Jump to content

Wikipedia:Teahouse/Questions/Archive 814

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Archive 810Archive 812Archive 813Archive 814Archive 815Archive 816Archive 820

Hi, PLEASE ADVISE ME the necessary revision of the contents to be updated. From my understanding, it meets the three rules Wikipedia:Notability Neutral point of view, Verifiability. examples, changing the subject -> The Peace Treaty on Korean Peninsula or other shorter versions, I updated the subject part on the content "A peace treaty" to "The peace treaty" as per the advice from the experienced Wikipedia user Goodtiming8871 (talk) 00:52, 10 August 2018 (UTC)

  • Hi Goodtiming8871. There's a backlog at Articles for Creation so it may be a while before anyone reviews your article thoroughly. Thank you for being patient. Looking at it quickly, it seems to be fairly well structured and it has lots of wikilinks and references, which is good. There are some problems with grammar but those can be fixed. The big question for someone reviewing this will probably be whether an article about this treaty is the right place to put this information, since there is no treaty and no clear sign that there will be one. That might mean the reviewer sees the subject as speculation. Maybe the same information can be added to existing articles, e.g. 2018 North Korea–United States summit, if it's not already covered there. There's no requirement to wait for AfC, necessarily, but given the earlier discussion about deleting "Peace Treaty with North Korea", it's probably best to wait for a full review. › Mortee talk 20:18, 11 August 2018 (UTC)
  • : Hi Mortee Thank you for your kind and professional advice. I fixed some grammatical mistakes by reading it carefully (examples: Dangling Modifier, article ) Regarding the previous issue- WP:CRYSTAL, I believe that it could be extracted as per the current public statement of the leaders of the five major countries: US, China, Russia, DPRK and South Korea. All of them now support the ending the Korean war and establish the Peace Treaty on Korean Peninsula. Especially, it is now all documented officially on the two documents which are Joint Statement and Panmunjom Declaration. Goodtiming8871 (talk) 03:23, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

images

I need help! I have been told I need a US public domain tag on four of my images and I don't know how to do that. I have also been told one of them needs a better source--???--one needs the copyright specified--and one has an unknown author--and I don't even know what to ask about that one! How can an image have an author?! I have read up on images--what I can find--and am still as clueless as I was before. Can someone simplify this for me? Or just shoot me--whichever is easiest. Jenhawk777 (talk) 22:05, 11 August 2018 (UTC)

Jenhawk777, don't despair. Copyright is complicated. In order to help you, you'll need to help us. Can you link the titles of the images? And yes, images have authors. Assuming it is a photo, the author is the one who pressed the shutter button on the camera. John from Idegon (talk) 23:00, 11 August 2018 (UTC)
John from Idegon Praise God Hallelujah Amen! Thank you! Yes! Thank you some more! These four are all in need of a US PD tag:
  • [1] has (File:Johann Jacob Griesbach.jpg|thumb|left|alt=Black and white engraving of Griesbach sitting at a desk with bookshelves in the background |Johann Jacob Griesbach (1745–1812), an influential German textual critic).
  • This section [2] has (File:Gunkel.jpg|thumb|upright |alt=Head and shoulders photograph of Gunkel in a formal suit |Hermann Gunkel)
  • [3] has (File:WilliamRobertsonSmith.jpg|thumb|left|upright|alt=photo of young William Robertson Smith|William Robertson Smith, a conservative who also supported biblical criticism early on) needs the tag and it needs a better source the commenter said
  • same section , different pic: (File:Marie-Joseph Lagrange.jpg|thumb|upright|alt=photograph of Père Lagrange wearing a white monk's hood |Marie-Joseph Lagrange was instrumental in getting Catholicism to accept biblical criticism.) needs tag and 'author'. How do I find that?
  • [4] has an image with a dead link--what is that? this image: (File:Northrop Frye.jpg|thumb|left|alt=photo of Northrop Frye standing by a wall|[[Northrop Frye) and they want to know who holds the copyright--where do I find that?
  • and last but not least, [5] has (File:Julius Wellhausen 02.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7 |alt=Head and shoulders photograph of Wellhausen, looking directly at camera |Julius Wellhausen, one of the originators of the documentary hypothesis) and they want to know when and where the image was first published.
What I know how to do is locate an image at Wiki-commons, click on the 'use this' button and copy and paste--that is the sum total of my skill with images! I don't know any of this! I am trying not to panic--so far failing... I am genuinely grateful for any help you can give! Jenhawk777 (talk) 03:33, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Color in Wikitable

Can I use a 'color' in the headings of a wikitable in an article? It is not for any special cause, for only fair appearance. Can I use? — Preceding unsigned comment added by AnkurWiki (talkcontribs)

Hi AnkurWiki. The only guidelines I see about this are Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Tables § Appearance, which says not to use color in tables "gratuitously", only to add information. If you're using color to distinguish two or more types of information, that's totally reasonable. If you just want to add color to the heading of the table to make it look good, that's probably discouraged by the manual of style, but you could try it anyway if you think it's an improvement. Is there a particular table you're thinking about? › Mortee talk 20:01, 11 August 2018 (UTC)
AnkurWiki Please also keep in mind that color may not be the only way that some particular information is indicated. Some users of Wikipedia depend on screen reader software to access articles, and such programs do not distinguish meaning by color. Roger (Dodger67) (talk) 21:26, 11 August 2018 (UTC)
Relatedly, AnkurWiki, please keep in mind that many readers and editors are color-blind to some extent, so the color scheme you choose might cause difficulties for them if the contrast between the text and background is insufficient from their perspective. The Manual of Style's accessibility guidelines on color are important to consider in this regard. —Nøkkenbuer (talkcontribs) 07:49, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

creation of FSCG page

FSCG means fast selling consumer goods and there are many chances that people ask for that page so, that page must be created as soon as possible and we have a project on that so even many of people use it as it is the current topic of projects to be done.there are many types of that. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Snikitha raj (talkcontribs) 08:19, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Hello and welcome to Wikipedia. You may request at WP:Requested articles. Another editor will create it for you. However, the backlog there is very huge, so the waiting time will be a bit long. If you find enough reliable sources about it, you can create the article yourself. See WP:YFA. Regards ~ Abelmoschus Esculentus (talk to me) 08:28, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
Hi Snikitha raj, we already have an article about this subject at Fast-moving consumer goods, an alternative title. Roger (Dodger67) (talk) 09:38, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
And fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) is certainly the common name. PrimeHunter (talk) 09:57, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

eo:Et* is a DAB page on the Esperanto Wikipedia. Its title doesn't identify it as such, but the header template says

