========================================================================= Date: Mon, 30 Oct 1995 09:44:27 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Jonathan Jermey Subject: Re: Scanning Documents for Indexing ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- At 11:48 26/10/95 ECT, you wrote: >----------------------------Original message---------------------------- >Does anyone scan their printed final page proofs in order to have electronic >text available? This would allow the indexer to make use of the word >processor's find/search utilities and also to tag/mark specific areas/words, >in order to ensure the thoroughness of your work or maybe just as a >backup/verification. My understanding of scanning is that although OCR methods have improved a great deal, letter recognition is still not fully reliable. This would mean that a scanned document would have on the order of 1% - 2% errors, probably too many to make it worth relying on as a WP document. Scanning is also fairly slow on single-sheet (or handheld!) machines, while continuous-feed scanners, if such things exist, are very expensive. Add the fact that most proof pages have graphics and other material like headers and footers and the whole process becomes even more troublesome. So I would guess the short answer is no. However, once electronic document formats like Adobe Acrobat (and HTML) become more widely available then 'page proofs' may eventually become a thing of the past anyway.. Jonathan. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jonathan Jermey & Glenda Browne (Blue Mountains Desktop Pty Ltd. - ACN 071 232 016) Blaxland NSW Australia jonathan@magna.com.au Australian Wildlife in the Cheese Shop: "We had some, but the cat's eaten it." ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 30 Oct 1995 09:44:39 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Shirley Thistlewood Subject: ADA Update (fwd) ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- Shirley Thistlewood \ / Librarian, Medical Information Service ( ) Continuing Medical Education \|/ University of Calgary sthistle@acs.ucalgary.ca ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Wed, 25 Oct 1995 17:19:39 -0700 (PDT) From: KREINBRI@ada.org To: dentalib Subject: ADA Update NEWS FROM THE ADA LIBRARY We've been very busy here in Chicago, working on several fronts, although I cannot announce as much definitive progress in some areas as I had hoped. Sometimes things go smoothly and sometimes you have to deal with unexpected problems, but we'll keep at it. ... INDEXING We have had our share of problems here and they are far from being resolved. Due to unexpected staff vacancies and absences in this area, indexing fell farther behind this summer. That's why your 2nd and 3rd quarter IDLs were so late in arriving. Believe it or not good indexers are very hard to find. Indexing for Medline requires particular qualities and training. We have sought to hire temporary indexers to catch up with the backlog with very limited success so far. But we are are still pursuing this and will be rethinking our long-term indexing arrangements. Our first priority has been to catch up on 1995 indexing as much as possible. The whole indexing situation will be a major priority in the next year. We are still working on the serials review project. ... Mary Kreinbring Director ADA Library ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 30 Oct 1995 09:45:06 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Prindex@aol.com Subject: Re: Index style; fees ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- Many thanks for your thoughtful answers on types of mortgages. Another question: There is a 50 page chapter in the book on Purchase contracts with excerpts from the contract in boxed off sections and explanations following these sections. What I decided to do with these is: Purchase contract 350-400 Default section of 376 Joinder of spouse section of 389 Does this approach sound reasonable? There are also other subentries,from other chapters,under purchase contract. I will make main entries out of these various sections as I see fit, some of the wording may not be appropriate for a main heading. Thanks, Judy ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 30 Oct 1995 09:46:03 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Macrex@aol.com Subject: Re: Scanning Documents for Indexing ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- In a message dated 95-10-27 14:24:10 EDT, Larry Harrison wrote: >> monospaced typewriter-like font of at least 10-point size, << (scans well) Hmm. I don't entirely agree. I've had excellent results scanning into a word processor everything from old yellow newspaper clippings to faxed documents to pages from pubilshed books. I get less that 1% failure rate with very little effort and large numbers of pages have gone into the word processor with zero errors. When I first started scanning, each page was checked by having one person read from the word processor file to another person reading the original "document" About the only problems we saw were when the text included characters below ASCII 30 or above ASCII 127 (such as box characters, fractions, and other symbols which are font/character page dependent). And, in a message dated 95-10-27 16:20:02 EDT, Sonsie Conroy wrote: >> many of my books come on 11 x 17 pages, which would mean either cutting the proofs up by hand or some other work-around. Doing this for 500-1000 pages seems terribly time-consuming, unless I am gaining a very great advantage. << Sonsie, I