CME FAQ Sheet #1: Validating (and Assigning Attributes to <DIV>s and <LG>s)

In many cases it is possible to assign the same TYPE attribute to all <LG>s or to all <DIV2>s, etc. (Don't do this without making sure that it is really justified. In order to display in Author/Editor the attributes of any element, place the cursor to the right of the tag in question, open "View/Affixes" and enter

%attributes-list;

In Author/Editor it seems to be possible to insert an attribute globally using the "Find/Find & Replace" dialog box, like this:

Find: <LG>
Replace: <LG TYPE="stanza">

See the Author/Editor 3.5 manual, pp. 178-179.

It is also possible to use "Search/Replace" (hotkey: F8) in TextPad for global replacements. A formula for finding and adding the TYPE="stanza" to <LG>s that are already numbered is:

Find what:<LG N="\([^"]+\)">
Replace with:<LG TYPE="stanza" N="\1">

<LG>s should have "stanza" as the value of TYPE, unless there is something specific to the text that supplies a different word. E.g., a narrative poem may have line groups called "chapters" or "fyttes" or "cantos." If so, use the word that the book itself uses; otherwise just go with "stanza."

<DIV>s are more varied. In general, follow these (probably conflicting) principles:

1. Use the designation supplied by the book itself. "Chapter 3" should be recorded as <DIV1 TYPE="chapter">
2. Use lower-case throughout ("chapter" not "Chapter").
3. If the designation is not in English, and there is a ready equivalent in English, use the English. E.g., for "pars" or "partie" use "part"; for "capitulum" or "chapitre" use "chapter".

   If the designation in the book is a verbose version of a common English term, use the simpler form. E.g., if the book says "Prefatory Remarks by the Author," you shouldn't be afraid to translate this into <DIV1 TYPE="preface">

   Otherwise, use whatever is there.

4. If there is no designation in the book, and the <DIV> is used to mark a series of items of similar type, use a term describing the form or genre shared by the items. E.g., in a book of poems, use

   <DIV1 TYPE="poem">
   <DIV1 TYPE="poem">

   Use the most specific term that is shared by the set. In a book of sonnets, for example, you can afford to be more specific:

   <DIV1 TYPE="sonnet">
   <DIV1 TYPE="sonnet">

   Similarly in a book of hymns or songs, you can use <DIV1 TYPE="hymn"> or <DIV1 TYPE="song">; but in an anthology of verse that mixes (say) odes, sonnets, songs, lyrics, just say TYPE="poem" for all of them.

5. If there is no designation in the book, and the <DIV> is used to mark a series of items of dissimilar type, try nevertheless to find a term that can be shared. In a anthology of extracts in prose and verse, for example, you could use <DIV1 TYPE="selection"> for each selection. In an anthology that mixes letters, essays, songs, poems, etc., you may have to resort to <DIV1 TYPE="item">.
6. If there is no series at all, just use a term that describes the form of the item as generically as can be (<DIV1 TYPE="letter">; <DIV1 TYPE= "preface">)
7. If there is a hierarchy of divisions, with no ready term available to distinguish the different levels, use TYPE="part" for the larger divisions, and TYPE="section" for the smaller ones. If necessary, subdivide one or both of these: <TYPE="subpart">, <TYPE="subsection">.
8. Here are some useful terms. TYPE=

   part
   section
   subpart
   subsection
   entry
   chapter
   book
   volume
   preface
   prologue
   invocation
   notes
   table of contents
   index
   poem
   letter
   document
   incipit
   charter
   deed
   item
   afterword
   foreword
   introduction
   essay
   dedication
   errata
   text

Index