Unit Abbreviations

This section provides guidelines about the correct unit abbreviations to use in GNOME documentation.

  • The form for abbreviations is the same for both singular and plural.
  • Be aware of the distinction between uppercase and lowercase letters, especially for the prefixes.
  • Avoid using units in titles and headings.
  • Spell out the full name of the unit for clarity where necessary.

The recommended units in the following table are based on the Systeme International d'Unites (SI) system of units. The table is not an exhaustive list of all SI units. The table only includes those units that occur in the desktop, or in GNOME documentation. If you need to use units that are not defined in the table, send your suggestions to: Pat Costello

Table B-3 Recommended Units for GNOME Documentation
Term Unit Example Abbreviated Example
bit b 48 Kilobit 48 Kb
byte B 10 Megabytes 10 MB
decibel dB 100 decibels 100 dB
degree Celsius oC Zero degrees Celsius 0 oC
degree Fahrenheit oF 32 degrees Fahrenheit 32 oF
hour h 24 hours 24 h
inch in 12 inches 12 in
meter m 1 kilometer = 1000 meters 1 km = 1000 m
minute of time min 10 minutes 10 min
second of time s 30 milliseconds 30 ms
MultipliersGlossary of Terms in This Guide