Wikipedia:Help desk

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September 22[edit]

Help with duplicate user accounts[edit]

I apparently have two user accounts, one from 2006 which I accidentally just logged into and made a talk page comment and one from earlier this year where I drafted my 1st article. I know having two accounts is against policy so how do I go about getting the two accounts linked up? I see that is the recommended course, but missed the how-to in my search. Thanks, wysockat & wysockat85 Wysockat (talk) 21:26, 22 September 2016 (UTC) Wysockat85 (talk) 21:27, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

@Wysockat85: having multiple accounts is not against policy. Abusing multiple accounts is. You don't have to do anything about the old account, simply don't log in and use it anymore. If you want people to know that the old account is also yours, you can write that on your user page, but this is only optional. If in the future you are applying for a special user right, like adminship, it's wise to be open about former and alternative accounts. See WP:SOCK#LEGIT – Finnusertop (talkcontribs) 21:31, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

Incorrect Wikidata?[edit]

Greetings, keepers of the eternal flame!

I created Lubomirski Palace (Opole Lubelskie) some time ago, and on re-reading it I notice that that the article at pl:Pałac Lubomirskich w Krakowie in the lh 'Languages' navbox-type-thing is about an entirely different building in Krakow. An attempt to edit the Wikidata page leaves me somewhat baffled and confused. I wonder if someone could remove the offending link. I would write it myself, but I don't speak Polish. Cheers, >MinorProphet (talk) 01:48, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

Hopefully these edits have fixed it. --David Biddulph (talk) 07:23, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

Changes on Gita Niketan Awasiya Vidyalaya page[edit]

i am trying to update my school page.when i change this page ,my changes are restored by grayfall.whats the problem in my change? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 110.172.153.246 (talk) 05:29, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

110.172.153.246, hello and welcome to Wikipedia. In Wikipedia, material that you add to any article should be supported by reliable sources. In other words, at the end of every statement that you add to any article, you should provide evidence of the source from where you got this statement. Such evidence is provided through citations. Any material that is not supported by sources can be reverted by any editor, and this is what is happening to all your changes. I would suggest that you read up the following pages before editing, as repeated insertion of reverted material can get you blocked, and you have already received multiple warnings to the same effect on your talk page.

Come back if you need any assistance. Lourdes 06:19, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

Hi 110.172.153.246, even if sourced, some of your over-detailed additions, such as lists of school co-ordinators and details of house meetings, are not required (Please see Wikipedia:WikiProject Schools/Article guidelines#What not to include).
Furthermore some of your phrases such as "taking school to new heights and flights with best possible events." are meaningless puffery and should not be included in any article - Arjayay (talk) 09:25, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

Correct small but major mistake in bio[edit]

The article about Elliot Schrage incorrectly states that this individual is the president of Facebook. I can't directly fix it myself without independent review because I have a WP:COI. I explain in further detail and provide citations for the correct title here: Talk:Elliot_Schrage#Correct_major_mistake I put in a "request edit" on the Talk Page but also am raising the request here as this is a major piece of misinformation to have on Wikipedia (and showing up on search engines), especially because it seems credible given the context - this guys actually is one of the senior leaders of Facebook.BC1278 (talk) 18:07, 22 September 2016 (UTC)BC1278

Yes check.svg Done Looks like it was some old vandalism here. clpo13(talk) 18:12, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

USAF question[edit]

Does becoming a U.S. Air Force pilot automatically makes you a civilian commercial pilot? Thank you a lot. --LLcentury (talk) 20:35, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

I suspect, based on your question, that you found one of our over 5.2 million articles and thought we were affiliated in some way with that subject. Please note that you are at Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia that anyone can edit, and this page is for asking questions related to using or contributing to Wikipedia itself. Thus, we have no special knowledge about the subject of your question. You can, however, search our vast catalogue of articles by typing a subject into the search field on the upper right side of your screen. If you cannot find what you are looking for, we have a reference desk, divided into various subject areas, where asking knowledge questions is welcome. Best of luck. --David Biddulph (talk) 20:43, 22 September 2016 (UTC)
To answer your question though, no. †Dismas†|(talk) 00:47, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

On edit counting[edit]

Hi,

I'm sorry if this is the wrong place to ask this, but I was wondering if there was some way to transclude my edit count onto my userpage. I made my 1000th edit yesterday and I don't like having to update my edit count on my page every month or so as it often falls about 100 edits shy of my real total by then.

Any and all help is appreciated.

Thank you,

YITYNR My workWhat's wrong? 21:31, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

@YITYNR: You can use {{User:UBX/LiveEditCounter}}, which will show your true edit count for users who have installed the JavaScript tool (of which there unfortunately seem to be only thirty). However, for users who haven't installed the JS tool, it will still show a manually-updated count, and there is no way to do what you are looking for. Pppery 21:51, 22 September 2016 (UTC)
Pppery: Thank you very much; have a nice night. However, I originally installed the script under the wrong title, so could an admin please delete User:YITYNR/LiveEditCounter.js for me?

Thanks!

