Category talk:Books

Removing redundant Book category tags for sourcebooks, scenario pack, rulebooks, TRO's, etc.

Several product pages are tagged both with a 'type category' (such as sourcebook, scenario pack, rulebook, rulebook, or TRO) and as a "Book". (Note: See Product Type Classification Tree for the product type categories.) This seems redundant and inflates the number of category tags for these specific items. To simplify, I plan to remove the Book category tag from those with a specific type category tag already (if the type category is already posted within "Books". The only potential objection I could envision is that this category would not serve as a 'comprehensive list'. But since List of BattleTech products serves as a comprehensive list of those items (as does List of BattleTech print novels for novels) and since those items can be found in more manageable lists under their respective type category), it does seem necessary to make this category page serve in the role of a direct comprehensive list of every single individual 'book' page. If there are any thoughts or responses to this simplication plan, please feel free to share. My aim would be to start this plan in a few days.--Dude RB (talk) 23:14, 20 October 2021 (EDT)

This is largely completed now. There were several German novels that a were taged as both "Books" and "Novels". I have also revised their tags to simply have a Novels tage rather than both Novels and Books. --Dude RB (talk) 23:06, 22 October 2021 (EDT)

Purpose/Nature of this category

The prior note (and a related discussion about Electronic Books, now Digital Products) does raise some interesting questions about the purpose of this category. I think that Category:BattleTech Universe Products serves as the root category for products. Also List of BattleTech products and List of BattleTech print novels serve as a directory or comprehensive list for individual products. (This category may have served as both a root category and a directory sometime ago, but it does not seem to fill either of those roles now.) It seems that this is currently more of a category of subcategories (such as the various Book by era categories) and perhaps a backstop for a few products that don't have a well defined type yet (such as the BattleTech Activity Book). I think that removing the Book category tags from those with well defined type category tag will help clear the picture (so we don't lose the forest for the tress). But I think it may become an eventual point of discussion as to the larger purpose/place of this category. --Dude RB (talk) 23:14, 20 October 2021 (EDT)

Once again, I think you have an insightful view of this and I'd like others to engage. I'll post a link to this latest post on the discord server. If you don't get any feedback, here or there, feel free to come up with a plan, share it here, and then start moving forward. (I'm not as attuned to the issue as you or others, so don't have a opinion at this time.) --Revanche ^{(talk|contribs)} 07:18, 21 October 2021 (EDT)

Thanks for the note. After completing part one (the prior note), the picture (and pathway forward) may grow a bit clearer (both in my eyes and in everyone else's). --Dude RB (talk) 23:33, 21 October 2021 (EDT)

I think that the most prominent issue (for me) is now resolved. The category itself was self-described as This lists the complete catalog of book articles on BTW., but in fact items were increasingly being listed under categories such as "Novels", rather than "Books" and "Novels" (which to me makes perfect sense, which is why I applied the same treatment to sourcebooks and other book types). I have revised the category's definition to better reflect what is truly is at this point (including the fact that it is independent of print/digital format).

One could ask the bigger picture question: "Is there need for a refinement of the boundaries of the subcollection?"

Note: As exhibited by the recent BattleTech Chronology page there is definitely interest in thinking about "publications" as some sort as a category. (This also makes the era books categories, e.g. Category:Jihad Books, connected to that.) But now that the definition of the Books category is more true to its actual usage, I don't have further action items to recommend at this moment. --Dude RB (talk) 23:50, 22 October 2021 (EDT)