Buzzsaw.com Style - Word-by-Word
Buzzsaw.com Style Guide | Copy Principles | Punctuation | Usage Issues | Word-by-Word

This is by no means an exhaustive list. The issues addressed here are either unique to Buzzsaw.com or have come up repeatedly. For things not covered here, you can rely on existing guides like Webster's, the Chicago Manual, and Wired Style.

See the Usage section for Odd Partner Names.

AM and PM - See Usage section for Time Format.

dot com - Two words, lower case. Hyphenate only when used as a compound adjective: "Some buttoned-down members of the suit crowd resent all the dot-com companies flooding the Financial District."

e-commerce - Always hyphenated.

email - One word, no hyphen.

fact sheet - Two words.

FAQ - See note above. The plural is assumed, so the lower case s is never used.

homepage - One word.

Inc. - Avoid using this in straight text unless it is an integral part of a company's name, e.g., "books inc." The same goes for abbreviations like LLP, PC, SA, AG, etc.

Internet - Always upper case whether used as a noun or an adjective.

intranet - Like "extranet," it's more sociable cousin, this word is always lower case.

Link - Use either this or "hyperlink" to describe hypertext connections to other files or sites. Avoid "hotlink" for reasons that should be obvious.

Log in/Log out - We've chosen this pairing for the orange Buzzsaw.com site. Don't use "log on/log off," the pairing on the Purple. Also note that both are two words. See note below for use of "login."

Login - Don't use this as an adjective to describe a user's account name. Use "Username" instead.

MB (for megabyte) - Both letters are upper case; the same goes for gigabyte (GB).

online - One word, no hyphen.

on site - Two words, specifically referring to a construction site. Hyphenate only when used as a compound modifier preceding the word it modifies.

Examples:

"Spend less time on site."

"Make your on-site visits more productive."

OnSite - One word, with two odd caps, when used to refer the Web-camera service provided by Inet Architects.

ProjectPoint - One word.

real time - Two words. Hyphenate only when used as a compound modifier preceding the word it modifies.

Examples:

"Hold meetings in real time."

"The service provides real-time auctions"

Readme - One word, upper case.

screenshot - One word. The same applies for screengrab.

startup - One word.

subcontractor - One word, never hyphenated.

toolbar - One word.

Web, World Wide Web, WWW - Always upper case when referring to the place.

Web site - Two words, always upper case the W.

Username - One word. A registered Buzzsaw.com user logs on to the site with his or her Username and password.

Buzzsaw.com Style Guide | Copy Principles | Punctuation | Usage Issues | Word-by-Word