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Acronyms Ron Graham |
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Acronyms generally cause readers to pause from their
reading for a moment ("Have I seen this before? What
does it mean?"); if you use several, the couple of
milliseconds spent on interpreting each can prevent
readers from having a "smooth flow," and cause them
to miss something important.
That doesn't mean acronyms shouldn't be used; it only means you have to make sure they don't keep you from getting what you want from your readers. Generally speaking, acronyms must be defined up front unless you can be sure your audience is familiar with them. Multiple acronyms (i.e., more than three) may require a nomenclature; multiple complex acronyms (where just spelling out the words isn't enough) may require a glossary. Short acronyms (i.e. two or three characters) used only once in your report could be spelled out, unless one of your goals is to teach your readers to recognize the acronym! References |
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