Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2007 November 21

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[edit] November 21

[edit] The article titled Ilavida

Resolved.

The article titled Ilavida was speedily deleted by the admin "Secret Account". I contacted him/her on his/her talk page and also commented on the article's talk page. This administrator has chosen to ignore my comments.

If the admin is not familiar with Indian epics and therefore, does not recognize the notability of this article (a write up about the stepmother of Ravana and the mother of Kubera -- both characters are well known to Hindus), s/he should have asked for a clarification or at least responded to my queries about his / her speedy delete. Since this admin has ignored my comments on both his/her talk page and the article's talk page, I want to know who I can contact to present my case.

Of course, if Wikipedia does not see why an article about a personality in a Hindu epic is important at all for any reason, I would at least like to hear this so that I can go about writing about the characters in the Ramayana on some other site. I am sure someone out there (an admin) would be willing to talk to me and help me get my article republished and I would be more than grateful to hear from him/her since Mr./Ms. Secret Account does not deign to respond to my queries in this regard.

Thanks,

Kreedanthi (talk) 00:44, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

  • I am not an admin, but I am very familiar with Ilavida, and it is notable. Don't understand why an admin would delete it [unless he's a racist.] Lex T/C Guest Book 00:51, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
I'm sorry to hear that. From Google I saw Ilavida mentioned in Hindu epic figure glossaries. You could quote these and they will establish the notability of this significant figure. They don't call this a wiki for nothing. One can, sometimes, make wiki mistakes, but you can recreate the article in a wiki (fast) way as well. I don't think, however, this reflects bias. If you need any help with citations when you recreate this article I will help you. Take care. Dr.K. (talk) 00:54, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
Alex, in light of your recent dispute with Secret, that wasn't productive.
I had no idea it was the same user. And I haven't been disputing with him, I have just been discussing the ArbCom Candidacy requirements. And sorry for the comment, I didn't even notice she said Secret, it was a mere coincidence; I shall strike it right away. Lex T/C Guest Book 01:13, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
Kreedanthi, I'll leave a note on Secret's talk page; it's possible they just missed your question. Let's give Secret another chance here before assuming the worst about them. --barneca (talk) 00:58, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
Actually, Secret just replied to Alex's new comment on their talk page. It seems to me from reading Secret's comment that if you recreate the article, more clearly explaining (to non-Hindus) the subject's notability, you should be fine. --barneca (talk) 01:01, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
(ec)Administrators like all other editors are volunteers and work whatever hours they choose. It is very likely that User:Secret has not responded to your queries for the simple reason that he has been away from the computer. His last contribution today was almost an hour BEFORE you left a message on his talk page. Be patient and I'm sure that he will respond to your query and might very well restore your article.
Your article is still visible in a Google cache. It has no references. Without references it is nigh impossible for someone unfamiliar with Hindu epics to understand its notability. I notice that you didn't even mention "Hindu" or "epic" in your article. The best way to ensure that an article is not deleted is to include many verifiable references to reliable sources. Sbowers3 (talk) 01:08, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

I was attempting to recreate the article with all of the relevant information and was in the middle of editing when another admin (JMLK17) speed deleted it. I got an edit conflict message and was told that it had been deleted because the article was not significant enough! I am thoroughly frustrated. It appears that I will keep posting it and it will keep being deleted because there are apparently multiple admins here! —Preceding unsigned comment added by Kreedanthi (talk • contribs) 03:39, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

This appears to have been resolved here. --Bfigura (talk) 03:54, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] editing participation is not beginner friendly; geeks speak only to one another

hey, some of us were born quite awhile ago and did not grow up on computers, rather came to them in a later season when learning new things is more troublesome and slow, yet we do have valid contributions, despite what the youth-centered, computer-savvy generation may think.

i simply wanted to add an editorial oversight; the article on "history of homelessness" carelessly used the abbreviation :SRO's" as if EVERYONE knows what those are. again, a small group talking to itself? overly urban? I am wee-read and into my 6th decade of life, yet i didn't know what it meant. yes, i can link to it an on my slow computer eventually find out it's meaning, but common journalistic and professional writing practise is to define a term or jargon or acronym or abbreviation when introduced for the first time in an article/

in an effort to effect my first wiki edit, i then signed kup, created an account, went to the discussion page, read primers on how to edit, and,12FRICKING pages later, gave up in disgust. at no time did i find and easy-to-locate "edit" or "comment" tab. too complex, you lose a lot of valuable participation and are slamming out less computer-literate people. and i'm not a freak, i'm actually more c-savvy than some of my neighbors. so laughif you want; can you plow with a horse? skid logs with a mule, find remedies in the mountains? do lyou want participation from folk like us? thxMichael combs (talk) 02:33, 21 November 2007 (UTC) (this was near citation 52 in the article)

I guess you are referring to Homelessness in the United States. The article is not protected, so you should have "edit" links to the right of section headings (unless you disabled that at "Editing" in Special:Preferences), and an "edit this page" tab at the top of the page. I have changed [1] "SROs" to link to Single Room Occupancy. PrimeHunter (talk) 03:21, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
Just noticed that the man at the beginning referred to himself as a kid, and then as an elder. And because of the use of words like "GEEK" and "FRICKIN" , and saying "CAN YOU FIND REMEDIES IN THE MOUNTAIN?", I am going to believe that he is indeed a kid. Pure speculation... Lex T/C Guest Book 03:31, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
If you're having trouble, there are plenty of ways to ask for help, and people who are computer-literate will help you out. Next time you need help, simply edit your talk page (easy to find at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Mytalk or http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Michael_combs) and add the text {{helpme}} followed by your question. It's hard to balance easy editing with a powerful wiki platform, but there are always people who are willing to help you out if you have a problem and are polite and friendly like everyone should be. :)
In this case, what you could have done would have been to click the "+" tab at the top of Talk:Homelessness and left a comment saying that the section could be more clear. I've made an edit to carry out your suggestion.
You should probably see a tab at the top of the page saying "edit this page", and each section title should have an "[edit]" link to its right, to be able to edit. To comment, you edit talk pages, by clicking on the "discussion" tab at the top of the page and there either clicking the "edit this page" or "+" link, where the "+" link is for a new topic. If you need any further help, please contact me and I'll help you out as soon as I notice your comment. Nihiltres{t.l} 03:34, 21 November 2007 (UTC) (cross-posted to user's talk page)
(edit conflict) After further searching it appears you were actually referring to Homelessness. That article is semi-protected due to vandalism, so accounts must be 4 days old to edit it and your new account would not have edit links. Nihiltres and I have edited it [2]. It already linked Single Room Occupancy before but the link text only said SRO. PrimeHunter (talk) 03:38, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Deleting a delete nomination message

How do I delete a nomination for deletion once the article has been deleted? Specifically for this page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:1234christi I understand why it was deleted, and now I'd like this message deleted as well. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 209.166.89.188 (talk) 03:31, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

I'm assuming that that's your account - it's generally preferred that messages on talk pages are archived rather than deleted, as they are a record of your interaction with other editors and the project as a whole. However, if you wish to remove messages from your own talk page while logged into that account, you may do so. Nothing in policy says otherwise. Hersfold (t/a/c) 03:45, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Ilavida recreated and deleted AGAIN WHILE I WAS STILL EDITING IT AND ADDING REFERENCES!

I am completely losing my mind here.

As suggested by Dr. K, I recreated the article and was in the process of editing it when ANOTHER admin performed a speed delete. It appears to be that many people are anti-Ilavida!!!!

Dr. K offered to help me with references but if the article keeps getting speed deleted, I see that there IS NO WAY that I can possibly set it up. Is there a way to let ALL the admins know that we're working on it and to please stay off the speed delete button until I'm completely done and Dr. K has reviewed it??????????????

Kreedanthi (talk) 03:34, 21 November 2007 (UTC).

