NationStates

Ponderosa wrote:Ponderosa’s Guide to a Wiki Style Factbook

How often have you come across a bloggy factbook, consisting of multiple articles with only a few sentences each? A wiki-style factbook allows you to condense a lot of information in only one factbook, and looks much more professional.

Wiki style factbooks are inspired from Wikipedia articles and other wikias. In this guide, I will show you how to create an article that is highly informative, organized, and visually appealing.

Disclaimer: This guide is designed for the gameside factbooks, found on your nation page. Some codes and templates do not work well on forumside factbooks, and will not work at all on sites like IIWiki. If you have any questions, please submit them in the thread here. I prefer not to receive telegrams with questions.

Contents

Sidebar
Title and Introduction
Table of Contents
Body
Largest Cities Table
Images
Template Source Code

Sidebar
This is a major part of a wiki factbook. It provides quick facts and statistics about your nation.
What to Include

- Nation name and pretitle
- Flag
- Motto
- Anthem Title
- Small map or orthographic showing where your nation is located (no details!)
- Capital and Largest City
- Demonym
- Government (e.g., national leader, legislature, etc)
- Geographic Statistics (land area, water percentage, etc)
- GDP
- And more. See my factbook or Wikipedia entries to draw inspiration.

How to make it
The sidebar will be the very first thing in your factbook code. It will involve the use of [box] and [floatright] tags.
1) Put a [box] and a [floatright] tag at the beginning of the code.
2) Start filling in information! Use small images for your flag and orthographic, and divide each section with underscores or {hr} tags.
3) Finish the sidebar with the appropriate end tags.

Sidebar Template

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[floatright][box][center][b]The PRETITLE of NATION[/b]
[hr]

INSERT FLAG HERE
[b]Flag[/b]
[hr]

[b]Motto: [/b]
[hr]

NSERT SMALL MAP OR ORTHOGRAPHIC
[b]Location[/b]
[hr][/center]

[b]Population:[/b]
[b]-Density:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Capital:[/b]
[b]Largest City:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Official Language:[/b]
[hr]
[b]National Language:[/b]
[hr]
[b]Demonym:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Government:[/b]
- President:
- Vice President:
- Speaker of the House:
- Chief Justice:
[hr]

[b]Legislature[/b]:
- Upper House:
-Lower House:
[hr]

[b]Establishment:[/b] from (INSERT OTHER NATION)
Independence: INSERT FOUNDING DATE
[hr]

[b]Land Area:[/b] mile²
                          km²
Water Area: km²
Water %:
[hr]


[b]Elevation[/b]
Highest Point:
Lowest Point:
[hr]

[b]GDP (nominal):[/b]
[b]GDP (nominal) per capita:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Human Development Index (NS Version):[/b]
[hr]

[b]Currency:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Time Zone:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Drives on the:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Calling code:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Internet TLD:[/b]

[/box][/floatright]

Title and Introduction
The title of your factbook is automatically set across the top of the page. There is no way to remove it. If you’d like a second, more colorful title, feel free to add it.

Your introduction section is basically a summary of your nation. The first paragraph is typically a description of where your nation is located, which nations border it, and a list of territories. The second paragraph (often merged with the first) is a brief description of your nation’s geography, usually including land area and population.

The next few paragraphs are often a summary of your nation’s history. If you’re like me and can’t be bothered to write a very detailed history of your nation, leave it all for the body.

The final paragraph of your introduction describes your nation’s position in the present day. It is essentially a ego-rub that brags about your nation’s economic status, positions of world power, and freedoms. If you’d like, you could otherwise use this space to talk about how dirt-poor your nation is. It doesn't matter. Nobody’s going to read it anyway.

Remember, leave details to the body paragraphs!

Table of Contents
If you want a bit of a challenge, you can add a table of contents to your factbook. This typically comes after your introduction. This involves the use of [anchor] and [url] tags.