Ĉi tiu paĝo estas apartigilo: listo de artikoloj kun sama aŭ preskaŭ sama titolo.

Translation:

This page is a disambiguator: a list of articles with the same or almost the same title.

Like ET, it lists articles with several different punctuations and capitalizations, including

  • the Esperanto diminutive suffix "-et-"
  • the ISO 639 code for the Estonian language
  • the ISO 3166-1 country code for Ethiopia
  • the TLD for Ethiopia
  • the Spielberg film "E.T."

So I'm trying to add [[eo:Et]] to the list of (versions of this page in other) "Languages" sidebar section of ET, but I keep getting an error. I'm not familiar with the process or with editing Wikidata, and I can't figure out the problem.

  1. I click the "Edit links" button at the bottom of the sidebar in ET.
  2. It takes me to ET (Q537953) in Wikidata.
  3. I scroll down to "Wikipedia(27 entries)" and click the "Edit" button.
  4. I type eo in the Wiki field and "Et" in the title field. (These aren't labeled, which confused me at first.)
  5. I click the "Publish" button.
  6. I get the error message
    Could not save due to an error.
    • The save has failed.
    • The link eowiki:Et is already used by item Q16088678. You may remove it from Q16088678 if it does not belong there or merge the items if they are about the exact same topic.

Wikidata does indeed have a page Et (Q16088678), which covers [[eo:Et]] as well as the corresponding pages in Cebuano, Finnish, Dutch, Serbo-Croatian, and Swedish. Dutch and Swedish are also listed in ET (Q537953), and at least Dutch cross-refers from [[ne:Et]] to [[ne:ET]]. [[eo:ET]] redirects to [[eo:Et]], so I tried to add [[eo:ET]] to ET (Q537953), but that brings up the same error.

Is there any way of getting [[eo:Et]] into the sidebar for en:ET?

* I was typing the title here as [[eo:Et]], but it's not showing as anything in the page preview. When I type "eo:Et" into the "Search Wikipedia" field at the top right of this or another English Wikipedia page, it takes me right there, so I don't know WTF is wrong with that either.

Please {{Ping}} me to discuss. --19:44, 11 August 2018 (UTC)Thnidu (talk)

@Thnidu: You could remove the link to eo:Et from Q16088678 and add it to Q537953. Vexations (talk) 20:04, 11 August 2018 (UTC)

@Thnidu: Write [[:eo:Et]] with a leading colon to make an inline link. [[eo:Et]] makes a link under "Languages". There are separate Wikidata items for ET (Q537953) and Et (Q16088678). eo:Et is in the latter. Three languages nl, sh, sv have separate disambiguation pages for the two capitalizations so the Wikidata items cannot be merged. In such cases Wikidata does not have a method where nl, sh, sv use the right link for their capitalization while languages which only have "ET" can link to languages which only have "Et" and vice versa. But you can add interlanguage links directly to the pages per Help:Interlanguage links#Local links, e.g. adding [[eo:Et]] to the bottom of ET, and also [[ceb:Et]] and [[fi:Et]]. PrimeHunter (talk) 10:41, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

I'm having some issue with formatting

I put in a singles section for the band Scarlet Sails, but for some reason there's a ton of blank space showing up right above the table. Any ideas?

--Alexmarie (talk) 00:11, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

I'm taking a look. What's odd is that the template works correctly in other articles (that I checked), but there is nothing obviously wrong in Scarlet Sails. Chris857 (talk) 01:59, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
P.S. I think it might have something to do with having no chart column, but I don't know yet why that's causing a problem. Chris857 (talk) 02:03, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
Hello Alexmarie and welcome to the Teahouse.
I think Chris857 was pretty close to the mark - when no charts were specified, the template handling individual singles titles was generating some stray whitespace that was somehow being promoted up out of the table markup. I did quite a bit of experimentation on a copy of the templates in my userspace until I tracked down the culprit. Thank you for coming up with such an intriguing problem. I also made some changes to the example in the documentation for the {{Singles discography}} template so it once again shows code that actually corresponds to the displayed output and now includes this no chart example.
I met Brian from Scarlet Sails once, back when he and Amanda Palmer were doing the "Onion Cellar" show as the Dresden Dolls. Good to know what he's been up to. — jmcgnh(talk) (contribs) 11:19, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Death date not showing in infobox

Hi - I'm working on the page of Arda Green and I put in an infobox using the infobox person wikidata template (fetchALL) but it's not showing the death date and so is showing she's 119... I went to the wikidata site and the birth and death dates are both there so I'm not sure what the problem is/how to fix it. Thanks! Biochemlife (talk) 16:55, 11 August 2018 (UTC)

I think it is because the birthdate is specified as Gregorian but the death date isn't. Emir of Wikipedia (talk) 17:18, 11 August 2018 (UTC)
Thanks User:Emir of Wikipedia! Biochemlife (talk) 11:23, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

how do i create an article

how do i create an article— Preceding unsigned comment added by Abamwesiga_mike (talkcontribs)

