R

racism, racist language

See Writing inclusively.

radio button

A labeled circular button used to present a set of mutually exclusive options.

Users select an option. Avoid the term radio button, except in developer materials. You can refer to the option’s label, or to the label used to introduce a group of radio buttons.

Select “Automatically based on mouse or trackpad.”

In the “Show scroll bars” area, select “When scrolling.”

To change the location of the Dock, select an option next to “Position on screen.”

See also checkbox.

radio-frequency interference

See RFI.

RAID

Acronym for Redundant Array of Independent Disks, a storage method in which data is distributed among two or more hard disk drives to improve performance and reliability. Storage methods are called levels: RAID level 0, RAID level 1, RAID level 0+1, and so on. OK to shorten to RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 0+1, and so on. For guidelines about spelling out acronyms, see abbreviations and acronyms.

Raise to Speak

Note capitalization. An Apple Watch feature.

When Raise to Speak is on, you can raise your wrist and speak your request.

Raise to Wake

Note capitalization. An iPhone feature.

When Raise to Wake is on, you can wake your iPhone by raising it.

RAM

Acronym for random-access memory. For guidelines about spelling out acronyms, see abbreviations and acronyms.

random-access memory

See RAM.

RAW

A format for image files. Use all caps even though RAW is not an acronym. Don’t use RAW alone; use RAW file, RAW image, RAW setting, and so on.

When you take photos using your camera’s RAW setting, the camera creates a RAW file that retains all the image data captured by the camera.

ray tracing (n.), ray-tracing (adj.), ray-traced (adj.)

Note hyphenation of adjective forms.

Ray tracing models the properties of light as it interacts with a scene.

Learn how to optimize ray-tracing performance.

Implement ray-traced rendering using GPU-based parallel processing.

re (prefix)

Close up unless the resulting word creates another word.

reenter, reinstall, reevaluate

re-create (recreate), re-sort (resort)

Reader

Always capitalize when referring to the Safari feature. Don’t precede with the.

You can use Reader to view articles without distracting ads.

Reading List

Always capitalize when referring to the Safari feature. Refer to the user’s Reading List as your Reading List.

You can add webpages to your Reading List.

Read Me

A document that accompanies a product and contains information the user needs to read before installing or using the product.

In user materials, don’t call such documents the Read Me or Read Me file. Instead, use the document’s name enclosed in quotation marks. Call a file “Read Me” only if that’s the actual filename.

read-only memory

See ROM.

read/write (adj.)

Note slash, as in read/write memory.

real time (n.), real-time (adj.)

Note hyphenation of adjective. Don’t use realtime.

Correct: You can edit multicamera footage in real time.

Correct: You can group unrelated clips together for real-time montage editing.

Incorrect: Many transitions can play back in real-time.

receipt

A written acknowledgment by a receiver of money that payment or delivery has been made. If payment has already been made, use receipt and not invoice. See also invoice.

recommend

When describing something users are encouraged to do, don’t use we recommend or Apple recommends; use recommended.

Correct: It’s recommended that you import video using the same camera you used to record it.

Incorrect: We recommend that you import video using the same camera you used to record it.

You can also use less formal phrases like it’s a good idea to.

It’s a good idea to create a password hint.

recovery mode (n., adj.)

Don’t hyphenate the adjective form.

To put your device in recovery mode…

Wait until you see the recovery mode screen, and then…

redownload

Don’t use; use download again. See also download (n., v.), downloadable (adj.).

Redundant Array of Independent Disks

See RAID.

reference

Don’t use as a verb; use refer to.

register

Capitalize names of specific registers, but don’t capitalize the word register. Don’t capitalize generic register names such as floating-point registers and vector registers.

regular

Don’t use when you mean standard, as in Use standard settings.

release

Refers to the issuing of software, as in a major release of iOS. Don’t use when referring to a macOS version number.

Correct: The next major release of macOS will be available later this year.

Incorrect: The 14.5 release of macOS will be available later this year.

See also version number.

reminder, Reminders

Use lowercase to refer to a reminder the user creates. Use uppercase to refer to the app.

Type a name for the reminder.

Use the Reminders app to stay organized.

Refer to a list of reminders as a reminder list.

You can share a reminder list with other iCloud users.

representative

Don’t use to refer to an AppleCare Support person. See also advisor, Advisor.

reset (v., adj.)

Don’t use reset as a noun. See also Reset.

Reset

The button or switch, which may be labeled with the word Reset or with a triangle symbol.

resizable

Not resizeable.

resize

Not size or grow. OK to use change the size of.

resize control

The area in the lower-right corner of a window that users drag to resize the window.

resolution

Use a lowercase letter x (not the word by) to express screen or other resolution (640 x 480). See also dimensions; x.

restart (v.)

