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Author Topic:   Style Guides for EvC
Asgara
Member (Idle past 2293 days)
Posts: 1783
From: Wisconsin, USA
Joined: 05-10-2003


Message 16 of 77 (106169)
05-07-2004 1:57 AM
Reply to: Message 15 by Sylas
05-07-2004 1:49 AM


Re: bump
Thanks darlin', it's late, I'm tired and too lazy to get up and go to bed.

Asgara
"Embrace the pain, spank your inner moppet, whatever....but get over it"

This message is a reply to:
 Message 15 by Sylas, posted 05-07-2004 1:49 AM Sylas has not replied

  
Adminnemooseus
Administrator
Posts: 3974
Joined: 09-26-2002


Message 17 of 77 (106181)
05-07-2004 2:47 AM
Reply to: Message 1 by Sylas
04-21-2004 9:48 PM


Re: Proposed Style Guide for EvC
New topic page - Time to repeat message 1:
Sylas writes:
This thread is intended to be a gentle introduction to the art of writing a readable post for this on-line forum. The suggestions here are intended to be helpful for anyone, regardless of their views on the topics we discuss.
A well presented post will help you communicate your views better. Skill in good writing for an international on-line forum takes time to learn, and the way to learn is to dive in and try things out. The following steps are given in order of importance. You don't need to get everything perfect the first time. Start with the basics, and build up from there.
Step 1. Check the Forum Rules.
This speaks for itself. There are some basic standards in this forum, and all users are expected to follow them. There is some active enforcement of these guidelines, and this is described in the rules document.
Step 2. Preview the post.
If you have a look at your posts before submission, then you are likely to pick up various errors. Check your basic use of language, like spelling and grammar. Most people are relaxed about a few slips up now and again; but a post that is filled with errors is not giving the message you want.
There is a preview button in the window where you enter new articles. Click on this button, and you get to see what your post will look like. You may then make any corrections, and try again. When you are happy with the result, you can submit.
Step 3. Use paragraphs.
A readable post is broken up into paragraphs. Each paragraph is a chunk of text about 3 to 10 lines long, and separated from the next paragraph by a blank line. A browser will fit text naturally to the width of a reader's page, as long as you let the browser decide where to break the lines.
This means that all the words and the sentences in a paragraph should be separated by spaces, not by pressing the "Enter" key. As you enter text into the little box provided, it will automatically fit what you enter to the width of the box. You should just keep typing each paragraph as one long continuous line of text, and let the browser "wrap" that line up to fit the available width.
To see the difference,
consider this paragraph.
Here I have pressed the "Enter" key at natural breaking points in the text,
but the result looks quite ugly.
Compare with the next paragraph,
where each line is broken at just the right distance to fit on the page.
To see the difference, consider this paragraph. Here I have not pressed the "Enter" key at all, and the result looks very professional. Compare with the previous paragraph, where each line is a different length.
Press the "Enter" key twice to get a blank line between your paragraphs. A continuous block of text, with no white space to help the eye break it into manageable chunks, is much harder for someone to read and follow.
Step 4. Use UBB Codes.
Now we are getting a bit more advanced. You can use special tags to give some additional formatting to your text. Do not use these too heavily. Too much special formatting can be distracting, but a little bit of formatting can help enhance the presentation of your post.
There is a link to a description of available UBB codes just to the left of the box where you enter text.
The simplest formatting codes allow italic and boldface text. The first sentence of this paragraph was actually entered as follows:
The simplest formatting codes allow [i]italic[/i] and [b]boldface[/b] text.
Step 5. Quoting.
When you quote from other posts, or from other sources, you should let the quoted text stand out from your own original text. My favourite way to quote from another user is with the [qs=user] and [/qs] tags. For example, suppose you type
[qs=Sylas]Quoting in little blue boxes is cool![/qs]
The result will come out like this:
Sylas writes:
Quoting in little blue boxes is cool!
This feature can also be used to present quotes from other sources. However, I often simply indent material from other sources. For example, suppose I type
[indent]Indented quotations are hot!
[indent]-- Sylas, in [i]Style Guides for EvC[/i][/indent][/indent]
The result will come out like this:
Indented quotations are hot!
-- Sylas, in Style Guides for EvC
There is a lot more that could be said on how to present your material effectively. These five steps are just the beginning, but they are a very useful beginning. You can try out ideas for formatting posts in the Practice Makes Perfect forum.
As one more little hint, I personally don't much like the little box in which we enter text for new articles. I will write up an article in some other program, like a word processor or text editor, and then cut and paste it into the article entry box. This also gives some protection from losing your entire article if something happens with the browser.
Cheers -- Sylas
Added in edit. You can also edit a post after submission, but this feature should be used sparingly. Fixing a few typographic errors is fine, but changes to content are very irritating to other uses who may have read the original version. You should indicate any significant changes made in edit. If you really need to add a new point, indicate it clearly, as I have done with this additional paragraph.
[This message has been edited by Sylas, 04-21-2004]
Adminnemooseus

