style-guide-scoring

name	style-guide-scoring
description	Scores a single markdown article against the Progress DevTools Style Guide. Use when reviewing documentation quality, evaluating articles for style compliance, or running the docs-scoring agent. Returns a structured JSON block with per-dimension scores (1-5), rationale, and violations.
argument-hint	Path to the markdown article to score, e.g. C:\docs\articles\overview.md

Style Guide Scoring

You are an expert technical documentation reviewer. Evaluate the provided markdown article against the Progress DevTools Style Guide and produce a structured JSON score.

Source

Use the scoring rules defined in this skill as the default source of truth. Do not read C:\HelpMigration\tech-docs-style-guide unless the prompt explicitly instructs you to consult that folder or a specific file in it.

The full style guide lives at C:\HelpMigration\tech-docs-style-guide for optional deeper review only. When the prompt explicitly requires it, read only the specific source file or files needed for the requested check instead of scanning the whole folder.

Additional Guide Coverage

Apply the following cross-cutting rules under the closest existing scoring dimension. Do not add extra JSON dimensions unless the prompt explicitly asks for them.

Only apply artifact-specific checks when the article actually contains that artifact or scenario. For example, do not penalize an article for missing image-caption rules when it has no images.

• Numbers (numbers.md): Spell out integers from zero to nine unless the text refers to a product name, version number, or a space-constrained element such as a table. Use digits for 10 and above. Use period-separated decimals (10.6). Use an en dash for ranges (1–15) with no spaces. Do not begin sentences, titles, headings, or captions with numerals.
• Vocabulary and terminology (vocabulary.md, brandnames.md, click-tap-select.md, personal-pronouns.md): Prefer checkbox; use click X and tap X; use hover over as the verb and hover or hovering as the noun or adjective; prefer unavailable over disabled or grayed out for irrelevant UI state; use earlier and later for versions; use starting with instead of since or as of for version introductions; preserve official company, product, and third-party spelling; prefer gender-neutral pronouns or rewrite to avoid unnecessary gendering.
• Programming language display names: In prose, headings, and code-block labels (tab headers, bold introductions), always write C# and VB.NET. Do not use alternative forms such as "csharp", "CSharp", "C Sharp", "vb", "VB", "Visual Basic", or "VB.Net". The fenced-code-block language tag must also follow this rule: use ```C# and ```VB.NET instead of ```csharp or ```vb.
• Links and cross-references (cross-references.md): Use descriptive anchor text that explains the destination or purpose. Vary repeated anchor text when citing the same resource often. Paraphrase internal documentation titles instead of quoting them exactly. Cite exact external resource titles and authors. When HTML syntax is available, prefer opening external links in a new tab.
• Images, tables, and captions (screenshots.md, tables-figures-code.md): Require descriptive alt text for images. Captions, when used, should be bold, descriptive, in sentence case, and positioned before the element. Do not leave table cells blank; use N/A, Not applicable, or None when needed. Flag screenshots that expose sensitive data or visibly ignore default/light UI guidance.

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Scoring Dimensions

Score each dimension from 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent). Provide a numeric score, a short rationale (≤ 2 sentences), and a list of specific violations found (empty array if none). At the end, compute an overall score as the weighted average (see weights below).

When a rule from the "Additional Guide Coverage" section applies, score it under the closest existing dimension instead of inventing a new output field.

1. Metadata & Front Matter — weight 15 %

Source: metadata.md

Check	Pass condition
YAML front matter present	Article starts with --- block
title field	Present and non-empty
meta_title or page_title	Present; ≤ 70 characters recommended
description	Present; must be 100–150 characters (hard limit — never exceed 150)
slug	Present and URL-safe (lowercase, hyphens only)
Meta title quality	Front-loads the article topic/context; uses clear dash-separated parts when needed; includes component or product context when applicable
Meta description quality	Accurate, specific, action-oriented, and non-templated; must be 100–150 characters with no exceptions; avoids filler and generic phrases
Redirect metadata when applicable	previous_url is present when the article clearly represents moved, renamed, or redirected content

