Style Guide for the K-Meleon Wiki

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When editing the K-Meleon Wiki, refer to this guide for questions about language. These guidelines can help create consistency across the documentation for end-users. They are not rules.

Structure

Page names

A page's name will appear in its tab or window title. The name should suggest the contents of the page. Use a WikiWord to make linking easier.

Warnings

If a page describes something deprecated, insecure, or unstable, place a note at the top of the page. Distinguish it from the content with a smaller font. Begin with either Note: or WARNING: depending on the severity of the issue. Summarize the problem; a single sentence works best. You can also use this technique for headings within a page.

Don't link current documentation to deprecated pages archived in the wiki. Deprecated pages can keep their links to other deprecated pages and current documentation.

Introduction

The first sentence of a page should summarize its contents. Remember that 99% of the web is irrelevant to any reader. Help users decide if they're in the right place with a clear opening line, section headings, and links to related pages in the wiki.

Sections

Note: This does not apply to the FAQ.

Use the wiki's native ability to create sections instead of manual styling. If you need a table of contents, allow the wiki to generate it. The built-in styles are consistent throughout the wiki. Use whitespace above sections to emphasize headings. Don't increase fonts, bold text, underline text, or use images to emphasize headings.

If a page is longer than 5 paragraphs, sections will make the page more readable. Section headings should be concise. Readers on the web scan longer pages in an F-shaped reading pattern without section headings to outline the document.

Writing

Tense

Write instructions and current information in the present tense. Write about historical versions of K-Meleon in the past tense. All deprecated features are historical. Only use the future tense to describe planned releases.

Pronoun usage

Second-person pronouns, like you, always refer to the reader. Avoid first-person pronouns. K-Meleon is a community project, so "I" is unclear on the wiki. Use the singular they for individuals when their identity is uncertain.

Abbreviations

The first time you use an abbreviation, write out the words. Then put the abbreviation in parentheses. Only do this once per page. For example, an end-user may be unfamiliar with cascading style sheets (CSS) the first time you mention CSS.

Images

Use as few images as possible. Never use them to convey text. Compress images to save space.

Lists

• Bulleted lists improve readability on longer pages.
• Write list items in complete sentences when possible.
• Use numbered lists for sequences or steps.

Voice

Make positive statements and use the active voice. Use the word "not" for negation, not for evasion. If a user reads, "passwords are not to be saved," this could mean several things, but "disable saved passwords" means one thing.

Be concise. Unnecessary words are opportunities to confuse readers. Compress wordy phrases ("There are cookies that track") to reduce words ("Some cookies track"). Put sequences into compound sentences or ordered lists.

Formatting

Input

Use bold text for user input. Use the exact words from K-Meleon when possible for describing input. Format sequences as user inputs separated by arrows. For example, you can see K-Meleon's version number by going to Help > About K-Meleon.

Linking

Make links within the wiki and to the forum. Be aware when making external links that they will break. The average half-life of a link is only 3 years. Links to longstanding institutions will last longer. Wikipedia, Mozilla, universities, institutes, and governments are less likely to delete web pages. Remove broken links or redirect them to an archived page. You can import material from a dead link into the wiki if it falls under fair use or public domain.

Numbers

Use numerals rather than spelling out numbers. They are easier to read and translate. Don't use the number or pound sign (#) for the word number. Write the word "number" or use the abbreviation "No." to avoid breaking anchor syntax. № is acceptable.

Dates

Always use complete dates with the four-digit year. All complete date formats are acceptable, but individual pages should stick to one within the page.

Punctuation

Exclude punctuation from links, bold text, and (parentheses). Place your punctuation after the formatted text as in the previous sentence. Avoid placing URLs before punctuation to make copying easier.

Terms

The following is a list of preferred spellings and phrasing for terms related to K-Meleon:

• K-Meleon describes the browser in active development, older official browser releases, the shell that contains a web engine, the community, and the website.
• open-source is the adjective form.
• address bar is the bar where you can type a URL, nickname, or search term.
• link
• webpage
• website
• web browser
• macros are small extensions, either a single .kmm file or an individual macro{} declaration.
• module refers specifically to a K-Meleon macro module (.kmm) file, not an individual macro{} declaration.
• K-Meleon Extension describes .7z extensions written for K-Meleon. It can also refer to .xpi extensions if written for K-Meleon.
• XUL-based extension refers to any .xpi extension that relies on XUL/XPCOM whether written for K-Meleon, Firefox, Thunderbird, Sea Monkey, Waterfox, or Pale Moon.
• plugin refers to NPAPI plugins like Flash or Java.
• Kplugin refers to K-Meleon's native Kplugin system.
• add-on includes plugins, extensions, themes, skins, Kplugins, and language packs.
• ad blocker is a piece of software to block ads.
• ad-blocking is an adjective to describe ad blockers. "Ad blocking" is also fine.
• AdBlock on its own refers to ad blockers from the ABP extension family specifically.
• adblock.css refers to K-Meleon's ad-blocking stylesheet.
• BAB either stands for "built-in ad blocker" or "basic adblock." It's K-Meleon own light-weight ad blocker implemented via Kplugin. The term "adblock.dll" is also acceptable.
• official versions and official releases include all versions of K-Meleon posted on the official Sourceforge page by K-Meleon devs.
• Goanna-based versions of K-Meleon are under active development. Only describe K-Meleon as Goanna-based when you need to differentiate the active fork started by Roytam from official releases. Be careful not to use Goanna (or other trademarked terms) when promoting K-Meleon.
• active describes the Goanna branch of K-Meleon.
• Gecko is the engine used to power Firefox and Thunderbird. It was previously used by K-Meleon, the Mozilla Internet Suite, Netscape, Sea Monkey, Pale Moon, and more. Do not refer to K-Meleon as "based on Firefox" or as a Firefox-derivative. K-Meleon's development predates Firefox.
• Goanna is the engine used to power the active branch of K-Meleon, Pale Moon, roytam's unofficial New Moon builds, Serpent, and Interlink Mail and News.

Additional resources

For other writing issues, refer to Strunk and White's Elements of Style or the Merriam-Webster Dictionary.

If you need help with the wiki software:

• The WikiWord page explains how to format new page names for easier linking.
• The WikiMarkup page explains how to format a page.
• ExtendedWikiMarkup explains how to use formatting to add additional features to a page like external links, code blocks, images, lists, comments, and footnotes.
• CreatePages is a brief guide for creating new pages.
• The SandBox is a place to test out functions in the wiki.

Tools are also available for editors within the wiki itself. You can:

• List RecentChanges to pages.
• SearchPages in the wiki.
• Use the PowerSearch to search by contents or author.
• List the NewestPages by creation date.
• List the MostVisitedPages by views.
• List the MostOftenChangedPages by total edits.
• List recently UpdatedPages by the most recent edit.