the deviants' dictionary Supplements Updated 16 July 1997

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INTRO | FRAMES | INDEX ENTRIES: A-D E-I J-M N-Q R-T U-Z CONTRIBUTORS | BOOKLIST | LINKS

• Introduction
• The Dictionary Structure
  • The Index
  • The Main Entries
  • Briefings, Factsheets and Sourcesheets
  • Supplementary Files
• Navigating with Frames
• Navigating without Frames
• Browser Compatibility
• Notes for Contributors

In the following sections, you will find an overview of the way the site is structured, and how the information it contains is organised, hints and tips on navigating both with frames and without frames, a few words about browser compatibility and notes for potential contributors about editorial policy and style.

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The Dictionary has three main levels. The Index offers an alphabetical list of keywords which, when clicked, take you to the relevant point in the Main Entries, and from here you can explore many topics in more depth in Briefings, Factsheets and Sourcesheets. There are also a number of Supplementary Files such as a bibliography, contributors' list and links page.

The Index

A simple alphabetical list of keywords, organised in 'telephone directory' order with abbreviations at the start of each section, so 'CBTT' comes before 'catheter'.

In many cases each word is linked one to one with a heading in the Main Entries (see below), but sometimes a cross-reference link may take you to a main entry under a different heading. This usually happens where there are a number of synonyms (which is fairly common in discussions of sex because of euphemism). For example, 'water sports' takes you to 'piss'. It may also happen where we've grouped a number of related terms and discussed them together: for example, 'Dittle sound' takes you to 'sound', and 'masochist' takes you to 'sadomasochism'. If you end up in an unexpected place, read the entry carefully: you will find all the words that have been linked to this entry as cross-references appear in bold type.

While the dictionary is still under construction, not all the keywords have had definitions provided and consequently not all of them will be linked. If you fancy filling in some of the gaps, please get in touch.

Click here to look at the Index, then use Back to return to this point.

The Main Entries

Brief, pithy definitions arranged in alphabetical order under headings that correspond to the keywords. To keep the overall file size down they are split over several files but we've written the site in such a way that this should be barely noticeable. Many of the entries contain cross-references to other entries, all of which are linked, and some contain links to external sites. Sometimes a short main entry is all we have to say at present on a particular topic, but in many cases you can also follow links to more detailed Briefings, Factsheets and Sourcesheets held on this site.

Click here to look at the first page of entries, then use Back to return to this point.

Briefings, Factsheets and Sourcesheets

More detailed documents on particular topics, often dealing with a number of the headings from the main entries in depth: for example, main entries on whipping, flogging, caning and so on all link to a factsheet on Flagellation.

• Briefings are shorter discussions of particular activities, perhaps limited in detail, or not particularly comprehensive.
  Click here to look at a specimen Briefing, then use Back to return to this point.
• Factsheets are substantial and comprehensive discussions of some popular activities that could stand as resources in their own right. Some are so big they have been split into two files: a reference section that includes notes on terms, available toys and links and references, and a practical section that deals with play suggestions and health and safety questions.
  Click here to look at a specimen Factsheet, then use Back to return to this point.
• Sourcesheets are background documents, with biographies of important figures in SM history, excerpts from historical and literary sources, pornography, anecdotes, personal experiences and scene reports and so on, or links and references to material of this kind.
  Click here to look at a specimen Sourcesheet, then use Back to return to this point.

Most of the briefings and factsheets are practically oriented, and follow a similar structure:

• Introduction, with a brief definition of terms and any problems relating to their use.
• What's the Thrill? An attempt to suggest what players might get out of a particular activity
• What to Use A discussion of toys and equipment
• Ways to Play How an activity can be carried out, with discussions of different techniques and suggestions for integrating them into scenes
• Health and Safety A discussion of the health and safety aspects of the activity: how to prevent unintended consequences and how to deal with them if they occur.
• Resources Suggestions for further reading (usually linked to the Bibliography -- see Supplementary Files below), viewing and web-browsing, complete with links.