This message is a reply to:
 Message 1 by Sylas, posted 04-21-2004 9:48 PM Sylas has not replied

  
coffee_addict
Member (Idle past 467 days)
Posts: 3645
From: Indianapolis, IN
Joined: 03-29-2004


Message 18 of 77 (159858)
11-15-2004 5:00 PM
Reply to: Message 1 by Sylas
04-21-2004 9:48 PM


bump for new users
There are some new members here and I just want to make sure they have the best experience here.
quote:
This thread is intended to be a gentle introduction to the art of writing a readable post for this on-line forum. The suggestions here are intended to be helpful for anyone, regardless of their views on the topics we discuss.
A well presented post will help you communicate your views better. Skill in good writing for an international on-line forum takes time to learn, and the way to learn is to dive in and try things out. The following steps are given in order of importance. You don't need to get everything perfect the first time. Start with the basics, and build up from there.
Step 1. Check the Forum Rules.
This speaks for itself. There are some basic standards in this forum, and all users are expected to follow them. There is some active enforcement of these guidelines, and this is described in the rules document.
Step 2. Preview the post.
If you have a look at your posts before submission, then you are likely to pick up various errors. Check your basic use of language, like spelling and grammar. Most people are relaxed about a few slips up now and again; but a post that is filled with errors is not giving the message you want.
There is a preview button in the window where you enter new articles. Click on this button, and you get to see what your post will look like. You may then make any corrections, and try again. When you are happy with the result, you can submit.
Step 3. Use paragraphs.
A readable post is broken up into paragraphs. Each paragraph is a chunk of text about 3 to 10 lines long, and separated from the next paragraph by a blank line. A browser will fit text naturally to the width of a reader's page, as long as you let the browser decide where to break the lines.
This means that all the words and the sentences in a paragraph should be separated by spaces, not by pressing the "Enter" key. As you enter text into the little box provided, it will automatically fit what you enter to the width of the box. You should just keep typing each paragraph as one long continuous line of text, and let the browser "wrap" that line up to fit the available width.
To see the difference,
consider this paragraph.
Here I have pressed the "Enter" key at natural breaking points in the text,
but the result looks quite ugly.
Compare with the next paragraph,
where each line is broken at just the right distance to fit on the page.
To see the difference, consider this paragraph. Here I have not pressed the "Enter" key at all, and the result looks very professional. Compare with the previous paragraph, where each line is a different length.
Press the "Enter" key twice to get a blank line between your paragraphs. A continuous block of text, with no white space to help the eye break it into manageable chunks, is much harder for someone to read and follow.
Step 4. Use UBB Codes.
Now we are getting a bit more advanced. You can use special tags to give some additional formatting to your text. Do not use these too heavily. Too much special formatting can be distracting, but a little bit of formatting can help enhance the presentation of your post.
There is a link to a description of available UBB codes just to the left of the box where you enter text.
The simplest formatting codes allow italic and boldface text. The first sentence of this paragraph was actually entered as follows:
The simplest formatting codes allow [i]italic[/i] and [b]boldface[/b] text.
Step 5. Quoting.
When you quote from other posts, or from other sources, you should let the quoted text stand out from your own original text. My favourite way to quote from another user is with the [qs=user] and [/qs] tags. For example, suppose you type
[qs=Sylas]Quoting in little blue boxes is cool![/qs]
The result will come out like this:
Sylas writes:
Quoting in little blue boxes is cool!
This feature can also be used to present quotes from other sources. However, I often simply indent material from other sources. For example, suppose I type
[indent]Indented quotations are hot!
[indent]-- Sylas, in [i]Style Guides for EvC[/i][/indent][/indent]
The result will come out like this:
Indented quotations are hot!
-- Sylas, in Style Guides for EvC
There is a lot more that could be said on how to present your material effectively. These five steps are just the beginning, but they are a very useful beginning. You can try out ideas for formatting posts in the Practice Makes Perfect forum.
As one more little hint, I personally don't much like the little box in which we enter text for new articles. I will write up an article in some other program, like a word processor or text editor, and then cut and paste it into the article entry box. This also gives some protection from losing your entire article if something happens with the browser.
Cheers -- Sylas
Added in edit. You can also edit a post after submission, but this feature should be used sparingly. Fixing a few typographic errors is fine, but changes to content are very irritating to other uses who may have read the original version. You should indicate any significant changes made in edit. If you really need to add a new point, indicate it clearly, as I have done with this additional paragraph.

