/style-guide

Raspberry Pi Style Guide, v2.0

This document is based on the original Style Guide from days of yore. It is a work in progress; the word list is still being updated to remove obsolete and duplicate entries, and there will also be specific sections on website guidelines in future.

Unless the matter is mentioned below, please consult the Oxford Guide to Style.

The Raspberry Pi Foundation strives for an approachable, conversational tone in its materials. See www.raspberrypi.org for examples.

Lists

Use semicolons for lists with internal commas. We received bouquets from Chris, in California; Jim, in Belgium; and Bob, in Liverpool.

Complicated lists are usually better presented typographically with bullets or numerals. Bullets should be used for lists of items with no hierarchy, numerals for lists of items with hierarchy, and for steps in a process (for example tutorials). Letters should never be used for list points. Bullet points take a capital letter but do not take a full stop (this includes the final list item) unless one or more of the bulleted list items is made up of more than one sentence, in which case all points on the list should have a full stop, even if they are fragments.

A bulleted list should be introduced with a colon:

  • First list item
  • Second list item
  • Third list item

See Titles of other works below for more examples of bulleted lists.

Emphasis

Use bold type for emphasis.

Punctuation

Oxford commas should be used throughout; they resolve ambiguity and should be used elsewhere for consistency. We photographed the components, a sandwich, and a magnet.

Hyphenate two or more modifiers before a noun unless the first adjective modifies the complete noun phrase. The moderators are fascist-robot enthusiasts. The moderators are fascist robot enthusiasts. Do not hyphenate adjectival compounds which begin with adverbs ending -ly. A gorgeously constructed computer. Add a hyphen on the end of multiple items that are joined to another word in this way e.g. 'a 12- and 15-month subscription is available', 'full- and part-time jobs'. Be sure to differentiate between hyphens (n-dashes) and dashes (m-dashes).

Do not use apostrophes in abbreviated plurals: PCs, BGAs. Apostrophes may be used when an abbreviation is turned into a verb, although it is best practice to avoid doing this altogether: My mother won't stop IM'ing me.

In large sections of quoted speech, leave the quotation mark at the end of each paragraph rather than omitting them, as per the Oxford Guide to Style.

Do not use ampersands(&); always use 'and'. The exception might be in a print article for The MagPi, where space is at a premium.

Titles of other works

Titles of other works should be set in title case (first and last words take an initial capital, regardless of length of word or part of speech; all other words in the title except articles, prepositions of three or fewer letters and conjunctions of three or fewer letters, and the words if, how and why should also take an initial capital.)

As a general rule with software in particular, check the manufacturer's capitalisation style. Many examples of software title capitalisation are in the word list below; if you encounter more, please email liz@raspberrypi.org to have them added them to the list.

Treatment of the titles depends on the type of work. In general, titles should be set in italics, unless they fall under one of the following categories:

  • Blogs. The titles of individual blog posts should be set in italics (unless the blog publishes posts under a date only).
  • Games. Computer games, board games, card games, arcade games.
  • Magazines and newspapers. The titles of specific articles from magazines and newspapers should, however, be set in italics.
  • Websites.
  • Software.

Italicise the titles of the following types of works: artworks; books, book chapters and other parts of books; CDs; albums; DVDs; songs; lectures; magazine and newspaper articles; films; operas; plays; podcasts and episodes of podcasts; poems; speeches with titles; television and radio programmes and episodes; web shows; webinars; and online videos.

But wait! There's more!

If compiling a numbered or bulleted list of titles which are like items, the titles do not need to be set in italics because they do not need to stand out from surrounding text. A similar list of titles which are not like items should be set in italics where they are required.

Jemima's favourite old movies are:

  • Gone With the Wind
  • Singin' in the Rain
  • The Third Man

These are a few of my favourite things:

  • Sausages
  • Banditry
  • Anne of Green Gables

When referring to the company, use "the Raspberry Pi Foundation" with the definite article, never "Raspberry Pi Foundation" on its own without the article. "The Raspberry Pi Foundation" should always be used as the first instance in an article; "the Foundation" is fine subsequently. It's acceptable to omit the "the" on covers and in titles. However, for less formal text, 'Raspberry Pi' is preferable to 'the Foundation', and more outsider-friendly.