couldn't agree more! There would have to be a VERY good reason for me to go through all of this just to check index references and frankly, I can't think of any job for which I'd be willing to do this. If new page proofs are available, there are many methods for getting a disk file which make a whole lot more sense than scanning in. >> and your job is a simple revision. << or a cumulation of volumes for which disk files are not available (though someone should be asking why disk files are not available if the book was published in the past eight to ten years!). My basic premise remains....it doesn't take the legitimate need for very many editable text files of hard copy-only documents before scanning becomes a better choice than re-typing, especially if you can get one of the HP3p's which all of the "graphics" people are dumping in favor of the HP3c. For what it's worth... Gale Rhoades Director Macrex Sales & Support Office ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 30 Oct 1995 09:50:41 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: SeIndex@aol.com Subject: Society of Indexers (SI) - UK ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- I would like to contact the Society of Indexers in the UK, the address I have is: 16 Green Road Birchington, CT7 9JZ England However, according to the UK inquires (same as our 411 information) the Society of Indexers does not exist at that or any other address (even as an unlisted number)! Does anyone know their phone number, email address, postal address, etc.? I don't want to send a letter into "limbo!" Thanks in advance, Sue Evans ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 30 Oct 1995 09:51:40 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: "Linda K. Fetters" Subject: Re: Society of Indexers (SI) - UK ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- Dear Sue, According to _The Indexer_ all correspondence should be directed to: Claire Troughton, Secretary 38 Rochester Road London NW1 9JJ ENGLAND Phone: 0171-916-7809 Hope this helps. Bobbie Reeves - ASI Administrative Office ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 30 Oct 1995 13:26:49 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Nigel J French Subject: Re: Society of Indexers (SI) - UK ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- Re Sue Evans' query reproduced below, we have the following address for the UK Society: 38 Rochester Road, London NW1 9JJ Telephone: (44) 171-916-7809 Nigel & Sue French ============================================================ >I would like to contact the Society of Indexers in the UK, the address I have >is: > >16 Green Road >Birchington, CT7 9JZ >England > >However, according to the UK inquires (same as our 411 information) the >Society of Indexers does not exist at that or any other address (even as an >unlisted number)! > >Does anyone know their phone number, email address, postal address, etc.? I >don't want to send a letter into "limbo!" > >Thanks in advance, > >Sue Evans ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 30 Oct 1995 13:27:03 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Larry Harrison Subject: Re: Scanning Documents for Indexing ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- In a message dated 95-10-30, Macrex@aol.com wrote: > >>> monospaced typewriter-like font of at least 10-point size, << >(scans well) >Hmm. I don't entirely agree. I've had excellent results scanning into a word >processor everything from old yellow newspaper clippings to faxed documents >to pages from pubilshed books. I get less that 1% failure rate with very >little effort and large numbers of pages have gone into the word processor >with zero errors. I guess it just goes to show there are tremendous variations in scanning hardware and in OCR software. Mine doesn't do that well, but I didn't spend very much on it. Larry Harrison (larryh@millcomm.com) 507/280-0049 Freelance book indexing Rochester, Minnesota * This space available: $1 per line per week. We reserve the right * * to deprecate all submissions. No warranty expressed or implied. * ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 30 Oct 1995 14:58:21 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Nan Badgett <76400.3351@compuserve.com> Subject: Multi-author works ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- I am indexing a multi-authored book which is really a collection of essays. If I use terms that are accepted in the field, should I cross reference the author's own terms? For example, if I have a main heading "Instructional aids", should I have See references from "Tools" or "Props" which are the terms the reader will actually encounter? Thanks for any input, NAN ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 30 Oct 1995 16:01:26 ECT Reply-To: Indexer's Discussion Group Sender: Indexer's Discussion Group From: Dwight Walker Subject: Soc of Indexers UK address ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- Check out our affilates pages: http://www.zeta.org.au/~aussi/affiliat.htm They use Hilary Calvert's email. (I asked the same question when they were out in Melbourne earlier this year at our first int'l conference.) >From 'The Indexer' General correspondence to the secretary: 38 Rochester Road, London NW1 9JJ tel 071-916 7809 Bye Dwight ---------------------------------------------------------- Dwight Walker, Sydney, Australia tel +61-2-3986726 (h) +61-2-4393750 (w), fax (work) +61-2-4383729 My Home Page: http://www.zeta.org.au/~dwalker AusSI Home Page: http://www.zeta.org.au/~aussi