How to Use Colors in Technical Writing
Develop a color scheme instead of choosing colors randomly., Be consistent in your use of color., Set off key points with color., Provide a reasonable degree of contrast., Use color sparingly.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Develop a color scheme instead of choosing colors randomly.
Colors should be used to call attention to the text, not to the colors themselves.
Choose a small number of colors that look good together and document your choices in your technical publications style guide.
If necessary, you should also devote an introductory paragraph on the way color is used in your publications in the publications themselves, if your colors have been chosen to serve particular purposes, such as providing tips or warnings. -
Step 2: Be consistent in your use of color.
While certain conventions have developed in the use of color in some technical writing, such as using green for help file hyperlinks and blue for Web text hyperlinks, you do not have to adhere to these conventions.
You do, however, have to be consistent in which colors you use; your hyperlinks should all appear the same color, and if you use a different color to show the hyperlink has been clicked, use the same color each time. , You can use colored bullets or numerals for bullet points and items in a list, while leaving the text itself normal.
Colored text backgrounds are appropriate for call-outs, sidebars, and notes sections of help file topics, as long as the text in those sections is shorter than the main body of the text. , Your colors should stand out enough from the text that the reader can see the colored text or background and know the emphasis is present.
They should not, however, be so bold that the color distracts from the text they are emphasizing.
Color contrast can be particularly helpful in charts and graphs.
The lines, bars, or pie sections that show the data should be a different color from the chart axes.
Include a color key with the graph.
Avoid putting light-colored text on a dark-colored background; it's harder to read than dark-colored text on a light-colored background. , Don't use large blocks of colored text, such as printing a long warning in red; instead, use a red text heading labeled "Warning" or put a bolded "Warning" heading in normal black on a red background. -
Step 3: Set off key points with color.
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Step 4: Provide a reasonable degree of contrast.
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Step 5: Use color sparingly.
Detailed Guide
Colors should be used to call attention to the text, not to the colors themselves.
Choose a small number of colors that look good together and document your choices in your technical publications style guide.
If necessary, you should also devote an introductory paragraph on the way color is used in your publications in the publications themselves, if your colors have been chosen to serve particular purposes, such as providing tips or warnings.
While certain conventions have developed in the use of color in some technical writing, such as using green for help file hyperlinks and blue for Web text hyperlinks, you do not have to adhere to these conventions.
You do, however, have to be consistent in which colors you use; your hyperlinks should all appear the same color, and if you use a different color to show the hyperlink has been clicked, use the same color each time. , You can use colored bullets or numerals for bullet points and items in a list, while leaving the text itself normal.
Colored text backgrounds are appropriate for call-outs, sidebars, and notes sections of help file topics, as long as the text in those sections is shorter than the main body of the text. , Your colors should stand out enough from the text that the reader can see the colored text or background and know the emphasis is present.
They should not, however, be so bold that the color distracts from the text they are emphasizing.
Color contrast can be particularly helpful in charts and graphs.
The lines, bars, or pie sections that show the data should be a different color from the chart axes.
Include a color key with the graph.
Avoid putting light-colored text on a dark-colored background; it's harder to read than dark-colored text on a light-colored background. , Don't use large blocks of colored text, such as printing a long warning in red; instead, use a red text heading labeled "Warning" or put a bolded "Warning" heading in normal black on a red background.
About the Author
Mark Ferguson
Committed to making hobbies accessible and understandable for everyone.
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