Capitalisation

First word in chapter headings and titles take an initial capital, others lower case. (Sentence case.) In all text, try to avoid the use of a trademark whose initial letter is in lower case (iPad, element14) at the start of a sentence or title. iPad sales soar is only ever acceptable if typography means that there is insufficient space for Sales of iPad soar.

Abbreviations

Spell out abbreviations in the first instance in a chapter section, followed by the abbreviation in parentheses. Thereafter use the abbreviation. The Raspberry Pi's brain is a system on a chip (SoC), made by stacking a memory chip on top of a processor chip. Using an SoC keeps the area of the Raspberry Pi board low.

See the word list below for correct abbreviations and their capitalisations when spelt out.

Numerals

Spell out numbers one to twelve unless dealing with code or units of computer storage; express 13 and higher numbers as a numeral unless at the start of a sentence. Eighteen bagpipers were shown to the door.

Subscript numerals (e.g. in chemical formulae) are fine in print, but not for online content. So CO2 online, CO2 in print.

Use the multiplication symbol × when required, not the letter x.

URLs

Omit http:// from URLs in print. Use hyperlinks in online content.

Time and date

Use the 24-hour clock. 1615h etc.

Dates should be expressed 21 Jan 2006 etc. to avoid confusion with month/day ordering for readers outside the UK. Abbreviate months thus: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec.

Season names should not be capitalised.

Race, disability, gender

Indian people (or Egyptian people, black people, Jewish people etc.) never Indians, Egyptians, blacks or Jews. Similarly, use disabled as an adjective, never a noun. Disabled people, not the disabled.

Copy should be gender neutral as far as possible. Using they as a singular pronoun is acceptable, and is preferable to alternating he and she, which can be clumsy and immersion breaking for the reader. Where possible, make nouns and pronouns plural: Students should enter their passwords is preferable to Each student should enter his or her password.

Avoid gendered job titles; there is usually an alternative. So firefighter instead of fireman; flight attendant instead of stewardess.

Avoid man, mankind, manmade, manpower etc. There are plenty of alternatives.

Markdown-specific guidelines

The main header should be formatted as h1, sub-headers as h2. Any further sub-headers in the hierarchy should be h3, h4 and so on. Never use bold formatting instead; likewise, never use headers to make text bold. Leave one line break between headers and the main text.

No double spaces after punctuation, please!

Code and code-related words should be formatted with backticks, for example mc = minecraft.Minecraft.create(). In large code examples, the name of the programming language should be entered after the first set of three backticks (for example, ```python). Code must always be indented within lists to prevent the numbering formatting being broken.

Code blocks and images should have a new line before and after them to improve readability.

Images should not have text in the preceding square brackets []; it should be placed within the regular brackets. For example:

![](components.png "Components you will need").

'Smart' quotes should be avoided.

Lists should only be used for step-by-step instructions, not for ordinary paragraphs that don't contain specific instructions. When creating numbered lists, start each item with '1.', rather than ascending numbers. This makes it easier to add steps later without having to change all the others.

Some longer pages in the documentation repository use Markdown's internal anchors, such as <a name="usage"></a>, for ease of navigation. These can be added on the line preceding headings.

Please note that the final section in a resource should be titled What next?, not What's next?.

Spelling

UK English should be used, with the exception of international organisations- for example, The John F Kennedy Space Center.

Word list

####

  • 3D
  • 3G, 4G (phone networks)
  • 50-50 – not fifty-fifty
  • 8-bit microprocessor
  • 8×, 16× (CD or DVD drive speeds) – note multiplication symbol, not letter x.

###A

  • AA batteries
  • abandonware – old software, where the IP holders are unknown
  • Acorn Archimedes (computer) – shorten to Archimedes after first use
  • Acorn Computers (company name, produced the BBC Micro and the Acorn family of computers)
  • Acorn Electron (computer)
  • adapter
  • add-on; use 'add-on board', not 'card'
  • adware
  • AMD (company name)
  • Amstrad (company name)
  • Amstrad CPC (computer), short for Amstrad Colour Personal Computer
  • analogue
  • antenna (pl. antennae
  • antivirus
  • app – short form of application. Don’t use if there's potential for confusion.
  • Apple – Apple trademark. Do not add an s to make plural.
  • applications processor
  • APT - Advanced Package Tool, used in Debian Linux to obtain software.
  • Arch Linux
  • ARM architecture
  • ARM chipset
  • ARM Holdings (company name)
  • ARMv6, ARMv7
  • assembly language
  • Atheros (chipset, company name)
  • audio conference
  • Auto-Tune (capitalise – it's an Antares Audio Technologies trademark. Do not use as a verb.)
  • avatar (lower case unless you're talking about the movie!)

