This International Standard offers guidelines for the content, organization and presentation of indexes. This International Standard applies to indexes to books (including works of fiction), periodicals, reports, patent documents, and other written or printed documents, and also to non-print materials, such as electronic documents, films, sound recordings, video recordings, graphic materials, maps, and three-dimensional objects. This International Standard is concerned with basic indexing principles and practice rather than with the detailed procedures of indexing that vary according to type of matter indexed and the users for whom the index is intended. Therefore the examples given, including punctuation, are illustrative and not prescriptive. This International Standard covers the choice, form and arrangement of headings and subheadings used in index entries once the subjects to be indexed have been determined. (For the examination of documents and the selection of subjects for indexing, see ISO 5963. For the compilation of a monolingual thesaurus that may assist in the selection of index terms, see ISO 2788.) Although this International Standard does not give any guidance on computerized index generation as such, it is relevant to the preparation of all types of index, regardless of whether they are produced manually or by computer-assisted methods, and whether compiled by one indexer or by a team of indexers. It does not cover the mechanized extraction of text words to generate indexes, e.g. KWIC (Keyword in Context), nor does it cover special systems of indexing such as PRECIS, chain indexing, citation indexing or the techniques of post-coordinate indexing, although its recommendations may be relevant to any of these systems. It does not make recommendations for the compilation of catalogues for libraries or museums.