User blog:Haldarn/Transclusion of item data

Issues

 * Information being repeated on different, but linked pages leads to errors, omissions and outdated info.
 * Information that should be displayed in more than one place is often only displayed in one place, as editors can't necessarily be expected to update a single piece info across all pertinent pages.

A Solution
e.g. wrapped around an item's or at the top of its page will enable the image to be called from any other page with
 * We can use section wraps around data in a page, and then refer to that from another page or template in order that other pages are automatically populated with data from a single source.

A Working Example
So, for instance, results in This means that if a page's item pic is renamed or re-uploaded in a new format, it won't break or rely on redirects. A couple of other pieces of info I've sectioned are   which is the item's reference in the game files, used by ffxiah and ffxidb and useful for auto-generating external links to those sites on pages that mention the item (and perhaps future ffxiclopedia pages) and   which is the bottom-tier AH category that can be combined with Template:AHCategory to create a correct AH tree, so you know where to look when buying or researching prices.

''The current Template:AH relies on the item's page name matching the ffxiah search, which for any abbreviated item it does not (and hence requires a manual "search=" term to be entered. Also, that template requires the editor to enter all super-categories, so this provides a short-cut there, eliminating errors or omissions). Not that it should necessarily be used in place of Template:AH, but it is suitable to provide an AH reference out-of-page in summary pages, recipe pages, or on guides.''

So is a template that calls Beehive Chip data via two other templates (shown next for reference)  refers to the 1st parameter passed into the template, which in this case is 'Beehive Chip'. Template:ItemRow

 > 

From this blog page, only using the phrase 'Beehive Chip', I am able to pull the item's pic, item id and base category, enabling me to create a working link to ffxiah.com and the page itself in a useful format:

Moving Forward
Currently, this is part of my re-design of zone page layout (example at User:Haldarn/West Ronfaure) The next area I want to look at for shared item data are drop rates in order that the drop rates listed on a monster's page, along with the monster name and zone can be pulled into item pages and zone pages. Hopefully something on this page might turn out to be useful to other editors on the wiki in their own projects!