Kreedanthi, please don't see conspiracies everywhere. You are definitely getting treated shabbily, but I am very confident it is not intentional. It's the unfortunate way speedy delete works around here. A large majority of the people here do not know who Ilavida is. I can't see your latest attempt, but your first one was not clear about what it was about. Can I suggest creating the article in your user space, by clicking and editing here: User:Kreedanthi/Ilavida? Then, you and Dr. K can work on the article in peace, without being threatened with deletion. When the article is ready, you can move it into the main article space (I'd be happy to help with that part, if necessary). --barneca (talk) 03:40, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
p.s. If you don't have a copy of your latest article attempt saved somewhere before it was deleted, I'm pretty sure Jmlk would be happy to provide a copy for you in your user space, if you ask. --barneca (talk) 03:42, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
(E/C x2) The deleted content is here, which is a sandbox subpage I have placed on your user talk page. When you are ready to "go live", use the move button at the top of the screen to move it into the mainspace (or if your account isn't at least four days old, ask someone to do it for you here). Cheers.--Fuhghettaboutit (talk) 03:43, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

Sorry, I didn't mean to suggest a conspiracy theory, although for a while there, I was really frustrated. The article is finally back up and I hope it no longer satisfies a speed-delete consideration! Thanks to everyone for helping. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Kreedanthi (talk • contribs) 04:08, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

No, I know you weren't. Glad it worked out; I see you and Jmlk17 solved the problem 1 minute before I wrote that anyway. But (and don't kill the messenger), I'm sorry to say, there is still a problem; there are now two versions. Jmlk17 restored your version for you, and it looks like you're working on it here: Ilavida, but User:Fuhghettaboutit restored it to your user space: User talk:Kreedanthi/subpage/sandbox, and has been helping expand it there! I suggest you guys talk. Since he is the only one adding stuff to your sandbox, I think the easiest thing is for him (not you) to copy/paste his additions to the actual article, so everything is properly attributed. It's never easy, is it? --barneca (talk) 04:19, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
I'd tell her to move the article in mainspace to the one in her subpage. By the rate this is going, I just think another admin will delete it. So, it is better if she works it out in her sandbox. Cheers, Lex T/C Guest Book 04:37, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
Excellent point, I agree with Alex, merge your stuff with Fuhghettaboutit's stuff in your sandbox, then you don't have to worry about another speedy delete battle. --barneca (talk) 04:40, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
Glad this is working out. A few questions. Why was all the wikification I added removed (just curious, it's easy to do again) and please note the re-formatting of the reference. References are not created by superscripting [1], [2], and so on, but rather you place the reference in the body of the article surrounded by tags that look like this: <ref>text</ref> which then populates the reference section. Also, you created Surpanakha‎ when Soorpanaka‎ already exists. I have added merge tags to the two articles. Wikipedia should only have one article on a single subject. Improving the preexisting article is the right way to go.--Fuhghettaboutit (talk) 05:34, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

Hello Fuhghettaboutit,

What wikification? Dr. K added the references and I'm so grateful to him for his help. BTW, I created the recent article Soorpanaka, not realizing that one titled Surpanaka already existed! How do I go about merging the two articles? Thanks

Kreedanthi (talk) 05:39, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

Try improving Surpanakha, and turn Soorpanaka into a Redirect. Lex T/C Guest Book 06:04, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
I went ahead and merged them. I didn't do any of the streamlining I usually do for a topic that isn't so outside my experience.--Fuhghettaboutit (talk) 14:04, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] API to retrieve links and articles from wikipedia

I would to place the search results in wikipedia on my website. Do the system provide such API function? thanks. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 144.214.62.57 (talk) 04:35, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

I think that this request might receive more help on Wikipedia:Village pump (technical). VivioFateFan (Talk, Sandbox) 07:09, 23 November 2007 (UTC)
See http://en.wikipedia.org/w/api.php and mw:API for details: there is an API. It isn't currently available for the search feature because that hasn't been coded, but probably will be within the next few months. --ais523 10:06, 23 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Mangled reference formatting

I've been at WP for quite some time now, but I don't know how to fix this. The article Spanish language's references after about 18 display as a horrible mess, for me at least. Would someone mind fixing it? -Oreo Priest 06:09, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

I think it's been fixed. Looks like there was an unclosed tag somewhere. Does it look okay for you now? GlassCobra 07:45, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Need ideas on recruiting

I need to recruit editors to create and develop lists for the set known as Lists of basic topics (part of Wikipedia's navigation system). There's a wish list at Wikipedia:WikiProject Lists of basic topics.

I've posted notices at WP:CBB, Wikipedia:Requested articles, and Wikipedia:Requests for expansion. I've posted the WikiProject at Wikipedia:List of shortcuts/Project shortcuts and Wikipedia:WikiProject.

What else can I do?

How else can I find editors to join this WikiProject and/or create these lists?

