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<a name="Indexing-Commands"></a>
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<p>
Next: <a href="Combining-Indices.html#Combining-Indices" accesskey="n" rel="next">Combining Indices</a>, Previous: <a href="Predefined-Indices.html#Predefined-Indices" accesskey="p" rel="previous">Predefined Indices</a>, Up: <a href="Indices.html#Indices" accesskey="u" rel="up">Indices</a> &nbsp; [<a href="index.html#SEC_Contents" title="Table of contents" rel="contents">Contents</a>][<a href="Command-and-Variable-Index.html#Command-and-Variable-Index" title="Index" rel="index">Index</a>]</p>
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<hr>
<a name="Defining-the-Entries-of-an-Index"></a>
<h3 class="section">13.3 Defining the Entries of an Index</h3>

<a name="index-Defining-indexing-entries"></a>
<a name="index-Index-entries"></a>
<a name="index-Entries-for-an-index"></a>
<a name="index-Specifying-index-entries"></a>
<a name="index-Creating-index-entries"></a>

<p>The data to make an index come from many individual indexing commands
scattered throughout the Texinfo source file.  Each command says to add
one entry to a particular index; after formatting, the index will give
the current page number or node name as the reference.
</p>
<p>An index entry consists of an indexing command at the beginning of a
line followed, on the rest of the line, by the entry.
</p>
<p>For example, this section begins with the following five entries for
the concept index:
</p>
<div class="example">
<pre class="example">@cindex Defining indexing entries
@cindex Index entries, defining
@cindex Entries for an index
@cindex Specifying index entries
@cindex Creating index entries
</pre></div>

<p>Each predefined index has its own indexing command&mdash;<code>@cindex</code>
for the concept index, <code>@findex</code> for the function index, and so
on, as listed in the previous section.
</p>
<a name="index-Writing-index-entries"></a>
<a name="index-Index-entries_002c-advice-on-writing"></a>
<a name="index-Advice-on-writing-entries"></a>
<a name="index-Capitalization-of-index-entries"></a>
<p>Concept index entries consist of text.  The best way to write an index
is to devise entries which are terse yet clear.  If you can do this,
the index usually looks better if the entries are written just as they
would appear in the middle of a sentence, that is, capitalizing only
proper names and acronyms that always call for uppercase letters.
This is the case convention we use in most GNU manuals&rsquo; indices.
</p>
<p>If you don&rsquo;t see how to make an entry terse yet clear, make it longer
and clear&mdash;not terse and confusing.  If many of the entries are
several words long, the index may look better if you use a different
convention: to capitalize the first word of each entry.  Whichever
case convention you use, use it consistently.
</p>
<p>In any event, do not ever capitalize a case-sensitive name such as a C
or Lisp function name or a shell command; that would be a spelling
error.  Entries in indices other than the concept index are symbol
names in programming languages, or program names; these names are
usually case-sensitive, so likewise use upper- and lowercase as
required.
</p>
<a name="index-Unique-index-entries"></a>
<p>It is a good idea to make index entries unique wherever feasible.
That way, people using the printed output or online completion of
index entries don&rsquo;t see undifferentiated lists.  Consider this an
opportunity to make otherwise-identical index entries be more
specific, so readers can more easily find the exact place they are
looking for.
</p>
<p>Index entries should precede the visible material that is being
indexed.  For instance:
</p>
<div class="example">
<pre class="example">@cindex hello
Hello, there!
</pre></div>

<p>Among other reasons, that way following indexing links (in
whatever context) ends up before the material, where readers want to
be, instead of after.
</p>
<a name="index-Index-font-types"></a>
<p>By default, entries for a concept index are printed in a small roman
font and entries for the other indices are printed in a small
<code>@code</code> font.  You may change the way part of an entry is
printed with the usual Texinfo commands, such as <code>@file</code> for
file names (see <a href="Marking-Text.html#Marking-Text">Marking Text</a>), and <code>@r</code> for the normal roman
font (see <a href="Fonts.html#Fonts">Fonts</a>).
</p>
<blockquote>
<p><b>Caution:</b> Do not use a colon in an index entry.  In Info, a colon separates the
menu entry name from the node name, so a colon in the entry itself
confuses Info.  See <a href="Menu-Parts.html#Menu-Parts">Menu Parts</a>, for more information about the
structure of a menu entry.
</p></blockquote>


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Next: <a href="Combining-Indices.html#Combining-Indices" accesskey="n" rel="next">Combining Indices</a>, Previous: <a href="Predefined-Indices.html#Predefined-Indices" accesskey="p" rel="previous">Predefined Indices</a>, Up: <a href="Indices.html#Indices" accesskey="u" rel="up">Indices</a> &nbsp; [<a href="index.html#SEC_Contents" title="Table of contents" rel="contents">Contents</a>][<a href="Command-and-Variable-Index.html#Command-and-Variable-Index" title="Index" rel="index">Index</a>]</p>
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