TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:Re[2]: What sayest me... on Worthless TC Degrees From:Harry Hager <hhager -at- dttus -dot- com> To:techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com, jposada01 -at- yahoo -dot- com Date:24 Mar 2000 14:19:04 -0600
John,
You wrote:
>Don't get me wrong...indexes are important...only because books are
structured so poorly. If the book was arranged well, the index
wouldn't be needed.<
Your kidding, right?
If you think an index is not needed, I have some questions:
- How do you go about discussing or mentioning the ABC window in only
one place in the book?
- Do you discuss the ABC window in relation to the other windows in
the book? If so, don't you need an index hit for these?
- How do you go about discussing or mentioning the XYZ function in
only one place in the book?
- Do you discuss the XYZ function in relation to the other functions
in the book? If so, don't you need an index hit for these?
- How do you go about cramming EVERYTHING about the ABC window in one
place in your book? If it's discussed in two or more places, don't you
you need two or more index hits.
- How do you go about cramming EVERYTHING about the XYZ function in
one place in your book? If it's discussed in two or more places, don't
you need two or more index hits.
- Does your book have any cross references? If yes, don't you need an
index hit for each occurrence .
So you don't want to help the user navigate your book? Why not
eliminate the TOC also. After all, if the book is well-organized, the
reader can look at the headers and footers to see the organization of
the book and to see where information is discussed. But then maybe
headers and footers aren't needed either because with a well-organized
book, the reader will know instantly where everything is just by
browsing through the book. <heavy sarcasm>
Wow. What a concept. This job gets easier everyday. <more heavy
sarcasm>