I look forward to your ideas.

The Transhumanist    06:24, 21 November 2007 (UTC)


[edit] Dispute Help - Advice Required

Ref: Administrator Review of and Article

Just wondering, the same user is causing problems again. He has reverted most of the same articles (linked below) again, with the same reasons. What is the best course to take?

Cell Saga Freeza_Saga

There may be more, I do not have enough time to investigate fully. Kennedy (talk) 07:19, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

The help desk isn't the place for dispute resolution or administrative intervention. If it's an editing dispute try dispute resolution, if complex vandalism try the admin's incident noticeboard. Best, --Bfigura (talk) 07:31, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Oldest unchanged edit

How can I find my oldest unchanged edit? In other words, the article which I edited and no-one else has changed after me? —Moondyne 08:43, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

  • Look at "(top)" in your earliest User Contributions pages.--Patrick (talk) 09:19, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
  • If redirects and non-mainspace edits are excluded then it's probably [3]. PrimeHunter (talk) 11:54, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] responding to emailed questions

I am a new user. I edited an entry and received an emailed comment. I can't figure out how to respond to the emailer, who seems to be an official Wikipedia editor.Cpolsgro (talk) 09:42, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

All editors are "official editors". I would suggest that you not respond via email, that you place a note on the editor's talk page, instead, both because this will allow you to discuss Wikipedia issues here, where they should be discussed, but also for your own privacy. The editor's username should be in the email message you received, and so you can simply use that and go to their talk page to reply. Cheers, Ariel♥Gold 09:53, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
If you refer to [4] then an edit to a Wikipedia page is not an email, but is often called a post. Special:Emailuser/Cpolsgro says you have not allowed people to email you. You can reply to Dybryd by clicking the '+' tab at top of User talk:Dybryd. Dybryd posted to you a month ago and may not discover a reply on your own talk page. PrimeHunter (talk) 11:37, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Uploading a file and making it visable when people search on the company?

Hi,

I ahve been through the FAQ, and read through instructions and I can still not work out how to do this.

I have tried to upload a PDF - Imago Company Profile onto Wiki, I think this was successful except it kept asking about copy right, so I tried to fill this in otherwise it gets deleted but not sure if I did this correctly? I was trying to upload my companies profile on Wiki, so when people search on Imago or Imago group plc (our company name) we would come up, but I can't see that we do at all?

Please can you help me with this.

Regards

Dawn Irons —Preceding unsigned comment added by Imago 1991 (talk • contribs) 10:37, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

You have uploaded the PDF file Image:Imago Company Profile .pdf to a place intended for images. Wikipedia does not accept pdf files. An article about Imago Group PLC should be created at Imago Group in wikitext format. But please see Wikipedia:Conflict of interest and Wikipedia:Business FAQ. Don't create a promotional article about your own company. PrimeHunter (talk) 11:26, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] i have lings of eletricity moving on my body

i need help this is not a joke or a crazy person please please help me i have to much eletricty or something in my body my body lets things in to my body such as fuzz hair dirt wood any thing iim around it does it when my body gets hot my body releases thing the stuff it pulls in also things fall off me which appear to be invisible lines when it hits it leaves a black mark moving water mess with me i can put my palms or bottom of my feet toward cold water when my back begins to hurt or my chest gets heavy there are white chalk looking things that get every where when i run the dish washer or vacuum these things bother me teribily and agervate this condition if this line dosent leave a black mark it will usually get back on me or will go into the freezer and leave ink like smears which can and do get back on me if it goes to the freeser it leaves stuff which looks likelittle pices of dirt or little strigs that look like dust i am will to let you work on me or what ever it takes to resolve this problem —Preceding unsigned comment added by Malisa wade (talk • contribs) 11:58, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

While I'm not completely able to understand your question, it appears to be of a medical nature. Wikipedia is not a place to come to for medical advice, I would suggest that you see your family physician. Ariel♥Gold 12:08, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Stub pages

How do I label a stub page? For example, on some pages it says down the bottom "This history (eg)-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it." Is there a shortcut way to label a page with that information? Bugalugs13 (talk) 12:29, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

