O'Reilly Default Stylesheet and Word List

This stylesheet is maintained (and frequently updated) by the Production Department and is available online at:

For questions and comments regarding this stylesheet, please send mail to stylesheet@oreilly.com.

Authors, please consult with your editor, editorial assistant, or production editor if you have questions specific to your book. If you'd like to use different conventions, please confer with your editor.

This stylesheet contains information for all authors, including those writing in Word, XML, or other formats. It is very important that you read the author's guide about writing in Microsoft Word if you are writing your book in Word.

Our general style reference is The Chicago Manual of Style, 14th Edition (though some O'Reilly styles differ).

Our dictionary is Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition.

Abbreviations/Acronyms

Acronyms should generally be spelled out the first time they appear in a book, as in: "Computer Development Environment (CDE)." After the acronym has been defined, you should generally use the acronym only (not the whole term, unless it makes more sense contextually to use the whole term). Usually, acronyms are defined only one per book. But if you prefer, you can also define them the first time they appear in each chapter.

A.M. and P.M. or a.m. and p.m.--be consistent.

K = 1024; k = 1000. So a 56 kbps modem is equal to 56,000 bps, while 64K of memory is equal to 65,536.

In units of measure, do not use a hyphen when it's a compound adjective. For example, it's 32 MB hard drive, not 32-MB hard drive.

Bibliographical Entries

In general, when referencing another book within a book's text paragraphs, include the author name(s) when there is one or two authors. When there are three or more authors, state the first author name, followed by "et al."

When referencing an O'Reilly book within the text, note only "O'Reilly" in parentheses, not "O'Reilly Media, Inc."

For other information regarding bibliographical entries, see The Chicago Manual of Style, 14th Edition.

Cross-References

Use chapter number only for references in a chapter. An example of a section cross-reference in another chapter: see "Acceptable Gifts" in Chapter 27.

An example of a chapter cross-reference: see Chapter 27.

An example of a section cross-reference: see "Treatment" later in this chapter.

An example of a section cross-reference in another chapter: see "Acceptable Gifts" in Chapter 29.

Dates and Numbers

Spell out numbers under 10, unless the same object appears in a sentence with an object 10 or over (five apples; 5 apples and 100 oranges).

Use numerals for versions (version 5 or v5).

Use a numeral if it's an actual value.

32-bit.

1980s.

Phone numbers can appear in the format xxx xxx-xxxx.
Use an en dash with negative numbers, rather than a hyphen.

Figures, Tables, and Examples

Every figure, table, and example should be preceded by a specific in-text reference (for example: see Figure 99-1; Example 1-99 shows; Table 1-1 lists, etc.). Figures, tables, and examples should not be introduced with colons or phrases like "in the following figure," or "as shown in this table." Since figures float, lack of specific in-text references may cause incorrect placement of figures.

Any word groupings within a figure should have an initial cap on the first word only, with the exception of proper nouns. Generally, we don't use periods at the end of these word groupings.

Figure, table, and example numbers should be numbered as follows: 1-2 (note hyphen, not en-dash between numbers). The first number is the chapter number. This will be soft-coded in production if not during the writing process.

Figure 1-1. Figure captions are initial-capped on first word only, with the exception of proper nouns. There is no period after figure captions.

Table 1-1. Column heads & table titles are initial-capped on the first word only, with the exception of proper nouns. There is no period after table titles.

Example 1-1. Example titles are initial-capped on the first word only, with the exception of proper nouns. There is no period after example titles.

Code

Maximum line length for code varies slightly between book formats. For standard non-Nutshell books, the maximum line length for code is 82 characters, with 86 characters available in captioned examples. In Nutshell books, standard line length for code is 73 characters, with 77 characters available in captioned examples. Pocket references have even smaller code line length--check with your editor for this information. Please keep code within the code margins that appear in the Word template and indicate proper linebreaks and indents for all code. Indent using spaces, not tabs.

Footnotes

Try to minimize the use of footnotes, as they cause difficulties in page layout. Whenever possible, delete footnotes, work them back into the text as parenthetical comments, or tag them as Notes.

Table footnotes are lettered (^{a b c} etc.) and appear directly after the table. They should be kept to a minimum.

