full-stops.md

Use of full stops

Consistency is key within the grammar of documentation. The reason this point is made within the styleguide is because of the noticable inconsistencies within previous versions of PHP.Gt documentation.

Use full stops to end full sentences

All full sentences must end with a full stop, whether or not they are used within a paragraph, on their own or as part of a list/heading.

Don't use full stops to end sentence fragments

A fragmented sentence is a part of a sentence that is disconnected from the main clause. Within documentation, fragments usually occur in headings or lists.

Choose either full sentences or fragments (not both) in lists and headings

When writing lists, such as bulleted lists or numerical lists, or when writing headings throughout documentation, choose between writing in full sentences or fragments as a consistent style.

Good example:

Steps to install the software:

1. Download the code from http://example.com
2. Unzip the downloaded file, using a tool such as p7zip or WinZip
3. Run the `./install` executable

Bad example:

Steps to install the software:

1. Download the code from http://example.com
2. Unzip the downloaded file, using a tool such as p7zip or WinZip.
3. Run the `./install` executable