User Guide

Getting Started

Welcome to Chronology.guru!

It's the perfect tool for tracking complex histories, whether you're mapping out a fictional world or organizing thousands of historical records. Let's start from the very beginning.

Every timeline is built from two key ingredients: Events and Plotlines.

An Event is a single point in time — a character's birth, a historical battle, a log entry. A Plotline is a collection of related events that tells a story. For example, you can create a plotline for each character's journey, track the rise and fall of an empire (or republic), or define a specific historical era.

This is where the timeline becomes truly powerful. By organizing events into plotlines, you can visually compare parallel stories and see how they intersect. It's also practical: when you move an event, its plotline adjusts automatically. This clean data structure is what allows us to build more cool features for you in the future.

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Navigate the Timeline on Desktop

Navigating a large, dense timeline can feel a bit different at first. The interface is split into two main parts that work together: the visual plotlines chart on the left and the event list on the right. The key is to use them together to explore your timeline.

Here's how it works:

Click to Sync: The chart and the list are always in sync. Click on a gray horizontal line (a group of events) on the chart, and the list will scroll to show you those events. Click on an event in the list, and the chart will jump to its position.
Zoom to See More: When many events happen in a short period, they are grouped together on the chart. To see them individually, just zoom in with your mouse wheel. The events will spread out, making them easier to read.
Double-Click to Open Plotline: While a single click syncs the view, a double-click on a plotline on the chart will open its full details.
Spot the Badges: If an event is part of a plotline, you'll see a corresponding colored badge next to it in the event list, so you can easily see how stories connect.
Read More: When an event has a detailed article attached, a More button will appear in the list. Click it to read the full text.

Create a Timeline

To create a timeline, just hit the green button in the header. Register (if you haven't) and fill out a couple of fields.

Right after creation, you'll have a blank timeline opened in Edit Mode. Let's add some events to it.

Add Event

First, make sure you are in Edit Mode (if not, click Edit timeline button in the header).

When you click Add Event, a form pops up. Just fill in the Title and Date, and you'll see a live preview of your event appear on the left, exactly as a visitor would see it.

Pro Tip: Don't have an exact date? No problem. Just tick the Is approximate checkbox and enter a date range. Or leave a single date, which will be automatically marked with the label Circa.

The Text field is where you can add the full article. It supports Markdown, so you can easily add formatting like lists, tables, and links.

Rich media embedding for images and videos is coming soon. In the meantime, you can already embed external images in your articles using Markdown.

After you're done, click Save and your event will be added to the right place on the timeline.

Add Plotline

A plotline is what turns a list of events into a story. Since every story needs a beginning and an end, you'll need at least two events in your timeline before you can create your first plotline.

To get started, make sure you're in Edit Mode and click Add Plotline. The form is similar to the one for events, but with a couple of key differences.

You can pick a unique Color to make your plotline stand out, and in the Events included field, you can select all the events that are part of this particular story.

The Text you write for a plotline is important — the beginning of this text will appear in tooltips on the timeline, giving visitors a quick summary of the story. Markdown is supported here as well.

Once you hit Save, your new plotline will appear. If you have multiple plotlines, you can always reorder them later.

Sort Plotlines

To change the order of your plotlines, first enter Edit Mode. From there, under Sort plotlines dropdown, you have two options: automatic or manual sorting.

Sort automatically is great for quickly organizing a busy timeline. It arranges plotlines based on their length and tries to fill in empty spaces, creating a compact and readable view.

If you want full control, choose Sort manually. This allows you to drag and drop plotlines exactly where you want them. This option is only for desktop for now.

Tip: If a plotline is too small to drag easily, just zoom in with your mouse wheel to make it bigger.

Once you're happy with the new arrangement, hit Save plotlines order. If you change your mind, just click Cancel sorting.

Markdown Formatting

Markdown is a simple way to add formatting to your text. You might be already familiar with it since Reddit comments use it. Here are a few basics to get you started:

# Heading or ## Heading will create a heading
**Bold text** will appear as Bold text
*Italic text* will appear as Italic text
- A list item will create a bulleted list
[Link text](https://example.com) or <https://example.com> will create a Link text or https://example.com
![Alt text](https://example.com/image.png) will create an image from external URL

For a full guide, check out the CommonMark help page.

Rich media embedding for images and videos is coming soon. If you have a feature you'd love to see, come tell me about it on Discord server!

FAQ

Is it free? Yes, public timelines are unlimited and free. Patreon supporters unlock some perks, like private timelines and future customization options.

Can I add images? You can use cover images for timelines and embed external images in your articles using Markdown. Rich media embedding is on the way.

What about data import/export? Data export is a planned feature. If you have a large dataset you'd like to import, please contact me on Discord server or by contact@chronology.guru, and I'll be happy to help.

Performance? The platform is built to handle large datasets, using optimized rendering to keep things running smoothly.

Support & Feedback

Chronology.guru is a passion project. If you like it, consider becoming a supporter, it keeps the platform open for everyone.

Support the project.
Join our Discord server to get help or suggest features.
Write an email to contact@chronology.guru.