View Section

The last section allows you to admire your work! By clicking on the VIEW function you can will see the whole timeline that you have created appear.

1. Presentation of the interface
2. Possibles viewing functions

1. Presentation of the interface

• The thematic layers
  The thematic layers appear in colour. By clicking on the drop-down triangle just beside the layer name, you can choose to display or not display the events associated with that layer.
  
  To modify the order in which they appar in your timeline, click and hold the line and you will be able to drag it (hold the mouse button down while dragging!) Watch for a black line to appear that indicates where to let go to reorder your layers.
  
  
• Navigate between events
  By hovering your cursor over the events you activate small floating windows that give some details about the event. By clicking on the event, you find the event file (its description as well as one or more images which you associated with that file). Even within an open event file, you can navigate between nearby events by clicking the arrows at bottom of the window.
  
  In an open event, by clicking on the Linnked events tab, at the top of the window, you can access a list of events with which the open event is linked. By clicking on these events you will see the description of the event and of how it's linked. You can also access the file for the linked event by clicking on the Consult the event card button at bottom right of the window.
  
  
• The preview box
  At the bottom of the screen, in the preview box area, you will find a visual summary of your whole timeline. The small rectangles symbolize the events that appear in each layer. You can move the frame over this summary area in order to more easily find your way through the actual timeline above. This function is very practical with long timelines.
  
  It is possible to hide the preview box by clicking the small arrow at the top right of the box (near the Merge function link.)
  
  
• The zoom
  Just above the preview box you will find a line with a cursor in the form of a triangle, that you can move back and forth between the - and the + signs. It's a zoom! Move it to the right, and the dates are more precise: time stretches! To the left is the opposite. By placing the cursor to the extreme left, you can view your entire timeline on your screen. The preview box modifies itself accordingly.

2. The viewing functions

At the bottom right of the screen you will find several very practical functions:

• The View function offers a drop-down menu with four options:
  • The option Presentation text opens a small window in which the timeline's presentation text appears;
  • The option Group by thematic layer displays the events regrouped according to their respective thematic layer. This is the default viewing mode;
  • The option Don't group permits the display of only the events without the thematic layers appearing at all. The name of each event is conserved as well as the colour of the layer of which they are a part.
  • The Slideshow option allows you to view all the event files one after the other, in their chronological order. The slideshow does not play by itself. You need to click the arrows at bottom right to navigate through them.
    
  • The Slideshow option allows you to view all the event files one after the other, in their chronological order. The slideshow does not play by itself. You need to click the arrows at bottom right to navigate through them.
    
    
• The Filter function permits you to view certain events according to their classification. By clicking this function, you can choose between Thematic Layer, Category and Links. Whenclicking on one of these filter options, a small window will appear which will allow you to choose which elements you want to appear and not to appear in your timeline's display.
  
  
• The Print function allows you to print the whole timeline or just a part of it, as well the possibility to print just the event files! If you decide to print your timeline, only the events visible at that moment will be printed. (Note that printing the events to a PDF file is a good way to save the text data that you have entered to create your timeline. Windows users need Adobe Acrobat or CutePDF. MacOsX users can 'save as PDF' files while printing.)
  
  
Important note : don't hesitate to adjust your printing settings to maximize the dimensions and print the timelin on one page if possible. You may want to use 11X14 rather than the standard 8,5X11 if your printer will accept that setting. (PDF files can be created with the same dimensions.)



• The Export function gives you html code that you can add to an existing website in order to integrate the viewing module. You can therefore view your creation on any website anywhere! Though obviously those viewing your timeline will not be able to edit it there.
  

Note also : if you modify your reading password for the timeline (see the Sharing and access rights), the web sites in which you placed your timeline must also change their html code. Otherwise the timeline will not appear on their page. That being said, this is also a good way to prevent and control unwanted distribution of your work!


• And finally, the Merge function permits you to look for events in other timelines and merge them together with the timeline you are constructing!!! The thematic layers and the categories used are also merged, and they appear as such in the newly transformed timeline.
  
  For example, if you are working on the timeline on the Modernization of Quebec, and someone else constructed a timeline on the cultural changes of the times, you could choose to merge that line with yours, inheriting their layer structure anad their events, thus saving you time. After you have joined them to yours you can edit them at will.
  
  
  Important note : First, the time periods cannot be merged. But as well, events outside the timeline's dates cannot be merged. Thus all events with dates before or after the dates for your new timeline simply will not appear, though they will still appear in the list of events. Adjust your dates before merging.

  Also, the timeline that you want to use for merging must be in your "My timelines" list, or at least in your "Shared timelines" list. Choosing a shared timeline implies you are choosing from resources for which other users gave you Copie or Collaboration rights. To add a timeline to this list that isn't already there, you must first know the access code and password and enter it below the list space to gain access to it. This information can be provided from the creator of the original timeline.