Forum Moderators: not2easy
I have checked some large web sites like DELL and
their appear to be no consistency. There is
even no consistency on webmasterworld.
I use the following rules:
Titles have no periods.
eg. Blue Widgets
Incomplete sentences have no periods.
eg. Available in 12 sizes
Highlighted text, Hyperlink text or anything
in brackets have no perild
The only thing I add a period to on the web is
complete sentences, otherwise.
eg. The blue widgets are available in 12 sizes.
It appears that with the web, spelling is important but punctuation is optional.
Comments Please!
Chances are though people aren't reading the complete sentences.
Titles have no periods.
Incomplete sentences usually have no periods. If it is within a paragraph style, or in a bulleted style list of regular sentences that DO have periods at the end, I would put periods even on the incomplete sentences to maintain consistency.
If text is highlighted or hyperlinked, I generally do use punctuation, and always if it is within a paragraph. If it is something that is more in the style of a title or a headline, I would not use punctuation.
Web copy is still fairly new area in terms of set style and grammar rules, which is why you will find various sites using various punctuation styles.
Even offline punctuation tends to be tricky for most writers.
In my opinion, one of the best things you can do for your site with regard to punctuation is simply be consistent within your own site.
For example, if you put one period at the end of a sentence fragment, put periods at the end of all of your sentence fragments.
Looks better.
Easier to read.
No distractions for the reader's eye.
Consistent usage.
End of example.
That way, your users won't notice distracting inconsistencies within and among your pages, and it will help you as you develop and maintain your site's individual style. Otherwise, you'll have a bit of a mess on your hands.
Looks a little worse.
Something missing
A distraction here and there
Inconsistent usage.
End of example.
That said, I think you still want to do your best to use proper punctuation as defined by a major style guide (such as the latest edition of the Chicago Manual of Style).
That said, I think you still want to do your best to use proper punctuation as defined by a major style guide (such as the latest edition of the Chicago Manual of Style).
It has been years since I have studied a manual of style. Does the Chicago Manual of Style (I suppose that in this context I should italicize it :) ) have a section on online writing?
You can also check out www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/cmosfaq/cmosfaq.html then scroll down the Q&A sidebar (ugh, frames!) and click on the "Internet, Web, and Other Post-Watergate Concerns" link. There are many specific internet usages listed there. I am assuming these and more would be listed in the new edition.
For this reason, I stick to using print-specific style guides.
which other style guides do you use that have specific references (even though they may differ) to online usage?
I keep my eye on the ones I find online. I don't rely on print to tell me how to take care of anything Internet-related - there's too much lag for my comfort.
If you do a Google search for "online style guide," you'll find tons of good references out there. In fact, you'll find too many resources. :)
I too don't use periods in titles, and neither do I underline anything, imho if you want to hilight something then either use Bold, italic, a combination of both or other style changes. I think underlining has become defunct since the advent of the computer!
This is certainly an issue more webmasters should take note of I believe. A good topic!
Sticky
That is why you will never see consistency on a big site - you just don't have time to channel all copy through the same editors who have the site style down to a tee.
Writing style is such an engrained habit that asking your web team to write in a particular way just wouldn't work.
It is smthng tht is only going 2 gt wrse as gen txt leave college and get in2 wrk.
What got drilled into me at school was that when word processing anything, a period ("full-stop" to me) should be followed by 2 spaces, and a comma should be followed by 1. I have carried this forward into web design consistantly (the magic word) and have had no complaints about my style as to date.
Except of course that you cannot render a double space without making the second one an entity, i.e. ". ".
I've given up on the rule myself - although like you it was the way I was taught. Search for discussion about it in Google Groups as regards the HTML specification for dealing with white space and that particular "rule".
I reckon consistancy really is the key issue here!
Sticky
I tend to write website copy totally different to any other type, thus treat punctuation differently.
Just to move slightly off topic, have you noticed how a normal sentance can read very strange.
Monkeys like bananas.
(nothing wrong with that)
Meat flies like fruit.
(does fruit fly?)
What got drilled into me at school was that when word processing anything, a period ("full-stop" to me) should be followed by 2 spaces, and a comma should be followed by 1.
This was definitely taught to most people when typewriters (and subsequently fixed-width computer fonts) were the standard. Now that most commmonly-used fonts are variable width, one space after a period has become standard.
It'll only take you about 2 weeks to get used to it, if and when you decide to changeover. ;)
is a bit of a PitA to be honest
I still type with two spaces, even if only one space shows up in whatever program I happen to be using at the time ;) So it will be consistent if I am working in Word or working in html.
stickledene, I can't imagine writing html content and inserting the with each sentence. Impressive! I have enough trouble remembering what the html code is for that extra space, without having to worry about adding it into the html each time I have two sentences or more in a row within the paragraph.
What about periods at the end of a list item. Always torn between which to use?
This is one of those tricky areas, where I think it is better to just be consistent. The Chicago Manual of Style says "No periods are required at the end of entries unless at least one entry is a complete sentence, in which case a period is necessary at the end of each entry."
You can get their entire list of rules regarding lists and punctuation at www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/cmosfaq/cmosfaq.html then clicking on "Vertical Lists, Bullets". (The site uses frames, so I can't link to the exact information)
What about periods at the end of a list item. Always torn between which to use?
Depends on the layout, I'd say.
You can have bulleted item lists that are part of a sentence - in which case you can use commas or semicolons to separate them. An example would be:
- here's the first item,
- here's the second item, and
- here's the third item.
The above used commas. If you want to use semicolons, you can do it as follows:
- here's the first item;
- here's the second item; and
- here's the third item.
(Note the "and" connector between the last two items. Some people leave it in, others leave it out. I leave it in - a personal style choice.)
But if you have items in a list that aren't part of another sentence, Jenstar is right - no punctuation is necessary unless one of them is a sentence. Then consistency is key.
No periods:
Widgets.com has the best variety of widgets available online!
- blue widgets
- fuzzy widgets
- vibrating widgets
- gold widgets
- paper widgets
- teeny widgets
Periods:
Widgets.com is the best place to find widgets online.
- We offer a money-back guarantee.
- Same-day delivery.
- The widest selection available online.
- We have several widgets available that can be imprinted with your logo.
(Of course, you want to be consistent with your list - either all sentence fragments or none ... but that's another thread. ;))
I generally don't use them for list items..........somehow they don't seem necessary. But what about semi colons? Is their a specific place we should use them?
I was similarly trained to put two spaces after a fullstop/period - but I've now given it the luxury of using " ". Everything goes under the knife when you are trying to cut out page bulk for quicker downloads.
Funnily enough since moving to Europe, I've had print layout people that tell me they hate the double-space style as it reduces their options in positioning text.
As Hawkgirl & others noted, if you have the benefit of creating a site from scratch, you can enforce your own style.
It is a different story though if you inheret a site and there is no style guide line to use. In this case, I've found it helpful to have a notepad document open while editing the copy - this allows me to create a small style guide on the fly. e.g. ("etc.." at end of sentence has two periods, "web site" not "website" not "web-site").
Generally these are based on the will of the majority -- when I encounter a whale, I make a note, and pay attention to other variations that I come across.
At any time, I can do a quick search of the word files via MS Word's search capabilities, see who is in the majority and then set the standard.
This is probably too simplistic a solution for the audience here, but as I said I've found it helpful!
