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IEEE Computer Society
Style Guide
2013
.

Table of Contents
Introduction





Mission statement
General information
Resolving differences with authors
Acknowledgments

Abbreviations

Acronyms and Abbreviated Terms
Authors and Affiliations
Best Practices





Biographical Sketches
Capitalization

Internal capitals
Titles
Department names

Copyrights, Trademarks, US Government Work, and Image
Permissions 11
File Extensions and Their Meanings
Lists

Locations



Standard and postal abbreviations: US states and Canadian provinces
Postal code placement

Mathematical Expressions




Miscellaneous math style issues
Equation formatting guidelines
Math guidelines

Non-English Words and Phrases
Numbers and Symbols





Punctuation
Capitalization
Tokens in text

Punctuation
References




Dates
Numerals
Symbols and signs
Telephone and fax numbers

Program Code




29
30

Sample formats
General style
Abbreviations in references

Transactions Department References
Alphabetical Listing

Usages not identified or adequately defined in accepted external sources

Introduction
Mission statement
The IEEE Computer Society Style Guide Committee’s mission is to clarify the editorial styles
and standards that the Society’s publications use. We maintain and periodically update a style
guide to clarify those usages not adequately defined in accepted external sources. Our purpose is
to promote coherence, consistency, and identity of style, making it easier for CS editors and our
authors to produce quality submissions and publications that communicate clearly to all our
readers.

General information
This revised (November 2013) edition of the IEEE Computer Society Style Guide complements
these primary references:


Preferred dictionary: Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 11th ed., 2003.



General style guide: The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th ed., 2010 (called CMS in this style
guide).

The CS style guide defines and explains unique IEEE Computer Society usages, particularly
where they differ from other usages. It also defines specialized terms to help editors determine
proper usage and phraseology.
Entries in the alphabetical listing include commonly used acronyms, definitions, and brief
remarks on points of style. Entries for terms are listed with their initial letter in lowercase, unless
the term is a proper name or conventionally appears with an initial capital letter. A keyword given
in italics denotes entries for remarks on style. Where topics cannot be covered by short
explanations, they are presented in the special sections listed in the Table of Contents.
An * denotes entries in the alphabetical listing that can be used as acronyms on first
reference. An individual magazine’s editorial staff can make determinations about applying this
designation to other acronyms on the list. Because some terms look like acronyms and some
acronyms look like terms, the style guide provides overlapping entries to make it easier to use.
Likewise, the listings include cross-references where necessary.
This style guide will be updated as required. An electronic version is available at
www.computer.org/portal/web/publications/styleguide.
The Style Guide Committee is a permanent body with a mandate to rule on questions of style and
to provide guidelines where none exist. If you have a question to pose, or you find an entry that
needs to be added or changed, please send your request by e-mail to style@computer.org. The
committee will endeavor to reply within 30 days.

Style Guide version November 2013

Resolving differences with authors
The Style Guide Committee’s goal is to direct editors to published works and offer guidelines that
they should consider and follow, except in cases where they have good reasons to do otherwise.
We recognize that each CS publication has its own minor style variations. Moreover, a good
editor knows when to bend a good rule in order to maintain clarity of meaning within a written
passage.
Authors provide the technical content for Computer Society publications and, together with
referees, bear the major responsibility for ensuring technical accuracy. The editor’s job is to
present the material in the most effective manner possible, consistent with established CS
publishing practices.
Computer Society style is not intended to alienate authors, universities, or corporations; its goal is
to achieve professionalism and consistency while treating all firms, organizations, and individuals
equally. This house style is generally supported by US trademark law.
Occasional author-editor disagreements can be expected, and compromises are often necessary.
Each party should recognize that the other has a stake in the outcome: The author’s name appears
on the book or article for all the world (and numerous colleagues) to see, and the editor must
follow guidelines established by senior editors, managers, the publisher, and accepted CS editing
practices.
Authors frequently feel that a particular usage is correct because it has appeared in a variety of
printed communications. However, if these communications are conference proceedings, in-house
technical reports, or unpublished papers that have not been professionally edited, no one has yet
applied standard publishing rules. Once in a while, though, CS style may indeed be out of step,
and questionable cases should be referred to the Style Guide Committee. Willingness to view a
situation from another’s vantage point is a big step toward resolving differences.
Editors should be flexible enough to compromise when firm publishing and editing principles are
not being violated. If an author’s preference violates strict grammar rules or firm CS guidelines,
the editor should make clear what that violation is, explain why it is not good practice, and
suggest an alternative.
An editor’s decisions should not be, or appear to be, arbitrary. Explaining that the Style Guide
Committee has given considerable thought to CS policies and has established guidelines intended
to enhance the authority, effectiveness, and prestige of CS publications is usually the best way to
enlist an author’s cooperation in the search for a solution. Unresolved disputes between an
equally adamant author and editor should be referred to the department manager.

Acknowledgments
The participation of the following IEEE Computer Society staff members in revising this manual
is gratefully acknowledged: Camber Agrelius, Mark Gallaher, Chris Nelson, Lisa O’Conner,
Kimberly Sperka, Dennis Taylor, and Carrie Walsh.

Style Guide version November 2013

Abbreviations
Styles differ on whether or not periods should be used with particular abbreviations. The Society
discourages the use of periods in certain abbreviations, such as those for academic degrees, names
of countries, and other abbreviations that are in all capitals. When periods are removed from
abbreviations, the internal space should also be removed (for example, MIT, PhD, US). The
internal space is also removed from other abbreviations with internal periods, as with author
initials. Note that if an abbreviation also spells a word, removing the following period could
cause confusion in some contexts (for example: in., no.).
Although many style manuals decry the use of abbreviations, some words are seldom spelled out.
Among these are abbreviations for affiliations or scholarly degrees after a name (BA, PhD), and
abbreviations such as AD, CPA, and Ltd. A symbol or figure beginning a sentence, on the other
hand, is usually spelled out; if it cannot be, the sentence is rewritten (Two hundred miles, not 200
miles).
Other abbreviation style tips:
The abbreviations Jr., Sr., II and so forth do not require a comma because they are part of the
person’s name (John Smith Jr.).
Mr., Mrs., and Dr. are dropped if another title is also used (not Dr. John Smith Jr., PhD).
The preferred format avoids using a descriptor unless the company name might not be clear
without it, for example, Data Co. However, if it is necessary to use Limited, Incorporated,
Corporation, or Company, they are abbreviated to Ltd., Inc., Corp., or Co., respectively, and the
abbreviation is not preceded by a comma.
The abbreviations Nat'l and Int'l (for national and international) do not take a period.
The standard abbreviations for most of the degrees we encounter in our authors’ biographies are
BS, MS, MSc, and PhD. For additional rules on abbreviating academic degrees, see the entry
under academic degrees in the alphabetical section.
Centuries use the ordinal symbol, for example, 21st century.
Also see the References section; for a more complete discussion of abbreviations, see CMS,
Chapter 10.

Style Guide version November 2013

Acronyms and Abbreviated Terms
A true acronym is formed by using the first letter from two or more separate words, for example,
DEC for Digital Equipment Corporation. Articles or prepositions falling in between (for example,
and, of, in, the) are generally not used as part of the acronym. Use all capitals only for true
acronyms.
Many acronyms/abbreviated terms used for measurements are traditionally all lowercase, for
example, cpi (characters per inch) and dpi (dots per inch). A few are mixed, such as kHz
(kilohertz). Capitalization also can differ depending on meaning, for example, MW (megawatt)
and mW (milliwatt). See the alphabetical section when in doubt.
As a general rule, spell out all acronyms on first use, but don’t use initial capitals just because the
letters form the acronym. There must be another reason for the caps; for example, the words
constitute a proper noun. In other words, CAD is computer-aided design, not Computer-Aided
Design.
Exceptions to the spell-out-on-first-use rule are acronyms so well known to a particular magazine
or publication’s readers that spelling them out would be insulting. In the alphabetical section, the
Style Guide Committee has determined that acronyms marked with an asterisk are so familiar to
all our readers that they don’t need to be spelled out on first use. Examples include RAM, ROM,
and CD-ROM.
Put the acronym in parentheses immediately after the spelled-out term. In long articles with
unfamiliar acronyms, it helps to spell out the words occasionally throughout to refresh readers’
memories and aid those who browse. If an article includes many unfamiliar acronyms, consider
creating a glossary or sidebar.
Use judgment before allowing a short common term to be reduced to an acronym (for example,
operating system to OS). Readers have difficulty with articles that read like alphabet soup.
Provided that an acronym isn't visually distracting (use your judgment), capitalize it as the author
submitted it, so long as the CS Style Guide doesn’t already prescribe a style for it and its
formatting agrees with the official version. (For example, the www.flossproject.org provides the
project’s preferred capitalization: FLOSS.) When deciding whether to revise acronym
capitalization, first consider clarity, followed by author preference.
The alphabetical section of the Style Guide includes combinations of words and acronyms, such
as MiniDIP, which generally follow both capitalization and acronym rules.
For units of measurement, you don’t need to spell out common abbreviations (such as s, min., and
ms). For unfamiliar units of measurement, spell them out on first use.

Style Guide version November 2013

Authors and Affiliations
For the optional magazines, on an article’s first page, list the authors in the order in which they
appeared on the original accepted paper’s first page. (If no names appeared there, use the order of
the author bios, if there are any. Otherwise, contact the authors.) If authors listed next to each
other share an affiliation, group them together. If authors share an affiliation but aren’t listed next
to each other, don’t group them together. For example, note the first and third lines of this list:
Khairi Reda and Alessandro Febretti, University of Illinois at Chicago
Aaron Knoll, University of Texas at Austin
Jillian Aurisano, Jason Leigh, and Andrew Johnson, University of Illinois at Chicago
Michael E. Papka and Mark Hereld, Argonne National Laboratory
The author order on the first page and in the bios should be the same.
Normally, each author should have only one affiliation on the article’s first page—usually, the
affiliation at which the research occurred. (You can list other affiliations in the bio.) If the
affiliation is an institute or organization associated primarily with a university, use just the
university name as the affiliation. However, in IEEE Software, you can list Software Engineering
Institute as the affiliation without listing Carnegie Mellon University.
The author’s name on the first page takes the “AUTHOR” tag; the name in the author bio takes
the “vita name” tag. The affiliation on the first page takes the “AUTHOR AFFILIATION” tag (a
paragraph tag) if it’s on a separate line from the author name or the “author affiliation” tag (a
character tag) if it’s on the same line. The affiliation in the bio takes the “vita affiliation” tag. The
tagged affiliation in the bio should match the tagged affiliation on the first page. However,
after an affiliation first appears in a bio, you can abbreviate subsequent instances of that
affiliation (in that or any following bio) to save space. In this case, the abbreviation should appear
in parentheses after the first instance of the affiliation.
If an author must have more than one affiliation on the first page or if the tagged text on the first
page and in the bio must differ, inform Monette Velasco or Jennie Zhu-Mai before the issue
ships.

Style Guide version November 2013

Best Practices
Here are a variety of guidelines for editing articles conforming to CS style. Some guidelines are
specific to particular magazines.

Abstracts
Print abstracts (the short abstracts that appear at the article’s beginning) should be 50 words max
for Computer Graphics and Applications, 80 to 100 words for Internet Computing (50 words for
department articles), 25 words max for Intelligent Systems and Software, 35 words max for
Pervasive Computing, and 35 to 40 words max for Security & Privacy.

Article titles
Capitalize both parts of a hyphenated compound unless the first part is a prefix; in that case,
capitalize only the prefix.

Figures
For figure callouts, use “(see Figure X)” if the sentence doesn’t already mention the figure. The
callout normally shouldn’t give the page number.
For figure captions, the preferred style is to use a phrase to describe the figure and a sentence (or
more) to describe the figure’s significance. For example, “Figure 1. Blue marshmallows. The
campers mix blue dye with sugar and the mucilaginous root of the marshmallow, thus turning a
pink-flowered European perennial herb into a tasty campfire treat.”
For abbreviations in captions, spell them out in the first caption in which they appear (with the
abbreviation in parentheses immediately following the related term). Later captions can use just
the abbreviation.
To acknowledge outside sources of figures, use this style: “(Source: NameOfSource; used with
permission.)”
For program code examples that are part of a figure, input the code into the Word file (and tag it
properly) if at all possible. Don’t send the code to the layout artist for input.

File and folder conventions—optional mags
Here are examples of the optional magazines’ file name format, using the May/June Computer
Graphics and Applications Harel article as an example:


g3har.org.pdf (original file that the author sent)



g3har.tag.doc (original tagged but unedited file)



g3har.dt.doc (1st edit by Dennis Taylor)



g3har.dt-bb.doc (2nd read by Brian Brannon. This version usually replaces the previous one.)

Style Guide version November 2013



g3har.gal.doc (version sent to author)



g3har.au.doc (version with author corrections)



g3har.fin.doc (version ready for layout)

Here are the guidelines for naming electronic folders, with examples.


First theme: a1-Harel



Second theme: a2-Jones



Third theme: a3-Smith



Nontheme: b-Harris



Column: c-Opinions



Department: d-Projects



Track: t-Virtualization

The electronic folder should contain the current version of the article, figures, and author photos
(when necessary), and a Versions folder that holds all the other files. When the layout is ready,
move the most recent MS Word file to the Versions folder. You don’t need to clean out the
folders before they’re archived.
For the hard-copy folders, you don’t need to keep the materials in any specific order (although
some kind of order would be nice), and you don’t need to remove anything before the folders are
archived.

Main text
Introductions should be three paragraphs, although a little longer is okay if necessary.
In the optional magazines, use title caps on first- and second-level headings. In Computer, firstlevel headings use all caps, and second-level headings use just an initial cap.
On multiline headings, try to make the lower lines the longer ones.
Don’t indent the paragraph immediately following a first- or second-level heading.
When first referring to a group of more than two authors, use this style: “Jane Doe and her
colleagues.” For two authors, give their first and last names.
When referring to a specific table or figure in the text, use capitalization: Figure 3, Table 2, and
so on.
Avoid having a line with a drop cap on the last line of a column.
Use the appropriate punctuation at the end of a display equation.

Style Guide version November 2013

When referring to a numbered and displayed item in an article, use an initial capital letter (Figure
1, Table 2, Equation 3, Algorithm 4, …). Otherwise, for nouns accompanied by numbers or
letters, don’t capitalize the noun (level 5, participant B, step 1, and so on) unless it’s a proper
noun or it’s from a specification or standard.
For names of software patterns, use an initial capital letter and no special formatting.
Use a drop cap, not a heading, to start the conclusion.

Sidebars
For sidebar titles, use normal title capitalization.
For titles of related-work sidebars, use “Related Work in …,” not “Related Work on ….”

Tables
We no longer use the TABLE ROWz tag.
When referring to table columns or rows in the main text, normally use quotation marks and no
capital letters (“In the ‘total characters’ column, …”).

URLs
If you have to put a URL in parentheses after an acronym, use a semicolon to separate the two.
Don’t use “http://” in URLs that start with www (unless the author is Tim Berners-Lee and he
complains).

Style Guide version November 2013

Biographical Sketches
Except for transactions, the preferred format for biographical sketches can vary depending on the
publication. But full articles should generally follow this format:

//Author Name// is a //position// at //name of institution or company, with department name if
applicable//. //His/Her// research interests include //list three or four topics//. //Last name//
received a //highest academic degree [use an abbreviation if possible]// in //name of discipline
[use lowercase]// from //name of degree-granting institution//. //He/She// has received //names of
awards//. //He/She// is in on the editorial board of //name of publication// and has been //name of
volunteer position// at //name of conference//. //He/She// is a member of //list up to three relevant
professional organizations [okay to use an acronym or initialism for organizations]//. Contact
//him/her// at //email address//.
Note: If there are space issues—for example, an unusually large number of authors—the
professional organizations and research interests can be deleted (in that order).
For columns and departments, Computing in Science and Engineering, Internet Computing, IT
Pro, and Security & Privacy use the same format as for regular articles. Computer Graphics and
Applications, Intelligent Systems, Pervasive Computing, and Software follow this format:

//Author Name// is a //position// at //name of institution or company, with department name if
applicable//. Contact //him/her// at //email//.

Transactions biographies follow this format:
//First name/last name// received the //first to latest sequential degrees in respective disciplines
and institutions//. He is a //academic title, institution, or business title, company//. His research
interests include //list three or four topics//. He has authored //number of papers or the name of
relevant texts//. He is a member of //relevant professional organizations//.
For abbreviations in magazine bios, spell them out in each bio in which they appear. If an
abbreviation appears more than once in a bio, place it in parentheses after the first instance of the
related term and then use just the abbreviation later in the bio.

Style Guide version November 2013

Capitalization
The Computer Society style is conservative in the use of capital letters. A company’s or public
relations firm’s wishes about capitalization rarely carry any weight.
For company, product, system, and language names, use an initial capital only. Editors should
determine whether the term is really a proper noun or merely descriptive or generic.

Internal capitals
For many years, Computer Society style prohibited the use of internal capitals in words, insisting
on an initial capital only for product names, system names, and so forth. Words such as MiniDIP
and AutoCAD were accepted as combinations of words and acronyms. This strict approach has
not been sustainable in the real world. We now permit one internal capital when it is the first
letter of another word, as in PostScript, MacDraw, or dBase. Only a few exceptions exist, for
example, NeXT and LaTeX. If in doubt, see the alphabetical section of this style guide.

Titles
In the titles of articles, books, and so forth, capitalize nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs,
and first and last words. Function words (articles, coordinate conjunctions, and prepositions) are
not capitalized, regardless of their length: “Better Health through Psychotherapy,” “Keeping the
Peace without Creating Conflict.” The exception is following a colon—for example, “Along a
Different Path: A Case Study.” For hyphenated words in titles, see CMS 8.159.
In references, use standard capitalization for titles but don’t lowercase internal capitals or
improper acronyms that appear as part of a product or system name, even if it conflicts with the
style guidelines.

Department names
Names of departments, divisions, laboratories, and so forth are capitalized when used as part of
an organization’s proper name: the University of Pennsylvania Department of Computer Science;
the university’s computer science department; the IBM Almaden Research Center; HewlettPackard’s advertising department.

Style Guide version November 2013

Copyrights
The IEEE owns the copyright for material published by the IEEE Computer Society. Authors
must sign the IEEE copyright form, available online along with detailed information about IEEE
intellectual property rights at www.ieee.org/copyright.
Authors should not include a copyright notice of their own in published articles or department
submissions. Authors transfer copyright to the IEEE as part of the publication agreement. Staff
members do not need to complete a copyright agreement because its terms are part of the general
conditions of their employment.
Each feature article carries a notice of IEEE ownership of copyright at the bottom of the first
page. The two acceptable versions (with the symbol and with text) of the standard format are




Address questions regarding copyright issues to:
IEEE Intellectual Property Rights Office
IEEE Service Center
445 Hoes Lane, Piscataway, NJ 08854-1331
Phone: +1 732 562 3966; Fax: +1 732 981 8062
e-mail: copyrights@ieee.org

Trademarks
We do not include the trademark symbol in articles published in IEEE Computer Society
periodicals and proceedings. Trademark law does not apply to the press because using a product
name in the headline or text of an article does not constitute an attempt to capitalize on the
reputation of the company or the product.

US Government Work
When an author is (or all authors are) employed by the US government, the following wording is
used instead of the IEEE copyright line: “US Government Work Not Protected by US
Copyright.” The CCC code must not appear with the above notice. Other useful information can
be found at the IEEE Intellectual Property Rights website: www.ieee.org/copyright.

Image Permissions
If an image has been published elsewhere, the author must obtain permission from the
publisher or the creator of the image for the IEEE Computer Society to reproduce it in the
publication's print and electronic versions. Obtaining permission and paying any fees the
publisher requires are the author’s responsibility. If permission isn’t obtained, the figure
should not be used in the article.

