Creating status pages
This page explains how to use Template:Status and related templates to create a table showing the status of various parts of an area, with percentages complete. This can be used on a mapping projects page, although the technique has not been adopted on all such pages. In fact only a handful of pages make use of this (list them:Special:Whatlinkshere/Template:Status) The best example is probably Bedford
Aim
The templates create a neatly-formatted table, but try to keep the source-code readable so that people remain sane while editing it.
It doesn't really succeed in this aim, since (A) the wiki syntax for a table is really just as readable as the template call (B) templates add a layer of extra confusion over and above use of basic wiki syntax. There is some wiki bug nastiness too: The status_sublabel template creates headings with corresponding 'edit' links, but try clicking the edit links, and it takes you to edit section number one (the wrong section).
The templates do have the benefit that we could change the display format across all of the tables all at once (details below)
Basic use
{{status_start|name=Bedford area}}
{{status|name=Place 1|tracks=0%|tags=0%|notes=}}
{{status|name=Place 2|tracks=0%|tags=0%|notes=}}
{{status_end}}
status_start introduces the whole table with a title
status is used to describe each area. Its fields are:
- name - name of the area
- tracks - how many streets have been physically visited by someone with a GPS and notebook
- tags - how many of the streets are in the database, correctly tagged with their name, type of highway, and any one-way streets (see Editing)
- notes - anything else which might interest people mapping that area
status_end finishes the table, and puts any footnotes or references in.
Sub-headings
Creates sub-headings, e.g. to group all the villages north of a town
{{status_sublabel|name=AreaName1}}
Roads
Lists a road
{{roadstatus|to=Destination|dir=N,E,S,W|status=to do|notes=}}
Fields
- to - where the road goes
- dir - which direction it goes from the town being described
- status - todo, or done
- notes
Big roads have pretty simple attributes (e.g. label the whole thing as A21 without having to write down loads of street names), so they only have a "todo" or "done" status to say whether they've been recorded.
Categories
Consider adding your project to Category:Projects, and to the relevant national project (see Mapping projects page).
Changing the display format
The reason for using these templates is that it's easy to modify the way things are displayed later, and all the projects will benefit from those changes.
Display options are stored in:
- Template:status_start
- Template:status
- Template:roadstatus
- Template:status_end
- Template:status_sublabel
See also
- Template:Map status (unrelated origin, but related intent)