[tei-council] the pdf guidelines, a battle not a war

[Sebastian Rahtz]

David Sewell wrote:
> In the experience of most publishers, the best indexes are usually
> produced by professional indexers rather than authors. But it definitely
> isn't cheap--cost would range upwards of £2 or $4 per page-equivalent.
> I shouldn't think it would be hard to find someone with experience
> working with technical documentation.
>   
agreed. The LaTeX Graphics Companion (2nd edition)
went through this last year with a professional indexer.
Personally, I was not convinced, and it was a hell of
job getting his stuff into the text, but it was doable. Whether
it's worth (say) £2000 I am not sure.
> Is there any budget for paying an indexer?
>   
it's not foreseen at the moment, but you could try making
the case to the Board. We now reach a point where we have
to decide whether and how to print big purple books
and sell them. If a professional index would make them
sell better, it may be sensible.

I sometimes wonder whether we should not sell two volumes
separately, the main chapters and the reference material,
since the reference material is so much better online.

-- 
Sebastian Rahtz      
Information Manager, Oxford University Computing Services
13 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 6NN. Phone +44 1865 283431