YITYNR My workWhat's wrong? 22:39, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

@YITYNR: What you have done with your userpage seems a bit odd to me, though. IF the script is installed, the two occurences of N+ in the userbox with the pencil icon will display your true editcount, but the place in the infobox-like thing at the top of your page wont. Pppery 22:45, 22 September 2016 (UTC)
Pppery: I have installed the script, and when I saved the page the two occurrences of N+ did read '1004', which was my edit count at the time. The infobox did not, and I realised that; maybe I'll have to replace that with a "see below" message. YITYNR My workWhat's wrong? 22:48, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

Can't upload a file that is not harmful and it is my work.[edit]

Hi,

I have been trying edgeways to update the picture of Leticia Gomez Rivera (she is my mother, BTW) on Wikipedia. Every attempt now forbids me as it is considered harmful or not my work or both (or undetermined non-harmful).

What should I do now? I only want to update her Wikipedia entry with a better photo that I shoot myself.

Regards, — Preceding unsigned comment added by Roberto.jimeno (talkcontribs) 22:40, 22 September 2016 (UTC)

I see you have now uploaded File:LetyGomezMexico20160320.jpg to Wikimedia Commons and added it to es:Leticia Gómez so I guess you worked it out. Note that this is a help desk for the English Wikipedia. She does not appear to have an article or photo here. I don't know Spanish but it looks like the Spanish Wikipedia has a help page at es:Wikipedia:Café/Archivo/Ayuda/Actual. Commons has a help page at commons:Commons:Help desk. PrimeHunter (talk) 00:14, 23 September 2016 (UTC)


September 23[edit]

Can someone fix the John_Roberts_(actor reference I added in the article?[edit]

I added a reference for him being of Italian descent. It's the famous birthdays website. The reference link doesn't work well. 50.68.118.24 (talk) 00:52, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

Yes check.svg Done. —MRD2014 (talk) (contribs) 00:56, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

Test something for me, please?[edit]

If you have Revision Jumper turned on in your gadgets, could you go to this edit and click on "Next to last editor" under the revision on the left? For me, it sends me to a diff of the article on the letter A. †Dismas†|(talk) 02:02, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

@Dismas: Yep, it does the same thing for me. My guess is the & is breaking it. User:DerHexer you may want to check up on this. RegistryKey(RegEdit) 02:15, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

:Dismas. Do you have "Add Page and User dropdown menus to the toolbar" checked in your preferences? It is in the Appearance section and a link to User:MusikAnimal/MoreMenu. If so uncheck it and try again. This sounds similar to the problem at Wikipedia:Village pump (technical)/Archive 135#Cremation or burial?. CambridgeBayWeather, Uqaqtuq (talk), Sunasuttuq 03:20, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

That's not it. CambridgeBayWeather, Uqaqtuq (talk), Sunasuttuq 03:29, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

Updating National Register of Historic Places[edit]

I'm totally lost about how to edit a specific subject relating to the National Register of Historic Places in Merrimack County, NH, the location for the Hill Center Church. [[1]]

The photo shown you had was of the Hill Village Union Church that wasn't built until around 1942. A photo of the Hill Center Church may be found on the Hill Historical Society's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/746462245486245/photos/a.746466532152483.1073741828.746462245486245/824581717674297/?type=3&theater

It is located on Murray Hill Road at approximately 43.523828, -71.740725. I grew up about 0.8 miles from this church and every school morning for 12 years I walked down to this church to catch the school bus and every evening I was dropped off there.

Unfortunately, I only have photographs of the interior but the next time I am up that way I can take a picture of the exterior.2601:18D:8102:4C9A:1898:45D5:6AF8:A041 (talk) 02:55, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

Converting Google Books references to actual book citations[edit]

Is there an "automagic" tool for converting a large number of Google Books citations to cite the actual book itself? I've come across a long article that contains several dozen such references - fixing them manually will take most of the free time I have this weekend. The only such tool I know of -http://reftag.appspot.com/ - does them one at a time and requires manual input. Roger (Dodger67) (talk) 09:13, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

@Dodger67: have you tried Template:Google books? That would save the trouble of having to convert them in the first place. RegistryKey(RegEdit) 09:57, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
RegistryKey Thanks, that's useful if one is creating new citations, but the problem I'm trying to address is dozens of fully formatted {{Cite web}} used to reference Google Books pages. Roger (Dodger67) (talk) 11:30, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
  • Hello, Refill is better than any reference improver that I have found till now on Wikipedia. Google Books citations it can do without a blink. In fact, Refill is better than even Citation bot (the button you find to the right of the "Save" button while editing a page, if you have the citation bot gadget turned on in the preferences). In short, if you wish to correct references en masse within an article at the click of a button, this beast is the best. Lourdes 10:26, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
Thanks Lourdes, I've been using Reflinks for years, it's far better than Refill. Unfortunately both Refill and Reflinks convert a Google Books bare url into a {{Cite web}}, instead of a {{Cite book}}, thus actually creating the problem I'm trying to solve. It should be fairly simple to create a script that can take the ISBN from a Google books page and feed it into any one of the already established citation creating tools. Once you have the ISBN the rest is simple. Roger (Dodger67) (talk) 11:30, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
Citing Google Books is like citing the library catalog entry instead of the book itself! It's only marginally better than citing Amazon.com or another online bookseller. Roger (Dodger67) (talk) 11:36, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

Attempts to create an account have exceeded the limit[edit]

I have tried to create an account this morning to comment on the material in a Wiki.

It seems likely that I created an account for a similar purpose in 2007.

The result is that two of my attempts at entering a username have been rejected, and the third came up showing too many attempts from my IP.

