Remove IDs? (Or hide them at least)

I'm not a fan of them either, and would like to remove them for Drupal 5. Their genesis seems to be in http://drupal.org/node/51118, there's a request to make them URLable (via, if anything, pathauto), and their causing the bug at http://drupal.org/node/65571. Generally speaking, I don't "get" them either - I don't see any utility in their creation, their visualization, or any ease in user friendliness. But, my revisions to casetracker we're focused on improving what was there, not removing it, which is why they're still in 4.7.

Hi!

Always glad when the module gets attention and finds more use. Can I ask what you're using it for, Dries?

Imagine having a site with many individual and separate groups (i.e. project teams). If they were dependent on the node ID for case number, they'd be talking about case #1000, then their next case #1234 only because there were 233 other, unaffiliated cases or other nodes created elsewhere, in other groups. With case tracking, in my experience, the actual case ID is repeated verbally and otherwise many times over, and it's thus a valuable ID. It's important that it be unique to the group and sequential, in my opinion. Seeing case 1000 should mean that we opened 1000 individual cases in this project team. I should see /someworkspace/case/1000.

(In fact, I work with a lot of non-tech folk at community organizations, and they find the whole node/1993 thing weird and foreign. I try to use pathauto to change that, but I still have issues such as with the ecommerce module where the product ID is the node ID, and I tell them to find the product ID by looking at the node/1993 URL.)

Maybe the UI can be cleaned up. I haven't installed the module in some time. I'll take a look and offer my thoughts.

Your thoughts given the above?

--D

I can see use cases for some types of sites, but it is definitely not a common trend. e.g. on Drupal.org, we do refer to nodes by id, but only when no other means is available... we prefer a direct link instead. But for e.g. nodes, there is no reason to look at the node IDs.

It shouldn't be hard to implement a toggle for this. IMO both ways have a definite use.

+1

+1.

I place special value on the opinions of Dries and Steven, and I agree in this case.

I think the case numbers are critical in a case tracking system, however I think an option should be given to turn it off in the list views (or doable via Views support).

I'd say On by default, open to other suggestions.

I see no reason why it should be removed from the full case details, though. This is an issue tracking system.

--D

I have developed a system for appliying for european fonds via applications. I am using casetracker. A Case is an application. I have many users from different governmental offices. They all need a number rather then lengthy titles. It is perfect, that even cases get its number - related to the projectnumber (in my case application). Many are still using paper - so the number also is a good link between the world of paper and the digital world. A title can change - but the number keeps. The node-id is cool - but as other people already mentioned - everything is a node - so it gets confusing. The node-number is not relating cases and projects neither.

So - a casetracker really needs such a number in order to fit more use cases - but i think it should be possible to turn it off. I have even a more sophisticated idea of a real good project-number: It should be possible to:

1. Design the number with tokens to fit for different scenarios and needs (some may want to include different aspects - like year, or whatever.)
2. Rebuild all numbers - after changing the token-design.

regards
chriszz