From: SMTP%"LISTSERV@BINGVMB.cc.binghamton.edu" 6-JAN-1997 09:42:26.71 To: CIRJA02 CC: Subj: File: "INDEX-L LOG9611A" Date: Mon, 6 Jan 1997 09:43:38 +0000 From: BITNET list server at BINGVMB (1.8a) Subject: File: "INDEX-L LOG9611A" To: CIRJA02@GSVMS1.CC.GASOU.EDU ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 1 Nov 1996 00:07:36 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Daveream@AOL.COM Subject: Word Macro Viruses Since many of you use MS-Word one way or another, I thought you might like to know that the current PC Magazine (Nov 5, page 277) has a good article about detecting and removing virus macros. You can download a protection tool Mvtool40.exe from www.microsoft.com/msword/freestuff/mvtool/mvtool2.htm ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 1 Nov 1996 19:45:58 +1300 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Simon Cauchi Subject: Re: emotional involvement with the book Well, I don't care all that much one way or the other about the reforms to broadcasting in New Zealand, but the authors certainly did, and here is my index entry for the now defunct BCNZ: Broadcasting Corporation of New Zealand (BCNZ) accounts 157, 160, 162-64 beginnings of organisational change 23-32 conflicting powers of ministers 22 established under Broadcasting Act 1976 8 government department mentality 24-25 inadequate financial systems 23-24, 28 inflexible personnel systems 24, 27-29, 171 mixed commercial and social objectives 20-21, 171 performance monitoring 21, 157 production-oriented culture 21 and South Pacific Pictures 22-23 top-management structure 21-22, 25-26 transfer of assets to SOEs 13-14, 50-52 transfer of staff to SOEs 55-58 (SOEs = State-owned enterprises) From Simon Cauchi, 13 Riverview Terrace, Hamilton, New Zealand Phone & fax +64 7 854 9229 e-mail cauchi@wave.co.nz ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 1 Nov 1996 09:17:57 -0600 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Carol Roberts Subject: Re: emotionally involved with book Hazel said: >Also, I think that more readers will look for "Baltic separatists" and the >like than for "anger." Ordinarily I would agree. But it was precisely the author's point that Gorby's anger over various things played such a large role in the break-up of the Soviet Union. Grouping them that way (under "anger") shows the pattern in a way that the ordinary arrangement doesn't. Nor do I think the word "anger" is an especially loaded term, as some folks have suggested. It's certainly more specific than "reaction to," but I guess I have nothing against capturing something of the author's point of view, so long as the language I use isn't really inflammatory (as my second example might have been). Cheers, Carol Roberts, indexer and copy editor | Life is good. Carol.Roberts@mixcom.com | Milwaukee, WI | ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 1 Nov 1996 09:18:03 -0600 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Carol Roberts Subject: Re: How are pay rates determined? >There's been some discussion on INDEX-L recently >about (book) indexers being paid 'what they're >worth'. I've got no quarrel with people trying to >increase their remuneration, but I think we >should bear in mind that - like most complex >systems - the publishing system has no way to >determine what an index is 'worth' in financial >terms, or how much more a good index is 'worth' >than a bad one. But that doesn't mean we can't know what our own time is worth--to us. If I put in a certain amount of time learning a technical skill, in hopes of earning a living, I don't need a production to tell me what the index per se is worth in order for me to figure out how much I need to get paid in order to earn a living. >BTW, am I the only person on the list who happens >to think they get paid quite well? As someone >whose father drove a double-decker bus through >the streets of London for 25 years on the >equivalent of about $15 an hour, I believe that >getting more than twice that for sitting at a >desk reading and typing is pretty good, thank >you. Jonathan, have you really figured in *all* your time? That is, the time you spend getting new clients, your down time, visits to FedEx (or whatever), bookkeeping, and the million and one things we do to operate a small business--that is, not just the time you spend working on the index itself. If you have figured all that in, and you're still making $30 an hour, 40 hrs. a week, more power to you. One of the reasons some of us keep pushing for those higher rates has to do with the work not being as steady as it would be in a salaried job (so we need to make enough on the jobs we do get to cover the lean times) and all the benefits we don't get. Is $30/hr. really enough, for example, to pay for supplies, space to work, support for a family of four, health insurance, a car, a vacation once a year, taxes, etc.? Well, it depends on how many of those $30 hours you actually get to work during the course of a year. Cheers, Carol Roberts, indexer and copy editor | Life is good. Carol.Roberts@mixcom.com | Milwaukee, WI | ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 1 Nov 1996 10:07:26 -0600 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Carol Roberts Subject: Re: How are pay rates determined? >If Book A, with an > > index, sold 5,800 copies, and comparable book B, > > with no index, sold 4,700 copies, then how > > much...' Kari's response (which I totally agree with) made me think of another point. It's not just how much a publisher makes on a particular book because of it's index, it's also reputation and repeat business. If I find that a particular publisher tends to produce books that are poorly edited and have crummy indexes, I'm not likely to keep buying their books. Jonathan, thanks for sparking such an interesting discussion. I can't get over the variety of the threads this past month. My thanks also to the person who posted the figure of 1,600 hrs. per year (sorry, I was too quick with the delete key). That comes out to 30 hrs. a week (52 wks.), or 40 weeks out of the year @ 40 hrs/wk, whichever way you want to look at it. At $30/hr., that's still $48,000. Um, I think I need to speed up my indexing. Cheers, Carol Roberts, indexer and copy editor | Life is good. Carol.Roberts@mixcom.com | Milwaukee, WI | ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 1 Nov 1996 22:15:50 +1100 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Jon Subject: Pay rates again Some people seem to have interpreted what I wrote about pay rates as saying that indexers should just sit back and take whatever rates are on offer. I didn't mean that at all, and I'm certainly in favour of any attempts to raise incomes, either individually or severally. My point was that, because indexing is seen as a pleasant occupation, and there are very few barriers to entry, any increase in demand that might otherwise drive up rates in general will be met instead by a (temporary or permanent) intake of new indexers. Of course there will always be sub-markets for specialised skills, but in general - like librarianship, nursing, teaching and other service professions - there will always be more people willing to do the work than there is work for them to do. The solution? Artificially reduce the supply (like lawyers or doctors) or make the profession more unpleasant. If we can promulgate an image of indexers as miserable, highly-stressed curmudgeons, we could be well on the way to a pay rise. I'm feeling strongly about this at the moment because our new government is making noises about the high cost of public health - while at the same time reducing the number of doctors permitted to practice. Talk about the right hand not knowing what the left is doing! Of course it knows all too well, but doesn't choose to admit it. Jonathan. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 1 Nov 1996 16:27:17 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Susan Holbert Subject: Re: How are pay rates determined? 1000 hrs/yr Thanks to Jon for opening another discussion on rates. Dick Evans suggests that an indexer works 1600/yr (ie, 400 hours of non-billable time per year). I've seen the figure 1,000 in several business publications. Freelancers must pay all their own cash benefits, including pension, disablity, unemployment compensation, continuing education, etc. Businesses usually calculate that that adds 30% to an employee's base pay (equal to more than 600 hours/yr) Then you have to count lunch hours (250 hrs), coffee breaks (125 hrs), vacation (80-160), 10 paid holidays (80), sick time, and all the time employees spend doing personal work in the office. That's another 500-600 hours. And indexers MUST pay themselves for time in between projects, plus equipment overhead and non-billable hours (marketing, administrative, etc.). I have found that 1000 hrs. correlates to what freelancers actually make. I imagine that Jon, who said he makes $30/hr, is actually making about $30,000 per year after he pays his business expenses and benefits. (If he is making $48K, I agree it's good money) While $30,000 may go further in Australia, that is the median wage for all workers in the U.S. About what a bus driver makes in Boston, less than a school teacher, equivalent to an executive secretary. As far as the question of worth goes, I do think that traditionally women ask for less money than they are worth, for many reasons. If we all asked for more, we'd get it. There is no reason a publisher should pay the indexer less than the cleaning service! Partly as a result of these discussions, I am now telling my students that the floor for experienced indexers in mainstream publishing is $3.00/page. (I recently heard that an academic publisher, Columbia, is paying $3.00 to its indexers.) I'd like to encourage every experienced indexer who hasn't already set a minimum rate for themselves to consider doing so. Susan Holbert INDEXING SERVICES 24 Harris Steet Waltham, MA 02154-6105 617-893-0514 susanh@world.std.com "Training workshops and videos" ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 1 Nov 1996 15:37:01 -0600 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Amy Harper Subject: Re: emotionally involved with book I ran across this reference to an index used to prove a point. In Film Quarterly, an article about Buster Keaton stirred up some controversy regarding Keaton's childhood. The author of the article defended her position by quoting the index of a biography on Keaton as follows... "It [Marion Meade's biography on Keaton] affirms "Joe's physical and emotional abuse" of Buster. (A good starting point might be the several entries under Meade's index heading "Keaton, Joseph