UKC

I've seen a couple of different ground anchor set-ups, confusingly both being described as "direct belays":

1. Ground anchor clips to belay loop, belay device attached to top rope loop of ground anchor

2. Ground anchor clips to belay loop, belay device attached to belay loop.

(In both cases, the ground anchor was shown clipped to a bolt in the floor)

I'd have thought that 1 was "direct" and 2 was "indirect"? Is this right?

Yes. Direct is when there's nothing between the second and the anchor, ie not you the belayer. In-direct is sometimes referred to as semi direct, but it effectively means the belay device (or the loop precisely speaking) is part of the system. 

Note, the anchor you belay directly off can be anything, tree, spike, equalised wires with sling, bolts etc.. it's only where the belayer/device is placed that dictates how direct the set up is. 

Thanks, that's more-or-less how I understood it. Direct belaying is when the belayer can unclip themselves from the system and the belay remains intact, indirect is when the belayer (or rather, their belay loop) forms part of the system.

Yes. You wouldn't be in the system in the first place, you might clip into the same anchor to be safe, but with a separate cows tail/ lanyard / sling. So you can move around, look over edge as you control the belay. 

A point to note this type of belay can place more load on anchors, as you aren't in the middle to absorb any of it, so they should be absolutely bomb proof, zero doubt. 

Yes. Indirect belay could also be described as "easily escapable by the belayer".

In practice, anything is, given a bit of time and ingenuity, ranging from simply taking your harness off to elaborate ways of re-clipping the belay, depending on whether the rope is loaded, but I fear I digress...