I've used computers for about 30 years now in my professional work as an academic editor, but I have found more recently that the programs are becoming ever more complex, and so unfriendly.

I would like to help both in my areas of expertise and in fields of interest where I can locate citations for verification purposes.

Jane Cowan — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.207.93.92 (talk) 14:14, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

Well... First of all, you mentioned "a wiki", but we can help only for one wiki among thousands, Wikipedia.
What is your question, exactly? Your do not seem to describe the problem clearly (what exactly happened when "two of your attempts were rejected"?). Maybe try again... TigraanClick here to contact me 15:54, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
Jane, if you still have the email account you would probably have used in 2007, you may be able to recover your original account, if you provided your email address back then. See Help:Logging in § What if I forget the username? for some suggestions. It sounds like you were trying to guess your old username and password, but ran up against an anti-brute-force security protection (i.e. something to prevent attackers simply trying a large number of passwords). I don't know what security settings Wikimedia Foundation use for that, but it's likely to be a fairly short lockout, assuming that it is your Wikipedia / Wikimedia account that you are trying to recover. If you don't have your old email address, or the suggested recovery methods don't work, you'll just need to create a new account (which would be quite legitimate under our multiple accounts policy, as long as the old account was not blocked for abuse). Please do come back to us with more questions, if need be. Murph9000 (talk) 03:02, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

Change in name - accepts edit but doesn't reflect the change[edit]

Resolved

Hi, in this entry Hôtel Meurice when trying to change the name to Le Meurice as it is its correct name (see official site: https://www.dorchestercollection.com/en/paris/le-meurice/), Wikipedia keeps reverting back to Hôtel Meurice. Is there any way we can change this? Thanks 109.111.204.242 (talk) 14:30, 23 September 2016 (UTC)SearchLabs

In order to change an article title, the page must be moved (WP:MOVE). Only autoconfirmed editors can do that, so you will need to make a move request. See WP:RM. clpo13(talk) 15:11, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
No need to go through that, I moved the page myself, since a quick search (in French) proves the request to be entirely reasonable. TigraanClick here to contact me 15:32, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

Question from Gemnscout[edit]

In my initial edit, I have added links to books (but not content); associations; but not content; and redirected to another profile in Wikipedia. How does this violate copy right if I am not directly repurposing the content? By the way, this is harder than it seems. thank you.

Gemnscout (talk) 14:50, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

Hello, Gemnscout, I'm slightly confused by your question. I can't see any immediately obvious sign that your editing has been flagged as a copyright violation. Can you please explain why you think you are suspected of a copyright violation? N.B. Wikipedia does not have "profiles" about anything, it has neutral encyclopaedia articles written about subjects which have verifiable notablity, and is not a directory or means of promotion. Murph9000 (talk) 15:32, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

Copyright infringement?[edit]

Hello, our non-profit (over 100 years old) is trying to set up a wikipedia page. We took content from our website and other documents, which identified the site for speedy deletion. Is there a way to grant permission to use this verbiage or should we just change the language? Thank you! — Preceding unsigned comment added by JCJ5 (talkcontribs) 15:28, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

Hello JCJ5 and welcome to Wikipedia (WP).
You did not make any other edits under that username, so it would help if you could provide more details (a link to the pages you tried to edit?). However, there can be two reasons for the speedy deletion in the case you describe:
  • One possible reason is that you reused your (copyrighted) material. If that is the case, you can indeed donate it to Wikipedia and use it; see WP:DCM. The two main points are (1) we cannot accept your claim without a special procedure, because On the Internet, nobody knows you're a dog, so we need to verify your identity; and (2) if you do donate this material, pay attention that anyone, not only Wikipedia/Wikimedia, can reuse it without your permission under some fairly lax conditions (of course, that is a feature, not a bug, for most contributors here).
  • The other possible reason is that your non-profit is not "notable" in the WP meaning of the term. A 100-years old non profit is not notable by the mere length of its existence, however you likely were the subject of newspapers articles or the like. Do read WP:N for the details.
So, the first one is easily solved, the second not so much. Do come back if you have further questions. TigraanClick here to contact me 15:42, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
JCJ5: in direct answer to your question "is there a way to grant permission to use this verbiage?" – there is, but it involves some tedious bureaucracy, which is unlikely to be worth the effort involved, as the language is very likely to need changing anyway. Wikipedia articles should be neutral in tone and not promotional. Maproom (talk) 17:28, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
Hello, JCJ5. Some of your language makes me think that you have a (very common) misunderstanding of what Wikipedia is. "Setting up a page" is something appropriate to social media, or a directory of some kind. What we do in Wikipedia is to write articles. It is not your business to write an article about your organisation (you are permitted to, but very much discouraged) because if we are to have an article about it the article should be neutrally written and based almost entirely on materials published about the organisation by people who have no connection with it. (That is why material from your website, even if you overcome the copyright issues, is unlikely to be appropriate to a Wikipedia article). Please read Your first article and Conflict of interest. --ColinFine (talk) 10:47, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

deletion of article[edit]

I was sorry to see that my bio has been deleted by wikipedia. All of the contents came from valid sources such as www.TheHistoryofRecording.com. Also all of the people who wanted the bio deleted were people who professionally write articles and bios for your reference and charge for the work. I suggest you look into the process and who is taking advantage of it a little more carefully.. You can find my references on my website. www.GaryVandy.com Thanks and good luck — Preceding unsigned comment added by Mixer6920 (talkcontribs) 17:08, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