Style Guide version November 2013

File Extensions and Their Meanings
.arj
relatively uncommon archive file
.bak
backup file
.bin
binhex file—Macintosh
.bmp
bitmap file
.cca
cc:Mail archive file
.cdr
Corel Draw data file
.cfg
configuration file
.cnt
MS Office file
.com
command file
.cpl
current privilege level file for WWW
.dat
data file
.dbf
database file
.dir
directory
.dll
dynamic link library—Windows file system
.doc
MS Word document
.dos
DOS file
.dot
MS Word template
.drv
printer driver file
.eps
encapsulated PostScript file
.exe
executable file—a program
.fon
font file
.ftg
MS Office file
.gid
MS Access file
.gif
graphics interchange format—an art file
.gz
G-zipped file—Unix-based compressed file
.hgx
Harvard Graphics file
.hlp
help file
.hqx
BinHex compressed file
.htm or .html
hypertext file—WWW page file
.ico
icon file
.inf
information file
.ini
initialization file—Windows file
.jpg
JPEG image file
.kbd
keyboard layout file
.lan
local area network file—a Novell system file
.lha
relatively uncommon archive file
.lo
QuarkXPress document—Macintosh
.log
log file
.lst
list file
.lzh
relatively uncommon archive file
.mim
mime-encoded file
.mpl
MS Project data file
.mpg
MPEG image file
.msg
message file
.nlm
NetWare Loadable Module—Novell
.nls
NetWare License Server—Novell
.pcd
photo CD file
.pct
PICT graphic

Style Guide version November 2013

.pcx
.pdf
.pdr
.pfb
.pfm
.pif
.png
.ppa
.ppd
.ppt
.prn
.ps
.psd
.pub
.qxp
.reg
.rtf
.rul
.sam
.smi
.sty
.swp
.sys
.tar
.taz
.tbl
.tex
.tif
.tlb
.tmp
.ttf
.txt
.vbx
.vxd
.wav
.wk1
.wks
.wmf
.wpd
.wpg
.wq1
.wri
.ws2
.xls
.xtg
.z
.zip
.zoo

PC Paintbrush graphic
portable document format file—Adobe Acrobat
printer description file—Macintosh
Adobe printer font—binary
Adobe printer font—metric
program information file—Windows shortcut file
portable network graphics—image file format
PowerPoint presentation file
PostScript printer definition file
PowerPoint document
MS Word print file—PostScript format
PostScript file
Adobe Photoshop native format file
MS Publisher document
QuarkXPress document
registry file—Windows file systems
rich text format—a form of text formatting
cc:Mail rule file
AmiPro file
system management interrupt—Intel
LaTeX style file
Windows swap file
DOS/Windows system file
tape archive file—Unix-based compressed file
.tar file that has been .z compressed
Adobe table editor file
LaTeX file—a form of text formatting
tagged information format file—an image file
MS Office executable file
temporary file—Windows applications
TrueType font file
text file, usually plain ASCII
Visual Basic file
virtual driver file—Windows
wave sound file
Lotus 123 spreadsheet file
MS Works file
Windows metafile—a graphics file
WordPerfect document
WordPerfect graphic
Quattro Pro spreadsheet
MS Write document
WordStart 2 document
Excel spreadsheet file
QuarkXPress document—PC
compressed file from a Unix-based system
compressed file from WinZip
relatively uncommon archive file

Lists
How to use punctuation in a list depends on whether the introductory phrase is a dependent clause
(it is not a complete sentence) or an independent clause (it is a complete sentence).
If the introductory phrase is a dependent clause, there is no colon.
In the past few months, I’ve been
• dressing more casually;
• finding unusual combinations of styles, colors, and textures; and
• looking for bargains.
If the introductory phrase is an independent clause, there is a colon.
People describe my wardrobe in many ways:
• sporty,
• colorful, and
• distinctive.
Here’s what I think:
• My wardrobe is distinctive.
• I can decide what to wear depending on my mood.
• I need some new clothes.
My wardrobe has many distinct characteristics:
• Unusual. Most people would not be comfortable making the same choices.
• Versatile. I can dress comfortably for a business meeting or casual Friday.
• Color-coordinated. I can mix and match garments to achieve a new look.
The following are examples of formatting alternatives for more complicated lists.
The major architectural components include
• a thin client terminal hosting a Web browser—the client terminals periodically send location
updates to the network;
• an application server that delivers Web content prioritized according to user preferences—the
application server formats the generated information content and adapts it for display on the
client terminal; and
• a context and profile manager (CPM) that tracks the user’s dynamic context—the CPM also
queries Web services and filters Web content data according to user profile context.
The architecture has three major components:
• A thin client terminal hosts a Web browser. The client terminals periodically send location
updates to the network.
• An application server delivers Web content prioritized according to user preferences. The
application server formats the generated information content and adapts it for display on the
client terminal.
• A context and profile manager (CPM) tracks the user’s dynamic context. The CPM also
queries Web services and filters Web content data according to user profile context.
Style Guide version November 2013

The architecture has three major components:
• a thin client terminal,
• an application server, and
• a context and profile manager (CPM).
The client terminal hosts a Web browser and periodically sends location updates to the network.
The application server delivers Web content prioritized according to user preferences; it formats
the generated information content and adapts it for display on the client terminal. The CPM tracks
the user’s dynamic context and also queries Web services and filters Web content data according
to user profile context.

Style Guide version November 2013

Note: With the exception of running text—where the state name is spelled out—use
of the postal abbreviation is preferred (CMS 10.28).

Locations
United States
State

Standard abbreviation

Postal abbreviation

Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Guam
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York

Ala.
Alaska
Ariz.
Ark.
Calif.
Colo.
Conn.
Del.
D.C.
Fla.
Ga.
Guam
Hawaii
Idaho
Ill.
Ind.
Iowa
Kan.
Ky.
La.
Maine
Md.
Mass.
Mich.
Minn.
Miss.
Mo.
Mont.
Neb.
Nev.
N.H.
N.J.
N.M.
N.Y.

AL
AK
AZ
AR
CA
CO
CT
DE
DC
FL
GA
GU
HI
ID
IL
IN
IA
KS
KY
LA
ME
MD
MA
MI
MN
MS
MO
MT
NE
NV
NH
NJ
NM
NY

Style Guide version November 2013

North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Puerto Rico
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Trust Territories of the Pacific
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Virgin Islands
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming

N.C.
N.D.
Ohio
Okla.
Ore.
Pa.
Puerto Rico
R.I.
S.C.
S.D.
Tenn.
Texas
Trust Territories
Utah
Vt.
Va.
Virgin Islands
Wash.
W.Va.
Wis.
Wyo.

NC
ND
OH
OK
OR
PA
PR
RI
SC
SD
TN
TX
TT
UT
VT
VA
VI
WA
WV
WI
WY

Note: States names with five letters or fewer are never abbreviated. The names of states and
territories outside the 48 contiguous US states are abbreviated only when used with a postal code.
Postal code placement: ZIP (Zone Improvement Program) codes follow the state code and are
separated by a space: Los Alamitos, CA 90720. The Postal Service has expanded the original
five-digit code to nine digits, known as ZIP+4. The added digits follow a hyphen appended to the
original code: Los Alamitos, CA 90720-1314.

Style Guide version November 2013

Canada
Province
Alberta
British Columbia
Manitoba
New Brunswick
Newfoundland and Labrador
Northwest Territories
Nova Scotia
Nunavut
Ontario
Prince Edward Island
Quebec
Saskatchewan
Yukon Territory

Standard abbreviation
Alta.
B.C.
Man.
N.B.
N.L.
N.W.T.
N.S.
Ont.
P.E.I.
Que.
Sask.
Yukon

Postal abbreviation
AB
BC
MB
NB
NL
NT
NS
NU
ON
PE
QC
SK
YT

Note: Quebec used to be abbreviated P.Q. for Province du Québec, but this is now obsolete.
Francophones in Québec often use the postal abbreviation Qc.
Postal code placement: Canada’s postal code system is similar to the US ZIP code system. Postal
codes are placed after the province code. The six-character codes are broken into two groups of
three characters separated by a space. The format is letter, number, letter, space, number, letter,
number—for example, Kingston, ON K1A 0S2.

United Kingdom
UK postal codes are placed after the country (England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales)
and are separated by a space. Add the nation (UK) after the postal code. The six-character codes
are usually broken into two groups of three characters separated by a space. The usual format is
letter, letter, number, space, number, letter, letter—for example, Stirling, Scotland FK9 4LA, UK.
However, some cities use variations on this format.

Europe
Postal codes are placed before the city name: D-4054 Nettetal, Germany. The number of digits
varies among countries. The European postal union includes country prefixes with the postal
codes. These prefixes, which are separated from the postal code by a hyphen, include
B
CH
D
DK
E
F

Belgium
Switzerland
Germany
Denmark
Spain
France

Style Guide version November 2013

I
N
NL
S
UK

Italy
Norway
Netherlands
Sweden
United Kingdom

Include the state for all US cities except the following: Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago,
Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Honolulu, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New Orleans,
New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San
Francisco, and Seattle.
Do not list state name or province for cities outside the US and Canada. For most cities
located outside the US, list the nation after the city. However, do not include the nation
for the following locations:
Amsterdam

Jerusalem

Taiwan

Athens
Bangkok

Rome
Kyoto

Munich
Tokyo

Barcelona

Seoul

Oslo

Beijing

London

Toronto

Berlin
Brussels

Shanghai
Madrid

Ottawa
Vienna

Budapest

Singapore

Paris

Cairo

Melbourne

Warsaw

Copenhagen
Edinburgh

Stockholm
Mexico City

Prague
Zurich

Geneva

Sydney

Reykjavik

Helsinki
Hong Kong

Montreal
Taipei

Rio de Janeiro

Istanbul

Moscow

Style Guide version November 2013

Mathematical Expressions
Most style manuals do not cover mathematical style well. CMS has some good suggestions in
Chapter 12, but is insufficient. Another reference source is N.J. Higham, The Handbook of
Writing for the Mathematical Sciences, Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, 1998.
Although this book is largely about how to write mathematics clearly, it also has some
suggestions about math typography and other stylistic matters.

Miscellaneous math style issues
If authors use punctuation after mathematical expressions, including displayed equations, leave it
in (or revise as necessary).










Include a space on either side of multiplication signs, equals signs, and other operators when
they are at full size, for example, 100  100 matrix, and a + b = c. MathType automatically
inserts thin spaces around these symbols. In subscripts and superscripts, omit these thin
spaces unless the formula becomes confusing without them. Also, when < or > precedes a
number in text (that isn’t a formula), there should be no space after the symbol.
If line breaks are needed in equations that appear in a paragraph, they should come after a
plus sign, equals sign, or similar character.
Characters with overbars must be set in MathType. If an article has many symbols with
overbars or other symbols that make typesetting difficult, consider asking the author if there
is an easier alternative.
Equation numbers are put in parentheses to the right of displayed formulas. They should not
be boldface. Generally speaking, only formulas called out in the text need to be numbered.
Use italic type for lowercase Greek variables; do not use italic type for uppercase Greek
variables.
Variables that denote vectors are set boldface, not italic. Do not use the small arrows above
the variable to denote vectors.
Set the label that denotes a matrix in italic, for example, A.
If the vectors are simply mathematical and do not represent physical quantities and direction
(that is, they do not need to be clearly differentiated from scalars), boldfacing is less
important, and you can use lightface italic type if the author has styled them that way.

If the author consistently uses another scheme, consider going along with it.

Style Guide version November 2013

Equation formatting guidelines
Display equations can be broken down a number of ways to fit within a column. First, note that
each line of an equation must be aligned to either a relation symbol or a binary operator in the
first line of the equation (if one exists). These symbols work in a hierarchy: Relation symbols are
aligned with other relation symbols, binary operators are aligned with other binary operators, and
binary operators are indented from relation symbols. For example:
x

l  s, w   s  x, y  log   1   N t t
h

p( w1 , z1 )  p( w1 , v1 )  p(v1 , z1 )

  log  s  x, y  !

 p( w2 , v2 )  p  v2 , z2 

 p  w2 , z2 

  s ( x, y ) log  b   N b b
h

 1  x, y  log  1 



 3

 s  r  s ,

dr  s 
,
ds
d 2r  s
 5
2
  s   r  s 
ds 2

  4  s   r  s  

If there is only one relation symbol or binary operator in an equation, break the equation after the
relation symbol or binary operator and indent the second line slightly:

d   

dt

 

E p  ; ,  ,  H  ,1   2 



   
obs
 K  B  A p   B ; ,  
syn

K  A  B  p   A ; ,  

If there is room, align the equation like this:

 x    M   d z  2  x  y
l 1

n 1

  m  2 k  3

If a display equation can’t be centered, the first line can be made flush left to the column to allow
more room for the following lines of the equation to fit. If an equation number won’t fit to the
right of an equation, it is acceptable to have the equation number fall one line below the equation
and to keep it right-justified to the column.

Style Guide version November 2013

Math guidelines
When should you italicize, when should you use bold, and when should you do neither? If you
edit Computer Society articles, you need to have a good handle on the answers to these questions.
The detailed answers below are meant to help you see the logic behind these answers, so that you
will be able to consistently make the right decisions when confronted with a math-heavy article.

Constants
A constant is a letter that represents one distinct value that never changes, no matter what. Don’t
italicize constants. For example, the letter k is often used to represent Boltzmann’s constant,
which is always equal to 1.380622  10–23 Joules/Kelvin. We use the letter k to avoid having to
write out this long number in our equations, but it’s not a variable, because its value can never
change; it remains constant. In most cases, the author will identify the letter as a constant. If he or
she doesn’t, you can probably assume it’s not a constant. The only exception I can think of is the
speed of light (2.997925  108 m/s), a constant typically represented by the letter c. Authors
probably wouldn’t explicitly refer to it as “a constant,” but it is, and you should not italicize it. By
the way, this is the same c that appears in Einstein’s most famous equation, E = mc2. Written
properly, the E (energy) and m (mass) should be italicized (because they’re variables), but the c
(the speed of light) should not be italicized.

Variables
A variable, unlike a constant, is a letter that can represent more than one possible value. Italicize
all such letters (except uppercase Greek). For example, we could represent time by the letter t, a
variable. Time can be 3, 4, 5, … seconds. Time is a variable. Even when we are referring to one
instance (for example, t = 4), or even if the author says something like “we are keeping the time
constant,” we should still italicize t because it is possible in another situation that t would not be
kept constant at 4 ms or whatever. Time is not a constant that is universally always equal to 4.
The speed of light, on the other hand, never changes, no matter what. Boltzmann’s constant never
changes either. That is, it is impossible for a constant to be anything except the value it equals. If
you can’t make this statement, then you’re not looking at a constant.

Matrices
Matrices represent an array of numbers (columns and rows), like the desks in a classroom. Make
them italic. In addition, the individual elements should be italic (not bold), because they are
actually variables. For example, imagine you are in classroom A, a matrix. The person in the 1st
row, 1st column is element a11. Second row, first column is element a21. If you sit in the 2nd row
from the front, 3rd column from the left, you are element a23. Note that rows go across the
classroom (side to side), while columns go from front to back (even though, for some reason, in
school people call “rows” what are actually columns). Now, the person behind you (3rd row, 3rd
column) is element a33. The person to your right (second row, fourth column) is element a24, and
so on.

Vectors
Vectors are, in a way, special variables that also have a direction associated with them. However,
do not italicize vectors. Instead, make vectors bold—for example, the vector v. We typically
represent vectors by lowercase letters, whereas we represent matrices by uppercase letters.
However, we often represent the elements in a matrix by lowercase letters (but I think I’ve seen
capital letters used for matrix elements as well).
Style Guide version November 2013

Units
Units are letters that actually stand for words, not numbers. Do not italicize them. For example,
when s means second, we should not italicize it. The same goes for Greek letters. We italicize
lowercase Greek variables, but we do not italicize lowercase Greek units, such as the  in s
(meaning microseconds).

Acronyms disguised as variables
Beware of acronyms disguised as variables! Don’t italicize them. Innocent editors can fall prey to
mistakenly italicizing a subscript or superscript that looks like a variable but actually isn’t. For
example, in VDD, the letter V is a variable and should be italicized, but DD are neither variables
nor constants. They are more akin to acronyms. They don’t stand for numbers; they stand for
words. That’s the test. If you can’t put a number in for a letter, then don’t italicize it, because
it’s not a variable. In this case, the DD tells us that this is the drain voltage in a transistor. Now,
let’s consider VT. This T probably refers to “temperature,” and so is not a variable. You’ll have to
look at the context surrounding it. However, usually these subscripts are not variables. A common
exception is n or i (or even t), when indicating a series of numbers such as V1, V2, …, Vn. In this
case, a number can indeed be inserted in place of n, so we should italicize it. Another example of
an acronym in disguise, but one that is not a subscript, is in the following sentence from an article
I edited by Sachdev: “The NMOS transistor’s source (n+), bulk (p–), and drain (n+) terminals
form an npn bipolar transistor.” In this case, the n and p are neither variables nor constants. They
are, once again, more akin to acronyms but typically appear in lowercase. You cannot substitute a
number for either of these.

Control-flow diagrams
Letters in control-flow diagrams represent steps, not numbers. Don’t italicize them. Once again, a
variable is a letter that represents a number. If you can’t substitute a number for a letter, then that
letter is not a variable and thus should not be italicized. For an example of a control-flow
diagram, see Figures 1 and 2 in “Intra-Task Voltage Scheduling for Low-Energy, Hard, RealTime Applications” (Dongkun Shin, Jihong Kim, and Seongsoo Lee, IEEE Design & Test, Mar.Apr. 2001, pp. 20-21).

Coding math
Always code math from your keyboard or the insert/symbol/Symbol font menu rather than from
other menus (such as normal type, Euclid Math, and so on). Hard-coding the symbols using the
numeric keypad is also acceptable (for example, you can use Alt 0150 to insert a minus sign); but
don’t forget to turn NumLock on.

When to use or not use MathType
The general rule of thumb is to resist using MathType. MathType is difficult to set when it is
inline—embedded in the text—because the artist must make a small picture box sit inline with the
text. Stand-alone display—when a MathType equation sits on a line of its own—also takes more
processing by the production artist.

Style Guide version November 2013

Unavoidable MathType
A few situations always require the use of MathType. If you really think you need to use Math
Type but the situation isn’t listed here, you might consider getting a second opinion from
someone familiar with math.
Stacked equations. In these equations, one string of mathematical operations sits above another:

T0
Pw - Ps
Always consider whether these can be converted to a single line (using a slash to represent the
fraction bar instead of a horizontal line).
Equations that use the square root symbol. An example is Tbe = Tx . Try instead (if the
author doesn’t object) raising the number to the 1/2 power (Tbe = Tx1/2), which is the same as
taking the square root.
Characters with overbars. If possible, consider whether the author can make some substitution.
Some production artists actually throws out our carefully coded Math Type overbar characters
and draw a bar over the letter in Quark. But you still may need to code MathType for SGML.
1/ 3
An exponent of an exponent. An example of this would be e n . Unfortunately, there’s not
much we can do to change this one.
x
A superscript of a superscript a n or a subscript of a subscript: at4 For the latter case,
consider asking the author to use, for example, at4, which can be coded without MathType. For
the former (a super of a sub), use MathType.

Common ways to avoid MathType
A character that has both a superscript and a subscript—for example, GPA—does not require
MathType. Simply code the p as a subscript and code the A as a superscript.
Change a stacked equation, such as

Tbe =

T0
Pw - Ps

into a single-line equation: Tbe = To/(Pw – Ps). Note the necessary use of parentheses in this case.

Style Guide version November 2013

Non-English Words and Phrases
The IEEE Computer Society is a worldwide organization, but its publications are produced in the
United States in English. The way Society publications deal with non-English terms and phrases
depends on several factors, namely


the true “foreignness” of the expression—many non-English expressions have
entered mainstream English,



the availability of appropriate accented fonts,



the staff’s familiarity with languages other than English, and



the extent of the non-English readership of the publication(s) and the degree to which
the Society desires to appeal to that audience.

Here are some guidelines for using non-English terms:


Use accents in anglicized foreign terms when they affect pronunciation or when they
will prevent confusion between English words that are spelled the same.



