Re: Selecting from, on or in

Subject: Re: Selecting from, on or in
From: Earl Morton <WorkgWords -at- AOL -dot- COM>
Date: Sat, 1 Mar 1997 02:48:23 -0500

Philip Brooke asks:

>>
What is the correct terminology for describing a menu selection?

Is it:
Select Exit FROM the menu
Select Exit ON the menu
Select Exit IN the menu
<<

If you accept the Microsoft and Apple style guides as authorities, in DOS and
Windows commands are "on" menus, on the Mac commands are "in" menus (last I
heard).

In either case I always mention the menu first: "From the File menu choose
Exit," or "Pull down the File menu and choose Exit." (Microsoft frowns on
"pull down," but I disagree with them on that.) I mention the menu first so
the things the user has to deal with (the menu and the command) enter his
thinking process in the order in which he needs to deal with them. This makes
it easier to follow the instructions.

Earl Morton
WorkgWords -at- aol -dot- com

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