This refers to Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Gary_Vandy. Your claim "all of the people who wanted the bio deleted were people who professionally write articles ... and charge for the work" violates Wikipedia's rule Assume good faith. It is also highly implausible and unsupported by any evidence. Maproom (talk) 17:38, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
After a quick check via searches, I'd agree that Vandy is likely not notable enough for an article. And, outside of my day job, nobody pays me to edit anything. †Dismas†|(talk) 18:31, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

Buddy Ace[edit]

Buddy Ace (edit | talk | history | protect | delete | links | watch | logs | views)

HELLO ALL,

MY NAME IS KARHONDA CEASAR, I AM THE DAUGHTER OF THE LATE BUDDY ACE. I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A CORRECTION; MY FATHER DIED 12:05AM ON DECEMBER 25TH AND NOT THE 26TH. PLEASE MAKE THE PROPER CORRECTIONS. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMCERNS PLEASE GIVE ME A CALL AT (Redacted)

THANKS YOU KINDLY,

KARHONDA CEASAR — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:2C3:8200:930:A5C7:A99B:128D:8DF4 (talk) 21:13, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

AROBAZE.png Please do not include contact details in your questions. We are unable to provide answers by any off-wiki medium and this page is highly visible across the internet. The details have been removed, but if you want them to be permanently removed from the page history, please email oversight-l@lists.wikimedia.org. Additionally, please sign your post by typing four tildes (~~~~) or clicking the signature button above the edit box which looks like this: Button sig.png. Do not sign in articles.. This is probably an issue of timezones. In UTC, which is the timezone that things go by on Wikipedia, it was probably the 25th. Pppery 21:20, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
The article says the 26th because that's what both the cited sources say. If you have a more reliable source that can be cited (your personal knowledge doesn't count) then please post that on the talk page for the article. Thanks, †Dismas†|(talk) 21:28, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

Square brackets around a wikilink[edit]

Have a situation where an editorial explanation inside a quote, which needs square brackets, also needs to be wikilinked. The software can't handle the three consecutive square brackets, resulting in [[[Wikipedia:Help desk]]]. What to do, what to do? ―Mandruss  21:31, 23 September 2016 (UTC)

You can put a space between the outermost bracket and the inner two like such. [ Wp:HD ] Would curly brackets around it be a better option? It would look like this {WP:HD}? uhhlive (talk) 21:41, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
Use <nowiki> around the outer brackets (If I understand right what you want to do), resulting in [Wikipedia:Help Desk]. --Floquenbeam (talk) 21:44, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
Or use the ASCII code for brackets so it looks like this [WP:Help Desk] uhhlive (talk) 21:45, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
(edit conflict) You can also use a zero-width non-breaking space, like [[‍this]]. Pppery 21:46, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
Or, put brackets inside a piped link: [Wikipedia:Help Desk]. --Floquenbeam (talk) 21:47, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
Thought of that one, rejected it. For a reason I can't really articulate at the moment. ―Mandruss  21:49, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
That's a shame, I kind of think it looks best with the brackets part of the blue link. Of course I have zero knowledge about what you're specifically trying to do... --Floquenbeam (talk) 21:52, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
Ok, go to Shooting of Keith Lamont Scott and search for "TBI". ―Mandruss  22:00, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
Basically, the brackets aren't part of the target title, so they shouldn't be included in the link. In my most humblest of tentative opinions. ―Mandruss  22:06, 23 September 2016 (UTC)
Please be aware that MOS:QUOTE advises: As much as possible, avoid linking from within quotes, which may clutter the quotation, violate the principle of leaving quotations unchanged, and mislead or confuse the reader. (FYI, this rule is currently under discssion)--S Philbrick(Talk) 16:33, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

September 24[edit]

Maximum entries displayed in a category[edit]

Hi! In a category with numerous entries, I can see only 200 at a time. There is (next page) option available to see rest entries. But can I increase the number to see, say 500, categories entries or so? §§Dharmadhyaksha§§ {Talk / Edits} 04:37, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

@Dharmadhyaksha: Not that I'm aware of. It's set by $wgCategoryPagingLimit in LocalSettings.php on the server, and there doesn't seem to be any user override or preference for it. It's not an easy in-browser solution, and more for the technically inclined, but you can retrieve the full contents of a category via the API (some coding required, left as an exercise for the reader). Murph9000 (talk) 04:48, 24 September 2016 (UTC)
I did not understand your reply @Murph9000:. I assume your answer is "no". Thanks for digging out though. Face-smile.svg §§Dharmadhyaksha§§ {Talk / Edits} 04:56, 24 September 2016 (UTC)
@Dharmadhyaksha: In browser, it's a server-wide setting, no obvious way for a user to override it. Coders, on the other hand, can extract the full list through code. So, "no", unless you are a coder. Murph9000 (talk) 05:00, 24 September 2016 (UTC)
@Murph9000: No! Am no coder... Thanks again for your help. §§Dharmadhyaksha§§ {Talk / Edits} 05:07, 24 September 2016 (UTC)
@Dharmadhyaksha: The API is meant for programs. It can be used by humans but usually with significant difficulty. mw:API:Categorymembers can produce unlinked lists with up to 500 pages (5000 for bot accounts). Category:Recipients of the Padma Bhushan has 471 pages so they are all shown by https://en.wikipedia.org/w/api.php?action=query&list=categorymembers&cmlimit=500&cmtitle=Category:Recipients_of_the_Padma_Bhushan. You have to somehow produce url's like that, and it gets more complicated when there are more than 500 and you want the next. PrimeHunter (talk) 10:36, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

Merritt Communications Wiki Page[edit]

Hi there,

I just added a new page on Wikipedia and it says that it will be deleted because of promotional content. I'd be glad to update the page but I'm confused on what is promotional? Everything in the article is informational about the company Merritt Communications.