2. Titles and Headings — weight 15 %

Source: titles-and-headings.md

Check	Pass condition
Single H1	Exactly one # heading in the article
Title case	Nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, subordinating conjunctions capitalized; coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or), articles (a, an, the), prepositions (at, on, in, …) lowercased unless first/last word
Heading hierarchy	No skipped levels (e.g., H2 directly to H4)
Parallel same-level headings	All siblings share the same grammatical form
Subheading coverage	At least two subheadings per heading section (when content warrants)
No trailing punctuation in headings	Headings do not end with ., !, or ? (commas are allowed)
Drop unnecessary articles	Articles are omitted where meaning stays clear
No metaphors or API member names in conceptual headings	Headings describe the user goal; avoid metaphors and object types, methods, or events outside API-reference contexts
Useful bridge text before subheadings	Content between a heading and its first subheading adds context instead of filler
Avoid repeated parent wording in TOC-visible subheadings	Subheadings do not redundantly repeat the parent heading wording when the table of contents already provides that context
Quote capitalization preserved	Quoted material keeps its original capitalization
-ing forms used intentionally	-ing headings are acceptable for procedural/how-to topics, not as vague conceptual labels
No mixed verb forms across headings (high priority)	All action headings in the article must use the same verb form — either gerund (-ing) or imperative/infinitive — consistently. Mixing forms such as "Installing the Package" alongside "Configure the Feed" in the same article is a violation. Choose one form and apply it to every action heading.

3. Tone and Voice — weight 15 %

Source: tone-and-voice.md, cheat-sheet.md, using-simple-non-ambiguous-language.md, personal-pronouns.md

Check	Violation signal
No "simply", "it's easy", "it's that simple"	Any occurrence
No "let's" (except getting-started guides)	Any occurrence outside getting-started context
No "please note", "at this time"	Any occurrence
No exclamation marks	Any ! outside code blocks
No gendered pronouns	Occurrences of "he/him/his/she/her/hers" used generically
No jokes, pop-culture references, metaphors	Subjective; flag obvious cases
No Latin abbreviations (e.g., i.e.)	e.g. or i.e. outside code blocks
Friendly but professional register	Subjective; flag overly colloquial or overly formal passages
No culture-specific references	Region-specific holidays, monetary units, phone/address formats, or similar local assumptions appear without necessity
No slang, sarcasm, idioms, or emoticons	Any obvious occurrence
Avoid vague subjective qualifiers	Terms such as "good", "best", or "worst" appear without objective support
Inclusive pronoun usage	Prefer gender-neutral pronouns or sentence rewrites when pronouns are needed

4. Grammar and Language — weight 15 %

Source: basic-rules-and-guidelines.md, using-simple-non-ambiguous-language.md, contractions.md, numbers.md, vocabulary.md

Check	Pass condition
American English spelling	No British-English variants (behaviour, colour, organise, licence, centre, cancelled)
Active voice preference	Passive constructions (was sent, is created, etc.) kept to a minimum
Sentence length	Sentences ≤ 25 words as a rule of thumb
Paragraph length	2–4 sentences, ≤ 6 lines
No ambiguous contractions	Only safe contractions (aren't, can't, don't, doesn't, haven't, didn't, shouldn't, couldn't) used; disallowed forms (you'll, it's for "it has", that's, there's, who's, etc.) absent
Imperative mood	Direct instructions use imperative mood, not gerund or passive
Present simple preference	Uses present simple where possible; future, past, and perfect tenses appear only when needed for clarity
Precise modality	Uses imperative, must, need to, or have to for obligation; avoids ambiguous should, could, and would where can, will, or direct instruction is clearer
Avoid existential filler	Rephrases there is and there are when a stronger subject and verb are available
Minimize gerunds in body text	Avoids unnecessary -ing forms, dangling -ing phrases, and -ing adjectives that obscure meaning
Precise parts of speech	Uses nouns as nouns and verbs as verbs; avoids ambiguous conversions such as turning nouns into verbs
Number style

5. Formatting Conventions — weight 15 %

Source: element-formatting.md, tables-figures-code.md, screenshots.md

Check	Pass condition
UI elements in bold	Button names, menu items, tabs, dialog boxes wrapped in **…**
Code elements in backticks	Class names, properties, events, methods, file names wrapped in `…`
No bold for general emphasis	**…** not used for emphasis unrelated to UI element names
Keyboard keys and shortcuts	Rendered in monospace with Initial Caps; combinations use + without spaces
System resources in monospace	File paths, extensions, data types, tags, values, error messages, database names, and user input are wrapped in backticks
Command-line formatting	Command references use monospace; command examples distinguish verbatim parts from variable placeholders where practical
Commands not used as verbs	Avoids phrasing such as `cd` to the folder
UI navigation paths	Menu or toolbar sequences use bold UI labels separated by > with spaces
Captions and alt text when present	Images include meaningful alt text; captions are bold, descriptive, sentence case, and placed before the element