1) Write your Table of Contents without any BB code. Just a list format.
2) Put [box] and [floatleft] tags at the beginning of the list, and put the necessary / tags at the end of the list.
3) Publish your factbook and obtain the url (or internet address).
4) Go back to the editing page. Put [url]tags at the beginning of each item, and paste the url into the tag.
5) Add a hashtag and some other word that will identify the part of the wiki that the table of contents will link to. The code for your table of contents should look something like this:

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[box][floatleft][b][center]Contents[/center][/b]
[url=http://www.nationstates.net/nation=ponderosa/detail=factbook/id=97589#Ety]1 Etymology[/url]
[url=http://www.nationstates.net/nation=ponderosa/detail=factbook/id=97589#Hist]2 History[/url]
[url=http://www.nationstates.net/nation=ponderosa/detail=factbook/id=97589#Geo]3 Geography[/url]
[/box][/floatleft]


6) Go to each section of your factbook and add [anchor] tags to each section’s title. [anchor=] will allow you to link each section to the table of contents. For example, to link to the table of contents above, use the code below.

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[b][u][size=150][anchor=Ety][/anchor]Etymology[/size][/u][/b]
[b][u][size=150][anchor=Hist][/anchor]History[/size][/u][/b]
[b][u][size=150][anchor=Geo][/anchor]Geography[/size][/u][/b]


Body
This is going to be the meat of your factbook, where all the tiny details you excluded above will now be recorded. If you have even more in-depth articles, you can add an indented link to your “main article” like so:

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[list][i][url=http://www.nationstates.net/nation=ponderosa/detail=factbook/id=97593]Main Article: Religion and Religious Policy in Ponderosa[/url][/i][/list]

Main Article: Religion and Religious Policy in Ponderosa

The body can really have whatever you want in it, but popular sections include Etymology, History, Geography, Demographics, Government, Military, Economy, Infrastructure, Culture, and more.

Largest Cities
I have recieved a lot of personal messages about my lovely little city chart, showing off my top ten cities. This was a relatively recent addition to my factbook, and was thus absent from the guide. I will attempt to resolve that problem now.
This part of the factbook usually belongs as a subcategory of your Demographics section. If you don't have one, make one. Then, make a table. Start with a [table] tag, then begin each row with a [tr] tag. Use the [td] tag for each new column. The columns are where you'll put your data. Finish each column with a {/td} tag after each column, {/tr} at the end of each row, and {/table} at the end of the whole table. If that was too confusing, a helpful template is included below.

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[u][b][anchor=City][/anchor]Largest Cities[/b][/u]
[table][tr][td]Rank[/td][td]City[/td][td]Metro area population[/td][td]State[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]1[/td][td]CITY#1[/td][td]CITY1POPULATION[/td][td]CITY1STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]2[/td][td]CITY2[/td][td]CITY2POPULATION[/td][td]CITY2STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]3[/td][td]CITY3[/td][td]CITY3POPULATION[/td][td]CITY3STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]4[/td][td]CITY4[/td][td]CITY4POPULATION[/td][td]CITY4STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]5[/td][td]CITY5[/td][td]CITY5POPULATION[/td][td]CITY5STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]6[/td][td]CITY6[/td][td]CITY6POPULATION[/td][td]CITY6STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]7[/td][td]CITY7[/td][td]CITY7POPULATION[/td][td]CITY7STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]8[/td][td]CITY8[/td][td]CITY8POPULATION[/td][td]CITY8STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]9[/td][td]CITY9[/td][td]CITY9POPULATION[/td][td]CITY9STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]10[/td][td]CITY10[/td][td]CITY10POPULATION[/td][td]CITY10STATE[/td][/tr][/table]

Images
I've received several questions on how to post images in your factbook, and I will attempt to answer them. You will need to upload your images to an image-sharing site, such as Photobucket, Tinypic, or Imgur. For the purposes of this guide, I will demonstrate how to use Imgur to upload images.

1) Go to [url=imgur.com].
2) Under the "Upload images" header, you will see a link that says "Computer." Click on that.
3) A window will open, allowing you to search for and select your file from your computer. Select your file, and click "Open."
4) After uploading the image, you will arrive at a new page on which your image is in the center. If you like the image, copy the code under the heading "BBCode (message boards & forums)."
5) Paste the code into your factbook.

