... with relations ➰

Relations / connections are a function for creating and visualising references between places.

This can be used when a person refers to another place in their narrative or memory, for example: ‘That was a series of parties that took place in different places, including the disco ... and the pub ...’ The venues of the narrated party series can then be linked and related to each other.

Or: ‘After that, we always moved on to the pub ... and sometimes went swimming in the summer early in the morning in the outdoor pool ...’ In this example, connections can be made between places as a linear narrative, memories of a night. When other people talk about these places: "... and in the afternoons in the summer we used to meet at the outdoor pool.... There was this corner where the lesbians met ..." in this case, the entries (stories, memories ...) of different people can be linked to one place.

These are examples that we have invented for illustrative purposes. They are inspired by entries from the maps that have been created so far with A Thousand Channels.

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Visualisation of relations

So far, we have worked with two different implementations for the display and visualisation in the frontend.

On the From Gay To Queer map, the relationships / connections are displayed as coloured, curved lines that connect entries with each other. For the map, 7 qualitative interviews were conducted in 2021 in the project ‘Intersections and Constellations’ with protagonists who were active in gay, lesbian and queer contexts in Bremen in the 1990s. The idea was to relate the different approaches, localisations and perspectives to each other and thus create a narrative about connections, constellations and networks.

Screenshot: Map excerpt from “From Gay To Queer” with Relations, view from the front end

The connecting lines between entries / locations from all layers are displayed.

The following options have been selected in the layer under the settings for relations, see also the following screenshot.

• The relations / connecting lines are displayed curved (the value 1 is selected).
• For the colouring, random colored was selected as the default value.

Screenshot: Settings for Relations under Layer in A Thousand Channels: ORTE Backend

In addition to the coloured connecting lines, the entries provide links to other places and events (See also..., Jump to ...) that are mentioned in the entry. These can be entries about the same person, but also entries about other people who talk about the same places and events.

Screenshot: Entry on ‘From Gay To Queer’ with references, view from the frontend

Relations have also been set for the Lacune Map on lesbian* life in Hamburg. At the end of an article there is a button with a link to another entry.

The Lacune Map is organised by layers:

• into thematic , colour-coded areas (biographical, art and culture, media etc.) and
• formal distinctions of the narrative (autobiographical, researched, self-statement), indicated by different shapes of markers (circle, rhombus, parallelogram).

Also due to these already different visual translations of content and form, we decided against an additional visual component in the map view, such as the coloured connecting lines / relations.

Screenshot: Entry on ‘Lacune’ with ‘See also’ button, view from the frontend

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Show relationships in the ORTE backend

The map view in the ORTE backend is managed via the menu at the top right under the asterisk. The display of relationships as connecting lines can be added or removed there:

The GIF shows how relationships can be displayed in the map view in the backend.

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How can I create relations between two locations?

How can I create relations between two locations?

There are various ways to create relations between locations.

Once a location has been created, either

• by clicking on the marker in the map or
• of the title in the overview of locations in the layer

a pop-up window is called up.

Screenshot of A Thousand Channels: ORTE backend, creating relations in the pop-up window

Here you have the option of creating a connection to another location using the + Add a relation to another place button. Clicking on the button opens another window. A location for a connection can be selected via a drop-down menu. Click on the Create Relation button to create the relation.

Alternatively, new relations can be created via the overview views of the layers or locations within a layer. All relations can be displayed on the map via the layer view. The view of all locations / entries in a layer can be used to display all relations that connect locations within the layer, but also the connections with locations from other layers. In both cases, new relations can be created using the + New Relation button.

The GIF shows the addition of relations via the places overview of a layer, in the view of the map ‘From Gay To Queer’. All relations in the layer are displayed via List of all relations (top right). The + New Relation button is used to create a new connection between two locations.