Not a new app version, but a number of people had complained they didn’t know how/where to change things. So, I’ve revised/updated all 362 articles relating to system attributes and annotated all those that can be set via the UI, other than by editing the actual stored values (in Quickstamp or Get Info). It turns out 128 of the attributes can be set via the UI, as listed in a new agent ‘Attributes settable via the UI’.
Thanks for your unpaid (cough!) and prolific dedication.
How does that agent work? What’s the query?
I added a user Boolean $HasUISetting which i added to the ‘_attribute’ prototype KAs. I then worked through all the system attribute notes and set the Boolean if the attribute can be set using the UI. There are a few edge cases, where the UI controls only offer a choice of a subset of allowable values but that still helps folk getting started.
The agent query is:
$Prototype=="_attribute" & $HasUISetting
The first argument is just for scoping. It is the Boolean that does the work. So, lest I have given the wrong impression, the agent is just finding a manually set marker rather than doing something more clever (if only!).
The exercise has been useful as I’ve managed to remove some deadwood, find missing items (Map Settings hadn’t been directly documented!) and Backstage users will have seen a number of issues i’ve posted as a result. Not in this version, but having done his pass, I’m minded to make replaced/deprecated attributes (e.g. given a new name/type) just a pointer to the newer attribute to force people to look at the new one to find out info and re-inforce the replacement. Not that many items affected, but it all helps.
I also did some triage in the Objects & Concepts. Confusingly the ‘native’ XML objects are: item (i.e. note), agent. alias and adornment. By comparison, a separator is an attribute-set behavioural change. The differences are accidents of birth and evolution but I can see how it is confusing for a new user to ‘just’ understand the key parts. IMO, it’s all just notes and links though views are becoming more of thing of late as some task/features occur only in a view.
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Thanks Mark. Your dedication and work is appreciated.
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You are too kind. But in a now-digital-first world we can all share our arcane [sic] knowledge at little-to-no-cost. So I choose to do so! Thanks. Share all teh knowledgez! 