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Presentation goals

Indexing art of, 2-19 defined, 2-17 print versus online, 2-26 technical considerations, 2-31 see also Cataloguing, Tabulating. Presentation goals. Everything you wanted to know about indexing. This presentation is not:. The perfect index recipe.

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Presentation goals

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  1. Indexing art of, 2-19 defined, 2-17 print versus online, 2-26 technical considerations, 2-31see also Cataloguing, Tabulating

  2. Presentation goals • Everything you wanted to know about indexing This presentation is not: • The perfect index recipe • An opportunity to hurl insults at Darrel E. Darrel

  3. Presentation goals • An opportunity to clarify misconceptions about indexing This presentation is: • An introduction to indexing terminology and methods • A nudge to get you thinking about your index • An introduction to indexing ecstasy

  4. What is an index? • An elaborate table of contents • An outline of the book • A simple concordance or alphabetized word list Well . . . it’s not:

  5. What is an index? • A navigational tool, like a roadmap • A systematic arrangement of topics and concepts found within a book An index is:

  6. What must an index do? At a minimum, it: • Identifies, systematically arranges, and locates appropriate information in the book • Draws together scattered information • In addition, it should: • Identify and correlate concepts • Refocus misdirected user inquiries • Discriminate between significant discussion and passing mention of a topic

  7. What must the indexer do? • Identify, arrange, and locate information by creating alphabetized entries with page locators . . . Cataloguing, 1-16 Indexing art of, 2-19 defined, 2-17 print versus online, 2-26 technical considerations, 2-31see also Cataloguing, Tabulating Tabulating, 3-45

  8. About Journal Entries Posting Journal Entries Journal entries overview, 4-20 posting, 4-21 revising, 6-24 What must the indexer do? • Gather scattered information . . .

  9. What must the indexer do? • Identify and correlate concepts . . . • The following concepts: • passwords • login restrictions • read-only permission • Imply the concept: • security

  10. What must the indexer do? • Refocus misdirected user inquiries . . . • From one keyword to its alternatives: • subroutines. See macros • From spelling variations: • van Gogh. See Gogh, Vincent van • From a main heading to a subentry elsewhere: • 3D animation. See Extreme 3D: animation

  11. What must the indexer do? • Discriminate between significant and passing mention of a topic . . . Work With Journal Entries form, 2-11, 2-13, 2-18, 5-36

  12. Con: • Unfamiliar with the indexing process Author Indexing—Pros & Cons Pro: • Familiar with the book and its subject matter • Over-involvement and loss of objectivity • Lack of time • Fatigue • Hate to index

  13. Author Indexing—Pros & Cons

  14. Con: • Difficult to ensure consistent terminology Embedded Indexing—Pros & Cons Pro: • Page locators are not linked to specific pages and can move with the text • Indexing can begin before the book is complete • Difficult to revise and update in Interleaf • Difficult to maintain over several revision cycles • Difficult to find see and see also references

  15. Audience Considerations Who reads these things? Casual users Desperate users

  16. Audience Considerations • Desperate user: There’s a funny little binocular button on my OneWorld Explorer and the HoverHelp says “Word Search.” What should I look under in the index?

  17. Indexing Terminology • Entry: The main heading and all that accompanies it. • Main Heading: The first line in the entry. • Subentries: Indented lines that follow the main heading. Sometimes referred to as x-level subheads, such as 2nd level. • Reference locators: Page numbers.

  18. Example: Index Entry Main Heading Index entries action-oriented, 78 classification schemes, 73 defined, 13 singular versus plural, 75 See also Main headings Subentry Reference Locator Cross-reference

  19. Indexing Terminology Double-Posting • Double-posting is a means to provide multiple access points for the same information. • The term was borrowed from bookkeeping. • Double-posting often replaces see also cross-references. Journal entries, revising, 2-11 Revising journal entries, 2-11

  20. Example: Double-Posting Indexing art of, 2-19 defined, 2-17 print versus online, 2-26 technical considerations, 2-31see also Cataloguing, Tabulating Online indexing compared to print, 2-26 methods, 4-17 Print indexing compared to online, 2-26 compiling a print index, 3-3

  21. Double-Posting Is it always necessary to double-post? • It depends on the time that you have and whether you think that a user is likely to look for information under different parts of a phrase. • For example, the following entry gains little by double-posting the individual software titles. Importing clipart Adobe PhotoShop, 3-5 Corel Draw, 3-2 PaintShop Pro, 3-12 In this case, people are more likely to look up the task than the product. (This is very subjective, though--You should always consider the context and the audience.)

  22. Guidelines: Main Headings • Nouns: • Prerequisites • Reports • Gerunds: • Posting journal entries • Printing exception reports • Adjective/Noun Combinations: • Hardware requirements • Help menu Main headings should never begin with articles, prepositions, or conjunctions.

  23. Guidelines: Subentries • Subdivide main headings: • Results window • illustration • refreshing • Nouns: • Security • passwords • Adjective/Adverbs: • Results • mismatched • Phrases: • Requisition numbers • entering after purchase order receipt

  24. Guidelines: Plural versus Singular Use the plural form for nouns for which you typically express in numbers and for which you could reasonably ask “how many?” rocks journal entries receipts Use the singular form for nouns for which you typically ask “how much?” air water bulk stock inventory

  25. So What Should I Index??? The minimum topics that you are required to index are as follows: • Task headers • Major topics and concepts • Forms • Programs and IDs • User defined code lists • Reports Would such an index be a good index?

  26. So What Should I Index??? As time allows, you should also consider indexing the following: • User synonyms • Figures, tables, and examples • Acronyms and abbreviations • New or special terminology • Warnings, restrictions and cautions • Definitions

  27. Index Length The generally accepted guideline for technical documentation is 1 two-column page of index entries for every 20 pages of documentation. Thus, a 100-page guide (not including front matter and non-indexable back matter such as the glossary) would have a 5-page index. Such an index is known as a 5% index.

  28. Interleaf and WinHelp Considerations • Token placement for Winhelp • Maximum number of tokens per line • Page ranges--why you can’t use ’em • See/See also cross-references-how to find ’em • Font size of index tokens

  29. Self-Editing Your Index • Limit entries to 3 levels and preferably only 2 • Strive for no more than 2 page locators for each entry • Edit for consistent usage of singular and plural forms • Check subjects to determine if slight variations of wording can be combined • Check each subentry to determine whether it should also appear as a primary entry

  30. Editing Your Index • Check the number of the subentries under the various forms of the same topic to see that they are the same. • Check each See reference to verify that it refers to an existing entry. • If some entries seem overly dense, containing multiple subentries with only one page locator for each, try to combine them. Likewise, try to simplify lengthy subentries.

  31. Tips for Better Indexing Adapted from The Art of Indexing by Larry Bonura • Remember--indexing is authoring • Generate the index frequently to check spelling, plurals, consistent terminology, and so on • Schedule indexing in your task matrix and don’t wait until the end to begin • Recruit peers to check for accuracy, appropriate depth, conciseness, cross-references, and structure • Schedule an index edit with your editor • Develop a habit of indexing while writing

  32. A Short Bibliography of Indexing • Bonura, Larry S. The Art of Indexing. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 1994. • Mulvany, Nancy C. Indexing Books. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. 1994. • University of Chicago Press. “Indexes,” in The Chicago Manual of Style, 14th Edition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. • “The Indexer” and “Key Words.” Periodicals published by the American Society of Indexers. P.O. Box 386, Port Aransas, TX 78373. http://www.asindexing.org

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