Re: Page ranges in an index

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

In response to Roy Jacobsen (rajacobse -at- gps -dot- com), who asked whether it is
more useful to reference the range of pages or just reference the page on
which the procedure begins ....

If you use page ranges, the index is more useful to your readers because
they can determine where the bulk of discussions are.  For example, if you
create an entry like:

        calibrating veeblefetzers  9, 18-22, 41

your readers will immediately see that pages 18-22 contain the most
substantive information on that topic and, chances are, they will refer to
that page range before referring to the other two page references.  BTW, if
you want to increase the usability of your index, you should double post
your entries; for example:

        veeblefetzers, calibrating  9, 18-22, 41

Back to page ranges ... I do have one client who has a unique rule:  if the
range spans 3 pages or less, they prefer to use just the page reference
where the discussion begins; for example:  "18" rather than "18-19" as a
page reference.  Their rationale is that information may be deleted when
they edit and revise their documentation and, consequently, the START and
END tags may end up on the same page or, perhaps, begin with a paragraph at
the bottom of one page that extends to the top of the next page.  I can
understand their reasoning; however, as an end user, I would find it
helpful to see a page range of "18-19" rather than just "18" because I
would know that the discussion probably begins at the bottom of page 18,
and I wouldn't waste my time reading the entire page.

I know that many tech writers find START and END tags cumbersome and would
prefer not to deal with them; however, it's a relatively small effort that
makes the index considerably more usable.

BTW, I hope none of you decide to use a nifty little macro to convert your
TOCs to indexes.  The end result may be something that "looks like" an
index but falls far short of providing any real retrievabiliy.  You are
likely to end up with entries such as:

        G
        Getting Started

        H
        How to Calibrate Your Veeblefetzers

        W
        When to Use Veeblefetzers

A *real* index is not a revamped TOC!  Your readers will *not* look under
"G" for "Getting Started" or under "H" for "How to ...." or under "W" for
"When ...."  Please remember that your index is just as important to your
documentation as your documentation is to the product.  If you can
comprehend that, you can comprehend the importance of creating a truly
"usable" index that allows your readers to retrieve every useful nugget of
information.  And now, I'll get off my little soapbox!  :-)

Lori
***********************************************************************
Lori Lathrop ---------->INTERNET:76620 -dot- 456 -at- compuserve -dot- com
VP/President-Elect, American Society of Indexers (ASI)
Lathrop Media Services, P.O. Box 3065, Idaho Springs, CO  80452
Office: 303-567-4447, ext. 28 / Fax: 303-567-9306
URL - http:idt.net/~lathro19 (note: that's a "nineteen" at the end)
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