  • @Abamwesiga mike: You may want to start by using WP:The Wikipedia Adventure to learn more about using the site. If you're going to write an article about anyone or anything, here are the steps you should follow:
1) Choose a topic whose notability is attested by discussions of it in several reliable independent sources.
2) Gather as many professionally-published mainstream academic or journalistic sources you can find.
3) Focus on just the ones that are not dependent upon or affiliated with the subject, but still specifically about the subject and providing in-depth coverage (not passing mentions). If you do not have at least three such sources, the subject is not yet notable and trying to write an article at this point will only fail.
4) Summarize those sources from step 2, adding citations at the end of them. You'll want to do this in a program with little/no formatting, like Microsoft Notepad or Notepad++, and not in something like Microsoft Word or LibreOffice Writer.
5) Combine overlapping summaries (without arriving at new statements that no individual source supports) where possible, repeating citations as needed.
6) Paraphrase the whole thing just to be extra sure you've avoided any copyright violations or plagiarism.
7) Use the Article wizard to post this draft and wait for approval.
8) Expand the article using sources you put aside in step 2 (but make sure they don't make up more than half the sources for the article, and make sure that affiliated sources don't make up more than half of that).
Doing something besides those steps typically results in the article not being approved, or even in its deletion. Ian.thomson (talk) 11:53, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Publishing Article

I recently became autoconfirmed and I have been working on an article but it is in draft state, is there a way I can publish it or will it be published only after someone review it. This is the article I am referring to http://en.wiki.x.io/wiki/Draft:Kenny_Sebastian — Preceding unsigned comment added by Sharonsv123 (talkcontribs) 12:05, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Draft:Kenny Sebastian has not been submitted for review. If it is submitted in its current state it will be rejected, as it cites no reliable independent sources to establish that he is notable. Maproom (talk) 13:57, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
Hi Sharonsv123, and welcome to the Teahouse. I have added an {{AFC submission}} template to the draft, but better sourcing is advised before submitting. Sam Sailor 14:10, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

User Abbasulu and Cinestaan.com

Hi! I'm a new editor here, still learning the ways of things, not quite sure if this would be the right place to raise this issue. Since Bollywood and movies are my area of interest, I've been noticing a number of new pages created by the user with the same template, lacking information, and all carry just one link, to a Cinestaan.com - also, the links are mostly dead links.

I'm not sure of the process here as I have patrolled and corrected some however these are past films and lacking additional information, and are in fact largely non notable. Can an experienced user guide on the next steps here? Here is the user's contribution history, I have noticed (s)he got called out on it earlier as well but is continuing the same practice http://en.wiki.x.io/wiki/Special:Contributions/Abbasulu — Preceding unsigned comment added by TheOneWorkingAccount (talkcontribs) 13:37, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

If the pages meet any of the criteria outlined at WP:CSD, for example, clear advertising, personal attacks, only a few words that don't make sense, you can tag the page with the templates listed under the relevant criteria, like {{Db-''whatever reason''}}. Else, if you think nobody will object to the deletion, use {{subst:proposed deletion|concern=''your reason''}} and an admin will come and decide whether to delete or not in 7 days. AfD, for possibly controversial deletions, is a bit more complicated, and how to do it is described here, though you can use a tool to automate nominations for all 3 methods.
Finally, it is usual, though not compulsory to notify the article creator/principal contributors with {{subst:Speedy-Warn|pg=Page|reason='''Reason'''}} for SPEEDYs, {{subst:Proposed deletion notify|Article title }} for PRODs and {{Afd notice| ARTICLE NAME }} for AfDs, though it's not necessary if you feel it might be harmful to do so. Also, before you nominate, consider some of the alternatives listed at WP:BEFORE. Good luck. — Alpha3031 (tc) 15:33, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

finding the talk page

When I click on the "Talk" button on the upper right hand of the article page, I get taken to my own talk page. How do I reach the talk page proper to the article? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Obugov (talkcontribs) 15:47, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Click on the talk tab at the top left of the article. --David Biddulph (talk) 15:52, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Unable to use email feature

I have no idea how the WP email feature works. When I tried finding out, I read I have to confirm my email first. I vaguely remember doing that, but regardless, the old link I got in my email is expired. So, I clicked the send "confirm email request" in my preferences a couple times. I received nothing. Is anyone here able to help me with the button not working? If not, where do I report this to? --GDP (talk) 12:35, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Hi GDP. If you do not receive an email after clicking "Confirm your email address" at Special:Preferences then check any spam folders in your email service or try another email provider, e.g. one from Comparison of webmail providers. Many mails are stopped by filters. I always get Wikipedia mails in seconds. It's optional to set an email address but you need it if you forget your password or want to contact an editor privately. PrimeHunter (talk) 15:54, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Five Islands music. jpg was taken by me - not sure what I need to do to show that — Preceding unsigned comment added by Elizabeth1225 (talkcontribs) 16:22, August 12, 2018 (UTC)

See Commons talk page and example deletion to see that they are copyright violations as declared in that file's exif data...i.e. your phone is automatically tagging it as copyrighted by you which precludes its use because it is incorrectly licensed.
 — Berean Hunter (talk) 16:39, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
@Elizabeth1225: Be aware that the good people over at Wikimedia Commons who deal with image matters - as well as here on Wikipedia - do tend to look at an editor's other contributions when judging whether a user has acted in good faith or not. So far, you talk page over at Wikimedia Commons appears to suggest you have already uploaded another copyrighted image (Chap and Daisy Bernet Five Islands music.jpg) taken unlawfully from a website, and attributed to Tamytha Cameron). And then, over here, on Wikipedia, your draft article (Draft:Five Islands music) has cut and pasted copyrighted text from this webpage. I am about to delete those offending bits - though you are, of course, free to add the same information again, provided it is written in your own form of words, and does not closely paraphrase the original). So this is just a friendly piece of advice to make you aware that editors, once warned, who repeatedly use copyrighted text or images do tend to get blocked from editing here, or uploading pictures overt at Commons. Just be careful in future that you don't repeat these mistakes that it's so easy for newcomers to make. Regards, Nick Moyes (talk) 17:03, 12 August 2018 (UTC)   

