Wiki source code of Readability checklist

Version 2.1 by Lizzie Bruce on 2019/08/06 23:43
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1 = Readability checklist =
2
3 = =
4
5 == A. Clear language ==
6
7 ===
8 Plain English ===
9
10 ~1. [[Choose easy and short words not formal, long ones.>>https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Plain%20English%2C%20simple%20sentences/##1]]
11
12 2. [[Jargon and buzzwords are unlikely to be clear language.>>https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Plain%20English%2C%20simple%20sentences/##2]]
13
14 3. [[Write conversationally, in first person, using the active voice.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Plain%20English%2C%20simple%20sentences/?#3#]]
15
16 4. [[Test your content with users.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Plain%20English%2C%20simple%20sentences/##4]]
17
18
19 === Simple sentences ===
20
21 5. [[Make your average sentence 15 words long.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Simple%20sentences/##1]]
22
23 6. [[Avoid complex sentence structures.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Simple%20sentences/##2]]
24
25
26 === Specialist terms ===
27
28 7. [[Explain specialist terms: anybody can access your content.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Specialist%20terms/##1]]
29
30 8. [[Create content that all users can understand, whatever their expertise or background.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Specialist%20terms/##2]]
31
32 9. [[Help users understand specialist terms.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Specialist%20terms/##3]]
33
34 10. [[Use plain English for highly literate audiences.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Specialist%20terms/##4]]
35
36
37 === Legal, medical, financial terms ===
38
39 ~11. [[Use simple language for legal terms.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Medical/##l1]]
40
41 12. [[Explain the law in context.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Medical/##l2]]
42
43 13. [[Write medical information clearly.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Medical/##m1]]
44
45 14. [[Explain medical terms.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Medical/##m2]]
46
47 15. [[Use clear language for financial information.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Medical/##mo1]]
48
49 16. [[Explain financial terminology.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Medical/##mo2]]
50
51 17. [[Give examples of conceptual financial arrangements.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Medical/##mo3]]
52
53
54 === Words to avoid ===
55
56 18. [[Never use vague words and jargon.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Words%20to%20avoid/##1]]
57
58 19. [[Avoid metaphors.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Words%20to%20avoid/##2]]
59
60 20. [[Do not use Latin.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Plain%20English/Words%20to%20avoid/##3]]
61
62
63 == B. Grammar points ==
64
65 ===
66 Abbreviations and acronyms ===
67
68 21. [[Do not use points or spaces.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations/##1]]
69
70 22. [[Write out "for example" and "that is" in full.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations/##2]]
71
72 23. [[Test with users, find out how familiar they are with your abbreviation.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations/##3]]
73
74 24. [[If an acronym is better understood than the full text, use that.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations/##4]]
75
76 25. [[Use all capital letters for initialisms.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations/##5]]
77
78 26. [[Start with a capital letter for acronyms.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations/##6]]
79
80 27. [[Capitalise single letters in expressions.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations/##7]]
81
82 28. [[Provide full text explanations.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations/##8]]
83
84 29. [[Consider providing a full explanation each time.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations/##9]]
85
86
87 === Contractions ===
88
89 30. [[Avoid negative contractions.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations%20and%20acronyms/##1]]
90
91 31. [[Simple positive contractions may be fine.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations%20and%20acronyms/##2]]
92
93 32. [[Possessive nouns may be fine.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations%20and%20acronyms/##3]]
94
95 33. [[Avoid conditional contractions.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Abbreviations%20and%20acronyms/##4]]
96
97
98 === Hyphens and dashes ===
99
100 34. [[Only use a hyphen if the word is confusing without it.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Hyphens%20and%20en%20dashes/##1]]
101
102 35. [[Do not use hyphens for time and date ranges, instead use "to".>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Hyphens%20and%20en%20dashes/##2]]
103
104 36. [[Make sure your hyphen usage is up to date.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Hyphens%20and%20en%20dashes/##3]]
105
106 37. [[Be consistent with your hyphen choices.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Hyphens%20and%20en%20dashes/##4]]
107
108 38. [[Avoid using dashes whenever possible.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Hyphens%20and%20en%20dashes/##5]]
109
110 39. [[If you do use a dash, use an en-dash, not a hyphen or an em-dash.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Hyphens%20and%20en%20dashes/##6]]
111
112
113 === Capitals ===
114
115 40. [[Do not capitalise whole words or phrases.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Capitals/##1]]
116
117 41. [[Use sentence case in headlines and subheads.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Capitals/##2]]
118
119 42. [[Use sentence case for buttons.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Capitals/##3]]
120