Headings

In most of our design templates, A- and B-level headings are cap and lowercase: cap the first letter of each word, with the exception of articles, conjunctions, and program names or technical words that are always lowercase and coordinating conjunctions (e.g.,""and," "but," "for," etc). Prepositions of four letters or less are not initial-capped, unless they function as part of a verb (e.g., ""Set Up Your Operating System"). Hyphenated words in subordinating conjunctions (e.g., "as," "if," "that," "because," etc.) are always initial-capped (even if they are four letters or less). Hyphenated words in titles or captions should both be capped if the second word is a main word, but only the first should be capped if the second word isn't too important (it's a bit of a judgment call). For example: Big-Endian, Built-in. See The Chicago Manual of Style.

C-level headings have initial cap on the first word only, with the exception of proper nouns.

D-level headings (rare) are run-in with the following paragraph and have an initial cap on the first word only, with the exception of proper nouns, and a period at the end of the heading.

In the Developer's Notebook and Digital Studio series templates, A-heads should have all words intial-capped, with the exception of articles, conjunctions, prepositions of four letters or less, and program names or technical words that are always lowercase. B-heads, C-heads, and D-heads are initial-word-only capped only, with the exception of proper nouns.

In A- and B-level headings, prepositions with four letters or fewer should be lowercase: from, with, Within, Between. Also, the word "to" should be lowercase.

Lists

Typically, we use three types of lists: numbered lists, for ordered steps or chronological items; variable lists, for terms and explanations/definitions; and bulleted lists, for series of items. Following are examples of each type of list.

Numbered list

The following list of step-by-step instructions is an example of a numbered list:

1. Save Example 2-1 as the file hello.cs.

2. Open a command window.

3. From the command line, enter csc /debug hello.cs.

4. To run the program, enter Hello.

Variable list

The following list of defined terms is an example of a variable list:

Setup Project

This creates a setup file that automatically installs your files and resources.

Web Setup Project

Helps deploy a web-based project.

Bulleted list

The following series of items is an example of a bulleted list:

Labels

Buttons

A text box

Frequently, bulleted lists should be converted to variable lists. Any bulleted list whose entries consist of a short term and its definition should be converted. For example, the following bulleted list entries:

Spellchecking: process of correcting spelling

Pagebreaking--process of breaking pages

are correctly variable list entries:

Spellchecking: Process of correcting spelling
Pagebreaking: Process of breaking pages

Miscellaneous

Don't use "they" for third-person singular; alternate between "he" and "she."

Do not use a hyphen between an adverb and the word it modifies. So, "incredibly wide table" rather than "incredibly-wide table."

Close up words with the prefixes "multi," "pseudo," and "sub" (for example, "multiusers," "pseudoattribute," and "subprocess").

Always use hyphens, not en dashes, where appropriate to link compound adjectives--even in conjunction with open compounds (e.g., "a plug-in-based architecture" and "Microsoft Windows-style menus").

Always hyphenate compound adjectives, whether they precede or follow the noun they modify. There is one exception: compounds that use the word "well" should be hyphenated only when they precede the noun (e.g., "Unicode-based font," and "a font that is Unicode-based," and "well-known style" and "a style that is well known").

Avoid using the possessive case for singular nouns ending in "s," if possible. So, it's "the Windows Start menu," not "Windows's Start menu."

Avoid wholesale changes to the author's voice-for example, changing the first-person plural (the royal "we") to the first-person singular or the second person. However, do try to maintain a consistency within sentences or paragraphs, where appropriate.
Companies are always singular in case. So, for example, "Apple emphasizes the value of aesthetics in its product line. Consequently, it dominates the digital-music market" is correct. "Apple emphasize the value of aesthetics in their product line. They dominate the digital-music market" is not.

Punctuation

Series comma (this, that, and the other).

Curly quotes and apostrophes (" " not " ") in regular text.

Straight quotes (" " and ' ' not " " ` ') in constant-width text and all code. Some Unix commands use backticks (`), which must be preserved.

No period after list items unless one item forms a complete sentence (then use periods for all items within that list, even fragments).

Lowercase the first letter after a colon: this is how we do it.

The Chicago Manual style is our default.

Typography and Font Conventions

The following table outlines the basic font conventions used in O'Reilly books. It also lists the specific Word style tags you should use for these fonts.

