UIFoundations
Didactika theme v0.1Writing
How labels, messages and empty states are worded, so every plugin sounds like the same person.
Interface text is part of the design: a clear button saves a support question. These rules apply to every plugin, in English and in Spanish.
Rules
- A button says what it does, with a verb and, if needed, the object: “Save changes”, “Delete 3 courses”. Never “OK”, “Yes” or “Submit”.
- A title says what is here or what is asked, in sentence case, without a full stop.
- An error says what happened and how to fix it, next to the field, without blaming: “Use letters, numbers and dashes” and not “Invalid value”.
- An empty state says what is missing and what to do, in two short lines at most.
- A confirmation names what will be lost, and its button repeats the action (“Delete course”).
- Numbers, dates and units follow the language of the page and are written the same way everywhere on a screen.
- Do not shout: no capitals for emphasis, no exclamation marks, no emoji in system messages.
Before and after
| Instead of | Write |
|---|---|
| OK / Cancel | Delete course / Cancel |
| Error: invalid input | The course ID cannot have spaces. |
| No data | No courses yet. Create one or import a backup. |
| Are you sure? | Delete 3 courses? Their grades are deleted too. |
| Submit | Create course |
| Operation completed successfully | 3 courses deleted. Undo |
Where the text goes
| Piece | Length | Tone |
|---|---|---|
| Button | 1–3 words | Imperative |
| Field label | 1–4 words | A noun, not a question |
| Help under a field | One line | What is allowed, with an example if it helps |
| Alert | One or two lines | What happened, then what to do |
| Toast | One line | The result; an action only if it can be undone |
| Dialog title | A question or an action | The same words as the button that opens it |