3.3 Lists
Open the following link to watch the video Use Bulleted or Numbered Lists
Lists are created when items in a series are dropped into bulleted or itemized points. Lists, when used correctly, can be a technical writer’s—and reader’s—best friend. Lists allow you to emphasize important ideas. They also increase the readability of text by simplifying long sentences or paragraphs and adding aesthetic passive space to make reading more pleasant. However, using the wrong kind of list or poorly formatting a list can create confusion rather than enhance readability. Therefore, it is important to understand the various types of lists and how and why to use them.
Guidelines for Creating Lists
Adhere to the following guidelines when creating lists of any kind:
- Include between two to eight items in a list. You must have at least two items in a list (or it’s not a list; it’s just an item). Avoid having more than eight items in a list, as too many items can have the reverse effect. If you emphasize too many ideas, you end up emphasizing nothing. NASA recommends no more than eight steps in an emergency procedure; more than eight can be overwhelming in a crisis situation.
- Try to avoid splitting a list over two pages if possible.
- Avoid overusing lists. A list should always have explanatory text around it to identify the list and why it is needed. A series of lists does not give a reader adequate information and context, so do not overuse listing.
- Adjust spacing before, after, and within lists to enhance readability. Avoid having a list of information all scrunched up into a dense block of text; this defeats the purpose of enhancing readability.
- Use parallel phrasing for each listed item (note that each item in this list starts with a verb that is bolded only to catch your attention, not as a style you must follow).
- Never use a heading to introduce a list. Always add a lead in sentence below a heading to create a context for the list.
Each kind of list is suited for specific purposes. All lists must conform to a set of rules of construction, punctuation, and formatting. You can use the Paragraph formatting tool in MS Word (see Figure 3.3.1) to format a ready list: simply highlight your list and click on either the bullet or number buttons in the top left of the image below. Alternatively, MS Word will auto-create a list when you drop to a new paragraph and type 1. along with some text, then hit return. For more information on how to create a list in MS Word, click here.
NOTE: If you are making lists by hitting ENTER then TAB and then a dash, you are doing it wrong, and this will make future editing and maintaining readability very difficult if not impossible. Especially when writing documents collaboratively that will need extensive revision and editing, you must make sure to use the correct formatting tools for consistency.
Common Types of Lists
Just as bar graphs serve a different purpose than pie charts, different kinds of lists also serve di