Inevitably a table stores information. Storing information may be the sole
purpose of a table –
an example is a bibliography. Other tables function as
finders of information as well. A good example is a table of statutes in a legal
text. Its main purpose is to show where in a text a statute and its sections are
discussed. However, by setting out the statutes in alphabetical order it also
constitutes a list of statutes. This can be of value for someone researching law
who can look at the table of statutes in a textbook to ascertain the names of
the major statutes in a particular area of law.
Pictures
A picture, according to the Chinese proverb, is worth a thousand words.
“Picture” is a generic term for things not depicted by words or numbers, that
is, visual information. Examples are diagrams, graphs, photographs, drawings,
and paintings. As this Chinese proverb emphasises, they are an excellent way
of portraying a concept.
Legal texts typically do not have photographs and drawings (although there is
no reason that they should not if the text requires them). However, they do
have, and can often benefit from having, diagrams and graphs. A diagram is a
visual representation, often containing boxes and arrows, with some key labels
or short descriptions of processes. Often they will convey information such as
facts, processes, relationships, and systems in better manner than prose, or
can enhance an account in prose by emphasising to the readers the key
processes and relationships.
Now for a point of refinement that involves advice to readers. Even when a
writer chooses not to use a diagram, it is still a good idea for a reader to
construct them anyway when they read, analyse, understand and summarise
the text. Typically diagrams are best when they are your own. So if there is not
a diagram there, consider making your own. If there is a diagram in a text
consider whether you can modify it or adapt it to make it more “you” and so
enhance your understanding.
Retrieving Information
Introduction
A book should normally contain devices that enable a user to retrieve
information in any of two major ways. For this purpose we revisit our
classification of readers as porers and delvers.
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Porers read the text as a
whole, or at least read whole chunks of it. By contrast, a delver wishes to find
a specific piece of information such as the name and citation of a case so they
delve into the book to find it. However, a porer may also want to delve for
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Chapter 1 Introduction
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