Use headings to identify the topics and subtopics of your article. Headings have several functions:
- Provide a quick overview of an article.
- Act as visual dividers and make the content appear less dense.
- Help mark the way and allow users to decide whether to read the content or not.
- Allow those people using adaptive technologies, such as a screen reader, to jump from section to section to find the content they need.
In this article:
Using Headings for Topics and Subtopics
There are 6 headings available in TDX, each with their own style. In HTML code, heading styles are referenced as h#, where # sign is the number of the heading.
Note: Only topics and sub-topics should be formatted as headings.
- Heading 1 (h1) Article Subject - in TDX, the Subject field is automatically formatted as an H1 heading. For accessibility, there should be only one h1 per webpage so do not use an h1 heading anywhere in the content area.
- The Subject serves as the summary heading for an article. Do not repeat it in the content area.
- Heading 2 (h2) Major topics - format all major topics with the h2 heading
- Heading 3 (h3) Subtopics - use to format all subtopics
- Heading 4 (h4) Sub-subtopics - use as needed
- Headings 5 and 6 (h5 and h6) - Try writing your content to avoid using these headings but they are available if needed
Heading Standards
- Headings for step-by-step instructions should use gerunds ( "ing" verbs). Gerunds describe a process. For example:
- Creating
- Adding
- Moving
- Unless an article is short if there are 2 or more headings Make a Table of Contents or Other Jump-to Links.
- Headings should not have a colon at the end.
Formatting Headings
To format a heading in the TDX editor:
- Click somewhere in the text you want to make a heading.
- Choose a heading style from the Format style menu (immediately to the right of the Styles menu on the editing toolbar). The heading style is applied immediately.