Nick Moyes - I don't know if I'm responding properly, but the piece you mentioned that was copied and pasted was written by me and submitted by me to the website. The images uploaded were taken by my friends and myself. I feel that I'm doing this all wrong! How do you advise I proceed? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Elizabeth1225 (talkcontribs) 2018-08-12T19:52:06 (UTC)

Hello, Elizabeth1225. Almost all the content of Wikipedia is required to be freely reusable by anybody for any purpose, the condition being only that it be attributed. When you edit a page and hit "Publish changes", you are thereby licensing any material you have contributed, according to a licence such as CC-BY-SA. This requires that you have the power to do this.
As part of the principle of Assume good faith, Wikipedia editors normally start from the assumption that an editor does have the legal power to license whatever they add. However, if it is found that the material has already been published somewhere, this raises concerns. If the source explicitly licenses the material under a licence compatible with CC-BY-SA, that is fine: as long as the editor acknowledges the source (for example in the edit summary) the licence is complied with, and Wikipedia may retain the material with a clear conscience.
But if the material has been published before, with an inconsistent copyright claim, or no claim at all, Wikipedia editors will assume that it is copyright and may not be used in Wikipedia: they will typically remove it on sight. In order to use material in Wikipedia which has already been published (anywhere) without an explicit declaration in that source that its copyright is consistent with Wikipedia's requirements, the holder of the copyright material must go through the process outlined in donating copyright material: which will release the material under a suitable license, so that anybody can reuse it in any way for any purpose.
This process is mostly used for images. It can in principle be used for text, but is not often so used for a couple of reasons. One is that it is usually easier to paraphrase the text in one's own words than to go to the effort of following the donation procedure. The other is that in many cases (though not all) the text is unsuitable for Wikipedia in any case, being either non-neutral, or not in encyclopaedic tone. (Remember that Wikipedia is essentially uninterested in anything said about themselves by the subject of an article, or by their relatives, friends, agents, employers, or associates. It is only interested in what people who have no connection with the subject have chosen to publish about them in reliable places).
Finally - on a discussion page like this one, please remember to sign your contributions (with four tildes ~~~~. --ColinFine (talk) 20:00, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Owner of a new business. Google Verified and pre-existing knowledge article on Google.

COI for me to state what is already on Google. I would like someone to write the article for me? Please. Thank you. I will only reference one link and this is not self-promotion-and-marketing aka spam.. this is because i have been contacted to verify my identity and distinguish the Business Entity from my business persona. [1]

I have a tremendous amount of respect for the platform and knowledge base kept here. My entry to the site was not an attempt at cyber-virology. thank you

References

Wally Komodo (talk) 16:30, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Hello, Wally Komodo, and welcome to the Teahouse. Wikipedia is basically uninterested in anything that the subject of an article says about themselves, or their friends, relatives, or associates say about them. In an article about your business, Wikipedia is not interested in anything that you say or want to say about it: it is only interested in what people who have no connection with the business have chosen to publish about it, in reliable places. If there are few or no such independent pieces about it, then it is not possible at present to write an acceptable article about it, because there is absolutely nothing which can go in the article. Please read about notability and reliable sources. --ColinFine (talk) 19:39, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Thanks moderator! However I feel it uncharacteristic of the collective wisdom of Wikipedia to not maintain information you could find on Google. I feel like fostering a lack of interest is —slightly more personal. I am quite sure Wikipedia is interested in Google, which is not a person, but a concurrent knowledgebase, and also has no connection to my business. Published information on Google will make it to Wikipedia eventually. Thanks for all your help! Have a great day, narrative controller! Wally Komodo (talk) 19:49, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Google is a search engine rather than a publisher, Wally Komodo. Wikipedia only covers topics that have received significant coverage in reliable, independent sources, and a search for this topic suggests that this threshold has not yet been met. Cordless Larry (talk) 19:59, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
Most of Wikipedia's policies are made by consensus among editors, Wally Komodo, and one central policy is that Wikipedia is not an indiscriminate collection of information. All of its policies are in principle up for discussion, and you are welcome to go to the Village pump and start a discussion; but in all honesty, I don't think you have much chance of getting that one changed.
By the way, I am not a "moderator", or even an administrator: I am just an ordinary editor, who chooses to spend time answering questions here and at the Help desk. --ColinFine (talk) 20:08, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Can the infobox picture of a BLP include more than one person?

I found a picture on Wikimedia Commons to potentially use in the infobox of a female celebrity's article. However, the picture shows the woman with her husband. Can the picture still be used in the infobox of her article even if there are two people shown? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Lupine453 (talkcontribs)

Yes, though it's not ideal. The caption should then say something like "Mrs. Celebrity, with her husband". Or, if they're not standing too close together, you could use a cropped version of the image. Maproom (talk) 20:24, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
@Lupine453: I would agree with what Maproom says, and would just add that, should you choose to download, crop and then upload an image of just the female celebrity, you should ensure you do credit the author who created the original work, and who released it under a licence for others to use or modify, providing credit is acknowledged. Regards, Nick Moyes (talk) 20:41, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
If you do decide to use a cropped image, there's an effective but little-known alternative to downloading, cropping, and uploading. You can use the image as it is in Commons, but display it cropped. There's an example of this technique in this old version of an article (long since replaced by a better picture). Maproom (talk) 20:57, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Is Assessing an Unassessed Article Considered a Minor Edit?

