Significant posts list

[Martin Wynne]

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This post doesn't belong here. I will move it later.

A frequent problem on this forum, at least for me, is finding the significant posts within a topic after more than a few days. Topics tend to veer about all over the place. The search functions are ok, but work only if you know what you are searching for. What we need is a forum indexing function of some kind.

No such thing appears to exist, on this or any other forum. If you want an index it requires someone to compile and maintain it manually. However, I have now installed another forum add-on function, this one called Threadmarks, which might go some way to help.

(I would have much preferred it to be called "Topic marks", but that's a battle I think I've lost. I very much dislike topics being referred to as "threads", but I can't keep on changing everything and no-one else seems to mind.)

Using Threadmarks it is possible to have the significant posts within a long topic labelled, and a clickable list of them appears at the top of each page in the topic, so that you can jump straight to them:

In addition, Reader mode shows only those posts, omitting all the in-between stuff.

Posts which have been threadmarked gain a header bar, and on the right a link back to the list:

And a footer bar:

With another link to Reader mode, and back to the list. In reader mode you can revert to normal mode by clicking the date on the left.


Over time this function could build up into a useful alternative to searching. I'm still learning about the various settings.

The downside is that it seems the only one who can actually add the threadmarks is me. There is no way I can go back through the many hundreds of posts on here to pick out the significant ones. But every post has a ref. number which appears in green below it (see above). If you find a post which you think is worth threadmarking, please let me know by quoting the ref number. I can then threadmark it. I will create a separate topic for the purpose of reporting the ref. numbers.

So far we have a grand total of 2 threadmarks, in this topic, just to see how it works:

https://85a.uk/templot/club/index.php?threads/220/

That topic has almost 2,500 posts, so obviously a great many more are waiting to be threadmarked.

It's worth a try, anyway.

cheers,

Martin.

 

[Phil G]

Hi Martin,
Sorry your right, I did over look the difference in detail behind the key itself, an error I have been doing myself now I look at some of my work, I will correct that on the you tube channel. Thank you for point it out.

re your cross reference comment, I fully endorse that. We are desperately in need of a meaningful central resource for this information its just scatted across the forum. I am not arguing for 1 second that you have highlighted this in a previous post, you clearly have, it just gets lost in all the other posts that's all.

Just as an other thought, maybe a short video on how to get the best out of navigating around of the Templot forum site would be a quick fix option?
cheers
Phil

 

[Martin Wynne]

re your cross reference comment, I fully endorse that. We are desperately in need of a meaningful central resource for this information its just scatted across the forum. I am not arguing for 1 second that you have highlighted this in a previous post, you clearly have, it just gets lost in all the other posts that's all.

@Phil G

Hi Phil,

That's why I have installed the Threadmarks add-on. As with everything, the only way to find out exactly what it does was to get it and see. No amount of looking at web sites and details ever tells you what you need to know. In truth I'm a bit disappointed with it, but it may prove useful:

https://85a.uk/templot/club/index.php?threads/3d-plug-track-version-244c-and-beyond.891/post-10964

If you scroll to the very bottom of the Front page you will see a section labelled Significant Posts:

https://85a.uk/templot/club/

So far there are just 2 test entries. I have spent an entire afternoon trying to change the ordering of the title of each so that the threadmark label comes first and the topic title second, and get them in alphabetic order, without success. Sometimes it would be easier just to do every single thing from scratch yourself.

cheers,

Martin.

 

[Phil G]

Hmm,
I can't find this thread marks when I open or look in the forum. Which I know you mentioned a few days ago. Does anybody else have this problem?
cheers
phil

 

[Phil G]

Hi Martin,
I think I have made some progress with this trademarks addition piece.
After a quick check it looks as though the first screen shot has trademarks, IE this topic only
https://85a.uk/templot/club/index.php?threads/3d-plug-track-version-244c-and-beyond.891/post-10964
For what I can see all other topics don't have it, screen shot attached .
cheers
phil,

 

[Martin Wynne]

@Phil G

???

I already explained that so far I have added only 2 threadmarks, and only in that topic, just to test the working:

So far we have a grand total of 2 threadmarks, in this topic, just to see how it works:

https://85a.uk/templot/club/index.php?threads/220/

It seems to be the same with everything -- I can't get folks to understand the meaning of experimental.

Martin.