Don’t use as a noun.

restore (v., adj.)

Don’t use as a noun.

Correct: Avoid stopping the restore process.

Incorrect: Avoid stopping a restore in progress.

Correct: Restoring stopped because the disk is full.

Incorrect: The restore stopped because the disk is full.

return character

Not carriage return character, except in developer materials when you’re referring to ASCII character $0D.

Return key

Capitalize when you refer to the key on the keyboard. Use lowercase when you refer to the character.

When you press Return, you generate a return character.

RFI

Abbreviation for radio-frequency interference. Note hyphenation of the spelled-out version. For guidelines about spelling out abbreviations, see abbreviations and acronyms.

Rich Text Format

See RTF.

right arrow

Use to refer to a button that looks like a right arrow and lets users navigate horizontally through content, such as a category of TV shows in the Apple TV app.

Don’t call it the right arrow button or the right-pointing arrow.

Click the right arrow to view more episodes.

Don’t use when you mean Forward button.

See also disclosure arrow; Forward button; Right Arrow key.

Right Arrow key

When you refer to arrow keys generically, use lowercase, but capitalize and use the complete name when you refer to one or more arrow keys by name. See also arrow keys.

right-click (v.)

For Windows only, use to refer to clicking the secondary (usually the right) mouse button. For Mac, use Control-click instead.

Windows: Right-click the app icon to open a shortcut menu.

Mac: Control-click the app icon to open a shortcut menu.

See also Control-click (v.).

right-hand

Avoid except in reference to right-hand (recto) pages; use just right whenever possible.

rightmost

No hyphen.

right side

Not right-hand side.

Ring/Silent switch

Note capitalization.

ringtone

One word.

road map

Two words.

ROM

Acronym for read-only memory. For guidelines about spelling out acronyms, see abbreviations and acronyms.

roman, Roman (adj.)

Use lowercase when you refer to numerals and to font style. Capitalize when you refer to the term Standard Roman character set. See also arabic, Arabic (adj.).

root

The top-level folder in a file system. In pathnames, the root of the file system is designated by a leading slash (/). Avoid using root as a synonym for System Administrator. See also pathnames; System Administrator.

root user

See System Administrator.

rotate

Refers to the act of placing two fingers slightly apart on a touchscreen or trackpad and twisting them clockwise or counterclockwise.

Rotate to change the photo’s orientation.

Don’t use to refer to turning the Digital Crown; use turn.

See also gestures.

rotor

A navigation tool in VoiceOver. In materials that refer to more than one rotor, use a rotor’s full name on first mention: VoiceOver rotor, gestures rotor, Quick Nav rotor, Verbosity rotor. On subsequent mentions, it’s OK to shorten to the rotor if it’s clear which rotor you’re referring to.

router

Don’t use interchangeably with bridge. A bridge joins two networks to form an expanded network, not an internet. A router maintains a logical map of the networks and other routers in an internet, allowing the networks to retain separate identities.

RSS

Abbreviation for Really Simple Syndication. A format for displaying the latest changes to websites and blogs. Users access these RSS feeds with an RSS reader. For guidelines about spelling out abbreviations, see abbreviations and acronyms.

RTF

Abbreviation for Rich Text Format. For guidelines about spelling out abbreviations, see abbreviations and acronyms.

rule

An editable action in Mail.

rule of thumb

Avoid; use general rule, general recommendation, guideline, or as a rule.

run (v.), running (adj.)

Use running for programs or processes that operate in the background and have no graphical interface.

Open Activity Monitor to see what processes are running.

• Apps: Don’t use run to describe what a user does with an app (a program that has a graphical interface); say use instead.

  Correct: Before installing the software, use Disk Utility to verify your disk.

  Incorrect: Before installing the software, run Disk Utility.

  Don’t use running to refer to an open app; use open.

  Correct: Check to see whether any apps are open.

  Incorrect: Check to see whether any apps are running.

• Software versions: In user materials, avoid using running to refer to versions of the operating system or apps. Instead, use alternatives such as use, using, or installed. In server materials or materials for more technical users, it’s OK to use running to refer to versions of the operating system or apps.

  Correct: If you’re using iOS 12 or earlier, follow these instructions.

  Incorrect: If you’re running iOS 12 or earlier, follow these instructions.

  Correct: To use Siri on your Mac, you must have macOS 10.12 or later installed.

  Incorrect: To use Siri on your Mac, you must be running macOS 10.12 or later.

runtime (n., adj.)

One word.