###B

  • B.C. – place after the year. The hoard dates back to around 700 B.C.
  • back end (noun), back-end (adjective)
  • back-to-school (adjective), back to school (noun)
  • backdoor – one word when it's a computer-hacking term
  • backlight
  • backlit
  • backup (noun, adjective), back up (verb)
  • bar code
  • Bash (Bourne-again shell)
  • BBC BASIC – not BASIC (to avoid confusion with Sinclair BASIC and other BASICs.)
  • BBC Micro
  • BBC micro:bit - a handheld, fully programmable computer which was given free to every Year 7 child across the UK. If using just 'micro:bit', try not to begin sentences with it, due to the lowercase nature of the name.
  • BBC Model A
  • BBC Model B
  • Bcc – blind carbon copy. Do not spell out this acronym. (See also Cc.) Also Bcc'd, Bcc'ing.
  • BCM2835 – SoC made by Broadcom, used in the Raspberry Pi. Can be shortened to 2835 after first use.
  • Beagle Board
  • beta – do not capitalise unless part of an official product lane. Raspberry Pi's beta release for developers; try Yahoo! Messenger Beta.
  • BGA – ball grid array
  • biannual, bimonthly, biweekly – do not use. Instead use every two months or twice a month etc. which is longer, but which avoids confusion.
  • billion – use numerals with billion: 5 billion people. Abbreviate to bil only if space is at a premium.
  • binary
  • binary blob – a pejorative term in the free software community. Do not use to refer to the GPU in the Raspberry Pi.
  • BIOS – Basic Input/Output System
  • bitstream
  • BlackBerry – a Research In Motion (RIM) trademark, so note capitalisation, plural: BlackBerry. BlackBerrys is not correct and can be used only as part of a direct quotation.
  • blog
  • Blogger – Google trademark when referring to the blogging platform
  • blogroll
  • Blu-ray – a Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) trademark, so note capitalisation and hyphen. Use as an adjective only.
  • Bluetooth – Bluetooth SIG trademark. Note capitalisation and only use as an adjective.
  • BMP – bitmap.
  • boot ROM - a small piece of memory containing the first code executed by the processor on startup
  • bps – bits per second
  • breadcrumb (when referring to website navigation)
  • Broadcom
  • BSD – Berkeley Software Distribution

###C

  • C (language)
  • C# (language)
  • C++ (language)
  • Camera Module / Camera Module v2 - the official Raspberry Pi camera add-on
  • camera phone
  • CAPTCHA – Completely Automated Public Turing Test to Tell Computers and Humans Apart. A rare instance where the first use of an acronym does not need spelling out!
  • CAS – Computing at School
  • Cc – carbon copy. Do not spell out this acronym. (See also Bcc.) Also Cc'd, Cc'ing.
  • CD – compact disc. Do not spell out this acronym. Plural CDs.
  • CD-R – CD-recordable. Plural CD-Rs.
  • CD-ROM – CD-read-only memory. Do not spell out this acronym. Plural CD-ROMs.
  • CD-RW – CD-rewritable. Plural CD-RWs.
  • Celsius – can always be abbreviated to °C
  • centimetre (not centimeter)
  • CGI – computer-generated imaging or common gateway interface or computer graphics interface. Be clear in the first reference in a section which you are referring to before reverting to the acronym.
  • chat room
  • checkbox
  • children's
  • click – usage depends on the object: use click for a button, link or other interface object, and click on for pictures, icons etc.
  • clickable
  • client/server – an adjective to describe a kind of network
  • clip art
  • cloud computing (noun and adjective)
  • cm – centimetre. Use a space between the number and cm. My thumb measures 4 cm.
  • codebase
  • codec – coder/decoder
  • command line
  • Commodore 64 (computer)
  • Commodore Amiga – shorten to Amiga after first use
  • Commodore International – company producing the Commodore family of computers
  • computer science (not computing science)
  • cookie – lower case for both biscuits and tracking cookies
  • corrupted – use corrupted, not corrupt when describing data. The file is corrupted.
  • crawl – fine as a transitive verb meaning "to sift through" when applied to search engines
  • Creative Commons
  • CSS – Cascading Style Sheets. Note capitalisation. Lower case style sheets can be used to refer to CSS documents: Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) specifications enable a web designer to use style sheets to lay out a web page.
  • CSV – comma-separated values
  • curriculum (pl. curricula
  • cyber- – avoid as a prefix where possible: dated. If you do need to use it, don't hyphenate. Cyberattack, cyberterrorism.

