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Yahoo! Offers Free Online Style Guide for 'Digital World,' We Ain't Biting Yet

by Lee Bains on June 29, 2010 at 01:30 PM

Yahoo! Style GuideHere's something you may not know about us editorial types. Remember those MLA books that your teachers made you purchase, and that inevitably wound up buried in the bottom of your locker? Well, such books, or style guides, are our building codes, if you will. Our unique problem, though, is that there is no single set of stylistic rules. Every publication has to decide for itself what is "correct" and what isn't. First-person singular, or no first-person singular? Serial comma, or no serial comma? Tweet used as a verb? Or, does it depend on the situation? "Internet," or "internet"? (We know. It's pitiful.)

Due to the mercurial nature of language, these disputes rage, and technology -- which seems to breed new terms like bunny rabbits at a keg party -- only multiplies them. To that end, Yahoo! has released an online style guide that aims to solidify style "for the Digital World." The guide -- which favors "Internet" over "internet," "email" over "e-mail," and "PlayStation" over "Playstation" -- will be made available as Kindle and iPad apps on July 6th, and as a print volume at some point, as well. To see how our own Switched style guide matches up with Yahoo!'s, take a look after the break. (We'll give you a hint; Yahoo! could stand to be a little more thorough.) [From: Mashable and Yahoo! Style Guide]

Switched | Yahoo!
e-mail | email
Internet | Internet
PlayStation | PlayStation
MySpace | (no comment)
tweet | (no comment)
website | website
Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi
MP3 | MP3
megapixel | (no comment)
ringtone | ringtone

Tags: blog, DeathOfPrint, journalism, styleguide, top, yahoo

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