Type of element in document Result in final document Style name(s) in template

Filenames, file extensions (such as .jpeg), directory paths, and Commands in Unix, Oracle, SQL, and Linux books Regular italic
(Times) Filename

URLs, URIs, email addresses Hyperlink, url

Emphasized words (shouting!) Emphasis, fi

First instance of a technical term Technical Italic, fix

Registry keys Constant width
(Courier) literal, fc

Language and script elements: class names, types, namespaces, attributes, methods, variables, keywords, functions, modules, commands, properties, parameters, values, objects, events, XML and HTML tags, and similar elements. Some examples include: System.Web.UI, a while loop, the Socket class, and the Obsolete attribute Constant width
(Courier) literal, fc

Replaceable items (placeholder items in syntax); "username" in the following example is a placeholder:
login: username Constant italic
(Courier Italic) replaceable, fci

Placeholders in paths, directories, GUI items, URLs, or other text that would be italic anyway:
http://www.<yourname>.com http://www.<yourname>.com No style; enclose in angle brackets

Keyboard accelerators (Ctrl, Shift, etc.), menu titles, menu options, menu buttons Regular text No style or font convention; leave as regular text

Superscripted items (not footnote markers: insert footnotes for these) Superscript² superscript

Subscripted items Subscript₃ subscript

Type of element in document	Result in final document	Style name(s) in template
Filenames, file extensions (such as .jpeg), directory paths, and Commands in Unix, Oracle, SQL, and Linux books	Regular italic (Times)	Filename
URLs, URIs, email addresses		Hyperlink, url
Emphasized words (shouting!)		Emphasis, fi
First instance of a technical term		Technical Italic, fix
Registry keys	`Constant width` (Courier)	literal, fc
Language and script elements: class names, types, namespaces, attributes, methods, variables, keywords, functions, modules, commands, properties, parameters, values, objects, events, XML and HTML tags, and similar elements. Some examples include: `System.Web.UI`, a `while` loop, the `Socket` class, and the `Obsolete` attribute	`Constant width` (Courier)	literal, fc
Replaceable items (placeholder items in syntax); "username" in the following example is a placeholder: login: `username`	`Constant italic` (Courier Italic)	replaceable, fci
Placeholders in paths, directories, GUI items, URLs, or other text that would be italic anyway: http://www.<yourname>.com	http://www.<yourname>.com	No style; enclose in angle brackets
Keyboard accelerators (Ctrl, Shift, etc.), menu titles, menu options, menu buttons	Regular text	No style or font convention; leave as regular text
Superscripted items (not footnote markers: insert footnotes for these)	Superscript²	superscript
Subscripted items	Subscript₃	subscript

These conventions may vary slightly for each project; please consult the production editor or freelance coordinator if you have any questions. Please note: Word authors should refer to the documentation accompanying the Word template; Frame authors should refer to the Tools Department's Frame documentation at http://intranet.oreilly.com/~sierra/prod/index.htm and the FrameMaker cheat sheet, available from the Tools Department or your production editor.

It's very important to follow tagging conventions for terms. The method for applying conventions will vary depending on the format: Word, Frame, SGML, or troff. (Don't just make something "bold" or "italic," either; use the proper tagging method. For instance, if you use just "italic" in Word, that change won't make it into conversion--you have to use the proper font tag.) Please consult with your editor or the Tools Department for instructions specific to each environment.

NOTE: If you're an author, and you want to use a font convention that is slightly different for one of the following items, check with your editor first--some things can change; some can't.
For instance, URLs will not be anything but italic, but you might come up with a different font convention for function names or menu items. If you do use something that differs from the following list, please write it down on your printout of this stylesheet, which should be submitted with your manuscript.
Or, if you have a "new" element, please consult with your editor, then write it on your printout and submit it with your manuscript.

O'Reilly Word List

[ A ], [ B ], [ C ], [ D ], [ E ], [ F ], [ G ], [ H ], [ I ], [ J ], [ K ], [ L ], [ M ], [ N ], [ O ], [ P ], [ Q ], [ R ], [ S ], [ T ], [ U ], [ V ], [ W ], [ X ], [ Y ], [ Z ]