Greetings Teahouse, I am back, and this time I'd like to ask, are assessing an article that hasn't been assessed yet is considered a minor edit? Thanks. Yanjipy (talk) 21:48, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

I see nothing in Help:Minor edit which would make an article assessment minor. --David Biddulph (talk) 22:09, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

(edit conflict)

Hello Yanjipy and welcome back to the Teahouse.
I assume you are talking about adding class and importance values to a banner on the articles's talk page, where no such values were previously added. If you're adding class "start", "C" or "B" and importance=low, you could probably do that as a minor edit and nobody would complain. Of course, nobody would complain if you left the minor edit box unchecked. It would still be considerate to include a proper edit summary with the edit.
As best as I can tell, no very great weight is attached to these particular assessments below GA, but if you are persistently over-rating unrated pages, you will likely get some pushback.
I think it's a great exercise to go through all of a WikiProject's unassessed articles and give them your best shot. You get exposed to a lot of pages and will probably find other things that need additional work beyond just an assessment. — jmcgnh(talk) (contribs) 22:23, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
I'll bow to David Biddulph's expertise, but if the banners are grouped in a banner shell, the changed assessments make no change to the initial appearance of the talk page. The spirit of Minor edit is that it is an edit extremely unlikely to be controversial. I'll say that for my own practice, setting the minor edit checkbox is too much trouble and I don't feel I can rely enough on what others claim is a minor edit to ignore them when looking at edit histories. — jmcgnh(talk) (contribs) 22:30, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

لماذا لا تستعمل الأرقام العربية علي ويكيبيديا؟

أريد أن أعرف لماذا تستعمل الأرقام الأوروبية 1234567890 (المعروفة أيضاً العربية الغربية) بدلاً من الأرقام العربية ١٢٣٤٥٦٧٨٩٠(المعروفج أيضاً بالأرقام الهندية أو العربية الشرقية) علي صفحات ويكيبيديا العربية ؟ رأيت علي صفحات ويكيبيديا الفارسية أنهم يستعملون الأرقام الفارسية ۱۲۳۴۵۶۷۸۹۰ فقط. و علي الصفحات الهندية، يستعملون الأرقام الهندية १२३४५६७८९०. يجب أن نعتز بلغتنا أيضاً و نستعمل أرقام لغتنا. فكيف يمكننا تغير ذلك؟ كيف نغير الأرقام الأوروبية إلي الأرقام العربية؟ — Preceding unsigned comment added by 7amada Sheikh (talkcontribs) 23:51, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

This is the English Wikipedia, so messages need to be in English. You may be looking for the Arabic Wikipedia. --David Biddulph (talk) 23:56, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

scam

I'm not sure this is right dept to submit this issue.

The profile and photos of the articles on one of our high ranking military officers is being used on a scam profile on the Plenty of Fish Website. I don't see any place where I can attach the profile.

the user name on the POF online dating page is " dcrunner2" with the heading: is there any real ones out there?

There are so many scam profiles on this site impersonating military members and even though we contact the site on the issues. the problem is escalating.

This particular scam profile is using your article on Malcom B. Frost. It even shows his name tag.

I hope there is something that can be done to stop this.

Thank you — Preceding unsigned comment added by 47.138.189.55 (talkcontribs) 20:45, August 12, 2018 (UTC)

So your saying that people are posting fake profiles on Plenty of Fish, and basing these fake profiles on information in wikipedia articles? Tornado chaser (talk) 00:50, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
Welcome to the Teahouse, IP editor. It seems that you are saying that this dating website PlentyOfFish contains a fake profile based on Major General Malcolm B. Frost. This is a matter that you must pursue with the management of the dating website. The photo you mention is in the public domain as an official work of the United States government and Wikipedia has no control over that photo whatsoever. Similarly, the written content in that Wikipedia biography summarizes information on military websites and in major newspapers. Accordingly, Wikipedia editors can do nothing about this situation except to encourage you to be more forceful in reporting the fraudulent activity to the management of the PlentyOfFish website. Cullen328 Let's discuss it 01:41, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

How do I put my pictures in the dinosaur articles?

Hi everyone I finally finished some good pictures of different dinosaurs that I want to put in articles. I just don’t know how to do it. I took pictures of them and I have them on my computer but I don’t know how to put them in. Can anyone help? Thanks, Ethan

Also I remember some people gave me some advice before but I had to go back to school and I can’t find it in the tea house any more. Sorry if I’m repeating myself :(, Ethan

Hi TrexEthan, the best place to upload images is the Wikimedia Commons if you're happy to make them freely available for anyone to use. Wikipedia articles often use pictures from the Commons. Lots of Wikipedia articles like Tyrannosaurus already have diagrams and photos of fossils. A drawing you've made yourself might not be the best choice for them, since there's not always a lot of room and scientific pictures are more often more useful. You could go to the 'Talk' page for one and suggest it if you like, but if its an article that lots of people have worked on they may have strong opinions. Thank you for wanting to help out Wikipedia. Please do ask again here if you'd like more help with editing. › Mortee talk 23:28, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
You can find questions & answers which have been archived by putting your username into the archive search box towards the top of this page. --David Biddulph (talk) 23:45, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

I think it’s fine because there’s another editor who has lots of drawing of dinosaurs in different articles here. - Ethan — Preceding unsigned comment added by TrexEthan (talkcontribs) 23:38, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Hi David Biddulph, I am sorry that I forgot about signing (you scared me and sounded like my stepdad on my page when you said “You were told this back in April. Please do something about it.”) I haven’t been on Wikipedia in a long time and like I said I forgot about a lot of the advice and tips people gave me. I didn’t remember about signing my comments so I hope you can forgive me for forgetting. I promise I didn’t mean to insult you or anything. I hope you don’t block me for forgetting. I don’t know that much about computers yet but I hope I can learn more soon. TrexEthan (talk) 00:09, 13 August 2018 (UTC) is that right?

