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+Several methods can be used to obtain integer indices associated with mesh elements.  Such indices are often needed for, e.g., building matrices.  These methods index elements from 0 through the number of elements of the same kind.  I.e., vertices are indexed 0, 1, 2, ..., up through the number of vertices.  In general nothing can/should be assumed about this ordering, except that it will remain fixed as long as the mesh connectivity is not changed.
+
+Note that in some cases, the most straightforward thing may be to just assign your own indices---especially if the indexing scheme needed to build your matrix is different from a straightforward enumeration of mesh elements.  For instance, in the following example a boolean vertex attribute `skip` is provided, which determines whether each vertex is used in a linear system:
+
+    ```cpp
+    VertexData<bool> skip; // assume skip[v] is true if v is not used in the linear system
+    VertexData<size_t> vertexIndex( mesh );
+
+    int i = 0;
+    for( Vertex v : mesh.vertices() ) {
+       if( !skip[v] ) {
+          vertexIndex[v] = i;
+          i++;
+       }
+    }
+    ```
+
+## Uncached index arrays
+
+These methods build and return an `ElementData<size_t>` array that indexes the mesh elements.  Note that these arrays are not cached, and arrays are re-built each time the method is invoked.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp HalfedgeData<size_t> SurfaceMesh::getHalfedgeIndices()`"
+
+    Returns an array that provides indices for all halfedges, with values between 0 and _H_-1, where _H_ is the number of halfedges in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp CornerData<size_t> SurfaceMesh::getCornerIndices()`"
+
+    Returns an array that provides indices for all corners, with values between 0 and _C_-1, where _C_ is the number of corners in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp VertexData<size_t> SurfaceMesh::getVertexIndices()`"
+
+    Returns an array that provides indices for all vertices, with values between 0 and _V_-1, where _V_ is the number of vertices in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp VertexData<size_t> SurfaceMesh::getInteriorVertexIndices()`"
+
+    Returns an array that provides indices for all interior vertices, with values between 0 and _I_-1, where _I_ is the number of interior vertices in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp EdgeData<size_t> SurfaceMesh::getEdgeIndices()`"
+
+    Returns an array that provides indices for all edges, with values between 0 and _E_-1, where _E_ is the number of edges in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp FaceData<size_t> SurfaceMesh::getFaceIndices()`"
+
+    Returns an array that provides indices for all faces, with values between 0 and _F_-1, where _F_ is the number of faces in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp BoundaryLoopData<size_t> SurfaceMesh::getBoundaryLoopIndices()`"
+
+    Returns an array that provides indices for all boundary loops, with values between 0 and _B_-1, where _B_ is the number of boundary loops in the mesh.
+
+
+## Cached index arrays
+
+    These methods build the same arrays as the uncached methods, but cache them in a `Geometry` object.  Note that indices of course do not relate to the actual geometry (i.e., shape and size) of the mesh---however, this mechanism allows indices to be tracked with the geometry classes, so they can participate in the buffer management and dependency management.  Basic example usage:
+
+    ```cpp
+    SurfaceMesh mesh;
+    VertexPositionGeometry geometry( mesh );
+
+    geometry->requireVertexIndices();
+    for( Vertex v : mesh->vertices() ) {
+       int i = geometry->vertexIndices[v];
+       // do science
+    }
+    ```
+
+??? func "`#!cpp void BaseGeometryInterface::requireHalfedgeIndices()`"
+
+    Builds and maintains the array `BaseGeometryInterface::halfedgeIndices` that provides indices for all halfedges, with values between 0 and _H_-1, where _H_ is the number of halfedges in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp void BaseGeometryInterface::requireCornerIndices()`"
+
+    Builds and maintains the array `BaseGeometryInterface::cornerIndices` that provides indices for all corners, with values between 0 and _C_-1, where _C_ is the number of halfedges in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp void BaseGeometryInterface::requireVertexIndices()`"
+
+    Builds and maintains the array `BaseGeometryInterface::vertexIndices` that provides indices for all vertices, with values between 0 and _V_-1, where _V_ is the number of vertices in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp void BaseGeometryInterface::requireInteriorVertexIndices()`"
+
+    Builds and maintains the array `BaseGeometryInterface::interiorVertexIndices` that provides indices for all interior vertices, with values between 0 and _I_-1, where _I_ is the number of interior vertices in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp void BaseGeometryInterface::requireEdgeIndices()`"
+
+    Builds and maintains the array `BaseGeometryInterface::edgeIndices` that provides indices for all edges, with values between 0 and _E_-1, where _E_ is the number of edges in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp void BaseGeometryInterface::requireFaceIndices()`"
+
+    Builds and maintains the array `BaseGeometryInterface::faceIndices` that provides indices for all faces, with values between 0 and _F_-1, where _F_ is the number of faces in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp void BaseGeometryInterface::requireBoundaryLoopIndices()`"
+
+    Builds and maintains the array `BaseGeometryInterface::boundaryLoopIndices` that provides indices for all boundary loops, with values between 0 and _B_-1, where _B_ is the number of boundary loops in the mesh.
+
+## Per element indices
+
+!!! warning
+    The routines in this section are valid only when the mesh is [compressed](mutation.md#compressed-mode).
+
+These methods access the index directly from the mesh element itself.  For example:
+
+    ```cpp
+    Edge e;
+    size_t i = e.getIndex();
+    ```
+
+??? func "`#!cpp size_t Halfedge::getIndex() const`"
+
+    Returns an index between 0 and _H_-1, where _H_ is the number of halfedges in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp size_t Corner::getIndex() const`"
+
+    Returns an index between 0 and _C_-1, where _C_ is the number of corners in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp size_t Vertex::getIndex() const`"
+
+    Returns an index between 0 and _V_-1, where _V_ is the number of vertices in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp size_t Edge::getIndex() const`"
+
+    Returns an index between 0 and _E_-1, where _E_ is the number of edges in the mesh.
+
+??? func "`#!cpp size_t Face::getIndex() const`"
+
+    Returns an index between 0 and _F_-1, where _F_ is the number of faces in the mesh.
+