can rate every photo or story you see at Yahoo! News.
You can find the ratings feature at the bottom of story and photo pages—and you can
rate each as something you would recommend on a scale of 1 through 5. (1 is
recommended "Not at All" and 5 is recommended "Highly.") We calculate each story
or photo's average rating as well as the number of ratings it received. We also show
you the highest and lowest rated stories and photos as ratings are made by all Yahoo!
News readers.
Before
With our ratings feature, you can rate every photo or story you see at Yahoo! News.
You will find the ratings feature at the bottom of story and photo pages - and you can
rate each as something you would recommend on a scale of 1 through 5. (1 is
recommended "Not at All" and 5 is recommended "Highly.") We will calculate each
story or photo's average rating as well as the number of ratings it has received. We
will also show you the highest and lowest rated stories and photos as ratings are made
by all Yahoo! News users.
161
Old "rules" that don't apply any more
Old "rules" that don't apply any more
Following these old saws can lead to tortured, stilted, unnatural, or unnecessarily
formal language:
Never split an infinitive
Never end a sentence with a preposition
Never start a sentence with a conjunction
Note
If you're writing in the Professional Yahoo! voice, you may want to be more
conservative in your use of language and grammar, especially if your
readers could view your breaking of these old rules as grammatical gaffes.
In this case, rewrite sentences to avoid unnatural language.
Splitting infinitives
An infinitive is the "to" form of a verb; to go, to download, and to subscribe are all
infinitive forms of a verb. A split infinitive places an adverb between the to and the
principal verb.
The prohibition against splitting infinitives dates back to Roman times and the Latin
language. Because Latin infinitives are a single word, all of Caesar's army would
not be able to split one. But you can. In fact, putting the adverb in the infinitive can
add emphasis and produce a more natural effect.
Examples
To quickly go to your My Yahoo! page, click the icon.
You can expect to more than double your sales.
Ending with a preposition
Common prepositions include at, about, of, in, with, by, for, and from. At one time,
a preposition was not something you ended a sentence with. Writers took great
care to avoid that and created sentences that didn't reflect common speech. It was
something at which they worked hard.
Examples
This is the service you've been waiting for.
Read, reply, and send emails whenever you need to.
162
Common misspellings
Ending a sentence with a preposition is fine in casual and informal writing. For
more formal writing, you may want to avoid both ending a sentence with a
preposition and creating stilted language that doesn't reflect common speech.
Before
Contact the seller if you don't receive the item for which you have paid.
(“For which” is unnatural-sounding construction used to avoid ending with “for”)
After
Contact the seller if you don't receive the item you paid for.
Contact the seller if you don't receive the item you bought.
Contact the seller if you don't receive the item.
If you don't receive the item you paid for, contact the seller.
Starting with a conjunction
Most authorities now accept the use of a conjunction (like and, but, and or) as an
opening to a sentence in informal writing. But not all. And they have their reasons.
Common misspellings
Tip
Remember, if you're unsure of the spelling of a word, check it out in the
American Heritage Dictionary by using a Yahoo! Search Shortcut.
Some words (like minuscule) have a variant spelling (miniscule), but the actual
dictionary entry is always the preferred spelling. And that's what you should use.
acceptable
accidentally
accommodate
accumulate
acquire
acquit
a lot
amateur
apparent
argument
atheist
believe
bellwether
calendar
category
cemetery
changeable
collectible
column
committed
conscience
conscientious
conscious
consensus
daiquiri
definite
discipline
drunkenness
dumbbell
embarrass
equipment
exhilarate
This list is based on the 100 most commonly misspelled words according to
www.yourdictionary.com, with some additions found at Yahoo.com and in Yahoo!
user communications. See also Commonly confused or confusing words on
page 149.
163
Common misspellings
164
exceed
existence
experience
fiery
foreign
forty
gauge
grateful
guarantee
harass
height
hierarchy
humorous
ignorance
immediate
independent
indispensable
inoculate
intelligence
irrelevant
jewelry
judgment
leisure
liaison
library
license
maintenance
maneuver
medieval
memento
millennium
miniature
minuscule
mischievous
misspell
neighbor
noticeable
occasionally
occurrence
pastime
perseverance
playwright
possession
precede
privilege
pronunciation
publicly
questionnaire
receipt
receive
recommend
referred
reference
relevant
restaurant
rhyme
rhythm
schedule
separate
sergeant
supersede
threshold
twelfth
tyranny
until
vacuum
weather
weird
Modifiers Conjunctions Typography Email Dates Voice Jargon Numbers Yahoo! Resources Sentences Readability Summaries
Lists Infinitives Headings Page Days Page Titles Other Resources Cities Proper Names Dictionaries Number Ranges
Apostrophes Person Web Conjunctions Typography Newsletters Underlining Help Consistency Years Instructions Click
Hyphens Money Participles Ellipses Misspellings Sentences Action Click Hyphens Voice of Yahoo! Boxes Buttons Phone
Numbers Verbs Actions Links Glossaries Tips Notes Percentages Links Ampersands Footers Dimensions Commas Deadwood
Person Tense Days Links Glossaries Tips Notes Nouns Pronouns Commas Page Titles Cities Slashes Zones Decades Possessives
Currency Days Jargon Sentences Click Serial Commas Feedback Links Periods Dictionaries Hyphens Tips Web Front Page
Person Punctuation Capitalizing URLs Readability Privacy Policy Footers Phone Numbers Definitions titles Buttons Ranges
References Semicolons Dashes Money Dates Tense Infinitives Conjunctions Prepositions Buttons Voice Nouns Files WWW
Negatives Jargon Sentences Consistency Buttons Feedback Casual Voice Topics Years Titles Plurals Copyrights Countries
Error Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters Months Topics Emails Subject Lines Percentages Locations
Misspellings Correlatives Sentences Action Click Page Titles Ampersands Footers Dimensions Commas Topics Tense
Directions Underlining Slashes Numbers Verbs Actions Percentages Locations Hyphens Modifiers Infinitives Italic Jargon
Ellipses Titles Links Footers Procedures Dimensions Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Time Zones Boxes Dictionaries
Help Verbs Actions Tips Front Page Nouns Help Casual Voice Topics Adjectives Commas Quotations Jargon Cities Proper
Names Possessives Apostrophes Footers Ellipses Titles Links Ampersands Modifiers Verbs Conjunctions Correlatives
Commas Abbreviations Tense Click Keys Error Messages Voice Brand Numbers Dictionaries Topics Deadwood Consistency
Tense Help Jargon Cities Decades Front Page Apostrophes Quotation Marks Formats Ellipses Years Feedback Emails
Newsletters Centuries Commas Money Jargon Sentences Click Serial Commas Feedback Links Dictionaries Hyphens Tips
Web Front Page Person Punctuation Colons Capitalizing URLs Privacy Policy Help Links Glossaries Tips Notes Consistency
Boxes Headings Footers Periods Plurals Percentages Creating a Style Guide Copyrights Newsletters Time Readability Dates
Words Copyrights Headings WWW Commas Modifiers Numbers Voice Blogs Jargon Commas URLs Participles Serial Commas
Feedback URLs Links Periods Dictionaries Hyphens Tips Web Front Page Ellipses Misspellings Lists Infinitives Blogs
Decades Front Page Apostrophes Quotation Marks Formats Ellipses Years URLs Emails Directions Tense Links Yahoo!
Resources for Writers and
Editors
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
Getting editorial help. There’s lots of ways to get the support you need.
Property style guides. Some properties maintain style guides that are accessible online.
Policy and compliance guidelines. Privacy, advertising, and communication policies are
available online.
YAHOO! RESOURCES
Yahoo! Resources
Brand and legal guidelines. Guidelines for protecting the Yahoo! brand and trademarks and
writing personal blogs.
UI guidelines. For the Front Page and all other pages on the Yahoo! network.
Glossaries. Words from Policy and Compliance, Marketing, and UED.
Getting Editorial help
The Yahoo! Editorial Style Guide is your guide to writing in the Yahoo! voice. The
Editorial team is here to help you understand the voice and apply it to your projects.
Even the best writers have editors, and in a medium as demanding as the Web,
every word needs a second pair of eyes to review it.
Yahoo!'s editors can help you write text for your product, service, or feature, from
UI instructions to marketing copy. We can copyedit new features and revisions
while giving your property another usability test—we're QA for language.
We maintain "best practices" standards for marketing emails, property newsletters,
and other documents. If you have a question about something as simple as a
comma or as complex as sponsored content, ask us.
