[bksvol-discuss] Re: Proofreading ideas.
- From: "gwen tweedy" <gstweedy@xxxxxxx>
- To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 25 Aug 2009 08:10:45 -0500
Thanks a million
----- Original Message -----
From: Cindy
To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Tuesday, August 25, 2009 1:33 AM
Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: Proofreading ideas.
I agree with Roger. Start reading a book you download, and correct
scanning errors as you come to them. If you come across something you don't
know what to do with, ask here on the list or you can write to me offlist.
It's easier for me to answer a question than to give a whole explanation. I've
been proofing a long time.
Cindy
Wish List (i.e., books wanted added to the collection) and
books-being-scanned list available at sites below
Wish List: https://wiki.benetech.org/display/BSO/Bookshare+Wish+List
Books Being Scanned List:
https://wiki.benetech.org/display/BSO/Books+Being+Scanned+List
--- On Mon, 8/24/09, Rogerbailey81@xxxxxxx <Rogerbailey81@xxxxxxx>
wrote:
From: Rogerbailey81@xxxxxxx <Rogerbailey81@xxxxxxx>
Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: Proofreading ideas.
To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Monday, August 24, 2009, 8:01 PM
Let me add that if I had come to this list to get proofreading advice
before actually trying to proofread anything that I might have been so
overwhelmed that I would not have tried. When I signed up as a volunteer I did
not immediately subscribe to this list. I did read the volunteer manual, but it
was a lot simpler then than it is now and I don't know if I would have been
discouraged by it in its present form. That is one thing I worry about. As the
manual is made more complete it is also being made a lot more complex and
longer and I do worry that it might scare off a newbie. I was fortunate enough
that my first attempt at proofreading was of a book that was a near perfect
scan, so I did not run into any problems with it. My first problem was with
uploading it. That is when I subscribed to this list and asked how to do that.
As you can see by reading this list and by reading the manual there is a lot
that can be done that will make proofreading a quick and easy process, that is,
if you know how to do all those things. Learning them is a slow and hard, as
opposed to quick and easy, process. On my first proofing job I did not know
about all those tricks, though, and a lot of them I still can't do because I do
not have the same equipment to work with as the others do. On my first
proofreading job I just read the whole book looking for errors to correct as I
came to them. That first one did not really have any errors, but my subsequent
proofreads did. I would suggest that you do the same. As you come across the
mention of something on this list that could probably help you try it out. If
it looks like it might help you out, but you don't understand it fully, ask the
appropriate question. That way you will learn a little at a time and gradually
achieve the knowledge level of the others. If, on the other hand, you try to
learn everything at once you will be overwhelmed and will be right back to
saying that you are going to quit. Believe me, I know what it is to be
overwhelmed. When I first got a computer I was lucky to know how to plug it in
and I was completely on my own without anyone to ask about anything. I didn't
even use technical support at the time. I had a phone number for technical
support, but I was not really sure what it was and the word technical scared me
off from calling it. Can you imagine the overwhelming job I had to teach myself
to use a computer? I might add that by signing up for this group I have not
only learned a good deal about volunteering for Bookshare, but a lot of what I
have learned has had other applications, so this list has helped me further my
ability to use my computer in general. The feeling of being overwhelmed,
though, is very familiar to me and because of it I have come to dread learning
anything new because I have come to expect that whenever I do so I will be
faced with extreme frustration and utter exhaustion. Yes, I mean exhaustion.
After dealing with hours of frustration I have at times felt like I had spent
an interminable time doing strenuous labor. At the same time, though, I have
learned. I have also figured out that the more I learn I have more to build on
for the next learning experience and I think the extreme exhaustion is
lessoning a bit every time. There is also a lessening of that exhaustion if I
learn just a little bit at a time. That, of course, leads to the frustration of
being impatient with myself, but in the long run I think it is easier. So,
again, try some basic proofreading. When you have a specific question ask it
here. Continue to read the list and pick up an idea here and there one idea at
a time. And, in my experience, you will learn a few things from the
proofreading that will help you in scanning whenever you decide to return to it.
