Handbook - document how we format bullet points

[mike-j-thomas]

Goal

To capitalize or not to capitalize? That is the question. So is whether or not we end bullet points with terminal punctuation or not.

How

Whether or not it's correct grammatically, or just a style preference, we should document the following style rules in the Communicating as Fleet section of the handbook":

• Bulleted lists should always be in sentence case.
• Bulleted lists should always end with terminal punctuation (period, question mark, exclamation mark).

[Desmi-Dizney]

Hey @mike-j-thomas. We need to be aware that bullet points after a colon that are completing a sentence should not be capitalized. Can we talk about this at our next meeting or 1:1?

[mike-j-thomas]

Thanks, @Desmi-Dizney. In a Google Doc, please can you have a crack at drafting the different types of bullets we'll likely come across and how you think we should style them for consistency. Once you've got it, please drop it in this thread for review. Thanks.

[Desmi-Dizney]

This is still a work-in-progress but is coming along.
See: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OoqaRrc0JgZKrMvFd1LtRnyIcFQvnHRuU-MZKgbKS44/edit

[Desmi-Dizney]

Hey @mike-j-thomas, I made a new version for you to give a gander.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1WVJLXusMxsNAqnJYJPnLxCFFwUY_rcXq9r5aeVJ0S70/edit#

[Desmi-Dizney]

I wanted to discuss whether we should or shouldn't capitalize the beginning of partial sentences after a colon. At first, I thought it would make it easier if we capitalized everything, but it makes every spell check angry, which may confuse some people. Thoughts @mike-j-thomas?

[mike-j-thomas]

Thanks, @Desmi-Dizney, this is much better. I've been through your draft with my carving knife and chopped out even more fat, and changed the formatting a little for clarity. With important instructions like these, we want readers to get to the information as quickly as possible.

[mike-j-thomas]

I wanted to discuss whether we should or shouldn't capitalize the beginning of partial sentences after a colon. At first, I thought it would make it easier if we capitalized everything, but...

@Desmi-Dizney. I felt the same, and agree. Consistency is the most important thing. Capitalizing is optional depending on the type of list, so as long as we have those rules defined, we can refer back to them and keep everything consistent. I updated some of the rules in your draft to reflect this.

[mike-j-thomas]

@Desmi-Dizney, to reiterate. Even though I cut most of it out, I really liked the conversational tone you used throughout your draft. This tone would be great for an article or guide. However, these instructions need to be direct and easy to scan to be most effective.

[Desmi-Dizney]

Thanks for all of the feedback. It's helpful.

And I see how you used "Do" and "Do not" to drive the point home.