Thank you,

-Drew

04:39, 24 September 2016 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by DrewMerritt (talkcontribs)

Please understand, Drew, that Wikipedia has essentially no interest in anything that a subject (whether a person, a company, a band, or anything else) says about themselves, or what their friends, relatives, employees, employers, agents, or associates say about them. It is only interested in what people who have no connection with the subject have published about the subject in reliable sources - that is, sources which have a reputation for editorial control and fact checking. None of the sources in your draft is a reliable source, and in any case, most of the statements in your draft are not sourced anyway.
One of the reasons that editors are strongly discouraged from working on articles where they might have a conflict of interest is that it may be hard for them to see what is promotional. Would you expect to find something like your "customer service" paragraph in an encyclopaedia? Absolutely not. It is inappropriate in both tone and content.
Please have a look at What Wikipedia is not, and Your first article. --ColinFine (talk) 10:59, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

Barranco de Badajoz[edit]

Vandalism reiterated a registered user in this article: Barranco de Badajoz. This article already has references.--88.9.103.216 (talk) 08:10, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

I see no evidence of vandalism in the history of the article. A registered user, Edward321, has twice removed the longest paragraph, on the grounds that the sources are unreliable. I cannot read Spanish, so I cannot judge if he is right. Maproom (talk) 11:44, 24 September 2016 (UTC)
I too can't read Spanish, so can't properly assess the references. What I can see, however, is that the removed paragraph talks about the paranormal and UFOs. Now, with the exception of secret military or experimental aircraft, I believe it will be extremely difficult to find reliable sources which talk about those subjects. I won't say it's impossible, only probably two of the most difficult topics to include in Wikipedia. If you believe that the sources are reliable (to Wikipedia's WP:RS standard), please explain that on the article's talk page. Murph9000 (talk) 11:57, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

Template changes[edit]

Hi, why does it take quite a while until template changes become visible in articles?--Hubon (talk) 13:22, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

@Hubon: It depends on server load and the size of the job queue. Pages are served from a cache for server performance reasons. Template updates do not invalidate the cached copy of pages using the template, just place it on the job queue for processing in turn. You can WP:PURGE individual articles if you really need to (e.g. if they are actually badly broken), but should only do that when necessary, as it is essentially antisocial to do it without good reason and skips the queue (slowing down everyone else's changes). If it is just a routine update such as changing the links in a navbox, you should normally just let the queue deal with it. If you happen to have any normal editing to do on the articles, saving them (either section or full page) automatically purges their cached copy. Murph9000 (talk) 13:47, 24 September 2016 (UTC)
Okay, thanks!--Hubon (talk) 15:14, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

Error in warning text[edit]

Not sure where to post this, but if I edit e.g. Wikipedia:Requested moves/Current discussions, I am warned "Your edits will not persist and be overwritten." This sentence is wrong: it should say "will be overwritten": otherwise it is saying "your edits will not ... be overwritten". Equinox 14:19, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

@Equinox: That text comes from Template:Editnotices/Page/Wikipedia:Requested moves/Current discussions. It can only be edited by administrators and template editors, so you'll need to do an edit request on the talk page. I think you are correct, there should be a second "will" in there to remove ambiguity / confusion. Murph9000 (talk) 14:40, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

Assignment paper[edit]

I am creating a wiki page so that I can grade a paper with my classmates for an assignment. I have the sample paper; however, the instructions do not allow for copying and pasting. How would I enter the sample paper for all of us to access. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Micheleadkins55 (talkcontribs) 18:10, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

Micheleadkins55: you say "a wiki page" – were you specifically instructed to use Wikipedia for this? It does not sound like a suitable use for Wikipedia. There are many other wiki sites on the web, probably some of them are more suitable for a purpose like yours. Maproom (talk) 19:03, 24 September 2016 (UTC)
(edit conflict) @Micheleadkins55: Please read WP:NOTWEBHOST. From the sound of it, you want to create a page that is not permitted on Wikipedia, and should instead be hosted on your school / college / university computing resources. Your institution may already have their own servers running the Wikipedia software, MediaWiki, or they can easily setup a server running it. If you create a page that falls outside of Wikipedia's content policies and guidelines, it will very likely be speedily deleted. There is one exception to that, courses operated by the Wiki Education Foundation (WikiEdu / WikiEd), in which case you should check with your instructor for guidance. If I am mistaken, and you intend to create an encyclopaedia article about a subject with notability, which does not already exist on Wikipedia, please provide some more details about exactly what you intend to do and what help you need. We are happy to help with encyclopaedia articles, but can't help with general web hosting. Murph9000 (talk) 19:13, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

Battle of Karansebes[edit]