Italicize terms not commonly accepted in English, but generally use such terms in
text only when there is no suitable English equivalent. The way to determine whether
a term is commonly accepted in English is to see whether it is in the main body of
Webster’s dictionary—if it is, don’t italicize.



Transliterate non-Roman languages into the Roman alphabet. Use the transliterated
phrase, an English translation, or both.



For non-English institutional names, use the original name for spellings using the
Roman alphabet, providing a translation if the reader might not understand. This
approach works well with organizations whose acronyms are well known, such as
CCITT (Comité Consultatif International de Télégraphique et Téléphonique),
because using a translation (International Consultative Committee for Telegraphy and
Telephony) followed by the acronym could confuse some readers. This same
guideline applies to university names in bylines and references. In some cases, the
non-English acronym is well known and always associated with the English
translation. An example is the European Center for Nuclear Research, which is
widely known by its French acronym, CERN.



For non-English references, provide the original title first, but follow it with the
English translation in brackets so that English-only readers can understand it. Follow
English capitalization rules in the translated title. If you don’t have a translation or
can’t translate the title, query the author of the article (who presumably has read the
work and can translate the title). If the author cannot provide a translation, propose
deleting the reference.



For author names, always follow the author’s preference. However, if the accents
required are not readily available in the Society font list, ask the author for English
equivalents.

Style Guide version November 2013

Numbers and Symbols
Dates
The IEEE Policies and Procedures (Jan. 2000) specify the following formats for dates:





E-mail and formal correspondence: day, month, year—for example, 6 January 2004.
Software applications: four-digit year, two-digit month, two-digit day—for example, 200401-06.
Centuries: Use the symbol for ordinal numbers—for example, 20th century. Note: CMS
spells out the century—for example, twentieth century.
Decades: The abbreviation is ’90s, not ‘90s. Transactions use the four-digit format: 1990s.

Numerals
Spell out integers one through nine and use numerals for 10 on, except in the following cases:
As a general rule, numerals should be used even for one through nine when the integer is coupled
with a symbol or unit of measurement (2°, 3 V). By the same token, numerals should be used
with percentages even for one through nine (a 5 percent drop; 3 percent responded; 3 to 6
percent). However, in nontechnical passages, numbers less than 10 used with common units,
especially time units, may look better spelled out, as do numbers used with approximate
measurements:
but

the program ran in 8 minutes [exact measurement]
a report from eight years ago said [nontechnical]
he lives eight miles down the road [nontechnical]
about eight or nine centimeters [approximate]

Spell out a number at the beginning of a sentence or recast the sentence.
In general, for units of measure, spell out on first use and abbreviate thereafter.
When a sentence includes both an integer less than nine and an integer greater than nine to
describe something in the same category, use numerals for consistency—for example, The
network can have 4, 8, or 16 nodes.
A compound adjective consisting of a number and an abbreviation is hyphenated. For example,
24-Kbyte memory.
Numbers with four digits or more have commas: 1,000, 10,000. Exceptions include page numbers
and dates (CMS 9.55). Precede decimal fractions with values of less than one with a zero to
prevent the reader from overlooking the period: 0.1 (however, observe the exceptions listed in
CMS 3.70 and 9.19). And remember, they’re singular: 0.1 inch, not 0.1 inches.
Use an s to create plurals of numerals:


the early 1920s



in twos, threes, and zeros



he had a collection of 386s and 486s

Style Guide version November 2013

Fonts and computers are inconsistent in the treatment and availability of fraction symbols. For intext fractions, therefore, full-size numerals with a slash are usually preferred: 1/2, not ½. In more
complicated mathematical expressions set in MathType, built-up fractions are generally used:
numerator over denominator, separated by a horizontal line. In mixed numerals, put a hyphen
between the integer and the fraction:


8-1/2 inches wide



24-5/8-mile track

For further reference see CMS Chapter 9, especially the parts on scientific and technical usage.

Symbols and signs
Use symbols in text only when you are certain that readers are familiar with them.
Multiplication symbol: Use the multiplication sign “” instead of “by” when numerals refer to
dimensions: 3  5 cm box; 3 in.  5 ft. board.
Spacing of characters for units of measurement and symbols: Abbreviations for units of
measurement, even if one letter, are separated from the numeral by a space (3 V, 5 m, 14 mm).
Actual symbols, as opposed to abbreviations for units, can be closed up, for example, 42°30' for
42 degrees, 30 minutes latitude.
Use sq. ft., not “ft2.”
Do not use abbreviations when the reference is indefinite or casual—say “several gigahertz” not
“several GHz.” However, where brevity is a key factor—for example, in new product write-ups
and tables—use symbols liberally.
When defining variables in run-in text, use “is” rather than “=”; for example, “where t is the
temperature,” not “where t = the temperature.”
Use the word “percent” in text; use the % symbol only in figures and tables.

Telephone and fax numbers
The IEEE Policies and Procedures specify the following format for phone and fax
numbers:
In North America: +1 area code xxx xxxx; for example, +1 714 821 8380
Outside North America: +country code city code xxx xxxx; for example, in
Belgium, +32 3 770 2242

Style Guide version November 2013

Program Code
Most Computer Society publications use a special font called “Program” to set program code—a
sequence of coded instructions—whether in text or broken out. (The Transactions Department
uses the Courier font for program code.) This monospace type allows consistent vertical
alignment of characters. It also makes program code stand out from text (saying “this is not real
English, so you’re not supposed to understand it as natural language”), and it is easily
recognizable as program code by most of our readers.
In text, set program code in a standard column width, using an indent to further set it off from
narrative text. The width of the indent should be specified in your publication’s style. The
justification should always be ragged right.
If the lines of code are longer than a column width, box the code and put it across two or more
columns. Magazines with 13-pica columns (three columns per page) often require boxed code.
Code presented in this manner should be identified as a figure, and numbered as such, with a
caption.
If a program line doesn’t fit on a single printed line, break and indent it to indicate the
continuation. Never add extra punctuation. Authors will often request continuation lines to be
right-justified or will otherwise express strong preferences on this issue.
In general, try to duplicate the spacing, indentation, punctuation, and capitalization in the author’s
manuscript. Programming languages do not normally recognize boldface or italics, but these may
be used by the author simply for emphasis.
Spacing is very important because omitting a space will often prevent a computer from
recognizing a command or variable.
Indentations often indicate subsets of the program; although they are not necessary to the
computer, indentations make a program easier to understand.

Punctuation


Do not substitute two single typesetting quotation marks (‘ ’) or normal double typesetting
quotation marks (“ ”) for typewriter quotation marks (").



Do not substitute a hyphen (-) for a minus sign ().



Do not substitute a raised asterisk (*) for a multiplication asterisk ().



Do not substitute an em dash (—) for two hyphens (--), which is a comment symbol in some
languages.

Capitalization
Words or letters in programming languages generally represent commands (tokens) or variables.
In Fortran and Basic, the general convention is to capitalize commands (such as IF, PRINT,
FORMAT, GOTO) and variables (often I, N, X(N)). In C, Algol, and PostScript, these words and
letters are lowercase.

Style Guide version November 2013

Tokens in text
Set program commands or tokens in Program font type to distinguish them in text. Resist using
boldface, italics, underlines, or super- and subscripting. If the language is case-sensitive (where a
compiler does not see “do,” “Do,” “dO,” and “DO” as equivalent), follow the language’s rules.
Most popular languages are not case-sensitive.

Case-insensitive
Ada, Algol, Anna, APL, assembly, Basic, Clu, Cobol, Fortran, job-control languages, Lisp
(including Common Lisp), Logo, MS-DOS and other operating-system-level command
interpreters (micro and mainframe), Occam, Pascal, PL/I, Prolog, SISAL, Snobol, and SQL.

Case-sensitive
ABC, C, C++, Eiffel, Interlisp, Loops (including the Common Loops and Concurrent Loops
dialects), Modula-2, Prolog, and Smalltalk. Most case-sensitive languages are object oriented,
although some are not (ABC, for example, is not object oriented). Some newer dialects of these
languages may not be case-sensitive; check with the author.

Style Guide version November 2013

Punctuation
In general, punctuation is such a complex topic that referring to the appropriate sections in CMS
is the preferred option. However, here we present some specific guidelines.

Colons
When a colon introduces text within a sentence, the following word starts with a lowercase letter.
Otherwise, the following word has an initial cap.

Ellipses
Because the correct use of an ellipsis is sometimes mysterious, the following guidelines are
provided:


For omissions within a sentence when using Word, insert a space, the ellipsis symbol
(Insert/Symbol/Symbol), and a space.



For omissions between sentences, use closing punctuation before an ellipsis if the preceding
sentence is grammatically complete. If the preceding sentence is not grammatically complete,
do not use closing punctuation. Place a space directly before and after the ellipsis.

For more complete information about using an ellipsis, see CMS 13.48–13.56.

Em dashes
In Internet Computing, place a space before and after an em dash, owing to font issues.

En dashes
Use en dashes for page ranges and other cases where the CMS calls for them; see CMS 6.78–681.

Quotation marks
Use double quotation marks for quoted text inside block quotations, decks, headings, and
interviews. Don’t put quotation marks around the entire quotation, deck, and so on.

Slashes (virgules)
Use your judgment regarding the use of slashes. Normally, there should be no space on either side
of the slash. For an exception, see CMS 6.104.

Style Guide version November 2013

References
This special section consists of two subsections: sample formats and general style. The first
presents examples of most of the reference types that arise in Computer Society publications. The
second delineates the policies and style principles underlying the formats. For Transactions, see
“Transactions Department References” (compiled November 2011).
To save time, ask the authors for any missing reference information. If they don’t provide it, then
search for it if possible.

Sample formats
Article in a collection
A.J. Albrecht, “Measuring Application-Development Productivity,” Programmer Productivity
Issues for the Eighties, 2nd ed., C. Jones, ed., IEEE CS, 1981, pp. 34–43.

Article in a conference proceedings
In general, delete prepositions in conference titles where the meaning is clear without them (see
the Abbreviations section). Use the ordinal symbol (2nd, 14th, 23rd) for annual conferences. If
available, include the conference initialism in parentheses—for example, (ICDE 98)—following
the abbreviated name of the conference. Include the sponsor’s name if it’s part of the official
proceedings title. The publisher’s name is unnecessary. Use the page numbers, article number, or
DOI.
H. Yuan et al., “Sparse Representation Using Contextual Information for Hyperspectral
Image Classification,” Proc. 2013 IEEE Conf. Cybernetics (CYBCONF 13), 2013, pp. 138–
143.
N. Zhong, “Toward Web Intelligence,” Advances in Web Intelligence: 1st Int’l Atlantic Web
Intelligence Conf. (AWIC 03), LNCS 2663, 2003, pp. 1–14.

Article in a journal or magazine
Use lowercase for vol. and no. The default is to use the volume and issue number, but for popular
publications, you can use the publication date instead. Page numbers through 9999 do not require
a comma.
I.E. Sutherland, R.F. Sproull, and R.A. Schumaker, “A Characterization of Ten Hidden-Surface
Algorithms,” ACM Computing Surveys, vol. 6, no. 1, 1974, pp. 1–55.

Blog
To cite the blog itself:
The Official Google Blog, Google; http://googleblog.blogspot.com. (Google is listed as the
publisher here.)
M. Watson, Artificial Intelligence Blog; http://markwatson.com/aiblog.

Style Guide version November 2013

Artificial Intelligence and Robots, blog; http://smart-machines.blogspot.com. (no named author or
publisher)
Entries in a blog:
M. Sahami, “About the Google Education Summit,” blog, 26 Oct. 2007;
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2007/10/about-google-education-summit.html.
M. Watson, “Using the PowerLoom Reasoning System with JRuby,” blog, 2 Oct. 2007;
http://markwatson.com/aiblog.
“Reinforcement Learning Is Cool,” blog; 24 Oct. 2007; http://smartmachines.blogspot.com/2007/10/reinforcement-learning-is-cool.html. (no named author)

Book
W.M. Newman and R.F. Sproull, Principles of Interactive Computer Graphics, McGraw-Hill,
1979, p. 402.
M.A. Arbib, ed., The Handbook of Brain Theory and Neural Networks, MIT Press, 1998.

Book series
Y. Yao et al., “Web Intelligence (WI): Research Challenges and Trends in the New Information
Age,” Web Intelligence: Research and Development, LNAI 2198, N. Zhong et al., eds., Springer,
2001, pp. 1-17.
R. Focardi and R. Gorrieri, eds., Foundations of Security Analysis and Design, LNCS 2171,
Springer, 2001.
Note: According to CMS 14.128, if the book can be located without it, the series title can be
omitted to save space.

CD-ROM
Place the term “CD-ROM” following the publication’s title and preceding the publisher’s name.
Note: Some CD-ROMs will have page numbers.
The format for a book that is available on CD-ROM is:
W.M. Newman and R.F. Sproull, Principles of Interactive Computer Graphics, CD-ROM,
McGraw-Hill, 1979.
When a proceedings is published on CD-ROM, follow the accepted format for a proceedings, but
add CD-ROM:
William Song, “A Semantic Approach to Internal Structure Formation in the Semantic Grid,”
Proc. Third Int'l Conf. Semantics, Knowledge, and Grid (SKG 2007), CD-ROM, IEEE CS, 2007,
pp. 248-253.

Style Guide version November 2013

Dissertation or thesis
B. Fagin, “A Parallel Execution Model for Prolog,” PhD dissertation, Dept. Computer Sciences,
Univ. of California, Berkeley, 1987.
M. Nichols, “The Graphical Kernel System in Prolog,” master’s thesis, Dept. Computer Science
and Eng., Rensselaer Polytechnic Inst., 1985.

Electronic publication
DOIs
Note: If the volume/issue number, date, and page numbers are available, it is not necessary to
include the DOI.
Article in a journal
D. Kornack and P. Rakic, “Cell Proliferation without Neurogenesis in Adult Primate Neocortex,”
Science; doi:10.1126/science.1065467.
Article in a conference proceedings
H. Goto, Y. Hasegawa, and M. Tanaka, “Efficient Scheduling Focusing on the Duality of MPL
Representation,” Proc. IEEE Symp. Computational Intelligence in Scheduling (SCIS 07), IEEE,
2007; doi:10.1109/SCIS.2007.367670.
Online-only publication
F. Kaplan, “From Baghdad to Manila: Another Lousy Analogy for the Occupation of Iraq,” Slate,
21 Oct. 2003; http://slate.msn.com/id/2090114.
Website
R. Bartle, “Early MUD History,” Nov. 1990; www.ludd.luth.se/aber/mud-history.html.
URL formatting and punctuation
Verify URLs by copying and pasting them into your browser. Some addresses don’t start with
http://—other protocols are also legitimate, for example, ftp:—and some addresses don’t need or
even won’t work with www. Omit the http:// if the URL starts with www.
Be sure to include all punctuation exactly as supplied (hyphens and tildes, in particular, are very
common in Web addresses).
If a URL must run across more than one line, follow these guidelines:





Break only after a forward slash or before a “dot” (period).
Do not split the double slash.
Do not introduce hyphens to break words (be very careful about this as Word may try to
hyphenate automatically).
Separating the extension (for example, the html at the end) is discouraged.

Style Guide version November 2013

Some URL examples using www.web-pac.com/mall/pacific/start.html:
Acceptable:
www.web-pac.com/mall/pacific/start.html
www.web-pac.
com/mall/pacific/start.html
www.web
-pac.com/mall/pacific/start.html
www.web-pac.com/mall/
pacific/start.html
www.web-pac.com/mall/pacific/start
.html
Not acceptable:
www.webpac.com/mall/pacific/start.html
www.web-pac.com/mall/pacific/start.html
www.web-pac.com/mall/pacific/start.
html

Legal citations
Note: In text, italicize the names of court cases.

US Supreme Court decisions



Olmstead v. United States, US Reports, vol. 277, 1928, p. 438.
Olmstead v. United States, US Reports, vol. 277, 1928, p. 478 (Justice Brandeis, dissenting).

Lower-court decisions



US v. Councilman, Federal Supplement, 2nd Series, vol. 245, 2003 p. 321 (US District Court
for the District of Mass.).
US v. Councilman, Federal Reporter, 3rd Series, vol. 373, 2004, p. 204 (US Court of
Appeals for the First Circuit).

US laws



US Code, Title 18, section 3123(a)(1),(2), 2000 and 2002 Supplement.
Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools to Intercept and Obstruct
Terrorism, Public Law No. 107-56, section 209, US Statutes at Large, vol. 115, 2001, p. 285.

Style Guide version November 2013



Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, Public Law No. 90-351, sections 801804, US Statutes at Large, vol. 82, pp. 211-223 (codified as amended in US Code, Title 18,
sections 2510-2522, 2000 and 2002 Supplement).

Newsletter
J. Butler, “CASE Outlook,” System Development Newsletter, Applied Computer Research,
Phoenix, Ariz., Nov. 1987, p. 3.

Non-English source
Including original title
A.N. Zhirabok and A.E. Shumskii, Electronnoe Modelirovanie [Electronic Modeling],
Energoatomizdat, Leningrad, 1984 (in Russian).
Original title unprintable
T. Nakayama et al., “NEC Corporation Develops 32-Bit RISC Microprocessor,” Nikkei
Electronics, vol. 6, no. 12, 1995, pp. 111-121 (in Japanese).

Patent
With information about patentee
M. Hoff, S. Mazor, and F. Faggin, Memory System for Multi-Chip Digital Computer, US patent
3,821,715, to Intel Corp., Patent and Trademark Office, 1974.
Without patentee information
Digital-to-Analog Converting Unit with Improved Linearity, US patent 5,162,800, Patent and
Trademark Office, 1992.

Pending publication
For an article or paper, include the name of the publication and date if known:
R. Lee, “New-Media Processing,” to be published in IEEE Micro, Nov./Dec. 2012.
For a book, include the publisher and year of publication:
R. Lee, Writing New Programs, McMillan, to be published in 2012.

Personal communication and unpublished materials
These are usually not referenced because they are not available to the reader. Authors who insist
on attributing material obtained through personal communication should identify the source of the
information in the main text (for example, As Maria Youngblood stated during a conference
panel, ...).

Preprint
J.M.P. Martinez et al., “Integrating Data Warehouses with Web Data: A Survey,” IEEE Trans.
Knowledge and Data Eng., preprint, 21 Dec. 2007, doi:10.1109/TKDE.2007.190746.
Style Guide version November 2013

Special issue
Computing in Science & Eng., special issue on computing in optics, Nov./Dec. 2003;
http://csdl.computer.org/comp/mags/cs/2003/06/c6toc.htm.

Standard
Recommendation ITU-R BT.601, Encoding Parameters of Digital Television for Studios, Int’l
Telecommunication Union, 1992.
IEEE Std. 1596-1992, Scalable Coherent Interface (SCI), IEEE, 1992.
IETF working draft
L. Martini et al., “Transport of Layer 2 Frames over MPLS,” IETF Internet draft, work in
progress, Feb. 2001.
Note: Per IETF guidelines, references to working drafts should not include URLs because they
expire after six months; use “work in progress” instead.
Industry specification
C. Evans et al., Web Services Reliability (WS-Reliability), v. 1.0, joint specification by Fujitsu,
NEC, Oracle, Sonic Software, and Sun Microsystems, Jan. 2003;
www.developers.sun.com/sw/platform/technologies/ws-reliability.html.
MPEG specification
MPEG-21 Overview, ISO/MPEG N5231, MPEG Requirements Group, Oct. 2002.
RFC
C. Perkins and E. Guttman, DHCP Options for Service Location Protocol, IETF RFC 2610, June
1999; www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc2610.txt.
W3C note
D. Box et al., Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) 1.1, World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
note, May 2000; www.w3.org/TR/SOAP.
W3C recommendation
N. Mitra, SOAP v.1.2, Part 0: Primer, World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) recommendation,
June 2003; www.w3.org/TR/soap12-part0.

Supplemental material
K. Xu et al., “Spherical Piecewise Constant Basis Functions for All-Frequency Precomputed
Radiance Transfer,” IEEE Trans. Visualization and Computer Graphics, vol. 14, no. 2, 2008, pp.
454–467, supplemental material; http://csdl.computer.org/comp/trans/tg/2008/02/ttg2008020454s
.avi.

Style Guide version November 2013

Technical memo, technical report, technical or user manual
Include the department name for technical memos, technical reports, and other material that may
not be indexed in a company-wide or university-wide library or by an abstracting service.
Technical memo
“Requirements for Software-Engineering Databases,” tech. memo, Imperial Software
Technology, London, 1983.
Technical report with report number
C. Hoffman and J. Hopcroft, Quadratic Blending Surfaces, tech. report TR-85-674, Computer
Science Dept., Cornell Univ., 1985.
Technical report without report number
E. Yarwood, Toward Program Illustration, tech. report, Computer Systems Research Group,
Univ. of Toronto, 1977.
Technical or user manual
The Unix System V Interface Definition, vol. 1, AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, N.J., 1991.

White paper
Consolidating the IT Infrastructure, white paper, Oracle Corp., Dec. 2003.

Wikipedia
Avoid citing as a reference if a more standardized source is available.

Style Guide version November 2013

General style
Author names
Use each author’s initials and last name. Leave no space between initials, but do leave a space
between the period following the last initial and the first letter of the last name: E.F. Codd. For
hyphenated first names, use a period for each initial (for example, J.-L. Picard).
If an entry has more than three authors, use the first author’s name and follow it with “et al.”:
T.G. Lewis et al.

Dates
Include just the year of publication for books. For periodicals, normally include the volume
number, issue number, and year. However, for popular periodicals, include the month and year. If
a periodical appears more frequently than monthly, include the date with the month: 15 Mar.
2000. If a periodical appears quarterly, use the season or issue number, depending on the
periodical’s usage. For periodicals that appear irregularly, do not use the month: vol. 16, no. 5,
1997.
Spell out May, June, and July; abbreviate the other months: Jan., Feb., Mar., Apr., Aug., Sept.,
Oct., Nov., and Dec. Use a slash for bimonthly issues (Aug./Sept. 2000) and an en dash for a
quarterly (July–Sept. 2000). Capitalize the names of seasons: Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall.

Electronic references
References to electronic repositories are acceptable in IEEE Computer Society publications, but
they are not the references of choice for formal archival use. If possible, replace such references
with references to printed material. However, when this is not possible, cite the electronic address
along with as much additional information as possible. If the address itself becomes invalid in the
future, the other information might help researchers find the same document elsewhere on the
Internet. At the very least, a reference to an electronic source must include the Internet URL.
When citing an electronic reference simply to give the reader a place to go for more information,
instead of including it in a formal reference list, noting it within parentheses in the running text is
acceptable. Because such references break the flow of the text, use them sparingly and do not set
them off in italic, boldface, or typewriter font. If an article includes many electronic references,
consider placing them in a sidebar or a broken-out list.
When referring to various portions of a WWW page in text, use an initial cap for the designated
item. Do not set it off with quotes, parentheses, or italics. Thus, a sample reference could be, The
proper way to search the page is to click on the Go button, or The text can be found in the
Publications section of the company’s Web site.
When referring to hypertext links found on a Web page (the highlighted underlined words), put
the entire text of the link in quotes. For example, Click on the “go here” link to reach the table.
When referring to URLs in a string of text, don’t apply extra formatting.

Style Guide version November 2013

Publications
Italicize names of books (including collections), magazines, journals, newsletters, technical
reports, white papers, and manuals. Use quotation marks to enclose names of articles, papers,
theses, dissertations, technical notes, and technical memos.
When listing conference abbreviations in a reference, use the conference abbreviation and the last
two digits of the year: AAAI 07.
After the name of a book, thesis, proceedings, or other book-like material, list the publisher, year
of publication, and inclusive page numbers if applicable. Delete terms such as Co., & Co., Ltd.,
S.A., Publisher, and Publishing Co.; retain Press. Where the publisher is a university, add its
location if needed for clarity, for example, Miami Univ., Ohio.
Do not include the editor’s name for a conference proceedings unless it is an edited volume
published as a book.
References for proceedings should tell where an interested reader can find the source, not where
the conference took place. If a proceedings did not use a traditional publisher, provide the
sponsoring organization and its location.
Use an en dash to indicate multiple issue numbers, for example, vol. 5, nos. 1–4. If the name of a
column is cited in the reference, use initial caps without quotation marks, for example, Embedded
Computing.

Titles
Capitalize the first and last words, and all nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, and
subordinating conjunctions. Lowercase articles, coordinating conjunctions, and prepositions,
regardless of length. Example: Toward Better Real-Time Programming through Dataflow.
To make a source easy for researchers to find, use the title as it originally appears. Do not add or
remove hyphens, change words to preferred spellings, or lowercase internal capitals.
For foreign-language references, provide the original title first, followed by its English translation
(if available) in brackets: Zur experimentalen Aesthetic [Toward an Experimental Aesthetic].
For a complete treatment of titles, see CMS 8.154-8.195.

Style Guide version November 2013

Abbreviations in references
Use the following abbreviations in the titles of periodicals and when naming publishing
institutions:
Am.
Ann.
Assoc.
Bull.
Comm.
Conf.
CS
Dept.
ed.
Eng.
Fed.
Govt.
Inst.
Int’l
J.
Lab(s)
Math.
Nat’l
no.
Org.
Proc.
Q.
Rev.
Soc.
Symp.
Trans.
Univ.
vol.

American
Annual
Association
Bulletin
Communications (of)
Conference (on)
Computer Society
Department (of)
edition, editor
Engineering
Federal
Government
Institute
International
Journal (of)
Laboratory (Laboratories)
Mathematics, Mathematical
National
Number
Organization
Proceedings (of)
Quarterly
Review
Society
Symposium (of or on)
Transactions (on)
University
Volume

Use “Comm.” (for Communications) when the term refers to the type of periodical (and is part of
the periodical’s name), not when it refers to the topic of communications.
Use “Eng.” (for Engineering) in the titles of periodicals and conference proceedings and in the
names of professional organizations, not in article or book titles.
Drop the “on” from “Workshop on” constructions. When abbreviating institution names, drop
“of” except in “University of” constructions—for example, Inst. Systems Research, Univ. of
Wisconsin.

Style Guide version November 2013

Transactions Department References
While IEEE Computer Society journals and IEEE journals have distinct templates and
formatting styles, IEEE Computer Society journals follow the IEEE's guidelines for formatting
references within the bibliography. For further information about these guidelines, please visit
the IEEE's Style Manual at http://www.ieee.org/documents/stylemanual.pdf.

Style Guide version November 2013

A
* Denotes entries for which it is okay to use acronym or abbreviated term on first use

A: ampere, for example, 25 A (n); 25-A current (adj)
AAAI: American Association for Artificial Intelligence
AAAS: American Association for the Advancement of Science
AACP: American Association of Computing Professionals
ABET: Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology
AC: alternating current
academic degrees: BS, MS, and PhD are the standard abbreviations for the bachelor’s,
master’s, and doctoral degrees that we encounter in most of our authors’ biographies.
However, if an author insists, using “BSME” or “BSEE” instead of “BS in mechanical
engineering” or “MSc” instead of “MS” is acceptable. These and other variants have the
sanction of being included in the Webster’s list of abbreviations. In general, reproduce nonUS degrees as authors submit them (except for periods), for example, BEng, BTech, and
DPhil. See also bachelor’s, master’s, doctorate.
accents: Use accents in anglicized non-English terms when important for pronunciation, to
avoid confusion with another word, or where context makes it unclear. Use accents in nonEnglish names, especially names of individuals. In general, lean toward the author’s
preference. See also the Non-English Words and Phrases section.
ACE: Advanced Computing Environment
ACID: atomicity, consistency, isolation, and durability (a test)
ACK: acknowledgment
Acknowledgments: not Acknowledgements
ACL: Association for Computational Linguistics
ACM: Association for Computing Machinery; includes several special-interest groups
(SIGs). With the exception of Siggraph and Sigmod, use the ACM style for each SIG in
text or references. See www.acm.org/sigs for a current listing. Use “is a member of ACM”
in bios. In references, use ACM instead of ACM Press (old format).
acronyms: See the Acronyms and Abbreviated Terms section for general style guidelines.
ACS: Australian Computer Society
ActiveX: software technology from Microsoft
A/D: analog/digital
Ada: a programming language (named for Augusta Ada Lovelace) developed by the US
Defense Department
ADAPSO: Association of Data Processing Service Organizations; renamed as Information
Technology Association of America (ITAA) in 1991
ADC: analog-to-digital converter
add-in board
Addison-Wesley or Addison Wesley Longman; Addison-Wesley Professional
add-on (adj)

Style Guide version November 2013

*
*

address mode (n): the way the processor is addressed; includes sequential, forward, and
backward addressing, among other modes; hyphenate when used as an adjective
ADSL: asymmetric digital subscriber line (for fast Internet access)
AEA: American Electronics Association
AEC (adj): architecture-engineering-construction; no hyphens in the acronym
AES: Advanced Encryption Standard; NIST standard for symmetric key encryption
AFCET: Association Française pour la Cybernétique Économique et Technique
AFIPS: American Federation of Information Processing Societies (no longer exists)
agile: not capitalized when it refers to programming techniques
AI: artificial intelligence; acceptable on first reference if context makes it clear
AIAA: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
AIChE: American Institute of Chemical Engineers
AIIM: Association for Information and Image Management
AIM: advanced instruction module
AIP: American Institute of Physics
Ajax: Asynchronous JavaScript and XML
A K Peters: Publisher (note: no periods after initials)
Algol: stands for algorithmic language
ALPG: algorithmic pattern generator (hardware and software)
Al Qaeda
ALU: arithmetic logic unit
a.m.: ante meridiem “before noon” (also includes 12:00 midnight). See also p.m.
ampersand: retain symbol in proper names when the name owner uses it that way;
otherwise avoid
Amazon.com
Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk)
AMS: American Mathematical Society
AMU: Association of Minicomputer Users
analog: not analogue
and/or: avoid this construction
ANOVA: analysis of variance; a statistical test
ANSI: American National Standards Institute
Ansys: finite-element analysis software by Swanson Analysis Systems
anti-: not hyphenated as a compound modifier unless root word is a proper noun or begins
with “i,” for example, antialiasing, anti-intellectual
apa: all points addressable
APDA: Apple Programmers and Developers Association
API: application programming interface
APL: A Programming Language
appendices: not appendixes
Apple IIe, IIgs; Macintosh IIc, IIcx, IIfx, and so on

Style Guide version November 2013

apps: acceptable abbreviated term for applications
Arcnet: Attached Resource Computer Network; developed by Datapoint Corp.
ARO: after receipt of order; Army Research Office (preceded by US if spelled out)
ARPA: Advanced Research Projects Agency, a part of the US Defense Department;
DARPA is the preferred usage.
Arpanet: the oldest of the networks on the Internet; initial capital only
artificial intelligence: AI is acceptable on first reference if the context makes it clear. The
term loosely includes expert systems, knowledge bases, natural-language interfaces,
pattern recognition (voice, image, and signal), and neural networks.
ASC: American Society for Cybernetics
ASCI: Accelerated Strategic Computing Initiative
ASCII: American Standard Code for Information Interchange
ASIC: application-specific integrated circuit. Don’t spell this out in Pervasive Computing.
ASIS: American Society for Information Science and Technology
ASME: American Society of Mechanical Engineers
ASP: application service provider; application-specific processor; Active Server Pages
ASPLOS: Architectural Support for Programming Languages and Operating Systems; the
name of a conference
assembly language (lowercase; not assembler): a computer language that assembles the
assembly-language code, as a compiler compiles high-level code
ASTI: Association for Science, Technology, and Innovation
ATE: automatic test equipment
ATM: asynchronous transfer mode
ATPG: automatic test-pattern generation
AutoCAD: software from Autodesk Inc.; exception to normal style because of common
usage
Autoprobe
avatar: graphical image that represents a person
Awk: a language based on the authors’ names—Aho, Weinberger, and Kernighan

Style Guide version November 2013

B
B2B: business-to-business
B2C: business-to-consumer
bachelor’s degree
back end (n), back-end (adj)
backplane (n): an electronic circuit board containing circuitry and sockets into which
additional electronic devices on other circuit boards or cards can be plugged; generally
synonymous with or part of a computer motherboard
backup (n, adj): for example, the system served as a backup; a backup copy
back up (v): as in, you can back up the database
bandwidth
bar code
Basic: a programming language; allegedly stands for “beginner’s all-purpose symbolic
instruction code,” but this is etymologically suspect
BasicA: Microsoft advanced Basic; known as “GW-Basic” on non-IBM, MS-DOS
computers
baud (singular, plural): transmission speed in units per second, originally used to measure
telegraph transmission. In computing, the units are usually bits, hence the common practice
of using baud and bps interchangeably. However, this is technically inaccurate because the
unit in a baud can be any discrete element.
BCS: British Computer Society
BDI: beliefs, desires, intentions—a model of human reasoning
BEEP: Blocks Extensible Exchange Protocol
Beijing: the Pinyin form used instead of “Peking”
benchmark: a standardized problem, test, or suite of tests that serves as a basis for the
repeatable, objective comparison of hardware or software; examples include Dhrystone,
Mflops, Sim, Whetstone
beta site: the secondary (hence beta) site
Beta-spline (n, adj): not the same as a B-spline
beta test (n, v)
Bezier: no accent mark on the first syllable
BFL: buffered field-effect transistor logic
BIFS: binary format for scenes
BGP: Border Gateway Protocol
“Big Blue”: informal name for IBM
BIOS: basic input/output system; operating system software that handles communications
with devices, including monitors, keyboards, disk drives, processors, and ports
Birkhaüser Boston: North American branch of the Swiss publisher, Birkhaüser Publishing
BIST: built-in self-test
bit: a binary digit, 0 or 1; the basic element making up digital data
Style Guide version November 2013

-bit (suffix): adjectives formed with numbers and bit are hyphenated, for example, 64-bit
processor
bitblt: Previous CS Style Guide versions defined this term as “bit block-level transfer,” but
some authors insist on “bit block transfer.”
bitline
bitmap: digital representation of an image in which bits are mapped into pixels; in color
graphics, a different bitmap is used for each red, green, and blue value
bitmapped graphics
Bitnet: communications network between universities and research centers. Although it’s
reputed to stand for “Because It’s Time Network,” the term is not a true acronym.
bit rate
bit-slice processor
bit-sliced (adj)
bitstream (n, adj)
bitwise (n): dealing with bits rather than a larger structure such as a byte; bitwise operators
are programming commands or statements that work with individual bits
black-and-white (adj)
BlackBerry
black box: a complicated electronic device whose internal mechanism is usually hidden
from or mysterious to the user
BLAS: basic linear algebra subroutines
blog: a shared online journal
Bluetooth
Blu-ray
BNF: Backus-Naur Form, a metalanguage
boldface: strictly limit use as an emphasis technique; italic type is preferred and should be
used whenever possible
Boolean: from George Boole; spelling with a capital B is preferred
bootup (n), boot up (v): more commonly just boot
botnet: jargon term for a collection of software robots, or bots, that run autonomously
bottom-up design: design that starts at the system level as opposed to top-down design,
which starts at the logic level and works down. In middle-out design, design starts at the
middle level and proceeds up or down.
boundary scan: a self-test technique; not synonymous with scan
BPEL4WS: Business Process Execution Language for Web Services
bpi: bits per inch, for example, 1,600-bpi magnetic tape unit; 1,600 bpi
BPML: Business Process Modeling Language
bps: bits per second, as in, 1,200 bps; see also baud
BPSS: Business Process Specification Schema
BRDF: bidirectional reflectance distribution function
B-rep: boundary representation
broadband (n): technique for high-speed data transmission
broadcast bus: sends a single data item to all bus destinations in a unit of time
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brute-force attack
BSA: Business Software Alliance
Bsafe: encryption software
BSD: Berkeley Software Distribution, an extended and modified version of AT&T Unix
from the University of California, Berkeley
B-spline (n, adj): not the same as a Beta-spline
Bsquare
b-trieve: random-access search technique used in databases
burn-in (adj, n); burn in (v)
bus, bused, busing, buses: The s is not doubled.
byte: an eight-bit string that a processor reads as a group; generally, one byte equals one
alphanumeric character
bytecode: one word

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C: a programming language
C++: a programming language based on C and extended to include object-oriented features
(++ is not super- or subscripted)
C3: command, control, and communications
C3I: command, control, communications, and intelligence
Cx: (x is an integer or an algebraic representation of an integer); a mathematical notation
referring to the continuity of a function and therefore its differentiability (in calculus)
because derivatives are undefined where functions are discontinuous. Less formally,
continuity refers to the “smoothness” of a function or curve. C0 means the function is
continuous but its derivatives are not. C1 means both the function and its first derivative are
continuous, but the second derivative might not be. More complicated forms, such as CK-1,
also occur. Some authors make the C calligraphic, but this is not necessary.
CAD: computer-aided design
CADAM: computer graphics augmented design and manufacturing system
CAD/CAM: computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing
CADD: computer-aided design and drafting
CAE: computer-aided engineering
CAGD: computer-aided geometric design
CAI: computer-assisted instruction or computer-aided instruction
CalArts: California Institute of the Arts; abbreviated term acceptable only on second
reference
Calcomp, Calcomp IGS-500, Calcomp 960 plotter
CALM: Common Assembly Language for Microprocessors
Caltech: California Institute of Technology
CAM: contact addressable memory
CAM-I: Computer-Aided Manufacturing International
Carnegie Mellon University: The Pittsburgh-based university removed the hyphen from
its name in 1986.
Cartesian: initial capital
CASE: computer-aided software engineering
CASA/SME: Computer and Automated Systems Association of the Society of Mechanical
Engineers
CAT: computer-aided testing (not “computerized axial tomography”); see CT
catalog (not catalogue)
CAVE: Cave Automatic Virtual Environment
CavernSoft: note internal cap
CBEMA: Computer Business Equipment Manufacturers Association
CCALI: Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction
CCD: charge-coupled device

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CCIA: Computer and Communications Industry Association
CCITT: Comité Consultatif International de Télégraphique et Téléphonique (International
Consultative Committee for Telegraphy and Telephony), a Geneva-based division of the
International Telecommunications Union, a New York-based United Nations organization;
rarely spelled out. Now ITU-T, see listing in the “I” section.
CDA: DEC’s compound document architecture
CD-I: compact disc-interactive
CDMA: code division multiple access—a wireless communications technology
CD-ROM: compact-disc read-only memory; preferred spelling is with the hyphen
Cedar: a Xerox programming language
Cedex: a French postal pickup station, used in addresses
cel: clear acetate sheet onto which animators’ drawings are traced and painted for
photographing
cell phone
century: use symbol for ordinal numbers, for example, 20th century. Note: CMS spells out
the century (twentieth century).
CerDIP: trademark name for a ceramic dual in-line package
CERN: Centre Européen des Recherches Nucléaires (European Center for Nuclear
Research)
CERT Coordination Center: CERT/CC, a center of Internet security expertise, located at
the Software Engineering Institute, Carnegie Mellon University
CGA: color graphics adapter (or array); an IBM color-display standard allowing eight
colors
CGI: common gateway interface
CGS: Computer Graphics Society
CHI: The annual Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. Don’t spell this
out in Pervasive Computing
child: one of several family words used to describe relationships among nodes in
databases; the terms are legitimate—don’t edit them out
chipmaker, chipset
CHMOS: Intel’s CMOS
CIDR: classless interdomain routing
CIE: International Commission on Illumination (Commission Internationale de
l’Eclairage)
CIELUV: perceptually based color space
CIM: computer-integrated manufacturing
ciphertext: no hyphen; i not y
CIPS: Canadian Information Processing Society
CISC: complex-instruction-set computing
CLB: configurable logic block
cleanroom: a software development approach aimed at producing software with the
minimum number of errors
cleanup (n, adj), clean up (v)