Supplementary Files

These include:

• The Bibliography, giving detailed information about books cited in the Dictionary: bracketed author/date references in the text link to it at the appropriate point. We have also tried to make it a useful resource in its own right by additionally listing as many important SM-related works as we can, and provided each with a couple of lines of comment.
  Click here to look at the Bibliography, then use Back to return to this point.
• The Contributors' List, where you'll find the people who have written our entries and links to their email addresses and, if applicable, websites. This file is linked wherever a contributor is credited in the rest of the text.
  Click here to look at the Contributors' List, then use Back to return to this point.
• The Help Page. You're looking at it!
• The Introduction. You've most likely already seen this: it's the main home page of the site and contains a brief introduction to the dictionary, contact details, credits and a warning about the content. If you link to the dictionary, this is the page to use as the URL (http://www.queernet.org/deviant/).
  Click here to look at the Introduction, then use Back to return to this point.
• The Links Page. Most of the links from the dictionary pages are integrated into the entries: for example, you will find the link to the Circus Skills Bullwhip FAQ in the resources section of the Flagellation factsheet. But we've also included a links page listing sites of general interest, especially if they contain practical or background information about SM, together with a brief assessment of each site and recommendations for what we think are the most essential perve sites on the web. A reciprocal links section is also included for more specialised sites that have nonetheless been kind enough to link to the dictionary.
  Click here to look at the Links page, then use Back to return to this point.

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If your browser supports them, navigating with frames is the simplest way of finding your way around. Unlike some frame-heavy sites, the dictionary's index entry-definition structure is perfectly suited to this feature of HTML.

Select Frame View and you will be presented with the Index in a narrow frame on the left hand side of the screen and the beginning of the entries in a much bigger main frame to the right. Clicking on a keyword in the index frame will call up the corresponding entry in the main frame. If you then choose to read a factsheet, briefing or sourcesheet, that too will appear in the main frame, leaving the index available at all times to make jumping round the site easy.

Moving round the index is made even easier by an alphabet bar at the head of the entries, from which you can also call up the Supplementary Documents into the main frame.

While all the links within this site should appear within the main frame while using frame view, links to other sites should remove the frames and return you to your full-size browser window (if this fails to happen in any case we'd appreciate being told about it so we can put it right -- we know how irritating this can be, particularly if the external site uses frames too.)

Click here to try Frame View, then use Back to return to this point.
If you find yourself with a blank screen, then frames are turned off or your browser is unable to use them. In the latter case, see below under Navigating without Frames.

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If you can't or don't want to use frames, we've designed the site in such a way that you can access it fully without them. It may not look so pleasantly laid out, but the information it contains should be just as accessible.

There are various different ways of navigating without frames. Here are two suggestions.

1. Go direct to the Index and look down the list of keywords. If you have a specific word in mind you can use the alphabet bar at the top of the page to help you locate it quickly. When you have found a word that interests you, click on it to call up the main entry. To return to the index, either use your browser's 'back' command or, if you have subsequently followed further links round the site, look for the links to the index at the top of the page.
   Click here to look at the Index, then use Back to return to this point.
2. Go direct to the entries. If you have a specific word in mind, you will find it is quicker to select the main entry file covering the correct range of the alphabet, then use the alphabet bar at the top of the page to locate the correct point in the document. All the keywords in the index are also listed in the entries, with crossreferences if they are defined elsewhere. Otherwise you can simply browse, using the alphabet bar at the top of all the main entry pages and the 'Back to the Top' links at the end of every alphabetical section.
   To look at the entries, select from A-D, E-I, J-M, N-Q, R-T and U-Z, then use Back to return to this point.

If ever you get lost, simply find the nearest 'Back to the Top' which will provide you with the key links to the main pages in the header of every document.

Try it now: Back to the Top (then use Back to return to this point).

