TextFormattingRules

Local text formatting rules compiled from various sources.

Feel free to peek at this page in edit mode to see the code. But to experiment with the rules, try editing the SandBox. Please do not edit this page.

Using these rules wisely is addressed on the StyleGuide page.

Paragraphs

• Paragraphs aren't indented.
• Instead, start a new paragraph by leaving a blank line between line.
• A single new line has no effect.

Indenting paragraph blocks

Indent paragraphs by starting the line with a :

blocks can be indented several levels. (one :)

like this (::)

and this (:::)

Use indenting to set off blockquoted material, as well as for meaningfull formatting.

Lists

• Lists are good
  • They help organize material.
  • They look clean.

• Start the line with an asterisk for a first level.
  • Use two asterisks for the second level, three for a third level, etc
• Place each item on its own line.
• Use * for bullet lists, # for numbered lists. Items will be renumbered automagically.

• Definition lists
  • start the line with a ; and separate the definition on the same line with :
  • the pattern is ; term :definition

Example

first term

This is first definition.

second term

This is the second definition.

Horizontal Rules

• To create a thin rule, type four dashes (-) at the beginning of a line.
• To create a thick rule, type four equals signs (=) at the beginning of a line.
• Use horizontal rules sparingly and meaningfully - to separate comments on a text-in-progress from the text itself, for instance (a common wiki convention).

Section heads

Section heads are good. Like lists, they help organize the page. Start new sections on the page with heads. Two levels of heads are available: head, and sub-head

• Create heads by bracketing the heading text in =.
• Two == will create a heading (h2), three === will create a sub-head (h3).
• The single = is reserved for the page title (h1)
• A third level of heads (sub-sub-heads) can be fudged by using a tripled single-quote to create bold, followed by a blank line.

Fonts

The font on this wiki is controlled by a cascading style sheet, and by the reader's browser.

• Start a line with one or more spaces to use a monospace font:

 This is text in a monospaced font.
   This line is indented with three spaces.

 Starting a line with a space
 reproduces the line exactly      
 as typed (including line breaks)                   (and including spaces)
 This is useful for working
 with poetry.

Emphasis

• Use doubled single-quotes ('') for emphasis (usually rendered in italics)
• Use tripled single-quotes (''') for strong emphasis (usually rendered in bold)

URLs, Pages, and Links

• To create links to other pages on this wiki, JoinCapitalizedWords?. If the page exists, the joined word will automagically become a link to that page.
• To create a new page, JoinCapitalizedWords?. When you save the changes to the page, the new page name will appear with a ? suffix. The new page is not created until you visit the new page by clicking on the ?, edit, and save the content.
  • Use meaningful page names - names that suggest what the target page is about - when you create new pages. You might check the Index using the link at the top or bottom of a page to see if a page already exists before creating one.
• To create page names with spaces in them, place the page name in double brackets [Like this]?.
• To prevent linking, use code around WikiWords, e.g. <nowiki>AvoidMakingReferencesToOtherPagesOnThisWiki,
• To create links to pages outside the wiki, copy and paste or type in the full URL, as in http://phpwiki.sourceforge.net/phpwiki/HowToUseWiki. The URL will become the link.
• Alternatively, you can create a link name by enclosing the entire URL and link name in single brackets, using a space between the URL and the link name.
  • example: [BSU Dept of English] -- is formatted as [http://cal.bemidjistate.edu/english/ BSU Dept of English]
• "mailto:" works. So "mailto:mchristensen@bemidjistate.edu" will open your mailer with an new mail message addressed to Dr. Christensen.

Images

• To include an image on a page, use the full URL to the image. The image will appear in the line on which it is referenced.
• Example

• You can use wiki formatting codes for some limited placement, e.g. indent it using :.
• Be sure not to violate copyright when you place an image. It's probably ok to place the occasional low-red image if you're discussing it in an academic context, not for profit. If you have any doubt, email the owner of the image before using it.

Subpages

• /SubPageExample?. Follow the link to view the subpage. Look at how the navigation bar at the top of the page changes to indicate where you are.
• Subpage titles do not need to use CamelCaps? for page names. The single /Discuss? creates a subpage.
• To link to subpages from pages outside of the subpage hierarchy, use the full title of TopPage/Subpage?.
  • example: To link to the /SubPageExample? page mentioned above from any other page than this one would require TextFormattingRules/SubPageExample?

Deleting and Redirecting

Only Administrators can actually delete pages on this wiki. As an editor, use these options:

• To indicate that the content of a page has been removed, replace the text with the word "deleted", your name, and a date.
• If you've moved the text to a new page, you have two choices
  • Enter a link to the new address.
  • Use redirect: replace all the text on the page with

where ''PageName'' is the name of the page to redirect to.

HTML Mark-Up Language

You can use some limited HTML markup, but for the most part, it's redundant on a wiki.

• <i> and <b> work, as do <a href=> and <mailto:>;. That's about it.
• < and > are themselves
• The wiki does not understand markup for tables, scripts, <center>, etc.

Notes and Suggestions

• To understand the coding, try opening the edit window as a new window in the browser. That way, you associate the text formatting rules with what's displayed.
• Use italics sparingly when possible, as they are harder to read (especially at low resolution) than non-italics.
• Use horizontal rules sparingly and consistently.
• The Summary box and This change is a minor edit checkbox (at the bottom of the edit window are rarely used. You can pretty much ignore them.