Hallie 'Joe': abuse of Keaton by.") Without taking sides in the Keaton controversy, I don't think that using the index in this case helped to prove the author's point. If the book is inaccurate or biased, the index merely reflects the text. Amy Harper Look It Up! Indexing & Research ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 10:34:26 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: "Cynthia D. Bertelsen" Subject: Reviewing indexes, steps for I ran across a site the other day while I was "surfing the Net" and thought that people might be interested in it. Catherine Dettmar, an indexer and project manager for EEI Press, has written a short piece on the steps that an editor goes through once an index is received in-house. While most indexers will be aware of these steps, it always good to have a quick review of what needs to be checked before the index goes out the door. If you want to look at the site, the Web address is: http://www.eei-alex.com/eye/indexing.html Enjoy. ************ Cynthia D. Bertelsen INDEXER Blacksburg, VA cbertel@nrv.net http://www.vt.edu:10021/B/bertel/ndx.html ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 12:43:22 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Christine Shuttleworth <106234.1745@COMPUSERVE.COM> Subject: emotionally involved with book Carol Roberts' experience reminded me of similar indexing experiences of my own. Earlier this year I was approached with a request to index a biography of Josef Goebbels by the notorious and blatantly antisemitic 'historian' David Irving. I bristled as soon as I heard Irving's name, but managed to say politely, 'I don't think I want to do it, thank you.' The conversation was abruptly brought to a close - I wasn't asked for my reasons for refusing the job. They must have been only too obvious. I did not feel I could bring an objective and neutral approach to bear on indexing such a book. This however is an extreme case. More often one may not find out until the commission has been accepted that one is out of sympathy with the text. What to do in such a case? I feel that in these circumstances one should take even more care than usual to employ neutral terms in dealing with emotionally charged matters. Only as a last resort should the job be abandoned, as this would cause great inconvenience to the publisher (and you are unlikely to get more work from them). The distinguished British indexer Douglas Matthews wrote in The Author (the journal of the Society of Authors) (autumn 1993) of his unpleasant task in indexing an English version of Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf, which he had to grit his teeth to undertake. He wrote, 'It was tempting to slant the entries, for example, to make a subheading "poisonous hatred of Jews"; but that would be inappropriate, while the neutral "anti-Semitism" is exact and, I think, more effective because it is cooler. The text should say it all; the index merely directs the reader to where to look.' (I owe the quotation to Hazel Bell.) I don't think the point could be made better. Meanwhile, I think the suggestions made by various people on this list for modifying the entries suggested by Carol for her Soviet Union index are excellent. Christine Shuttleworth Flat 1, 25 St Stephen's Avenue London W12 8JB Tel/fax (44181) 749 8797 ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 11:17:01 -0800 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Trish Wittenstein Subject: Dry Spell--Sounds Better than Famine Hi, All, After steady work during my first year of paid indexing, I've hit my first dry spell--three weeks with no work and only one small book coming in a week--ouch! Of course, I've been using the opportunity to do some marketing and herein lies my first question: is a sample index from a published book better than a list of recent titles? If I included both, it would push the weight up over the one-stamp limit. Also, I can't always ask the editor to whom I speak because often the receptionist just gives me the name of the person to address. Second question: one of my clients is a large New York house who has provided me with steady work all year. I haven't heard from them since I completed a book for them in late September. Is it acceptable to call and let them know I've got some free time, or must I concentrate on the great unknown and wait for them to contact me? Thanks to everyone on this list for the invaluable wealth of information and support. Trish Wittenstein ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 15:00:55 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Susan Holbert Subject: Re: How are pay rates determined? 1000 hrs/yr Yesterday I offered the rule-of-thumb that freelancers figure their annual income by mulitplying their hourly rate by 1000. Some of you may have noticed that the figures I posted yesterday do not add up. The rule that benefits = 30% of an employee's salary means that benefits are equivalent to 857 hours (since 2000 is 70% of 2857.) This included both cash and time benefits. Maybe some freelancers benefits cost less than this, but adding non-billable hours and expenses easily brings it up to 1,000. There are other ways to figure this. If you take 2 weeks vacation, 1 week sick time, 10 paid holidays, and have three weeks without work, that leaves 34 weeks. Expenses, including home office, equipment, health insurance, pension are probably at least $5,000/yr. Unless you bill for your lunch hour (I'd love to hear if anyone does), a full work week is 35 hrs. $35 x 35 hrs x 34 wks = $41,000 - $5,000 = $36,000. I don't mean to belabor the point, but I do think it's important to understand this and to educate clients about this. The real test is to keep track of expenses and non-billable hours and see how much money you actually make. I really doubt that the people who said they were charging $35/hr are making $70,000/yr or even $50,000. The hourly fee sounds like a lot more money than it is, both to the client and to the freelancer, which makes it harder for freelancers to negotiate. Maybe if we realized that $50/billable hour is equivalent to $25/employee hour, that would help us to negotiate. Jon, I don't think anyone thinks you or anyone else on the list wants indexers to earn less money. It's just that negotiating for higher fees is very difficult psychologically, and we can help bolster each other's determination and courage by helping each other understand exactly why we need to charge what we do. Susan Susan Holbert INDEXING SERVICES 24 Harris Steet Waltham, MA 02154-6105 617-893-0514 susanh@world.std.com "Training workshops and videos" ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 20:25:40 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: lewis@RESEARCH.ATT.COM Subject: Call For Papers - SIGIR '97 CALL FOR PAPERS SIGIR '97 20th International ACM SIGIR Conference on Research and Development in Information Retrieval DoubleTree Hotel, Philadelphia, PA, USA July 27 -- July 31, 1997 In co-operation with: BCS-IRSG (UK), GI (Germany), IPSJ (Japan), (others pending) ABOUT THE CONFERENCE SIGIR '97 is the twentieth conference in the premier series of research conferences on information retrieval. SIGIR is the major forum for the presentation of new research results, and for the demonstration of new systems and techniques, in information retrieval. The conference attracts a broad range of professionals including theoreticians, developers, publishers, researchers, educators, and designers of systems, interfaces, information bases, and related applications. In 1997, SIGIR is collocated with DL '97, the Second ACM International Conference on Digital Libraries, which will be held July 23-26, 1997 in Philadelphia. We anticipate substantial synergy between these two meetings. CALL FOR PAPERS SIGIR '97 seeks original contributions (i.e. never before published) in the broad field of information storage and retrieval, covering the handling of all types of information, people's behavior in information systems, and theories, models and implementations of information retrieval systems. We encourage discussions of experimental studies, tests of usability, explorations of information retrieval behavior, reports on the performance of large scale systems, and demonstrations of advanced approaches. We prefer theoretical contributions to have sufficient proof of utility to demonstrate their applicability to information retrieval problems. Similarly, reports on small scale experiments should include convincing arguments or simulations to show their likelihood of generalization. TOPICS Topics include, but are not limited to: --Information Retrieval Theory, e.g.: Statistical and Logical Retrieval Models, Data Fusion, Human-Centered Information Retrieval Systems. --User Interaction and Behavior, e.g.: Models of Information Seeking, Interface Design and Experiment, Visualization. --Multimedia Information Retrieval, e.g.: Audio, Video, and Image Retrieval, Links, Composite Documents. --Experimentation, e.g.: Test Collections, Evaluation Measures. --Natural Language Processing, e.g.: Multilingual Retrieval Systems, Summarization, Dialogue Management, Use of Linguistic Resources for Information Retrieval. --Systems and Implementation Issues, e.g.: Integration with Database Systems, Networked Systems and the Internet, Compression, Efficient Query Evaluation. --Applications, e.g.: Task-Embedded Information Retrieval, Electronic Publishing, Digital Libraries. INSTRUCTIONS FOR CONTRIBUTORS Submissions to SIGIR '97 may be completed papers, or can be proposals for posters, panels, demonstrations, tutorials, or workshops. With the exception of papers and posters, submissions may be made via e-mail (plain ASCII text). All submissions should include complete contact information including mail address, telephone, fax, and e-mail. PAPERS Papers (4 copies) should be submitted in English to the Program Co-Chair responsible for the geographic region of the first author, as indicated below. Papers should contain at most 5000 words. The first page must contain the title of the paper and an abstract of not more than 150 words, but no indication as to the author(s) or their affiliation(s). In addition, authors must provide a separate cover page with the title, the author name(s), and the author affiliation(s), plus complete contact information (mailing address, telephone, fax, and e-mail) for the author to whom correspondence should be sent. Please indicate if the paper is to be considered for the Best Student Paper Award. This Award requires that the first and primary author be a fulltime student at time of submission. There will also be a Best Non-Student Paper Award