Design Principles

Overview of page types and structures

Content Page Types

Structural Pages and Project Organisation Pages

free form depending on content and purpose; e.g. start page, introduction page, editorial principles page, etc.

• URL: short (e.g. “About”, “Design Principles”)
• Begin page with:
  • Category: none OR as needed (e.g. “Editorial Pages”)
  • Page Title: can be changed from URL to be more readable with {{DISPLAYTITLE:title}}
  • Show or hide TOC as needed

Overview Pages

overview of large amounts of data/pages via DataTables JavaScript library (DT) and DynamicPageList3 MediaWiki extension (DPL3)

• URL: short, currently uses no blank spaces (e.g. “ArticleOverview”, “ReferencesOverview”)
• Begin page with:
  • Category: “Overview Pages”
  • Page Title: changed from URL to be more readable with {{DISPLAYTITLE:xyz}} (e.g. “Overview of Newspaper Articles”)
• Main content:
  • use Template:OverviewPageNote for header section; use the variables:
    • summary for introductory text (wikitext format)
    • explanation for explanations regarding the table formatting, abbreviations, etc. (wikitext format; usually a list with bullet points)
  • Overview/table section can be one of the following:
    • Static table with DT functionality; can be either html or wikitext table (example: Overview of Mark Twain's Writing and Speeches):
      • set class=“wikitable datatable hover”
      • set separate id if needed
      • other styling and DT parameters as needed (e.g. “data-page-length”, “data-order”, etc.)
    • Dynamic table using DPL3 with additional DT functionality (example: Overview of Newspaper Articles)
      • use DPL3 “table” parameter
      • set: class=“wikitable datatable hover”
      • if appropriate, initialise DT Custom Search Builder with the following DT styling parameters: data-layout=‘{“top1Start”:“searchBuilder”}’ data-language=‘<nowiki>{“searchPlaceholder”:” Quick Search”, “search”:““,”searchBuilder”:{“add”:“Add Search Condition”}}’</nowiki>
      • use DPL3 “tablerow” parameter to style individual columns (width, font, etc.)
    • Dynamic list using DPL3 (#dpl: statement) with styling as needed

Newspaper Article Pages

table design w/ 2 or 3 columns to display screenshot, transcript, and translation/original; links to Topic Pages (or to their sub-topic chapters)

• URL: item ID
• Begin page with:
  • Template:ArticleInfo with variables corresponding to article metadata; the template automatically sets Category as “Article Pages” and generates a header section with metadata
• Main content:
  • Template:ArticleImage for screenshot
  • optional: Template:ArticleNote OR Template:ArticleNoteTop with the variables:
    • content for contextual information on the text (optional variable)
    • note to include the “Changes in Translation” color coding information
      • don’t include variable to include the standard section
      • define variable with wikitext to include alternative text
      • include variable but leave value empty to omit the “Changes in Translation” section entirely
  • table with transcription and translation
    • surround with <div> element
      • set class="large-8 columns" for 3-column layout
      • set class="row" for 2-column layout
    • set: class=“wikitable translationTable” for styling
    • include annotation links to Topic Pages (or chapter headings of sub-topics) in the translation column (NOT in the transcription column)

3-column design

Template:ArticleNoteTop (optional)

Template:ArticleImage

<div class="large-8 columns">

<table class="wikitable translationTable"><tr><th>Transcription</th><th>English Translation</th></tr><tr><td>text</td><td>text</td></tr></table>

</div>

2-column design

Template:ArticleImage

Template:ArticleNote (optional)

<div class="row">

<table class="wikitable translationTable"><tr><th>Transcription</th><th>English Translation</th></tr><tr><td>text</td><td>text</td></tr></table>

</div>

Topic Pages

context and explanations for relevant key words on Article Pages

• URL: short topic name (can include blank spaces), e.g. “Vienna” or “Anti-Imperialist League”
  • exceptions:
    • for “Topic Person” pages use Lastname • Firstname in URL and reassign displaytitle with {{DISPLAYTITLE:Firstname Lastname}} at the bottom of the page (necessary for correct transclusion of Topic Pages and to correctly display entries in the Topic Overview)
• Main content:
  • explanatory text including citations and pictures, can include chapters for sub-topics
  • citations (for a more detailed explanation see chapter DesignPrinciples):
    • MLA formatting
    • short in-text citation with direct link to zotero bibliography
    • newspaper articles (not part of the project collection): complete bibliographical data
    • newspaper articles (part of project collection): link to item page on scalar
  • pictures:
    • include content from Image Page as caption: {{File:''image-title''}}
    • e.g.: [[File:Austrian_parliament_harpers_1897.jpg|thumb|right|350px|{{File:Austrian_parliament_harpers_1897.jpg}}]] on page Vienna
  • optional: Template:Link List to display a list of Article Pages which link to the topic or sub-topic chapter (place underneath the main text or at the end of the relevant chapter section)
• set Category as “Topic Pages” AND chose additional category as needed (currently “Topic Place” or “Topic Person”) at the bottom of the page

Image Page Types

Article Screenshots

• URL: generated during upload as File:item-ID.png
• currently no page content

Images for Topic Pages

• URL: descriptive
• Main content:
  • header (== Summary ==); auto-generated when file upload summary section is used
  • short description
  • source with full citation
  • place tags around parts that should be visible in the caption on the Topic Page (example: File:Austrian_parliament_harpers_1897.jpg)

Citations

all citations use MLA formatting

• newspaper articles that are not part of the project collection:
  • include complete bibliographical data
  • direct link to online repository (if available)
  • example: "“Mark Twain Settles It,” Worcester Daily Press (Worcester, Mass.), 27 July 1876".
• newspaper articles that are part of the project collection:
  • link to item Article Page by referencing the title
  • inclusion of bibliographical data is not necessary, but might be useful depending on context
  • example: "The following text partially reproduces one such article entitled “Im Freundeskreise” published by the Illinois Staats-Zeitung on 14 March 1892".
• all other sources (books, articles, letters, etc.):
  • short in-text citation
  • link to zotero bibliographic entry (avoid direct links to digital versions of the source, because these links will likely break over time; it’s easier to include and keep them updated in zotero),
  • example: "The original letters can be found in Mark Twain on Potholes and Politics (Scharnhorst, 48-62)".