Posts Tagged ‘embedded indexing’

ASI 2021 Virtual Conference: Embedded Indexing–Tackling the Enigma

Tuesday, September 7th, 2021

The American Society for Indexing held its 2021 Virtual Conference, “Get Your Indexing Shot in the Arm,” on Friday, April 30, 2021 and Saturday, May 1, 2021.  Three sessions were held virtually on Zoom each day.

In the second session on Saturday, Embedded Indexing: Tackling the Enigma, Devon Thomas and Heather Pendley discussed how embedded indexing differs from back-of-the-book in terms of both book production and indexing processes.  They gave examples of several kinds of embedded indexes and an overview of the tools used to create them.

The main differences are as follows:

  • The files you get are not in final format.  Sometimes, there are multiple files (one for each chapter) or normalized files.
  • The files often need to be checked out and checked back in using a version control system.
  • When embedding tags, you are working within the system used to produce the book, such as Word, InDesign, or XML-coded text files.
  • The native system often has limitations on the appearance or structure of the index.
  • After embedding index tags, you need to use the native system to generate a formatted version of the index.
  • When editing your index, you should locate the index tags in the source files and edit them one by one.  Word and InDesign let you jump to the index tag from the generated index.  With text files, you need to open all of the source files in your editor and do a global search.

The presenters emphasized the importance of charging more for embedded indexes, allowing more time to create embedded indexes, and exploring available tools to speed and ease the process.

In the next blog posting I will discuss the third Saturday session of the ASI 2021 Virtual Conference.  For more information about the services provided by the author of this blog, see the Stellar Searches LLC website, http://www.stellarsearches.com.

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ASI Virtual Conference: Before You Say Yes (Or No)

Tuesday, September 1st, 2020

This is the fifth in a series of blog postings on the American Society for Indexing’s (ASI) Virtual Conference, held on Saturday, May 2nd.  The Annual Conference in Raleigh, North Carolina was postponed until 2021 because of COVID-19.

Held on Zoom, the fifth session, Before You Say Yes (Or No), presented by Anne Fifer, focused on how to evaluate an indexing project before accepting–or declining.    To evaluate a potential project, she suggested asking questions about the client, the client’s indexing expectations, and questions about the text.

Questions about the client:

  • How did the client find you?
  • What does the client know about the indexing process?
  • Will the client treat you like a professional?
  • Will there be respect for personal boundaries?

Questions about the client’s indexing expectations:

  • Is this an embedded indexing, standard back-of-the-book, or e-book indexing project?
  • Expectations for length or granularity of the index.
  • Project style, layout, and typography requirements.
  • What is the turnaround time?  When will the manuscript be available for indexing?

Questions about the text:

  • How structured is the text?
  • Evaluate the topic and level of subject.  Is the topic in your comfort zone?
  • How will the quality of writing affect the indexing process?
  • Determine what needs to be indexed.  Are there special elements, for example: illustrations, tables, footnotes or endnotes, or appendices?
  • Evaluate several chapters from the middle of the book to assess the quality of the writing and the organization of the book.

I will discuss the sixth session of the Virtual Conference in the next blog posting.  For more information about the services provided by the author of this blog, see the Stellar Searches LLC website, http://www.stellarsearches.com

 

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ASI Virtual Conference: Time Management Techniques

Monday, June 1st, 2020

This is the second in a series of blog postings on the American Society for Indexing’s (ASI) Virtual Conference, held on Saturday, May 2nd.  The Annual Conference in Raleigh, North Carolina was postponed until 2021 because of COVID-19.

Held on Zoom, the second session, New Time Management Techniques for the Savvy Indexer, was presented by Diana Witt.

She started with a review of basic time management techniques.  She recommended using time tracking tools to see how fast you are indexing.  Dedicated indexing software often keeps track of how long you have been indexing in a session.

Although she said embedded indexing is slower than back-of-the-book indexing, software such as Index Manager can reduce the amount of typing by highlighting terms and, thus, increase speed.

She said it is important to manage the amount of time spent on clients’ e-mails.  Be sure to give a prompt response and have indexing samples ready in case they are requested.

She also focused on how publishing industry changes have impacted our ability to manage our time and workflow.  She described portal systems now used by publishers, which are third party billing systems that require more documentation.  These changes have greatly increased the amount of time indexers must spend on non-indexing tasks in order to run their businesses efficiently.

I will discuss the third session of the Virtual Conference in the next blog posting.  For more information about the services provided by the author of this blog, see the Stellar Searches LLC website, http://www.stellarsearches.com

 

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