I don’t know how to make the link work like it does when other people do it... I’m sorry David Biddulph I’m still learning please don’t block me. TrexEthan (talk) 00:15, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Hi again TrexEthan. To mention another editor you have to write something like {{u|TrexEthan}}. Square brackets like [[David Biddulph]] are links to articles, but we don't have one about David yet. It's easy to forget signatures to begin with, don't worry. Just keep trying to remember to write ~~~~ whenever you talk to someone here. I'm still a bit cautious about encouraging the dinosaur pictures, but I appreciate you wanting to help with Wikipedia. › Mortee talk 01:07, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
This seems to be related to Wikipedia:Teahouse/Questions/Archive 759#How do I add pictures?. I think the suggestion made by Odysseus1479 about asking for help at Wikipedia:WikiProject Dinosaurs/Image review is a good idea. -- Marchjuly (talk) 01:46, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
That's good advice. › Mortee talk 02:24, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Inquiry on a delayed update

Hi. My name is Sophia Ghim (user name Scc Ghim). I have submitted a new entry page for Dr. Paul Sung-Ro Lee sometime back in the beginning of this year, yet I do not see any update on this. I'll appreciate your swift and attentive responses. Could you kindly check on it and also please let me know in case anything else needs to be done? Thank you for all your hard works in helping people share their precious information and knowledge for this day and age.

Blessings, Sophia — Preceding unsigned comment added by Scc Ghim (talkcontribs) 15:16, 9 August 2018 (UTC)

You placed the content on your user page, and that is not what a user page is intended for. I have moved it from User:Scc Ghim to User:Scc Ghim/sandbox, and added a {{userspace draft}} template to allow you to submit it for review. --David Biddulph (talk) 15:39, 9 August 2018 (UTC)

Thank you, David Biddulph, for your prompt reply. In fact, I was getting worried because there was not any update nor feedback on my page entry for quite a long time. Your answer gave me peace of mind and was indeed appreciated. And thank you for moving my entry to Sandbox on my behalf, which I had no idea how to go about it. Now, I have followed your instruction and pressed "Submit your draft for review" button. It was taking me to a screen where I was asked to press "Publish changes", which I did. I'm wondering if I did everything correctly because I did not see any further notification afterwards. Kindly reply to me if there is anything further I need to do to successfully upload my page. Thank you! — Preceding unsigned comment added by Scc Ghim (talkcontribs)

@Scc Ghim: You have not saved any edit to the page since January. The instructions say "Press the Publish changes button at the ⇓ bottom ⇓ of the edit box". Did you press it at the bottom? Do not press it at the quoted text. PrimeHunter (talk) 10:08, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Thank you, PrimeHunter, for your swift reply. I think I made it properly this time. Following your guideline, I pressed "Publish changes" at the bottom, and it reads "This draft has been submitted and is currently awaiting review" and "Review Waiting" this time. Many thanks indeed! — Preceding unsigned comment added by Scc Ghim (talkcontribs)

@Scc Ghim: The page is now waiting for review. Please add posts to existing discussions by clicking edit at the section heading and not by starting a new section. Help:Talk pages says more, including how to indent replies with : and sign with ~~~~. PrimeHunter (talk) 15:44, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Scc Ghim (talk) 03:28, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

I got it. Thanks!

Hi, someone hanging around being able to clarify? The wikidata reference fore Sebastian Niemann is Q103898. I was in the very honest opinion that would mean it is okay to have the draft accepted on the English Wikipedia. Thank you for your time. Lotje (talk) 11:27, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Hi Lotje. The inclusion criteria for English Wikipedia is quite strict, and mostly boils down to the fact that all articles need to have content that can be verified in reliable sources. This is where the notability guidelines, such as WP:GNG come in to play. To be considered for inclusion, your article should cite sources that show that the subject of your article is remarkable, unusual enough to have received significant media attention. The guidelines at WP:NBIO and WP:DIRECTOR specifically are especially relevant, and the stricter rules at WP:Biographies of living persons also may come into play.
Basically though, it boils down to citing independent, reliable secondary sources that discuss the person you're writing about in enough detail that you can write an article with only what those sources say (paraphrased of course), because fundamentally, Wikipedia doesn't make new information, it just collects trustworthy information in an accessible way. If you're able to find the sources, then you should be able to have the draft accepted, if not, then perhaps the man will receive more media attention in the future, and you can submit a new article then. Thanks for making a good attempt though, and good luck for your contributions in the future. — Alpha3031 (tc) 11:55, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
To answer your specific point, Lotje: no, the existence of a Wikidata entry gives no information whatever about whether the subject is considered notable by the standards of English Wikipedia. It may be that there are articles already in other Wikipedia which have less strict standards. (Sometimes there may even be an article in English Wikipedia, which nevertheless fails the criteria, and is liable to be deleted). It may even be that somebody has created a Wikidata entry for a subject which has no hope of meeting the criteria. --ColinFine (talk) 16:02, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
@Alpha3031: and @ColinFine: thank you ever so much. Lotje (talk) 07:59, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Waiting for an article to be published

Hello, About a month ago I created an article, but it doesn't appear anywhere when I search for it. So I assume that it is still not approved, am I correct? How long does it usually take to approve an article and how can I find out if everything is alright with the one I created?