This site is basically a text-based resource enhanced with a few simple graphic illustrations. There is no flashy Active X or Java, no video clips or sound tricks or interactive chat rooms. It should therefore be widely accessible to people with a variety of software and connections. Indeed, since there are very few cases where information is only available from the graphics, the vast majority of the site will be of use even to those with only text-based browsers -- the only real minimal requirement is that the browser should support tables. Frames are not essential, but they are recommended: unlike some sites where frames seem to be used for no good reason other than to clutter the screen, this site was conceived originally for frames and has a structure particularly suited to their use.

Obviously the site will look different on different systems and browsers and all I could do was base my aesthetic judgements about the layout on my own system. So if you really want to see the site as I see it, you should know that I used Netscape with its standard font defaults running under Win95 on a 486 with a rather old 14" (38mm) VGA monitor. If you have one of those nice big screens, go to the intro page, making sure it's filling the whole browser window without frames, then resize the browser window until the DD banner flanked by two transparent buttplugs at the top of the page just fills the width of the window. That should bring all the other layouts and tables into proportion.

For the record, I started off writing this site using HotDog, but ended up writing my own HTML directly with Notepad and WordPad.

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We're interested in all sorts of contributions that fit in with dictionary's general theme. If you have any comments or corrections on what is in the dictionary already we're always pleased to hear them, with a view to incorporating them when we update the site. However, we're particularly glad to hear from people offering us material that fills gaps in the existing coverage. You might spot an omission in one of our briefings or factsheets, or see a keyword in the Index that we haven't written up yet but that you might have something to say about.

In these cases, it's always better to write with your suggestion first, just in case someone is already working on that topic. But for general reference, the following notes might be useful.

• The DD welcomes a range of opinions and a variety of styles and tones. However, we do have a few general editorial principles. The DD is non-judgemental and doesn't condemn any kinks; it's rational in its approach to safety, preferring to give information and leave people to make up their own minds rather than preach about what is and isn't considered safe; it's inclusive and descriptive, rather than exclusive and prescriptive, not assuming that, safety and consent considerations aside, there's a right or wrong way to do SM, or that certain activities are not 'real' SM, or that there are proper ways for SMers to behave and form relationships; and it's fun, recognising that SM is in the end about mutual enjoyment and life-enhancement not about passing exams.
• The DD presents its information in a structured way. The structure is very flexible and open-ended, making full use of the HTML links system, so we can accomodate contributions of a variety of lengths and depths. It's still worth bearing the structure in mind, however, particularly if you're interested in writing a full factsheet of briefing. See The Dictionary Structure above.
• The DD is aimed at an international audience. Though it is written in English, it should not be over-colloquial, and should give alternatives for local terms (eg US Clothespins, GB Clothespegs), metric measurements as well as US/Imperial ones etc. Spelling differences are not so important. If you have problems with these stipulations simply point them out to the editor, who will provide the appropriate translations.
• The DD is an information resource and therefore as much detail as possible about other sources of information is appreciated. If you reference other literature, please provide full bibliographical information for the bibilography -- along with a few comments on the work referenced if you can.
• The DD is a web document, not a book and therefore seeks to take advantage of the unique features of the web as much as possible. Links are welcome; corrections and updates can be implemented immediately. Modestly sized graphic files (GIFs or JPEGs) are also very useful, though we try not to be too heavy on graphics to keep downloading times reasonable. However, unless you are totally familiar with our layout, we suggest you leave it to us to do the actual HTML markup on your contributions. Plain ASCII text is usually best, though MS Word documents can also be used.
• Editorial discretion is reserved, though we will always let you check contributions we have amended before posting them.
• Copyright remains with the authors. We seek your authorisation only to use your stuff on the DD site itself and not elsewhere. Say how you'd like to be credited (real name, pseudonym or whatever), and also if you want have your email address/URL included on the contributors' list.

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