Document index

A document index (hereinafter, the Index) is an alphabetical listing of discussed concepts, topics, and items and their location in a report or another document. The Index is a conditional part of report's back matter; it is included when a user may need to locate all references to a concept, topic, and/or item. When the Index is included, it functions as a part of document's structural metadata.

Description

The ANSI/NISO Scientific and Technical Reports standard details,

An index is an alphabetical listing of all major topics discussed in a report. An index is optional in short reports (fewer than 50 print pages), but reports of 50 pages or more usually contain one to help readers locate specific information. An index entry cites the page or location where the topic can be found, affording readers quick reference on a particular topic. An index may identify and locate information, indicate its nature and scope, identify related entries, and clarify relationships between entries. The arrangement and level of detail of the index are determined by the structure of the report, its target audience, and its anticipated uses.

The most common type of index for a report is the subject index in which subjects are presented alphabetically. Other types of indexes (for example, name index, number, and code index) may also be used. They are placed before the subject index in the back matter.

In preparing an index, the number and kind of access points (entry locations) and the information level of indexable matter (for example, abstract or concrete) are determined.

Each index entry has a heading (first element) and a locator (page, section number, or linking information) where information about the entry is found. Terms used as report headings are included in the index. The index contains all terms likely to be sought by the intended audience.

Applicable rules

According to the ANSI/NISO Scientific and Technical Reports standard,

Always use lower case unless an entry begins with a proper name; indent entries uniformly for each level of modification. Indent runover lines deeper than the deepest subentry.

Non-Print-Specific

Best practice is to provide links between index terms and what they reference.