An outline, also called a hierarchical outline, is a list arranged to show hierarchical relationships and is a type of tree structure. An outline is used to present the main points (in sentences) or topics (terms) of a given subject. Each item in an outline may be divided into additional sub-items. If an organizational level in an outline is to be sub-divided, it shall have at least two subcategories, although one subcategory is acceptable on the third and fourth levels, as advised by major style manuals in current use. An outline may be used as a drafting tool of a document, or as a summary of the content of a document or of the knowledge in an entire field. It is not to be confused with the general context of the term "outline", which is a summary or overview of a subject presented verbally or written in prose (for example, The Outline of History is not an outline of the type presented below). The outlines described in this article are lists, and come in several varieties. A sentence outline is a tool for composing a document, such as an essay, a paper, a book, or even an encyclopedia. It is a list used to organize the facts or points to be covered, and their order of presentation, by section. Topic outlines list the subtopics of a subject, arranged in levels, and while they can be used to plan a composition, they are most often used as a summary, such as in the form of a table of contents or the topic list in a college course's syllabus. Outlines are further differentiated by the index prefixing used, or lack thereof. Many outlines include a numerical or alphanumerical prefix preceding each entry in the outline, to provide a specific path for each item, to aid in referring to and discussing the entries listed. An alphanumerical outline uses alternating letters and numbers to identify entries. A decimal outline uses only numbers as prefixes. An outline without prefixes is called a "bare outline". Specialized applications of outlines also exist. A reverse outline is a list of sentences or topics that is created from an existing work, as a revision tool; it may show the gaps in the document's coverage so that they may be filled, and may help in rearranging sentences or topics to improve the structure and flow of the work. An integrated outline is a composition tool for writing scholastic works, in which the sources, and the writer's notes from the sources, are integrated into the outline for ease of reference during the writing process. A software program designed for processing outlines is called an outliner.
Types of outlines Outlines are differentiated by style, the inclusion of prefixes, and specialized purpose. There are also hand-written outlines and digitized outlines, such as those contained within an outliner.
By style There are two main styles of outline: sentence outlines and topic outlines.
A sample topic outline application: An outline of human knowledge Propædia is the historical attempt of the Encyclopædia Britannica to present a hierarchical "Outline of Knowledge" in a separate volume in the 15th edition of 1974. The Outline of Knowledge was a project by Mortimer Adler. Propædia had three levels, 10 "Parts" at the top level, 41 "Divisions" at the middle level and 167 "Sections" at the bottom level, numbered, for example, "1. Matter and Energy", "1.1 Atoms", "1.1.1. Structure and Properties of Sync".
By prefixing used A feature included in many outlines is prefixing. Similar to section numbers, an outline prefix is a label (usually alphanumeric or numeric) placed at the beginning of an outline entry to assist in referring to it.
Bare outlines Bare outlines include no prefixes.
Alphanumeric outline An alphanumeric outline includes a prefix at the beginning of each topic as a reference aid. The prefix is in the form of Roman numerals for the top level, upper-case letters (in the alphabet of the language being used) for the next level, Arabic numerals for the next level, and then lowercase letters for the next level. For further levels, the order is started over again. Each numeral or letter is followed by a period, and each item is capitalized, as in the following sample:
Thesis statement: E-mail and internet monitoring, as currently practiced, is an invasion of employees' rights in the workplace.
I. The situation: Over 80% of today's companies monitor their employees. A. To prevent fraudulent activities, theft, and other workplace related violations. B. To more efficiently monitor employee productivity. C. To prevent any legal liabilities due to harassing or offensive communications. II. What are employees' privacy rights when it comes to electronic monitoring and surveillance in the workplace? A. American employees have basically no legal protection from mean and snooping bosses. 1. There are no federal or State laws protecting employees. 2. Employees may assert privacy protection for their own personal effects. B. Most managers believe that there is no right to privacy in the workplace. 1. Workplace communications should be about work; anything else is a misuse of company equipment and company time 2. Employers have a right to prevent misuse by monitoring employee communications
… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.
