A timeline is a content format in which events are organized chronologically.
Contents
Types
Timelines can take on various forms:
- A list, such as the Timeline of psychiatry on the English Wikipedia.
- A table, such as most of the timelines on the Timelines Wiki
- An interactive app, such as timelines created using Tiki-Toki
Advantages
Timelines can be useful for understanding both the high-level and low-level history of a topic. Timelines on Timelines Wiki usually have both a “big picture” section as well as a “full timeline” section to serve these separate purposes.
Unlike a prose narrative of history, a timeline is strictly chronological so the reader does not get “lost” in the narrative (e.g. by confusing which event came before another). If each event in the timeline provides context, it is also easier to “jump in” to any point in the history and read from there (whether forward or backward in time).
Disadvantages
Most timelines do not provide an introduction to the topic, so if one uses just a timeline, it can be difficult to understand the topic itself.