Path of Exile Wiki talk:Manual of Style: Difference between revisions

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>Niightblade
(Proposal for how to handle lists and tables)
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* Most pages already conform to this guideline (as far as I can tell).
* Most pages already conform to this guideline (as far as I can tell).
* May need to update the wording to show that the focus of this guideline is more toward general text with no special markup or wikilinks (my example text isn't ideal).
* May need to update the wording to show that the focus of this guideline is more toward general text with no special markup or wikilinks (my example text isn't ideal).
==Proposed new section:Lists and tables==
The nature of this wiki leads to lots of long lists and tables of data. I think we should have some advice on how to keep the articles readable. Proposed text follows; make changes boldly. :)
* Articles often include lists of items, skills, modifiers, etc. These lists provide invaluable data. But when an article includes multiple lists, and especially when the article mixes long lists and tables with other information, readability and navigability can suffer.
===Managing articles that include long lists or tables===
* Consider the needs of the reader. Some readers may want to pore over every bit of the list. Others may just want to understand the concept(s) you're discussing, without wading into the detail. Your goal should be to let both of them read and navigate the article effectively.
** If you don't see how that can be done, that's often a good sign that the article itself is too complex, and needs to be split into smaller and more digestible articles.
* Articles that discuss several concepts, and that includes one or more lists or tables after the discussion of each concept, can be particularly problematic. A reader that doesn't care about the detail in the tables will still need to scroll past them to read the discussions of the contexts.
* In some cases, putting the lists or tables into sections that are collapsible or collapsed by default -- using the {{tl|cot}} tag, for example -- can help. But bear in mind that collapsible sections are difficult to deal with on some browsers, and particularly by readers who use accessibility features in their browsers. And for articles with multiple lists and tables, collapsing those tables by default can introduce the opposite problem; now a reader who wants to absorb all the details must expand all the tables.
* Putting all the lists and tables at the bottom of the article can benefit the less detail-oriented reader by letting them just read the other information at the top. But it can inconvenience the more detail-oriented reader by making them jump back and forth.
===Create list-only articles for lists and tables===
* It's often a good idea to put individual lists and tables -- especially long ones, and ones that may need to be used in multiple places -- into their own articles. This lets readers read them individually, and lets other articles either link to the list or transclude it, whichever works better for each article.
* Keep list-only articles very simple. If you need to explain what the list or table is for, do so briefly at the top of the article. And put the list or table itself into its own section, so that other articles can use [[mediawikiwiki:Extension:Labeled_Section_Transclusion|Labeled Section Transclusion]] to include just the list or table without the explanatory text.
* Only include one list or table in each article. If you want readers to be able to read lots of lists in one browser page, create another article that transcludes all the individual list articles that you want to combine.
** If understanding the list requires explanation of a concept, don't explain the concept in the list-only article. Explain the concept elsewhere, and include a link to the concept article at the start of the list-only article.
* Include those articles in [[:Category:Lists]] so that others can find and reuse them. But put that category reference in a {{tag|noinclude}} tag, so that other articles transcluding the list don't end up in the Lists category as well.
* For example, here is a good way to structure a "List of Delve encounters" list-only article:
<source lang="html">
<section begin="explanation" />This is a list of encounters that can occur at the end of a [[Delve]].<section end="explanation" />
<section begin="list" />Here is where I put just the table, or just the Cargo query that generates it.</section end="list" />
<noinclude>[[Category:Lists]]</noinclude>
</source>
**Now another article can include all of this content (both the explanation and the list) by using "<nowiki>{{:List of Delve encounters}}</nowiki>".
**Or the article can include just the list -- and not the explanation -- by using "<nowiki>{{#lst:List of Delve encounters#list}}</nowiki>".

Revision as of 17:29, 11 November 2021

Capitalise Proper Nouns And Special Words

To be consistent with in-game text, use capital letters for proper nouns and other special words where possible.

e.g.: Cursed Enemies you Kill have a 1% chance to Explode, dealing a quarter of their maximum Life as Chaos Damage.