###D

  • data – treat as a singular noun. The data is lost.
  • database
  • Debian
  • Device Tree: a means of representing devices on the Raspberry Pi- see the original elinux documentation here.
  • digital age, digital native, digital divide – avoid where possible. Dated jargon.
  • dingbat – typographical ornament, such as ★.
  • disc/disk – magnetic storage is on disks, but optical storage is on discs: floppy disks, compact discs.
  • dongle
  • DoS – denial-of-service attack
  • DOS – Disk Operating System. Acronym for several closely related operating systems.
  • dos and don'ts – note apostrophes
  • DOTs Board- Bare Conductive's electric paint-based addon
  • double-click – note hyphen
  • drag-and-drop (adjective), drag and drop (verb)
  • dreamt
  • drop-down menu not pull-down menu
  • DVD – digital video disc. No need to spell out the acronym in first use.
  • DVR – digital video recorder

###E

  • e- – generally, hyphenate when a prefix. So: e-book, e-card, e-reader. Note exception for email.
  • e-book
  • e-commerce
  • e-paper
  • e.g.
  • Earth – capitalise when referring to planet, lower case when referring to soil.
  • eBay – an eBay trademark
  • Ed and Izzy - the two special Astro Pi units sent to the ISS with Tim Peake.
  • EEG - electroencephalography
  • element14/Premier Farnell in the first instance in a chapter section, then just element14. Element14 should be capitalised if it appears at the beginning of a sentence; in general, try to avoid using at the start of a sentence.
  • email
  • Emotiv – company producing EEG headsets for neuro-signal work.
  • EPROM – erasable programmable read only memory
  • ePub – electronic publication. An open-standard file format for e-books.
  • ESP – email service provider
  • -esque – Do not hyphenate words with this suffix unless the suffix creates a double vowel. Turneresque, Dali-esque.
  • Ethernet (always capitalise)
  • EULA – end user licence agreement
  • ex. – do not use this abbreviation. Use e.g. instead.

###F

  • fan page
  • fan site
  • fanbase
  • FAQ – frequently asked questions. Plural FAQs.
  • Fahrenheit – can always be abbreviated to °F
  • fax
  • feed reader
  • file name
  • file system
  • firewall
  • FireWire – trademark
  • Flash – capitalise if referring to Adobe Flash; if referring to Adobe Flash, Flash is a trademark, so use as an adjective. Do not confuse with flash memory, which is not capitalised and can be used as a noun.
  • flash memory
  • friend – can be used as a verb if referring to social networking. See unfriend.
  • FTP – File Transfer Protocol (note capitalisation)
  • full-screen
  • function keys

###G

  • g – gram(s). Use a numeral with g and use a space between the numeral and g. The teabag weighs 7 g.
  • gamer
  • Gb – gigabit. No space between the number and Gb.
  • GB – gigabyte. No space between the number and GB. You'll need an 8GB SD card.
  • Gbps – gigabits per second. No space between number and Gbps.
  • GBps – gigabytes per second. No space between number and GBps.
  • Generation X – also Generation Xer (although this is ugly and should be avoided if possible)
  • Generation Y
  • geolocation
  • geotagging (noun – OK, gerund), geotag (verb)
  • GHz – gigahertz. No space between the number and GHz.
  • GIF – Graphic Interchange Format. Acronym is always OK. Plural GIFs.
  • GitHub
  • GNU – the GNU Project. A recursive acronym: GNU is not UNIX.
  • GNU Linux
  • Google – Google trademark. Google's guidelines say you may not use the trademark as a verb, despite common usage; use search [with Google] or search for instead.
  • GPIO - General-Purpose Input/Output
  • GPIO Zero
  • GPU – graphics processing unit
  • gram – see g
  • grey – not gray
  • GSM – Global System for Mobile Communications
  • guestbook
  • GUI – graphical user interface

