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Subject:Caps after colons From:geoff-h -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA Date:Wed, 21 May 1997 08:19:11 -0500
Jennifer Kraus wondered <<is the first word after the
heading capitalized?>> and gave the example of <<WARNING:
Do not do ... This may result in...>>
Whether to capitalize the first word after a colon depends
on the context. If the colon introduces a list of items or
grammatically incomplete clauses, then you shouldn't use a
capital unless the word is a proper noun. If the colon
introduces a grammatically complete sentence, then the cap
is optional, but it's as useful as it is in any other
complete sentence. (I prefer the cap, but that's a matter
of personal opinion, not grammatical dogma... opinions
differ on this issue.)
One note about your warning statement, though. I prefer to
place the warning note up front and the trigger afterwards
(e.g., "you will lose your data if you do X"), or simplify
the phrasing (e.g., "doing x will destroy your data") so
that readers don't have to read through tons of text about
an action they're already about to do just to discover the
consequences. The temptation is to skip ahead without
reading the entire warning, on the logic "I already know
what I'm going to do, so why is the author warning me about
it?" Of course, the warning should precede the step so that
nobody actually performs the step before reading the
warning and then discovers that it's too late to backtrack.
--Geoff Hart @8^{)} geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
Disclaimer: Speaking for myself, not FERIC.
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