Help talk:Timeline format

See this archive for pre LQT talk

On certain Chrome browsers (all have the same, v70.0.3538.77 (Official Build) (64-bit), version ) we have this bug (already abandoned report of 2013: https://github.com/simile-widgets/ancient-simile-widgets/issues/494):

mw.loader.implement.css @ VM66:200
load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=jquery%2Cmediawiki&only=scripts&skin=vector&version=0l60dw6:52 jQuery.Deferred exception: Cannot read property '1' of undefined TypeError: Cannot read property '1' of undefined
    at Function.Timeline.GregorianDateLabeller.getMonthName (http://server.com/wiki/load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:79:997)
    at Timeline.GregorianDateLabeller.defaultLabelInterval (http://server.com/wiki/load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:81:426)
    at Timeline.GregorianDateLabeller.labelInterval (http://server.com/wiki/load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:80:253)
    at Timeline.EtherIntervalMarkerLayout.createIntervalMarker (http://server.com/wiki/load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:77:340)
    at Timeline.GregorianEtherPainter.paint (http://server.com/wiki/load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:64:879)
    at Timeline._Band.paint (http://server.com/wiki/load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:14:185)
    at Timeline._Band.layout (http://server.com/wiki/load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:14:114)
    at Timeline._Band._recenterDiv (http://server.com/wiki/load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:22:690)
    at Timeline._Band.setViewLength (http://server.com/wiki/load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:15:107)
    at Timeline._Impl._distributeWidths (http://server.com/wiki/load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:8:965) undefined
jQuery.Deferred.exceptionHook @ load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=jquery%2Cmediawiki&only=scripts&skin=vector&version=0l60dw6:52
load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=jquery%2Cmediawiki&only=scripts&skin=vector&version=0l60dw6:52 Uncaught TypeError: Cannot read property '1' of undefined
    at Function.Timeline.GregorianDateLabeller.getMonthName (load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:79)
    at Timeline.GregorianDateLabeller.defaultLabelInterval (load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:81)
    at Timeline.GregorianDateLabeller.labelInterval (load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:80)
    at Timeline.EtherIntervalMarkerLayout.createIntervalMarker (load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:77)
    at Timeline.GregorianEtherPainter.paint (load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:64)
    at Timeline._Band.paint (load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:14)
    at Timeline._Band.layout (load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:14)
    at Timeline._Band._recenterDiv (load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:22)
    at Timeline._Band.setViewLength (load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:15)
    at Timeline._Impl._distributeWidths (load.php?debug=false&lang=en&modules=ext.smile.timeline.core&skin=vector&version=1tg42br:8)

Any ideas what is causing it to fail?

Ankostis (talk)

This result format is apparently starting to fall apart completely. This is a bit of a shame but the underlying lib was abandoned. Not sure if there is an alternative.

[[kgh]] (talk)

SIMILE timeline seems to get no updates since 2009, but there's an actively maintained fork based on the original code:

https://github.com/Lab21k/standalone-timeline/

Alexander Gesinn (talk)

That's good to know, however we still need someone to deal with SRF continue supporting the timeline format.

[[kgh]] (talk)

Yeah, this result format has been unmaintained for a long time now, loose from whatever is happing with the libraries it uses.

Jeroen De Dauw (talk)

Anyone experiance with Duration events on this timeline? Seems possible in simile but is it also possible with SMW?

http://simile-widgets.org/wiki/Timeline_Event_Display#Duration_Events

shows how it works with Simile.

Hope to hear something about it. Thanks

Dicki (talk)

It handles duration events OK but not with fuzzy start and end date/time

It's simply a matter of entering both start and end dates/times for the event and including those parameters in the results statement.

Here is a live example with a few duration events on it

Sabretache (talk)

Can an Administrator please split this page so as to separate the threaded from non-threaded parts. At present it is not possible to link to anything in the threaded discussion which makes life even more difficult than it already is for those of us trying to use the timeline format.

Sabretache (talk)

I am not sure what you meant exactly, but I moved the pre LQT talk to an archive page to tidy this page.

[[kgh]] (talk)

That's what I meant. Thanks.

Sabretache (talk)

Upgrading to MW 1.22 from 1.21.3 has broken a reasonably functional implementation of this results format here. The timeline box is displayed with the message You need to have JavaScript enabled to view the interactive timeline. and a link per Further results for this query. showing at the top of the box. Any suggestions to fix this short of reverting to MW 1.21.3 appreciated.

Sabretache (talk)

Further info: Loading the problem page indicated above also breaks the Vector skin collapsible sidebar menus (The separate Vector extensions have been removed for MW 1.22 per the u/g instruction). The collapsible sidebar menus work fine everywhere except on this one page.