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cleartext (n)
client-server: use hyphen, not slash
clk: clock
clock cycle: the time it takes the CPU to fetch and execute an instruction; do not substitute
clock
closed-loop (adj)
(the) cloud; cloud computing
CLUT: color lookup table
CMM: Capability Maturity Model, Levels 1–5. Don’t spell this out in Software.
CMOS: complementary metal-oxide semiconductor
co-: Compounds formed with this prefix are generally not hyphenated. Exceptions are
compounds that result in a double o (co-op, co-official) and a compound such as co-edition
that could be confusing or suggests infelicitous reading. However, this does not apply to
words such as coincidence or cooperate where the first two letters, through long-standing
use, are viewed more as an integral part of the word than as prefixes. See Webster’s and
CMS 7.85, Table 4, for other examples.
Co.: abbreviated when used in text as part of a company name; avoid using unless a
company’s name might not be clear without it, for example, Data Co.
Cobol: Common Business-Oriented Language; Cobol on all references
CoCom: an informal abbreviation for Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Expert
Controls
Cocomo: Cost Constructive Model, a project-estimation system developed by Barry
Boehm
Codasyl: Conference on Data Systems Languages, an obsolete organization devoted to
developing a universal data system language for business; active from 1959 to about 1971
code base
codesign; hardware-software codesign
Codiac: centralized operation deterministic interface access control
colocate: locate together, as in putting two things close together to share common facilities
COM: Component Object Model
compiler: a program that translates code in a high-level language into instructions a
machine can execute
complex-instruction-set computing: also CISC
compute: resist the tendency to use as an adjective or adverb. Use computationally
intensive instead of compute-intensive and computation server instead of compute server.
Computer (magazine): not IEEE Computer
computer games: Italicize the names of computer games but not the names of other types
of games.
Computer Science Press: an imprint of W.H. Freeman; spell out the name to avoid
confusion with CS Press.
Computer Society: Use the IEEE Computer Society on first reference; Computer Society
without IEEE is acceptable on second reference. The executive staff often uses IEEE-CS in
its official communications.
Computer Society publications: use IEEE CS in references

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cooltown: A ubiquitous-computing initiative sponsored by Hewlett-Packard. Don’t call it
“CoolTown.”
copyleft: a general method for making a software program free and requiring all modified
and extended versions of the program to be free software as well
copyright, ©: See the Copyrights, Trademarks, and Image Permissions section.
Corba: common object request broker architecture. Don’t spell this out in Software.
Corp.: abbreviated when used in text as part of a company name; spelled out when used in
a byline or biography. Generally used only if a company’s name might not be clear without
it, for example, Logic Corp.
Cosmic Cube: supercomputer at the University of Illinois
cost-effective: always hyphenated
COTS: commercial off-the-shelf
counter-: prefix, not hyphenated
Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences: an institute at New York University
CPA: Computer Press Association
CP/M, CP/M-86: two of many early operating systems
cpi: characters per inch
cpl: characters per line; spell it out
cps: characters per second, as in 125-cps printer
CPU: central processing unit; plural is CPUs
Cray-1, Cray-2, Cray X-MP/24, Cray X-MP/48, Cray-MP: parallel processors from
Cray Research (now Cray Inc.)
CRM: customer relationship management
cross-assembler, cross-compiler: an assembler or compiler that assembles/ compiles code
on one machine for use on another, normally incompatible, machine
crossbar (adj)
cross-hair cursor
cross section (n), cross-section (adj)
Crosstalk: communications software
cross validation (n), cross-validation (adj)
crowdfunding
crowdsource
CRT: cathode-ray tube; acceptable on first reference; use VDT when talking about video
displays in general
CS: informal acronym for IEEE Computer Society; rarely used alone in publications
CSCW: computer-supported cooperative work
CSE: computational science and engineering; also, “computer science and engineering”
CSG: constructive solid geometry
CSI: Computer Security Institute
CSIC: customer-specific integrated circuit; pronounced “seasick”
CSMA/CA: carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance

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CSnet: Computer Science Network. A network established to connect institutions that
have Arpanet to each other and also to those that don’t. Merged with Bitnet in 1989.
CS Press: no longer used except for books as of 2011; use IEEE CS in references to
conference proceedings
CSS: Cascading Style Sheets; a style sheet language
CT: computerized tomography; a 3D-scanning technique (not CAT)
CUDA: (Compute Unified Device Architecture) Not commonly spelled out.
CURE: an algorithm
CUT: circuit under test
cyber: (adj.) relating to computers or computer networks
cyber- (prefix): cyberattack, cyberinfrastructure, cybersecurity, cyberworld

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DA: design automation
D/A: digital/analog
DAC: digital-analog converter; Design Automation Conference
DAG: directed acyclic graph; a data structure for representing computer graphics
daisy chain (n), daisy-chained (adj)
daisywheel
DAML: DARPA Agent Markup Language
DAML+OIL: DARPA Agent Markup Language + ontology inference layer; spell out on
first use
DARPA: US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
DASD: direct-access storage device
DASH: Design Aid Schematic Helpmate
data: Follow author preference for use as singular or plural, but maintain consistency
within an article (unless context clearly demands inconsistency).
database, datacenter, datapath, dataset, datatype
data-entry (adj): as in data-entry switch
dataflow (n, adj)
data mining
Data General: The Westboro, Mass.-based company’s products include Eclipse
MV/8000, Eclipse MV/1000 superminicomputer, Eclipse S130, and GW/4000 graphics
workstation.
daughter: One of several family words used in computer-based relationships. Although
preferred usage is the gender-neutral “child,” the term is legitimate; do not edit out.
Davic: Digital Audio Video Interactive Council
dB: decibels (40 dB)
dBase II, dBase III, dBase III+: database products produced by Ashton-Tate
DBMS: database management system; plural form is DBMSs
DC: direct current
DCE: Distributed Computing Environment
DCFL: direct coupled field-effect transistor logic
DCOM: Distributed Component Object Model
DCT: discrete cosine transform
DDL: document-description language
DDN: Defense Data Network
DDN PMO: Defense Data Network Program Management Office
DEC: Use Digital Equipment Corp. on first reference in text; DEC or Digital is acceptable
for subsequent references.
DEC 10: The DEC 10 is the same computer as the PDP-10. Digital Equipment Corp.
changed the name to DEC 10 around 1973.

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decimals: See the Numbers and Symbols section.
decision maker (n), decision making (n), decision-making (adj)
DECnet: A Digital Equipment Corp. facilities’ network
DECsystem-10
DECUS: Digital Equipment Corp. Users Society; absorbed into Encompass, an HP users
group
deep-submicron (adj)
degrees: spell out in text when used as a unit of measure; educational degrees: see
academic degrees; use symbol for temperatures
Denelcor: a defunct company famous for making the HEP, a parallel processor no longer
in production
denial-of-service (adj): abbreviation is DoS
depth buffer: see z-buffer
DES: Data Encryption Standard
design by contract (n)
desktop
device-independent (adj): capable of making I/O requests without regard for the
characteristics of I/O equipment
DFM: design for manufacturability
DFT: discrete Fourier transform; design for testability
DHCP: dynamic host configuration protocol
Dhrystone: a benchmark
DHTML: Dynamic HTML
dialog: as in dialog box
dialogue: a conversation. Be consistent regarding spelling if dialogue and dialog appear in
proximity.
dial-up (adj)
Diffserv: differentiated services
Digital Equipment Corp.: spell out on first reference in text; use DEC or Digital for
subsequent references
dimensions: Whether you spell out the term or use abbreviations, be consistent: 8 ft.  5
ft. or eight feet by five feet. See the Numbers and Symbols section.
DIMM: dual inline memory module
DIP: dual in-line package; also, MiniDIP with no hyphen
disk: preferred, as in floppy disk; however, disc is the standard in optics, farming, and
medical applications
display-list (adj)
Disspla: initial cap. only; product of Computer Associates Int’l
distributed computing system: A system in which storage and processing facilities are
dispersed and loosely coupled by transmission media; also a system in which many
processors perform a computation in parallel
DIVE: Distributed Interactive Virtual Environment
DLL: dynamic linked library
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DMA: direct memory access
DNS: Domain Name System
doctorate: preferred over doctor’s degree
DoD: Use Department of Defense on first reference; consider using Defense Department
instead; add US if context isn’t clear.
DoD-Std: Department of Defense standard; not the same as Mil-Std
DoE: Use Department of Energy on first reference; consider using Energy Department
instead; add US if context isn’t clear.
DOF: degrees of freedom
DOI: digital object identifier
DoJ: Use Department of Justice on first reference; consider using Justice Department
instead; add US if context isn’t clear.
DOM: document object model
DOS: disk operating system
DoS: see denial-of-service
dot-com: Internet-based business
dot matrix printer: no hyphen
double-buffer (adj): as in a double-buffer scheme
double buffering
download (v)
downtime (n)
DPA attack: differential power analysis
dpi: dots per inch
DPMA: Data Processing Management Association
DPMI: DOS protected-mode interface
DRAM: dynamic RAM (pronounced “dee-ram”)
DRAM module: a group of dynamic RAM chips packaged together
DRM: digital rights management
DSL: digital subscriber line
DSP: digital signal processor (chips); digital signal processing (applications, systems).
Don’t spell this out in Pervasive Computing.
DSS: decision support system
DSSS: direct sequence spread spectrum
DTD: document type definition; an SGML term
DTF: dielectric thin film (filters)
DTR: data terminal ready
DUT: device under test
DVD: digital video disc or digital versatile disc
DXF: data exchange file (format)

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E
E.: “east” in addresses
e-: prefix denoting “electronic,” as in e-commerce, e-health, e-learning, e-publishing, escience, but not in email. When using in an article title, capitalize the “e,” but not the word
following the hyphen, as in “E-commerce in Asia.”
on Earth (planet), of the earth (soil)
EasyLiving: A ubiquitous-computing project of the Vision Group at Microsoft Research.
Don’t call it “easy living.”
eBay
EBCDIC: extended binary-coded decimal-interchange code; compare with ASCII
ECC: error-correcting code
ECL: emitter-coupled logic
E/D: enhancement/depletion mode
EDI: electronic data interchange
editor in chief (n), editor-in-chief (adj): Editor in Chief Bill Smith; Bill Smith, the
magazine’s editor in chief; editor-in-chief position
EDSAC: Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator
EDVAC: Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Computer
Eeprom: electrically erasable programmable read-only memory
e.g.: exempli gratia; substitute such as or for example
EGA: extended graphics adapter or array; an IBM color-display standard allowing 16
colors
EIA: Electronic Industries Alliance
EIAJ: Electronic Industries Association of Japan
eigen-: prefix meaning “characteristic”
EISA: extended international standard architecture
Eispack: benchmark
EJB: Enterprise JavaBeans
E-JFET: n-channel enhancement mode junction field-effect transistor
electron beam (n), electron-beam (adj)
ellipsis: See the Punctuation section or CMS 13.48-13.56.
email: electronic mail; use curly brackets to list multiple persons at the same email address,
for example, {jsmith, pjones, abrown}@computer.org.
EMS: Expanded Memory Specification; a standard developed by Lotus Development,
Intel, Microsoft, and AST Research for configuring and addressing memory above the MSDOS direct-address 640-Kbyte limit. Also known as LIM EMS, from the companies’
names. AST became a development partner after the acronym was coined.
end-fire coupling
endpoint (n): use in a geometric context and when referring to networks; otherwise, use
two words: end point
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end user (n), end-user (adj): the ultimate user or customer. Use just user unless
distinguishing different types of users, such as testing user, support user. Consider
substituting customer.
ENIAC: Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer; an early-generation computer
Eprom: erasable programmable read-only memory
EPS: encapsulated PostScript
ERP: enterprise resource planning
Esprit: European Strategic Programme for Research and Development; retain the spelling
of Programme
et al.: et alia; use for more than three authors in a bibliography, including a period after al.;
okay to substitute and colleagues or and coauthors in text
etc.: et cetera; substitute and so forth or and so on
Ethernet: LAN technology; also, Fast Ethernet and Gigabit Ethernet
EU: European Union, formerly the European Community
euclidean: lowercase in most uses except when referring to the Euclidean algorithm
Euler: (pronounced “oiler;” takes an as its article); adjective describing a mathematical
concept
Euler-Poincaré formula: a graphics algorithm
euro: European monetary unit
EuroASIC: European Conference on Application Specific Integrated Circuits
EuroDAC: European Design Automation Conference
European Federation of National Engineering Associations
EuroVHDL: European Conference on VHSIC Hardware Description Language
EUUG: European Unix Users Group; now known as EurOpen
Extensible Markup Language: XML; okay to use acronym on first use
Extreme Progamming (XP): not eXtreme Programming

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F
*

fail-soft-features
fan-in, fan-out (n, adj): types of logic networks
fan in, fan out (v)
FAQ
farad: unit of capacitance
Fastbus: an IEEE standard
Fast Ethernet
fast Fourier transform (FFT): (not hyphenated) decoding algorithm
father: One of several family words used to describe relationships among nodes in
databases. Although preferred usage is the gender-neutral parent, both terms are
legitimate; do not edit out.
fault tolerance (n), fault-tolerant (adj): a system’s capability to keep executing in the
presence of a limited number of faults
fax: document facsimile, document facsimile telecommunications equipment
FDDI: Fiber Distributed Data Interface
FDM: frequency-division multiplexing
FEA: finite-element analysis; also acronym for Fast Ethernet Alliance
Fellow: uppercase in “IEEE Fellow” and other similar titles; she’s a fellow of IEEE
FEM: finite-element method
femtosecond: one quadrillionth of a second
FET: field-effect transistor; also occurs in combinations, such as MESFET
ff: femtofarad
FF: flip-flop; spell out in text
FFT: fast Fourier transform
Fhourstone: a benchmark
FHSS: frequency hopping spread spectrum
Fibre Channel: computer communications protocol for high-performance information
transfer
fiber optic (n), fiber-optic (adj)
field testing (n); field-testing (adj, v); field-test (v)
FIFO (adj): first-in, first-out; for example, first-in, first-out accounting
filename: can be used as two words when not relevant to computers
file system
finite-element analysis
FIPA: Foundation for Intelligent Physical Agents
FIPS: federal information-processing standard
FIR: finite-length impulse response
FireWire: trademarked name for IEEE 1394, an external bus standard

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fixed-bubble memory
fixed-length field
fixed point (n): notation in which the position of the point is fixed in relation to the
numerals, according to some convention
fixed-point (adj): as in fixed-point arithmetic
fJ: femtojoule
Flash: proprietary Adobe software platform
flash memory
flat-panel display
Flex/32: system from Flexible Computer Corp.
flip-flop (n): circuit or device capable of assuming one of two states at a given time,
abbreviated FF
flits: flow-control digits
floating point (n); floating-point (adj): notation in which the location of a point is not
fixed but is regularly recalculated; the location is usually expressed as a power of the base
floorplan
flops: floating-point operations per second; never flop, except when quoting the use of this
incorrect form. For example, the 1993 Branscomb Report is titled “From Desktop to
Teraflop ...” Don’t change the title, but the report talks about building a teraflops, not
teraflop, computer.
flowchart
flow control (n), flow-control (adj): the sequence of operations performed in the
execution of an algorithm
flowgraph
flowtime
FOAF: Friend-of-a-Friend Protocol
focused, focusing
follow-up (n, adj), follow up (v)
footprint: loosely defined as the amount of space a machine takes on a surface (usually a
floor or desktop) or as the system resources an application uses in a computer
foreign: Because the IEEE is an international society, “foreign” is not truly applicable in
our publications when referring to nationalities; use “non-US” or “international” instead.
Italicize terms that are not commonly accepted in English, but use such terms only when
there is no suitable English equivalent. See the Non-English Words and Phrases section
and CMS 7.49-7.53.
formulas: not formulae
Forth: a programming language
Fortran: for formula translator, a programming language; dialects include Fortran 77
FOTS: fiber-optics transmission system
FPGA: field-programmable gate array. Don’t spell this out in Pervasive Computing.
fps: frames per second. Don’t spell this out in Computer Graphics and Applications when
the context is obvious.
fractions: Use slash notation (1/1000) for a general, rounded-off measurement; use
decimals (0.001) for a specific, precise measurement. See the Numbers and Symbols
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section and appropriate sections in CMS.
frame buffer (n)
Free Software Foundation: supports GNU Linux
front end (n): usually refers to a small computer that serves as an interface between the
host system and its peripherals
front-end (adj): as in front-end processing
FSM: finite-state machine
FTAM: file transfer and management
FTP: File Transfer Protocol
full-scale (adj)
full-screen (adj)
Futurebus (n): IEEE Standard 896 bus
fuzzy set (n), fuzzy-set (adj)

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G: giga; standard prefix meaning one billion
g: gravity (6-g acceleration; passengers in a BMW are exposed to 2 g); the gravitational
notation, g, is often italicized to differentiate it from “g” for “gram” or “grams”
GaAs: gallium arsenide, a semiconducting material, like silicon, used for integrated
circuits; spell out on first use
Game Boy; Game Boy Advance; GameCube
gameplay
GB: gigabyte. Use Gbyte (instead of GB) or spell out.
Gbit: gigabit. Use Gbit or spell out.
Gbps: gigabits per second. Don’t spell this out in Internet Computing.
GBps: gigabytes per second.
Gbyte: gigabyte. Examples: 25 Gbytes, 25-Gbyte memory
GEM: Digital Research’s Graphics Environment Manager, an operating environment for
MS-DOS PCs
general-purpose processors
genlock: to superimpose computer-generated graphics over videotaped images (from a
camera, VCR, or VTR)
Georgia Tech
Gflops: gigaflops
GHz: gigahertz
GIF: graphic interchange format—an electronic file format
giga-: standard prefix meaning one billion
Gigabit Ethernet
GIGI: DEC’s General Imaging Generator and Interpreter
GIGO: garbage in, garbage out
GIPS: billion instructions per second
GIS: geographic information system
GKS: Graphical Kernel System, an international graphics standard
GlobeCom: IEEE conference
GNP: gross national product
GNU: supports GNU Linux; GNU’s not Unix
googling
GOPS: giga operations per second
GPL: General Public License
GPRS: General Packet Radio Service
GPS: Global Positioning System; a constellation of 24 satellites used for navigation and
precise geodetic position measurements
GPU: graphics processing (or processor) unit

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graftal: an image constructed using parallel graph grammars to define complex objects
grandparent, grandmother, grandfather: a group of family words used to describe
relationships among nodes in databases. The terms are legitimate—do not edit out. Use
gender-neutral grandparent when possible.
grand challenge: a difficult problem at the leading edge of a computing field
Grappa: Java graph drawing package from AT&T
gray: not grey, except in quoted material
Gray code: binary sequence in which two contiguous numbers differ in only one bit;
capitalize Gray because it is the inventor’s name
gray scale (n), gray-scale (adj): for example, displayed in gray scale, a gray-scale display
grid; grid computing
GSM: Global System for Mobile Communications. Don’t spell this out in Pervasive
Computing.
GUI: graphical user interface
GW-Basic: Microsoft version of Basic for MS-DOS computers; BasicA is the IBM
version

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hacker: an expert who explores the details of programmable systems to stretch their
capabilities
halfword: half a computer word
halftone: an image reproduced from a photo or similar original medium, comprising a
series of lines arrayed in a screen, to facilitate sharp, clear printing of images when
producing books. Also the preferred format for images in electronic text for camera-ready
and other forms. A 100- to 110-line screen is best; lines per inch is the US unit of measure.
handheld (adj, n)
handshaking: identification protocol for modems
hard copy (n), hard-copy (adj)
hardwired: describes circuits with only wire and terminal connections, with no
intervening switching (no resistors, inductors, or capacitors)
HarperBusiness, HarperCollins
HCI: human-computer interaction. Don’t spell this out in Pervasive Computing.
HD (adj): high-definition
HDL: hardware description language—any language from a class of computer
languages
HDTV: high-definition TV
head-mounted display
healthcare
help desk
hertz: see Hz
Hewlett-Packard Laboratories: either HP Labs or HP is acceptable. Always use the
hyphen when spelled out.
hexadecimal: A numbering system with a base of 16. “A” through “F” represent the
decimal numbers 10 through 15.
HID: human interface device
hidden-line removal
hidden Markov model
hidden-surface algorithm
hidden-surface removal: In computer graphics, removing from the display the surfaces
that ordinarily would be obscured by the rest of the object.
high level (n), high-level (adj)
high-performance computing
high-speed (adj): For example, high-speed computing, high-speed switch; but very high
speed switch; also, International Journal of High Speed Computing.
HiperLan2
Hippi: high-performance parallel interface; also written as HiPPI and HIPPI—be prepared
to negotiate