presented. TUTORIALS SIGIR '97 will begin with a full day of tutorials, each of which should cover a single topic in detail. Proposals are solicited for tutorials of either a half day (3 hours plus breaks) or full day (6 hours plus breaks). Submissions should be made to the Tutorials Chair and should include a cover sheet and an extended abstract. The cover sheet should specify (1) the length of the tutorial; (2) the intended audience (introductory, intermediate, advanced); (3) complete contact information for the contact person and other presenters; and (4) brief biographies (max. 2 paragraphs) of the presenters. The extended abstract should be 3 to 5 pages, and should include an outline of the tutorial, along with descriptions of the course objectives and course materials. PANELS Proposals for panel sessions should be sent to the Panels Chair by prospective moderators. Panels should address issues of interest to the general information retrieval community, and should be designed to stimulate lively debate between panelists and audience. Panel proposals (2-3 pages) must include: (1) complete contact information for the moderator; (2) the rationale for addressing this topic as a panel; (3) the names and affiliations of the panel members; and (4) a description of how the panel will be structured, with emphasis on how general participation will be encouraged. Abstracts of panel presentations will appear in the proceedings. DEMONSTRATIONS Demonstrations provide an opportunity for first-hand experience with information retrieval systems, whether advanced operational systems or research prototypes. Proposals (up to 3 pages) should be submitted to the Demonstrations Chair. The proposal should indicate how the demonstration will illustrate new ideas, and should describe the technical specifications of the system. The hardware, software, and network requirements for the demonstration, including the electrical requirements of the equipment, should be indicated. A list of demonstrations will be published in the proceedings. POSTERS SIGIR '97 poster presentations offer researchers an opportunity to present late-breaking results, significant work in progress, or research that is best communicated in an interactive or graphical format. Abstracts of posters will appear in the conference proceedings, and there will be a Best Poster Award. Three copies of an extended abstract (roughly 3-4 pages) should be submitted to the Posters Chair. The abstract should emphasize the research problem and the methods being used, and be headed only by the title of the poster. In addition, a separate cover page is required containing the title of the poster, along with the name and affiliation of the author(s), and complete contact information for the author to whom correspondence should be sent. WORKSHOPS Proposals are solicited from individuals and groups for one-day workshops to be held July 31, 1997. Submissions of up to 3 pages should be made to the {\bf Conference Chair}. They should include the theme and goal of the workshop, the planned activities, the maximum number of participants and the selection process, and a list of potential participants. Also include a CV for each organizer detailing relevant qualifications and experience. After the workshop, organizers are to provide an article summarizing the workshop for SIGIR Forum. IMPORTANT DATES IMMEDIATELY: Subscribe to SIGIR '97 mailing list by writing to sigir97@potomac.ncsl.nist.gov. Information on SIGIR '97 will periodically be sent to the mailing list as well as posted at http://www.acm.org/sigir/conferences/sigir97/index.html. January 10, 1997: Submission of PAPERS to the relevant Program Co-Chair. February 14, 1997: Submission of proposals for POSTERS, PANELS, DEMONSTRATIONS, TUTORIALS and WORKSHOPS to the relevant Chair. March 11, 1997: Notification to ALL authors. April 30, 1997: Final manuscripts for PAPERS, POSTERS and PANELS due in camera-ready and electronic forms. CONTACTS Conference Chair: Ellen Voorhees NIST Building 225 Room A-216 Gaithersburg, MD 20899 USA Email: ellen@potomac.ncsl.nist.gov Phone: +1 301 975-3761 Fax: +1 301 840-1357 Tutorials & Panels Chair: Susan Dumais Bellcore 445 South St. Room 1A-348B Morristown, NJ 07960 USA Email: std@bellcore.com Phone: +1 201 829-4253 Fax: +1 201 829-2645 Posters Chair: K. L. Kwok Computer Science Dept. Queens College CUNY 65-30 Kissena Blvd. Flushing, NY 11367 USA Email: kwok@post.cs.qc.edu Phone: +1 718 997-3482 Fax: +1 718 997-3513 Demonstrations Chair: Chris Buckley Sabir Research, Inc. 26 Triple Crown Ct. Gaithersburg, MD 20878 USA Email: chrisb@sabir.com Phone: +1 301 947-3740 Fax: +1 301 947-3684 Treasurer: Paul B. Kantor SCILS Rutgers University 4 Huntington Street New Brunswick, NJ 08901-1071 USA Email: kantorp@cs.rutgers.edu Phone: +1 908 932-1359 Fax: +1 908 932-1504 Publicity Chair: David D. Lewis AT\&T Labs 600 Mountain Ave., 2A-410 Murray Hill, NJ 07974-0636 USA Email: lewis@research.att.com Phone: +1 908-582-3976 Fax: +1 908-582-7550 PROGRAM CHAIRS For North and South America: Nicholas J. Belkin SCILS Rutgers University 4 Huntington Street New Brunswick, NJ 08901-1071 USA Email: belkin@scils.rutgers.edu Phone: +1 908 932-8585 Fax: +1 908 932-6916 For Europe and Africa: Peter Willett Department of Information Studies University of Sheffield Sheffield S10 2TN United Kingdom Email: p.willett@sheffield.ac.uk Phone: +44 (0) 114-2825083 Fax: +44 (0) 114-2780300 For Asia and the Pacific: Arcot Desai Narasimhalu Institute of Systems Science National University of Singapore Heng Mui Keng Terrace Singapore 0511 Republic of Singapore Email: desai@iss.nus.sg Phone: +65 7722002 Fax: + 65 7744990 PROGRAM COMMITTEE IJsbrand Jan Aalbersberg, Phillips, The Netherlands Maristella Agosti, Univ. of Padua, Italy Micheline Beaulieu, City Univ., UK Peter Bruza, QUT, Australia Chris Buckley, Cornell Univ., USA Forbes Burkowski, Univ. of Waterloo, Canada James Callan, Univ. of Massachusetts, USA Raman Chandrasekar, NCST, India Yves Chiaramella, CLIPS-IMAG, France Hsinchun Chen, Univ. of Arizona, USA Mark Chignell, Univ. of Toronto, Canada Ken Church, AT\&T, USA W. Bruce Croft, Univ. of Massachusetts, USA Susan Dumais, Bellcore, USA Leo Egghe, Limburgs Univ. Centrum, Belgium David Ellis, Univ. of Sheffield, UK Jim French, Univ. of Virginia, USA Hans-Peter Frei, UBILAB, Switzerland Norbert Fuhr, Univ. Dortmund, Germany Gregory Grefenstette, Rank Xerox, France Donna Harman, NIST, USA David Harper, Robert Gordon Univ., UK Marti Hearst, Xerox, USA Bill Hersh, Oregon Health Sciences Univ., USA Haym Hirsh, Rutgers Univ., USA David Hull, Rank Xerox, France Peter Ingwersen, Royal School of Librarianship, Denmark Tetsuya Ishikawa, Univ. of Library and Info. Sci., Japan Kalervo Jarvelin, University of Tampere, Finland Haruo Kimoto, NTT, Japan Judith Klavans, Columbia University ,USA Shmuel Klein, Bar-Ilan Univ., Israel Robert Korfhage, Univ. of Pittsburgh, USA K. L. Kwok, Queens College, CUNY, USA Dik Lee, HKUST, Hong Kong Joon Ho Lee, KRDIC, Korea David Lewis, AT\&T, USA Elizabeth Liddy, Syracuse Univ., USA Dario Lucarella, CRA-ENEL, Italy Kathy McKeowan, Columbia Univ., USA Elke Mittendorf, ETH Zentrum, Switzerland Alistair Moffat, Univ. of Melbourne, Australia Sung Hyun Myaeng, Chungnam National Univ., Korea Jan Pedersen, Verity, USA Annelise Pejtersen, National Laboratory, Denmark Keith van Rijsbergen, Glasgow University, UK Ellen Riloff, Univ. of Utah, USA Stephen Robertson, City Univ., UK Airi Salminen, Univ. of Jyvaskyla, Finland Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers Univ., USA Peter Schauble, ETH Zentrum, Switzerland Fabrizio Sebastiani, IEI-CHR, Italy Alan Smeaton, Dublin City Univ., Ireland Phil Smith, Ohio State Univ., USA Craig Stanfill, Ab Initio, USA Ulrich Thiel, GMD IPSI, Germany Richard Tong, Sageware, USA Howard Turtle, Westlaw, USA Ross Wilkinson, RMIT, Australia Mei-Mei Wu, National Taiwan Normal Univ., Taiwan Emannuel Yannakoudakis, Athens Univ. of Economics, Greece ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 20:30:25 EST Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Nan Badgett <76400.3351@COMPUSERVE.COM> Subject: Re: Dry Spell--Sounds Better than Famine Last time I found myself without much work scheduled, I called all my existing clients and said, "I'm working on my schedule for the next couple of months. Do you have anything coming up?" I was overbooked before I knew it. As far as sending out a sample index, I sometimes send only part of an index if it will give enough of an idea about my work. I don't think many people will sit down and read through an entire index anyway. Nan Badgett dba Word-a-bil-i-ty ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 3 Nov 1996 15:52:33 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Hazel Blumberg-McKee Subject: Computer Law Observer I'm sending this message to both Copyediting-L and Index-L. I can't remember how I found out about Computer Law Observer, but I think it's fascinating. The last issue, which I recently received, was about spam and the law. If you're interested in computers, the Internet, and the law, you might want to subscribe. Send a message (it doesn't have to be in any particular form) to ChallCom@aol.com Hazel Hazel Blumberg-McKee (hazelcb@polaris.net) "In my experience, if you have to keep the lavatory door shut by extending your left leg, it's modern architecture."