A
acknowledgments
ActionScript
ActiveX control
Addison Wesley
ADO.NET
a.k.a.
a.m. or A.M.
Alt key
Alt-N
anonymous FTP
appendixes
applet (or Java applet)
AppleScript
AppleScript Studio (ASS)
ARPAnet
ASCII
at sign
autogenerate
awk
B
backend
background processes
backquote
backslash
Backspace key
backtick
backup (n)
back up (v)
backward
backward compatiable
bandwidth
BeOS
Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD)
Berkeley Unix (older books may have UNIX)
BHOs
bioinformatics
bitmap
bit mask
Bitnet
bit plane
bitwise operators
Boolean (unless referring to a datatype in code, in which case s/b lowercase)
Bourne-again shell (bash)
Bourne shell
braces or curly braces
brackets or square brackets
browsable
built-in (a, n)
button bar
C
cannot or can't (not "can not")
Caps Lock key
caret or circumflex
CAT-5
CD-ROM
C language (n)
C-language (a)
checkbox
classpath
client/server
client side (n)
client-side (a)
co-class
code set
colorcell
colormap
Command key (Macintosh)
command line (n)
command-line (a)
Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA)
compact disc
compile time (n)
compile-time (a)
CompuServe
copyleft
copyright
CPU
criterion (s), criteria (p)
cross-reference
C shell
<CR><LF>
Ctrl key
Ctrl-Alt-Delete
Ctrl-N
curly braces or braces

D
database
data block
Data Encryption Standard (DES)
datafile
datatype or data type (be consistent)
data is
DB-9
Debian GNU/Linux
dial-up (a)
dial up (v)
disk
Debian GNU/Linux
Delete key
design time (n)
design-time (a)
DNS
DocBook
Document Object Model (DOM)
Domain Name System
dot
dot-com
double-click
double-precision (a)
double quotes
down arrow
downlevel (a)
download
drag-and-drop
drop-down (a)
E
e-books
e-business
e-commerce
Emacs
email
empty-element tag
end-of-file (EOF)
end-tag
end user
Enter key
equals sign
Escape key (or Esc key)
Ethernet
exclamation mark
Exim
F
failback (n)
failover (n)
fax
filename
file manager
file server
filesystem
file type
FireWire
foreground
FORTRAN
Fortran 90
forward (adv)
FreeBSD
Free Documentation License (FDL)
Free Software Foundation (FSF)
frame type
frontend
ftp (Unix command)
FTP (protocol)
FTP site

G
gateway
Gb (gigabit)
GB (gigabyte)
GBps (gigabytes per second)
GHz
gid
GIMP
GNOME
GNU Emacs
GNU Project
GNU Public License (GPL)
GNUstep
grayscale
greater-than sign or >
GUI, GUIs
H
handcode
hardcoded
hardcode (v)
hardcopy
hardcore
hard link
hard page
hash sign or sharp sign
high-level (adj)
home page
hostname
hotspot
HTML
HTTP
hypertext
I
IDs
IDE
inline
inode
interclient
Internet
internetwork
Intrinsics
I/O
IP (Internet Protocol)
IPSEC
ISO
ISP

J
Jabber
Jabber client
Jabber server
Jabber applet
JAR archive
JAR file
JavaScript
Java™ (must appear with ™ symbol on copyright page and first time in book)
JavaBeans™ (must appear with ™ symbol on copyright page and first time in book)
K
K Desktop Environment (KDE)
Kb (kilobit)
KB (kilobyte; denotes file size
or disk space)
Kbps (kilobits per second)
keepalive (n or a)
Kerberos
keyclick
keycode
keymaps
keypad
keystroke
keysym
keywords
kHz (kilohertz)
Korn shell
L
local area network or LAN
left angle bracket or <
lefthand (a)
leftmost
less-than sign or <
leveled (not levelled)
line-feed (a)
line feed (n)
Linux
LinuxPPC
listbox
logfile
login, logout, or logon (n or a)
log in, log out, or log on (v)
lower- and uppercase
lowercase
lower-level (a)
lower-right (a)
Linux Professional Institute (LPI)