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hither, yon: In computer graphics, the near and far clipping planes.
HMM: hidden Markov model
homepage
hostname
HPC: high-performance computing
HPCwire: An online weekly publication about high-performance computing. Paper copy
does not exist. Italicize it as with the name of any periodical.
HPGL: Hewlett-Packard Graphics Language
HTML: Hypertext Markup Language
HTTP: Hypertext Transfer Protocol; in Web addresses, use lowercase—http://
HVAC: heating, ventilation, and air conditioning; always spell out
hyper- (prefix): not hyphenated when used to form a compound
hypercube: a parallel computer architecture
hyphenation: If you can’t resolve a hyphenation question by consulting Webster’s, review
CMS 7.77-7.85. If you feel a word that technically doesn’t require hyphenation (for
example, reallocate) might be confusing, consider hyphenating it.
Hz: hertz; the standard term for cycles per second

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IAB: Internet Architecture Board
IAMA: Internet Assigned Members Authority
IANA: Internet Assigned Numbers Authority
IAP: Internet access provider
IBE: identity-based encryption
IBM: International Business Machines Corporation; sometimes informally referred to as “Big
Blue”
IBM 3740-formatted disk, IBM 370-type controllers (note hyphenation)
IBM PC, IBM PC AT, IBM PC XT, IBM RT PC, IBM PS/2 (Models 25, 30, 50, 60, and
80): no hyphens. IBM PC AT-compatible (adj).
IBM System/360, IBM System/370: IBM mainframes
IBM T.J. Watson Research Center
IC: integrated circuit; acceptable on first reference if context warrants
ICANN: Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
ICASE: Institute for Computer Applications in Science and Engineering, at NASA’s Langley
Research Center
ICCC: International Council for Computer Communication, Washington, D.C.
ICOT: Japan’s Institute of New Generation Computer Technology, the so-called Fifth
Generation project. The initials refer to the Japanese transliteration of the program, not the
English translation.
ICQ: an instant-messaging program
ICT: information and communications technology
ID: identification
IDC: formerly International Data Corp.
IDDQ
IDE: integrated drive electronics; also, integrated development environment. Don’t spell this
out in Software when it means the latter.
IDL: Interface Definition Language
i.e.: that is—spell out; accept in Transactions if authors insist
IEC: International Electrotechnical Commission—an international standards organization
IEE: Institution of Electrical Engineers, UK; as of May 2006, renamed as Institution of
Engineering and Technology (IET)—merged with Institution of Incorporated Engineers
IEEE 488 bus
IEEE: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers; when used to refer to the publisher of
a document, it’s no longer IEEE Press—just IEEE.
IESG: Internet Engineering Steering Group
IET: Institution of Engineering and Technology, formerly IEE (see above)
IETF: Internet Engineering Task Force
IFIP: International Federation for Information Processing

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IGES: International Graphics Exchange Standard
iff: if and only if—spell out; accept in Transactions if authors use it
if-then
IIL: integrated interconnection logic
-ility, -ilities: This is a Software-related term. On its first appearance in an article, use quotes
(“-ilities”) but no italics. On subsequent appearances, drop the quotes but keep the hyphen.
Illiac IV: An early computer, retired from NASA use at Ames Research Center, Moffett
Field, Calif., in 1985
IMACS: International Association for Mathematics and Computers in Simulation
i-mode: a wireless service
IMP: interface-message processor
implementer
Inc.: abbreviate when used in text as part of a company name, but avoid using it unless a
company’s name might not be clear without it (Lisp Inc.); no longer set off with a comma
inches: Whether you use symbols or spell them out, be consistent when describing
dimensions—for example, three inches by five inches or 3″  5″. See also the Numbers and
Symbols section.
indexes: use indices in mathematical contexts
informatics: a term often used to refer to computer science
Information Age
INFORMS: the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences; formed in
1995 when the Operations Research Society of America (ORSA) merged with the Institute of
Management Sciences (IMS)
infoserver
in-house (adj.)
ink-jet printers
inline (adj)
input/output: I/O
in queue: hyphenate when using as an adjective (an in-queue directory)
INRIA: Institut National de Récherche en Informatique et en Automatique (French National
Institute for Research in Computer Science and Control)
in-service (adj)
INSPEC: Information Services for Physics, Electronics, and Computing, an IEE (UK)
database of English-language research papers. Not a true acronym, but handle as one.
integrated circuit: IC is acceptable on first reference
Intel’s XScale processor
International standard: use ISO standard
Internet: normally “the Internet”; Internet 2
Internet Stream Protocol: ST
intranet: internal network
I/O (n, adj): input/output
IOP: Internetworking Operating System
IoT: Internet of Things

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IP: Internet Protocol; intellectual property
iPhone: acceptable at the beginning of a sentence.
iPSC: parallel processor from Intel
IPsec: Internet Protocol security
IPv6: Internet Protocol version 6
IPX: internetwork packet exchange
IR: infrared. Don’t spell this out in Pervasive Computing.
IrDA: Infrared Data Association. Don’t spell this out in Pervasive Computing.
IRDS: information-resource dictionary system, a de facto CASE standard
IRQ: interrupt request
ISAM: indexed sequential access method
iSBX bus: product of Intel
ISDN: Integrated Services Digital Network, a telecommunications service
ISM band: Industry, Science, Medicine band
ISMM: International Society of Mini- and Microcomputers
ISO: International Organization for Standardization (ISO); use ISO when referring to
standards (for example, ISO 9000 or “an ISO standard”), but use the entire name with the
letters in parentheses when referring to the organization. ISO was originally a true acronym
for the International Standards Organization, but the name has been changed and the letters
are now only an identifier. Don’t spell this out in Software.
ISP: Internet service provider
italics: Use sparingly for emphasis or to introduce new terms; use also for foreign expressions
not commonly accepted in English (that is, not found in the main body of Webster’s), singleletter variables, longer variables that might be confused with text if not in italics, book titles
(includes manuals), movie titles, and TV-series titles.
IT: information technology
ITC: International Test Conference
item set; some publications use itemset
iterator (n): a programmed action that sets up a counter to control the number of times the
action is performed
ith: note no space, no hyphen, no superscript
ITU-T: International Telecommunication Union-Telecommunication Standardization Sector;
formerly, CCITT

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J2EE: Java 2 Enterprise Edition; J2ME: Java 2 Micro Edition; J2SE: Java 2 Standard
Edition. For more information on emerging Java technologies, see http://java.sun.com.
Jabber: streaming XML protocol
Java: cross-platform programming language from Sun Microsystems
JavaOne, JavaBeans, JavaScript, JavaServer Pages (JSP)
Java RMI: Java remote method invocation
JDK: Java development kit
JEDEC: The JEDEC Solid State Technology Assoc., once known as the Joint Electron
Device Engineering Council
JEIDA: Japan Electronic Industry Development Association
JFIF: J-PEG file interchange format
jif: an electronic file format
Jini: Java wireless technology
JMS: Java Message Service
John Wiley & Sons
Josephson junction (n): an electronic switching device
Jossey-Bass: a subsidiary of John Wiley & Sons
joystick
JPEG: Joint Photographic Experts Group; also: an electronic file format
Jr.: does not require preceding comma
JSON: JavaScript Object Notation
JTAG: Joint Test Action Group; founders of the boundary scan standard
jth
just-in-time (jit): an inventory management method; no capitals needed; it’s almost always
used as a modifier
JVM: Java virtual machine
JXTA: platform-independent peer-to-peer distributed networking protocol developed by Sun
Jython

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K: 1,024, the binary thousand (25 Kbytes, 25-Kbyte memory); also used as temperature
designator for Kelvin scale, as in 273 K. However, when used as $10K (with no space)
“K” means 1,000. The use of “K” when referring to monetary quantities is discouraged.
k: 1,000, the decimal thousand (164 km); used in metric designations; see CMS 10.57
KAoS: knowledgeable agent-oriented system (nonstandard, but accepted acronym)
KB: kilobyte; use Kbyte (25 Kbytes, 25-Kbyte memory)
Kb: kilobit; use Kbit or spell out, but use Kbps for kilobits per second
KBES: knowledge-based expert system (as opposed to rule-based)
Kbit: kilobit; use Kbit or spell out
Kbps: kilobits per second, preferred over Kb/s; spell out on first use
Kbyte: kilobyte (25 Kbytes, 25-Kbyte memory). Don’t use KB.
KEE: Knowledge Engineering Environment, product of Intellicorp
keiretsu: group of companies
kernel: central part of a program or operating system that does the bulk of the
calculations; not to be confused with the mathematical meaning
keyboard, keyframe, keyshare, keystream, keyword
Kflops: thousand floating-point operations per second; spell out or convert to Mflops
notation
Khornerstone: benchmark
kHz: kilohertz (50 kHz)
kiloWhetstone: measure of floating-point capacity; see benchmarks
KIPS: thousand instructions per second; spell out or convert to MIPS notation
KLOC: thousands of lines of code.
kludge (n), kludgy (adj): a quick fix on a computer or in code
Kluwer Academic Publishers
KM: knowledge management
km2: okay to use instead of “square kilometers”
k-means: a type of algorithm
knowledge base
KSR1: no internal hyphen; a parallel supercomputer from Kendal Square Research
kVA: kilovoltampere
kW: kilowatt

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LALR(1): left-to-right scan with one look-ahead token; compare to LL(1)
LAMP: an open source Web server software bundle
LAN: local area network
Lapack: a benchmark; see also ScaLapack
large-scale integration: see LSI
laser disk: preferred spelling over laser disc (unless the word appears as a trademark)
LaTeX (TeX, PCTeX, PCLaTeX): formatting language for typesetting math-heavy
articles; pronounced “la-tech;” do not set in small caps or shift any characters above or
below the baseline. LaTeX is a superset of TeX, the original format devised by Donald
Knuth.
LCD: liquid crystal display
LCCC: leadless ceramic-chip carriers; chip packaging
LDAP: Lightweight Directory Access Protocol
Lear Siegler: hardware manufacturer
least worst: an acceptable term in decision theory
LED: light-emitting diode
LiDAR: light detection and ranging (scanning technology)
life cycle (n), life-cycle (adj): the software product-development process, usually divided
into typical phases: requirements specification, design, validation, development, testing
(verification), implementation, and maintenance
LIFO (adj): last-in, first-out
light pen
LIM EMS: Lotus/Intel/Microsoft/AST Research expanded memory specification, a
standard for configuring and addressing memory above the MS-DOS direct-address 640Kbyte limit. AST became a development partner after the acronym was coined.
Lincages: Linkage Interactive Computer Analysis and Graphically Enhanced Synthesis
package (not a true acronym, but handle as one); a synthesis program for mechanism design
developed at the University of Minnesota
Linpack: see benchmark
Linux: open operating system based on the Unix platform
LIPS: logical inferences per second
Lisp: from list processing, a programming language used mainly in artificial intelligence
liveness: the quality of making sure that something good happens (not just ensuring
that nothing bad happens); liveness ensures, for example, that a calculation’s results are
returned for use, not just calculated; do not use this term without an explanation; compare
with safety
LL(1): left-to-right scan with one look-ahead token producing a leftmost derivation; short
for “leftmost LALR(1)”; see LALR(1)
LNAI: Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence
LNCS: Lecture Notes in Computer Science; use abbreviation in reference lists

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LOC: lines of code
LOCS: lines of code in service
LoD: learning on demand
login, logon, logout, logoff (n, adj), log in, log on, log out, log off (verbs)
look-ahead (adj)
lookaside
lookup (n, adj); look up (v): process of matching by computer the words of a text with
material stored in memory
LOTOS: logic of temporal ordering system
low-cost (adj)
low-end (adj)
lowercase (n, adj)
lpi: lines per inch (300-lpi resolution, 300 lpi)
lpm: lines per minute (145-lpm printer, 145 lpm)
LSI: large-scale integration, about 1,000 to 10,000 circuits per chip
LUT: lookup table, but avoid using the acronym

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M
µ: mu; see mu and micro- entries
M: SI prefix for million or mega (40-Mbyte hard disk, 12 Mbytes of memory)
m: one one-thousandth or milli- (18 mm)
mA: milliampere (20-mA current loop, 20 mA)
MAA: Mathematical Association of America
MAC: media access control
MacDraw, MacPaint, MacWrite
Macintosh: computer from Apple
Macro II: Digital Equipment Corp. assembly language
macro- (prefix): not hyphenated when used to form a compound (macroassembler);
exception is when a double “o” occurs, for example, macro-object
Macsyma: a symbolic manipulation program developed at MIT
mainframe: a computer housed in a large frame or cabinet, usually used for multiuser
applications, which usually requires a temperature-controlled environment and special
power supply. Examples are the Digital Equipment Corporation VAX and IBM System
370 computers; saying “mainframe computer” is redundant.
makefile
MAN: metropolitan area network
manet: mobile ad hoc network; in Transactions, MANET
man-hour, man-month, man-year (nouns): try to use a non-gender-specific term, such
as staff-hour
man-in-the-middle attack; MITM attack
MAP: Manufacturing Automation Protocol; MAP/TOP: Manufacturing Automation
Protocol/Technical Office Protocol; communications standards supported by General
Motors and Boeing; both standards follow OSI (Open Systems Interconnection)
protocols
marked up: When it’s used as an adjective, hyphenate it when it comes before the word
it modifies but not when it comes after.
market research firm
markup (adj, n)
mashup (n); mash up (v)
master’s degree
master slice (n): a nonmetalized wafer containing arrays of circuit elements
interconnected to perform different functions
matrices: preferred over matrixes in a mathematical context; in other contexts such as
structural composition, use matrixes; example: matrixes of materials
Matlab
matrix, -es: see matrices
MB: megabyte; use Mbyte (40-Mbyte hard disk, 12 Mbytes of memory)

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Mb: megabit; use Mbit or spell out
Mbit: megabit; use Mbit or spell out
Mbps: megabits per second (spell out on first use, except in Internet Computing); Mbps,
not MBPS.
Mbone: multicast backbone; Internet broadcasting technology
Mbyte: megabyte (40-Mbyte hard disk, 12 Mbytes of memory)
MCAE: mechanical computer-aided engineering
MCM: multichip module
MDA: Model Driven Architecture
MEMS: microelectromechanical systems
MEPS: millions of events per second
meta- (prefix): not hyphenated when used to form a compound (metarule) unless it looks
weird, as when the second term starts with a vowel (meta-analysis)
Mflops: megaflops; million floating-point operations per second
MHEG: Multimedia and Hypermedia Experts Group
MHz: megahertz (50-MHz channel, 50 MHz)
micro, micros: acceptable as nouns when referring to microcomputers
micro- (prefix): one-millionth part of a specified unit (microgram); not hyphenated when
used to form a compound (microelectronics)
micro-BGA: micro-ball-grid array
microCAD, microCADD: computer-aided design and computer-aided design and
drafting performed on a microcomputer—no longer relevant since most CAD/CADD is
performed on microcomputers
microelectromechanical: one word, no hyphens or capitals; often seen as
microelectromechanical systems, abbreviated as MEMS
micrometer (m): SI abbreviation for one-millionth part of a meter; accepted
abbreviation is 
micron: millionth part of a meter, but SI term is micrometer; usage varies, for example,
micron is used in integrated circuit production; can also be written as 
microphotograph: small photograph normally magnified for viewing (such as
microfilm). The field is called micrographics. Do not confuse with “photomicrograph,” a
magnified picture of small things.
microsecond (s): the letter “u” is not a replacement. If a Greek font is not available,
spell out as mu. In magazines, spelled-out form is preferred, at least on first reference,
except perhaps in tables.
MicroVAX, MicroVAX II, MicroVMS
mid: Check Webster’s for preferred format.
middle-out design
midframe: a computer housed in a small frame or cabinet, usually used for multiuser
applications, that does not require a temperature-controlled environment or special power
supply; saying “midframe computer” is redundant
MIDI: musical instrument digital interface
millisecond: abbreviation is ms

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Milnet: along with Arpanet, the main constituent of the Defense Data Network (DDN);
Minet is the European split-off from Milnet
Mil-Std: military standard; not the same as DoD-Std

MIMD: multiple instruction, multiple data. Pronounced “mimdee” and takes “a” as its
article; spell out on first use unless context dictates otherwise; add hyphens when used as
a modifier
MIME: Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions
MIMO: multiple input, multiple output
mini- (prefix): not hyphenated when used to form a compound (minicartridges)
MiniDIP: trademark name for a dual in-line package
MINX: Multimedia Information Network Exchange
MIP mapping: multiple texture mapping technique
MIPS: million instructions per second; also, MIPS Technologies Inc., a subsidiary of
SGI; use full name when context requires it
MIT: Massachusetts Institute of Technology; spell out on first use if context dictates
MITI: Japan’s Ministry of International Trade and Industry
MITRE: preferred format for this company’s name
mL: millilambert
ml: milliliter (5-ml strip, 0.5 ml)
mm: millimeter (35-mm film, 0.5 mm)
MMOG: massively multiplayer online game
MMU: memory management unit
MobiCom: For 1999 and before, the conference acronym format is MobiCom 99; for
2000 and afterwards, the format is MobiCom 2000. The full conference name is, for
example, 6th Ann. Int’l Conf. Mobile Computing and Networking (MobiCom 2000),
2000.
mobile phone: not hyphenated, even when it’s an adjective
mockup: (n, adj)
MODFET: modulation doped field-effect transistor
molecular dynamics: hyphenated when it’s an adjective
Moore’s law: a theory predicting that the number of transistors on a chip doubles as
technology advances
MOPS: million operations per second
Morgan Kaufmann: publisher
MOS (adj): metal-oxide-semiconductor
MOSFET: metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor
MOSI: Microprocessor Operating Systems Interface, IEEE Standard 855-1990
mother: one of several family words used to describe relationships among nodes in
databases; preferred usage is gender-neutral parent; however, do not change without
checking with author
motherboard: a circuit board into which various processor boards are plugged
Motorola: do not follow with “Inc.” as there is confusion in the company about whether

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“Inc.” or “Corp.” is appropriate, even though company stationery uses “Inc.” Use the MC
prefix when referring to the specific microprocessor from Motorola, for example,
MC68030. Use M68000 when referring to the family of devices that share the M68000
architecture.
Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG): family of standards for coding audio-visual
information
MP3, MP4: audio file formats
MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-3, MPEG-4
MPI: message passing interface
MPU: microprocessing unit
MPW: an Apple development environment for the Mac
MRI: magnetic resonance imaging
ms: millisecond
MS-DOS: Microsoft’s version of DOS; see also DOS
MSI: medium-scale integration
MSPS: million searches per second
MTBF: mean time between failures
MTTR: mean time to repair, mean time to restore
MTU: maximum transmission unit
mu (): Greek letter used as a symbol for micron
multi- (prefix): Do not hyphenate when used to form a compound, except with “doublei” combinations (multimeter; multi-integral).
Multibus, Multibus II: Intel trademarks; IEEE 796 is the multibus standard
multiplexer (n)
MUT: module under test
mux: multiplexer; muxes (plural): spell out on first reference
MVP: matrix-vector product, the primary operation around which supercomputers are
designed
MVS: an IBM mainframe operating system
MW: megawatt (2 MW, 2-MW system)
mW: milliwatt (200 mW, 200-mW system)
Mycin: an expert system that can be programmed with knowledge databases for different
domains