"Can a
nation be free if it oppresses other nations? It cannot." Vladimir Lenin
The Militant: http://www.themilitant..com Pathfinder
Press: http://www.pathfinderpress.com
Granma International: http://granma.cu/ingles/index.html
_
table with 2 columns and 6 rows
Subj:
[bksvol-discuss] Re: Proofreading ideas.
Date:
8/24/2009 10:21:27 PM Eastern Daylight Time
From:
gstweedy@xxxxxxx
Reply-to:
bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
To:
bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent from the Internet
(Details)
table end
appreciate your time and patients.
Thanks so very much this is very helpful
block quote
----- Original Message -----
From:
Lynn I
To:
bookkshare volunteer list
Sent: Monday, August 24, 2009 3:52 PM
Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Proofreading ideas.
Hi Gwen, Kim, and all other volunteers who may be new to
proofreading!
I'm sure by now you realize that all of us use different methods to
proofread. We may do things in a different order, but the end result should be
a book
with similar characteristics such as standardized fonts, page breaks,
paragraphs and so forth. I well understand that it can seem overwhelming at
first,
because there's so much to think about and remember.
Here's what you really need to remember--proofreading is a learning
process. It is not something you learn all at once. For example, it is only in
the last
few books I have proofread where I have converted em dashes to double
hyphens, standardized and enlarged chapter heading fonts, and converted smart
quotes.
Why didn't I do this before? I didn't understand how to do this even
though I had read the excellent directions provided by several people on this
list.
It made me feel pretty inept, so I did nothing about it--and I've
been proofreading books since Spring, 2008.
A few weeks ago, I began an e-mail conversation with Mayrie about
something totally unrelated. I felt comfortable with her, so I asked if I could
ask her
a few questions. She graciously agreed, and I sent her an example of
text where I had replaced the em dashes with double hyphens. She looked at it,
and
told me I had done it correctly. After that, I was embolden to tackle
smart quotes and changing fonts for chapter headings.
I mention this is a way of encouraging you to begin the process.
Start with something simple--maybe a short book or a children's book. Make sure
it's something
that interests you. Also, as others have said, it's very helpful to
begin with books that have been scanned by careful scanners because you will
have less
correcting to do.
I'm a Braille reader, and I use JAWS and a Braille display to
proofread with. I set punctuation to most, and read line by line. I do all of
my proofreading
in Word. But before I start reading. I refer to my checklist which I
have Brailed on index cards. I personally do certain things before I even read
a book.
You can do the same thing using speech. I find a checklist of some
kind helps me remember what I have done, and keeps me from forgetting things.
Here's
what I do ... you can use the ideas that are helpful and disregard
those that are not. Remember, we each may have a different process, there is no
wrong
or right order here--Use what works well for you.
1. Before I checkout a book to proofread. I look at the book
information page. I highlight and copy pertinent information such as title,
author, copyright
date, copyright holder, ISBN number, number of pages, the brief and
long synopsis information, the categories which the submitter has indicated for
the
book, and the submitters name and e-mail address (if available). I
save this in a separate text file so that I can refer to it. This also tells me
if I'm
going to have to add additional information, or do any editing in
that area.
2. After downloading the RTF file, I make a copy of it and store it
either in a different folder on my computer or, as I usually do, on a flash
drive.
I do this in the event I make a mess of my original file.
3. Next I open the RTF file and standardize fonts, line spacing and
paragraph format, set the paper size to legal,and immediately save the changes.
I don't
proofread technical reference manuals or text books, so it's easy to
do the standardization of fonts and paragraphs.
4. Next, I look to see if the number of pages in my RTF file matches
the number I obtained from the book information page. If it matches, I breathe
a huge
sigh of relief. If it does not, I know that I have to figure out why
things don't match. maybe the preliminary pages are not included in the
submitter's
page count. Maybe, there are unnumbered pages at the end of the book.
