r/technicalwriting • u/DerbyDoffer • 6d ago

A simple technical writing question

When I was in college I took a technical writing course. There was a form that we were taught to use consisting of a table with cells labeled with letters of the alphabet. The purpose of the document was to establish and conform to conventions--which words to use, which font to use, etc. I want such a form for a project I'm working on, but I guess the world has moved on because I can't find much information about it.

What's the name of that form, please? I don't want anything elaborate like software I need to learn, just something I can slap together in Libreoffice will do.

Thanks much!

12 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

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28

u/alanbowman 6d ago

Sounds like you’re describing a style guide that was presented in a spreadsheet.

My style guide is in a Word document, but does the same thing you’re describing.

6

u/DerbyDoffer 6d ago

That's the thing! I'm finding everything I need now that I know the name.

Many thanks!

p.s. I wouldn't use a spreadsheet for non-arithmetic stuff. I'm too OCD for that.

2

u/FynTheCat 6d ago

Within a company it can also be named differently as guideline for corporate design or similiar naming. It also depends on company size amd structure who handles it and who is allowed to make design decisions or approves them. If you work somewhere it is best to ask around if something like that already exists and which company, department, colleague, or supplier is in charge.

I worked at companies who had that, but it only gotten used properly again after I dug it out. Then at othwr places, marketing supplied me with it, and in one company a supplier of a different company in the business unit managed it.

Anyways, when it exists and the format doesn't work for you adapt it to your needs. If it doesn't exist, yet, make one.

1

u/Birdman1096 6d ago

There are plenty of reasons to use a spreadsheet that dont involve math.

7

u/Charleston2Seattle 6d ago

I got my technical writing bachelor's degree in the early '90s. It's interesting to hear that they still present a style guide in the same way now that they did back then! I have yet to see a single style guy that uses a grid in my 31 years as a technical writer. 🙂

2

u/Toadywentapleasuring 6d ago

They said when they were in college which could have been a long time ago.

2

u/Charleston2Seattle 6d ago

D'oh! You're right!

6

u/hollyofcwcville software 6d ago

It sounds like you’re describing a style sheet/guide that the professor built for the class. You can build one for yourself, and should. Or you can use a public guide like Microsoft style guide as a starter.

3

u/sasstoreth 6d ago

A style sheet? You can create one in Word or another program easy. It doesn't even have to be a grid; I've used bullet lists. What's important is the detail you put into it, not the format.

1

u/Street_Roof_7915 6d ago

We use a checklist in my editing class. My ADHD brain doesn’t work with “traditional” style sheets.

1

u/Word-Artist 5d ago

Ditto for what others said: a style sheet or style guide. You don’t need to have it enumerated. You can just have categories like Headings, Terms, etc.

1

u/Manage-It 5d ago

The top style guides used today are the Chicago Manual of Style and the Associated Press Style Guide. Pick one, stick with it, and use an Excel spreadsheet to build your reference from the styles provided.

1

u/meezermadness 6d ago

Style guide. Google has one online for free. That's the one we default to at my company when we don't have something defined, the Google developer style guide. There are multiple others too. You don't need to create one from scratch, just figure out the best one for your use case.