Now you have your image! However, you may not like the size. Luckily, back on step 4, there is a link in the upper-right that says "Edit image." After clicking that, you can resize your image using the box in the upper-right. Make sure the proportions are locked! Once you've set the image to the preferred size, click "Apply", then "Save."

Template Source Code
As part of this guide, I have included the source code for a wiki factbook template. If you don’t understand this guide, or just don’t want to read it, you can simply copy/paste this template and fill in the information.

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[floatright][box][center][b]The PRETITLE of NATION[/b]
[hr]

INSERT FLAG HERE
[b]Flag[/b]
[hr]

[b]Motto: [/b]
[hr]

NSERT SMALL MAP OR ORTHOGRAPHIC
[b]Location[/b]
[hr][/center]

[b]Population:[/b]
[b]-Density:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Capital:[/b]
[b]Largest City:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Official Language:[/b]
[hr]
[b]National Language:[/b]
[hr]
[b]Demonym:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Government:[/b]
- President:
- Vice President:
- Speaker of the House:
- Chief Justice:
[hr]

[b]Legislature[/b]:
- Upper House:
-Lower House:
[hr]

[b]Establishment:[/b] from (INSERT OTHER NATION)
Independence: INSERT FOUNDING DATE
[hr]

[b]Land Area:[/b] mile²
                          km²
Water Area: km²
Water %:
[hr]


[b]Elevation[/b]
Highest Point:
Lowest Point:
[hr]

[b]GDP (nominal):[/b]
[b]GDP (nominal) per capita:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Human Development Index (NS Version):[/b]
[hr]

[b]Currency:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Time Zone:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Drives on the:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Calling code:[/b]
[hr]

[b]Internet TLD:[/b]

[/box][/floatright]
[size=200][b]NATION NAME[/size][/b]
[hr]

The PRETITLE of NATION commonly called NATION, is a GOVERNMENT TYPE in LOCATION. It is bordered on the north by OTHER-NATION, on the south by OTHER-NATION, by the east by OTHER-NATION and on the west by OTHER-NATION. NATION covers LAND AREA square kilometers and has has an estimated population of POPULATION. NATION comprises of NUMBER SUBDIVISIONS and NUMBER TERRITORIES.

DESCRIPTION OF YOUR NATION’S ROLE IN THE WORLD

[floatleft][box][center]Contents[/center]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#Ety]1 Etymology[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#Hist]2 History[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#Geo]3 Geography[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#Demo]4 Demographics[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#Pop]4.1 Population[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#Lan]4.2 Language[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#Reli]4.3 Race[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#City]4.4 Largest Cities[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#Govt]5 Government[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#FRM]5.1 Foreign Relations and Military[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#Econ]6 Economy[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#Cult]7 Culture[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#Infra]8 Infrastructure[/url]
[url=INSERT-FACTBOOK-URL#Energy]8.1 Energy[/url]
[/box][/floatleft]

[b][u][size=150][anchor=Ety]Etymology[/anchor][/b][/u][/size]

DESCRIBE ORIGIN OF NATION NAME

The standard way to refer to a citizen of NATION is as a "DEMONYM."

[b][u][size=150][anchor=Hist]History[/anchor][/b][/u][/size]

DESCRIBE HISTORY

[b][u][size=150][anchor=Geo]Geography[/anchor][/b][/u][/size]

DESCRIBE GEOGRAPHY

DESCRIBE CLIMATE

DESCRIBE ENVIRONMENT

INSERT MAP

[b][u][size=150][anchor=Demo]Demographics[/anchor][/b][/u][/size]

[b][u][anchor=Pop]Population[/anchor][/b][/u]
DESCRIBE POPULATION

[u][b][anchor=Lan]Language[/anchor][/b][/u]
DESCRIBE LANGUAGE

[u][b][anchor=Reli]Religion[/anchor][/b][/u]

