A. Standard Fonts
The standard font will be Times New Roman 12 point. Any text whose font is not otherwise defined (i.e. headings, tables, etc.) will be in this font.
B. Heading Levels
In the SLCinfobase system, the heading levels determine what is seen in the contents display. Two heading levels will be used regularly, and some others may be added as needed. The first standard heading will be a title heading for the policy document, which will display in the contents as the top level. The second standard heading will be a section level which will display under the title level in the contents. The contents display will be two levels deep, which is sufficient for the majority of policy documentation and easy for users to navigate. In some cases a third heading style will be necessary to display a third level in the contents. This becomes necessary in large documents arranged by both date and subject. Deeper heading levels may be necessary in some case, but are discouraged.
C. Heading Numbering
Standard heading numbering will be Outline type heading numbering in the following sequence: I, A, 1, a, (1), etc.
D. Ordered Lists
Ordered lists will be used for documentation of step by step processes. They will be set apart from normal text by a clear heading, and will consist of a numbered list of steps.
E. Bulleted Lists
Bulleted lists will be avoided in favor of standard outline type headings, but in the case that they are needed, they will be part of the text under an appropriate outline heading and the bullets will consist of a dash character. The dash character will be employed to avoid problems with document portability and importation.
F. Special Characters
As in the case of the bullets used in bulleted lists, special characters will be avoided as often as possible. Special characters pose a problem with document portability and printing, and often do not translate well between viewing methods, yielding unpredictable results which may adversely affect the readability and accuracy of policy documentation. Wherever possible, special characters will be replaced with standard alpha-numeric or punctuation characters.
G. Graphics
Graphics can be included with documentation, but they should be as small as possible in terms of number of bytes. Large graphics may take an unacceptable amount of time to load on certain systems with slow connections. Graphics should be of a reasonable display size and clear at the intended size. Overly detailed and intricate graphics may not display clearly on some computers.
H. Tables
Tables can be used but should be avoided if possible because of document portability issues. If tables are used, they should be as compact and concise as possible, and should be of a size that can be displayed on a single computer screen. Tables for which the headers must be scrolled off at the top to view the lower areas can be confusing and misleading. Most information displayed in a table can be displayed as effectively in a hierarchical outline format.
I. Forms
Forms can be included in documents and will be displayed as part of the document as an example of what the form looks like. Forms that should be printable from the Infobase should be clearly marked as such, and those forms will be converted to an Adobe Acrobat PDF format which ensures consistency of printability across all city computers. These forms will be linked from the main document.
J. Links
Links are most commonly used to link to other city documentation that is included as reference material. Links can also go to intranet or internet targets. IMS will make best efforts to ensure that links are kept current and operational, but the creator of any documentation must be aware that any link can be broken by outside action (i.e. change of web address, moving of documentation, deletion of documentation) and IMS may not be notified of the broken link until someone tries to access it.