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3 Style Guide

The Python documentation should follow the Apple Publications Style Guide wherever possible. This particular style guide was selected mostly because it seems reasonable and is easy to get online. (Printed copies are available; see the Apple's Developer Documentation FAQ for more information.)

Topics which are not covered in the Apple's style guide will be discussed in this document if necessary.

Many special names are used in the Python documentation, including the names of operating systems, programming languages, standards bodies, and the like. Many of these were assigned LATEX macros at some point in the distant past, and these macros lived on long past their usefulness. In the current markup, most of these entities are not assigned any special markup, but the preferred spellings are given here to aid authors in maintaining the consistency of presentation in the Python documentation.

Other terms and words deserve special mention as well; these conventions should be used to ensure consistency throughout the documentation:

CPU
  For ``central processing unit.'' Many style guides say this should be spelled out on the first use (and if you must use it, do so!). For the Python documentation, this abbreviation should be avoided since there's no reasonable way to predict which occurance will be the first seen by the reader. It is better to use the word ``processor'' instead.

POSIX
  The name assigned to a particular group of standards. This is always uppercase. Use the macro `\POSIX` to represent this name.

Python
  The name of our favorite programming language is always capitalized.

Unicode
  The name of a character set and matching encoding. This is always written capitalized.

Unix
  The name of the operating system developed at AT&T Bell Labs in the early 1970s. Use the macro `\UNIX` to use this name.