121 43. [[Proper nouns are an exception.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Capitals/##4]]
122
123 44. [[Do not capitalise terms, unless they are proper nouns. >>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Capitals/##5]]
124
125
126 === Ampersands ===
127
128 45. [[Use "and" not the ampersand sign "&">>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Capital%20letters/##1]]
129
130
131 === Numbers ===
132
133 46. [[Use numerals instead of words for numbers.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Numbers/##1]]
134
135 47. [[Choose clear typography.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Numbers/##2]]
136
137 48. [[Be specific with data.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Numbers/##3]]
138
139 49. [[Use percentages.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Numbers/##4]]
140
141 50. [[Use "to" for number ranges, not a hyphen.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Numbers/##5]]
142
143 51. [[Use years and months not just months.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Numbers/##6]]
144
145 52. [[Use a space before KB and MB.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Numbers/##7]]
146
147 53. [[Spell out month in dates, write day as a numeral without "st", "nd" or "th".>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Punctuation%20and%20abbreviating/Numbers/##8]]
148
149
150 == C. Audiences, devices, channels ==
151
152 ===
153 Talking to your audience: we, you, our, your, my ===
154
155 54. [[Make it clear who "we" is and who "you" is.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Pronouns%3A%20we%2C%20you%2C%20our%2C%20your/##1]]
156
157 55. [[Be consistent: do not switch things round.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Pronouns%3A%20we%2C%20you%2C%20our%2C%20your/##2]]
158
159 56. [[Decide how you will treat third parties.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Pronouns%3A%20we%2C%20you%2C%20our%2C%20your/##3]]
160
161
162 === Writing about people ===
163
164 57. [[Use respectful terms for disability, mental health and dying.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Writing%20about%20people/##1]]
165
166 58. [[Avoid referencing age unless it's absolutely relevant. >>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Writing%20about%20people/##2]]
167
168 59. [[Avoid referencing gender unless it's absolutely relevant.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Writing%20about%20people/##3]]
169
170 60. [[Avoid referencing medical, mental or cognitive condition unless it’s absolutely relevant.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Writing%20about%20people/##4]]
171
172 61. [[Avoid referencing heritage and nationality unless it's absolutely relevant.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Writing%20about%20people/##5]]
173
174 62. [[Use “inclusive” or “accessible” for things designed to provide an equal experience.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Writing%20about%20people/##6]]
175
176
177 === Mobiles and tablets ===
178
179 63. [[Design for mobile first not last.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Mobiles%20and%20devices/##1]]
180
181 64. [[Always ask “How would this look on mobile?”.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Mobiles%20and%20devices/##2]]
182
183 65. [[Put calls to action close to content they relate to.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Mobiles%20and%20devices/##3]]
184
185 66. [[Test content with people using mobiles.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Mobiles%20and%20devices/##4]]
186
187
188 === Social media ===
189
190 67. [[Capitalise the first letter of each word in hashtags.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Social%20media/##1]]
191
192 68. [[Use the image description functions.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Social%20media/##2]]
193
194 69. [[If you add a GIF image, include a description of it in your tweet.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Social%20media/##3]]
195
196 70. [[Caption videos and multimedia.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/People/Social%20media/##4]]
197
198
199 == D. Content design specifics ==
200
201 ===
202 Links ===
203
204 71. [[Make link text meaningful.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Links/##1]]
205
206 72. [[Avoid mid-sentence links.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Links/##2]]
207
208 73. [['Front-load' your link text.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Links/##3]]
209
210 74. [[Make call to action (CTA) links and button text specific.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Links/##4]]
211
212 75. [[Start CTA links and button text with a verb.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Links/##5]]
213
214 76. [[Make CTA links and button text 2 to 4 words.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Links/##6]]
215
216 77. [[Match the destination content.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Links/##7]]
217
218 78. [[Use sentence case.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Links/##8]]
219
220
221 === Headings, titles ===
222
223 79. [[Use specific, meaningful headings.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Page%20titles%20and%20headings/##1]]
224
225 80. [[Front-load headings.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Page%20titles%20and%20headings/##3]]
226
227 81. [[Structure your page with headings.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Page%20titles%20and%20headings/##4]]
228
229 82. [[Use sentence case for headings and subheadings.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Page%20titles%20and%20headings/##2]]
230
231 83. [[Label your headings.>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Page%20titles%20and%20headings/##5]]
232
233
234 Refer also to these wiki pages:
235
236 * [[Page design>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/Page%20layout/]]
237 * [[How people read>>url:https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/User%20centred%20design/How%20people%20read/]]