User talk:Archer2711

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Amandajm (talk) 10:45, 7 April 2013 (UTC)[reply]

I just want to make a couple of points about your recent edit to Ring of Silvianus.

References. Be very careful with them. You deleted a reference and put in a bracket reference of your own. What you didn't realise was that the reference you deleted was the key reference for several others in the article. That left all the other references with nothing to refer to. If you go back, and look at the reference section, you will find that in several case there are a number of refs to a single source. This is done by clever formatting, but if you remove the key reference, then all the others are shot!
With regards to the book that mentions the ring: Often chronological order is the best way to deal with straightforward information.

But in this case the information was not straightforward. It jumped from four time periods, two objects and two places.

Ring found
Ring at Vyne
Ring written about at Vyne
Change subject: curse tablet found
Inscription
Excavation
Professor twigs to connection
Calls in Tolkien re curse
Final sentence unites ring and tablet.

So moving the information about Chute's book, and placing it chronologically, truncated the information on subject No 1. the Ring. It also interrupted the information on Subject No 2, the curse tablet.

I note that you refer to Karen Webb at the Vyne as indicating that the connection had already been made between the ring and the tablet when Chute wrote his book. However, the fact can't be included on Karen Webb's say-so. She cannot be cited as the source, unless she has written it, or stated it to the media in a form that can be accessed.

Did Chute mention in his book, in 1880 that the tablet was connected with the ring? If so, then this is the best possible source of that information, but I do not have access to it. If you could provide a full reference for the information, then it can be included.

Author/title/publisher/date/page number.

You could just put the info on the talk page of the article, and I will format it.

It can take a while to get the hang of formatting and Manual of Style, but keep editting!

Amandajm (talk) 10:45, 7 April 2013 (UTC)[reply]

AJM's advice to new editors

Look at the article to see how it is laid out. The Table of Contents is the best place to start.
Read the article to see if what you want to add or remove is appropriate, necessary, or adds value.
Search for the right place to put it.
Check Use the "Show Preview" to make sure that what you have done is appropriate and correct.
Discuss any change about which you are uncertain, by placing your proposed text, or just a suggestion, on the talk page. Someone who watches the article will usually answer in a day or so. You can monitor this by clicking the watch tag at the top of the page.
Be aware
- that an addition inserted between two sentences or paragraphs that are linked in meaning can turn the existent paragraphs into nonsense.
- that a lengthy addition or the creation of a new sub-section can add inappropriate weight to just one aspect of a topic.

When adding images

Look to see if the subject of your image is already covered. Don't duplicate subject matter already present. Don't delete a picture just to put in your own, unless your picture is demonstrably better for the purpose. The caption and nearby text will help you decide this.
Search through the text to find the right place for your image. If you wish it to appear adjacent to a particular body of text, then place it above the text, not at the end of it.
Look to see how the pictures are formatted. If they are all small thumbnails, do not size your picture at 300 px. The pictures in the article may have been carefully selected to follow a certain visual style e.g. every picture may be horizontal, because of restricted space; every picture might be taken from a certain source, so they all match. Make sure your picture looks appropriate in the context of the article.
Read the captions of existent pictures, to see how yours should fit in.
Check the formatting, placement, context and caption before you leave the page by using the Show preview function, and again after saving.
Discuss If your picture seems to fill a real identifiable need in the article, but doesn't fit well, because of formatting or some other constraint, then put it on the talk page and discuss, before adding.
Be aware that adding a picture may substantially change the layout of the article. Your addition may push another picture out of its relevant section or cause some other formatting problem.
Edit before adding. Some pictures will look much better, or fit an article more appropriately if they are cropped to show the relevant subject.

Amandajm (talk) 10:45, 7 April 2013 (UTC)[reply]