--Nancy Banks Smith ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 3 Nov 1996 21:02:57 -0800 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Victoria Baker Subject: Ergonomics, telephone head sets I keep meaning to mention that telephone head sets can make a huge difference in neck health and comfort. Using a head set frees your hands for taking notes or turning pages while talking with clients and prevents that tipping of the head and holding the phone receiver that creates stiff necks. In California, the Workers' Comp system awards headsets to repetitive stress sufferers with no discussion; they are considered that basic. Also, lots of employers are willing to buy them for their employees because they are proving to prevent repetitive syndromes and they really do increase productivity. Some models come with a feature that eliminates background noise in your environment, a boon to those of us who work at home. There are also models with headsets that cover both ears, lending a wonderful fidelity, which even with the single-ear variety is remarkable. There is usually a volume knob to control how loud the other person comes through, also wonderful, and a "hold" feature that allows you to unplug during a call to go away from the phone without taking off the headset. The downside to headsets is that they do wear out, sometimes in two years. However, their lifespan is influenced by environment (e.g. cats or children playing with them), and one friend of mine has the same model I have and hers has lasted almost five years. Even for people who don't spend that much time on the phone, headsets make telephone conversations more relaxed. And that arm-to-ear position really is not good for people. To happy indexing, Victoria Baker ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 4 Nov 1996 08:15:10 -0800 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Nancy Newlin Subject: Contract Indexing--SF Bay area CONTRACT INDEXING OPPORTUNITY with Bay Networks, Santa Clara, CA Contract indexer needed to: Symbol=85 Review and evaluate indexes in two suites of network management software=20 books totaling approximately 10 books and 2,200 pages of text Symbol=85 Prepare report detailing index content anomalies, inconsistencies, etc. with=20 suggested remedies to create strong, complete, and user-friendly indexes Symbol=85 Update indexes in text files using FrameMaker 5.0 for the Macintosh Symbol=85 Prepare style guidelines for future indexes Timeframe: Evaluation phase beginning immediately, index updating to occur=20 between product releases over about a 6-9 month period (sporadic, not=20 continuous part-time or full-time) Requirements: Symbol=85 Familiarity with network management software product features and terminology Symbol=85 Have and be an expert in the use of a Macintosh with System 7.5 and FrameMaker 5.0 Symbol=85 Proven ability to use =46rameMaker 5.0 indexing tools Symbol=85 Availability over the time span to complete the index updates Symbol=85 Located close to Santa Clara, California Contact: Nancy Newlin, 408-495-1016 (nnewlin@baynetworks.com) or=20 Rekha Agarwal, 408-495-7663 (ragarwal@baynetworks.com) November 4, 1996 ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 4 Nov 1996 12:10:14 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Barbara Piscuskas Subject: Need info I have just subsscribed to this list in an effort to gather information for myself, as I am now employed aas a librarian, and am considering retiring in about two years. I would like to do some freelance work on a part=time basis when I have retired to Massachusetts. Is there anyone out there doing this? How did you get started? I know about the courses offered by the govt. and am ready and willing to enroll later this year if it will be worthwhile to do so - that is, I would want to be assured that I could get work after retirement. Thanks for any help from any of you indexers reading this. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 5 Nov 1996 12:40:49 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: "Richard T. Evans" Subject: Re: How are pay rates determined? 1000 hrs/yr At 04:27 PM 11/1/96 -0500, you wrote: > Thanks to Jon for opening another discussion on rates. > > Dick Evans suggests that an indexer works 1600/yr (ie, 400 hours of >non-billable time per year). I've seen the figure 1,000 in several business >publications. I've seen 1,600 in general discussions of freelancing, personally, I find my hours closer to 1,000. On the other hand, I have noticed a paradox in the calculation of "profits" from freelancing vs. income from salary. I was employed in the computer industry before retiring into indexing. As a simple comparison, consider the following figures. Suppose I made $50,000 in salary. I commuted 10,000 miles per year, lived in a house that cost $1,500 per month for mortgage and utilities, set aside 20% of the house for an office, stocked the office with about $10,000 in furniture and computer equipment. Ignoring taxes and medical benefits, my "profit" at year end is $50,000. Now suppose I gross $50,000 indexing. All the other suppositions remain constant. Now I deduct $3,000 per year for mileage, $3,600 for the home office, and $10,000 for furniture and equipment. My "profit" is now $33,400. On the one hand, I am living the same life I led as an employee but paying taxes on less income. On the other hand, the banks look at the new (lower) bottom line when I apply for a loan and turn me down for exactly the same loan they would have approved had I been on salary. Dick Evans ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 5 Nov 1996 14:41:35 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group Comments: Resent-From: Charlotte Skuster Comments: Originally-From: asi@well.com (Bonnie Parks-Davies) From: Charlotte Skuster Subject: columbia journalism review This message was forwarded from the ASI admin office. >Return-Path: ajt21@columbia.edu >Date: Mon, 4 Nov 1996 15:35:41 -0500 (EST) >From: Andie Tucher >Sender: ajt21@columbia.edu >To: asi@well.com >Subject: columbia journalism review > >I got your packet today -- many thanks! But after reading your >literature, and then browsing your list of indexers, I think I do want to >post a query on your e-list. We'd really prefer someone with experience >dealing in the subject area of journalism/mass media, and there weren't >many on the list who mentioned that. > >So here's what we want: >Project involves indexing the past nine years' worth of the Columbia >Journalism Review, which comes out six times a year. Require experience >in working with periodicals and in journalism/mass media subject area. >Time is of the essence. >Please respond within one week with details of your qualifications in >these areas (e-mail >or fax only, please: ajt21@columbia.edu or 212/854-8580.) > >I'd welcome your suggestions or edits to the above. What do you think? > >Thanks. > >Andie > > > ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 5 Nov 1996 14:45:52 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group Comments: Resent-From: Charlotte Skuster Comments: Originally-From: Rob Rudnick <72271.175@CompuServe.COM> From: Charlotte Skuster Subject: Notice forwarded from: Rob Rudnick, EdIndex 207-832-6994 ---------- Forwarded Message ---------- The following message came to me from our Asst. Academic Dean; you may find it interesting ******* SPECIAL ALERT ******* =========================================================== SCAM: Don't Respond To Emails, Phone Calls, Or Pages Which Tell You To Call An "809" Phone Number =========================================================== This is a very important issue of Internet ScamBusters! because it alerts you to a scam that is: - spreading *extremely* quickly - can easily cost you $100 or more, and - is difficult to avoid unless you are aware of it. We'd like to thank Paul Bruemmer and Brian Stains or bringing this scam to our attention - both will receive Internet ScamBusters! tee shirts. This scam has also been identified by the National Fraud Information Center and is costing victims a lot of money. There are lots of different permutations of this scam, but here is how it works: Permutation #1: Internet Based Phone Scam Via Email You receive an email, typically with a subject line of "*ALERT*" or "Unpaid Account." The message, which is being spammed across the net, says: ---------------------------------------------------------- I am writing to give you a final 24hrs to settle your outstanding account. If I have not received the settlement in full, I will commence legal proceedings without further delay. If you would like to discuss this matter to avoid court action, call Mike Murray at global Communications on +1 809 496 2700. ---------------------------------------------------------- Permutation #2: Phone Or Pager Scam You receive a message on your answering machine or your pager which asks you to call a number beginning with area code 809. The reason to you're asked to call varies: it can be to receive information about a family member who has been ill, to tell you someone has been arrested, died, to let you know you have won a wonderful prize, etc. In each case, you're told to call the 809 number right away. Since there are so many new area codes these days, people unknowingly return these calls. If you call from the US, you will apparently be charged $25 per-minute! Sometimes the person who answers the phone will speak broken English and pretend not to understand you. Other times, you'll just get a long recorded message. The point is, they will try to keep you on the phone as long as possible to increase the charges. Unfortunately, when you get your phone bill, you'll often be charged more than $100.00. Here's why it works: The 809 area code is located in the British Virgin Islands (the Bahamas). The 809 area code can be used as a "pay-per-call" number, similar to 900 numbers in the US. Since 809 is not in the US, it is not covered by US regulations of 900 numbers, which require that you be notified and warned of charges and rates involved when you call a "pay-per-call" number. There is also no requirement that the company provide a time period during which you may terminate the call without being charged. Further, whereas many US phones have 900 number blocking (to avoid these kinds of charges), 900 number blocking will not prevent calls to the 809 area code. We recommend that no matter how you get the message, if you are asked to call a number with an 809 area code that you don't recognize, investigate further and/or disregard the message. Be *very* wary of email or calls asking you to call an 809 area code number. It's important to prevent becoming a victim of this scam, since trying to fight the charges afterwards can become a real nightmare. That's because you did actually make the call. If you complain, both our local phone company and your long distance carrier will not want to get involved and will most likely tell you that they are simply providing the billing for the foreign company. You'll end up dealing with a foreign company that argues they have done nothing wrong. Please forward this entire issue of Internet ScamBusters! to your friends, family and colleaguesto help them become aware of this scam so they don't get ripped off. ---------- Robert Kirchherr Assistant Dean of Instruction Central Maine Technical College crkirchh@cmtc.mtcs.tec.me.us VP 207-784-2385 FAX 207-777-7353 Annee Tara, Dir. of Planning, Development and Public Relations Central Maine Technical College, 1250 Turner St. Auburn, ME 04210 E-mail: CATARA@CMTC.MTCS.TEC.ME.US; Ph 207 784-2385; FAX 207 777-7353 ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 00:29:49 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: "Seth A. Maislin" Subject: letter headings in index A style issue has recently come up, and I'd like to hear what people think about it. (You can write me directly, and I'll combine all the responses into a single message for all.) Do you think an index should have letter heads? For example: A abacus, 000 alabaster, 000 axis, 000 B bombastic noises, 000 C Charles River, 000 ...or would you drop the "ABC" altogether and simply use small spaces between the letters: abacus, 000 alabaster, 000 axis, 000 bombastic noises, 000 Charles River, 000 ... or would you not even bother putting spaces in the index? abacus, 000 alabaster, 000 axis, 000 bombastic noises, 000 Charles River, 000 - Seth Seth A. Maislin (seth@ora.com) "I hate quotations." --Ralph Waldo Emerson O'Reilly & Associates Focus Publishing Services 90 Sherman Street 89 Grove Street Cambridge MA 02140 Watertown MA 02172-2826 (617) 499-7439 phone (617) 924-4428 (617) 661-1116 facsimile smaislin@world.std.com WWW: http://www.ora.com/people/staff/seth ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 09:14:03 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: WordenDex@AOL.COM Subject: Re: letter headings in index I think the answer depends on the space allowed for length of the index. I prefer letter heads and spaces first,and then just spaces only if the first is out of the question. I don't like everything all scrunched together because it's hard for everyone to find even the first letter they're looking for easily. Diane Worden Kalamazoo, Mich. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 06:26:22 -0800 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Victoria Baker Subject: Re: letter headings in index I don't have much control over that aspect of an index. None of the books I've done in the last couple of years have had alphabet headers, except for el-hi textbooks. It would seem that my publishers don't want to give them the space unless the age range of the users makes it advisable. No one has failed to include extra spaces between alpha groups. Personally, I've developed a taste for not having the headers, but that, I'm sure, is because I'm furnishing so many files without them. Best, Victoria Baker ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 09:45:59 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: David Lewis Subject: SIGIR '97 CFP [Apologies if you receive multiple copies of this.] CALL FOR PAPERS SIGIR '97 20th International ACM SIGIR Conference on Research and Development in Information Retrieval DoubleTree Hotel, Philadelphia, PA, USA July 27 -- July 31, 1997 In co-operation with: BCS-IRSG (UK), GI (Germany), IPSJ (Japan), (others pending) ABOUT THE CONFERENCE SIGIR '97 is the twentieth conference in the premier series of research conferences on information retrieval. SIGIR is the major forum for the presentation of new research results, and for the demonstration of new systems and techniques, in information retrieval. The conference attracts a broad range of professionals including theoreticians, developers, publishers, researchers, educators, and designers of systems, interfaces, information bases, and related applications. In 1997, SIGIR is collocated with DL '97, the Second ACM International Conference on Digital Libraries, which will be held July 23-26, 1997 in Philadelphia. We anticipate substantial synergy between these two meetings. CALL FOR PAPERS SIGIR '97 seeks original contributions (i.e. never before published) in the broad field of information storage and retrieval, covering the handling of all types of information, people's behavior in information systems, and theories, models and implementations of information retrieval systems. We encourage discussions of experimental studies, tests of usability, explorations of information retrieval behavior, reports on the performance of large scale systems, and demonstrations of advanced approaches. We prefer theoretical contributions to have sufficient proof of utility to demonstrate their applicability to information retrieval problems. Similarly, reports on small scale experiments should include convincing arguments or simulations to show their likelihood of generalization. TOPICS Topics include, but are not limited to: --Information Retrieval Theory, e.g.: Statistical and Logical Retrieval Models, Data Fusion, Human-Centered Information Retrieval Systems. --User Interaction and Behavior, e.g.: Models of Information Seeking, Interface Design and Experiment, Visualization. --Multimedia Information Retrieval, e.g.: Audio, Video, and Image Retrieval, Links, Composite Documents. --Experimentation, e.g.: Test Collections, Evaluation Measures. --Natural Language Processing, e.g.: Multilingual Retrieval Systems, Summarization, Dialogue Management, Use of Linguistic Resources for Information Retrieval. --Systems and Implementation Issues, e.g.: Integration with Database Systems, Networked Systems and the Internet, Compression, Efficient Query Evaluation. --Applications, e.g.: Task-Embedded Information Retrieval, Electronic Publishing, Digital Libraries. INSTRUCTIONS FOR CONTRIBUTORS Submissions to SIGIR '97 may be completed papers, or can be proposals for posters, panels, demonstrations, tutorials, or workshops. With the exception of papers and posters, submissions may be made via e-mail (plain ASCII text). All submissions should include complete contact information including mail address, telephone, fax, and e-mail. PAPERS Papers (4 copies) should be submitted in English to the Program Co-Chair responsible for the geographic region of the first author, as indicated below. Papers should contain at most 5000 words. The first page must contain the title of the paper and an abstract of not more than 150 words, but no indication as to the author(s) or their affiliation(s). In addition, authors must provide a separate cover page with the title, the author name(s), and the author affiliation(s), plus complete contact information (mailing address, telephone, fax, and e-mail) for the author to whom correspondence should be sent. Please indicate if the paper is to be considered for the Best Student Paper Award. This Award requires that the first and primary author be a fulltime student at time of submission. There will also be a Best Non-Student Paper Award presented. TUTORIALS SIGIR '97 will begin with a full day of tutorials, each of which should cover a single topic in detail. Proposals are solicited for tutorials of either a half day (3 hours plus breaks) or full day (6 hours plus breaks). Submissions should be made to the Tutorials Chair and should include a cover sheet and an extended abstract. The cover sheet should specify (1) the length of the tutorial; (2) the intended audience (introductory, intermediate, advanced); (3) complete contact information for the contact person and other presenters; and (4) brief biographies (max. 2 paragraphs) of the presenters. The extended abstract should be 3 to 5 pages, and should include an outline of the tutorial, along with descriptions of the course objectives and course materials. PANELS Proposals for panel sessions should be sent to the Panels Chair by prospective moderators. Panels should address issues of interest to the general information retrieval community, and should be designed to stimulate lively debate between panelists and audience. Panel proposals (2-3 pages) must include: (1) complete contact information for the moderator; (2) the rationale for addressing this topic as a panel; (3) the names and affiliations of the panel members; and (4) a description of how the panel will be structured, with emphasis on how general participation will be encouraged. Abstracts of panel presentations will appear in the proceedings. DEMONSTRATIONS Demonstrations provide an opportunity for first-hand experience with information retrieval systems, whether advanced operational systems or research prototypes. Proposals (up to 3 pages) should be submitted to the Demonstrations Chair. The proposal should indicate how the demonstration will illustrate new ideas, and should describe the technical specifications of the system. The hardware, software, and network requirements for the demonstration, including the electrical requirements of the equipment, should be indicated. A list of demonstrations will be published in the proceedings. POSTERS SIGIR '97 poster presentations offer researchers an opportunity to present late-breaking results, significant work in progress, or research that is best communicated in an interactive or graphical format. Abstracts of posters will appear in the conference proceedings, and there will be a Best Poster Award. Three copies of an extended abstract (roughly 3-4 pages) should be submitted to the Posters Chair. The abstract should emphasize the research problem and the methods being used, and be headed only by the title of the poster. In addition, a separate cover page is required containing the title of the poster, along with the name and affiliation of the author(s), and complete contact information for the author to whom correspondence should be sent. WORKSHOPS Proposals are solicited from individuals and groups for one-day workshops to be held July 31, 1997. Submissions of up to 3 pages should be made to the {\bf Conference Chair}. They should include the theme and goal of the workshop, the planned activities, the maximum number of participants and the selection process, and a list of potential participants. Also include a CV for each organizer detailing relevant qualifications and experience. After the workshop, organizers are to provide an article summarizing the workshop for SIGIR Forum. IMPORTANT DATES IMMEDIATELY: Subscribe to SIGIR '97 mailing list by writing to sigir97@potomac.ncsl.nist.gov. Information on SIGIR '97 will periodically be sent to the mailing list as well as posted at http://www.acm.org/sigir/conferences/sigir97/index.html. January 10, 1997: Submission of PAPERS to the relevant Program Co-Chair. February 14, 1997: Submission of proposals for POSTERS, PANELS, DEMONSTRATIONS, TUTORIALS and WORKSHOPS to the relevant Chair. March 11, 1997: Notification to ALL authors. April 30, 1997: Final manuscripts for PAPERS, POSTERS and PANELS due in camera-ready and electronic forms. CONTACTS Conference Chair: Ellen Voorhees NIST Building 225 Room A-216 Gaithersburg, MD 20899 USA Email: ellen@potomac.ncsl.nist.gov Phone: +1 301 975-3761 Fax: +1 301 840-1357 Tutorials & Panels Chair: Susan Dumais Bellcore 445 South St. Room 1A-348B Morristown, NJ 07960 USA Email: std@bellcore.com Phone: +1 201 829-4253 Fax: +1 201 829-2645 Posters Chair: K. L. Kwok Computer Science Dept. Queens College CUNY 65-30 Kissena Blvd. Flushing, NY 11367 USA Email: kwok@post.cs.qc.edu Phone: +1 718 997-3482 Fax: +1 718 997-3513 Demonstrations Chair: Chris Buckley Sabir Research, Inc. 26 Triple Crown Ct. Gaithersburg, MD 20878 USA Email: chrisb@sabir.com Phone: +1 301 947-3740 Fax: +1 