1.6. Changing the sort order

Because the sort keys are generated automatically (see Section 1.7), entries can sometimes be sorted incorrectly. There are two constructs for changing the keys generated: ignore and replace.

Ignore: Use this if there is a word or part word which should not affect the sort order (eg. articles). Enclose the text to be ignored in curly braces ({}). The braces are not included in the final output.

Replace: Use this is there is some text which needs to be sorted as something else. Use the follow syntax:

{original text|replacement text}

The braces, vertical bar and replacement text are not included in the final output.

Example 1-6. Changing the sort order

{2,4-}dinitrophenylhydrazine sorts as:     dinitrophenylhydrazine
                             is output as: 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine
{Mc|Mac}Donald               sorts as:     MacDonald
                             is output as: McDonald

Note: Due to an implementation detail the two mechanisms can be combined to enclose some text that neither affects sorting nor is included in the final output.

{|{text to ignore}}

idxsorter uses this for the --show-keys options.