Newsgroups: comp.text
Path: utzoo!sq!lee
From: lee@sq.sq.com (Liam R. E. Quin)
Subject: Re: Marginal Notes vs. Footnotes
Message-ID: <1989Dec14.154807.2660@sq.sq.com>
Reply-To: lee@sq.com (Liam R. E. Quin)
Organization: Unixsys (UK) Ltd
References: <Dec.9.23.45.49.1989.8147@paul.rutgers.edu> <3520@jarthur.Claremont.EDU>
Date: Thu, 14 Dec 89 15:48:07 GMT

dhosek@jarthur.UUCP (D.A. Hosek) writes:
>gaynor@topaz.rutgers.edu writes:
>> Under which circumstances is one more appropriate than the other?
>> I usually decide this by feel, most often in favor of footnotes.
>> Would you textperts illumine me on the ways of extratextual notes?
>
> Marginal notes are almost never used in most texts.

This is because they were traditionally often much harder to set than
footnotes.  [Traditional typographers didn't have troff :-)]

Text in margins can serve many purposes:

* as a short summary of adjacent paragraphs, to aid the reader in locating a
  particular passage in a reference work.
  See, for example, Edward Johnston's `Writing and Illuminating and Lettering'
  for an example.  This style hass become less popular since, possibly with
  advances in indexing, but probably in an attempt to reduce the costs of
  books and maximise th epublisher's profits... :-(

* giving illustrative examples -- for example, see Ruri Mclean's introduction
  to Typography (Hudson Books)

* giving translations of technical, foreign or unusual phrases -- as in many
  religious works.

One reason that footnotes are often preferred is that if there are twelve
notes to one sentence, you can set the page short to accommodate all twelve
footnotes (some of which may be continued onto the next page), but you
cannot easily set a narrow page to fit lots more notes in the margin at
the side of the page.

In general, notes for readers having difficulty with the material are much
better at the side of the page where they are easier to find, as anything
that helps someone in a struggle is a win.
For longer or technical notes, either footnotes or sidebars (an entire column
devoted to notes) are often better.
You have to decide based on your material and intended audience.

In all cases these forms of notes are better than end-notes, however!

Lee
-- 
Liam R. Quin, Unixsys (UK) Ltd [note: not an employee of "sq" - a visitor!]
lee@sq.com (Whilst visiting Canada from England, until Christmas)
 -- I think I'm going to come out at last...
 -- What?  Admit you're not a fundamentalist Jew?  They'll *crucify* you!  :-)
