Improved Indices for MySQL Reference Manual

I continue to try and find new ways to make it easier for people to get into the right place in the documentation for the information you are looking for.

This week, I’ve added some experimental custom indexes. These use information from the ID mapping process that we use in lots of parts of the documentation to do some interesting stuff.

The indexes are an extension of the other areas where we already provide summaries (like the list of options/variables, or functions). These provide quick access into the definition of the function, but not a link to where that function might have been mentioned elsewhere in the documentation. With the indexes, we’ve extended that so that you can now see all of the places within the reference manual where we mention a specific function. This goes beyond the index (which relies on us adding specific tags), and just lists everywhere that we mention a specific option.

Currently we only provide the new indexes in the 5.1 manual, in all formats, including online, downloadable and PDFs. The new indexes are:

I am of course inviting comments and input from people to find out how useful you guys find this information. Assuming nobody has any objections, we’ll start rolling it out to the other reference manuals and documents.

Are there any other types of information presented in an index that our readers would like to see?

If so, let me know!!