indexing jokes?

[Melissa Hunter-Kilmer <mhunterk -at- BNA -dot- COM>]

On Wed, 4 Jun 1997, "D. Shaw" <shawd -at- MINDSPRING -dot- COM> wrote:

>>>[snip]
>>>6 rewrite; add cross references and the joke (traditionally,
every _good_ index has a single joke, which the indexer is not
obliged to identify) >[snip]
>
>>Interesting -- can you give us some examples of indexers'
jokes?
>
>>Rikki Mitman
>>Speaking strictly for myself.

>The impulsive answer is to repeat
>>>which the indexer is not obliged to identify
>but I'll be a bit kinder.

A friend of mine who indexes writes:

Jokes in an index is one of those things that sends professional
indexers wild.  Indexing is an honorable profession where jokes
have no place.  In fact, humor and indexing and indexers is an
oxymoron.  I know.  I am an indexer and am really boring.

Indexers whine about this a lot.  The consensus is, of course,
that jokes do not belong (though some farside books have indexes,
as part of the book humor) and anyone who puts one in an index
should be stoned (as stoned to death, not the 60s connotation).

Melissa Hunter-Kilmer
mhunterk -at- bna -dot- com
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