Hello,

I have rewritten this page to reflect the original account given in the Osterreichische Militarische Zeitschrift - in order to bury the myth once and for all. Somebody has been on recently and turned the article back to the original nonsense. Do I simply reedit this and add something in chat - or would the 'undo' process take it back to my version? — Preceding unsigned comment added by DaveHMBA (talkcontribs) 23:53, 24 September 2016 (UTC)

@DaveHMBA: You may be at the very early stages of a content dispute. Please read Wikipedia:Dispute resolution, which covers both the informal early stage and later formal stages (if it can't be simply resolved informally). As a first step, I suggest you start a new thread on the article's talk page, and concisely explain why you believe your version of the article is better. Try to make it obvious to someone who knows more or less nothing about the subject. Briefly explain why the article was inaccurate prior to your work. The current version has content which was not in the version before your edits, so briefly explain why that version is not better. Once that is done, post a one-line note on the IP user's talk page pointing them to the discussion and inviting them to comment. Try to keep all this in a constructive, collaborative tone and spirit, if you can. I.e. the aim is to have a constructive discussion where you can both agree on the path forward. This could potentially take days, but there is no deadline. See also WP:BRD — you boldly changed the article, it has been reverted, now some discussion is needed. Murph9000 (talk) 00:27, 25 September 2016 (UTC)


September 25[edit]

Pippa Middleton[edit]

Please remove the two funny symbols beside the link "Middleton" in the "parents" section on this page. I don't understand it at all. Thanks so much 101.182.142.35 (talk) 00:44, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Click here and attempt to remove it yourself please. They are just extraneous brackets. --Majora (talk) 00:47, 25 September 2016 (UTC)
I removed them. As Majora has already said, they're just extraneous brackets. Fuortu (talk) 00:50, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Please check ref number 11 (it is NOT from a newspaper but from an on-site magazine called "House and Heritage") and Thanks for your help - do not get upset and please help - it's always appreciated here 101.182.142.35 (talk) 01:25, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

And it really doesn't matter at all. The citation is there and is fine. We aren't getting upset but we also want people to at least attempt to do things themselves before running to us to help. We are all volunteers here and it gets a little annoying to have to answer the same questions from the same people again and again. It makes it seem like the person asking for help really doesn't see us as volunteers but instead as "tech support" who will fix any problem they have. That isn't how we do things. You have been editing Wikipedia for over a year. Plenty of time to understand simple editing and to fix your own mistakes. At the very least, long enough to attempt to fix them yourself. We will still help if you really can't understand something, but there has to be at least some attempt to learn. Else it will just result in an endless barrage of the same questions over and over and over again. Fixing extra brackets should not be something you require the help desk to do. It should not be something you need other volunteers to do. If there is a problem be bold. Make at least a rudimentary attempt to fix it. Don't come straight to us. --Majora (talk) 01:39, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Dear --Majora I am sorry that I upset you (I actually DID remove the brackets myself!) - I am too scared to add in the "House and Heritage" title to the ref. I do not know where it goes. Sorry again. I will just leave the citation as it is - it is NEARLY correctly done! 101.182.142.35 (talk) 01:52, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Pippa Middleton[edit]

On my phone - but not my desk top - there is a "cite error" after ref. Number 10. I thought I had done all edits correctly. Please help. Tjanks101.182.142.35 (talk) 03:36, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Britain's most admired companies[edit]

What are the categories included for Britain's most admired companies? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 103.24.127.69 (talk) 04:45, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

I doubt there are any categories for "admired" companies as such: such a category would be subjective and promotional and hence inappropriate for Wikipedia. You can find British companies generally in Category:Companies of the United Kingdom and its subcategories. —teb728 t c 05:32, 25 September 2016 (UTC)
Agree, admired is a subjective term. Joseph2302 07:25, 25 September 2016 (UTC)
This is a help desk for the encyclopedia Wikipedia. If your question is about the list published by Management Today then see http://www.managementtoday.co.uk/bmac-2015/criteria. PrimeHunter (talk) 10:59, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Barranco de Badajoz 2[edit]

Place references of all kinds. Because the registered user does not convince me any:

In Spanish:

In English:

Video:

I hope these references may be useful. Thank you.--81.33.205.232 (talk) 08:40, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

I see that you have also made this request in the proper place for it, the talk page of Barranco de Badajoz. Maproom (talk) 08:54, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Infobox error messages[edit]

The Answer (Steven Universe) has two infoboxes. The second one emits the error "Warning: Display title "The Answer (Steven Universe)" overrides earlier display title "The Answer (Steven Universe)"" (permalink). How does one get rid of that?  Sandstein  12:31, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

It conflicted with DISPLAYTITLE function at the beginning of the article. I explicitly disabled italic title in the infobox. Ruslik_Zero 12:44, 25 September 2016 (UTC)
Thanks!  Sandstein  12:45, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Harm/due weight in BLP with limited sourcing?[edit]

