Talk:Manual of Style/Sophont

Comments and suggestions for the new updates (2019)

Several comments and suggestions about the newly updates basic template:

1. Why are we including these dead parameters in the template?

|environ     = > Terrain 
|extinct     = Extant
|lang        = Unknown Native Language
|socstrct    = > Government
|TLepoch     = > epoch

These are no longer used, and the purpose of the current update to the sophonts is to fix the templates so they include the correct parameters.

2. Have a better summary paragraph:

The [[TBD]] of {{WorldS|Name|Sector|Hex [Primary]}} are a technologically <epoch> [[sophont]] species. 
They are a [[<status>]] with a [[<confluence>]] appearance. 

The changes I'm recommending are:

• We should be using the T5 Sophont long name as the introduction. See T5.10 Book 3 p. 215. This is <name> of <world> ([primary]).
• In place of the word "sophisticated", I've been using a word based upon the epoch:
  • TL0, TL:1-3 -> primitive
  • TL:4-6 -> limited, developing
  • TL:7-9 -> competent
  • TL:10-12 -> sophisticated (the default if not known)
  • TL:13-15 -> advanced
• Sophont should be a link.
• The second item should be part of a paragraph, not a one item list.

3.

This race is primarily located in the following areas:

This sentence reads better without the parenthetical comment.

4. Homeworld section could be cleaned up a little:

• No year in the Homeworld header. Homeworld isn't restricted to year.

• The [[homeworld]] of this race is:

  This sentence reads better without the parenthetical comment.
• The homeworld should use the {{WorldS...}} template.

5.

Significant communities of this race are known to dwell... 

This sentence reads better without the parenthetical comment.

6. No links in the headers.

7.{{LE|Races}} -> Use a shorter final set of categories. The category from the status parameter (e.g. [[Category: Minor Race]]) and [[Category: Sophont]] are included in the SophontData template. The rest of categories should be individual entries above this one.

Tjoneslo (talk) 15:36, 13 October 2019 (EDT)

Please explain why you want to revert the template and the work done to improve and expand the template.

• Which users are directly using these parameter?
• What is their use case? That is how are they accessing and using the parameters?
• I would like to better understand what these users are trying to do to ensure success in their projects as well. Tjoneslo (talk) 05:54, 7 November 2019 (EST)

Please be more specific about which authors are using this comment. I would like to understand their use of the comment to ensure the success of their projects. Tjoneslo (talk) 06:15, 7 November 2019 (EST)

As stated in other communications and based upon long professional work with web-spiders I am very skeptical of these claims.

• Web-spiders are capable of causing problems with the server if used incorrectly. This can cause problems with not only the wiki but other FFE web properties.
• If users are spidering the Wiki, please have them contact us at the wiki.
• I have methods of retrieving data from the wiki which are much quicker and make better use of the server resources.
• As above, I request more information about the use case; which users and what are they looking for by using this access method.

- Tjoneslo (talk) 06:12, 7 November 2019 (EST)