Can I make a timeline while using OpenOffice Draw?

[Adrienne224]

if I can, could someone explain how?

[RoryOF]

Why Draw? Normally a timeline is the equivalent of a card index, with each card associated with a date and the card contents dealing with what happened on that date. How you do this depends: if your timeline is regular intervals, you could use Calc, setting a date sequence in one column, and the associated text in another. If at more irregular intervals, perhaps use a table in Writer. You could also use impress, heading each screen with your date, then below it inserting the text.

Until we know the detail of what you require we cannot advise more. In any event you will need to learn to manipulate your data in the OpenOffice application you decide upon.

Edit: this thread may also be helpful https://forum.openoffice.org/en/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=90332&p=426943 Query: are these two threads related? Is using OO to prepare a timeline a project at some academic institution?

[keme]

You can, but it will be a manual, tedious job. Text boxes etc can be moved around, and right angled connector lines with no leader should provide the timeline connection for each box. Dates will not refresh when you move the box, nor vice versa.

Can you use this:
https://timeline.knightlab.com/

[jrkrideau]

Why Draw? Normally a timeline is the equivalent of a card index, with each card associated with a date and the card contents dealing with what happened on that date.

I beg to differ. After the request in the link you referenced, I did a bit of googling and the term timeline seems to have a variety of meanings ranging from a line with text boxes and dates (see my beautiful oeuvre below)

through Gantt charts https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gantt_chart ( to your equivalent of a card index, and then on to heaven knows what. Some of the commercial vesrions of "timelines" seem designed to obfuscate any information the original data may have held.

Here seems to be a wiki example of what I tend to think of as a "narrative" which seems to correspond to the file cards you refer to. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_World_War_I.


I think we need a clear idea of what the OP needs. I think keme is referring to a Gantt chart, for example whereas when I hear "timeline" I tend to think of my beautiful illustration above.