BSOE Style Guide

This style guide is intended to give you information about the general writing styles that you should use when editing pages on the BSOE web site.  This page is indended to augment the ITS Style Guide.  If something is not listed specifically here, please defer to the ITS Style Guide.

Please note that the layout of the BSOE web site is controlled by the

. You should not try to circumvent the layout in any way.  The inclusion of page-specific CSS or other style information in web pages is to be avoided.

• When abbreviating the School of Engineering, you should use BSOE, not SOE or JBSOE.

• Per UCOP naming document and associated policies pertaining to the naming gift by Jack Baskin, UCSC shall refer to the engineering school in all official correspondence, media, publications, both internal and external, as the Jack Baskin School of Engineering. Understanding the need for flexibility, the donor has agreed to allow the following exceptions to be used as appropriate. However, the Jack Baskin School of Engineering should never be referred to while excluding the name "Baskin."

  In order of formality:

  • Jack Baskin School of Engineering
  • Baskin School of Engineering
  • Baskin Engineering
  • Baskin School
• Phone numbers should be formatted as 831-459-XXXX or similar.  Remember, many people looking at our web site are coming from off-campus and don't know about UCSC extensions or our area code.  Don't use parenthesis or periods in phone numbers.  If you need to include an extension, please use the format 831-459-XXXX x 1234.
• E-Mail or e-mail should be used in place of Email or email.
• Whenever possible, don't use PDF files on the web site.  Instead, convert the PDF to a web page and take the time to make sure that the information transferred correctly.  Remember, one of our objectives is to make the site accessible to users with disabilities, and PDF files are generally not very accessible to people using screen readers or other means of reading a web page.
• Don't use ALL CAPS.  Instead, use proper capitalization of titles and names.
• Don't change the meaning of a page.  For example, if you create a page for the 2008 Staff Picnic, when it comes time to post the 2009 Staff Picnic, don't re-use the 2008 page. Instead, create a new one and leave the old content alone.  As a rule of thumb, if you have to change the title of a page (other than to change spelling, grammar, etc) you probably should be creating a new page rather than changing an old one.
• A course is something that we teach each quarter - for example, AMS003.  A class is a particular instance of a course - for example, AMS003/Fall08.  When entering class/course information on web pages, please be sure to recognize the distinction.