Suppose I have two functions:
$f(x)$ and $g(x)$
These functions are similar -- meaning, they are variations of the same general thing. I want to express to the reader that they are similar/related.
I tried superscripts:
$f^{variation1}(x)$ and $f^{variation2}(x)$
But that seems unwieldy. What is best practice?
I'd use $f_1(x)$ and $f_2(x)$, personally. Other alternatives are $f^{(1)}(x)$ and $f^{(2)}(x)$ or $f(x)$ and $f'(x)$, but these could both be confused with differentiation if you're dealing with any calculus.