###H

  • hardcore
  • hashtag – Twitter term
  • HAT - Hardware Attached on Top, describing various add-on boards such as the Sense HAT
  • HDTV – high-definition television
  • help desk
  • help pages
  • hit – do not use as a substitute for press or click
  • home page
  • host name
  • hot swap (noun), hot-swap (verb), hot-swappable, hot swapping
  • hotspot – one word when referring to a WiFi access point. Use hot spot if you're talking about a popular restaurant.
  • hover – do not use to describe holding a mouse pointer over something on the page. Use hold, pass, or move [your mouse cursor over].
  • HTML – Hypertext Markup Language
  • Hynix (company name)

###I

  • I2C - Inter-Integrated Circuit, used for peripherals on the Pi.
  • IBM (company name)
  • IC – integrated circuit
  • ICT – information and communications technology, not information and communication technology
  • ID – identification. Plural IDs. Avoid using as a verb unless space is very restricted; use apostrophe in verb form. Where possible, The bouncer checks drinkers' identification, not The bouncer ID’s drinkers.
  • IDLE - Python IDE installed on Raspbian, found under the Programming menu as 'Python 3 (IDLE)'
  • i.e.
  • IM – instant message. Plural IMs. Avoid using as a verb unless space is very restricted.
  • IMAX – trademark, so use as an adjective, not a noun
  • inbox
  • infrared
  • inkjet
  • instant messenger– lower case unless a brand name like AOL Instant Messenger
  • internet (do not capitalise unless at start of sentence or in title case)
  • Internet of Things (IoT)
  • IP – Internet Protocol or intellectual property (note capitalisations)
  • iPad – Apple trademark, so do not add an s to make plural
  • iPhone – Apple trademark, so do not add an s to make plural
  • iPod – Apple trademark, so do not add an s to make plural
  • iPod nano – do not use nano by itself when referring to the Apple product
  • iPod touch – do not use touch by itself when referring to the Apple product
  • IR – infrared
  • ISP – internet service provider
  • IT – information technology
  • iTunes – Apple trademark

###J

  • Java – a Sun Microsystems trademark
  • JavaScript – a Sun Microsystems trademark
  • JPEG – Joint Photographic Experts Group
  • junk mail

###K

  • k – do not use as an abbreviation for thousand. When talking about kilobytes, use kB, not k, which is outdated. The original BBC Micro had 32kB memory.
  • kb – kilobit. No space between the number and kb.
  • kB – kilobyte. No space between the number and kB.
  • kbps – kilobits per second. No space between the number and kbps.
  • kBps – kilobytes per second. No space between the number and kBps.
  • keylogger
  • key press
  • keyword – search engine term. Think about the best keywords to use on your webpage. Use key word when referring to a critical word. She couldn't remember what else he'd said. The key word in his last sentence was "bagpipes".
  • kids'
  • kg – kilogram(s). Space between number and kg.
  • kHz – kilohertz. No space between the number and kHz.
  • kilogram
  • kilometre
  • km – kilometre. Use a space between the number and km. We drove 50 km.
  • kmph – kilometres per hour. Use a space between the number and kmph.

###L

  • l – litre. Use a space between the number and l. The barman served drinks in 1 l glasses.
  • LA – Los Angeles. Use only when space is at a premium.
  • ladies'
  • LAN – local area network
  • LCD – liquid-crystal display. Plural LCDs.
  • learnt
  • LED – light-emitting diode. Plural LEDs.
  • Lego – the Lego Group has trademarked LEGO (all caps), but Lego is an acceptable usage. See also splot. Adjective only. Plural Lego bricks.
  • LGBT – lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender
  • Li-ion – lithium-ion (a kind of battery)
  • licence/license – licence (noun), license (verb). We are not American!
  • like – when using as a Facebook verb, enclose in quotation marks. Thousands of people "like" Raspberry Pi on Facebook, helping the charity to raise funds. If producing online materials and treating the term as a user-interface object (viz. as a link or a button), use a hyperlink to make it stand out, and do not use quotation marks.
  • Linux – trademark owned by Linus Torvalds. Not capitalised in the same way as UNIX.
  • lithium-ion – do not capitalise when written out in full (cf. Li-ion).
  • login – one word when a noun or adjective. Two words when used as a verb. However, try to avoid using as a verb; sign in is preferable because it sounds less technical.
  • lookup – one word when a noun or adjective: lookup table or reverse phone number lookup. Two words when a verb. I tried to look up my ex's phone number.
  • LXDE – Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment

###M

  • m – metre. Use a space between the number and m. The sausage measured an amazing 6 m.
  • Mac (for Macintosh) is acceptable usage
  • MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro – Apple trademarks, so do not add an s to make plural
  • machine – do not use as a synonym for computer. Use computer.
  • The MagPi - the official Raspberry Pi magazine
  • mailbox
  • makerspace
  • malware
  • mashup (noun, adjective), mash up (verb)
  • Mb – megabit
  • MB – megabyte (not MByte). No space between the number and MB. My old Amiga only had 130MB hard drive space.
  • Mbps – megabits per second. No space between number and Mbps.
  • MBps – megabytes per second. No space between number and MBps.
  • media – treat as a mass noun with a singular verb. The media is paying a lot of attention to the Raspberry Pi. However, if you can distinguish a number of individual mediums making up the use of media, use a plural verb. Various media are treating the story differently: print newspapers are not paying much attention, but the TV news and online news sites are very interested.
  • mens'
  • mentee – never, ever use this horrible neologism. Student or protégé are acceptable substitutions.
  • mentor
  • message boards
  • metadata
  • metatag
  • mg – miligram(s). Insert a space between the number and mg.
  • MHz – megahertz. No space between the number and MHz.
  • micro SD
  • micro USB
  • microblog
  • microcontroller
  • microprocessor
  • microsite
  • Microsoft .Net – Microsoft's trademark guidelines say that Microsoft should precede the .Net brand name in the first instance of use. Because the full stop can create confusion, insert Microsoft before .Net if it occurs at the start of a sentence. Better still, never use the term at all.
  • Microsoft Windows – see Windows
  • mike – short form of microphone (mic also acceptable)
  • million – use numerals and a space with million. Don't hyphenate the numeral and million, even before a noun. If you're forming a compound adjective, use a hyphen between the numeral and million. So: 4 million Raspberry Pis, a £4 million budget, a 4-million-year schedule.
  • min. – abbreviation for minute; use only where space is at a premium, and note full stop.
  • mini SD
  • mini USB
  • mips – million instructions per second. No space between number and mips.
  • ml – millilitre(s). Use a space between the number and ml.
  • mm – millimetre(s). Use a space between the number and mm.
  • mobile – acceptable as a noun when it's a short form of mobile phone
  • moon – lower case, whether referring to the moon or other moons. Mercury does not have a moon.
  • mouse – plural mice even when talking about computer peripherals
  • mouseover, mouse over – do not use. Use roll or move your mouse cursor over, or an equivalent.
  • MP3 – abbreviation for MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3.
  • MPEG – Moving Picture Experts Group. Also refers to a compression methodology whose standards are set by this group.
  • mpg – miles per gallon. Use a space between the number and mpg.
  • mph – miles per hour. Use a space between the number an mph.
  • MS-DOS – Microsoft Disk Operating System. Trademark for a Microsoft operating system from the DOS family. See DOS.
  • multi- – do not hyphenate words with this prefix unless the root word starts with an i or a capital letter. Multiplayer, multicolour, multi-industry.

###N

  • net – do not capitalise if referring to the internet. Use internet for preference, unless space is tight.
  • news feed
  • newsreader – both job title and RSS feed
  • Ni-MH – a kind of battery. Note capitalisation differs on expansion; cf. nickel-metal hydride.
  • NIC – network interface card
  • nickel-metal hydride – see Ni-MH
  • no-no
  • No. 1 – see number one
  • Node-RED - a visual tool for wiring the Internet of Things, installed on Raspbian Jessie.
  • NOOBS - New Out Of Box Software, used to easily install an operating system on the Pi.
  • number one – no hyphen as adjective. Bagpipes are my number one hate. Abbreviate as No. 1 if space is tight.
  • NYC – New York City. Use only if space is tight.