This message is a reply to:
 Message 1 by Sylas, posted 04-21-2004 9:48 PM Sylas has not replied

  
Adminnemooseus
Administrator
Posts: 3974
Joined: 09-26-2002


Message 19 of 77 (162440)
11-22-2004 9:05 PM


Bump for bencip19
bencip19 just posted the "Suggestion and Questions" topic Pre-Proposal Thread Refining. bencip19 - Yes that was the right place to post such things.
This topic, especially message 1, is the closest thing has to a "How to propose a topic" guide.
We really do need to get this information stored at a better place.
Adminnemooseus
This message has been edited by Adminnemooseus, 11-22-2004 09:07 PM

  
coffee_addict
Member (Idle past 467 days)
Posts: 3645
From: Indianapolis, IN
Joined: 03-29-2004


Message 20 of 77 (166955)
12-10-2004 11:56 AM


Bump for new posters.

Hate world.
Revenge soon!

  
coffee_addict
Member (Idle past 467 days)
Posts: 3645
From: Indianapolis, IN
Joined: 03-29-2004


Message 21 of 77 (176077)
01-12-2005 2:05 AM


Bump
Since there have been quite a few new members lately, it isn't a bad idea for them to read through this thread to get a feel of how to post clear posts.
There are generally two ways to link to a specific post.
The first is the following.
[msg=19,112,18]
This yields Message 18.
The second way you can do this is type
[URL=http://< !--UB EvC Forum: Style Guides for EvC -->http://EvC Forum: Style Guides for EvC -->EvC Forum: Style Guides for EvC< !--UE--> ] This links to my post number 18 in this thread[/URL]
This yields This links to my post number 18 in this thread.
Notice that you have to include "#18" at the end of the URL in order for the link to work for that specific post.

  
Adminnemooseus
Administrator
Posts: 3974
Joined: 09-26-2002


Message 22 of 77 (209080)
05-17-2005 3:41 PM


The "shift key impaired" are starting to piss me off!
Arachnophilia is not the only culprit, but a series of his messages (here and the following) has just jumped out at me.
Sylas does not include this in his fine message 1, but it should be obvious - Use the shift key to capitalize words if they are at the beginnings of sentences and/or if they are proper nouns. Doing such makes for nicer reading and is just plain a good thing.
If there is an end of a sentence, there should be a period at the end of the sentence, and the next letter should be a capital letter!
Don't be a jerk - Use the shift key when it should be used!
Adminnemooseus
ps: The content of message 1, with whatever needed modifications, should be a separate page here at , with a link at the top of the various pages. For example, at the top of the "All Topics" page, should be:
Profile | Register | FAQ | Rules | Style Guide | Search | Members | Forums
This message has been edited by Adminnemooseus, 05-17-2005 03:42 PM

Replies to this message:
 Message 24 by lfen, posted 05-17-2005 4:03 PM Adminnemooseus has not replied
 Message 28 by Adminnemooseus, posted 05-17-2005 9:37 PM Adminnemooseus has not replied
 Message 56 by coffee_addict, posted 05-20-2005 12:05 PM Adminnemooseus has not replied

  
EZscience
Member (Idle past 5144 days)
Posts: 961
From: A wheatfield in Kansas
Joined: 04-14-2005


