[Wikipedia-l] A different tables approach

[Daniel Mayer]

On Saturday 03 August 2002 07:45 am, JeLuF wrote:
> Make tables separate from the article. Don't embedd them
> into the text but just refer to them like you do with
> images. Similar to "upload a new image" we would add
> a "create a new table". First it would ask you for a name
> of the table and for the number of fields. (You can change
> them afterwards, it's just easier to create enough of them
> in the beginning)

Sounds interesting to me. No matter what markup we use the elements tables 
will still be long and ugly in edit mode (the others are similar, but not as 
bad). Need we expose everyone to this when they just want to correct my 
spelling or do some much needed copyediting of my English? And how often does 
the heat of vaporization of lithium change or any other property that is in 
that table? Does that information need to be edited as often as the body 
text? 

If I did make a mistake in one of the tables or if the source of that info 
was incorrect then somebody could click a link somewhere on the table to 
access the wiki code for that table in a table:namespace (these people would 
be more technically inclined to notice the error in the first place so won't 
be as prone to mark-up-phobia). Then it really doesn't matter as much if the 
table syntax isn't too easy on the eyes and this frees the text area of an 
article for, golly, words and not markup. 

But then, I'm interested in results not specifics and just about anything 
proposed here would be better than raw HTML -- in or outside of any 
table:namespace.  

-- mav