Versions Compared

Key

  • This line was added.
  • This line was removed.
  • Formatting was changed.

I assume that you know what a Glossary is, but since this is meant to be a comprehensive guide I would be remiss to jump into this section without providing a brief overview. A Glossary is an alphabetized list of defined words and phrases that appear in a document. Glossaries are typically found at the end of a document.Think of a Glossary as a brief, document-exclusive dictionary. Not all documents contain Glossaries; some documents have sections within the document where terms are defined whereas other documents do not have a section for terms at all. One of the first things that you should do after being assigned a document is look for a Glossary.

If the document contains a Glossary, you will need to enter that first. How to enter content from a Glossary will be covered in the Entering Dictionary Terms guide. Should this be a whole new document or section of this document?Lynn said that dictionary terms would be a different document. Okay, we can do thatit before you begin mapping citations. Doing so will help to familiarize you with the terms and concepts found in the document, which will in turn aid you in tagging citations. Most importantly, preemptively entering the Glossary will help to prevent term blockages during tagging (instances where you attempt to tag a term that isn't in the dictionary. More on those shortly.). Not all terms that appear in a document will necessarily be found in the Glossary, but those that cover the main concepts of the document should be.

When entering a Glossary you will inevitably run into terms that have already been entered into the Compliance Dictionary. In these cases don't just skip the term, look at the definition in the Compliance Dictionary. If the definition is generally the same (same overall structure, similar wording, identical concept) then you can move on to the next term - this happens often, as many authors source definitions from other technical dictionaries, so there can be a lot of overlap. If the definitions are markedly different however, you will need to add the new definition. Do not replace the existing definition unless the new definition supersedes the existing definition. 

If the document does not contain a Glossary, then you can begin mapping move on to entering citations.