Timeline block
The Timeline block models chronological event sequences with configurable temporal granularity.
Block fields
Timeline
| Field | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|
title | string | Yes | Timeline title |
viewFactor | enum | Yes | Axis granularity |
events | array | Yes | Chronological entries |
Each event
| Field | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|
title | string | Yes | Event headline |
abstract | string | Yes | Event summary |
edtfValue | string | Yes | Date or range in EDTF format |
EDTF patterns
| Pattern | Example | Meaning |
|---|
| Specific date | 1969-07-20 | Exact day |
| Year only | 1945 | Year precision |
| Year-month | 1989-11 | Month precision |
| Date interval | 1939/1945 | Start and end range |
| Open interval | 1760/ | Start only |
| Negative year | -3500 | BCE date |
| Approximate | 1969~ | Around a date |
| Uncertain | 1969? | Uncertain date |
View factors
| Value | Use for |
|---|
seconds | Real-time sequences |
minutes | Short processes |
hours | Intra-day events |
days | Multi-day spans |
weeks | Multi-week spans |
two_weeks | Fortnight cadence |
months | Month-level history |
six_months | Half-year increments |
years | Annual chronology |
five_years | Medium-term periods |
decades | Decade-level narratives |
centuries | Long history |
millennia | Civilizational scales |
million_years | Geological evolution |
billion_years | Deep time and cosmology |
Tips
- Match scale to span. Wide date ranges need coarser
viewFactor values. - Use intervals for durations. Prefer ranges when events last over time.
- Mix precision safely. EDTF supports combining exact and coarse dates.