Indexia

INDEXIA BLOG

Professional Export Options: RTF, Paragraph IDs, and Publishing-Ready Formats

Indexia Team•

A great index is only valuable if you can get it into your final publication. Indexia now offers comprehensive export options designed for professional publishing workflows—from quick Word documents to precisely tagged RTF files ready for InDesign.

Export Formats Overview

Word Document (.docx)

The fastest path to a usable index. Choose from:

  • Single or double column layout
  • Font family and size customization
  • Alphabet section headers (A, B, C...)
  • Bold/italic styling for different entry levels

Perfect for: Quick proofing, client review, self-publishing platforms that accept Word uploads.

Tagged Format (.rtf / .txt)

Professional-grade export with paragraph tags for layout software:

@1 artificial intelligence, 15, 42–45, 89
@2 machine learning subset, 45, 127
@2 applications in publishing, 156–158
@1 automation. See artificial intelligence

The @1, @2, @3 tags indicate indentation levels, making it trivial to style in InDesign using paragraph styles.

Perfect for: Professional publishers, InDesign workflows, layout artists.

CDXF (.cdxf)

Exchange format for professional indexing software like CINDEX and SKY Index. Preserves all structure including cross-references, subentries, and page ranges.

Perfect for: Professional indexers using dedicated indexing software.

Markdown (.md)

For web-based indexes and documentation. Includes proper heading structure and hyperlinks where applicable.

Perfect for: Web indexes, documentation sites, GitHub projects.

New: Paragraph ID Support

Many publishers now use paragraph-based references instead of page numbers. This is especially common in:

  • Digital-first publications
  • Textbooks with complex layouts
  • Legal and technical documents
  • Ebooks that reflow across devices

Indexia now supports paragraph IDs throughout the workflow:

  1. Enable paragraph IDs during project creation
  2. View by paragraph ID in the editor using the reference toggle
  3. Export with paragraph IDs instead of page numbers

Your exported index might look like:

artificial intelligence, ¶15.3, ¶42.1–¶45.7, ¶89.2
  machine learning subset, ¶45.4, ¶127.1

Customizing Your Export

Tagged RTF Options

The RTF export panel lets you configure:

Level Tags

  • Customize tags for each indentation level (@1, @2, @3, etc.)
  • Use your publisher's preferred tag scheme
  • Supports up to 6 levels of nesting

Typography

  • Font family for parent terms, child terms, page numbers, and see-also references
  • Bold, italic, and underline options per element
  • Serif or sans-serif defaults

Structure

  • Include or exclude alphabet headers
  • Control spacing between entries
  • Single-column format optimized for import

Word Export Options

The Word export panel offers:

  • Column layout (single or double)
  • Header inclusion
  • Page size (Letter, A4)
  • Margin settings
  • Entry spacing

Best Practices for Publishing Workflows

For InDesign Users

  1. Export as Tagged RTF
  2. Place the file in your InDesign document
  3. Create paragraph styles matching your tags (@1, @2, etc.)
  4. Apply styles automatically using Find/Change

The tagged format ensures consistent indentation and styling across your entire index.

For Self-Publishers

  1. Export as Word Document
  2. Review in Word, make any final tweaks
  3. Upload directly to your publishing platform (KDP, IngramSpark, etc.)

The Word export is designed to be publication-ready with minimal adjustment.

For Web Publishers

  1. Export as Markdown
  2. Include in your documentation site or CMS
  3. Hyperlinks to source content are preserved where available

Index vs. Concordance in Exports

Remember: your export uses the currently active display mode. Before exporting:

  • Index mode: Curated, professional references
  • Concordance mode: Comprehensive references

A confirmation banner shows which mode will be used. Switch modes before exporting if needed.

Exporting Preamble References

If your project uses preamble pages with roman numerals, they're automatically formatted correctly in all exports:

Introduction, ix, xi–xii
Chapter 1 overview, 1, 15–18

No manual conversion required.

See It in Action

Watch the Export tutorial video for a walkthrough of all export options and formatting controls.

Enhanced export options are one of several new features in our January 2026 release. See the full feature announcement for everything new in Indexia.