need IBM Stryle Guide reference

[Jim Owens]

Thanks to those who've helped with this. I apologize for being off-topic.



Syed.Hosain at aeris.net wrote:
> Ah! Here is additional stuff in the Microsoft Manual of Style that
> illustrates  my concerns about using gerunds in body text. Hope this
> helps!
> 
> 	Gerunds
> 		A gerund is the -ing form of a verb used as a noun. Use
> gerunds to form the titles of procedural Help topics.
> 
> 	Correct
> 		Managing Hardware and Software
> 		Installing New Software
> 
> 	Incorrect
> 		How to Install New Software
> 
> 	Gerunds can sometimes create ambiguity, especially for a
> worldwide audience. Include whatever words are necessary to make your
> meaning clear, or rewrite the sentence.
> 
> 	Ambiguous
> 		You can change files using the Template utility.
> 
> 	Clearer
> 		You can change files by using the Template utility.
> 		You can change files that use the Template utility.
> 
> 	Using gerunds to describe general concepts, such as "clustering"
> and "networking", can be a problem for localization. Not all grammars
> allow gerunds to be used in this way, so a single word may be translated
> as a phrase. In Dutch, for example, "imaging" is translated as "image
> processing", and "licensing" is translated as "the granting of
> licenses". Further, not all gerunds are translatable in all languages,
> so some loss of meaning is inevitable. If you must use gerunds to
> describe concepts, work with your localization program manager or
> localization vendor to keep the impact of such words to a minimum.
> 
> Z
> 
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Syed Zaeem Hosain (Syed.Hosain at aeris.net)
>> Sent: Monday, July 21, 2008 1:00 PM
>> To: 'Jim Owens'; Framer's List
>> Subject: RE: need IBM Stryle Guide reference
>>
>> Hi, Jim.
>>
>> I do not have the IBM style Guide, but some other references below ...
> hope this helps.
>> Both "The Chicago Manual of Style, 14th Edition" and the "MLA Style
> Manual and Guide to Scholarly
>> Publishing" are silent on the topic of gerunds. At least, there is no
> index entry for gerund. (MLA =
>> Modern Language Association of America.)
>>
>> But the "Microsoft Manual of Style for Technical Publishing, 3rd
> Edition" says:
>> 	Use a gerund (-ing form) rather than an infinitive (to form) in
> titles of procedural topics,
>> especially in print. After some brief context-setting information to
> help the reader decide if she has
>> found the right topic, the heading that introduces the procedure
> itself should be an infinitive
>> phrase.
>>
>> 	Style of indexed keywords
>> 	Follow most of the same general style guidelines as those used
> for printed indexes:
>> 	* Use gerunds (the -ing form) rather than infinitives (the to
> form) or the present tense of
>> verbs for task-oriented entries, unless they are unsuitable, as they
> may be for languages, systems, or
>> localized versions.
>> 	* Avoid generic gerunds that users are unlikely to look up:
> using, changing, creating, getting,
>> making, doing, and so on.
>>
>> Also, separately (not what you asked about though), I have concerns
> about using gerunds in body since
>> they can change the meaning of the text - and can be particularly
> confusing for non-native English
>> readers. So, "use them very sparingly in body text" is my approach.
>>
>> Z
>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: framers-bounces at lists.frameusers.com
> [mailto:framers-bounces at lists.frameusers.com] On Behalf
>> Of
>>> Jim Owens
>>> Sent: Monday, July 21, 2008 12:04 PM
>>> To: Framer's List
>>> Subject: need IBM Stryle Guide reference
>>>
>>> Referring to the IBM Style Guide, a correspondent has informaed me:
>>>
>>> "Do not use gerunds in headings. IBM rule"
>>>
>>> but my 2004 copy of the IBM Style Guide says explicitly to use
> gerunds
>>> in headings (under "Headings and subdivisions of text"). Is there a
>>> later edition in which this has changed?
> 
> 
>