Message 23 of 77 (209086)
05-17-2005 3:54 PM
Reply to: Message 9 by RAZD
04-22-2004 6:50 PM


BC Huh?
RazD writes:
what part of BC? I used to live in Victoria
So did I. I should have figured you for another Canadian

This message is a reply to:
 Message 9 by RAZD, posted 04-22-2004 6:50 PM RAZD has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 27 by RAZD, posted 05-17-2005 5:45 PM EZscience has not replied

  
lfen
Member (Idle past 4667 days)
Posts: 2189
From: Oregon
Joined: 06-24-2004


Message 24 of 77 (209089)
05-17-2005 4:03 PM
Reply to: Message 22 by Adminnemooseus
05-17-2005 3:41 PM


Re: The "shift key impaired" are starting to piss me off!
Hey, Arachnophilia is studying the original Hebrew Torah, no capitalizations, puncuation or even spaces between words. The benefits of capitalization have probably just escaped his notice as being such a minor improvement compared to the space bar and the puncuation keys.
And I do appreciate the insights his (and Dr.Bill's) studies of Hebrew and the Torah bring
actuallyithinkbibicalinerantistsshouldberequiredtowritetheirpostslike
thisbecauseclearlythisisthewayyhwhintenedustowriteimeanifitwasgoodenough
formosesthenitmustbehowyhhwwantsitpuncuationisprobablysomething
satancameupwithcauseitledtouniversitiesandthetheoryofevolution
lfen

This message is a reply to:
 Message 22 by Adminnemooseus, posted 05-17-2005 3:41 PM Adminnemooseus has not replied

Replies to this message:
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 Message 34 by arachnophilia, posted 05-18-2005 8:11 PM lfen has replied

  
jar
Member (Idle past 384 days)
Posts: 34026
From: Texas!!
Joined: 04-20-2004


Message 25 of 77 (209096)
05-17-2005 4:26 PM
Reply to: Message 24 by lfen
05-17-2005 4:03 PM


Re: The "shift key impaired" are starting to piss me off!
I can understand requitring capitalization and spacing but
?sllwv s ht dlhs hW

Aslan is not a Tame Lion

This message is a reply to:
 Message 24 by lfen, posted 05-17-2005 4:03 PM lfen has not replied

Replies to this message:
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Percy
Member
Posts: 22359
From: New Hampshire
Joined: 12-23-2000
Member Rating: 4.7


Message 26 of 77 (209106)
05-17-2005 5:15 PM
Reply to: Message 25 by jar
05-17-2005 4:26 PM


Re: The "shift key impaired" are starting to piss me off!
s r th spllng mprd. I blv vwl hs nly n "l".
--Prcy

This message is a reply to:
 Message 25 by jar, posted 05-17-2005 4:26 PM jar has not replied

  
RAZD
Member (Idle past 1395 days)
Posts: 20714
From: the other end of the sidewalk
Joined: 03-14-2004


Message 27 of 77 (209116)
05-17-2005 5:45 PM
Reply to: Message 23 by EZscience
05-17-2005 3:54 PM


Re: BC Huh?
half canadian
and shouldn't that be
"BC eh?"
OK - Being Canadian is wonderful. But you're massively off-topic here. Can't you find a better place to chit-chat? - Adminnemooseus
This message has been edited by Adminnemooseus, 05-17-2005 06:56 PM

This message is a reply to:
 Message 23 by EZscience, posted 05-17-2005 3:54 PM EZscience has not replied

  
Adminnemooseus
Administrator
Posts: 3974
Joined: 09-26-2002


Message 28 of 77 (209181)
05-17-2005 9:37 PM
Reply to: Message 22 by Adminnemooseus
05-17-2005 3:41 PM


Re: The "shift key impaired" are starting to piss me off!
OK, the theme is getting buried under blather and chit-chat.
All I am asking is that if you have the intelligence and ability to do proper writing, you exert the courtesy of actually doing it.
Writing without the proper capitalization is bad writing.
Adminnemooseus

This message is a reply to:
 Message 22 by Adminnemooseus, posted 05-17-2005 3:41 PM Adminnemooseus has not replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 29 by lfen, posted 05-17-2005 11:07 PM Adminnemooseus has not replied

  
lfen
Member (Idle past 4667 days)
Posts: 2189
From: Oregon
Joined: 06-24-2004


Message 29 of 77 (209208)
05-17-2005 11:07 PM
Reply to: Message 28 by Adminnemooseus
05-17-2005 9:37 PM