Maybe additional page breaks have been inserted. Maybe there a duplicate pages.
Maybe,
there are actually pages missing, and I may have to contact the
submitter and ask to have some pages scanned. In any case, I don't get overly
concerned.
The reason for the numbering discrepancy will likely become apparent
as I read through the book. I just know it's something I will have to resolve.
5. Next, I look to see if there is a page numbered as "1." I use that
as a reference point to number the preliminary pages. I'm a very orderly person,
so it's important to me to know what I have to do with page numbers.
Everyone does this differently. Page numbers are not absolutely required. Some
books
do not have them. At any rate, once I find a page numbered "1" or
find any page number, I can begin to track page numbers.
6. Next, I do things like convert em dashes to double hyphens, remove
"smart" quotes, split dialog, and make sure there are no spaces either preceding
or following dashes. I also make sure the ellipsis are treated
properly. Instructions for how to do all of these things as available on the
"volunteer"
page. Some people spell check prior to reading the book, and again
after reading it. Personally, I do not spell check until I have read the entire
book
because I find it too easy to change things I shouldn't such as the
spelling of proper names and certain intended slang words. After I have read
the book,
I can more easily recognize what may be a scanning OCR error. But if
it's helpful for you to spell check prior to reading, by all means do so. Just
be
careful about what you change.
7. I now begin reading the book. As I read, I make sure that page
numbers and chapter headings are surrounded by a blank line, make sure that
there is
a blank line at the top and bottom of each page, change the font of
chapter headings or chapter numbers to Times New Roman 16 point, remove extra
blank
lines that should not be there, remove any extra page breaks that
have been accidentally inserted, remove headers or footers at the top or bottom
of pages
which contain the book title or authors name (only in the text
pages), correct known OCR errors, and remove any extra characters such as back
slashes,
slashes, brackets, spaces, and carets that the OCR program inserted
during scanning. Most of these occurrences are easily caught when punctuation
is set
to "most". When I come across a page that is blank, I make sure to
insert [This page contains no text.] If there are picture captions, I make sure
they
are noted as such. Again, there are instructions concerning how to
deal with picture captions and descriptions on the "volunteer" page. I'm
especially
alert to strange characters that appear at the top and bottom of
pages, or at the end of a line of text. Usually it's pretty obvious that they
are "junk
characters" and should be removed.
8. As I read, I make a list of things I need from the submitter such
as missing pages, a rescan of any pages because I cannot figure out what a word
or
sentence should be, or any other clarification I may need. I do my
best to include page number references for the submitter, and if I think my
question
is confusing, I will copy the particular word or sentence about which
I have a question. I e-mail the complete list of what I need to the submitter
after
I have read the entire book, unless I know that I particular
submitter likes questions one at a time.
9. After I receive what I need from the submitter, I make all
necessary changes, spell check the entire document, and copy the file to a
folder I have
created on my computer called "submit." Personally, I find it easier
to upload a book when it is the only one in a folder. I've come very close to
uploading
the wrong book, so having it in a separate folder is a good insurance
policy for me.
10. Before I upload the book, I open the text file I had saved which
contains the book information and make sure that the title, author's name,
copyright
date, copyright holder, ISBN number, publisher, page count, and book
categories match what appears on the book's "checkout" form. I remove any "hold
for"
designation that may be in the title. If the book is part of a
series, I make sure that the title reflects that. I also reread the brief
synopsis and make
any necessary changes. I usually include a long synopsis if one is
not provided, though it is not necessary to do this if an ISBN number is
present. I
do so only because I enjoy knowing as much about a book as possible
before I decide if I want to read it, and I assume others may feel that way
also.
I hope this encourages some of you to try your hand at proofreading.
The real key is don't be afraid to try, and most of all, don't be afraid to ask
questions
as you go. Asking questions is the only way to learn, and none of
this is easy, at first. *smile*
blessings.
Lynn I
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