Many thanks! Aflame008 (talk) 08:22, 13 August 2018 (UTC)Aflame008Aflame008 (talk) 08:22, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

You created a draft but you didn't submit it for AFC review. To submit the draft for review, add {{subst:submit}} to the top of the draft. --David Biddulph (talk) 08:26, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
Hello Aflame008 and welcome to the Teahouse.
But, before you submit it, may I suggest that you do some more work on it first? In its current state it will almost certainly be declined at AfC for reasons of promotionalism, lack of references, and not having established that its subject is notable, according to WP's notability criteria for companies. — jmcgnh(talk) (contribs) 08:30, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

How to delete history of an old revision

Hi there, I'mm wondering if it is possible to get an old revision deleted from the revision history of a particular article. If so how can this be done?— Preceding unsigned comment added by ‎Conrad Tanner (talkcontribs) 13:02, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Only administrators can delete/hide revisions as per WP:RVDL. It is only used for "Selective deletion" like copyright violations or insulting, degrading, or offensive material. I'm unsure but if you are trying to hide personal information you posted on a certain article that is only in revision history, you might be able to appeal to ad administrator to hide it but someone more experience than me can answer that. NZFC(talk) 04:14, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
@Conrad Tanner: Requests for removal of personal information should be sent to WP:Oversight, e.g. via Special:EmailUser/Oversight or oversight-en-wp@wikipedia.org. I believe there is also an IRC channel, and if you contact an Administrator instead they will probably pass it on anyway. As mentioned by NZ Footballs Conscience, other gross violations of the rules can be reported via emailing administrators or other ways listed at WP:REVDELREQUEST. There is also a template for copyright violations. — Alpha3031 (tc) 06:13, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Strange alert

Last week I encountered a strange alert. When I clicked the bell icon, on the top of the list an unread prompt popped up, which vanished completely when I clicked the blue dot to mark it as read -- strange!

When I checked my mails, I found a message from "HsfBot‬", referring me to http://id.wiki.x.io, were I am obviously already known as user, and was "invited" to log in (I did not!).

I do not know of any action from my side regarding the Indonesian WP, and feel a bit unsecure about the circumstances of vanishing alerts and unsolicited user pages.

I tried to be concise and short, but certainly I am prepaired to give additional details in case they are needed to explain this to me. Thanks in advance. Purgy (talk) 09:21, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Hi Purgy. Your account was created at the Indonesian Wikipedia Saturday [6], probably because you clicked a link to it while you were logged in. Two minutes later HsfBot‬ posted a welcome message on your talk page [7]. This causes a notification at other wikis but after you have read it, it only remains at the Indonesian Wikipedia. Just ignore it. PrimeHunter (talk) 09:47, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
Thanks for the explanation of the automated processes, which I started by inadvertently clicking a link to Indonesian WP. Is there a chance to get rid again of these unintentional remnants? I would prefer to have no userpage there, especially not, if the same password applies. Purgy (talk) 10:28, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
The user page which you can see there is the one which you created at meta:User:Purgy_Purgatorio. That is used in any Wikipedia where you don't have a specific user page. See WP:Global user page. --David Biddulph (talk) 10:45, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
Thank you! It's too late to regret having thought that contact with Wikimedia might not necessarily be at least regretful. Purgy (talk) 11:41, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
@Purgy: More precisely, meta:User:Purgy Purgatorio is shown in Wikimedia wikis where your account has been created but you haven't made a user page. Special:CentralAuth/Purgy Purgatorio shows where the account has been created. It's common to accumulate many account creations by clicking links to other wikis while logged in. Accounts cannot be deleted but the global user page can be deleted on request by placing {{Delete|1=User request}} on meta:User:Purgy Purgatorio. PrimeHunter (talk) 14:30, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

add new content

I want to add new content. I read [8] . but i can't understand clearly. So i need some help. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Sardersalimreza (talkcontribs) 11:23, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Which part of WP:YFA do you not understand? --David Biddulph (talk) 11:28, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
Not directly answering your question, Sardersalimreza, but please note that creating a new article is not the only way, or necessarily the most helpful way, to improve Wikipedia. We have six million articles, many of them very poor. Improving an existing article is often a much more valuable contribution than creating a new one - especially when the motive for creating a new article is something along the lines of "to tell the world about ... " or "because ... deserves an article". Neither of these motives has any relation to Wikipedia's purposes or policies. Writing a new article is hard, and hundreds of new articles are deleted every day. --ColinFine (talk) 12:52, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
Right now you have created a draft: Draft:Sarder Salim Reza which is the right place. Some new editors make the mistake of working at their User page, which is for a brief description of what you are and intend to do as a Wikipedia editor. You also posted two photos of Mr. Reza to Wikipedia Commons. The important question is whether Mr. Reza meets Wikipedia's rules for notability for a biography of a living person. My own opinion is - Not. I suggest you read Wikipedia:Notability (people) as should help. David notMD (talk) 13:00, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
Also, given your User name identical to the draft article name, appears you are writing about yourself. As someone else posted on your Talk page, strongly discouraged. David notMD (talk) 15:21, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

The book, "Simon & Schuster's Guide to Insects" (Fireside Book)May 4, 1981 by Dr. Ross H. Arnett and Dr. Richard L. Jr. Jacques shows the co-author Richard L. Jacques with a link not to his correct biography, but to one of an Englishman and artist. Dr. Jacques, the co-author was the student of Dr. Arnett at Purdue University when I attended Purdue University as a graduate student with "Rich" Jacques. Someone needs to correct the link, I cannot understand how to edit the material. Thank you, Clarence A. Callahan. — Preceding unsigned comment added by CACallahanCAC (talkcontribs) 15:43, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Hey CACallahanCAC. The book does not appear to have its own article, and so it's not clear where the content is that you would like changed. I'm afraid you will need to be more specific. GMGtalk 15:52, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
I think it was in Ross H. Arnett Jr.. If it was another article you saw the misleading link in, please let us know, CACallahanCAC :-) --bonadea contributions talk 15:54, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Picture license