You can find a PDF and web-based copy of the Yahoo! Editorial Style Guide on the
Yahoo! Editorial home page (http://editorial.corp.yahoo.com/). You’ll also find
information about what Editorial can do for you and how to contact members of the
Editorial staff.
For a quick response to your grammar, spelling, punctuation, and usage questions,
email [email protected].
For editorial support for a new or revised product, service, or feature, email
[email protected]
Property style guides
Many properties, products, and features have associated guidelines, although not
all of them are available online. We may be able to help you locate copies of other
property style guides.
167
Policy and compliance guidelines
Inktomi Style Guidelines
(http://internal.inktomi.com/techpubs/Process/style.htm)
Yahoo! Sports Editorial Style Guide
(http://produce.yahoo.com/sports/editorial/Yahoo_Sports_style_guide.doc)
Policy and compliance guidelines
Policy and Compliance home page (http://policy.corp.yahoo.com)
Privacy Policy (http://policy.corp.yahoo.com/privacy_policy/)
Advertising Policy (http://policy.corp.yahoo.com/ad_policy/)
Communication Policy (http://policy.corp.yahoo.com/communications_policy/).
Includes policies on viral marketing emails and guidelines for service
announcements, among others
Brand and legal guidelines
Yahoo! Brand Guidelines (http://mtb.corp.yahoo.com/app/index.php)
Personal Blog Guidelines
(http://backyard.yahoo.com/resources/forms/hr/blog/blog_guidelines.pdf)
Trademark, copyright, and domain name guidelines
(http://backyard.yahoo.com/resources/websites/trademarks.html)
UI guidelines
Front Page Mantel Design and Code Specs
(http://ue.corp.yahoo.com/gui/prod/mainsite/mantles/specs/mantelguide/guide/
index.html)
User Experience (http://ue.corp.yahoo.com)
User-facing terms (http://ue.corp.yahoo.com/drupal/glossary/18)
Glossaries
Policy and compliance glossary
(http://policy.corp.yahoo.com/images/glossary.html)
Marketing Toolbox glossary (http://mtb.corp.yahoo.com/app/glossary.php)
User-facing terms (http://ue.corp.yahoo.com/drupal/glossary/18)
UED terms (http://ue.corp.yahoo.com/drupal/glossary/9)
168
Other Resources
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
References. The books (some online) that editors and writers use to improve or correct all kinds
of communications.
Books about writing for the Web. Some of our favorite reads about writing for the Web.
Organizations. Join others who share an interest in communicating all kinds of information.
Web sites and newsletters. Find it online or have it delivered to your inbox.
Reference material
Associated Press Stylebook. The stylebook is available online to Yahoo!
employees. Contact [email protected] for login and password
information to access the site.
OTHER RESOURCES
Books about writing. The quintessential book for learning the basics of writing effectively and
correctly.
American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language—Fourth Edition
(http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary)
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus
(http://education.yahoo.com/reference/thesaurus/)
Chicago Manual of Style
Books about general writing
The Elements of Style. William Strunk, Jr. (www.bartleby.com/141/index.html)
Lapsing into a Comma. Bill Walsh, Copy Chief, The Washington Post
The Elephants of Style. Bill Walsh.
Books about writing for the Web
Hot Text: Web Writing That Works, Jonathan and Lisa Price
Net Words: Creating High-Impact Online Copy, Nick Usborne
Don't Make Me Think, Steve Krug
Writing for the Web, Sun Microsystems (www.sun.com/980713/webwriting/)
169
Organizations for writers and editors
Organizations for writers and editors
Society for Technical Communication (STC). www.stc.org. The national
organization produces a magazine and journal, both of which feature relevant
articles. Local chapters hold monthly meetings (open to members and the
public) relating to a variety of writing topics.
Usability Engineering BOF (Birds of a Feather). www.baychi.org/bof/usability/
American Copy Editors Society (ACES). http://www.copydesk.org/
Web sites and newsletters for writers and editors
Poynter Online (www.poynter.org). "Everything you need to be a better
journalist."
Writing for Multimedia: A Guide, Michael Butzgy
(http://home.earthlink.net/~atomic_rom/contents.htm). The chapter Writing for
the Web (http://home.earthlink.net/~atomic_rom/web.htm) contains a summary
of best practices in web writing.
Common Errors in English (www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/errors.html).
User Interface Engineering (www.uie.com). Sign up for Jared Spool's
newsletter UIEtips from User Interface Engineering.
www.useit.com. Jakob Nielsen's web site. Sign up for the brief Alertbox
newsletter.
www.wordspy.com. A site "devoted to lexpionage, the sleuthing of new words
and phrases."
www.excessvoice.com. Nick Usborne (author of Net Words: Creating HighImpact Online Copy) writes the Excess Voice newsletter.
techwr-l (www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/). Includes articles on writing; reviews of
software, courses, and books on writing; and a very active moderated
discussion list. Discussions range from technical writing, tools for writing, writing
for the Web, usability and other topics of interest to writers and editors.
Maintains a searchable archive of past discussions.
copyediting-l (http://ce-l.technology-corner.com). Very active unmoderated list
server for copyeditors. Responses to questions relating to copyediting issues
can be very fast and authoritative. Maintains a searchable archive of past
discussions.
The Slot (www.theslot.com). “A spot for copy editors since 1995.” From Bill
Walsh.
170
Creating a Style Guide
IN
THIS
CHAPTER
...
Starting with a style guide. The style guide starts when a new product, service, or property is
being developed.
Contents. The contents of a style guide will vary by product, service, or property, but should
include information about audience and voice, word usage (including a glossary), use of person,
and data formats.
Starting with a style guide
The style guide can serve as a resource for marketing, customer care, PR, other
associated product teams, and anyone else who will be communicating directly
with users about the product.
Contents of a style guide
The contents of a style guide will vary by property, but consider including the
following topics:
Target audience and voice
Word usage and glossary
Use of person
CREATING A STYLE GUIDE
The scope of a style guide varies from product to product, but should be an
important part of Editorial work on new product development. The style guide and
its glossary are the responsibility of the editorial lead/writer assigned to the product
team. But the documents emerge as a result of collaboration among all key product
stakeholders, including User Experience Research (UER), User Experience and
Design (UED), Marketing, and Product. In some cases, the document may require
review and approval by Legal and/or Policy.
Data formats
Navigation and button conventions
Some products may require additional topics.
171
Audience and voice
Include a description of the intended audience, which should be available in the
Product Requirements Document (PRD).
Define the voice of the property (from Professional to Casual) and explain when
other voices may be appropriate.
Word usage
Clearly defined, thoughtful, consistent terminology and nomenclature contribute to
usability, help define the user experience, and inform the evolution of the product
and its voice.
The style guide should include a description of the process that was used to decide
words and phrases to be used (or avoided). The words that were considered and
rejected can be documented separately or included in the glossary as long as they
are clearly and emphatically identified as incorrect or inappropriate for the product.
Glossary
A glossary is an alphabetical list of words and phrases unique to the property. A
good glossary is a living document, expected to change over time and over the life
of the product. A product glossary helps to support the evolution of integrated
Yahoo! platforms, products, and services and reduce confusion for the user.
It can contain:
Words, phrases, abbreviations, and acronyms that are unique to the property or
that differ from current or recommended usage.
Each entry should show the correct spelling, hyphenation, and capitalization.
Include all alternate hyphenation (such as log on and log-on) or capitalization
(such as a product name that can also be a generic word) with an explanation
of use and examples.
If the spelling, hyphenation, or capitalization of an entry is unusual or is likely to
be overlooked, call attention to it in the definition.
For abbreviations and acronyms, the spelled-out form and an explanation of
when use of the abbreviation/acronym is acceptable or preferable. Include an
entry for both the abbreviation/acronym and the spelled-out form with crossreferences between them, if necessary.
Definition and usage of entries, if necessary. If the use of an entry could be
confusing, include clarifying remarks and provide examples.
Part of speech (verb, noun, adverb, adjective), if necessary.
172
A glossary may also include:
Words that should not be used, with the alternate, accepted word. Include
terminology that may be used internally, but should not be used in
communications with users.
Calls to action
Specify the verbs to be used for actions such as selecting a menu item, turning a
checkbox or radio button on or off or entering text. These call-to-action terms may
be included as part of the glossary or documented in a separate section of the style
guide.
Note
For more information on call-to-action verbs, see Glossary: User-facing
terms (http://ue.corp.yahoo.com/drupal/glossary/18).
Consider using one of the verbs from these sets as the standard and documenting
the decision in the style guide:
delete/remove
customize/personalize/individualize
deny/ignore
create/compose
log in/log on/sign in/sign on
register/sign up/subscribe
log out/log off/sign out/sign off
check/select/choose
uncheck/un-check/unselect/deselect
type/enter
post/publish
email/mail
CREATING A STYLE GUIDE
edit/change/modify
IM/instant message/message
open/expand
close/collapse
173
Use of person
Text is usually written in the first person (I, we, my, our) or second person (you,
your). It may be acceptable to use both; if so, state when. Indicate which person
(first or second) will be used in the UI copy for instructions, labels, calls to action,
explanatory text, etc.
Instructions and labels in second person
(“your”) or imperative (“you” understood)
Specify if a combination of first and second person is acceptable and the conditions
for using both.
Label in second person (“your”); radio button
text in first person (“me”)
Data formats
Include the format to be used for the display of dates in messages and the
treatment of numbers.
Capitalization and typography
Specify the use of capitalization styles, bold, italic, and quotation marks for
headlines, link text, controls (command buttons, radio buttons, labels, menus, etc.)
and for referring to parts of the UI in text such as in instructions and help.
174
Modifiers Conjunctions Typography Email Dates Voice Jargon Numbers Yahoo! Glossary Sentences Readability Summaries
Lists Infinitives Headings Page Days Page Titles Directions Cities Proper Names Dictionaries Number Ranges Apostrophes
Person Web Conjunctions Typography Newsletters Underlining Help Consistency Years Instructions Click Hyphens Money
Participles Ellipses Misspellings Sentences Action Click Hyphens Voice of Yahoo! Boxes Buttons Phone Numbers Verbs
Actions Links Glossaries Tips Notes Percentages Links Ampersands Footers Dimensions Commas Deadwood Person Tense
Days Links Glossaries Tips Notes Nouns Pronouns Commas Page Titles Cities Slashes Zones Decades Possessives Currency
Days Jargon Sentences Click Serial Commas Feedback Links Periods Dictionaries Hyphens Tips Web Front Page Person
Punctuation Capitalizing URLs Readability Privacy Policy Footers URLs Phone Numbers Definitions titles Buttons Ranges
References Semicolons Dashes Money Dates Tense Infinitives Conjunctions Prepositions Buttons Voice Nouns Files WWW
Negatives Jargon Sentences Consistency Buttons Feedback Casual Voice Topics Years Titles Plurals Copyrights Countries
Error Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters Months Topics Emails Subject Lines Percentages Locations
Misspellings Correlatives Sentences Action Click Page Titles Ampersands Footers Dimensions Commas Topics Tense
Directions Underlining Slashes Numbers Verbs Actions Percentages Locations Hyphens Modifiers Infinitives Italic Jargon
Ellipses Titles Links Footers Procedures Dimensions Commas Deadwood Person Tense Days Time Zones Boxes Dictionaries
Help Verbs Actions Tips Front Page Nouns Help Casual Voice Topics Adjectives Commas Quotations Jargon Cities Proper
Names Possessives Apostrophes Footers Ellipses Titles Links Ampersands Modifiers Verbs Conjunctions Correlatives
Commas Abbreviations Tense Click Keys Error Messages Voice Brand Numbers Dictionaries Topics Deadwood Consistency
Tense Help Jargon Cities Decades Front Page Apostrophes Quotation Marks Formats Ellipses Years Feedback Emails
Newsletters Centuries Commas Money Jargon Sentences Click Serial Commas Feedback Links Dictionaries Hyphens Tips
Web Front Page Person Punctuation Colons Capitalizing URLs Privacy Policy Help Links Glossaries Tips Notes Consistency
Dimensions Time Commas Deadwood URLs Person Tense Days Time Zones Boxes Dictionaries Help Verbs Tips Front Page
Nouns Casual Voice Copyrights Error Messages Medium Voice Brand Audience Newsletters Phone Numbers Months Topics
Emails Presentations Punctuation Subject Lines Percentages Locations Plurals Ellipses Consistency Buttons Feedback Casual
Voice Boxes Headings Footers Periods Plurals Percentages Locations Copyrights Newsletters Time Readability Dates Words
Copyrights Headings WWW Commas Modifiers Numbers Voice Blogs Jargon Commas URLs Participles Serial Commas
Feedback URLs Links Periods Dictionaries Hyphens Tips Web Front Page Ellipses Misspellings Lists Infinitives Blogs
Decades Front Page Apostrophes Quotation Marks Formats Ellipses Years Numbers Emails Tense Links Yahoo! Voice
Reference
3D
Not 3-D.
401(k)
Note parentheses and lowercase k.
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
Yahoo! Glossary
A
A.D.
Note caps, periods, and no space after the first period. For more
information, see Years on page 83.
ABA number
A routing number devised by the American Bankers Association
(ABA). Note capitalization.
Address AutoComplete
Note capitalization and spacing.
address book
Lowercase when used generically and not preceded by Yahoo!.
See also Yahoo! Address Book on page 194.
AddressGuard
Note capitalization and no space.
African American
Note no hyphen when used as an adjective or a noun.
aka
Abbreviation for also known as. Lowercase, no periods, no
spaces.
alerts
See also Yahoo! Alerts on page 194.
AltaVista
Note capitalization.
a.m.
Lowercase, no space. Not AM, a. m. Include a space between
the number and a.m. See also Time on page 88.
amidst
Don't use; use amid instead, which is the preferred U.S. word.
Amidst is chiefly British and is considered a variant of amid in the
U.S.
amongst
Don't use; use among instead, which is the preferred U.S. word.
Amongst is chiefly British and is considered a variant of among
in the U.S.
Anti-Spy
Note capitalization and hyphen.
177
Yahoo! Glossary
Anti-Virus, anti-virus
Initial caps and hyphenated when referring to the product that is
part of Yahoo! Online Protection. Lowercase, hyphenated when
used generically. When referring to the name of a specific antivirus product, use the manufacturer's spelling, hyphenation, and
capitalization (for example, Norton AntiVirus, eTrust Antivirus,
Computer Associates Antivirus).
In a heading or other title using Title style caps, capitalize as AntiVirus. At the start of a sentence, capitalize as Anti-virus.
ASCII
Acronym for American Standard Code for Information
Interchange. All caps. Always acceptable to abbreviate.
Ask Yahoo!
auction
See also Yahoo! Auctions on page 194.
Audible
Note capitalization when referring to the Yahoo! feature.
Avatar
Capitalize when preceded by Yahoo! or when part of a property
component, such as Avatar Preview Window.
B
B.C.
Note caps, periods, and no space after the first period. For more
information, see Years on page 83.
back up (v.)
backup (n., adj.)
When used as a verb, it's two words. In all other cases, it's one
word.
Examples
We automatically back up your web site.
When the backup is complete, you'll see a list of all backup files.
178
Banking Center
Basic Editor
bimonthly
biweekly
biannual(ly)
Don't use any of these words. They can mean happening either
every two months (weeks, years) or twice a month (week, year).
Instead, use the longer but unambiguous every two months
(weeks, years) or twice a month (week, year).
birth date
Two words. Not birthdate.
Yahoo! Glossary
Hyphenated when it precedes the word it modifies.
Examples
You can print the map in black and white.
You can print a black-and-white map.
BlackBerry
Note capitalization. One word. Plural: BlackBerrys.
blog
Acceptable as a noun, verb, or adjective. Preferred to weblog.
blond (n., adj.)
blonde (n.)
According to AP style, use blond as a noun for a male and as an
adjective. Use blonde as a noun for a female.
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
black and white (n.)
black-and-white (adj.)
Examples
The blond spoke candidly about his last movie and his blond
girlfriend.
The blonde spoke candidly about her last movie.
Bluetooth
Initial cap; one word.
BMP
Abbreviation for bitmap. Generally used to refer to a graphic file.
Abbreviation is always OK.
bookmark
See also Yahoo! Bookmarks on page 195.
bps
Abbreviation for bits per second. Lowercase.
briefcase
See also Yahoo! Briefcase on page 195.
browsable
Note spelling.
Bulk folder
Note capitalization when referring to the folder in Yahoo! Mail.
bulk loader
Lowercase.
bulk mail
Lowercase when referring generically to email sent in bulk.
Bulk Mail folder
Note capitalization when referring to the folder in Yahoo! Mail.
bulk mailer
Lowercase.
buzz
Buzz
Lowercase when used generically. Initial cap when preceded by
Yahoo! or when referring to the Buzz Log or Buzz Index. See
also Yahoo! Buzz Index on page 195.
179
Yahoo! Glossary
C
calendar
See also Yahoo! Calendar on page 195.
canceled
canceling
cancellation
Note the single l for the verb forms; double l's for the noun.
CD
All caps. Always OK to abbreviate. Plural: CDs.
CD-R
All caps, hyphenated.
CD-ROM
All caps, hyphenated
CD-RW
All caps, hyphenated.
chat
See also Yahoo! Chat on page 195.
chat room
Lowercase, two words.
check out (v.)
checkout (n., adj.)
word, no hyphen.
Examples
You'll find that you can check out very quickly.
The checkout process is very short.
You enter this information during checkout.
180
checkbox
One word, no hyphen.
Chinese American
Note no hyphen when used as an adjective or a noun.
City Guides
classifieds
See also Yahoo! Classifieds on page 195.
click
Depending on the object, use click (for a button, link, other
interface element) or click on (for a file, photograph, icon, etc.).
See Mouse actions on page 32 for details.
clip art
Two words.
commercial-free
Note hyphen.
companion
Don't use to refer to the Yahoo! Toolbar. Yahoo! Companion is
now Yahoo! Toolbar. See Yahoo! Toolbar on page 201.
Content Match
Feature of Sponsored Search. Note capitalization.
Yahoo! Glossary
One word, no hyphen.
CSV
Abbreviation for comma-separated values, a file type. Generally
used to refer to a file containing values separated by commas. All
caps. OK to abbreviate after first explanation.
customizable
Note spelling.
D
debut
In general, use debut when referring to people. See also
premiere on page 188.
dial up (v.)
dial-up (n., adj.)
When used as a verb, it's two words. As a noun or adjective, it's
hyphenated.
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
coworker
Examples
SBC Yahoo! Dial provides unlimited nationwide dial-up access.
Get high-speed access for the price of dial-up.
Directory
Capitalize when referring to the Yahoo! Directory, even when not
preceded by Yahoo!.
disk
Note spelling when referring to a computer disk.
do's and don'ts
Note apostrophes.
double-click (v.)
Note hyphen.
drag and drop (v.)
drag-and-drop (adj.)
When used as a verb, it’s three words. As an adjective, it’s
hyphenated. Not drag-n-drop, drag ‘n’ drop.
Examples
Just drag and drop photos onto the album.
Add photos quickly with the drag-and-drop feature.
drop-down box
Don't use. Use pull-down menu, menu, list.
drop-down menu
Don't use. Use pull-down menu, menu, list.
DVD
All caps. Plural: DVDs.
E
e.g.
Abbreviation meaning for example. Note periods, no space after
the first period. OK to use when space is a consideration;
otherwise, use for example, for instance, such as. If used,
include a comma after the last period. See also i.e. on page 184.
e-bill
Lowercase, hyphenated.
181
Yahoo! Glossary
e-biller
ebook
Lowercase, one word, no hyphen. (Exception to AP style.)
e-business
ecard
Lowercase, one word, no hyphen. Note that Yahoo! Greetings
uses eCard because that's what the content partner (American
Greetings) uses. Yahooligans! refers to it as Yahooligans! Ecards and generically as e-card.
e-commerce
email
Lowercase, one word, no hyphen. (Exception to AP style.)
e-tail
F
FAQ
FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions. OK to abbreviate on second
reference only. Either FAQ or FAQs is acceptable, as long as it is
used consistently.
fax
Lowercase.
File Manager
file name
Lower case, two words. Not filename.
Friend List
Don't use to refer to the list of contacts in Yahoo! Messenger 6 or
newer. Use Messenger List.
Front Page
Capitalize when referring to the Yahoo! Front Page
(www.yahoo.com), even when not preceded by Yahoo!.
FTP
Abbreviation for File Transfer Protocol. Abbreviation is always
OK.
Full Coverage
Note capitalization when referring to the Yahoo! News product.
Funds Transfer
G
182
Game Boy
Note capitalization and space.
GameCube
GB
Abbreviation for gigabyte. All caps. Don't include a space
between the number and GB.
GeoCities
Note capitalization and no space. Use with singular verb. See
also Yahoo! GeoCities on page 197.
Yahoo! Glossary
GHz
Abbreviation for gigahertz. Note capitalization. Don't include a
space between the number and GHz.
GIF
Acronym for Graphic Interchange Format. Generally used to
refer to an image file with the file name extension "gif." All caps.
Acronym is always OK.
gigabyte
OK to abbreviate as GB.
grey
Don't use. Use gray instead, which is the preferred U.S. spelling.
Grey is chiefly British and is considered a variant of gray in the
U.S.
group
See also Yahoo! Groups on page 197.
guestbook
Lowercase, one word.
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
GeoPlus
H
help pages
Lowercase when referring to general help pages.
high speed (n.)
high-speed (adj.)
Hyphenated when it precedes the word it modifies.
Examples
Get high-speed Internet access.
Sign up now and soar through the Internet at a truly high speed.
hip-hop
hit
Don’t use. When referring to a key, use press. Use click (for a
button, link, or other interface element) or click on (for a file,
photograph, icon, etc.) for the mouse action. See Mouse actions
on page 32 for details.
Before
Select the country and hit the "Get Map" button.
After
Select the country and click the "Get Map" button.
home page
Lowercase, two words. Not homepage.
host name
HotJobs
Note capitalization and no space. See also Yahoo! HotJobs on
page 197.
183
Yahoo! Glossary
hover
Don't use to describe the action of holding the mouse pointer
over an area of the page. Use roll, move, pass your mouse over,
or an equivalent phrase.
HTML
Abbreviation for Hypertext Markup Language. All caps.
I
184
i.e.
Abbreviation meaning that is. Note periods and no space after
the first. OK to use when space is a consideration; otherwise, use
that is, in other words, or equivalent. If used, include a comma
after the last period. See also e.g. on page 181.
ID
All caps, no period, no space. Not Id, id. Plural: IDs.
IE
Initialism for Internet Explorer. All caps, no periods, no space.
Abbreviation acceptable on second reference only.
Ignore List
Note capitalization when referring to the Messenger Ignore List.
IM
Initialism for instant message. All caps, no periods, no space.
Plural: IMs.
Image Search
IMV
Abbreviation for IMVironment. Abbreviation is acceptable after
first reference only. Plural: IMVs.
IMVironment
Note capitalization. Abbreviation to IMV acceptable after first
reference only.
info
In general, use information, rather than info. However, if space is
tight (such as in the Directory or on the Front Page), info is
acceptable.
Inside Yahoo!
instant messenger
Lowercase. See Messenger on page 187.
Insurance Center
Internet
Internet Explorer
OK to abbreviate as IE after first reference.
Internet service provider
Note capitalization. OK to abbreviate as ISP.
ISP
Abbreviation for Internet service provider. Plural: ISPs.
Yahoo! Glossary
Java
JavaScript
JPEG
Abbreviation for Joint Photographic Experts Group. Generally
used to refer to any graphic image file produced by using the
JPEG standard. All caps. Abbreviation is always OK. Plural:
JPEGs.
junk mail
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
J
K
KB
Abbreviation for kilobyte. All caps. Don't include a space
between the number and KB.
Kbps
KBps
Abbreviation for kilobits per second (Kbps) and kilobytes per
second (KBps). Note difference in capitalization.
keyword
One word.
KHz
Abbreviation for kilohertz. Note capitalization. Don't include a
space between the number and KHz.
kilobyte
OK to abbreviate as KB.
L
LAUNCH
All caps.
LAUNCHcast
LAUNCHcast Plus
LAUNCHcast Radio
learnt
Don't use; use learned instead, which is the preferred U.S.
spelling. Learnt is chiefly British and is considered a variant of
learned in the U.S.
left-hand side
Don't use. Use left side instead.
list (n.)
Lowercase. Also acceptable: pull-down menu, menu. Not dropdown list.
Loan Center
local Yahoo!s
185
Yahoo! Glossary
log in, log in to (v.)
login (n., adj.)
When used as a verb, it's two or three words. In all other cases,
it's one word.
Examples
To log in here, enter your login name.
You'll enter your password during login and each time you log in.
Note that sign in is preferred.
log on, log on to (v.)
logon (n., adj.)
When used as a verb, it's two or three words. In all other cases,
it's one word. Note that sign in is preferred.
log out (v.)
logout (n., adj.)
word.
Example
If you forget to log out, you'll get a logout reminder.
Note that sign out is preferred.
M
Mac
machine
Don't use when referring to a computer; use computer.
Before
The font face must be present on the machine.
After
The font face must be present on the computer.
186
mailbox
Marketplace Ad Manager
MarketTracker
Note capitalization. One word.
MasterCard
Note capitalization. One word.
MB
Abbreviation for megabyte. All caps. Don't include a space
between the number and MB. Not Mbyte.
Mbyte
Don't use as an abbreviation for megabyte. See MB.
megabyte
OK to abbreviate as MB.
menu
Lowercase. Also acceptable: pull-down menu, list. Not dropdown menu.
message board
See also Yahoo! Message Boards on page 198.
Yahoo! Glossary
Capitalized even when not preceded by Yahoo!.
MHz
Abbreviation for megahertz. Note capitalization. Don't include a
space between the number and MHz.
MIDI
Acronym for Musical Instrument Digital Interface. All caps.
Acronym is always OK.
Minidisc
mouseover
Don't use to describe the action of holding the mouse pointer
over an area of the page. Use roll, move, pass your mouse over,
or an equivalent phrase.
MP3
Plural: MP3s.
Musicmatch
Mutual Funds Center
My Web
My Web 2.0
Note capitalization and spaces. Not MyWeb.
My Yahoo!
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
Messenger
N
name server
Two words.
Native American
Note capitalization. Not hyphenated even when used as an
adjective.
Net
Note capitalization. OK to use as shorthand for the Internet.
Netscape
Nielsen//NetRatings
An Internet media and market research company. Note spelling,
capitalization, slashes, and spacing.
noncommercial
One word. Not non-commercial.
nonfiction
One word. Not non-fiction.
nonprofit
One word. Not non-profit.
O
offline
One word, not hyphenated. Not off-line, off line.
OK
Note capitalization. Not okay, Ok, or ok.
online
One word, not hyphenated. Not on-line, on line.
Online Protection
Note capitalization when referring to Yahoo! Online Protection.
187
Yahoo! Glossary
P
PageBuilder
Parental Controls
Note capitalization. See also Yahoo! Parental Controls on
page 199.
password
Lowercase.
PC
Abbreviation is always OK. Plural: PCs.
PC call
OK to use for a PC-to-PC phone call. Use as a noun only. For a
verb form, use place a PC call, make a PC call, use your PC to
call, make calls from your PC, or similar.
PDA
Abbreviation for personal digital assistant. Abbreviation is always
OK. Plural: PDAs.
PDF
Abbreviation for Portable Document Format. Generally used to
refer to files created by using Adobe Acrobat. All caps.
Abbreviation is always OK. Plural: PDFs.
peer-to-peer (adj.)
Note hyphens.
percent
See Percentages on page 86.
PIN
All caps. Not PIN number.
PlayStation
plug-in (n., adj.)
plug in (v.)
Note hyphen in the noun and adjective forms. Not plugin.
p.m.
Lowercase, no space. Not PM, p. m. Include a space between
the number and p.m. See also Time on page 88.
podcast
pop-up (n., adj.)
pop up (v.)
Note hyphen in the noun and adjective forms. Not popup.
Examples
Get rid of pop-ups before they pop up.
Stop annoying pop-up ads.
188
Pop-Up Blocker
premiere
In general, use premiere for events. See also debut on
page 181.
Premium Customer Care
Yahoo! Glossary
When referring to a key on a keyboard, use press. Use click (for
a button, link, or other interface element) or click on (for a file,
photograph, icon, etc.) for the mouse action. See Mouse actions
on page 32 for details.
print
print out
print off
When instructing readers to create a hard copy of a document,
page, etc., use print. In some cases, print out can be used;
however, don’t use print off, which is chiefly British.
promo
OK to use when space is tight as a heading for a promotion or
promotional box.
PS2, PS3
OK to use as abbreviation for PlayStation 2 (PlayStation 3). Note
no capitalization and no space.
pull-down menu
Note hyphen. Not drop-down menu, drop-down box. Also
acceptable: menu, list.
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
press
Q
QuickBuilder
QuickTime
R
RAM
Abbreviation for random access memory. Abbreviation is always
OK.
real time (n.)
real-time (adj.)
When used as a noun, it's two words. As an adjective, it's
hyphenated.
Examples
Watch the file stream in real time.
Watch the real-time video file.
Get real-time updates delivered to your phone.
Resumix
Note capitalization and spelling.
right-click (v.)
Note hyphen.
right-hand side
Don't use. Use right side instead.
ringtone
rock ‘n’ roll
Note apostrophes. The variant rock-and-roll (hyphenated) is also
acceptable, although rock ‘n’ roll is preferred.
189
Yahoo! Glossary
S
SafeSearch
SBC Yahoo!
SBC Yahoo! Browser
SBC Yahoo! DSL
SBC Yahoo! User Chooser
SBC Yahoo! Web Portal
screen
Use only to refer to the computer screen, not a page on a web
site. When referring to a web site, use page.
search
Search
Capitalize when referring to Yahoo! Search or the Yahoo! Search
box, even when not preceded by Yahoo!. Lowercase when used
generically or as a verb.
searched on (v.)
searched-on (adj.)
When used as a verb, it’s two words. As an adjective, it’s
hyphenated.
Examples
Millions of you searched on “hurricane” this week.
“Hurricane” is the most searched-on word this week.
security key
Lowercase.
set up (v.)
setup (n., adj.)
word.
Examples
Set up your Yahoo! Store.
Check your Yahoo! Store setup.
Your setup fee is waived.
Shortcuts
Capitalized when referring to Yahoo! Search Shortcuts, even
when not preceded by Yahoo!.
sign in, sign in to (v.)
sign-in (adj.)
When used as a verb, it's two or three words. As an adjective, it's
hyphenated.
Example
All users must sign in on the sign-in page.
190
Yahoo! Glossary
When used as a verb, it's two words. As an adjective, it's
hyphenated.
Examples
Sign up for Yahoo! Mail.
Fill in the sign-up form.
Smart Pages
Social Security number
SpamGuard
SpamGuard Plus
Sponsor Listings
Sponsor Results
Sponsored Search
SSN
Abbreviation for Social Security number. Not SSN number.
stand-alone
Note hyphen.
StatTracker
store
Store
Lowercase when used generically, capitalized when referring to
a Yahoo! store, even when not preceded by Yahoo!. See also
Yahoo! Store on page 201.
Store Editor
Store Manager
sub account
Lowercase, two words. Not subaccount, sub-account.
Super Webcam
sync
Not synch.
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
sign up (v.)
sign-up (adj.)
T
Tax Center
thank you (v.)
thank-you (n., adj.)
As a noun or adjective, it's hyphenated.
Examples
As a thank-you for your participation, you’ll receive...
Please accept this thank-you gift for your participation.
We would like to thank you for participating.
191
Yahoo! Glossary
toolbar
Toolbar
One word. Capitalize when referring to the Yahoo! Toolbar, even
when not preceded by Yahoo!. Lowercase when used
generically. See also Yahoo! Toolbar on page 201.
top
Avoid using to mean "highest" or "most." Use most viewed or
equivalent. If necessary to use, include qualifier, such as top box
office or top 10 searches.
traveled, traveling, traveler
Note the single l.
troubleshoot
One word.
TrueSwitch
T-shirt
TV
Abbreviation is always OK. Plural: TVs.
U
U.K.
United Kingdom. Note periods; no space. Not UK, except in
postal addresses.
UNIX
All caps.
upper-left corner
Note hyphen. Not upper-left hand corner.
upper-right corner
Note hyphen. Not upper-right hand corner.
up-to-date
Note hyphens.
Examples
Keep your calendar up-to-date.
Keep an up-to-date calendar.
192
URL
All caps. Abbreviation is always OK. Plural: URLs.
U.S.
United States. Note periods, no space. Not US, U. S. The single
exception is specifying currency in prices; in this case, do not
include the periods; for example, US$299.
user
Consider using member, subscriber, customer, reader, visitor, or
similar. See Person and pronouns on page 99 for details.
User ID
Note capitalization. Plural: User IDs.
user name
Lowercase, two words. Not username.
Yahoo! Glossary
Video Search
Visa
Credit card company. Note capitalization. Not VISA.
voicemail
Lowercase, one word. Not voice mail.
W
Web
web
Initial cap when used as a noun to refer to the World Wide Web;
that is, when referring to "the Web." In all other cases, lowercase.
(In some cases, the result may be an exception to AP style.)
web hosting
web page
Lowercase, two words. (Exception to AP style.)
web site
Lowercase, two words. Not website. (Exception to AP style.)
webcam
Lowercase, one word. However, Super Webcam.
webcast
weblog
Lowercase, one word. Use only when describing the origin of the
word blog, which is preferred.
What's New
Capitalized when referring to the page.
Wi-Fi
Note capitalization and hyphen. Short for wireless fidelity.
