Formatting Rules to Live By

Bolding the beginning of a list item allows the reader to quickly scan through a series of points and decide what information to focus on.

Good:

Ways to Speed Up Your Windows PC:

• Install More RAM: The more physical memory your computer has, the less it has to rely on virtual memory. Because virtual memory is stored on your hard drive, having more RAM means that your hard drive will spin less, speeding up your system.
  
  
• Sweep for Spyware: Your computer may be running a lot of hidden "spyware" that you don't even know about. Run a spyware sweeper and remove these extra programs.

Bad:

• You should add more RAM. The more physical memory your computer has, the less it has to rely on virtual memory. Because virtual memory is stored on your hard drive, having more RAM means that your hard drive will spin less, speeding up your system.
  
  
• Your computer may be running a lot of hidden "spyware" that you don't even know about. Run a spyware sweeper and remove these extra programs.

Callouts give users the opportunity to control their own reading experience by giving them visual cues. If they want to read more about how to stop spyware, they can pause and read the text after "Sweep for Spyware." If they already know how to get rid of spyware, they can move on to the next list item without stopping.

• Use the Right Type of List for the Information
• Skip lines between list items that wrap onto more than one line
• Use Callouts and Bold Them
• Bold Callouts at the Beginning of Longer Bullet Points
• Use Subheads for Sections of a Document
• Don't Overbold
• Keep paragraphs to 2-4 sentences tops
• First paragraph sentence should contain the main idea; the rest add detail
• Indent long quotes (use block quote or shading)
• Link, but don't overlink