HomeResources for ContributorsViewing and Proofing Your WorkProofreading Checklist

Proofreading Checklist

This page provides an approach to proofreading your work using the three views available in our interface.

This page assumes you have already ensured that your TEI-XML markup is complete using the Editing Checklist.

You will want to have at least two screens available when doing most of the tasks on this page.

Transcription

Working line-by-line and word-by-word, compare what you see in the transcription view to the document images. Consider these questions, in particular:

❒ Do the line breaks, as they display in the transcription, match the document image?

❒ Does all the text that appears in the document image appear in the transcription? 

❒ Does the transcription respect the spelling, punctuation, and use of capital letters as found in the original?

❒ If the text does not follow a linear flow, or if there are other challenges in matching the transcription to the image, do your transcription notes (<note type="transcription">) explain for the reader what is happening?

❒ If you have any text marked as <unclear> (it will appear as red in this view), have you made a final effort to read the text and represent it to the best of your ability?

Intermediate

Again, working line-by-line and word-by-word, review what you see in the intermediate view. Consider the following questions:

❒ Have you expanded all abbreviations?

❒ Have you corrected all misspellings or evident errors, when doing so does not change the sound of the text when read aloud?

❒ Have you regularized any archaic or otherwise non-standard spellings, when doing so does not change the sound of the text when read aloud?

❒ Do all dates and names (of people, places, etc.) appear as bold in this view? (If not, check your XML to make sure you marked them up.)

Reading View

Reading line-by-line, review what you see in the reading text view. Consider the following questions:

❒ Does all punctuation and the use of capital letters follow standard usage today?

❒ Does all spelling following standard usage today, except in places where its modification might have altered the sound of the text when spoken aloud?

❒ Do you see anything else in this view that looks incorrect or out-of-place?

❒ Where possible, have you provided annotations to explain references to people, places, events, etc., that will help the reader understand the text? And if so, have you cited your sources in this annotations?