Hi! What license does a picture have to be under to make it able to go on a Wikipedia page? I guess it has to be 'free' but free and what? The options on my google advanced search are: - Free to use or share - Free to use or share, even commercially - Free to use share or modify - Free to use, share or modify even commercially

Aesthetic Sunset (talk) 18:54, 12 August 2018 (UTC)

Hi Aesthetic Sunset, it's the last option; Free to use, share or modify even commercially as those are the basic terms of the CC BY-SA 3.0 License. Roger (Dodger67) (talk) 19:18, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
Roger (Dodger67) Thank you, it is a lot trickier finding pictures with the correct license than I thought! Aesthetic Sunset (talk) 20:36, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
Hi again Aesthetic Sunset, what image are you looking for? Certain types of subjects can qualify for a "fair use" exemption, though the image must then strictly comply with all of the conditions stipulated by the non-free content rule. Roger (Dodger67) (talk) 20:53, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
Hello, Roger (Dodger67) I was looking at a picture on the article on Jessica Keenan Wynn and in general for some other people on here. Aesthetic Sunset (talk) 20:56, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
@Aesthetic Sunset: it's particularly hard to make a fair use argument for a picture of a living person, because in principle you could take a picture of them yourself and release that freely. Fair use needs you to argue that there's no free alternative (see also WP:NFC#UUI). Sometimes editors will write to the subjects of articles asking if they could make a picture available under a suitable license (typically one of these), but of course that needs to be done considerately and with due caution. I haven't done it myself. › Mortee talk 21:07, 12 August 2018 (UTC)
Mortee Thanks for all the info. Hmmm this is a lot lot lot trickier than at first glance, I really am getting into this now! I'll have a look at the links now and get back to you if I have any questions on it? Is that alright? Cheers! Aesthetic Sunset (talk) 16:02, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
@Aesthetic Sunset: sure. I'm no expert, but you can ask at the Teahouse or on my talk page. › Mortee talk 16:09, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Mortee WWell you still know more than me, eh? :D Thanks again Mortee! Aesthetic Sunset (talk) 16:11, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

New content

Hello everyone,

So realizing the monumental task and responsibility that is editing and contributing to Wikipedia, how does one find someone who will write proper content and is this admissible assuming most folks aren't writing about themselves.

Thank you and apologies should my question be out of line. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Rofgonc (talkcontribs) 15:05, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Hey Rofgonc. It's not entirely clear what your question is. Most editors on Wikipedia just write about topics they're interested in. GMGtalk 15:27, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
There is a phrase, "Build it and they will come" (which is NOT an exact quote from movie Field of Dreams). Applied here at Wikipedia, if a person becomes Wikipedia-notable while still alive, other people - not connected, related or employed by - will create an article. Wikipedia-notable means that there are published accounts in reputable media (newspapers, magazines...) about the person in question not written by the person. Not interviews. Not press releases. David notMD (talk) 15:36, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
We "find someone who will write proper content" by inviting everyone to edit, Rofgonc. The writers include anyone interested in contributing to Wikipedia. That can include you, as well. We use terms like "editor" because they are technically accurate and sound better than "person with an Internet connection and some spare time to edit an encyclopedia without pay". Most of us are not professionals; all anyone needs to help construct this encyclopedia is a bit of competence and a willingness to engage.
In general, we are volunteers who contribute at our leisure. Sometimes, we do so in topic areas that interest us; for some of us, we do so even on subjects that are unfamiliar to us. If you want to participate in "realizing the monumental task and responsibility that is editing and contributing to Wikipedia", then go for it! So long as you adhere to the five pillars, follow the rules (and sometimes ignore them), and act in good faith, you too can become an esteemed person with an Internet connection and some spare time to edit an encyclopedia without pay.
And yes, autobiographic and other conflict-of-interest editing is generally not a good idea. Be thankful that you don't have an article about yourself; if you ever do, its existence will not be within your control. If you want to begin learning how to edit Wikipedia, the tutorial is a good place to start. The Wikipedia Adventure may also interest you. Welcome to Wikipedia! —Nøkkenbuer (talkcontribs) 16:13, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Question about sandbox policy regarding images

There are articles that I want to work on improving in my sandbox before change them in the main space. When I copy the articles to my sandbox do I need to remove all non-free images? -- Millionsandbillions (talk) 18:29, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

@Millionsandbillions: Yes. Non-free images may only be used in article space. See WP:NFCC RudolfRed (talk) 18:39, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
(edit conflict) @Millionsandbillions: Yes. Nonfree images may be used only in mainspace, and may not be used in drafts outside it. To make them easier to restore, however, you can "disable" displaying the image by putting a colon before the "File". So [[:File:Example.jpg]] displays as File:Example.jpg. That'll make them very easy to put back in once you return the article to mainspace. Seraphimblade Talk to me 18:40, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
Thanks. -- Millionsandbillions (talk) 18:43, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Asking a question in private to avoid revealing personal details?

Hello there,

I have a question relating to a potential COI which I would like to ask a member of the moderating team prior to submitting my first article. I have read the rules and was not able to find an answer relating to my situation. If I was to ask a question in public, I would become identifiable through cursory research by name, address and other contact details due to my association with the subject.

Is it possible to somehow open a private thread for this purpose?

Much obliged,

ThePastoral (talk) 20:26, Tuesday, December 3, 2024 (UTC)

Hey ThePastoral. You may send a private email to info-en-o@wikimedia.org. GMGtalk 19:26, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
Or if you want to get to a specific person, you can email them using the Email this user on the left side oftheir user page. There is no way to open a private thread on Wikipedia. ~ GB fan 19:30, 13 August 2018 (UTC)
Thank you both very much. I'm not sure which individual to ask so an email would seem to be the most appropriate course of action. Thanks again. ThePastoral (talk)