Hi, I was hoping someone could advise me or just jump on in at Talk:Julio A. Cabral-Corrada § Campaign finance issue on how to handle a potential harm issue when the BLP has very limited sourcing. AfD closed as no consensus (full disclosure, I was a delete voter), but the search for sources turned up a U.S. Congressional campaign finance issue that had not previously been included in the entry. Now we have four reliable secondary sources on the campaign finance issue, and only six on all the rest of the subject's life, three of which come from the same outlet (and all ten have pretty limited coverage, nothing truly in-depth). Another editor has since added in the campaign finance thing; entry's creator deleted that in its entirety. I'm at a loss! I'm concerned about harm to the subject who I believe has not been in the public eye enough for us to write an entry that would give properly limited weight to the campaign finance thing; but I'm also concerned about leaving it out amounts to cherrypicking for only favorable coverage, which is bad for the encyclopedia and readers. Would love some more experienced advice on this. Thanks. Innisfree987 (talk) 15:39, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

  • Innisfree987, hello. Take it to BLPN. They have people experienced in responding to similar situations. Lourdes 15:46, 25 September 2016 (UTC)
Ah yes that's a great idea. Thank you Lourdes! Innisfree987 (talk) 15:47, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

8 string classical guitar[edit]

I thank Michael "Bink" Knowles for his message informing me that he deleted my attempted contribution to the article on 8 string guitar, considering it seemed promotional given that the subject was my own work. I understand this reflex. Nevertheless, I am among the pioneers of the 8 string classical guitar and have done in depth work to expand its repertoire and vocabulary. And I am probably the only one in the classical field to have installed a noise captor on an 8 string classical instrument for experimental purposes! There are of course others who are not yet mentioned in the article (Rafaela Smits, José Tomàs). I consider that a small mention of my work would be justified and not out of place. Thank you for your attention - Steve Gibbs, guitarist, composer, musicologist. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Steve Gibbs 8 cordes (talkcontribs) 16:41, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Hello, Steve. Before we go any further, are you the Steve Gibb (Stephen Thadius "Steve" Crompton Gibb) that we have an article about? That was the biographical article which your edit linked to. Murph9000 (talk) 16:54, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Thanks for your message, Murph9000. No, I am not Stephen Thadius "Steve" Crompton Gibb, who is the subject as you say of an existing article. I am Steve Gibbs (8 string classical and experimental guitarist, composer, musicologist). Thanks in advance for your help - Steve ≈≈≈≈ — Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.27.97.241 (talk) 17:44, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Thanks for confirming that, Steve. So, we have a number of issues with your edit, which collectively explain why it was reverted by Binksternet. Firstly, and this isn't a major reason for rejecting it (it would be easy to change/remove the link), it linked to the wrong biographical article. Secondly, it was unsourced, which is very important. Thirdly (and the first two points contribute into this), there was no clear indication of notability, which is extremely important. Lastly, combining the previous factors and the wording of the edit, it had the overall appearance of being promotional. Now, none of this is to say that your intentions were anything other than good. I have no idea if you would meet our notability standard, as I don't have enough information about you, but the way it works is that we require credible independent evidence of notability. Please read the linked guideline on notability — if you believe you probably meet the criteria there, we can work with you to create content about you. Note that we strongly discourage people from writing about themselves, as there is a conflict of interest, but are usually quite happy to take constructive suggestions and feedback from the subjects of articles. Hopefully that explains things to you. So, the rejection isn't necessarily a permanent thing, it's based on what we have seen so far. The Apple iPhone was famously rejected by Wikipedia for failing to meet Wikipedia standards, in the early days before its release as a product; then later added when it did meet our notability standards. Anyone or anything rejected by Wikipedia can certainly be added later if the reasons for rejection are addressed or change. If anything is unclear, or you have any more questions, please do ask. Murph9000 (talk) 19:01, 25 September 2016 (UTC)
Yes, the notability problem is the foundational one, which led me to remove Steve's text as promotional. I looked up Steve Gibbs online and found a few listings, a few mentions in passing, and an interview on a blog, but there was not enough third-party material to satisfy the notability requirement at WP:MUSICBIO or the more general guideline at WP:GNG. Steve needs to have more publications take notice of his work before a biography can be written here. Until then, the guideline at WP:LISTPEOPLE says that we should limit the listed examples to notable people. Binksternet (talk) 20:46, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Referencing/sources[edit]

I've been editing and in some cases rewriting articles that have been poorly translated from Portuguese into English. In regards to references, in nearly all cases they are written in Portuguese only and there are no English pages/refs available. Is it ok to use non English refs/sources for an English written article? I'd appreciate any help on the subject. Thanks MadMark80 (talk) 18:49, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

@MadMark80: Absolutely. It is recommended to use the |quote= parameter in whichever citation template you are using to quote the passage being referenced (maybe a sentence or two at most). This allows people to verify the translation. See WP:NONENG for more details. ···日本穣 · 投稿 · Talk to Nihonjoe · Join WP Japan! 18:53, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

@Nihonjoe: Thanks very much for that, much appreciated! MadMark80 (talk) 19:01, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Why does it take so long?[edit]

Hi! I sent a contribution of mine on 20th of August; after two very quick reviews I have improved the text a lot and I consider it is up to published. Problem is that it has been pending since that day. How can it be that the first two reviews (more complicated because the text was long) took only five minutes, and that for the final version it takes more than one month? Have I done anything wrong? Any suggestions? The draft I refer to is:

Draft:Super Commuter (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs)

thanks, marco — Preceding unsigned comment added by Fernpendler (talkcontribs) 19:48, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

JUST GOT THE REVIEW; DISREGARD WHAT I WROTE! — Preceding unsigned comment added by Fernpendler (talkcontribs) 19:50, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

