Web Fundamentals
Training Series
Writing for the Web
What We’ll Be Covering…
Web Writing Venues
Writing Forms
Informative Writing for the Web
The Web Audience
• Propriety & Professionalism
• Typos & Grammar
Proofreading Technology
• Ex. 01: Enabling Spell Check
• Ex. 02: Using Spell Check
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Web Writing Venues
Despite the audio and visual capabilities of the Web, text
publications are still quite popular
There are many venues on the Web that work well for
different forms of writing
• Blogs
– Short for “Web Log”
– Can be corporate or personal, text based or multimedia
– Can consist of any writing form
• Forums
– Also known as discussion boards or newsgroups
– Allows for categorized discussions
– Usually shorter than blogs, often Q&A based
• Page
– Content typically does not change often: Ex.: an “About Us”
page
– Often linked to Blogs and / or Forums
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Writing Forms
Many different forms of writing exist
• Informative
– Informs or explains: Journalism, Technical Writing, White
Papers
• Persuasive
– Persuades: Marketing, Legal Arguments, Political Speeches
• Narrative
– Tells a story: Short Stories, Novels, Personal Accounts
• Descriptive
– Describes with sensory details: Poetry, Prose, Lyrical Music
These forms are not cut and dry. All can, and often do,
contain elements of each other
For our purposes, we will focus on Informative writing
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Informative Writing for the Web
Users in search of information usually want to find what
they are after within 3-4 mouse clicks
• Keep introductory text concise and to the point
• Avoid slang terms and long sentences
Users typically scan a page, versus reading word for word.
Scanable text should be used.
• Use meaningful subheadings
• Use bulleted lists and/or lists to links
• Use links where appropriate
– If acronyms are used, provide an expansion and some sort of
definition
• Use half the word count or less than conventional writing
• Use one idea per paragraph – don’t ramble
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The Web Audience
Web publication is intended for many people to see
• Your employer
• Your colleagues
• Your family
On a publicly accessible website, your publications can be
viewed by the world
• Your customers & suppliers
• Law enforcement agencies
Informative material should be scrutinized for both content
and errors before publication
• Overall Propriety & Professionalism
• Typos & Grammatical Errors
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Propriety & Professionalism
Don’t be casual when you should be professional
Propriety: The customs and manners of polite society
• The “Wouldn’t – Shouldn’t” Rule
– If you wouldn’t show your grandma, you probably shouldn’t
publish
– For further information regarding acceptable information
systems use at OSU, please read OSU’s Acceptable Use of
University Computing Resources policy
Professionalism: The conduct, aims, or qualities that mark a
professional person
• Provide citations or links to original works where applicable
• Writing is organized and free of typos and grammatical errors
– Use spell check, or
– Ask someone to proofread for you
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Proofreading Technology
The easiest way to check written material for typos and
incorrect grammar is to use a spelling and grammar
checking feature
Many Web applications, from e-mail to web browsers to
content management systems, have some form of this tool
If your application does not have a spelling and grammar
checking feature, MS Word can always be used, as shown in
the following exercise
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Ex. 01 Enabling Spell-Check
Generally, MS Word comes standard with
spell-check enabled. If spell-check has
been disabled, it’s easy to turn back on
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1
2
5
6
3
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To turn Spell Check on:
1. Open MS Word
2. Left-click on Tools
3. Left-click on Options
4. The Options Dialog Box
opens
5. Left-click on the Spelling &
Grammar tab
6. Ensure the Check Spelling
as you type, Check
grammar as you type, and
Check grammar with
spelling options are
checked
7. Left-click on OK
Ex. 02 Using Spell-Check
Before we start…
• Spelling and grammar checking tools are very helpful, but
not perfect
• Homonyms, words that sound the same but have different
meanings, can sometimes slip by
– To, too, two
– Wait, weight
– Some, sum
• Spelling and grammar checkers are great preliminary tools
that catch the obvious but the results should always be
double-checked
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Copying Text from a File
1. Open the Notepad file
preamble.txt
2. To select all of the text use
the shortcut keys Ctrl + A or
:
1. Left-click on Edit
2. Left-click on Select All
1
2.1
2.2
4.1
4.2
3. All text will automatically be
selected
4. To copy text, use the
shortcut keys Ctrl + C or :
1. Left-click on Edit
2. Left-click on Copy
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3
Pasting Text Into MS Word
1. If MS Word is not open,
open it
1
2.1
2. To paste text, use the
shortcut keys Ctrl + V or :
2.2
1. Left-click on Edit
2. Left-click on Paste
3. Any spelling and/or
grammar errors will
immediately show with
squiggly underlines
3.1
3.2
1. Spelling is red
2. Grammar is green
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Using the Spelling Checker
1. Within MS Word, to open the
Spelling and Grammar Checker
press F7 or :
1.1
1.2
1. Click on Tools
2. Click on Spelling and Grammar
2. The Spelling and Grammar dialog
box opens with the first error
showing
3. If the word is actually misspelled…
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3.2
1. And a correct alternative is available in
the Suggestions box, click on Change
2. And no suggestion is available, choose
Add to Dictionary, Ignore Once or
Ignore All
3.1
Repeat until all errors have been fixed
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Using the Grammar Checker
After the spelling check, the program
will automatically select all of the text
and perform a grammar check
Grammar errors will show up in green
in the dialog box
1
Upon viewing the results…
• If clarification is needed left-click on
Explain
• If you don’t agree with the results,
left-click on Ignore Once or Ignore
Rule
• If you are satisfied, left-click on
Change
3.2
2
3.3
3.1
Repeat until all errors have been fixed
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Finishing Up
After the grammar check, a dialog box
will appear, informing that the check is
complete. Click on OK.
Make sure to double-check the work –
note the homonym “too” in the first
line of text. The word should actually
be “to”
2
Make any additional changes /
corrections that are required
1
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Font Selection
The graphic nature of the Web makes it tempting to
experiment with different font styles for a unique look.
The problem is…
Not all fonts are created equal
Many non-standard fonts may not be recognized by your
web browser, which causes two problems:
• The writing is illegible when viewed
• The writing is not searchable
Standard fonts include the basic fonts that are provided by
Microsoft and Apple. These are always a safe bet.
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Conclusion
This completes the Web Fundamentals tutorial. For additional
tutorials, please visit WebTrain, the CWS web publishing training
site, at:
http://oregonstate.edu/cws/webtrain
To submit a Help Ticket to Central Web Services go to:
http://oregonstate.edu/cws/contact
Other OSU resources for web and computer help:
http://oregonstate.edu/helpdocs
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