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9/07 Xen: open source virtualization software
9/11; September 11, 2001
n: SI prefix for one billionth or nano (100 ns)
n: variable designation for an integer; italicized
N.: “north” in addresses
N/A: not applicable
NAA: formerly the National Association of Accountants; reincarnated as the Institute of
Management Accountants (IMA)
naive
namespace
nano- (prefix): one billionth; do not use hyphen (nanoseconds, 100 ns)
narrow band (n), narrow-band (adj): however, according to the IEEE Dictionary of
Electrical and Electronic Terms, narrowband or narrow band are used as adjectives in
some contexts.
NASA: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, D.C.
Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.
Dryden Research Center, Edwards AFB, Calif.
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
Jet Propulsion Lab, Pasadena, Calif.
Johnson Space Flight Center, Houston
Kennedy Space Flight Center, Cape Canaveral, Fla.
Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va.
Lewis Research Center, Cleveland, Ohio
Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala.
NASA Massively Parallel Processor
NAT: network address translator
NBS: National Bureau of Standards, an agency of the US Commerce Dept.; obsolete, now
known as NIST
NC: numerical control
NCCCD: National Center for Computer Crime Data
NCGA: National Computer Graphics Association
n-channel; n-channel device: insulated-gate field-effect transistor where source and drain
are regions of n-type conductivity
NCSA: National Center for Supercomputing Applications
nCube: in preference to nCUBE or nCUBE
NCP: Network-Control Protocol
Net: short name for the Internet
.NET

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NetBIOS: a product that provides basic I/O services for a network; do not use as a
synonym for “network BIOS” or “LAN BIOS,” which are generic terms for a BIOS
designed for a local area network
Netherlands: use the
netlist (n, adj): a list of the pin connections (pin network) that appear on a printed circuit
board
newsfeed
Newton-Raphson: a well-known algorithm for solving equations
NeXT: logo form of the name of the computer company started by Steve Jobs
NFS: Network File System (from Sun Microsystems’ application, SunSoft)
NGSCB: Microsoft’s next-generation secure computing base
NIST: National Institute of Standards and Technology; formerly NBS
nm: nanometer
NMOS: n-channel metal oxide semiconductor
no.: abbreviation for number; nos. (plural)
NOAA: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an agency in the US Dept. of
Commerce; although sometimes pronounced “noah,” it takes an as an article, as if each
letter were pronounced (“an NOAA study”)
NoD: news on demand
node: family words—mother, daughter, child—are used to describe relationships among
nodes in databases; the terms are legitimate—don’t try to edit them out
non- (prefix): not usually hyphenated; be flexible with words that are difficult to read, for
example, non-negligible, non-real-time mode
non–von Neumann: see von Neumann; in this case, an en-dash is recommended over a
hyphen
NP-hard; NP-complete: classes of difficult problems
n-queen’s solver
ns: nanoseconds (3,000 ns)
NSA: National Security Agency
NSERC: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council; a Canadian research agency
similar to the US National Science Foundation
NSF: US National Science Foundation; NSF is acceptable on second reference or on first
reference in the acknowledgment section of a feature when used with grant number
NSFnet
NSPE: National Society of Professional Engineers
NuBus
Numbers and Symbols: see special section and CMS, Section 9
NTSC: National TV Standards Committee; note: committee and standard use same
acronym
Nurbs: nonuniform rational B-spline
Nvidia
NW: northwest in addresses, no periods
NYU/IBS Ultracomputer
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OASI: Office Automation Society International
OASIS: Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards;
www.oasis-open.org
Object Management Group: OMG
Object Modeling Technique: OMT
object orientation
object-oriented (OO): an approach to programming that stresses the creation of functions
(objects) that are linked in various relationships, usually in hierarchies, to provide the
desired functionality; compare with traditional approaches such as imperative
programming, which stresses actions to be taken rather than relationships between objects
Objective-C: a computer language
Occam: language used by Inmos for its transputer chip
OCR: optical character recognition; the machine is an OCR scanner
octree: a tree structure that describes the division of a cubic region into smaller cubes
OCX: optical cross-connect
ODBC: open database connectivity
OEM: original equipment manufacturer
OFDM: orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing
off-chip (adj)
offline: all uses, as in the printer is offline, offline equipment
offload, offscreen, offsite
The Ohio State University: the Ohio State University in text
ohm (n): a unit of electrical resistance
OIL: ontology inference layer; see also DAML+OIL
okay
OLAP: online analytical processing
OLE: object linking and embedding; a Microsoft item
OLED: organic light-emitting diode
OLTP: online transaction processing
OMG: Object Management Group
Omnimax (n, adj): a stereoscopic, eggshell-shaped theater
OMT: object modeling technique
ONA: Open Network Architecture
onboard: all uses, as in onboard regulation
on-chip (adj): as in on-chip logic
on-demand: (adj.)
online: all uses, as in the printer is online, online equipment
onscreen, onsite

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ONR: US Office of Naval Research
OO: object-oriented
op amp: operation amplifier; spell out in text on first use
opcode (n): operation code
OpenGL: a graphics programming language
open-loop (adj): as in an open-loop program
open loop (n): a system in which there is no feedback mechanism for self-correction as
there is in a closed loop
open source (n, adj): don’t use as a verb (instead, consider wording such as “released X
as open source”)
order-of-magnitude (adj)
ORB: object request broker
ORSA: merged with the Institute of Management Sciences in 1995 to become the Institute
for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS)
orthogonal: In linear algebra, the term describes a set of vectors that are independent, in
that no element is a linear combination of the others. In programming, the term is used
more loosely to refer to independent—although possibly related—concepts.
OS: operating system
OSI: open systems interconnection; a concept whereby different vendors’ products work
together
OSPF: Open Shortest Path First Protocol
OS X
out queue (n), out-queue (adj)
OWL: Web Ontology Language

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P2P: peer-to-peer
P3P: Platform for Privacy Preferences; a W3C standard
p: not italicized when used to indicate probability
p: SI prefix for one trillionth or pico (3 ps)
p.: abbreviation for page when referred to in text; use pp. for multiple pages
PABX: private automated branch exchange, a telephone system
packet: a packed block of data for data transmission
PAD: packet assembler/disassembler
PADL: Part and Assembly Description Language, developed at the University of Rochester
pairwise
PAL: phase alternating line—a European video standard; also the acronym for Paradox
Application Language
Palm Pilot
PAN: personal area network
PAR: project authorization request
parameterization: not parametrization; to split at the end of a line, note that parameter and
like words are split after the m, for example: param-eter; but parametric is split before the
m: para-metric; automatic hyphenation programs tend to split parameter incorrectly
PARC: Palo Alto Research Center
ParcTab: the first context-sensitive computer, developed at Xerox PARC. Note the
capitalization.
parseable (alternate spelling: parsable)
PASC: Portable Applications Standards Committee
Pascal: a programming language (named for mathematician Blaise Pascal)
parent: one of several family words used to describe relationships among nodes in
databases. The terms are legitimate; don’t try to edit them out.
pass/fail
pathname
Pbps: petabits per second
p-channel (adj)
PC: personal computer; see also, IBM PC
PC-DOS: IBM’s version of MS-DOS; use only when discussing applications that will run
on PC-DOS but not on MS-DOS (these are largely IBM programs and there are very few of
them)
PCB: printed circuit board; plural form is PCBs
PCI: peripheral component interconnect
PCM: pulse-code modulation
PCMCIA: Personal Computer Memory Card International Assoc.
PDA: personal digital assistant

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PDF: portable document format
PDL: page-description language
PDP-11, PDP-11/03, PDP-11/70: Digital Equipment Corporation computers
Pentium 4
Pentium 5 (V): Pentium
Pentium 6 (VI): Pentium II
percent: spell it out; don’t use %; don’t use without a number as a replacement for
“percentage”
Perl: Practical Extraction and Report Language
pervasive computing: when used as an adjective, no hyphen in Pervasive Computing but
hyphenated in other magazines.
PET: positron emission tomography
peta: a thousand trillion (petaflops = a thousand teraflops)
petabit
Petri net (n): a graphical model of information flow, showing static and dynamic properties
of a system; named after Karl Petri, a German mathematician
pF: picofarad; a unit of capacitance equal to one-trillionth of a farad
PhD: no periods
PHIGS: Programmer’s Hierarchical Interactive Graphics System, an ANSI and ISO
standard
photo-: no hyphen when used as a modifier (photomultiplier)
photomicrograph: magnified picture of small things; do not confuse with microphotograph
PHP: recursive acronym for Hypertext Preprocessor, a scripting language
pico- (prefix): one trillionth, no hyphen (picogram, picosecond)
Pict: an image-file format (generally produced by Apple Macintosh programs); not the
same as a .PIC graphics file, which is produced primarily by MS-DOS spreadsheet
programs
PID: proportional, integral, derivative
PIM: peripheral interface module; Protocol-Independent Multicast (SM = Sparse Mode;
SSM = Single-Source Multicast)
PIN: personal identification number. Don’t use PIN number.
pinout
Pisces: parallel implementation of scientific computing environments
Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center: one of the four US national supercomputer centers
funded by the National Science Foundation
pixel (n): derived from pix (short for “picture”) and element, it is the smallest resolvable dot
in an image display
PKI: public-key infrastructure
PL/I: a programming language developed by IBM (roman “I” per textbook by developer)
PLA: programmable logic array
plaintext: the intelligible form of an encrypted text, for example, plaintext contains routing
information; use plain text when referring to unencrypted text, for example, user entries are
in italics, the computer’s response is in plain text

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PlayStation
plug-in (n, adj)
plurals: The general rule is to add an “s”: 1980s (year), 40s (temperature), HP-1000s
(name), Apple IIs (name); see CMS 7.14 and 9.54
p.m.: post meridiem, meaning “after noon” (also includes 12:00 noon); see also a.m.
PMU: processor management unit
PMOS: p-channel MOS
PNG: portable network graphics
PnP: plug and play
PO: post office; in addresses, use no periods (PO Box 33)
PocketPC: brand name; pocket PC: generic term
podcast
policymaker
POP3: Post Office Protocol, version 3
popup
Posix: IEEE standard for a portable operating systems interface. The initial standard deals
with portability standards for C programs on computers running Unix.
post-: no hyphen unless root is based on a proper noun (postprocessing, post-Victorian)
postmortem
PostScript: a graphics- and font-description language from Adobe Systems, used primarily
in desktop publishing
POTS: plain old telephone system
power down (v)
PowerPC
pp.: abbreviation for multiple pages; single-page references are denoted by p.
PPP: Point-to-Point Protocol
pre-: no hyphen unless root is based on a proper noun (preeminent, pre-Columbian)
prefixes: see CMS 7.85, Table 4
Prentice Hall
prepositions in titles: see the Capitalization section
president: capitalize only when referring to the President of a country
prettyprinting: the process of reformatting source code so that it has a consistent layout
price/performance ratio: written with a slash (“/”), not a hyphen
printed circuit board: board on which most components are connected by printed
circuitry; PCB, PCBs are acceptable on second reference
printout
Prism: parallel reduced-instruction-set multiprocessing (Apollo architecture)
programs and tokens: see Program Code section
Prolog: a logic programming language
PROM: programmable read-only memory
pronouns: he, she—try to use a gender-neutral alternative, for example, plural, “he or she,”
or “the user”

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ps: picosecond
PS/2: Personal System/2, an IBM PC family based on Intel 80286/80386 processors; unlike
the IBM PC AT, it has a proprietary Micro Channel bus; it can run OS/2 or MS-DOS
PSB: parallel system bus
pseudo- (prefix): no hyphen when used to form a compound (pseudorandom); word
processors might hyphenate after pseu, but be careful to hyphenate after pseudo
PSN: packet-switch node
PSP:
PSTN: public switched telephone network
p test
pulsewidth: not the same as pulse duration
PUMA: programmable universal mechanical assembly
p value
PWB: printed wiring board

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Q-bus: from Digital Equipment Corp.
QCD: quantum chromodynamics
QED: quantum electrodynamics; also quod erat demonstrandum, “which was to be
demonstrated,” commonly used at the end of mathematical proofs. However, in Computer
Society Transactions, this is usually replaced with a small box, known as the “tombstone”
or “halmos symbol.”
QoS: (n) quality of service; (adj) quality-of-service
QR code (n) quick response code
quadword: 48-bit or 32-bit piece of data
quasi, quasi-: hyphenated for adjectives (quasi-parenthetical), open for nouns, except for
some established closed compounds (quasi system, quasiparticle)
Quel: a relational calculus language
quicksort routine: memory sorting
QuickTime: the Macintosh movie/animation application
quotation marks: Use around direct quotations, chapter titles, episode titles, words when
referred to as words, and letters when referred to as letters. In an article that begins with a
quotation, do not use the opening quotation marks with the initial drop cap (an oversized,
boldface capital at the beginning of a paragraph), but close the quotation with quotation
marks. Block quotations do not take quotation marks. For more information, see CMS
13.20-13.22 and 13.37-13.41.
QVGA: quarter VGA
qwerty: the standard typewriter or computer keyboard, with the letters q, w, e, r, t, and y at
the upper left; no initial capital

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R
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R8000: a 64-bit RISC microprocessor introduced in 1994 by MIPS Technologies Inc. It
was formerly code-named TFP. Other processors made by MIPS include the R4400 and
R4600.
rackmount (adj): computer equipment that is standardized to 19 inches in width
RAID: redundant array of independent disks (originally “inexpensive” disks)
RAM: random-access memory
RAND Corp.: official format for the name of the nonprofit research corporation. In
Security & Privacy, use Rand Corporation is affiliations and bios.
R&D: research and development
raster (n): the scan lines that form the graphic output on a computer display; also referred
to as bitmap
raster-op: raster operation
ray tracer (n): an algorithm for drawing computer-generated shaded or highlighted images
(also, a ray-tracing algorithm)
RC: resistance-capacitance
RCS: radar cross-section
RDBMS (plural—RDBMSs): relational database management system
RDF: Resource Description Framework
RDFS: RDF Schema
re-: no hyphenation in most cases; see Webster’s for individual examples; watch context
for words such as resign (to quit a job) or re-sign (to sign again)
readback: a way to ensure the accuracy of output by comparing the transmitted data with
the original data
readout (n): a visual display of data stored electronically; read out (v)
read/write
RealNetworks
real time (n), real-time (adj): the actual time during which something takes place
reengineer: to examine and alter a subject system to reconstitute it into a new form and to
subsequently implement the new form; contrast with reverse engineering
registered trademark (): see trademark
register-transfer (adj): as in register-transfer level
relational database: a database with data organized into tables
REST: Representational State Transfer, an XML protocol
reverse engineering (n), reverse-engineering (adj), reverse-engineer (v): to deduce the
plans of something already built as opposed to reengineering an entity
Rexx: IBM’s Restructured Extended Executor
RF: radio frequency
RFC: request for comments
RFID: radio frequency identification

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RFP: request for proposal; spell out on first use
RGB: red, green, blue; an additive color model used in TV and raster displays
RISC: reduced-instruction-set computing or computer
RMI: remote method invocation; see Java RMI
road map
ROI: return on investment
rollout (n), roll out (v)
ROM: read-only memory (nonerasable)
roman: a type style that is not italic or boldface; no initial capital when referring to the
type style
round-off error
royalty-free images
RPC: Remote Procedure Call; a protocol
RPF: reverse path forwarding
rpm: revolutions per minute
RS-232, RS-232C: hardware interface protocols
RS/6000: RISC System/6000, a workstation from IBM; comes in a variety of models, such
as the IBM RS/6000 Model 350
RSCS: Remote Spooling and Communications Subsystem, the spooling protocol used in
Vnet and Bitnet
RSS: Really Simple Syndication; Rich Site Summary ; RDF Site Summary—a method of
describing Web content that is available for distribution or syndication from an online
publisher to Web users
RSVP: Resource Reservation Protocol
RT: register transfer
RT-11: operating system for Digital Equipment Corp. PDP-11 computers
RTCP: Real-Time Control Protocol
RTL: register transfer level; also Register Transfer Language
RTP: Real-Time Transfer Protocol
RTSP: Real-Time Streaming Protocol
RTTP: Real-Time Transport Protocol; also seen as RTP
rubberbanding: a computer graphics technique that lets lines in an image be stretched and
moved as if elastic
rule set
runtime (n) (adj): the measure of the time expended to execute a program

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S
s: SI abbreviation for second (for example when part of a compound 30 s, 30 ns); see sec.
S.: “south” in addresses
SaaS: software as a service
SAE: Society of Automotive Engineers
safety: in some computing contexts, a technical term meaning the quality of making sure
that nothing bad happens. Safety, for example, ensures that a calculation is performed, but
not that the results of the calculation are actually returned to a user or program module. Do
not use this term without an explanation; compare with liveness.
SAML: Security Assertion Markup Language; an OASIS standard
SAN: storage area network; system area network
SATAN: Security Administrator Tool for Analyzing Networks; do not lowercase the
acronym
SAX: Simple API for XML
scalable: Microsoft Word’s spell-check dictionary suggests scaleable, but we spell it
without the internal e.
ScaLapack: a benchmarking package; see also Lapack
scan-in; scan-out (n)
scan line (n): one of the lines that make up a graphics display
scatterplot
Scene: Scientific Computation Environment for Numerical Experimentation, a scientific
visualization environment developed at Rutgers
schema: term used in artificial intelligence and in modeling to represent an approach,
scheme, or relation precisely and usually diagrammatically. Ensure that the generic scheme
is inappropriate before using schema. Plural is schemas, not the Greek schemata.
Scheme: an artificial intelligence language
Schrödinger equation: spell with umlaut, not oe
SCI: scalable coherent interface
SCO Group: formerly the Santa Cruz Operation (company)
scratchpad: a fast auxiliary computer memory, usually used for temporary data storage
screen dump (n), screenshot (n), screensaver (n)
scroll bar (n)
Scrum: a framework for software development
SCSI: Small Computer System Interface; pronounced “skuzzy” and takes a as its article
SDI: serial digital interface
SDK: software developer’s kit
SDRAM: synchronous DRAM (dynamic random access memory)
SE: “southeast” in addresses
SEBoK Guide: Preferred abbreviated form when referring to the Systems Engineering Body
of Knowledge
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sec.: nontechnical abbreviation for second. Use s unless confusion could result.
second sourcing (n): in manufacturing, the practice of using an alternate company to
produce something that the original manufacturer designed and produces itself—for
example, when the original manufacturer cannot make enough to meet demand
SEI: Software Engineering Institute, a US Defense Dept. research arm (managed by the US
Navy) based at Carnegie Mellon University. In Software, SEI doesn’t need CMU with it.
Semantic Web: an extension of the current Web using standards such as RDF along with
ontologies and other mechanisms to define meaning for abstract data to facilitate machinemachine communication
semi-: prefix; do not hyphenate
September 11, 2001 (9/11)
Serial ATA
Series 1000: but the 1000 series
servocontroller: servo by itself is not sufficient
servomechanism: an automatic feedback system that monitors an operation and makes
necessary adjustments; servo is not sufficient
set-top box: an interactive television device that sits on top of the television
setup (n), set up (v)
SGI: formerly Silicon Graphics Inc.
SGML: Standard Generalized Markup Language
SGMP: Simple Gateway-Monitoring Protocol
shar: shell archive; a file combination protocol
shrink-wrapped
SI: acronym for the French version of International System of Units, a scientific method of
expressing the magnitude or quantity of seven specific natural phenomena
SIA: Semiconductor Industry Association
SIAM: Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics
SID: Society for Information Display
SIG: special-interest group; see ACM
Siggraph; Sigmod
Sigma: a project to develop a software development workstation environment, staffed by a
consortium of companies working under the direction of Japan’s Ministry of International
Trade and Industry (MITI) through the Information-Processing Technology Agency (IPA)
signs: see the Numbers and Symbols section
SIIA: Software Information Industry Assoc.
Sim: benchmark
SIMD: single instruction, multiple data—the simplest form of parallel architecture;
pronounced “sim-dee” and takes a as its article. Spell out on first use if necessary for
contextual clarity. Use hyphens when written out and used as a modifier/adjective.
SIMM: single, in-line memory module
Simox: separation by implanted oxygen
single-sign-on
single-stuck-at fault model: see stuck-at

