Home " Catalogues now evolve in real time

Catalogues now evolve in real time

If you remember from several newsletters and presentations to AGMs we have stressed that one of the advantages of the col databases which hosts all our catalogues was to be able to update data more regularly. No more annual catalogues with changes or new products that are often 12 months or more old.

Now we're starting to enter the phase of more dynamic and reactive modifications.

If you've looked at the catalogue downloads page recently, you'll notice that several countries have "reference dates" (last update date) of February 2023.

For the moment, this mainly concerns changes to access / quotations. The WGs now have the option of updating accesses, sources and some cartographic information themselves, without going through a more cumbersome IT procedure. Changes are made instantly in the database, and consequently in the downloadable catalogues. In the event of a change of surface (mule track -> road or vice versa), the changes are immediately reflected in the passes listed in the patents. We started by testing and then making the changes for the Spanish and Italian catalogues, but this procedure could be applied to any country. For the time being, the more extensive studies of new collars will remain periodic.

With data that can change all the time (like any other database, such as that of the IGN for example) you need to getting used to and adapting your customs a little. Perhaps download the catalogue in question again when you go abroad; or download the catalogue for your country of residence every 1-2 months. It's up to you to decide what suits you best.

I'm going to change the subject a little to talk about the world catalogues that concern our frequent travellers.

Having completed the new catalogues for the whole world, we've done a bit of work on the documentation if you're curious or want to know more. Each catalogue is accompanied by its own leaflet which, at the very least, explains the generic terms used and the maps used. For countries with more than 100 passes, the leaflet is generally a little more detailed and can be up to 30 pages long.

To avoid repeating the same explanations everywhere (for example, the definitions of "Type" and "Diff"), we have drawn up a general user manual for the universal headings in our catalogues, which you can find on the introductory page of the catalogues and via the link below:

https://centcols.org/documents/catalogues/_commun/Manuel_d_utilisation_des_catalogues.pdf

On the same page you can also find:

a overview of the number of passes per country

a general guide to the content of records and catalogues

Finally, if, like me, you are passionate about languages and toponymy (place names), you can find a new article in the 'Cols/Toponymy' section of the site.

https://centcols.org/toponymie-des-cols-mondiaux/

A description of world names that may evoke the notion of a pass joins the articles in this section on France (Michel de Brebisson) and Switzerland (Christian Bingelli), as well as the fairly extensive entries on this subject from Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom.

You will find links in this article: