Weak German Adjectives

Two examples to defy the statement that German weak adjectives do not have any grammatical significance besides indicating that they are members of a noun phrase:

der Kragen (N.Sg.) - der Kragen (G.Pl.)
der weiße Kragen (N.Sg.) - der weißen Kragen (G.Pl.)

die Alte (N/A.f.Sg.) - die Alten (N/A.Pl.)

Definite Article and Proper Names

Within the Indo-European family, what are the modern languages using the definite article with proper names?

1) Standard modern Greek  

2) Spoken and (increasingly) written German in not-too-formal registers 

... ?

Shortcut to Verb Forms in German Indirect Speech

The variety of forms in "die indirekte Rede" may be confusing to some people who are starting to master advanced German grammar. I am going to try to build a straight-forward sequence of steps that will help one pick the right form in seconds.

Step 1. Determine the person and number of the verb. If you have the third person singular, just use Konjunktiv I: ..., dass er nach Hause gehe. If not, procede to Step 2. 

Step 2. Are we dealing with the verb "sein"? If so, use Konjunktiv I: ..., dass sie gerade in Hamburg seien. If not, procede to Step 3.

Step 3. Are we dealing with one of the following situations: a) the verb "haben" b) a modal c) a frequently used strong verb with a regular Umlaut change in Konjunktiv II? If so, use the synthetic form of Konjunktiv II: ..., dass ich zur Uni ginge / dass wir heute Abend kämen / dass ihr dem Kind ein Buch gäb(e)t etc. If not, procede to Step 4.

Step 4. Use the combination "würde + Infinitiv": ..., dass wir dich darüber fragen würden.