Template talk:Afd-mergefrom

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Contents 1 Description 1.1 Instructions 2 Colour 3 Very difficult to use

[edit] Description

This template is intended for use in conjunction with {{afd-mergeto}} by a sysop who closes an AfD debate with a consensus to merge the nominee into another article, but does not intend to perform the merger (or by a different user acting on such a decision).

[edit] Instructions

• Add the {{afd-mergefrom}} tag to the top of the talk page of the destination article. Use the following format:

{{afd-mergefrom|nominated article|debate name|debate closure date}}

For example, assume that a debate was closed on 29 March 2007. If the consensus is to merge an article called Topic Y into the article associated with the talk page, and the debate is located at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Topic Y (second nomination), the tag should be configured as follows:

{{afd-mergeto|Topic Y|Topic Y (second nomination)|29 March 2007}}

This will generate the following notice:

The article Topic Y was nominated for deletion. The debate was closed on 29 March 2007 with a consensus to merge the content into Template:Afd-mergefrom. If the merger is not completed promptly, Topic Y might be re-nominated for deletion. To discuss the merger, please use this talk page.

• Upon removing the {{afd}} notice (if still present), add the {{afd-mergeto}} tag to the top of the nominated article. Use the following format:

{{afd-mergeto|destination article|debate name|debate closure date}}

For example, assume that a debate was closed on 29 March 2007. If the consensus is to merge the nominated article into an article called Topic X, and the debate is located at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Topic Y (second nomination), the tag should be configured as follows:

{{afd-mergeto|Topic X|Topic Y (second nomination)|29 March 2007}}

This will generate the following notice:

This article was nominated for deletion. The debate was closed on 29 March 2007 with a consensus to merge the content into the article Topic X. If the merger is not completed promptly, this article might be re-nominated for deletion. To discuss the merger, please use the destination article's talk page.

[edit] Colour

Should this message box not be pink, like all the other merge-related templates? Gurch 19:51, 27 December 2005 (UTC)

This is the only merger template that's intended to be placed on talk pages. As such, it uses the standard talk page template colouring. —David Levy 21:23, 27 December 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Very difficult to use

I have to say, this template is really hard to use, and I don't see myself using this template again. I much prefer mergefrom. Not only is it less instrusive to the main articlespace (this infobox is a real monster!), but it's incredibly hard to use when you consider that the main users of this template have to plough through tonnes of AfD closures. The only possible way this template could be used is through a user script, but even then, there's too much information that needs to be pasted. --Deathphoenix ʕ 21:23, 4 October 2006 (UTC)

1. Please explain why you believe that these templates are difficult to use. The only parameters are the title of the other article, the name of the debate (usually the same), and the date. A date parameter was just added to the standard {{merge}} templates, so this really isn't any extra information in most cases.

2. Only {{afd-mergeto}} is intended for use in the article namespace, with {{afd-mergefrom}} going on talk pages (hence the coloring and the above instructions).

It makes perfect sense to place a large, attention-grabbing tag on a page with an AfD decision to merge its content elsewhere and turn it into a redirect. This is not the same as a situation in which someone has informally suggested that a merger occur (for which the smaller tags are appropriate).

Meanwhile, it would be inappropriate to disrupt the destination article with such a large tag, and that's why it goes on the talk page instead. (Optionally, a standard {{mergefrom}} tag can be added to the article.) —David Levy 23:50, 4 October 2006 (UTC)

I guess it's my fault I missed the "talk page" in bold, but basically, these templates require three parameters: the title of the article, the name of the debate, and the date. The mergeto and mergefrom only required one (with an optional parameter if the discussion is on another page). I had to refer back to the original AfD two or three times whereas when using mergeto and mergefrom, I only had to refer back to it once. If I'm in an AfD where someone nominated several articles that have to be merged, that's a lot of referring back (indeed, I was about to try it in such a situation and decided to hold off until I saw a simpler AfD in which to use the tags). I tried it out when I noticed it, and the AfD notice is nice, but I think it's much simpler to use the mergeto and mergefrom tags, especially when the AfD notices already exist in each article marked with mergeto. I suppose given that afd-mergefrom is a talk page template, that might find some use in the talk page given that I often open up a section in the target article to explain why I put up a mergefrom tag, but afd-mergeto is simply not worth it: I'd rather use mergeto. I guess that's not really helpful feedback, so my apologies. --Deathphoenix ʕ 03:03, 5 October 2006 (UTC)

The second parameter (the name of the debate) usually is the same as the first (the title of the other article), so it can simply be copied and pasted twice. Only when the debate has a different name (most likely because the article was nominated for deletion more than once or because several articles were listed together) is it necessary to copy and paste something different.

As noted above, a date parameter has been added to the standard merger templates ({{merge}},{{mergeto}}, {{mergefrom}}, et cetera). For proper categorization, we now are supposed to type {{merge|Other article|date=March 2007}}.

When I get a chance, I'll attempt to make the AfD link parameter optional (for use only when it differs from the title of the nominated article), which wasn't technically feasible when the templates were created (because the required functionality had not yet been added to MediaWiki). It wouldn't be difficult, but I want to see if this can be done without breaking the existing syntax (which is a bit trickier). —David Levy 13:52, 5 October 2006 (UTC)

(I am now using afd-mergefrom, but am still using mergeto and mergefrom-multiple) The more I think about it, the more I think that this template would benefit from a user script similar to what Johnleemk did for AfD closers. When I took a moment and stepped back to look at how I was using the templates, {{oldafdfull}} is just as difficult to use, if not more so, but Johnleemk's user script made it very easy for me to use (including type "d" as a default for the AfD page so I don't necessarily have to type it out). Perhaps I should take a look at his script and modify for use with this and the afd-mergeto templates. --Deathphoenix ʕ 19:22, 5 October 2006 (UTC)

If you could do that, it would be much appreciated. —David Levy 20:09, 5 October 2006 (UTC)