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SIP: Session Initiation Protocol
SITA: Société Internationale de Télécommunications Aéronautiques
sizeable: Webster’s also uses sizable
SkinnyDIP: trademark name for thin-packaged DIP chips (DIP stands for dual in-line
package)
Slim: Software Life-Cycle Management, a project-estimation system developed by
Lawrence Putnam
SLOC: source lines of code. Don’t spell this out in Software.
SLP: Service Location Protocol
small-scale (adj)
smart card (n)
smart home (n), smart-home (adj)
smartphone (n)
SMD: surface-mount device
SME: Society of Manufacturing Engineers
SMIL: Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language; use a before acronym—
pronounced “smile”
S/MIME: secure MIME
SMS: short message service
SMT: surface-mount technology
SMTP: Simple Mail-Transfer Protocol
SNAP: scalable networks and platforms; phrase coined by Gordon Bell and Jim Gray at
University of California, Berkeley
SNMP: Simple Network-Management Protocol
SNR: signal-to-noise ratio
SOA: service-oriented architecture; pronounced “soh-uh,” as in a SOA
SOAP: a Web services messaging protocol; originally the acronym for Simple Object
Access Protocol, the term is no longer defined in common use
SOC: service-oriented computing; service-oriented collaboration
SoC: system-on-chip (adj); system on chip (n); systems on chip (n pl); abbreviated plural
noun form is SoCs.
social network
soft copy (n), soft-copy (adj)
software engineering (n, adj)
software-hardware development (n)
Softwire
soho: small office/home office
SOJ: small-outline, J-lead
solid modeling (n), solid-modeling (adj): okay to omit hyphen in graphics or visualization
publications
son: one of several family words used to describe relationships among nodes in databases;
the term is legitimate—don’t edit it out

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Sonet: Synchronous Optical Network; a Bellcore standard
Sony PlayStation
source code: no hyphen for n or adj
SPA: Software Publishers Association, now part of SIIA (see entry above); also scratchpad
area (from IEEE)
spam: junk email
Sparc: Sun Microsystems’ scalable processor architecture; a RISC-based CPU used
primarily in engineering workstations
Sparcstation: examples are Sparcstation IPX and Sparcstation 2
SPC: Software Productivity Consortium, a research group
SPEC: Standard Performance Evaluation Corporation (formerly System Performance
Evaluation Cooperative); a vendor-sponsored source of the SPEC benchmarks; examples are
the SPECint92 and SPECfp92
speedup (n)
Spice: simulation program with integrated circuit emphasis
SPIE: Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers; the organization now styles
itself “the international society for optical engineering”
spreadsheet (n)
Springer: book publisher; use in all references
SQL: Structured Query Language
squash-and-stretch (n): function that enlarges and reduces, not necessarily in proportion to
all dimensions; also called rubberbanding
SRAM: static RAM
SRI: Stanford Research Institute
SSH: Secure Shell or Secure Socket Shell; a security protocol
SSI: small-scale integration, typically from one to four circuits
SSL: Secure Sockets Layer; a security protocol
stand-alone (adj)
Staran
Stars: Software Technology for Adaptable, Reliable Systems; a US Defense Dept. project
Star Tap
StartTLS
start-up (n. adj)
statechart: not state chart or state-chart
state of the art (n), state-of-the-art (adj): represents the highest level of available
technology (as compared with “state of the practice,” which is the highest level in general
use). It is an overworked phrase; consider substituting “current technology.
state-transition (adj)
stereo pair (n): two pictures that produce a 3D image
stuck-at (adj), stuck-at fault (n): a type of circuit defect in which a gate can be stuck at
either 1 or 0: stuck-at-1 fault, stuck-at-0 fault; can also be abbreviated as SA1 and SA0
stuck-open fault (n): not synonymous with stuck-at fault
stylesheet (n, adj)

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Styrofoam: use foam or plastic foam when referring to generic consumer or packaging
products; capitalize when used as a trademark
subsystem (n)
Sun OS: Sun Microsystems’ version of the Unix operating system
SunSoft: division of Sun Microsystems that provides system software
Sun workstation: initial capital on “Sun”; from Sun Microsystems
Sunmos: Sandia/University of New Mexico operating system; an OS for the Intel Paragon
parallel supercomputer
super-: no hyphen when used to form a compound word (supercomputer)
supercomputer (n): no fixed processing speed definition; changes with advances in
technology
supermini: short for superminicomputer, which is the preferred usage
surface: Do not use as a transitive verb in the sense of “bringing to the top.” A whale
surfaces, but a speaker does not surface an idea. If you must give buoyancy to ideas, float
them. However, surface can be used as a transitive verb in the sense of “refining or
smoothing a physical surface,” as in surfacing lumber.
surface-mount device, surface-mount technology: board manufacturing method in which
chips are “glued” to boards
SW: “southwest” in addresses
SWEBOK Guide: Preferred abbreviated format to use when referring to the Guide to the
Software Engineering Body of Knowledge.
SWIG: simplified wrapper and interface generator
systemwide

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T
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2D: two-dimensional, no hyphen
3D: three-dimensional, no hyphen
3DES: (say: “triple DES”)
T1: digital transmission at 1.544 Mbits per second; T3 is a faster line
tape out
tar: tape archive; file combination protocol
task ID: use the one-word form, taskid, only in program statements
task type: use the one-word form, tasktype, only in program statements
Tbyte: terabyte; one billion bytes
TC: technical committee; spell out on first use
Tcl/Tk: a computer language developed by John Ousterhout of UC Berkeley; can also be
separate—Tcl and Tk
TCP: Transmission Control Protocol
TCPA: Microsoft’s Trusted Computing Platform Architecture, formerly known as
Palladium
TCP/IP: Don’t spell this out in the optional magazines.
TDM: time-division multiplexing
TDMA: time division multiple access
telephone numbers: see the Numbers and Symbols section; also CMS 6.77
teletext: a noninteractive (broadcast) text/graphics communications system
Teletype: use only when describing Teletype Corp. equipment; generic word is
teletypewriter
teletypewriter: see above; abbreviated TTY
television: okay to abbreviate as TV
telex: acronym for teletype exchange, a service that permits the transmission of data using
commercial telecommunication facilities comprised of a network of teletypewriters
Tell-A-Graf: graphics software by Computer Associates International
Telenet (n): Terminal Emulation Protocol; US Sprint’s switching network originally
developed for Arpanet
testbed (n): an environment containing all the components necessary for testing a system
tests (statistical): F-test; t-test, chi-square test; P value; Wilcoxon rank sum test
TeX: see LaTeX; pronounced “tech”
Tflops: teraflops; one billion flops
TFT: thin-film transistor
the: When referring to an academic institution’s name that starts with the (such as the
University of Texas), lowercase “the” or delete it. Always delete “the” in a byline. This rule
stands regardless of the format on university stationery, seals, and so forth. When referring
to a corporate entity whose name begins with “the” (such as the Irvine Company),
lowercase or delete “the.”

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ThinDIP: trademark name for thin-packaged DIP chips; “DIP” stands for dual in-line
package
Thomas J. Watson Research Center, T.J. Watson Research Center: an IBM facility;
refer to as IBM T.J. Watson Research Center on first use
Thomas J. Watson: when referring to the persons, distinguish between Jr. and Sr.
three-space, three-dimensional space: a mathematical term; also 3-space; can be written
as S3 or R3
throughput
tif: an electronic file format
TIFF: tagged image-file format; graphics-file format; even though the filename extension
is .tif, the acronym is TIFF
tiling: a nonoverlapping approach to window management
time-consuming
time frame
time line: description of events during a particular historical period; timeline: a schedule of
events or procedures
time-multiplexed (adj)
time-out (n), time out (v)
time-shared (adj)
time-sharing (n): simultaneous use of a central computer by many users at remote
locations
time sheet (n)
time stamp (n)
time step (n), time-step (adj)
time to market
TI OMAP: Texas Instruments Open Multimedia Applications Platform
TIP: terminal interface processor
TLB: translation look-aside buffer
TLS: Transport Layer Security
TMS32010, TMS34010: no space between letters and numbers; processors from Texas
Instruments
toolbox (n), toolkit (n), toolset (n): one word when used in computer contexts
TOP: Technical Office Protocol; see MAP/TOP
top-down design
touch pad (n): a touch-sensitive user interface
touchscreen (n): a touch-sensitive user interface
TP0-TP4: Transport Protocol Class 0 to 4; a set of transmission protocols in the ISO
protocol suite
traceable; traceback; traceroute
trackball (n)

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trademark: The registered trademark () symbol indicates that the trademark is registered
in the US Patent and Trademark Office; () indicates that it is pending. Avoid using
trademark symbols in text. However, oblige an author who owns a trademark and insists
upon its use. In this case, use the company’s name before the product on first reference to
establish ownership, for example, Sun’s Sbus; thereafter, use the product name by itself.
tradeoff (n); trade off (v)
transition: Do not use as a verb.
transputer (n) (transister computer): a microprocessor with local memory and
communication links. It’s both an Inmos product and a generic term.
troff: text run-off; pronounce “tee-roff”; a Unix text-format front-end (coding) and output
(printing) processor; variations include nroff and ditroff (device-independent troff)
Trojan horse
TRON: The Real-Time Operating-System Nucleus, a Japanese computer project to develop
hardware and software technology to run household systems that are independent but
communicate with each other for smart homes and the like; modules include MTRON,
BTRON, ITRON, CTRON, and ITRON
TSR: terminate-and-stay-resident
TTL: transistor-transistor logic
TTS (adj): text-to-speech
t-test: a statistical test that deals with the problems associated with inference based on
small samples
-tuple: suffix for a set <> elements
turnaround
turnkey (adj): describes a system delivered ready to run without adding any hardware or
software; synonym for off the shelf
TV: abbreviation for television
TWAIN: technology without an interesting name—programming interface that lets a
graphics application activate a scanner or other image-capturing device

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UBE: unsolicited bulk e-mail
ubicomp: abbreviation for ubiquitous computing
ubiquitous computing: when it’s an adjective, no hyphen in Pervasive Computing but
hyphenated in other magazines
UCE: unsolicited commercial e-mail
UCS: universal character set
UDDI: universal description, discovery, and integration
UDP: User Datagram Protocol
UI: unit interval; a measure of time
UIMS: user-interface management system; UIMSs (plural)
UIP: user-interface presentation
UIST: user-interface software and technology
UK: United Kingdom (no periods), comprising England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and
Wales; not synonymous with Britain. Do not use UK if the country name is sufficient.
ULSI: ultralarge-scale integration; can be used as a stand-alone noun when referring to the
concept but not to physical objects, for example: ULSI circuit, ULSI chip
Ultracomputer: IBM and New York University’s supercomputer
Ultranet
ultrawideband (adj.): See also UWB.
UML: Unified Modeling Language. Don’t spell this out in Software.
UMTS: Universal Mobile Telecommunications System
UN: United Nations (no periods)
underway (adv.), under way (adj.)
uni-: not hyphenated as a prefix (uniprocessor)
unicode
UniForum
Univac: Universal Automatic Computer
University X at Y, or University X, Y, or University X-Y: Follow the specific institution’s
usage. Although some universities capitalize the and consider it part of the university’s
name, Computer Society style either deletes or lowercases the word. Thus, it is the Ohio
State University (not The Ohio State University) and the University of Kansas (not The
University of Kansas). See also the. It’s University of California at Santa Barbara, but all
other UC campuses use this format: University of California, Berkeley.
Unix: a multilanguage operating system developed at AT&T Bell Laboratories; various
versions are in existence
upgradable
UPnP: universal plug and play
uppercase
URI: uniform resource identifier

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URL: uniform resource locator
URN: uniform resource name
US (n, adj): United States; no periods
USB: Universal Serial Bus
Usenix: now the Advanced Computing Systems Association
user-friendly (adj): frequently overused; avoid unless appropriate to the context
username
USRA: Universities Space Research Association
UTF-8: Unicode Transformation Format-8
UUCPnet: Unix-to-Unix copy network
UWB: ultrawideband, a wireless communication technology

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V: volts. Examples: 45 V (n); 45-V (adj) power supply
v.: abbreviation for versus in a legal context (Smith v. Jones); see also vs.
Vac: volts of alternating current (25 Vac)
validation: testing a product or product specification to ensure that it meets the
requirements (that it has the specified functions); compare with verification
Vanet: vehicular ad hoc network
VAR: value-added reseller
variable-length field
VAX: a mainframe made by Digital Equipment Corp.; plural is VAXs; VAX reportedly
comes from virtual address extension (to the PDP-11)
VAX 11/725, 11/730, 11/750, 11/780, 11/782, 11/785, 8600: note slash, not hyphen
VAX/VMS: operating system for VAX computers; VMS stands for VAX Management
System
VCCS: voltage-controlled current source
VCR: videocassette recorder
Vdc: volts of direct current (25 Vdc)
VDT: video display terminal, a generic term; not interchangeable with CRT
verification: determining whether a product meets its requirements (whether it does what
it is supposed to); compare with validation
Versabus
VersaDOS
version: capitalize only when used with the name of a product (Microsoft Word Version
6.0). An acceptable informal abbreviation (except at the beginning of a sentence) is
lowercase v, closed up next to a number: “Macsyma v2.0.” The word version or its
abbreviation is not always necessary: “Word 6.0 is a major release.”
versus: see v. and vs.
vertices: plural of vertex
VGA: video graphics adapter (or array); an IBM color-display standard allowing 256
colors
VHDL: very high density logic; also VHSIC Hardware Description Language. Don’t
spell this out in Pervasive Computing when it means the latter.
VHSIC: very high speed integrated circuit
via: Use this word sparingly (It means “by way of,” “through the medium or agency of,”
or “by means of.”) Often, “through” works just as well and sounds less formal.
VIC: video interface chip
vice president: see CMS 8.21; capitalize when referring to the Vice President of the
United States
videocassette, videocassette recorder
videoconference, videoconferencing

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videodisk; video game
video on demand (n), video-on-demand (adj), VoD (abbreviation)
videotape (n, v)
videotex: interactive text/graphics communications system; also known as viewdata
video over IP
viewport
virtual memory
virtual reality (VR): In Computer Graphics and Applications don’t hyphenate this when
it’s used as a compound adjective. Also, you normally don’t need to spell this out in
Computer Graphics and Applications.
VisiCalc: a financial spreadsheet program from now-defunct Software Arts Products
VLSI: very large-scale integration. VLSI can be used as a stand-alone noun when
referring to the concept but not to physical objects—for example, VLSI circuit, VLSI chip;
VLSI also is acceptable for VLSI Technology Inc.
VM: virtual machine; also JVM or Java virtual machine
VMEbus
VMS: VAX Management System, an operating system for DEC VAX computers
Vnet: an IBM internal network
VoD: video on demand (n)
voice over IP (n), voice-over-IP (adj), VoIP (abbreviation)
von Neumann (adj): refers to the concept of storing data and the instructions that apply to
that data together; the stored-program concept (von Neumann sort; non–von Neumann
architecture); note that the second example takes an en-dash, not a hyphen
voxel: loosely speaking, a 3D pixel
VPE: visual programming environment
VPL: visual programming language
VPN: virtual private network
VRAM: video random-access memory
Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam: Free University, Amsterdam. Commonly used acronym
(VU University Amsterdam) doesn’t work—it’s redundant.
VRML: Virtual Reality Modeling Language
vs.: normal abbreviation for versus, except in legal context, see v.; spell out in text;
abbreviation is acceptable elsewhere
VT52, VT100, VT101, VT102, VT131, VT220: Digital Equipment Corp. video display
terminals

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W
*

W: watts (25-W dissipation)
W.: “west” in addresses
W3C: World Wide Web Consortium
wafer-scale integration
WAN: wide area network. Don’t spell this out in the optional magazines.
WAP: Wireless Application Protocol
Washington, DC
watts
waveform
wave front
wave function
WCGA: World Computer Graphics Association
WDM: wavelength-division multiplexing
WDP: World Data Processing
Web: short name for the World Wide Web; Net is the short name for the Internet
Web browser, Web services
webcam, webcast, weblog, webmaster, webpage, webserver, website
well: a well-defined concept; the concept is well defined (don’t hyphenate “well” words
following being verbs)
WG: see working group
Whetstone: benchmarks
whiteboard
white list, white pages
-wide (suffix): see CMS 7.85, Table 3
wideband (adj)
Wi-Fi: wireless products certified by the Wi-Alliance to be interoperable
Wii Remote
wiki: computer software for creating, editing, and linking web pages
Wikipedia: a multilingual, web-based encyclopedia project operated by the Wikimedia
Foundation.
wild cards
John Wiley & Sons
WiMax
WIMP: windows, icons, menus, pointing devices
Windows 95/98/NT/2000/Me
WinZip: file compression program
wireframe (adj): refers to a line drawing of a 2D or 3D object (a wireframe image)

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wire wrap (n): a method of making an electrical connection in a circuit by wrapping
wires around terminals
wire-wrapping (adj): as in wire-wrapping techniques
WISC: writable-instruction-set computing
WLAN: wireless local area network
word: a sequence of bits that a processor can act on simultaneously. More bits per word
let the processor work on more data simultaneously. A word can be defined in terms of
bytes (a two-byte word equals a 16-bit word), but bits are the more common unit; also
Mword, Kword.
word-slice processor
workaround
working group: initial capitals if in a title, for example, “Working Group on Posix
Definitions”; lowercase if generic
workflow, workload, workplace, worksheet
workspace: the amount of memory a program requires, over and above the amount
necessary to store the program itself
workstation
worldwide
World Wide Web: abbreviated WWW; see Web, WWW
WORM: write-once, read-many (times)
WoZ
wrap-up (n), wrap up (v)
WSCI: Web service choreography interface
WSDL: Web Services Description Language; pronounced “whizdle”
WSN: wireless sensor network
WVGA: wide VGA
WWW: see World Wide Web; Web; depending on context, abbreviated form acceptable
on first reference
WYSIWYG: stands for what you see is what you get; acceptable on first reference in
departments, but spell out on first reference in feature articles

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9/07 Xen: open source virtualization software
X.25: the network layer protocol in the ISO protocol suite
X.400: an ISO mail protocol
x-axis (n, adj)
Xbox
X client (n), X-client (adj): see also X Window System
XDR: External Data Representation; a protocol
Xenix: an operating system similar to Unix from Microsoft for PCs based on the Intel
8088, 80286, and 80386 chips
Xerox PARC: now just PARC
XGA: extended graphics array; a high-resolution graphics standard introduced by IBM in
1990
XLANG
XLink: XML Linking Language
XMI: XML Metadata Interchange
Xmodem: abbreviated term for cross-modem, an error-free file-transfer protocol
XML: Extensible Markup Language
XMPP: Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol
XMS: extended memory specification; used to address memory above 1 Mbyte in the
80286 and later CPUs
XMT: extensible MPEG-4 textual format
XNS: Xerox Network Services
XOR: exclusive-OR operation used in cryptography
XPath: XML Path Language
XPointer: XML Pointer Language
x-ray (n, adj, v)
XHTTP, XHTML, XML
XT: see IBM PC
XScale: an Intel processor
X Window System, X Windows (no hyphens): a graphics environment from MIT for
Unix workstations
X11 Windows
xy-plane, also yz-, xz-planes
XSL: Extensible Style Sheet Language
XSLT: Extensible Style Sheet Language Transformation

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100

Y
Y2K Problem: the crisis that didn’t happen in 2000
YACC: a compiler compiler; a Unix tool
Yahoo
y-axis: (n, adj)
years: to form plural, add an “s”: 1990s; when referring to just the decade, spell out, for
example, nineties
yellow pages
Ymodem: file transfer protocol

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101

Z
0-day: refers to the timing of viruses released the same day as a patch
z-axis: (n, adj)
z-buffer: storage for z-axis values for 3D images, sometimes called the “depth buffer”
Z80: a microprocessor from Zenith Data Systems
Z80-A
Zadeh, Lotfi: a pioneer in fuzzy logic; note the first name, often misspelled
ZIP: zigzag in-line package; a file-compression technique; ZIP code
Zmodem: successor to Xmodem and Ymodem

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102

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