Re: Indexing Software

**A*@aol.com**

Donna,

There are several indexing programs available, but probably the most widely 
used by professional indexers is Cindex, which runs $500 for either the Windows 
or Mac version and is available from Indexing Research at www.indexres.com. 

The price of the software plus the fact that there is a learning curve which 
can be very frustrating to a beginner discourages writers from buying it and 
using it for one book every year or two. And, it does not, I emphasize not, 
work as you write your book.  Instead, after the page proofs are available, the 
indexer reads each page, decides what is indexable on the page, enters it in 
the file for that index, and builds the index, entry by entry, page by page, to 
the end of the book -- in what is actually a very creative, intuitive process. 
Then comes the editing  where similar entries are consolidated, lengthening 
or shortening takes place to fit the amount of space available for the index, 
etc.  And finally, the proofreading, which alone can and does take an enormous 
amount of time (those page numbers must be correct!).  In the end, a finished 
index is produced.  It's very exacting work requiring an enormous amount of 
patience, and generally not the kind of thing a writer would (or should) 
undertake. 

As to programs that pick up key words as you type your manuscript, while I 
believe you can do this in Word, and probably other programs, I don't think 
you'd be happy with the index it would produce.  For example,  Word doesn't know 
that columbine and Aquilegia are the same, or that Quercus alba is the white 
oak -- but the brain knows. The discerning brain matters, and the computer 
doesn't have it!!

Your best bet is to have your book (I assume from your question that you're 
writing a book) indexed by a professional indexer. Many publishers have a list 
of indexers they prefer to work with and with whom they make all the 
arrangements -- contracts, payment, etc, so you don't have to fiddle with these 
details. You should ask your publisher if they ordinarily make the necessary 
arrangements, and if not, if they have a list of indexers they prefer to work with, so 
you can contact them directly. 

If your publisher doesn't have a list, then you need to find an indexer 
yourself.  There are a couple of excellent resources to do this.  

(1) Under the aegis of the American Society of Indexing there are several 
sub-groups of indexers (called SIGs) whose members specialize in various areas, 
i.e., law, medicine, history, etc. Since you are writing on the GWL site, I'm 
assuming that your book is about gardening in some form, so you want the 
gardening SIG, whose members specialize in botany, gardening, horticulture, 
landscape design, agriculture, etc. You can reach the SIG at  www.bioindexing.org.  
Click on "Find an indexer" and scroll down to an alphabetical list of indexers 
who specialize in this field. Or, you can click "Categorical Listing of 
Members" to find an indexer who specializes in your format, i.e., book (that's where 
you'll find my name), newletters, electronic media, etc. 

(2) Indexers Unlimited is another group all of whom also have various 
specialties, as with ASI, above. Most of the indexers at Indexers Unlimited are also 
members of ASI or the Canadian Indexing Society. The group has intentionally 
been kept small -- the membership is capped at 50 -- and they have been 
carefully vetted to make sure that each one has a certain number of years experience 
plus good references from editors.  I believe there's a waiting list of people 
who want to join and can't because none of us who are in the group have any 
intention of dropping out! They can be reached at www.indexersunlimited.org. 
Click on "Find an Indexer", then scroll to "Gardening" and click. At the moment 
there are 14 indexers listed there in that specialty, including my name -- as 
you've probably gathered by now, I'm an indexer, so I know a little bit about 
the process, and how to find a good one!

Hope what I've written above was helpful to you and to all of you writers who 
wonder about the indexing process and how to find an indexer if your editor 
is totally unhelpful.

Finally, Donna, on a more personal note, I notice you're from Winchester, 
Virginia. Are you the Donna Williamson who at one time, I think, had a garden 
shop in Paeonian Springs and also presented a series of gardening programs either 
in Waterford or Paeonian Springs?  I never visited  the shop or took the 
series (although I passed it often, at the time I was caring for a very ill mother 
in Hillsboro, and didn't have time to do any "fun" stuff), but I heard from 
several people that the series was splendid and that you had wonderful plants. 
I almost never go that way anymore, so I don't know if the shop is still 
there. 

Good luck with your book!

Lina Burton
Aldie, Virginia

**************************************
 See what's free at http://www.aol.com.
_______________________________________________
gardenwriters mailing list
gardenwriters@lists.ibiblio.org
http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/gardenwriters

GWL has searchable archives at:
http://www.hort.net/lists/gardenwriters

Send photos for GWL to gwlphotos@hort.net to be posted
at: http://www.hort.net/lists/gwlphotos

Post gardening questions/threads to
&quot;Gardenwriters on Gardening&quot; &lt;gwl-g@lists.ibiblio.org&gt;

For GWL website and Wiki, go to
http://www.ibiblio.org/gardenwriters