Date: Mon, 30 Nov 1992 15:11:49 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: "Nancy C. Mulvany" Subject: Bidding by the Line ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- Re: Bidding by the Line "Perhaps I'm unusually dense; but can somebody please give a standard definition for a "line" of indexing? I was recently asked to quote a rate for a job based on cost per line, and haven't the foggiest notion of how to reply!" You're not dense! There is no "standard definition" for a line of index -- that's one of the problems with this costing format. So, you need to ask your client what they mean by a line. Is it a final, formatted, typeset line? Is it a line on your (the indexer's) manuscript copy? Are they *really* talking about lines or entries? Often this format is used because someone thinks it will be easier to nail down the price of the index. For example, let's say that there will be room for 800 lines of index -- that's typeset lines (@ 50 lines per column; 2 columns per page; 8 pages for the index). So, if you charge 80 cents/line, that will come to $640.00 for the index. Now be careful because this type of costings does not take into account the difference between the following two types of entries (each are a line): dogs, 35, 89-93, 225-230, 378-386 horses, 12 Needless to say, there are lots of other aspects of the index that are not taken into account this way. In my experience, those who try to use this type of costing format are often the some ones who do not leave much space for the index. Therefore they only have room for a short index and want to pay less for the short index than what they would pay for an adequate index. In this type of situation (where space is the problem), I suggest that they go for a standard "per page rate" and ask the indexer to index only every third page, skipping the other pages! :-} (I am joking, of course!) -nancy nmulvany@well.sf.ca.us