TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:Appendices From:geoff-h -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA Date:Fri, 30 Aug 1996 14:24:25 -0500
Julie Hansen asked about appendixes/appendices. Julie, both
forms are correct (check any American dictionary), but I
make an idiosyncratic (Canadian?) distinction: appendixes
are what surgeons remove from those with appendicitis, and
appendices are the afterthoughts we all leave in our books.
As for setting them in the table of contents (TOC), you
have two choices, both equally defensible: Since each
appendix comes with a title of the form "Appendix ??",
you're certainly justified to repeat the word "Appendix"
for each such entry in the TOC. However, I find that this
introduces a distracting visual pattern if there are many
appendices that fall in a vertical row in the TOC. (The
word equivalent of beginning each line with asterisks...
the result is a long graphical line of asterisks!) In that
case, use "Appendices" as a subheading in the TOC (your
second option) and simply list the A, B, C... etc. beneath
the heading.
BTW, the same problem occurs with lists of figures or
tables, and your options are the same.
--Geoff Hart @8^{)} geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
Disclaimer: Speaking for myself, not FERIC.
TECHWR-L List Information
To send a message about technical communication to 2500+ list readers,
E-mail to TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU -dot- Send administrative commands
ALL other questions or problems concerning the list
should go to the listowner, Eric Ray, at ejray -at- ionet -dot- net -dot-