Sabretache (talk)

Might not be that much of a help but we've upgraded from 1.21 to 1.22RC3 this week, using SRF 1.8 too and we don't have any of these issues, as can be seen there: http://www.entropiaplanets.com/wiki/EntropiaPlanets_Wiki#EntropiaTimeline

Eric (talk)

Thanks Eric. I've had a good root around but remain baffled - especially by the collapsible sidebar menu issue. I've posted to the SMW list too. Hope someone can help further with this

Sabretache (talk)

I have been seeking help with both the SMW implementation and its parent Simile-widgets for about a month now but to little avail so far. The Simile list is set to moderate new member posts and mine have been o/s for over 3 weeks with email reminders un-actioned. Various emails to possible helpers have also gone unanswered so far too.

I am some way along implementing the SMW format here but have various outstanding issues. The project is crowd-sourced and funded so prospects of payments for sorting out issues are limited. However, if I can get the thing working properly I will likely be monitoring this page carefully and helping where I can as my own usage experience grows. Comments anyone???

Sabretache (talk)

Still no joy with the Simile Widgets group and little apparent activity here either. If anyone here is a member of the group I would appreciate a post pointing out the difficulty for new members registering. My guess is there may have been quite a few who have simply given up - pity really because existing members are reasonably active.

I may be wrong but, From what I can gather there seems to be little interest in developing this particular SRF format further. So, FI, I have set up a project on the Wikispooks Sandbox wiki and solicited help in modifying the SMW timeline scripts to make it a little more like the original. Full details are available here. Anyone interested, please email me or chip in here or at the linked page.

Sabretache (talk)

I got your email a week or so ago, and I am interested in assisting with improvement of this extension. Unfortunately I have way too much on my plate right now, so it'll probably be at least a couple months. Also, SMW 1.9 is going to be released soon (~Dec 2013), and with that I believe there are some changes to Semantic Results Formats.

James Montalvo (talk)

Thanks James. I'm plodding on with easy changes (removal of double dates in the bubbles is done). I'll post about progress on the Sandbox site and here if it seems appropriate. From other email exchanges I've had, I think it unlikely that there will be significant - if any - changes to the timeline format in the 1.9 release, but then it is just one of about 30 others :-)

Sabretache (talk)

A good alternative is this new timeline format: https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Extension:ChapTimeline

Jeroen De Dauw (talk)

Thanks Jeroen. I've had a few email exchanges with Yuri on this and still not managed to get it working. It would help my confidence to see it working on a wiki somewhere. I've offered my own Sandbox site but no takers yet. My provisional judgement is that it has great potential but is currently in a state somewhere between raw and totally unusable on a production site.

Sabretache (talk)

Referring to this timeline project, can anyone suggest why the number of displayed events is always less than the number of selected events?

The query selects 134 pages with properly formatted dates (they all use the same template and form) but the number actually displayed is ALWAYS less than the number selected. I have tried various values for 'limit' - both 134 and higher; I have also tried reversing sort order and using all the available values for 'timelineposition' - and none at all. All such changes produce different sub-sets of the query selection actually displayed on the timeline but in an unpredictable (to me anyway) fashion.

I have also ruled out page caching or a Mediawiki jobs queue backlog. I really must get this fixed in order to move forward at all with this format.

Any help much appreciated

Sabretache (talk)

SOLVED

Although I had to reformat the xml data to import it into Mediawiki as pages, it's content was exactly the same as that in the Simile-widgets timeline example data. This meant that the names of the event pages generated from the xml were the same as the Simile event names, complete with apostrophes and other punctuation marks. On the assumption that such marks in page names might be the problem, I removed them all. The problem remained.

I then set about removing the more obvious, potentially problematic characters in the event descriptions ( ) [ ] " ' / \ ? & etc. All were contained in the Simile data and the simile js seems to handle them OK but I thought it worth a go anyway. Still no joy.

I then removed the descriptions entirely from the timeline query statement and Bingo!! - all the events appeared.

Examining the 'description' texts more carefully by exporting to csv and importing into Notepad++ and Open Office calc, the only anomalies that stood out apart from many full stops and commas remaining in the text, were a carriage return character in two of the descriptions. Removing them cured the problem.

So, the lesson is that, if you want to include a text field in the timeline bubbles, make sure it does NOT contain any carriage returns.

Sabretache (talk)

It's worth pointing out that neither the characters mentioned above, nor the punctuation marks in page names causes a problem for timeline; it's just the carriage return character. I know this because all the experimentation that led to a solution was carried out on a test wiki. When the carriage return character was removed from the event pages on the main wiki, with all the other potential problems left intact, the problem was solved.

Sabretache (talk)

Following up on what was also mentioned some time ago here: http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Extension_talk:Semantic_Result_Formats/timeline_and_eventline_formats#BC_Dates

Timeline currently fails when trying to display BC dates, i.e. dates before the year 0. Any solution in sight?

Azchael (talk)

Is there a way to filter events simultaneously while the user is typing or selecting criterias in textboxes and/or drop-down menus. For example, say that we want to display only the events that occur in a particular city or that we want to display only certain types of events, not all of them. Is it possibly to change the search criteria (the city or the type of event) without reloading the page?

Martinwiss (talk)