—The preceding unsigned comment was added by Niightblade‎ (talkcontribs)

Niightblade(t) — Apologies, I assumed there was already a consensus on this, based on the discussion here: Archive_6#Naming_scheme_for_items.
Niightblade(t) — Any objections/feedback?
I can agree on when quoting stat text like that example seems to be. I probably would like it to be styled with {{c}} as well or just use {{ml}} instead. But I don't think it should be necessary for general text. Unlike the game the wiki has a great way of indicating special meaning already and that's wikilinks. --Illviljan (talk) 12:46, 8 September 2019 (UTC)
Niightblade(t) — Ok, so just to be clear, you're saying general text that isn't wikilinked or otherwise marked-up should not need to use caps at all? Or just words that aren't proper nouns?

Considerations

  • Most pages already conform to this guideline (as far as I can tell).
  • May need to update the wording to show that the focus of this guideline is more toward general text with no special markup or wikilinks (my example text isn't ideal).

Proposed new section:Lists and tables

The nature of this wiki leads to lots of long lists and tables of data. I think we should have some advice on how to keep the articles readable. Proposed text follows; make changes boldly. :)

  • Articles often include lists of items, skills, modifiers, etc. These lists provide invaluable data. But when an article includes multiple lists, and especially when the article mixes long lists and tables with other information, readability and navigability can suffer.

Managing articles that include long lists or tables

  • Consider the needs of the reader. Some readers may want to pore over every bit of the list. Others may just want to understand the concept(s) you're discussing, without wading into the detail. Your goal should be to let both of them read and navigate the article effectively.
    • If you don't see how that can be done, that's often a good sign that the article itself is too complex, and needs to be split into smaller and more digestible articles.
  • Articles that discuss several concepts, and that includes one or more lists or tables after the discussion of each concept, can be particularly problematic. A reader that doesn't care about the detail in the tables will still need to scroll past them to read the discussions of the contexts.
  • In some cases, putting the lists or tables into sections that are collapsible or collapsed by default -- using the {{cot}} tag, for example -- can help. But bear in mind that collapsible sections are difficult to deal with on some browsers, and particularly by readers who use accessibility features in their browsers. And for articles with multiple lists and tables, collapsing those tables by default can introduce the opposite problem; now a reader who wants to absorb all the details must expand all the tables.
  • Putting all the lists and tables at the bottom of the article can benefit the less detail-oriented reader by letting them just read the other information at the top. But it can inconvenience the more detail-oriented reader by making them jump back and forth.

Create list-only articles for lists and tables

  • It's often a good idea to put individual lists and tables -- especially long ones, and ones that may need to be used in multiple places -- into their own articles. This lets readers read them individually, and lets other articles either link to the list or transclude it, whichever works better for each article.
  • Keep list-only articles very simple. If you need to explain what the list or table is for, do so briefly at the top of the article. And put the list or table itself into its own section, so that other articles can use Labeled Section Transclusion to include just the list or table without the explanatory text.
  • Only include one list or table in each article. If you want readers to be able to read lots of lists in one browser page, create another article that transcludes all the individual list articles that you want to combine.
    • If understanding the list requires explanation of a concept, don't explain the concept in the list-only article. Explain the concept elsewhere, and include a link to the concept article at the start of the list-only article.
  • Include those articles in Category:Lists so that others can find and reuse them. But put that category reference in a <noinclude>...</noinclude> tag, so that other articles transcluding the list don't end up in the Lists category as well.
  • For example, here is a good way to structure a "List of Delve encounters" list-only article:
<section begin="explanation" />This is a list of encounters that can occur at the end of a [[Delve]].<section end="explanation" />
<section begin="list" />Here is where I put just the table, or just the Cargo query that generates it.</section end="list" />
<noinclude>[[Category:Lists]]</noinclude>
    • Now another article can include all of this content (both the explanation and the list) by using "{{:List of Delve encounters}}".
    • Or the article can include just the list -- and not the explanation -- by using "{{#lst:List of Delve encounters#list}}".