 

[Phil G]

now your getting to cryptic for me, I am afraid.
You just mentioned Thread marks as a response to my comment about finding resources.
clearly if its only in one post, how can it be a method of finding resources? I get your only trying it, but I think you should have made that a bit clearer.
and before you respond with experimental comment again, maybe consider using other terminology, because experimental may just be being over used

 

[Martin Wynne]

now your getting to cryptic for me, I am afraid.
You just mentioned Thread marks as a response to my comment about finding resources.
clearly if its only in one post, how can it be a method of finding resources? I get your only trying it, but I think you should have made that a bit clearer.
and before you respond with experimental comment again, maybe consider using other terminology, because experimental may just be being over used

@Phil G

I'm sorry Phil. The whole thing is getting me down a bit.

Martin.

 

[Phil G]

Hi Martin,
I do understand your position, its getting me down a bit as well to be honest. I was simply asking myself is the problem of not being able follow the threads clearly just me? because if it is, then its also up to me to better understand it. Or is it a more general issue? If the latter collectively we need to find a solution.

Whatever the answer is, I don't want to burden you with being the sole solution. My aim is and always has been to try and help. Although as demonstrated by the YouTube slip up, I don't always succeed
cheers
Phil

 

[Phil G]

Hi Martin,
I have been playing around with a bit of an idea for a simple manual register, it's quite time consuming but I though I would finish this topic up to date at the time of writing it.
Attached is a PDF version with, what should be interactive links to the posts.
The importance value is very subjective, and by no means fixed just something to get me going.
Please note it just my first cut at this, so any comment or suggestions for improvements are welcome even if it is don't bother.
I would be happy to keep this up to date for the rest of the week at least, just to see how onerous it is.
cheers
phil,

 

[Steve_Cornford]

Hi Martin, @Phil G
I have started this topic hoping to help.
Thanks for adding this new facility. I understand that only you can mark a particular post as significant, so I hope this does not add to your workload.
I understand as you mark a post as significant it adds it to a new list that appears at the bottom of the front page:-

and that so far you have only marked three posts, and taking the 2nd one as an example, clicking on it takes you straight to that post and you can see that it has the threadmark label.

I concur with your feelings about the word threadmarks, why could it not be significant ?

Lets hope that it helps people find significant posts.
Steve

 

[Martin Wynne]

Hi Martin,
I have been playing around with a bit of an idea for a simple manual register, it's quite time consuming but I though I would finish this topic up to date at the time of writing it.
Attached is a PDF version with, what should be interactive links to the posts.
The importance value is very subjective, and by no means fixed just something to get me going.
Please note it just my first cut at this, so any comment or suggestions for improvements are welcome even if it is don't bother.
I would be happy to keep this up to date for the rest of the week at least, just to see how onerous it is.
cheers
phil,

@Phil G

Hi Phil,

Thanks for taking the time and trouble to do that. But it is far too much work to keep it up for the entire forum, and it contains far more detail than anyone would want.

The need is to create a list of links to the significant posts across all topics, not a detailed guide to every single post.

All I need is the green message ref: number for posts anywhere on Templot Club which you regard as containing significant information. I can then do the rest. That would be a great help. The number is found on the bottom line of every post.

You can post it in this topic. Just the number, no need to create proper links or explanations. All I need is the green number. Nothing else, otherwise it just creates work for me in having to reply, answer questions, say thank you, etc. Just post the number, all by itself, or several of them, here in this topic. Without any regard to which topic it is from. Thanks.

cheers,

Martin.

 

[Martin Wynne]

I have started this topic hoping to help.

@Steve_Cornford

Hi Steve,

Many thanks for starting this topic. We can use it now for posting the message ref: numbers from the bottom of significant posts anywhere on Templot Club.

---

Everyone, all I need is the green message ref: number for posts anywhere on Templot Club which you regard as containing significant information. I can then do the rest. The unique ref number is found on the bottom line of every post.

Just the number, no need to create proper links or explanations. All I need is the green number. Nothing else, otherwise it just creates work for me in having to reply, answer questions, say thank you, etc.

Please just post the number, all by itself, or several of them, here in this topic. Without any regard to which topic it is from. Just the number. Thanks.

What is a significant post? One which contains information which you might want to refer back to. One which you might want to find at a later date. One which contains information which isn't posted anywhere else. One which folks can post a link to in asking further questions on the subject. One which contains screenshots, diagrams, attached files, etc. which you might want to re-use in a later post when explaining something or asking questions.