To label an article as a generic stub, put the {{stub}} template on the bottom of the page. However, the stub might attract more attention if you use an appropriate category stub instead. See Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/Stub types for a list of different stub types. — Ksero (leave me a message, things I've done) 12:47, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] hiv

can hiv live when expost to high temperatures —Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.155.206.129 (talk) 12:57, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

  • HI. I think you might find more in the article on HIV or you could try at the Reference Desk for more help. Cheers. Pedro :  Chat  12:58, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
  • No, though there is debate about it, most virologists don't consider viruses to be alive to begin with. - Mgm|(talk) 18:45, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Daire Brehan / references

I have today created an article for Daire Brehan the Irish broadcaster (wih whom I have worked closely at the BBC over the years). But although I have inserted references/footnotes, they do not appear to be showing on the article page when saved. How is this done? Also the overall heading of the page shows 'Dairie brehan' with the 'b' in lower case when it should be upper case. How can this be amended please? Thanks Peter Griffiths - email: Email removed - this is a heavily trafficked website—Preceding unsigned comment added by Pkgriffiths (talk • contribs) 13:21, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

The problem is that you need to add a template at the bottom of the article for the references to show up: see Help:Footnotes. I've added this for you. --Kateshortforbob 13:39, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
I've also moved the article to Daire Brehan to capitalise the surname, as it appears to be capitalised in the text. --Kateshortforbob 13:51, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] CSS, collapsible tables, resources

I'm attempting to make a two-tier collapsible presentation, and put multiple collapsible templates into a collapsible table (of one column width).
A series of articles will have different related templates, which will go into the collapsible table.
(Or some other collapsible thing that does not require making one-use templates ( as it appears {{navbox}} presumes template use).
I don't have any examples to work with for the collapsible table.
I do see examples at Wikipedia:Collapsible_tables, but I don't know where to go to learn how to manipulate CSS to mimic the colors of a {{navbox}} header, border and colors.
Thanks -- Yellowdesk (talk) 15:34, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

Similar to {{Navigation with collapsible groups}}?↔NMajdan•talk 19:28, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
I'll look it over. Thank you. -- Yellowdesk (talk) 23:25, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] ABSTINENCE is MISSPELLED in description of Alcoholics Anonymous

I just "joined" Wikipedia. When I looked for Alcoholics Anonymous on Google, there as a brief description about AA before you even clicked on and went into the actual Wikipedia article. I haven't reviewed that site in any depth, although I am a self-professed member of AA and have not had a drink for 20 years (we call that abstinence). BUT you should know that in the description of AA that appears when anyone Googles Alcoholics Anonymous, the word abstinence IS MISSPELLED abstinance!

Please make this correction. I don't know how to do it, but anybody who is literate will automatically assume that if they read Wikipedia's description of Alcoholics Anonymous that it's a bunch of drunks who have not only a problem with alcohol but also with spelling, and that's not the impression we want to give. Plus anybody who doesn't know what abstinence means cannot look it up under the WRONG SPELLING.

Thanks.

Memctigue (talk) 15:56, 21 November 2007 (UTC)Memctigue

I just "joined" Wikipedia. I would like to make a minor edit but don't know how, can you instruct me? Thanks. Memctigue (talk) 15:58, 21 November 2007 (UTC)Memctigue

At the top of the page, you will see a bolded edit this page. If you click that, you can change the page. You can also edit specific sections, with the edit text next to the specific section, making it easier to find the exact thing you want to edit. why don't you try it a little at the sandbox. You can try almost anything there. Martijn Hoekstra (talk) 16:01, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
(edit conflict) Go to the Alcoholics Anonymous page and click the "edit this page" tab at the top. Find the part you want to edit, change it, give a description like "spelling" in the edit summary and click "save page". Just out of curiosity though, where is it spelled incorrectly in that article? I didn't see it spelled incorrectly. Leebo T/C 16:02, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
If you search for "Alcoholics Anonymous" on Google [5], the third result is for Wikipedia, and contains a summary with the misspelling: "Article about the AA includes its Twelve Step program, method of complete abstinance, and history". I don't know where that summary comes from? It's not from the article. -- DatRoot 16:18, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
Oh, oh, oh, the Google results. Those are from a database of descriptions that Google gets, they're not related to anything on Wikipedia in any way. I'll try to find the source. Leebo T/C 16:26, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
For info. Because Google cache's versions of web pages (including wikipedia articles) and does not update their cache "on the fly" but only when they re-index the page - which could be a few days or several weeks. Thus an old spelling error now fixed has been caught in the google cache. Try googling "site under construction" and then go to any old site in the index - often they've now been built and you won't see the under construction text, but it's stuck in Googles cache until re-indexing. Pedro :  Chat  16:27, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
I found it, it's http://www.dmoz.org/, the Open Directory Project where these kind of Google descriptions come from. It's not from the article, so it's not a cache issue. Leebo T/C 16:30, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
Which just goes to prove you don't need to be a newbie to find out useful and new stuff at the Helpdesk. Nice one Leebo. Pedro :  Chat  16:35, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] I want to make a fix but it's in a non-edit area