Shortened form always OK.
word-of-mouth (n., adj.)
Note hyphens in both the noun and the adjective forms.
World Wide Web
worldwide (adj., adv.)
One word.
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
V
world Yahoo!s
WWW
All caps. OK to use as an abbreviation for World Wide Web.
X
Xbox
Note capitalization and no space. Not X Box, X-Box.
X-ray
193
Yahoo! Glossary
Y
Y!
OK to use as shorthand for Yahoo! when space is tight.
Yahoo!
Yahoo (n.)
yahoo (v.)
When referring to the company, its brands, products, or
services, use uppercase Y. Be sure to include the
exclamation point. Possessive: Yahoo!'s.
When referring to an employee of Yahoo!, use uppercase Y
and no exclamation point. Plural: Yahoos.
When using as a verb, use lowercase y and no exclamation
point. The one exception is the tagline Do you Yahoo!?,
which uses uppercase and an exclamation point.
Don't use yahoo as an exclamation.
Examples
Yahoo! employees are a dedicated group, often found yahooing
on their own time.
Yahoo!'s service providers may collect personal information.
The company employs dedicated Yahoos.
Yahoo! 360°
Note the °.
Yahoo! Address Book
Initial caps when referring to the property. Lowercase when not
preceded by Yahoo!.
Yahoo! Alerts
Use with singular verb.
Example
Yahoo! Alerts is a convenient way to get your most important
information.
Yahoo! Astrology
Capitalized when referring to the property.
Yahoo! Auctions
Capitalized when referring to the property. Lowercase when not
preceded by Yahoo!. Use with singular verb.
Example
Yahoo! Auctions is a convenient way to buy and sell.
Yahoo! Australia & NZ
194
Yahoo! Glossary
Example
What is Yahoo! Autos? Yahoo! Autos is a resource for
automotive research, commerce, community, and ownership
information.
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
Yahoo! Autos
Yahoo! Bill Pay
Yahoo! Billing
Yahoo! Bookmarks
preceded by Yahoo!.
Yahoo! Brasil
preceded by Yahoo!.
Yahoo! Briefcase
Yahoo! Browser
Yahoo! Buzz Index
preceded by Yahoo!.
Yahoo! by Phone
Yahoo! Calendar
Yahoo! Canada
Yahoo! Chat
Yahoo! Chinese
Yahoo! Classifieds
Example
What is Yahoo! Classifieds? Yahoo! Classifieds is a classified
advertising service.
Yahoo! Clubs
Yahoo! Companion
Don't use. Yahoo! Companion is now Yahoo! Toolbar.
Yahoo! Connected Office
Yahoo! Customer Care
Yahoo! Delivers
Yahoo! Denmark
195
Yahoo! Glossary
Yahoo! Desktop Search
Yahoo! Direct
Yahoo! Directory
Yahoo! Domains
Example
What is Yahoo! Domains? Yahoo! Domains provides a place for
individuals and organizations to register a new domain name.
Yahoo! Drive
Yahoo! Driving Directions
Example
Yahoo! Driving Directions is out there waiting for you.
Yahoo! Education
Yahoo! Employment
Yahoo! Enterprise Solutions
Yahoo! Entertainment
Yahoo! Expense Manager
Yahoo! Express
Yahoo! Family Accounts
preceded by Yahoo!.
Yahoo! Finance
Yahoo! France
Yahoo! Front Page
Yahoo! Full Coverage
Yahoo! Games
Example
What is Yahoo! Games? Yahoo! Games is a collection of free,
Java-based games on the Web.
Yahoo! Games All-Stars
Yahoo! Games on Demand
196
Yahoo! Glossary
Note capitalization. Use with singular verb.
Example
Yahoo! GeoCities is the easiest way to build a web page.
Yahoo! GeoCities Plus
Yahoo! GeoCities Pro
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
Yahoo! GeoCities
Yahoo! Germany
Yahoo! Get Local
Yahoo! Get Local City Guides
Yahoo! Greetings
Example
Yahoo! Greetings has partnered with AmericanGreetings.com.
Yahoo! Groups
Capitalized when referring to the property. Use with singular
verb. Lowercase when not preceded by Yahoo!.
Example
Yahoo! Groups is a free service that allows you to bring together
family, friends, and associates through web site and email
groups.
Yahoo! Health
Yahoo! Help
Yahoo! Help Central
Yahoo! Hong Kong
Yahoo! HotJobs
Example
Yahoo! HotJobs is a free service.
Yahoo! Image Search
Yahoo! in Asia
Yahoo! Internet Life
Yahoo! Italy
197
Yahoo! Glossary
Yahoo! Japan
Yahoo! Korea
Yahoo! Local Events
Yahoo! Lodging
Yahoo! Lottery
Yahoo! Lottery Results
Yahoo! Mail
Yahoo! Mail Plus
Yahoo! Maps
Example
Yahoo! Maps provides a map of a street address or intersection.
Yahoo! Member Directory
Yahoo! Merchant Solutions
Example
Yahoo! Merchant Solutions offers an easy way to own and
operate a secure online store.
Yahoo! Message Boards
Capitalized when referring to the property. Use with singular
verb. Lowercase when not preceded by Yahoo!.
Example
Yahoo! Message Boards provides unmoderated public
discussions in a variety of message boards.
Yahoo! Messenger
Capitalize Messenger even when not preceded by Yahoo!.
Yahoo! Mobile
Yahoo! Mobile Photos
Yahoo! Money Manager
Yahoo! Movies
Example
Yahoo! Movies is the place on the Web for movie news, reviews,
and previews.
198
Yahoo! Glossary
Yahoo! Music Unlimited
Yahoo! Net Events
Yahoo! network
Note lowercase network.
Yahoo! News
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
Yahoo! Music Engine
Yahoo! News Search
Yahoo! News Ticker
Yahoo! Norway
Yahoo! Notepad
Yahoo! Online
Yahoo! Online Protection
Yahoo! Parental Controls
Example
Yahoo! Parental Controls is a powerful tool to help protect your
children online.
Yahoo! password
Yahoo! People Search
Yahoo! Personals
Example
What is Yahoo! Personals? Yahoo! Personals helps you build
meaningful relationships.
Yahoo! Pets
Example
What is Yahoo! Pets? Yahoo! Pets is a resource site for pet
owners and animal lovers.
Yahoo! Phone Card
Yahoo! Photos
Example
Yahoo! Photos is a free service for storing your photos.
199
Yahoo! Glossary
Yahoo! Picks
Capitalized when referring to the property.
Yahoo! Picture Gallery
Yahoo! Platinum
Yahoo! Platinum Visa
Yahoo! Plus
Yahoo! Points
Note capitalization of Points.
Yahoo! Polls
Yahoo! PortalBuilder
Yahoo! premium services
Yahoo! Privacy Policy
Yahoo! Product Search
Yahoo! profile
An individual's profile on Yahoo!.
Yahoo! Profiles
Yahoo! Promotions
Yahoo! Publisher Network
Yahoo! Radio
Yahoo! Real Estate
Yahoo! Reference
Yahoo! Restaurants
Yahoo! Resumix
Yahoo! Saving Finder
Yahoo! Search
Yahoo! Search box
Yahoo! Search Marketing
Yahoo! Search Shortcuts
Yahoo! security key
Yahoo! Servers
Yahoo! Shopping
200
Yahoo! Glossary
Yahoo! Singapore
Yahoo! SiteBuilder
Yahoo! Ski and Snow
Yahoo! Small Business
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
Yahoo! Shopping Gift Card
Yahoo! Spain
Yahoo! Spanish
Yahoo! Sponsored Search
Yahoo! Sports
Yahoo! Store
Initial cap when referring to a Yahoo! store, even when not
preceded by Yahoo!.
Example
Customize your Store.
Yahoo! subcategory
Yahoo! Sweden
Yahoo! Taiwan
Yahoo! Terms of Service
Yahoo! Tickets
Yahoo! Toolbar
Not Yahoo! Companion.
Yahoo! Travel
Yahoo! TV
Yahoo! UK & Ireland
Yahoo! UKIE
Internal shorthand for Yahoo! UK & Ireland. Acceptable for
internal Yahoo! use only.
Yahoo! Video Search
Yahoo! Visa
Yahoo! Wallet
Yahoo! Weather
Yahoo! Web Hosting
201
Yahoo! Glossary
Yahoo! What's New
Yahoo! Widgets
Yahoo! Yellow Pages
Example
Yahoo! Yellow Pages is for the United States and Canada only.
Yahoo! Yellow Pages Sponsored
Business Program
Yahoo!'s
Possessive form of Yahoo!.
yahooligan
A child who visits the Yahooligans! web site. Note lowercase.