301 947-3684 Treasurer: Paul B. Kantor SCILS Rutgers University 4 Huntington Street New Brunswick, NJ 08901-1071 USA Email: kantorp@cs.rutgers.edu Phone: +1 908 932-1359 Fax: +1 908 932-1504 Publicity Chair: David D. Lewis AT\&T Labs 600 Mountain Ave., 2A-410 Murray Hill, NJ 07974-0636 USA Email: lewis@research.att.com Phone: +1 908-582-3976 Fax: +1 908-582-7550 PROGRAM CHAIRS For North and South America: Nicholas J. Belkin SCILS Rutgers University 4 Huntington Street New Brunswick, NJ 08901-1071 USA Email: belkin@scils.rutgers.edu Phone: +1 908 932-8585 Fax: +1 908 932-6916 For Europe and Africa: Peter Willett Department of Information Studies University of Sheffield Sheffield S10 2TN United Kingdom Email: p.willett@sheffield.ac.uk Phone: +44 (0) 114-2825083 Fax: +44 (0) 114-2780300 For Asia and the Pacific: Arcot Desai Narasimhalu Institute of Systems Science National University of Singapore Heng Mui Keng Terrace Singapore 0511 Republic of Singapore Email: desai@iss.nus.sg Phone: +65 7722002 Fax: + 65 7744990 PROGRAM COMMITTEE IJsbrand Jan Aalbersberg, Phillips, The Netherlands Maristella Agosti, Univ. of Padua, Italy Micheline Beaulieu, City Univ., UK Peter Bruza, QUT, Australia Chris Buckley, Cornell Univ., USA Forbes Burkowski, Univ. of Waterloo, Canada James Callan, Univ. of Massachusetts, USA Raman Chandrasekar, NCST, India Yves Chiaramella, CLIPS-IMAG, France Hsinchun Chen, Univ. of Arizona, USA Mark Chignell, Univ. of Toronto, Canada Ken Church, AT\&T, USA W. Bruce Croft, Univ. of Massachusetts, USA Susan Dumais, Bellcore, USA Leo Egghe, Limburgs Univ. Centrum, Belgium David Ellis, Univ. of Sheffield, UK Jim French, Univ. of Virginia, USA Hans-Peter Frei, UBILAB, Switzerland Norbert Fuhr, Univ. Dortmund, Germany Gregory Grefenstette, Rank Xerox, France Donna Harman, NIST, USA David Harper, Robert Gordon Univ., UK Marti Hearst, Xerox, USA Bill Hersh, Oregon Health Sciences Univ., USA Haym Hirsh, Rutgers Univ., USA David Hull, Rank Xerox, France Peter Ingwersen, Royal School of Librarianship, Denmark Tetsuya Ishikawa, Univ. of Library and Info. Sci., Japan Kalervo Jarvelin, University of Tampere, Finland Haruo Kimoto, NTT, Japan Judith Klavans, Columbia University ,USA Shmuel Klein, Bar-Ilan Univ., Israel Robert Korfhage, Univ. of Pittsburgh, USA K. L. Kwok, Queens College, CUNY, USA Dik Lee, HKUST, Hong Kong Joon Ho Lee, KRDIC, Korea David Lewis, AT\&T, USA Elizabeth Liddy, Syracuse Univ., USA Dario Lucarella, CRA-ENEL, Italy Kathy McKeowan, Columbia Univ., USA Elke Mittendorf, ETH Zentrum, Switzerland Alistair Moffat, Univ. of Melbourne, Australia Sung Hyun Myaeng, Chungnam National Univ., Korea Jan Pedersen, Verity, USA Annelise Pejtersen, National Laboratory, Denmark Keith van Rijsbergen, Glasgow University, UK Ellen Riloff, Univ. of Utah, USA Stephen Robertson, City Univ., UK Airi Salminen, Univ. of Jyvaskyla, Finland Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers Univ., USA Peter Schauble, ETH Zentrum, Switzerland Fabrizio Sebastiani, IEI-CHR, Italy Alan Smeaton, Dublin City Univ., Ireland Phil Smith, Ohio State Univ., USA Craig Stanfill, Ab Initio, USA Ulrich Thiel, GMD IPSI, Germany Richard Tong, Sageware, USA Howard Turtle, West Info. Pub. Gp., USA Ross Wilkinson, RMIT, Australia Mei-Mei Wu, National Taiwan Normal Univ., Taiwan Emannuel Yannakoudakis, Athens Univ. of Economics, Greece ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 10:22:38 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Hazel Blumberg-McKee Subject: Header letters. On Wed, 6 Nov 1996, Seth A. Maislin wrote: > Do you think an index should have letter heads? For example: I like to put in header letters. I think they make life easier for readers. The letters prevent the reader from being hit with nothing but teeny (in many indexes) and monotonous walls of type. > ...or would you drop the "ABC" altogether and simply use small spaces > between the letters: I normally double-space my indexes, and I quadruple-space between alphabetic groups, whether or not I add the header letters. A lot of this style question depends on what the publisher wants, I think. > ... or would you not even bother putting spaces in the index? > > abacus, 000 > alabaster, 000 > axis, 000 > bombastic noises, 000 > Charles River, 000 EEEEeeeeek! No, I'd veto this choice completely. I teach the USDA Basic Indexing course, and I mark off when students don't put extra space between alphabetic blocks. I think this last choice makes it well-nigh impossible for readers to find material in the index. Hazel Hazel Blumberg-McKee (hazelcb@polaris.net) "When I was a boy, I was told that anybody could become president. I'm beginning to believe it."--Clarence Darrow ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 11:00:22 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: DBRENNER@AOL.COM Subject: Re: letter headings in index My own preference is for no letter headings -- so often with letters Q, X etc. there's only one entry. The letter headings seem silly and unnecessary and definitely take up space. BUT, I do like separating out each group with spaces between A's and B's etc. Visually it just makes everything easier to scan if, say, you want to go from bombastic noises, 000 to meaning, quintessential, 000 without having to search too much. Diane Brenner Worthington, MA ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 10:47:48 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Wildefire@AOL.COM Subject: Re: letter headings in index In a message dated 96-11-06 00:33:20 EST, Seth wrote: > Do you think an index should have letter heads? For example: > > A > abacus, 000 > alabaster, 000 > axis, 000 > ...or would you drop the "ABC" altogether and simply use small spaces > between the letters: > > abacus, 000 > alabaster, 000 > axis, 000 > > bombastic noises, 000 Seth, Now this is an interesting question that I had never thought about until now. ;-D Come to think of it, I don't think that letter headings are really necessary and jettisoning them would certainly save space. After all, it's pretty obvious by the main headings what the letter groupings are. (Though, I should've looked a bit closer at that index I sent out last week without the E's. Fortunately, the client knew that there had to be E's in a book full of references to evolution, Europe, etc. ;-D) However, I would keep them in an index containing numbers and/or symbols at the beginning (with an appropriate heading for that group) as it may be a bit disconcerting without them. I'd use the rest of the letter headings in this case for the sake of consistency. > ... or would you not even bother putting spaces in the index? > > abacus, 000 > alabaster, 000 > axis, 000 > bombastic noises, 000 > Charles River, 000 I'd definitely keep the spaces between the letter groupings. IMHO, it is a user-friendly visual cue made even more necessary by the absence of letter headings. Bombastic noises? Is this a stream of consciousness induced by the recent presidential campaigns? ;-D Lynn Moncrief TECHindex & Docs Technical and Scientific Indexing ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 11:18:54 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: JanCW@AOL.COM Subject: Re: letter headings in index In a message dated 96-11-06 00:33:19 EST, seth writes: > Do you think an index should have letter heads? You know, I never thought it mattered until I sat in on a session that Lori Lathrop taught on indexing. She asked the group of technical writers to look at 5 indexes, and pick out the best one. When asked for reasons why on their choices, one otherwise fine index was set aside because it did NOT have letter heads. So people perceived that as a flaw.... It was very interesting to sit and listen to the group make up their minds and their rationales... And here I sometimes delete the heads to save space! Not any more! Jan Wright ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 11:17:53 -0600 Reply-To: becohen@prairienet.org Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: "Barbara E. Cohen" Subject: Re: Letter heads Seth: I prefer no letters before the block of text for a letter, but spacces between each letter block. If necessary, the first letter of each new letter block can be bold, which takes up less room (I always seem to be fighting for those 26 lines) and looks neater, to my eye. What I really hate at all costs is no space between the letter blocks. Only a designer who isn't trying to read anything in the index could think this is a good idea... even the text pages themselves are broken by white space, after all. One thing I saw recently that I thought was sad was a photo sharing the page with an inadequate index.... I'm sure the indexer who had to condense the index into uselessness would have liked that extra column where the picture was. It LOOKED great, but as an information resource, the picture was not worth 1,000 words. Barbara -- Barbara E. Cohen Indexing & Editorial Services Champaign, IL ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 12:23:54 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: "Cynthia D. Bertelsen" Subject: Re: letter heads and ? on marketing At 11:18 AM 11/6/96 -0500, JanCW@AOL.COM wrote: >In a message dated 96-11-06 00:33:19 EST, seth writes: > >> Do you think an index should have letter heads? I would imagine that it depends on what the client wants. If there is space in the index for this and the use of letter heads fits the press style, then letter heads are used. Otherwise, it seems that the most preferred style is one where there are spaces between the alphabetical entries. I agree that having no break of any sort between entries is extremely bad practice, as it does make it nearly impossible to sense where one letter group begins and another ends. While I am here, I have a question. I have been doing some marketing these last few weeks and today I called a number of presses to whom I had sent my marketing packets. I was amazed at the number of presses which seemed to prefer author indexes, saying their authors are happy (!) to do the indexes themselves. How in the world can we break through and PROVE that most of the time professional indexers do better indexes? Could we ask to do an index for a book that the author is also doing, with the same restrictions on length, etc. and then the editor could compare the two? I know that there have been some studies on author-generated indexes vs. professional, but perhaps there should be something closer to home like a comparison like this. (I know--maybe the author creates a whiz-bang index; then what?) Or maybe one could take a book that has an author-generated index and create a better one? How can this be