We report a reproducible technique of making side-polished fibers by embedding fibers in silicon V grooves and by polishing them mechanically. Details of V grooves and polishing techniques are described. The attenuation characteristics of polished fibers were measured by a liquid-drop method; the results are in excellent agreement with existing theoretical predictions. To facilitate comparisons, we cast expressions for the attenuation constant in terms of three generalized parameters: the V and b parameters for the fiber and a new generalized parameter V(ex) for the external medium. By using these generalized parameters, we can study the effects of the external medium on the attenuation constant of side-polished fibers in great detail, including in particular the region where the attenuation changes precipitously.