Armed with the ref number I can go to the post, and give it a meaningful threadmarks label. A link to it will then appear in the Significant Posts list at the bottom of the front page.

A list of such posts will also appear in the Threadmarks drop-down at the top of any topic which contains threadmarked significant posts. The author of the Threadmarks add-on actually intends that to be the main intention of his add-on. It is of course utterly useless there because you need to know which topic to go to in the first place when looking for content. The only practical use of the add-on is to create a list of significant posts across all topics, which is what appears for now at the bottom of the front page.

The list is there temporarily for now and is experimental. It is not yet finished. It is not in its final form. It will change. Parts of it may not work. None of it may work. It is experimental.

When and if the list contains sufficient entries to be worth having, I will make it easier to get to, provide a link to it, put it on its own page, convert it to an alphabetic list, add it to the Companion, do anything else with it which might be useful or make it easier to find and use. All of which will still be experimental and subject to change.

But first I need the ref. numbers.

Thanks again.

cheers,

Martin.

 

[Steve_Cornford]

2828

 

[Martin Wynne]

2828

@Steve_Cornford

Thanks Steve. No need to post it in green.

Now added to the significant posts list.

The snag of course is that it's 3 years old and completely out of date. It still works, but we now have boundary rectangle shapes for that purpose -- there is no need to use a kludge based on the export image boundary (of which you can have only one).

Which is the fly in the ointment here -- almost every post which anyone considers significant is now likely to be out of date in some regard. Overtaken by later developments. I really don't know how to deal with that. For almost every link to a post we will need another link, and then another, leading to subsequent posts with later changes. Editing the original posts with later links would be very time-consuming.

Thanks again,

Martin.

 

[Steve_Cornford]

Sorry, that poses a question.
Can you remove an item from the significant posts list?
I will search for a post regarding boundary rectangle shapes
Steve

 

[Martin Wynne]

Can you remove an item from the significant posts list?

Sure.

You could post a strike-through to let me know: 2828

But that's not the best start.

I will leave it for now while we are still experimenting.

cheers,

Martin.

 

[Phil G]

@Martin Wynne ,@Steve_Cornford
Hi Guys,
Just a though,
instead of working thought the posts front to back, looking for significant posts, if we work back to front is should hopefully filter out, some of the now older and out of date information. Its not going to be fool proof but it should help.

Also in order to avoid duplication lets all pick a different topic, state which topic your working on so somebody else can do a different topic.
I would suggest Steve's post is the logical starting place.

I don't now if its better to have all significant posts in the same place, or have a folder and sub folder type set up. I will leave that one entirely for you to think about Martin.
Cheers
Phil,

 

[Martin Wynne]

I don't now if its better to have all significant posts in the same place, or have a folder and sub folder type set up.

@Phil G

Hi Phil,

The trouble with that is that no matter how hard you try to set up the sub folders, every other post will turn out to be in a grey area half-way between two of them, and several others will just be in the wrong folder from the start.

I prefer a single flat list with a good multi-entry A-Z indexing system. Ideally something which can be integrated into the existing index:

https://85a.uk/templot/companion/hmkwindex.php

But all in good time. Before planning what to do with the list, the first thing we need is the list. Templot didn't get where it is today by knowing where it was going from the start.

Martin.

 

[Phil G]

Templot didn't get where it is today by knowing where it was going from the start.

Templot reminds me of a sailing boat going into the wind, IE to get from North to south, you can only travel SE and SW
with lots of tacking on the way

 

[Rob Manchester]

Templot didn't get where it is today by knowing where it was going from the start.

Martin.

"It just grew like Topsy"..........

Rob

 

[Phil G]

Extracted from significant post topic
10278
10280
11013

Extracting a 3D timbering brick from a track plan​

2856
2859
3235
4031
4038
4048
4054
4055

3D plug track - version 244c and beyond​

10914
10918
10943
10950
10955
10966
10973
10974

Can Plug Chair Sockets be Omitted​

10669

Output for Laser Cutting a selected template from a trackplan​

10668 question
10670 answers
10672 answers

Chairing for Custom Turnouts​

10666 question
10673 answer

Plug Track - User Guide​

10031

 

[Martin Wynne]

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I have created a new section at the top of the front page to make the lists easier to find:

Just a reminder -- this is experimental, this is not the finished thing. It's not all working yet.

cheers,

Martin.