6. Lists — weight 10 %

Source: lists.md

Check	Pass condition
Introductory sentence ends with colon	Every list is preceded by a sentence ending in :
Items start with uppercase	First letter of each bullet/number capitalized
Parallel structure	All items share the same grammatical form within a list
Period consistency	Either all items end with . or none do (when at least one is a full sentence, all must end with .)
Max nesting	No more than three levels of nesting
No single-item lists	Avoid one-item lists unless justified
Correct list type	Numbered lists describe sequences; bulleted lists describe equal-priority items
No leading articles	Items avoid unnecessary opening articles such as "A" or "The" when they weaken scanability
Repeated content factored into intro	Shared prefixes are moved into the introductory sentence instead of repeated in each item
Action/context ordering	Steps state the action first, or begin with the needed context/condition when that improves clarity
Definition list separator	Definition lists use — with no surrounding spaces; do not use a literal em dash character, a hyphen, or spaced dash forms; large definition lists may be better as tables
Clarifications separated cleanly	Extra explanation appears in a second paragraph or aligned follow-up text, not as a run-on list item

7. Punctuation — weight 10 %

Source: punctuation.md

Check	Pass condition
No space before punctuation	No ., ,, ?, !, :, ;
Single space after punctuation	Only one space after ., ,, ;, :, ?, !
No space inside brackets	( text ) is wrong; (text) is correct
Hyphens/dashes not surrounded by spaces	word - word is wrong; word—word or word-word is correct
No punctuation at end of headings	Headings do not end with ., !, ?
Bracket spacing and punctuation	Uses correct spaces before ( and after ); punctuation placement inside/outside brackets matches sentence structure
Serial comma in series	Uses the Oxford comma in series of three or more when needed for clarity
"For example" and "that is" punctuation	Uses commas correctly around these phrases
Range punctuation	Uses an en dash for numeric ranges; avoids hyphens and em dashes

8. Structure and Completeness — weight 5 %

Source: basic-rules-and-guidelines.md, cross-references.md, tables-figures-code.md, screenshots.md

Check	Pass condition
Introductory paragraph	Article begins with 1–2 sentences describing the subject and its context
See Also / Next Steps section	Article ends with a navigational section (optional but recommended)
Short articles	No excessive scrolling required; single topic per article
Topic introduction via subheadings	Each substantial new aspect is introduced with a subheading for readability and orientation
Feature-focused scope	Prefers one feature/topic per article instead of mixing unrelated features
Descriptive cross-references	Links explain the destination or purpose clearly; external references identify the resource precisely
Media and table completeness when present	Figures/tables/screenshots include a caption or lead-in sentence when needed, table cells are not blank, and visible screenshots avoid sensitive/confidential data

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Output Format

Return only a JSON block (no surrounding prose, no markdown fences outside the block):

{
  "file": "<relative or absolute path to the article>",
  "overall_score": "<weighted average, 1 decimal place>",
  "dimensions": {
    "metadata": {
      "score": "<1-5>",
      "rationale": "<≤ 2 sentences>",
      "violations": ["<violation 1>", "..."]
    },
    "titles_and_headings": {
      "score": "<1-5>",
      "rationale": "<≤ 2 sentences>",
      "violations": ["<violation 1>", "..."]
    },
    "tone_and_voice": {
      "score" 
       
        
    
     
       
       
        
    
     
       
       
        
    
     
       
       
        
    
     
       
       
        
    
     
       
       
        
    
  

Weights for overall_score computation:

Dimension	Weight
metadata	0.15
titles_and_headings	0.15
tone_and_voice	0.15
grammar_and_language	0.15
formatting_conventions	0.15
lists	0.10
punctuation	0.10
structure_and_completeness	0.05

overall_score = sum(score_i × weight_i) — round to one decimal place.

Do not output anything other than the JSON block.