There is a typo in the main description of the article on Alcoholics anonymous. Do you want it fixed or even called to your attention or not (I am just new and already I'm frustrated). I cannot edit this text. Abstinence is misspelled abstinance. HOW CAN I FIX THAT?????????????

Memctigue (talk) 16:54, 21 November 2007 (UTC)Memctigue

Click on the "edit this page" tab on the top of the page. -- Meni Rosenfeld (talk) 16:58, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
This is the same issue as the section above, and the problem was found to be off-Wikipedia. Leebo T/C 16:59, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
Yeah, sorry, I only noticed this after the fact. -- Meni Rosenfeld (talk) 17:01, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
I'll just reiterate for clarity: This misspelling is not related to Wikipedia in any way. It is a problem with google, or more accurately, with the http://www.dmoz.org/ database which Google uses. -- Meni Rosenfeld (talk) 17:06, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
The misspelling is at http://www.dmoz.org/Health/Addictions/Substance_Abuse/Alcoholism/Support_Groups/Alcoholics_Anonymous/ Anybody can suggest a changed description via the "update listing" link at the top of that page (I haven't done it). An ODP editor will review the suggestion but that may take a while. PrimeHunter (talk) 20:33, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] blackberry

do you have a blackberry version of the site? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 206.166.141.151 (talk) 17:24, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

See WP:PDA for information on portable versions of Wikipedia. Hersfold (t/a/c) 17:35, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] home page

How do i make wikipedia my homepage? Hat hat (talk) 17:57, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

That depends on what browser you use. If you use Firefox, go to Wikipedia's main page, click on Tools, then click on "Main" at the top, and under the Home page URL, click "use current page". If you use IE, click on Tools, then click "use current" where it says "Home page". If you use another browser, they should all be fairly similar, with a "Tools" or "Preferences" menu, and a way to configure the URL for your homepage. Hope that helped, Ariel♥Gold 18:02, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
You will have to bookmark it, for Firefix click the bookmarks tab then bookmark this page, following the process. For Internet Explorer, go to favourites then follow the process. Hope this helps! —Qst 18:04, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] i need help

how do you add stuff to a pre existing article. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.253.198.153 (talk) 18:58, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

You can either click the "edit this page" tab at the top of an article, or you can click the [edit] link on the right side of sections. See Wikipedia's manual of style, layout guide, your first article, article development, and how to edit for assistance. Ariel♥Gold 19:00, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] translations

Does Wikipedia have a translation page for words and phrases? Also is there a general translation page for longer transcriptions? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.228.81.96 (talk) 19:49, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

Wikipedia does not provide translations. Google Translate, among others, does. However, if you navigate to the article in the English Wikipedia and click a language on the left side of the page in the "in other languages" box, it will take you to the page on that language's Wikipedia. For example, if I go to the article Botswana and click "Deustch" in the aforementioned box, then it will bring me to the German Wikipedia article. Hope this helps, and happy wiki'ng! NF24(radio me!Editor review) 21:40, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
You might also want to ask the good people at the language reference desk to help. Algebraist 22:43, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
The {{Google translation}} template may be useful. For an example of using this template, see Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2007 October 19#Translate article. Also see the several Editor's index entries under: WP:EIW#Transl. --Teratornis (talk) 01:58, 22 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Copyrights

Can we use documents on Wikipedia for teaching classes? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 134.29.171.188 (talk) 20:21, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

Legally: Yes, as long as you adhere to the license. see WP:COPYRIGHT. Should you use Wikipedia? Thre in much debate about how accurate the information is. I think you should encourage the appropriate use of Wikipedia, but, please read about the pros and cons first. -Arch dude (talk) 21:37, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
I wrote some tips for teachers - can't say how good they are, but the price is right. And see:
--Teratornis (talk) 02:02, 22 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Canvassing?