Example
Find out what yahooligans like you are searching for.
Yahooligans!
The name of the property. Always capitalize and include the "!".
Use with a singular verb.
Example
Yahooligans! is a browsable, searchable directory of Internet
sites for kids.
Yahooligans! Animals
The Yahooligans! property. Note capitalization. Be sure to
include the "!". Use with singular verb.
Example
Yahooligans! Animals is full of facts.
202
Yahooligans! Ask Earl
include the "!".
Yahooligans! Big Picture
include the "!".
Yahooligans! Buzz
include the "!".
Yahooligans! Cool Page
include the "!".
Yahooligans! Directory
include the "!".
Yahoo! Glossary
The Yahooligans! property. Note capitalization and hyphen. Be
sure to include the "!".
Yahooligans! Games
include the "!". Use with singular verb.
Example
What is Yahooligans! Games? Yahooligans! Games is a
collection of free games.
Yahooligans! Jokes
include the "!".
Yahooligans! Movies
include the "!".
YAHOO! GLOSSARY
Yahooligans! E-Cards
Example
What is Yahooligans! Movies? Yahooligans! Movies is your
source for movie summaries, ratings, pictures, and trailers.
Yahooligans! Music
include the "!".
Yahooligans! News
include the "!".
Yahooligans! Reference
include the "!".
Yahooligans! Slideshows
include the "!".
Yahooligans! TV
include the "!".
Z
ZIP code
Note capitalization. Not Zip code.
203
A
a vs. an 89
abbreviating
days of the week 82
decades 84
months 82
state names 95
time zones 88
units of measurement 84
abbreviations
about 90
at end of sentence 113
indefinite articles before 89
on Front Page 56
plural of 91
ACES (American Copy Editors Society)
170
acronyms
defined 90
See also abbreviations
action buttons, referring to 30
active voice 136
addresses, web. See URLs
adjectives
compound, hyphenating 111
numbers in 80
adverbs 112
advertising policies 168
affect 150
ages 81
albums, titles of 93
All Caps capitalization 91
all ready 150
all right 150
alphabetizing glossary entries 45
already 150
alright 150
American Copy Editors Society (ACES)
170
INDEX
Index
ampersands
and serial comma 58
in email subject lines 37
on Front Page 56, 58
announcements, service. See service
announcements, emails
anonymity in journalism 66
anonymous sources 64
apostrophes
about 105
and omitted letters 106
and possessives 105
in contractions 106
with decades 84
area codes 87
art work, titles of 93
articles
magazine 94
newspaper 94
articles, indefinite 89
Ask Yahoo! 19
attributions 62
audience, analyzing 21
average sentences/paragraph 25
average words/sentence 25
B
bias-free writing 121
blind quotes 64
blogs, personal guidelines 168
board games, titles of 93, 94
bold text 102
books, titles of 93
boxes, text entry 49
brand guidelines 168
bulleted lists 120
See also lists
buttons, referring to 30
Buzz Log 19
bylines 70
205
Index
C
capital 151
capitalization
about 91
All Caps style 91
Sentence style, defined 91
Title style, defined 91
capitalizing
email subject lines 37
extensions, file name 102
file names 102
file types 103
glossary entries 44
headlines 92
hyphenated compounds 93
In The News entries 58
links 47
links on Front Page 56
list elements 119
Marketplace promos 59
onscreen elements 30
personal titles 92
prompts 49
titles 92
titles of works 93
URLs 103
Yahoo! properties and products 92
capitol 151
Casual voice 19
cautions, writing 45
CDs, titles of 93
centuries 84
chapters, titles of 93
checkboxes
capitalizing text 49
referring to 30
cities and states, punctuating 109
clarifications in original content 67
clauses, independent
definition of 116
punctuating 108
Code of Ethics 73
colons
about 107
and list intros 119
and quotation marks 107
space following 107
206
command buttons
capitalizing 49
referring to 30
commas
about 107
and independent clauses 108
and locations 109
and numbers 109
and quotation marks in quotes 110
and quotations 108
and series 107
in dates 83
in numbers 80
common misspellings 163
common phrases, replacing 138
common pitfalls, avoiding 149
commonly confused words 149, 150
communication policy 168
companies, referring to 99
compass directions 95
complement 151
compliance policies 168
compliment 151
compound adjectives
hyphenating 111
numbers in 80
computer games, titles of 93, 94
computer-related numbers 81
confidentiality in journalism 66
confused words 149, 150
conjunctions
correlative 158, 159
starting sentences with 163
continual 151
continuous 151
contractions 106
copyrights
guidelines 168
partner 52
corporations, referring to 99
corrections in original content 67
correlative conjunctions 158
cultural considerations 24
currency 85
Index
dangling modifiers 160
dashes
about 110
and colons 107
and spaces 111
in text emails 111
datelines 70
dates
about 82
centuries 84
commas in 83
days of the week 82
decades 84
hyphens in 83
months 82
ordering parts of 83
punctuating parts of 83
ranges of 87
slashes in 83
years 83
days of the week 82
deadwood, removing 133
decades 84
deep background, definition of 64
definitions, writing 44, 114, 172
See also glossaries, writing
digital storytelling 71
still image manipulation 71
use of file images 72
dimensions 84
direct quotations 114
directions, compass 95
disclaimers 51
District of Columbia 95
domain name guidelines 168
dot-coms, referring to 103
E
editing organizations 170
Editorial Code of Ethics 73
effect 150
ellipses
about 109
in links 47
INDEX
D
em dashes
about 111
and colons 107
and spaces 111
in number ranges 87
in text emails 111
emails, writing
about 33
dashes in 111
footers 37
instructing users in 30
subject lines 35, 36
punctuating 37
text emails 35
viral marketing policies 168
emphasizing text 102
employees of Yahoo!, referring to 194
en dashes
about 110
and spaces 111
in number ranges 87
in text emails 111
end notes 70
error messages, writing 52
ethics code 73
every day 152
everyday 152
exclamation points
about 110
and quotations 110
on Front Page 58
extensions, file name 102
F
farther 152
feedback link in footers 51
feedback, writing 52
fewer 153
file images, using 72
file name extensions 102
file names 102
file types 102, 103
Flesch Reading Ease Score 26
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 26
207
Index
footers
about 50
contents of 51
disclaimers in 51
feedback link in 51
formatting 51
help link in 51
in emails 37
partner copyright in 52
foreign words 102, 114
fractions 85
Front Page
abbreviations on 56
ampersands on 56, 58
exclamation points on 58
headlines 56
In the News box 58
links on 56
numbers on 56, 79
summaries 56
title lists on 57
titles on 57
further 152
G
games, titles of 93, 94
gender-neutral writing 121
geographic locations 95
glossaries, writing 44, 172
alphabetizing entries 45
capitalizing entries 44
glossaries, Yahoo! 168
glossary, Yahoo! 177
government titles 92
grade level, ascertaining 26
grammar usage 162
graphic images 72
H
headlines
capitalizing 92
hyphenated compounds in 93
hyphens in 112
on Front Page 56
titles of works in 95
help link in footers 51
208
help, writing
cautions 45
glossaries 44
notes 45
overviews 41
procedures 42
tips 45
homophones 150
hyphenated compounds, capitalizing 93
hyphenating
compound adjectives 111
fractions 85
headlines 112
numbers 80
prefixes 112
titles 112
hyphens
about 110
and compound adjectives 111
and prefixes 112
and spaces 111
in dates 83
in fractions 85
in headlines 112
in numbers 80
in titles 112
I
if...then constructions 117
images, graphic 72
In the News box 58
indefinite articles 89
independent clauses
definition of 116
punctuating 108
infinitives, splitting 162
initialisms
definition 90
See also abbreviations
initials in names 113
Inktomi style guidelines 168
instructions, writing 49
international calling codes 87
introductory text, writing 49
it’s 152
Index
and foreign words 102, 114
use for composition titles 102
use for emphasis 102
its 152
J
jargon, avoiding 22
journalism standards. See original content
standards
K
key combinations 31
keyboard actions 32
keys, referring to 31
L
labels, referring to 30
large numbers 79, 80
lay 152
lectures, titles of 93
less 153
let’s 153
lets 153
letters, omitted 106
lie 152
lightening 153
lightning 153
links
capitalizing 47
ellipses in 47
on Front Page 56
punctuating 47
underlining 101
URLs in link text 47
lists
bulleted 120
capitalizing elements of 119
city and states in 95
creating 119
introducing 119
numbered 120
punctuating 119
titles of works in 94
within lists 120