M
Macintosh
Mac OS
Mac OS 9 (note the use of spaces)
Mac OS X (note the use of spaces)
mail-handling (adjective)
manpage
markup
Mb (megabit)
MB (megabyte)
MBps (megabytes per second)
McGraw-Hill
menu bar
metacharacter
Meta key
Meta-N
MHz (megahertz)
mice or mouses (be consistent)
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows NT
Microsoft Windows XP
Microsoft Windows 2000
MIDlet
MKS Toolkit
MS-DOS
multiline
multimedia
multitasking
multithreaded
multitier
multiuser
My Services
N
nameserver
namespace
name service
the Net
NetBIOS
NetBSD
NetInfo
.NET
newline
newsgroups
NeXTSTEP
non-breaking
nonlocal
nonpartitioned
nonstandard
non-validating
nonzero
Novell NetWare
O
Objective-C
object linking and embedding (OLE)
object-oriented programming (OOP)
object request broker (ORB)
offline
offload
onboard
ongoing
online
open source (mention URL http://opensource.org first time)
open source software (OSS)
OpenBSD
OpenMotif
OpenStep
OpenWindows
Option key (Macintosh)
Oracle7
Oracle8
Oracle 8.0
Oracle8i (italic "i")
Oracle9i (italic "i")
Oracle Parallel Query Option
O'Reilly Media, Inc.
OS/2
OSA
OSF/Motif
OS X

P
packet switch networks
Paint Shop Pro
pagefile
parentheses (p)
parenthesis (s)
Pascal
password
pathname
pattern-matching (a)
peer-to-peer (or P2P)
percent (spell out if the number is spelled out)
performant (Oracle)
period
Perl
Perl DBI
Plug and Play (PnP)
plug-in (a,n)
p.m. or P.M.
Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP)
pop up (v, n)
pop-up (a)
POP-3
Portable Document Format (PDF)
Portable Network Graphics (PNG)
Portable Operating System Interface (POSIX)
POSIX-compliant
Post Office Protocol (POP)
postprocess
PostScript
Prentice Hall
process ID
progress bar
pseudoattribute
pseudoterminal
pseudo-tty
public key (n)
public-key (a)
pull-down (a)
Q
qmail
Qt
Quartz
Quartz Extreme
QuarkXPress
QuickTime
quotation marks (spell out first time it appears; can be "quotes" thereafter)
R

random-access (a)
RCS
read-only (a)
read/write
real time (n)
real-time (a)
Red Hat Linux
Red Hat Package Manager (RPM)
redirection
reference page or manpage
remote-access server
rename
Rendezvous (Mac OS X Zeroconf networking)
Return (key)
RFC 822
rich text
right angle bracket or greater-than sign (>)
right-click
righthand (a)
rmail
roll back (v)
rollback (n)
rootkit
Rubout key
rulebase
ruleset
runtime (n, a)

S
Samba
saveset
screen dump
screenful
screensaver
screenshot
scroll bar
securelevel (in Linux)
Secure Shell (SSH)
Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)
sed scripts
semicolon
server-dependent
server side (n)
server-side (a)
servlet
set up (v)
setup (n)
SGML
sharp sign or hash sign
shell; lowercase even in shell name (Bourne shell)
shell scripts
Shift key
short cut
Simple API for XML (SAX)
single-precision (a)
single quote
site map
Smalltalk
SMP (a, n)
source code
SOAP
Space bar
spam (not SPAM)
spellcheck
spellchecker
split screen
square brackets or brackets
standalone
standard input (stdin)
standard output (stdout)
start-tag
startup file
status bar
stylesheet
subprocesses
subshade
SuSE Linux
swapfile
swapspace
sync
system administrator
system-wide
T
10-baseT
T1
t-shirt
Tab key
TCP/IP
Telnet (the protocol)
telnet (v)
terabyte
T_EX
texinfo
text box
text-input mode
thread pooling (n)
time-sharing processes
timestamp
time zone
title bar
titlebutton
Token Ring
toolbar
toolkit
tool tip
top-level (a)
toward
trade-off
troubleshoot
U
Ultrix
Universal Serial Bus (USB)
Unix (UNIX in many books, esp. older ones)
up arrow
upper- and lowercase
uppercase
upper-left corner
UPSs
up-to-date
URLs
U.S.
Usenet
user ID (n)
user-ID (a)
username

V
v2 or Version 2
VAX/VMS
VB.NET
versus (avoid vs.)
vice versa
Visual Basic .NET
Visual Basic 6 or VB 6
Visual C++ .NET
Visual Studio .NET
VoiceXML
Volume One
VS.NET
W
the Web (n)
web (a)
web client
webmaster
web page
web server
web services (unless preceded by a proper noun, as in Microsoft Web Services)
web site
white pages
whitespace
wide area network or WAN
Wi-Fi
Wiki
wildcard
Windows 95
Windows 98
Windows 2000
Windows NT
Windows XP
Wizard (proper noun)
wizard (a, n)
workaround
workbench
workgroup
workstation
World Wide Web (WWW)
wraparound
writable
write-only (a)
WYSIWYG
X
X client
X protocol
X server
X Toolkit
XView
X Window series
X Window System
x86
xFree86
XHTML
XLink
XML
XML Query Language (XQuery)
XML-RPC
XPath
XPointer
XSL
XSLT

