Hi everyone,
I am excited! Last week I finally got my “accordion” idea to work the way I wanted it to. Here is an example (in Spanish):
Las misiones en la Biblia (giffmex.org). It is an exported static html that stretches out to about 73 pages in total. I did it in preparation for the workshop I am giving this week.
My idea has always been to create a running argument (and maybe use for a narrative) on the main text level, and then add footnotes, sources, supplementary material such as evidence, arguments, lists, etc in hidden notes. In 2021 I created the Subsume plugin that created html details elements inside a basic TiddlyWiki macro. From there I have been experimenting with limited success.
The obstacles I needed to overcome were:
a) wanting to use a caption (rather than the tiddler title) in the details summary,
b) wanting to be able to format the caption with bold, italic, color, etc
c) overcoming inconsistencies between paragraph spacing in TiddlyWiki for individual paragraphs and macros,
d) wanting to have a separate way to signal to users whether the hidden content was just the sources or if there was additional content (to help people decide whether to open each macro or not)
e) wanting an edit button for me for the writing process, but invisible to users when reading
f) decisions about styling for the hidden content. Same text color and background color, or something to distinguish it?
g) A signal for me to call attention to sections I hadn’t finished yet (see the third slider)
h) Overcoming my obsession with bullets for items in unordered lists. (which explains my fascination with Dynalist, and my request to the amazing @saqimtiaz which resulted in his creating the editor-autolist plugin)
i) not wanting the editing area to look like a cluttered labrynth of code
…and probably 10 or 20 other things to figure out, mostly having to do with being able to write and add the hidden content, and add sources, in as few steps as possible, or fixing issues that came up when exporting to static.
After trying a number of times and always hitting roadblocks, I had pretty much given up. But I recently read a book by Derek Sivers entitled How to Live, and his writing style in that book made me want to imitate it for the main text level, so I had another go at it, and somehow this time it came together. With credit due to @TW_Tones for his help in this thread: I need help, again
The tweaking is essentially done, and now I am concentrating on writing on other topics (also in Spanish, but I might play with something in English soon). Yay! The writing process is a joy. I can separate the writing of the main text from the adding of the additional details, or do them at the same time, and mark unfinished sections. The main text becomes an overview that lets users see the gist of the main issues, and the hidden text is for people who want to know more. I think it could become a new way of reading on long form topics that saves people time and helps people zero in on what they are looking for.
If you got this far, you are a trooper. Sorry about the length. I am just excited and grateful that there finally was a payoff, one that satisfies me, after so many aborted attempts. I hope you enjoy what you see, and that it inspires you to tackle some project of your own. Blessings.