INDEX
italic
lists of titles
about 94
on Front Page 57
locations 95, 109
M
magazine articles, titles of 94
magazines, titles of 93, 94
manipulating still images 71
marketing glossary 168
may be 153
maybe 153
measurement, units of 84
memory requirements 81
Microsoft Word
proofreading using 130, 131
readability scores using 25
Mid-Range voice 18
misplaced modifiers 160
misspellings, common 163
mixed numbers 85
modifiers, misplaced 160
money and currency 85
months 82, 83
mouse actions 32
movies, title of 93
MS Word. See Microsoft Word
N
names of persons 113
New York Times Guidelines on Integrity 66
newsgathering 67
newsletters for writers/editors 170
newsletters, writing
about 38
instructing users in 30
newspaper articles, titles of 94
newspapers, titles of 93, 94
Nielsen, Jakob 29
nominative case, definition of 100
non-English words 102, 114
not for attribution, definition of 64
notes, writing 45
nouns, plurals of 105
number ranges 87
numbered lists 120
See also lists
209
Index
numbers
ages 81
commas in 80, 109
computer-related 81
currency 85
dates 82
dimensions 84
fractions 85
hyphenating 80
in compound adjectives 80
large 79
memory requirements 81
mixed 85
money 85
on Front Page 56, 79
percentages 86
phone 87
processor speeds 81
ranges of 87
small 79
software versions 82
software-related 81
starting sentences with 80
storage sizes 81
time 88
O
objective case, definition of 100
off the record, definition of 64
omitted letters 106
on background, definition of 64
on the record, definition of 64
once 157
online reading, writing for 29
online users, writing for
about 30
keys 31
onscreen elements 30
onscreen elements
capitalizing in instructions 30
referring to 30
operas, titles of 93
organizational titles 92
organizations for writers/editors 170
210
original content standards 66
about 61
attribution 62
bylines 70
code of ethics 73
corrections/clarifications 67
datelines 70
decision-making 75
digital storytelling 71
graphic images 72
still image manipulation 71
use of file images 72
end notes 70
newsgathering 67
plagiarism 69
quotations 69
sourcing 63
anonymous sources 64
blind quotes 64
P
page titles, writing 54
paragraphs
length of 25, 118
partner copyrights 51, 52
passive voice 25, 136
peak 153
peek 153
percent 86
percentages 86
periodicals. See magazines, newspapers
periods
about 113
and abbreviations at end of sentence
113
and initials 113
and lists 113
and quotation marks 110, 115
and Yahoo! at end of sentence 113
in headers 113
in prompts 113
spaces following 113
with time abbreviations 88
periods of time
centuries 84
decades 84
person 99
person, change of 160
personal blog guidelines 168
Index
INDEX
personal pronouns, avoiding 122
personal titles, capitalizing 92
phone numbers 87
pitfalls, avoiding 149
plagiarism 69
plays, titles of 93
plurals
of abbreviations 91
of units of measurement 84
poems, titles of 93
policies and compliance 168
glossary 168
possessives 105
prefixes 112
prepositions, ending sentences with 162
prices, displaying 85
pricing pages 85
principal 154
principle 154
privacy policies 168
Privacy Policy, link to 51
procedures, writing 42
processor speeds 81
Professional voice 162
about 18
in service announcements 35
prompts
capitalizing 49
punctuating 49
pronouns 99
cases of 100
companies, referring to 99
personal 100, 122, 160
users, referring to 100
who vs. whom 101
Yahoo!, referring to 99
proofreading 129
pull quotes 30
punctuating
cities and states 109
compound adjectives 111
dates 83
email subject lines 37
headlines 112
independent clauses 108, 116
initials in names 113
links 47
links on Front Page 56
list elements 119
punctuating (cont.)
numbers 109
prefixes 112
prompts 49
quotations 108
series 107
titles 112
punctuation
apostrophes 105
colons 107
commas 107
dashes 110
ellipses 109
exclamation points 110
hyphens 110
periods 113
quotation marks 114
semicolons 116
Q
question marks
quotation marks
about 114
and colons 107
and commas 115
and dashes 115
and definitions 114
and direct quotations 114
and exclamation points 115
and instructions 115
and other punctuation 115
and periods 115
and question marks 115
and semicolons 115, 116
and titles of works 94, 115
and URLs 103
quotations 114
exclamation points in 110
original content standards 69
punctuating 108
quotes, blind 64
R
radio buttons
capitalizing 49
referring to 30
ranges of numbers 87
211
Index
readability
factors affecting 24
Flesch Reading Ease Score 26
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 26
improving 27
interpreting scores 26
using MS Word to check 25
record albums, titles of 93
records, titles of 93
regions
about 95
outside U.S. 98
U.S. 97
U.S. states 95
reign 154
rein 154
religious titles 92
resources for writers/editors 169
newsletters 170
organizations 170
web sites 170
right 154, 157
rite 154
S
semicolons
about 116
alternatives for 116
and quotation marks 115, 116
sentence fragments 113
sentence length
finding using MS Word 25
Sentence style capitalization, defined 91
sentences
conditional 117
constructing 116
ending with preposition 162
order of parts 116
shortening 133
space between 113
starting with conjunctions 163
starting with numbers 80
serial commas
and ampersands 58
definition of 107
series, punctuating 107
212
service announcements
about 35
guidelines for 168
subject lines of 35
voice of 35
shortening text 133
since 158
slashes in dates 83
small numbers 79
Society for Technical Communication
(STC) 170
software versions 82
software, titles of 93, 94
software-related numbers 81
songs, titles of 93
sources, anonymous 64
sourcing
promising anonymity/confidentiality 66
spaces
and hyphens 111
following colons 107
following periods 113
special characters
em dash 111
en dash 110
spectrum of Yahoo! voice
about 18
Casual voice 19
Mid-Range voice 18
speeches, titles of 93
split infinitives 162
sports guidelines 168
standards for original content/journalism.
See original content standards
states, U.S. 95
stationary 155
stationery 155
STC (Society for Technical
Communication) 170
still images, manipulating 71
storage sizes 81
style guides, creating
about 171
contents of 171
subject lines
in emails 36
in service announcements 35
punctuating 37
Index
T
telephone numbers 87
television programs, titles of 93
tense, change of 161
Terms of Service, links to 51
text boxes 49
text emails
about 35
dashes in 111
URLs in 35
text entry boxes 49
text, shortening 133
than 155
that 155
their 156
then 155
there 156
they’re 156
third-party content 59
time 88
time periods
centuries 84
decades 84
time zones 88
tips, writing 45
Title style capitalization, defined 91
titles and headlines
capitalizing 92
hyphenated compounds in 93
hyphens in 112
on Front Page 57
titles of works
about 93
games 94
in Directory 95
in headlines 95
in lists 94
in Yahoo! Movies 95
magazines 94
newspapers 94
software 94
titles, personal 92
TOS. see Terms of Service
trademark guidelines 168
TV programs, titles of 93
INDEX
subject-verb agreement 159
summaries on Front Page 56
typographical errors 129
typography
about 101
bold 102
italic 102
underlining 101
U
U.S. regions 97
U.S. states 95
underlining 101
units of measurement 84
URLs
about 103
as link text 47
capitalizing 103
in text emails 35
Usability Engineering Birds of a
Feather 170
users, referring to 100
V
verbs
agreement with subject 159
contractions 106
infinitives, split 162
tense of 161
voice of 136
weak 136
version numbers, software 82
video games, titles of 93, 94
viral marketing emails 168
voice of verbs 136
voice of Yahoo!. See Yahoo! voice
W
Washington, D.C. 95
weak verbs 136
web addresses. See URLs
Web Credibility Project 129
web sites for writers/editors 170
web sites, referring to 103
web-related words 103
which 155, 156
who 101, 156
who’s 156
whom 101
213
Index
whose 156
Word. See Microsoft Word
words, commonly confused 149, 150
writing organizations 170
Y
Yahoo! Buzz Log 19
Yahoo! Directory, titles of works in 95
Yahoo! Editorial Code of Ethics 73
Yahoo! Editorial features 19
Yahoo! employees, referring to 194
Yahoo! glossaries 168
Yahoo! glossary 177
Yahoo! Movies, titles of works in 95
Yahoo! Picks 19
Yahoo! properties and products
capitalizing 92
list of 177
Yahoo! Sports guidelines 168
Yahoo! voice
about 17
Casual voice 19
Mid-Range voice 18
qualities of 17
spectrum 18
Yahoo!, referring to 99, 194
years 83
you’re 157
your 157
Z
zones, time 88
214