Y
Yahoo!
Z
Zeroconf (short for "Zero Configuration"; see http://www.zeroconf.org)
zeros
zip code
ZIP file

A acknowledgments ActionScript ActiveX control Addison Wesley ADO.NET a.k.a. a.m. or A.M. Alt key Alt-N anonymous FTP appendixes applet (or Java applet) AppleScript AppleScript Studio (ASS) ARPAnet ASCII at sign autogenerate awk	B backend background processes backquote backslash Backspace key backtick backup (n) back up (v) backward backward compatiable bandwidth BeOS Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD) Berkeley Unix (older books may have UNIX) BHOs bioinformatics bitmap bit mask Bitnet bit plane bitwise operators Boolean (unless referring to a datatype in code, in which case s/b lowercase) Bourne-again shell (bash) Bourne shell braces or curly braces brackets or square brackets browsable built-in (a, n) button bar	C cannot or can't (not "can not") Caps Lock key caret or circumflex CAT-5 CD-ROM C language (n) C-language (a) checkbox classpath client/server client side (n) client-side (a) co-class code set colorcell colormap Command key (Macintosh) command line (n) command-line (a) Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) compact disc compile time (n) compile-time (a) CompuServe copyleft copyright CPU criterion (s), criteria (p) cross-reference C shell <CR><LF> Ctrl key Ctrl-Alt-Delete Ctrl-N curly braces or braces
D database data block Data Encryption Standard (DES) datafile datatype or data type (be consistent) data is DB-9 Debian GNU/Linux dial-up (a) dial up (v) disk Debian GNU/Linux Delete key design time (n) design-time (a) DNS DocBook Document Object Model (DOM) Domain Name System dot dot-com double-click double-precision (a) double quotes down arrow downlevel (a) download drag-and-drop drop-down (a)	E e-books e-business e-commerce Emacs email empty-element tag end-of-file (EOF) end-tag end user Enter key equals sign Escape key (or Esc key) Ethernet exclamation mark Exim	F failback (n) failover (n) fax filename file manager file server filesystem file type FireWire foreground FORTRAN Fortran 90 forward (adv) FreeBSD Free Documentation License (FDL) Free Software Foundation (FSF) frame type frontend ftp (Unix command) FTP (protocol) FTP site
G gateway Gb (gigabit) GB (gigabyte) GBps (gigabytes per second) GHz gid GIMP GNOME GNU Emacs GNU Project GNU Public License (GPL) GNUstep grayscale greater-than sign or > GUI, GUIs	H handcode hardcoded hardcode (v) hardcopy hardcore hard link hard page hash sign or sharp sign high-level (adj) home page hostname hotspot HTML HTTP hypertext	I IDs IDE inline inode interclient Internet internetwork Intrinsics I/O IP (Internet Protocol) IPSEC ISO ISP
J Jabber Jabber client Jabber server Jabber applet JAR archive JAR file JavaScript Java™ (must appear with ™ symbol on copyright page and first time in book) JavaBeans™ (must appear with ™ symbol on copyright page and first time in book)	K K Desktop Environment (KDE) Kb (kilobit) KB (kilobyte; denotes file size or disk space) Kbps (kilobits per second) keepalive (n or a) Kerberos keyclick keycode keymaps keypad keystroke keysym keywords kHz (kilohertz) Korn shell	L local area network or LAN left angle bracket or < lefthand (a) leftmost less-than sign or < leveled (not levelled) line-feed (a) line feed (n) Linux LinuxPPC listbox logfile login, logout, or logon (n or a) log in, log out, or log on (v) lower- and uppercase lowercase lower-level (a) lower-right (a) Linux Professional Institute (LPI)
