Indexers and Indexing

[Lori Lathrop <76620 -dot- 456 -at- COMPUSERVE -dot- COM>]

It's been awhile since I posted anything here.  I've been getting this
list in digest mode, and I don't always find the time to read the digests
on a regular basis.  However, I did read the most recent one, and I can't
resist responding to the thread on indexing. :-)

Before I compose my respnses, perhaps I should reintroduce myself; I'm a
technical writer and a professional indexer.  Some of you may have
attended my indexing workshops for STC conferences and STC chapters. BTW,
both STC and ASI (the American Society of Indexers) now sponsor my
workshop, Indexing Skills for Technical Communicators, and ASI also
sponsors Editing an Index for Quality and Usability.  Okay ... enough
introduction ....

Dana Cadman (cadman -at- GDLS -dot- COM) has the right idea.  Indexing as you write
(when the information is still fresh in your mind) is the best approach.
I usually recommend indexing chapters (or portions of chapters) as soon
as they're completed.  Also, 3-6 index entries per page should give you a
fairly comprehensive index; of course, pages that are more dense with
technical information require more index entries (tags).

In response to Stuart Burnfield (slb -at- FS -dot- COM -dot- AU).  If you're interested in
dedicated (stand-alone) indexing software, I'd recommend either CINDEX
(Indexing Research, Box 18609, Rochester, NY 14618-0609 / phone:
716-461-5530 / Fax: 716-441-2914 / e-mail: IRCINDEX -at- aol -dot- com) or Macrex
(Bayside Indexing Service, P.O. Box 3051, Daly City, CA 95015-0051 /
phone: 415-756-0821 / Fax: 415-757-1567 / e-mail: Macrex -at- aol -dot- com).  As you
said, indexing software won't do your thinking for you, but it certainly
will automate a lot of the "drudgery."

Also, in response to Stuart's question about how a professional indexer
can create a good index if s/he is not familiar with the software or
users ... professional indexers constantly analyze the text and filter
information as they read.  Well-written books are, of course, much easier
to index! :-)  As I index, I always pay attention to hadings, table and
figure captions, definitions of new terms, acronyms and abbreviations,
synonyms, main topics of paragraphs, main tasks, main features of the
product, important concepts, warnings or restrictions, menu options,
screen names, command names, functions, parameters, etc.  And, as I
create the index, I look for ways to enhance and refine it by inverting
word order (when it makes sense to do so), reversing levels (determining
if subentries would also be good candidates for main headings ... and vice
versa), and adding synonyms (when they would make sense to users).

Robert Plamondon (robert -at- PLAMANDON -dot- COM) did a great job of explaining the
difference between a concordance (word list) and an index.  In addition to
the section on indexing in _Chicago Manual of Style_, I highly recommend
_Indexing Books_ by Nancy Mulvany (ISBN 0-226-55014-1).

In response to Maryann Corbett (maryann -at- MDROSDP -dot- REVISOR -dot- LEG -dot- STATE -dot- MN -dot- US)
... bless you! :-)  Indexing is much more complicated that most people
think it is!  It requires a lot of analytical ability to create a detailed
topic analysis of a text that serves as a conceptual map for readers and
helps them see the scope and content of the entire book.

Bonni Graham (bonnig -at- IX -dot- NETCOM -dot- COM) makes a good point; as you index, you
should be asking yourself what questions the reader is likely to have.
Unfortunately,  many online help tools make it impossible to create a
multi-level index that provides readers with a good topic analysis.

                                ***

I hope these responses are useful to you.  If you're really interested in
indexing, I highly recommend subscribing to INDEX-L (following
instructions provided by Maryann Corbett) or joining the American Society
of Indexers (P.O. Box 386, Port Aransas, TX 78383).  BTW, you don't need
to belong to ASI to request its list of publications.  I also recommend
one of their new publications, _Subheadings: A Matter of Opinion_.

TTFN ....  Lori
*************************************************************************
Lori Lathrop -----------> INTERNET:76620 -dot- 456 -at- compuserve -dot- com
                                or LMLathrop -at- aol -dot- com
Lathrop Media Services, P.O. Box 3065, Idaho Springs, CO  80452
*************************************************************************