Suggested wiki improvements

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Suggestions for improving the content, clarity, accessibility, and maintainability of this Analytica wiki.

Example models and libraries

Goals

  • To make it easier for people to find example models and libraries that are relevant to their industry or application, or which illustrate or assist with technical methods, such as Monte Carlo, sensitivity analysis, reindexing arrays, optimization etc.
  • To provide a clear overview and description of each model or library.

Sources

A list of sources of existing models and libraries to be inventoried, cleaned up, and made available

  • Example Models and Libraries: Lists the models and libs included with Analytica, with a brief sentence on each. Includes Tutorial models by chapter.
  • Example Models: About 40 models, each with screenshot, description, author, and download link
  • Additional libraries about 12 additional libraries
  • New examples A table with columns for Download, Type, Author, Domain, Methods, For more (link to a detail page). It was designed as a compact way to list multiple example models and libraries. Domain (i.e. industry or application area) and Methods (techniques used) are designed to help search for relevant models. So far it only has 8 models listed.
  • Some pages with single models linked to from New examples, include Catching a plane and EVIU,
  • Array Manipulation Examples and Challenge Problems: A set of tasks that involve building simple models to solve array issues.
  • Analytica Case studies from our website has about 24 examples, of which a few have downloadable models — but many may be instructive for people interested in a domain.
  • Example models, developed for Analytica Trainings — includes some standard examples (e.g. TXC, Plane Catching) which have been refined, and some other examples — e.g. a long series of examples of array methods, developed by James.
  • Other models from Luminaries. Let’s each put together folders of models and libraries we have.
  • Invite other users to provide their example models.

Index pages

  • Propose that we list all example models and libraries in two page Examples and Libraries in a big table (perhaps based on New examples with columns for Model name (linked to Download), Type, Author, Application (keywords to identify industry or application domain), Methods (keywords to identify techniques, functions, features that it illustrates or supports), For more (link to a detail page).
  • Each model or library should have its own page. That suggests dividing up Example Models and Additional libraries into separate pages (as well as listing them all in the Example
    • Page title: "<x> Example" or "<x> Library", where <x> is the name of the model (less ".ana"0
    • Description: A paragraph or so -- usually identical to Model description in the file.
    • Author: Usually identical to Model Author(s) in the File
    • Screenshot: Usually the top level of the model. May have additional diagram or result screenshots.
    • Download: Link to download the model.
    • Application areas: Keywords
    • Methods: keywords
    • See also: Related models, libraries, and feature pages.

Tools to help

It might speed up the process if we wrote an Analytica model that reads Analytica models and returns their name, description, author, along with the other subheads to be filled in, as wiki markup ready to paste into a wiki page.

Redundancy

There are quite a few pages that contain the essentially information. In most cases, it would be helpful to combine them into a single page, or remove the overlapping information from one page. Here are some candidates:

Graph_settings and Graph setup dialog is in the User Guide structure. It would be best to move any non-duplicative content from Graph_settings into Graph setup dialog, then delete all content in Graph_settings and make it a redirect to Graph setup dialog.

Classes_of_variables_and_other_objects, Class_details, Objects and Their Attributes - Part 1 of 3 contain partially overlapping material on classes. Move the useful class hierarchy drawing from Objects and Their Attributes - Part 1 of 3 to Class_details or Classes_of_variables_and_other_objects.

Objects and Their Attributes - Part 2 of 3 is mostly a list of attributes and redundant with Attributes. Move any attributes or descriptions into Attributes if they aren't already there. Then delete the list of attributes from Objects and Their Attributes - Part 2 of 3, add a link to Attributes, and leave the 'Inspecting Objects' section there.

Objects and Their Attributes - Part 3 of 3 are pages in the Scripting_Guide. It would be better to make a new page

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