@Fernpendler: Just a brief note to help you understand things. We get a huge volume of new article drafts to process, and Wikipedia is almost entirely volunteer effort. Right now, there's over 900 drafts awaiting review. Sometimes you will get a quick response if a reviewer happens to glance in the direction of your draft and can quickly reject it over an obvious issue, but mostly they have to wait their turn in the queue for a more detailed review. It is generally still better (and most of us would probably strongly encourage it) for new or inexperienced contributors to go through the draft and review process, as creating a new article without drafting very often results in speedy deletion. Please feel free to ask any more questions here, although questions specific to the Articles for Creation process might be better to be asked at WP:AFCHD (the dedicated help desk for that process). Murph9000 (talk) 20:48, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Date of birth on biography[edit]

I DO NOT WISH MY BIRTHDAY AND AGE TO APPEAR ON MY WIKIPEDIA PAGE. CALIFORNIA GOV. JERRY BROWN ON SATURDAY 24, 2016 SIGNED A LAW REQUIRING WEB SITES TO REMOVE AN ACTOR'S AGE OR BIRTHDAY UPON REQUEST — Preceding unsigned comment added by Elena bagutta (talkcontribs) 21:40, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Hello, Elena. Given that you are making a legal claim, we can't properly address this issue here. Please see Wikipedia:Contact us - Subjects for details of how to email a specialist experienced team of people who can properly deal with your request. Thanks. Murph9000 (talk) 21:50, 25 September 2016 (UTC)
Additionally, I do not see any obvious age or date of birth on Elena Fernández. Murph9000 (talk) 21:52, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

I DO NOT WISH MY BIRTHDAY AND AGE TO APPEAR ON MY WIKIPEDIA PAGE ARTICLE. CALIFORNIA GOV. JERRY BROWN SIGNED A LAW REQUIRING WEB SITES TO REMOVE AN ACTOR'S AGE OR BIRTHDAY UPON REQUEST. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Elena bagutta (talkcontribs) 22:03, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Elena, as I have very clearly explained, we can not deal with legal claims here. Please do not ask again, you have been clearly told how to proceed with this above. Additionally, please stop SHOUTING! Murph9000 (talk) 22:05, 25 September 2016 (UTC)
Symbol move vote.svg Are you by any chance referring to a photo or text shown in a box to the right of a Yahoo search? Such Yahoo boxes use a wide variety of sources. There may be a text paragraph ending with "Wikipedia" to indicate that particular text was copied from Wikipedia. An image and other text before or after the Wikipedia excerpt may be from sources completely unrelated to Wikipedia. We have no control over how Yahoo presents our information, but a Yahoo box has a "Feedback" link where anyone can mark a field as wrong. PrimeHunter (talk) 22:23, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

The feature film: BAD HURT credit omissions.[edit]

Hello, my name is Mark Kemble and I am the co-writer and director of the future film, BAD HURT. A wikipedia page was recently created but there are several important omissions on the page.

Please ad these credits: Jamieson Stern: PRODUCER {Jamie is already credited with co-writing but this producer's credit is missing.}

                                         Igor Kropotov:    CINEMAPTOGRAPHER
                                         Calvin Dutton:    Acting credit, he portrayed the character: WILLY CRUM
                                         Iris Gilad:           Acting credit, she portrayed the character: DEE DEE KENDALL

BAD HURT was among the top ten audience favorites at Tribeca Film Festival. It had its theatrical opening in February, Two-Thousand Sixteen in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago and other cities.

BAD HURT is currently available on I-tunes, DVD on Amazon and can be watched on NETFLIX. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2602:304:5EC3:42E9:25AD:E427:F69D:5262 (talk) 23:52, 25 September 2016 (UTC)

Template:Age[edit]

How does Template:Age work? its my understanding that upon saving a page all templates\expression\etc are parsed and fixed. So shouldn't pages that use this template get out of date eventually? --84.229.3.50 (talk) 00:01, 26 September 2016 (UTC)

if subst: is used for the template then it is evaluated and the result saved. Otherwise, it is evaluated each time the page is prepared for display. RJFJR (talk) 00:05, 26 September 2016 (UTC)
See mw:Help:Magic words § Variables. The {{CURRENTDAY}}, etc, variables will be fixed at the point the page was last parsed and cached (which occurs more frequently than on saving). In theory, the cached copy could be set to expire when those variables will next change, but that expiry could only really be a soft expiry to place the page back onto the job queue, as it would be horrendous for performance for all pages to fully expire at every midnight (for example). I'm honestly not certain just how smart MediaWiki is about those variables, but they certainly can be out of date in viewed pages. They are not really ever "fixed" (unless their value is subst into the page source), as the pages are re-parsed and the cache updated for many different reasons. Murph9000 (talk) 00:16, 26 September 2016 (UTC)
(edit conflict) I'm not sure what you mean by "parsed and fixed" but here are more details. If you write {{Age|1996|9|27}} in a page then that text is kept in the wikitext of the page and can be seen when you click edit. When the article is rendered for reading by our software, the template computes the current age and only this number is placed in the html version served to readers. It will automatically update once a year. The code produces "19" which currently says "19" but will say "20" tomorrow (Wikipedia uses UTC). If you use subst: then the result of evaluating (or in some cases partially evaluating) a template is stored in the wikitext. PrimeHunter (talk) 00:19, 26 September 2016 (UTC)