Ventura Publisher treats an index as part of the document structure rather than as a manually typed list at the end of a book. The workflow has two distinct stages: mark the terms that belong in the index, then generate the finished index after pagination.
That separation is important. The page number for an entry does not exist until the publication has been flowed, laid out, and paginated.
Ventura’s native workflow
The Ventura 4.1 training guide describes the process clearly: index references are inserted in the chapter text, and Ventura later gathers those references together with their current page numbers, alphabetizes them, and writes the index to a new text file. That generated file can then be loaded and formatted like other text in the publication.
The reference markers themselves are nonprinting. In older Ventura versions they can be revealed on screen with the option that shows tabs and returns.
What Publishing Tools for Corel Ventura adds
The plugin’s Book Builder can prepare those index references before the manuscript reaches Ventura. For each rule you can specify:
- Text to mark — the text the plugin should find in the manuscript;
- Main entry — the primary text that should appear in the index;
- Subentry — an optional second level;
- Sort key — an alternate value for alphabetization;
- Category — an optional Ventura index category;
- First or every occurrence — whether to mark the first match only or all matches.
Examples of index markers
The exporter can insert classic Ventura markers such as:
<$IChocolate>
<$IChocolate;sauce>
<$I[Recipes]Chocolate;sauce>
<$IChocolate(Cacao);sauce>The first is a simple main entry. A semicolon introduces a subentry. Square brackets identify a category. Parentheses can provide a sort key.
Why the plugin does not manufacture page numbers
A WordPress plugin cannot know that a reference will end up on page 173 of the final printed book. Page numbers depend on the Ventura page size, margins, style sheet, fonts, illustrations, anchored frames, keeps, chapter starts, and every edit that changes text flow.
So the plugin handles the part it can know reliably: which text should carry which index reference. Ventura handles the part only the final compositor can know: where that reference lands.
Generate the index late
Do not treat a generated index as final while the book is still moving substantially. A sound production sequence is:
- mark index entries;
- finish the main text and illustrations;
- flow and paginate the publication in Ventura;
- update counters and cross-references as needed;
- generate the index;
- format the generated index text;
- run a final proof after any late pagination changes.
If page flow changes, regenerate or update the index rather than editing page numbers by hand.
Good indexing is editorial, not merely mechanical
Automatic marking can save a great deal of repetitive work, but the quality of an index still depends on editorial decisions. Decide whether synonymous terms should point to one preferred entry, when a topic deserves a subentry, whether a person’s full name or surname should control sorting, and whether every occurrence is actually useful to the reader.
For a serious nonfiction book, mark-up automation should therefore support the indexer, not replace the indexer’s judgment.
Sources
- Ventura Publisher Windows Edition 4.1 Training Guide
- Ventura Publisher Windows Edition 4.1 Reference
Publishing Tools for Corel Ventura can prepare Ventura index references as part of a WordPress-to-book workflow while leaving final alphabetization and page numbering to Ventura.
