Custom Category - Multiple Snippets & Dropdown Lists

[kbs666]

I simply don't understand why you want this all as one topic when it should be separate topics, and I think a lot of the other responses are equally confused.

Basically anything important enough to have a name and be worthy of having more than a couple of lines of description should have its own topic. Why do you want to shove it all into one?

[Teresa]

I ubderstand what you are doing, and I actually did that for a different reason (chronological information about a city and its region through the millennia).

I basically created a new category and set it up with all the repeating sections so I could add the different basic information plus a list of places that were related to each "chronological city".

BUT!!! It really didn't work - it was cumbersome, long and I struggled with quickly finding the information I wanted (not to mention RW didn't like the repeated name-titles in the sections). So I resorted to having an introductory topic that had almost just a quick list with a short description that then took me to a separated topic for what would have been each section. That child-topic didn't go into full detail because I didn't want it to be bogged down, but it gave a lot of information (and maps) while pointing to further deeper information in other topics.

Although I would prefer to have a way of dynamically sharing the same piece of text in different topics (so I can read an overall piece of information without moving to a new topic), this approach allowed me to have only a very detailed topic on a subject that several other topics would then point to instead of having a long topic with the common piece of information and then a first level of all the other topics that depend on that info.

For example: place A is located in region B, and existed from century C to century D. Instead of having each section dedicated to a time period (repeating time snippets, maps, and overall descriptors on social-economical practices and architectural styles), I just have a snippet per time period with a short text that sends me to the individual topic (with maps, and overall descriptors on social-economical practices and architectural styles). To get more ind-depth information, there are specific topics that describe those practices and styles that actually follow a similar approach - overall description, and then children topics to explore subtle variation from a specific moment in time and/or region.

I hope my experience will help you find the best way for you to organize your realm - but I really must agree with kbs666 in that what you are trying to do now is probably not the best approach with how RW works.

[Farling]

Originally Posted by Teresa

Although I would prefer to have a way of dynamically sharing the same piece of text in different topics (so I can read an overall piece of information without moving to a new topic)

I added a feature request a long time ago to allow the overview snippet (or something similar) to act as the tooltip when hovering over links in other topics. This would provide a brief summary of what you'd get by following the link without actually needing to follow it.

[KiwiBlaze]

Its not all in one topic, I was wanting to have:

If you are in a solar system, and scan the next solar system you travel to, you learn this information about these locations from this distance.

While I personally don't like it, this layout is still possible.

1. Information from a distance
   • From System View
   • From Orbit
   • From Shuttle
   • From Ground
   • Full Description

Originally Posted by tkarn

I hope my experience will help you find the best way for you to organize your realm - but I really must agree with kbs666 in that what you are trying to do now is probably not the best approach with how RW works.

And with your other statements, yes.

[Teresa]

Originally Posted by Farling

I added a feature request a long time ago to allow the overview snippet (or something similar) to act as the tooltip when hovering over links in other topics. This would provide a brief summary of what you'd get by following the link without actually needing to follow it.

Yes, I remember that (upvoted it at the time) - and I'm still dreaming with its implementation!

[Greebo]

Originally Posted by Teresa

Yes, I remember that (upvoted it at the time) - and I'm still dreaming with its implementation!

Me too, so I asked kbs666 to add it to his list.

[kbs666]

Originally Posted by Greebo

Me too, so I asked kbs666 to add it to his list.

There are a few issues with that, although I'm not opposed to making such a feature. It is entirely possible to define a category without an overview snippet. It is also possible to create an overview snippet that isn't text or isn't something that the tooltip control understands.

So if the proposal became something along the lines of "allow the tooltip for a topic/article link to be a user defined text snippet defaulting to the overview snippet." I'm fine with it. The present tooltip is pretty useless.

[Farling]

KiwiBlaze, if you want to create multiple sections with the same snippet layout from predefined data, then my CSV2RW tool can create them if you have the data in Excel or CSV files.

It has the ability to configure a set of columns which it will scan in each row to create 0 or more sections that match what you have set up in the realm's structure definition.

See http://forums.wolflair.com/showpost....&postcount=295

[ErinRigh]

Originally Posted by kbs666

So if the proposal became something along the lines of "allow the tooltip for a topic/article link to be a user defined text snippet defaulting to the overview snippet." I'm fine with it. The present tooltip is pretty useless.

That makes sense +1 from me

[Farling]

Originally Posted by ErinRigh

That makes sense +1 from me

See the tooltip feature request at http://forums.wolflair.com/showthread.php?t=50125