Re: The "shift key impaired" are starting to piss me off!
somewhere i have never travelled, gladly beyond
E. E. Cummings
somewhere i have never travelled, gladly beyond
any experience,your eyes have their silence:
in your most frail gesture are things which enclose me,
or which i cannot touch because they are too near
your slightest look will easily unclose me
though i have closed myself as fingers,
you open always petal by petal myself as Spring opens
(touching skilfully,mysteriously)her first rose
or if your wish be to close me, i and
my life will shut very beautifully ,suddenly,
as when the heart of this flower imagines
the snow carefully everywhere descending;
nothing which we are to perceive in this world equals
the power of your intense fragility:whose texture
compels me with the color of its countries,
rendering death and forever with each breathing
(i do not know what it is about you that closes
and opens;only something in me understands
the voice of your eyes is deeper than all roses)
nobody,not even the rain,has such small hands
Poets.org
This is good writing. I've loved this poem for decades.
We could have 133t p0st3rs who write like this:
t3h F3ll0wsh1p of teh R1ng
[At Bilbo's 111th Birthday]
Merry: "Omg, I pwn"
Pippin: "Sif, I pwn"
**Rocket goes off
Gandalf: "Pwned!"
Bilbo: "This = shiz, bai foos"
Bilbo has left the server
Frodo: "wtf!?"
[later, in Bag End]
Gandalf: "Give teh ringz0r to Frodo"
Bilbo: "Sif! It r precious!"
Gandalf: "STFU NOOB!!!"
Bilbo: "ok"
Gandalf has logged on as admin
Bilbo has been kicked from The Shire
**Later
Gandalf: "Show me teh ring, foo!"
**Gandalf rides out, does some research, comes back
Gandalf: "OMGZ, it R teh ring!"
Frodo: "wtf?"
Gandalf has logged on as admin
Frodo has been kicked from The Shire
Sam has been kicked from The Shire
[At Isengard]
Gandalf: "sup dawg, i r g4nd4lf da gr3y!"
Saruman: "Foo! U R teh noob!"
Gandalf: "wtf?!"
Saruman: "Sauron pwns joo!"
Gandalf: "Sif, I R leet"
**Sarumon beats the **** out of Gandalf
Saruman: "Pwned!"
http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=269919
There is a more to be read if you go to the URL
I've always enjoyed Arach's content and respected his contributions and have learned a lot from his posts and never even noticed lack of capitalization. My point is that it could be a whole lot worse, a whole lot. It doesn't bother me at all, but then I grew up loving the poety of cummings.
lfen (who doesn't capitalize his nick to save his little fingers on the shift key action)
This message has been edited by lfen, 05-17-2005 08:09 PM
This message has been edited by lfen, 05-17-2005 08:11 PM
This message has been edited by lfen, 05-17-2005 08:16 PM

This message is a reply to:
 Message 28 by Adminnemooseus, posted 05-17-2005 9:37 PM Adminnemooseus has not replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 30 by berberry, posted 05-17-2005 11:18 PM lfen has not replied
 Message 32 by RAZD, posted 05-18-2005 7:55 PM lfen has replied
 Message 35 by arachnophilia, posted 05-18-2005 8:13 PM lfen has not replied

  
berberry
Inactive Member


Message 30 of 77 (209214)
05-17-2005 11:18 PM
Reply to: Message 29 by lfen
05-17-2005 11:07 PM


Re: The "shift key impaired" are starting to piss me off!
I agree entirely. The hyper-sensitive admins are just looking for more and more reasons to suspend people. They seem to want to sanitize the forum to the point that no individuality at all is allowed. They want only bland arguments with no display of any personality or passion on the part of the poster, lest that personality should cause some other poster to feel inadequate.
I'm surprised they've allowed this sort of criticism to continue. Last time people started complaining about moderation procedures they closed the thread in which it was taking place and threatened the participants with suspension or banishment to boot camp. They are quite the thin-skinned lot, aren't they?

Keep America Safe AND Free!

This message is a reply to:
 Message 29 by lfen, posted 05-17-2005 11:07 PM lfen has not replied

  
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