###O

  • OEM – original equipment manufacturer. Preferable to factory when talking about the place where the Raspberry Pi is made.
  • offline
  • off-screen
  • ohm
  • OK – not okay, Ok or ok. OK?
  • online
  • on-screen (adjective), on screen (adverb)
  • open source (noun), open-source (adjective)
  • opt-in (noun, adjective), opt in (verb)
  • OS – operating system. Plural OSes.
  • outbox
  • overclocking (noun), overclock (verb). Never the verb clock, which may mean something else entirely. If in doubt, clarify. For example, dynamic frequency clocking.

###P

  • P2P – peer-to-peer
  • Pac-Man (game)
  • page view
  • passcode
  • passphrase
  • password
  • password-protect (verb)
  • PayPal – an eBay trademark
  • PC – personal computer. Make context clear to avoid confusion with politically correct.
  • PCB – printed circuit board
  • PDA – personal digital assistant. Becoming outdated. Be sure to make context clear to avoid confusion with public display of affection.
  • PDF (Portable Document Format, Adobe file format)
  • peer-to-peer (adjective)
  • percent
  • Perl
  • pharming – redirecting traffic from a website that looks legitimate to a spoof website
  • PhD
  • phishing – tricking someone into giving out sensitive information using an email that looks legitimate
  • photobooth
  • Photoshop – Adobe trademark. Use as an adjective or proper noun, and never as a verb.
  • Pi Zero (plural Zeros)
  • Picademy - training courses for teachers. If possible, pluralise by adding 'sessions', 'courses' or similar.
  • PIN – acronym for personal identification number. Do not use PIN number.
  • PIXEL (all caps) is the Raspbian desktop environment. Google's phone is Pixel, and the screen element is a pixel.
  • playlist
  • PlayStation – Sony trademark. Do not add an s to make plural.
  • podcast
  • PoE – power over Ethernet
  • polyfuse
  • pop-up (noun, adjective), pop up (verb). Not popup.
  • pope – lower case unless referring to a specific named pope. The pope wants a Raspberry Pi. The Queen met Pope Benedict XVI.
  • Post-it – 3M trademark. Do not use as a noun. Plural Post-it notes.
  • pre- – close up pre- as a prefix with the root word unless the root word starts with an e or a capital letter, in which case hyphenate. Preprandial, pre-election, pre-MP3.
  • press – when talking about a key on a keyboard, use press. Click is for buttons, links and other interface elements, and click on is for the mouse action.
  • print
  • printout (noun), print off (verb)
  • program (computer)
  • programme (television, theatre etc.)
  • PS2, PS3, PS4 – acceptable abbreviations for Sony's PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation 4.
  • Puppy Linux
  • PuTTY: popular SSH/Telnet software used to access the Pi
  • PyGame
  • Python (language)

###Q

  • Q&A
  • QR code
  • QuickTime – Apple trademark

###R

  • RAM – random access memory
  • Raspberry Pi – plural Raspberry Pis
  • Raspberry Pi Foundation
  • Raspberry Pi Weekly (a weekly email newsletter)
  • Raspi/Raspis and RPi/RPis are the only appropriate abbreviations of Raspberry Pi.
  • re- – close up this prefix with root words unless the root word starts with an e or a capital letter. If it does, hyphenate. There are exceptions to this rule for the avoidance of confusion with other words: re-create, re-cover, re-sent.
  • real time (noun), real-time (adjective)
  • reality TV
  • retweet
  • right-click
  • ringtone
  • rock 'n' roll
  • ROM – read-only memory
  • Roku – company name and name of streaming media device. Trademark. Do not add s to make plural. Plural Roku boxes or Roku devices.
  • roundup
  • RS Components – in full in the first instance in a chapter section, then just RS.
  • RSS – Really Simple Syndication. Best practice is to use RSS feed, RSS news feed or RSS newsreader; few people know what RSS means on its own.
  • RTC – real-time clock