measured? Yes, there are standards but the real test--proof of the pudding--is the user of the index. I am not advocating quoting academic reserach studies to editors--they don't have the time to listen. But I really would like to be able to have something concrete to come back with when I get statements like that. What do you think? ************ Cynthia D. Bertelsen INDEXER Blacksburg, VA cbertel@nrv.net http://www.vt.edu:10021/B/bertel/ndx.html ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 12:42:12 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Hazel Blumberg-McKee Subject: Header letters. (fwd) I apologize if this has appeared in the list twice. I've set Index-L to "ACK," but no "ACK" emerged, so my posting may've gotten lost in some computer burp. Hazel ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 10:22:38 -0500 (EST) From: Hazel Blumberg-McKee To: Index-L Subject: Header letters. On Wed, 6 Nov 1996, Seth A. Maislin wrote: > Do you think an index should have letter heads? For example: I like to put in header letters. I think they make life easier for readers. The letters prevent the reader from being hit with nothing but teeny (in many indexes) and monotonous walls of type. > ...or would you drop the "ABC" altogether and simply use small spaces > between the letters: I normally double-space my indexes, and I quadruple-space between alphabetic groups, whether or not I add the header letters. A lot of this style question depends on what the publisher wants, I think. > ... or would you not even bother putting spaces in the index? > > abacus, 000 > alabaster, 000 > axis, 000 > bombastic noises, 000 > Charles River, 000 EEEEeeeeek! No, I'd veto this choice completely. I teach the USDA Basic Indexing course, and I mark off when students don't put extra space between alphabetic blocks. I think this last choice makes it well-nigh impossible for readers to find material in the index. Hazel Hazel Blumberg-McKee (hazelcb@polaris.net) "When I was a boy, I was told that anybody could become president. I'm beginning to believe it."--Clarence Darrow ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 14:16:01 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: JPerlman@AOL.COM Subject: Re: letter headings in index I don't usually have a choice as to whether or not to use the letters themselves. All of the presses I work for have sent me their style materials, and they all use letters. Point of the matter is that I didn't set the style, the client did. If I had my druthers, I'd remove the letter, since it is an extra item. The space delineates the different blocks of information well enough, to my point of view. I think, though, that Jan and Lori are correct -- that this may be perceived as a flaw. Nonetheless, I think it is a frill to use the letters. My vote would be for space, no letters. Janet Perlman Southwest Indexing ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 28 Oct 1996 09:57:34 +0000 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group Comments: Authenticated sender is From: jfarned@RAIN.ORG Subject: Indexing opportunity Hello fellow indexers. I work with a group called The Information Bank. We are a collective of indexers in Santa Barbara, CA. We also run a Bed & Breakfast inn, and we currently have a position available. In exchange for twenty five hours a week working in our B&B we offer room and board, and an opportunity to get involved with our indexing business. We have nearly twenty years experience working mostly with university presses. Check out our web-page if you like (We are still working on it!:)). Interested parties please respond by e-mail. Sincerely, Shannon Smith ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Summerland Inn~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2161 Ortega Hill Road, Summerland, CA 93067 (805) 969-5225 ~~~~~~~~~Web Site http://www.rain.org/~jfarned/~~~~~~~~~~ ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 21:47:10 -0700 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Philip and Heather Jones Subject: philosophy index I'm doing my first-ever philosophy book index, and I'd like to know those of you with experience in these things handle entries such as this: Do you write, for example a)Life, purpose of pursuit of chocolate, 10 pursuit of cool Web sites, 15 union with God, 71 or b)Life, purpose of Hume on, 71 Kant on, 10 Plato on, 15 Actually, it's clear to me that I need all the philosophers as subentries, but should I also put in what the specific belief (pursuit of chocolate) is, even though this will mean listing locators twice? Or do example a) and then have a "See also under individual philosophers"? If it makes a difference,this is not a reference-type book, but a book that people will read cover to cover. Any other tips on indexing philosophy books will be appreciated! Heather Jones /---------------------------------------------------------------------\ | There are such things as cause and effect, but they have nothing to | | do with each other... | |---------------------------------------------------------------------| | Phil, Heather, Doug and Ivy Jones hpjones@rt66.com | | Los Alamos, NM | \---------------------------------------------------------------------/ ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 13:17:50 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Hazel Blumberg-McKee Subject: AOL Alert I read about AOL's new pricing policy on another listserv. All of you folks who're on AOL may already know about the new policy, but if not, thought I'd pass this on to you. Hazel Blumberg-McKee (hazelcb@polaris.net) Democrats buy most of the books that have been banned somewhere. Republicans form censorship committees and read them as a group.--Anon. ---------- Forwarded message ----------(from Copyediting-L) >I have just learned of something that I thought other AOL members >should know about if they don't already. When the new pricing plan >goes into effect next month, you will *automatically* be switched to >it unless you specify otherwise beforehand. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 13:44:55 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Barbara Stroup Subject: help with diacriticals Here's a question I haven't seen before and I wonder if anyone can comment... I'm searching my character code maps for some diacriticals for non-English text that appears in my current index and I wonder if other indexers export their work out of DOS-based indexing software in order to apply these characters through Windows-based word processor software? I've been simply sending off the best and cleanest copy I can get from Cindex but it occurs to me that I would have a more plentiful character map and more control over my fonts, etc. from Windows. I wonder if others do this in order to send off a more polished, "publishable" look? (for computer sophisticates - which I am only borderline - I attempted to install special DOS drivers when I got my new printer and computer so that I could improve the page from DOS. However, the autoexec.bat was altered so that Windows wouldn't boot up - so and I had to delete them.) Thanks to all for comments, if any. I promise not to post this 3 times if I don't get any!!!! Barbara Stroup Indexer Barbara Stroup Indexer ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 15:21:46 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: JanCW@AOL.COM Subject: Re: help with diacriticals In a message dated 96-11-07 14:05:42 EST, you write: > I'm searching my character code maps for some diacriticals for non-English > text that appears in my current index and I wonder if other indexers export > their work out of DOS-based indexing software in order to apply these > characters through Windows-based word processor software? This is a good question. I have found in having some of my indexes translated that the diacriticals can get changed between CINDEX's display and Windows Word's display. I always use the Alt-number symbols in Cindex, even though in Word you can insert symbols through a pull down menu. We have found the ones in the pull down menu don't stay correctly in the files when translated, because they are a special font, not a character code. So be careful applying these symbols in Windows - they could get lost. This is the one thing that drives me insane, as I read indexing in from Windows and export it out all the time to Windows. I sometimes hand off an Excel file for a translator to work on: they translate the file and then I take it back and reimport it into Cindex. When I get a translated index back, and the symbol font was used instead of the Alt codes, Cindex gives me strange characters that I have to search and replace for correctly, hard to do when you don't speak Dutch or whatever. Jan Wright ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 12:43:40 -0800 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Elinor Lindheimer Subject: Re: help with diacriticals Some notes for Barbara Stroup: I keep an ASCII chart near my computer (and there's even one I can keep in a window if I want--but I don't bother) and insert the code for the accented characters as I come upon them. Macrex (and I'm sure Cindex can do the same) exports the ASCII characters into whatever word processor (or generic-coded ASCII file) I choose. I NEVER deliver an index without running it through my word processor (I use XyWrite), because I always put in notes to myself, or add or delete little things, or compare one version with another in various windows, etc. I can't imagine not having the control that a word processor has when running through the final version, even if our up-to-date indexing programs minimize the final editing stage. However, and this is important, if you are embedding your index as email, or sending generic-coded ASCII file, you must also use generic codes (i.e. e) rather than the actual characters. You then, of course, include examples of all the codes you use in an accompanying note--or at the top of the index. As for your AUTOEXEC.BAT problem, you should first make backups of all your AUTOEXEC.BAT files, and also CONFIG.SYS. Then add your new drivers, and look at CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT with a DOS-based editor (there's one supplied with DOS, or you can use NOTEPAD in Windows) to see how or whether you need to make any changes. Print out and compare the version that works with the version that doesn't--that's always a help. You can insert, delete, etc. in the DOS-based editor to customize these boot files. Always, of course, keep your old files (renamed *.OLD, etc.). Remember you need to reboot in order for the changes to take effect. Hope this