Is posting on an article's talkpage telling users to !vote "keep" in an AfD discussion considered canvassing? NF24(radio me!Editor review) 21:31, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

It does appear to be canvassing. The talkpage exists to allow discussion of how to revise or improve the article. Exhortations to go to the AFD and keep or delete the article seem inappropriate. There will be a template on the main page of the article informing all readers that it is nominated for deletion, and it is easy for them to click on it and go to the AFD. Arguments in favor of keeping or deleting it belong on the AFD itself, to avoid cluttering the talk page with echoes of everything said in the AFD. Edison (talk) 21:39, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
Okay, then is there something I can do to let participants in the AfD and/or the closing admin know that canvassing has taken place? NF24(radio me!Editor review) 22:30, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
  • Yeah, just post about it with links to evidence in said AFD. I am a little more specific though. It's okay if you make a general post to EVERY editor of an article or in a related project without discriminating between them based on their keep/delete opinions. Canvassing typically refers to calling for a specific outcome. - Mgm|(talk) 22:43, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
That's exactly what's happening here - a user is requesting that other users !vote keep in an AfD. NF24(radio me!Editor review) 01:33, 22 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Disambiguation pages and wikiprojects

I noticed that Emerald City (disambiguation) states it is part of Wikiproject:Oz. However while the Emerald City can refer to the capital of Oz, the disambiguation page is as much about that as it is about Seattle and Toronot (both of which are nickanmed "The Emerald City". So, why is it part of WP:OZ? And if that is correct, shouldn't it also be part of Wikiproject Washington, Ontario, etc.? Smartyllama (talk) 21:42, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

Many articles are within the scope of multiple WikiProjects; it looks like the other projects haven't gotten around to tagging it yet. You can add the tags yourself (go to Wikipedia:WikiProject Seattle and WP:TORONTO to find out how to do this), if you want to. NF24(radio me!Editor review) 21:55, 21 November 2007 (UTC)
Disambiguation pages are usually not considered part of a wikiproject (except of Wikipedia:WikiProject Disambiguation), but if a project want to tag a talk page then that's OK. However, I have removed the Oz portal link from the page itself. Portal links are not intended for disambiguation pages and most entries are not to Oz articles. PrimeHunter (talk) 23:19, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Right justify

How can I right justify the top row of my header template at User:TonyTheTiger/Header_template?--TonyTheTiger (t/c/bio/WP:LOTD) 22:29, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

What's wrong with changing <div align=center> to <div align=right>? Algebraist 22:40, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Not so random articles?

I love the Wikipedia Special:Random function and use it as my homepage. However due to the enormous scope of wikipedia I often get hits from subjects I have absolutely no interest in. Is there a url query string I can pass to Wikipedia to restrict the random search to a particular category? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.38.92.156 (talk) 23:31, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

I don't think so. But you could use SuggestBot. I've never used it, so I couldn't tell you if it is a good tool or not, but the idea sounds good. - Rjd0060 (talk) 00:23, 22 November 2007 (UTC)
I find SuggestBot useful if I need articles to edit. The only con is that it takes a while to deliver your results. NF24(radio me!Editor review) 02:02, 22 November 2007 (UTC)
Wikipedia:Categorization#Large categories recommends that individual categories that grow to contain large numbers of articles need to be divided into subcategories. To the extent that Wikipedia has done this, selecting a random page from a single category would probably get stale fairly quickly, because a single category should not contain an enormous number of articles. So even if you could do this easily, the result might not be very satisfying. To get more articles to select from, you might need to specify multiple categories, or a category and all its subcategories. Searching the Wikipedia Help desk archive for: "random article" category finds some questions similar to yours, but no magic bullet that I can see. If Wikipedia was running the DynamicPageList extension, you would have a lot more options, but Wikipedia is not. --Teratornis (talk) 02:29, 22 November 2007 (UTC)


I have a tool that randomly gets a page out of a category or set of subcategories, and places that in a userbox type page, if anyones intrested I can re-start that. βcommand 03:36, 25 November 2007 (UTC)
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