###S

  • SanDisk (company)
  • screen – should only refer to a computer or television screen, not a page on a website.
  • screen name
  • screen reader (accessibility tool)
  • screencast
  • screengrab
  • screensaver
  • screenshot
  • scroll bar
  • scroll wheel
  • SDA – SD Card Association, developers of SD, SDHC etc. cards
  • SD card – Secure Digital memory card format
  • SDHC card – Secure Digital High-Capacity card
  • search engine
  • security key
  • setup (noun, adjective), set up (verb)
  • short code – two words when referring to a mobile phone
  • sidebar
  • sign-in (noun, adjective); sign in, sign in to (verb). Preferable to log in or log on; sounds less technical.
  • sign-out, sign-up – see sign-in
  • SIM card – subscriber identity module card
  • Sinclair ZX81 (cf. ZX Spectrum)
  • single-board computer
  • site map
  • slideshow
  • smart card
  • smartphone
  • SMS – short message service
  • snail mail
  • SoC – system on a chip
  • social media – treat as media
  • social network (noun), social-network (adjective)
  • social networking (noun), social-networking (adjective)
  • sound bite
  • soundcheck
  • soundstage
  • spam
  • spammer
  • spell-checker, spell-check
  • splot – the individual nubble on a Lego brick. A Raspberry Pi fits into a case measuring seven by eleven splots.
  • spyware
  • standalone
  • startup (noun, adjective), start up (verb)
  • style sheet – lower case even when referring to CSS. See CSS.
  • sub- – close up this prefix with the root word unless the root word starts with a capital letter, in which case hyphenate. Subdomain, sub-Victorian.
  • sync, synched, synching

###T

  • T-shirt
  • terminal - when talking about starting the command line in the GUI, 'open a terminal window' (never LXTerminal or similar)
  • Tetris (game)
  • text message (noun), text-message (adjective, verb). Acceptable to shorten to text
  • thousand – spell out when in inline text
  • thumb drive
  • timeshift, timeshifting
  • TiVo – trademark. Do not use as a verb or add an s to make plural.
  • to-do – plural to-dos. Capitalise as To-Do in title case.
  • toolbar
  • tooltip
  • TOS – terms of service
  • touchpad
  • touchscreen
  • towards – not toward
  • trackball
  • trackpad
  • trade show
  • traveller, travelled, travelling
  • Trojan horse
  • troubleshoot
  • TV (no need to spell out what the acronym means!)
  • tweet
  • Twitter – Capitalise when talking about the website. Do not use as a verb to refer to communicating on Twitter. Use tweet instead.

###U

  • UART – universal asynchronous receiver/transmitter
  • UI – user interface
  • UK
  • UN
  • unfriend – see friend
  • UNIX
  • unsubscribe
  • up-to-date
  • URL – Uniform Resource Locator, but abbreviation is always OK and doesn't need to be spelt out in the first instance.
  • USA
  • USB – universal serial bus
  • USB flash drive
  • user
  • user name
  • userID
  • userland – OS software that does not belong in the kernel

###V

  • VGA – video graphics array
  • video camera
  • video game
  • videoconference
  • videophone
  • vlog – video blog
  • voicemail
  • VoIP – voice over Internet Protocol
  • VPN – virtual private network

###W

  • wallpaper, wallpapers
  • WAN – wide area network
  • Weather Station HAT - note capitalisation
  • web
  • webcam
  • womens'
  • webcast
  • webinar (ghastly, but it appears we're stuck with it)
  • webisode (see webinar)
  • weblog – use only when explaining the etymology of the word blog, which is always to be preferred
  • webmaster
  • webpage
  • web server
  • website
  • widescreen
  • WiFi - if referring to the Pi 3, do not use this; refer to the built-in WiFi as 'wireless LAN' or similar.
  • Wii – Nintendo trademark. Do not add an s to make plural.
  • Wiimote - controller for the Wii. Colloquial. (The official term is Wii Remote.)
  • wiki – plural wikis
  • Windows – trademark: use Microsoft Windows if talking about the Microsoft product to differentiate from other windowing software
  • Windows CE – trademark. Not Microsoft Windows CE
  • Wine – application to allow Microsoft Windows software to run on UNIX-like operating systems. Originally an acronym for WINdows Emulator, later changed to a recursive “backronym” for Wine Is Not an Emulator.
  • word processing (noun), word-processing (adjective)
  • word-of-mouth
  • WordPress – trademark
  • workflow
  • World Wide Web
  • WWW
  • WYSIWIG – what you see is what you get

###X

  • X-ray
  • x86 architecture
  • Xbox – Microsoft trademark. Do not add es to make plural
  • XHTML – Extensible Hypertext Markup Language
  • XML – Extensible Markup Language

###Y

  • Yahoo! – use the upper case Y and the exclamation mark when referring to the company or its brands
  • YouTube – Google trademark

###Z

  • ZX Spectrum
  • zip file