I need a challenge

[janewilliams20]

The problem: I'm trying to get a job, but in my last one, the version of the software I was using was out of date. I need to learn the latest version, and to do that properly, I need a serious project to apply it to. I need to design and write a DB/web app. It needs to be reasonably complicated, and to give me an excuse to use all the latest tools, tricks, and toys: and I'm not even sure what they all are yet! Ajax, input and output of XML, playing with graphics and maybe charts, PDFs, embedded video... anything new in the way of representing and manipulating data, I want an excuse to use it.

The thought I've come up with is something to store details of family trees. Yes, I know, the world is full of them, but I want this to be able to handle families in fictional, fantasy, universes, as well as the real one. Places that don't have surnames, they have bloodlines and tribes, and more than one type of marriage ("partnership" might be a better term). Think about the Wheel of Time, with the Aiel and their sister-wives, or Glorantha, with bloodlines, clans, tribes, and the seven sorts of marriage.

I'd also use it to store my own family tree, probably, since my dad has done a lot of research into it and there's plenty of data there.

Any of my role-playing or fantasy-reading friends out there got any thoughts on the matter? Would you use such a thing? If so, what faciliites would you like it to have? Not that I'm bothered if I'm the only user, but it would be a bonus.

Comments

[raconteurx.livejournal.com]

How about something capable of generating family trees for roleplaying characters as well? I recall someone did one for Pendragon ages ago, but just gave you a text list and there was no way to alter it in the applet itself. It was not much more than a script which allowed you to plug a few character details in before it generated everything else. With the new books Greg has put out for Pendragon, you may want to think about asking if he'd like something like that for the game. I know folks who play games in which manorial economics or a character's genealogy are important likely would love such a databasing tool.

[janewilliams20.livejournal.com]

Absolutely, roleplaying characters as well! Several of the campaigns I'm in, or lurk in, draw up family trees, and the tools intended for Real Life often make too many assumptions to do much of a job. Pendragon would be a nice simple case to handle, I expect.

I don't know if this will ever become a fully working system, though, so don't get your hopes up too high.

[raconteurx.livejournal.com]

You'd be surprised how many professional projects turn out to be vaporware. Fan projects have a much higher success rate. LOL

[sacha3791.livejournal.com]

This sounds like an intriguing idea, Jane. I'd be interested in such a database because my group have just started a Pendragon campaign.

[janewilliams20.livejournal.com]

Quick question, then: what do you need in the way of dates? Years around 400-600 AD, at a guess? What vital info would you need for each character, and the relationships between them?

[sacha3791.livejournal.com]

400 - 600 AD sounds like a perfect range of dates. Info for each character would need to include things like date of birth, date of knighting, date of any further ennoblement, name of spouse, names of children, name of liege lord (this is where the PCs are most likely to intersect). I can't think of anything further at the moment, but then my brain is full from studying all day.