helps! Elinor Lindheimer elinorl@mcn.org ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 16:51:04 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Wildefire@AOL.COM Subject: Re: help with diacriticals In a message dated 96-11-07 14:05:46 EST, Barbara wrote: > Here's a question I haven't seen before and I wonder if anyone can comment... > I'm searching my character code maps for some diacriticals for non-English > text that appears in my current index and I wonder if other indexers export > their work out of DOS-based indexing software in order to apply these > characters through Windows-based word processor software? > I've been simply sending off the best and cleanest copy I can get from > Cindex but it occurs to me that I would have a more plentiful character map > and more control over my fonts, etc. from Windows. I wonder if others do > this in order to send off a more polished, "publishable" look? Barbara, I bring my Macrex files over into Word for Windows where I have access to a wide array of fonts so that diacritical marks, Greek letters, and scientific symbols will show up as they should in the index I send off to the publisher. Macrex has the capability of producing many of these characters, but I found that I was having to reproduce quite a few that Macrex couldn't handle. So, when I was between projects, over a year ago, I spent a day or two creating a "cheat sheet" which shows each symbol, which fonts on my system contain it and what keypresses are necessary to create it. It took a lot of messing around with the Windows applet called Character Map to create the "cheat sheet" but it was worth the effort. (The cheat sheet also contains generic (typesetter's) codes for each symbol, so it's extremely useful for situations where I have to produce an ASCII file of an index containing generic codes and a word-processed version showing the actual characters.) You probably don't have to create a cheat sheet like I did, but the Character Map applet is what will help you create those characters with diacritical marks that your indexing software can't handle. Character Map is located in your Accessories folder (Win95) or program group (Win 3.1). For diacritical marks, I recommend displaying the Times New Roman font, which is quite likely to have the character you need, though not the really weird ones like the macron or reverse cedilla. (I couldn't find those in any of the fonts on my system and I have so many that it took Win 3.1 all day to load. ;-D) For Greek characters, use the Symbol font which contains all of them in upper and lowercase. For unusual scientific and math symbols not contained in the symbol font, try the Lucida Bright Math Symbol and Lucida Bright Math Extension fonts. (I'm not sure if these two fonts came with Windows or if they came with some of the font packages I bought in a font-buying binge a few years ago.) Believe me, I've even had to use the center dot or large multiplication sign in an entry for a particular vector dot or cross product in a physics or math index, so these fonts can come in handy. Using the Character Map applet, you can either copy the symbol itself to the clipboard and paste it into your index or you can use the necessary keypress (which it displays) and apply the proper font to the character in your word processor. I think Norton Desktop, if you use it, has a similar applet called KeyFinder. Both of these Windows-based applets beat messing around with your autoexec.bat file to install special DOS drivers (aiiish!) like you did. ;-D Lynn Moncrief TECHindex & Docs Technical and Scientific Indexing ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 22:00:00 GMT0 Reply-To: jsampson@cix.compulink.co.uk Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: John Sampson Subject: Re: help with diacriticals I too have a problem with diacriticals. At the moment I use LQMATRIX, a shareware font editor, to download a font to my 24-pin printer. By including the appropriate instructions in the printer code table in CINDEX, I can print any character I draw. To do a diacritical, I draw it as a character, and include ASCII 8 (backspace) in the printer code, so the diacritical can go on to the preceding letter. This can be called from the index using an escape code similar to those for italic or bold. The result is crude but it does indicate on hard copy where the diacriticals are to be. I can give more detail if desired. I have had no end of trouble finding appropriate fonts for using in a Windows word processor. There are Windows font editors, but they seem too expensive for the occasional use they would probably get. _John Sampson_ ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 17:52:33 -0500 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Wildefire@AOL.COM Subject: Re: help with diacriticals In a message dated 96-11-07 16:38:23 EST, Elinor wrote in response to Barbara: > However, and this is important, if you are embedding your index as > email, or sending generic-coded ASCII file, you must also use generic codes > (i.e. e) rather than the actual characters. You then, of course, > include examples of all the codes you use in an accompanying note--or at the > top of the index. Elinor, That's a good tip! I have always depended on the client taking care of that with the typesetter, unless they specifically ask the entire index as a generic-coded ASCII file, but I'll certainly do that in the future. One way to get word-processor files attached to email across the Internet cleanly is to first encode the file using WinCode or the DOS-based UUENCODE shareware programs. This converts the file (which is a binary file) to an ASCII file. However, before anyone does this, I strongly recommend checking with the client first to ensure that they also have WinCode or UUDECODE so that they can convert it back to a binary file when they receive it. When the client has an online account on the same online service that the indexer is using (such as AOL), the file transfers quite cleanly without encoding/decoding it. Just in case anyone is confused, this encoding is a totally different animal from what Elinor mentioned (generic codes for typesetters). The generic codes she mentioned ensure that the file is typeset accurately (regardless of whether it's a binary file or an ASCII file), whereas the encoding I just mentioned converts the entire file to ASCII so that it won't get trashed over the Net, having nothing to do with typesetting per se. Another way to get binary files across the Net unscathed is to use a mailreader that robustly supports MIME extensions. (Probably the client needs to have MIME support on his or her mailreader as well.) I found that the NetCruiser mailreader program included with my NetCom account can send word processor files quite nicely without any need to massage them before mailing them unless they are too large (requiring compression first). AOL's mailreader, OTOH, falls flat on its face and non-encoded files sent over the Net from it arrive as garbage (having learned this the hard way). ;-D Yet other ways, in brief, that I've transferred files cleanly over the Net to clients include FTP and direct connection to the client's own internal network (using a remote version of their network software to get through the firewall). But both of these are methods that are only rarely available as options (though it doesn't hurt to ask, especially the client is a software company, which is more likely to be on the leading edge of these types of things). Lynn Moncrief TECHindex & Docs Technical and Scientific Indexing ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 17:09:45 -0800 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Elinor Lindheimer Subject: generic coding help Anyone interested in generic coding might want to get a copy of GENERIC MARKUP OF ELECTRONIC INDEX MANUSCRIPTS, by Hugh Maddocks. It's available from ASI for $6 members or $8 nonmembers (that's $3 or $5 plus $3 postage for 1-4 copies--postage is $5 for 5-9 copies, or $7.50 for 10 or more. Elinor Lindheimer elinorl@mcn.org ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 23:29:09 -0800 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Ann Truesdale Subject: Ergonomics again, web sites The Dec issue of _PC Novice_ magazine lists these web sites for information on ergonomics: http://engr-www.unl.edu/ee/eeshop/rsi.html U. of Nebraska, advice on prevention of rsi when using computers http://ergo.human.cornell.edu Cornell, advice on choosing keyboard & using mouse http://www.agilecorp.com/ergonomics/AboutThisSite.html Data about ergonomics and products http://www.cs.princeton.edu/~dwallach/tifaq/keyboards.hmtl The Typing Injury FAQ; great resource for info on different keyboards http://web.mit.edu:1962/tiserve.mit.edu/9000/34823.html Advice on symptoms and prevention of RSI Sorry, I don't know how to set up those neat links to web sites! -- Ann Truesdale (Anntrue@ix.netcom.com) Yonges Island, SC Definition of insanity: Continuing to do the same thing and expecting to get different results ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 8 Nov 1996 17:15:23 +1300 Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Simon Cauchi Subject: letter headings Here are my thoughts, FWTW, on Seth A. Maislin's question about letter headings in an index. I think it's a design point. If the book's design is particularly spacious, the addition of letter headings may help to maintain the impression of spaciousness, thus: A [and let it be rather a handsome capital letter, perhaps in bold] abacus, 000 alabaster, 000 axis, 000 B [ditto] bombastic noises, 000 C [ditto] Charles River, 000 I have used this style in tables of cases, legislation, etc., of a law report series. OTOH, if the book's design is merely functional, practical, and serviceable, line spaces are quite enough, thus: abacus, 000 alabaster, 000 axis, 000 bombastic noises, 000 Charles River, 000 This is how my indexes usually appear in print. I have occasionally seen a drop initial used for the first word of each alphabetical grouping, but have never used that device myself. FINALLY, if the book's design is severely cramped, and if there is no other way of squeezing an index into the space available for it, even after reducing it to very small type, then you can leave out the line spaces, thus: abacus, 000 alabaster, 000 axis, 000 bombastic noises, 000 Charles River, 000 This was done to one of my indexes (after it left my hands), and the publisher responsible was advised in plain terms not to do it again. From Simon Cauchi, Freelance Editor and Indexer 13 Riverview Terrace, Hamilton, New Zealand Telephone and facsimile +64 7 854 9229, e-mail cauchi@wave.co.nz