Microsoft Manual of Style Available Online

By Matthew Ellison

The Microsoft Manual of Style for Technical Publications has become an invaluable source of reference for technical writers, but its second edition (published in June 1998) is now showing its age. A third edition is due for release in printed form very soon, and was previewed by Jim Purcell, lead editor for Content Strategy and Standards at Microsoft, at the 11th annual WinWriters Online Help Conference.

For anyone who has not yet purchased a copy of the current edition, you can now download it in electronic form for free from Microsoft's web site. Keep in mind that, although it is labeled as version 3.0 on the download page, the content is equivalent to what you would find in the second print edition. This means that you will not find any of the recent Microsoft product names such as Windows XP, .NET, or C#. You'll also be surprised at the relative paucity of Internet terms, which shows just how much the Web has developed in importance over the past four and a half years. However, you will have access to a large number of useful definitions and writing guidelines that are still valid today. These include:

Correct and consistent use of technical computer terms
Grammar, punctuation, and common misspellings
Design and interface elements
Use of abbreviations and acronyms
Writing for translation

The electronic version is delivered as a CHM file and simply requires that you are running Windows 95 or above with 2 MB of free disc (or shouldn't that be disk?) space. Its table of contents is organized as an A-Z reference...

A-Z Reference

...and there is also a comprehensive index. Lists of acronyms, abbreviations, and special characters are provided as appendices.

Download the online version of the Microsoft Manual of Style for Technical Publications from the Microsoft Download Center.

Matthew has been a popular speaker at WinWriters events throughout the world since 1997. He currently contributes to the design of WinWriters conference programs. Matthew also runs his own independent training and consulting company that specializes in online help design and technology. Matthew holds a B.Sc. in Electronic Engineering and a Post-Graduate Certificate of Education from Bristol University in the UK. He is also a Certified RoboHelp Instructor. Matthew can be reached at: matthew.ellison@email.com.