M Macintosh Mac OS Mac OS 9 (note the use of spaces) Mac OS X (note the use of spaces) mail-handling (adjective) manpage markup Mb (megabit) MB (megabyte) MBps (megabytes per second) McGraw-Hill menu bar metacharacter Meta key Meta-N MHz (megahertz) mice or mouses (be consistent) Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows NT Microsoft Windows XP Microsoft Windows 2000 MIDlet MKS Toolkit MS-DOS multiline multimedia multitasking multithreaded multitier multiuser My Services	N nameserver namespace name service the Net NetBIOS NetBSD NetInfo .NET newline newsgroups NeXTSTEP non-breaking nonlocal nonpartitioned nonstandard non-validating nonzero Novell NetWare	O Objective-C object linking and embedding (OLE) object-oriented programming (OOP) object request broker (ORB) offline offload onboard ongoing online open source (mention URL http://opensource.org first time) open source software (OSS) OpenBSD OpenMotif OpenStep OpenWindows Option key (Macintosh) Oracle7 Oracle8 Oracle 8.0 Oracle8i (italic "i") Oracle9i (italic "i") Oracle Parallel Query Option O'Reilly Media, Inc. OS/2 OSA OSF/Motif OS X
P packet switch networks Paint Shop Pro pagefile parentheses (p) parenthesis (s) Pascal password pathname pattern-matching (a) peer-to-peer (or P2P) percent (spell out if the number is spelled out) performant (Oracle) period Perl Perl DBI Plug and Play (PnP) plug-in (a,n) p.m. or P.M. Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) pop up (v, n) pop-up (a) POP-3 Portable Document Format (PDF) Portable Network Graphics (PNG) Portable Operating System Interface (POSIX) POSIX-compliant Post Office Protocol (POP) postprocess PostScript Prentice Hall process ID progress bar pseudoattribute pseudoterminal pseudo-tty public key (n) public-key (a) pull-down (a)	Q qmail Qt Quartz Quartz Extreme QuarkXPress QuickTime quotation marks (spell out first time it appears; can be "quotes" thereafter)	R random-access (a) RCS read-only (a) read/write real time (n) real-time (a) Red Hat Linux Red Hat Package Manager (RPM) redirection reference page or manpage remote-access server rename Rendezvous (Mac OS X Zeroconf networking) Return (key) RFC 822 rich text right angle bracket or greater-than sign (>) right-click righthand (a) rmail roll back (v) rollback (n) rootkit Rubout key rulebase ruleset runtime (n, a)
S Samba saveset screen dump screenful screensaver screenshot scroll bar securelevel (in Linux) Secure Shell (SSH) Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) sed scripts semicolon server-dependent server side (n) server-side (a) servlet set up (v) setup (n) SGML sharp sign or hash sign shell; lowercase even in shell name (Bourne shell) shell scripts Shift key short cut Simple API for XML (SAX) single-precision (a) single quote site map Smalltalk SMP (a, n) source code SOAP Space bar spam (not SPAM) spellcheck spellchecker split screen square brackets or brackets standalone standard input (stdin) standard output (stdout) start-tag startup file status bar stylesheet subprocesses subshade SuSE Linux swapfile swapspace sync system administrator system-wide	T 10-baseT T1 t-shirt Tab key TCP/IP Telnet (the protocol) telnet (v) terabyte T_EX texinfo text box text-input mode thread pooling (n) time-sharing processes timestamp time zone title bar titlebutton Token Ring toolbar toolkit tool tip top-level (a) toward trade-off troubleshoot	U Ultrix Universal Serial Bus (USB) Unix (UNIX in many books, esp. older ones) up arrow upper- and lowercase uppercase upper-left corner UPSs up-to-date URLs U.S. Usenet user ID (n) user-ID (a) username
V v2 or Version 2 VAX/VMS VB.NET versus (avoid vs.) vice versa Visual Basic .NET Visual Basic 6 or VB 6 Visual C++ .NET Visual Studio .NET VoiceXML Volume One VS.NET	W the Web (n) web (a) web client webmaster web page web server web services (unless preceded by a proper noun, as in Microsoft Web Services) web site white pages whitespace wide area network or WAN Wi-Fi Wiki wildcard Windows 95 Windows 98 Windows 2000 Windows NT Windows XP Wizard (proper noun) wizard (a, n) workaround workbench workgroup workstation World Wide Web (WWW) wraparound writable write-only (a) WYSIWYG	X X client X protocol X server X Toolkit XView X Window series X Window System x86 xFree86 XHTML XLink XML XML Query Language (XQuery) XML-RPC XPath XPointer XSL XSLT
Y Yahoo!	Z Zeroconf (short for "Zero Configuration"; see http://www.zeroconf.org) zeros zip code ZIP file