How can I include only part of a table caption in the content of tables when content of tables is so awkward?

Question

For my dissertation I am writing long captions on all my tables. This makes my content of tables very awkward, as each entry covers multiple lines. How can I specify a part of the caption to be included in the content of tables?

Answer 1

This is provided, by default, by \caption's optional argument:

\documentclass{article}

\usepackage[nopar]{lipsum}

\begin{document}

\listoffigures
\listoftables

\begin{figure}
  \caption[lipsum-1]{\lipsum[1]}
\end{figure}

\begin{table}
  \caption[lipsum-2]{\lipsum[2]}
\end{table}

\end{document}

This is synonymous with the optional argument of sectional units which end up in the ToC.