PCGamingWiki:Editing guide/Grammar formatting
Spelling
Spell checking before submitting is a good idea, especially for readers whose first language is not English and may rely on translating articles or for those who use screen-readers. All major browsers and text editors included spell checking functionality built-in.
Common English spelling mistakes
| Mistake | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Then / than | Then — used in reference to time. Than — used in comparison. |
| Neither or | There are two combinations: Either... or and Neither... nor! |
| It's / Its | It's = it is. Its = The thing the belongs to it. Same as his or hers. |
| Their there they're | Their = The thing that belongs to them. |
| Who's / Whose | Who's = Who is. As in "Who's with me?!" Whose, as in "I will have to fix the car whose engine I ruined" |
| Thru | Correct spelling is Through. |
Grammar and punctuation
Proper grammar and punctuation will help make text on the wiki far easier to read. It will also help cut down on time spent editing fixes in the future. There are countless guides online for English grammar, but here are some places to start:
- English Grammar Guide (Edufind.com) - General guide.
- Guide to Grammar and Writing - Another general guide.
- How To Use An Apostrophe (The Oatmeal) - Visual guide on using apostrophes properly.
- How to use a semicolon (The Oatmeal) - Visual guide on using semicolons properly.
- When to use i.e. in a sentence (The Oatmeal) - Visual guide on using "i.e." and "e.g." properly.
- How and why to use whom in a sentence (The Oatmeal) - Visual guide on using "whom" and "who" properly.
Time and dates
Avoid using relative expressions such as "recently, lately, currently, to date, soon," or "now." Although not as strict and timeless as encyclopedia entries, PCGamingWiki articles are intended to last and stay relevant, while relative constructions get out of date and lose their meaning as time passes.
A construction like As of the latest game update may become inaccurate after another update, but As of the January 1, 2020 game update will always retain its meaning and remain attributed to a specific update.
Names
Names of both games and operating systems should be written out in full. Not only does this increase clarity, but it allows for wiki articles to be more prevalent in search results. For example, Windows XP should be written out in full, never as WinXP or other variants.
Files and file paths
All files and file paths should be encased with a {{code| <text here> }} or <code> </code> tag.
Examples (with {{code| <text here> }})
- This is the preferred tag format to use in the wiki
DedServer.exe<path-to-game>\System\config.ini
Examples (with <code> </code>)
- This tag variant should only be used if there are issues with the previous format
setup.exe<path-to-game>\Bin\Game.exe
Keyboard keys and shortcuts
To properly display keyboard keys, use the Key tag: {{Key| Key 1 | Key 2 | Key 3}}
For keyboard shortcuts, separate each key with |. The tag supports up to 10 keys in a single combination.
Note that all keyboard keys and shortcuts refer to a QWERTY US keyboard layout. Keys and shortcuts may vary with other layouts.
Examples
- A
- Alt+↵ Enter
- Ctrl+Alt+Delete
Units
All units should be written down correctly for consistency and clarity.
Bad:1ghz
Good: 1 GHz
It is important to note that units follow defined international standards. All numbers require a space before the units. Units written out in full must be all in lower case, not in sentence case and not with numbers.
For a paragraph describing technical details about CPUs, the frequency would be written out as megahertz or gigahertz, not Megahertz and not GigaHertz.
"The "clock rate" of a central processing unit, CPUs, is measured in hertz, typically megahertz and gigahertz. For example, some CPUs have a clock rate of 700 MHz or 4.2 GHz."
Also make sure the correct units are used for sizes! The units for size are: b, bit; B, Byte. The latter is the one that is most likely to be used and it is eight times bigger than the former.
For Frames per second (FPS), they are provided as whole numbers. If a number is a decimal, round up to the nearest whole value (ex. 60.57 FPS becomes 61 FPS).
Further reading
Linking
- Formal documentation on wiki-style hyperlinks can be found on Wikipedia
Hyperlinks are used to link to external sites. Depending on the type of link, different linking styles would be required. The table below covers all the major styles used:
Hyperlink style table
| Link type | Syntax | Example URL | Link example | Example source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regular link | [<url> <hyperlink text>] | https://www.gog.com/ | GOG.com | [https://www.gog.com/ GOG.com] |
| Internal link (to another wiki article) | [[<article name>]] | http://pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/Half-Life (Refer to page title for proper text) |
Half-Life | [[Half-Life]] |
| Internal link (to another section in current article) | [[#<section title>|<hyperlink text>]] | http://pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/PCGamingWiki:Editing_guide/Article_Formatting#Other_Wikis_and_Resources (Refer to section title for proper text) |
Further details about wikis | [[#Other Wikis and Resources|Further details about wikis]] |
| Wikipedia link | {{W|<page title>}} or [[Wikipedia:<page title>|<hyperlink text>]] |
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PCGamingWiki | PCGamingWiki or A link to PCGamingWiki |
{{W|PCGamingWiki}} or [[Wikipedia:PCGamingWiki|A link to PCGamingWiki]] |
Source
It is preferred that links given are to actual pages, rather than direct download links.
Ex. If there is a mod of a certain game, link to the information page of the mod, such as a forum thread or a code repository site (like Github), instead of a direct download link. Direct download links might contain malicious files and as such should not be linked to on this wiki.
When creating a link, try to provide some context. Never simply link text as only 'Source' or 'here', try to say 'Comment from Rock Paper Shotgun'.
As a side note, any link pointing towards the PCGamingWiki Files database should never be superseded without good reason. If a file is out of date, non-functional, or malware-infected, please contact a mod via PM or the wiki's Discord server.
Other wikis and resources
It is encouraged by the wiki to link to other regularly updated sources of information. For example, Widescreen Gaming Forum or DOSBoxWiki. Including huge amounts of duplicate information should be avoided. However, there are many cases where the wiki can add more information about a title. For example, what are the differences between a GOG and a DOSBox version of a game?