DESCRIBE RELIGION

[u][b][anchor=Race]Race[/anchor][/b][/u]
DESCRIBE RACE

[u][b][anchor=City]Largest Cities[/anchor][/b][/u]
[table][tr][td]Rank[/td][td]City[/td][td]Metro area population[/td][td]State[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]1[/td][td]CITY#1[/td][td]CITY1POPULATION[/td][td]CITY1STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]2[/td][td]CITY2[/td][td]CITY2POPULATION[/td][td]CITY2STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]3[/td][td]CITY3[/td][td]CITY3POPULATION[/td][td]CITY3STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]4[/td][td]CITY4[/td][td]CITY4POPULATION[/td][td]CITY4STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]5[/td][td]CITY5[/td][td]CITY5POPULATION[/td][td]CITY5STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]6[/td][td]CITY6[/td][td]CITY6POPULATION[/td][td]CITY6STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]7[/td][td]CITY7[/td][td]CITY7POPULATION[/td][td]CITY7STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]8[/td][td]CITY8[/td][td]CITY8POPULATION[/td][td]CITY8STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]9[/td][td]CITY9[/td][td]CITY9POPULATION[/td][td]CITY9STATE[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]10[/td][td]CITY10[/td][td]CITY10POPULATION[/td][td]CITY10STATE[/td][/tr][/table]

[b][u][size=150][anchor=Govt]Government[/anchor][/b][/u][/size]

DESCRIBE GOVERNMENT

[b][u][anchor=FRM]Foreign Relations and Military[/anchor][/b][/u]

DESCRIBE DIPLOMACY

DESCRIBE MILITARY

[b][u][size=150][anchor=Econ]Economy[/anchor][/b][/u][/size]

[floatright][box]
[center][b][u]Economic Indicators[/b][/u][/center]
[b]Rank:[/b]
[b]Currency:[/b]
[b]Fiscal Year:[/b]
[hr]
[b]GDP (nominal):[/b]
[b]GDP (nominal) per capita:[/b]
[b]Labor Force:[/b]
[b]Unemployment:[/b]
[/floatright][/box]

DESCRIBE ECONOMY

[size=150][b][u][anchor=Cult]Culture[/anchor][/size][/b][/u]

DESCRIBE CULTURE

[size=150][b][u][anchor=Infra]Infrastructure[/anchor][/size][/b][/u]

DESCRIBE INFRASTRUCTURE

[b][u][anchor=Energy]Energy[/anchor][/b][/u]
DESCRIBE ENERGY

Template by [nation=Ponderosa]
Template may be found [url=http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=256878]here[/url].


New Ducklands wrote:Thanks, this helped so much whilst I was trying to right a wikipedia factbook on my Nation, you should get honored by the WA for this.
A Link to my factbook as well.

The Plutonian Empire wrote:As an outer space-based Empire with FTL tech, what are some similar FTL nations that have good wiki factbook examples?

Bearstin wrote:I finally decided to not be lazy and actually do a wiki style fact book but i encountered a problem. My national flag is a .png file and i don't know how to get it into my factbook! Your help is much appreciated!

Shazbotdom wrote:

Bearstin wrote:I finally decided to not be lazy and actually do a wiki style fact book but i encountered a problem. My national flag is a .png file and i don't know how to get it into my factbook! Your help is much appreciated!

This would work the same as any other file type. You need to upload it to a file hosting web site (of your choice, I honestly use Photobucket) and use the IMG tags. Just make sure that the flag file you use is of a small enough size that it wouldn't take up half of the screen of someone who is looking at your factbook.

Bearstin wrote:

Shazbotdom wrote:
This would work the same as any other file type. You need to upload it to a file hosting web site (of your choice, I honestly use Photobucket) and use the IMG tags. Just make sure that the flag file you use is of a small enough size that it wouldn't take up half of the screen of someone who is looking at your factbook.

Thanks! I'm also having trouble figuring out how to get captions under my photos on the sides. Do you know the codes for doing that?

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[floatright][box]<IMAGE TEMPLATE2: Insert image here>
[size=88]Add description here[/size][/box][/floatright]

Vos Istra wrote:How do you make the orthographic globe thing?

Vykrotia wrote:I'm new to the embassy program thing so what does it mean when it asks "will you hire locally?"