Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2007 September 26

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[edit] September 26

[edit] User Page Info Boxes

I am attempting to create my user page. How do you put those side bar boxes on (EX: This person is from Pennsylvania...This person is a Green Bay Packers fan, etc)

"bluestar301"

See Wikipedia:Userboxes. PrimeHunter 01:33, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] HELP AGAIN.

Fred_Thompson_presidential_campaign,_2008#_ref-Forbes20070905_0

THANK YOU.--Mostargue 02:26, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

Ah, I think I see the issue. In order to create a reference, in this case called an inline citation, type the text <ref>Name of reference</ref>, which I believe should solve your problem. Cheers, ARkY // ¡HaBLaR! 02:30, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
The issue may have been that these were "ref name=" tags to references that had been cut from earlier in the article. I went back to September 9th and found the references to cut and paste at the two broken "ref name" tags. --Moonriddengirl 02:35, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Category Page counter - does one exist

Is there currently a automated tool that can be used to count the number of pages in a specific category? The manual method of counting the number to pages using the next 200 link is very tedious when the page count exceeds 5,000 Dbiel (Talk) 02:42, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

If there is a way, it's probably listed under WP:EIW#Cat. For example, maybe User:PockBot can do what you want. It seems to list all pages in a category, but I don't see that it gives a total count. However, I have not tried running it. --Teratornis 06:46, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
Currently it does not count the pages, but it might be possible to modify it to do so. Thanks for the reference. Dbiel (Talk) 20:08, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] ...

I'm making my last improvements on my userpage. On the bottom of the page, there are two collapable bars which, when opened, reveals my other userboxes. The problem is that some of the userboxes don't have their rightful images on them, nor there is a link to the image (for example: compare {{User Vietnamese}} to how it is on my userpage). Is these a way to fix this, or is it just like that? It can be edited HERE. Oh, and by the way, could you reply to this on my talk page? MITB LS 02:51, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

I looked at both your userpage and the template, and it looks fine, I can't see anything wrong with it. — Timotab Timothy (not Tim dagnabbit!) 00:50, 27 September 2007 (UTC)
Really? I can only see JPEG/JPG images on my userpage, but I can't see the other types of images (SVG, etc.) (I can't see it on my computer. I am currently on a computer at a public library, and I still can't see it!). Could it be some technical glitch or something? If not, is there something to fix it so I can also see SVG images? (again, I can't see the SVG images when the userbox tools are opened at the bottom of my userpage). MITB LS 23:34, 27 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] a question was posted and mentioned i write musicals

can't find the actual question and some information that i write musicals when i get on wikipedka —Preceding unsigned comment added by Lhsamet (talk • contribs) 04:46, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

This Google search of the Help desk finds the following question:
Is that what you mean? You can keep track of links like that by adding them to your user page. If you don't understand that, someone can add it for you. --Teratornis 06:39, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Primus Telecom

To Whom it may concern

I refer to a recently added addition to an edit (21 September) regarding the operations of Primus Telecom in Australia. The edit claims inter alia that Primus has closed down its business sales division.

This claim is completely false. For verification, please see our website www.primustel.com.au and you will see the 'Business Solutions' section.

Far be it for us to speculate as to the motivation behind such a posting however one could not discount the possibility of a disgruntled former employee or indeed a competitor.

We request you immediately delete this section from the Primus Telecom section.

Yours sincerely

Rowan Lee Public Affairs Manager Primus Telecom <email removed for your security> —Preceding unsigned comment added by 210.50.6.166 (talk) 05:06, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

The information has already been removed - unless I'm missing it. Thanks. Hersfold (t/a/c) 05:40, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
Just so you know, Wikipedia is an encyclopedia that anyone can edit. Next time you see a problem, whether it be on your company's article or any other, why not be bold and fix it? GlassCobra 17:14, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
Actually, following the precepts of WP:COI, it would be best if you indicated on the article's Talk page that you want to make an edit. Corvus cornix 20:29, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Image reversion

I discovered that an image that I had previously uploaded, John Henry.jpg, had been overwritten with another image. In an attempt to fix this I used the revert button (I also re-imported the overwriting image as 20070926061700!John Henry.jpg, adjusted the links and left a note on the original importer's talk page asking them to provide a copyright). The revert causes the correct image to appear on the linked pages. However, the overwriting image still appears on the image page itself. I wanted to ask if there is a way to get the correct image to appear on the image page, or in order to accomplish that, should I re-import the original image as a new version? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rtrace (talk • contribs) 07:33, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

Bypass your cache. Don't worry about it, I used to make that mistake all the time. The image is correct now (though a renaming to avoid ambiguity might be in order). --Pekaje 08:10, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
Thanks very much --Rtrace 11:35, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Wikipedia URL for mobile telephones

What is the preferred URL for using the Wikipedia (English) search engine from a mobile telephone with internet connection? 89.139.86.59 08:40, 26 September 2007 (UTC)DavidShu

See Wikipedia:WAP access. utcursch | talk 08:59, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
Of those, if you've got a Java-equipped phone (most newer ones are), I recommend downloading the free Opera Mini application (it's a very small program) and using that, as it is really good. Wapedia is second choice, you can access that with your normal phone browser by pointing it at wapedia.mobi. Neil ム 12:14, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
There's also the 'official' URL http://en.wap.wikipedia.org for WAP access (you may need to change the http:// to something else to access it from a mobile phone). --ais523 13:27, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] adding your own profile

how do you add your own profile? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Leon.k.yates (talk • contribs) 09:35, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

Hi And welcome. If you mean editing your user page, just click the "edit this page" button at Leon.k.yates. Please remember though that wikipedia is not MySpace. If you mean you want to add an encyclopedia article about yourself that's different and a real minefield. Can you calrify if that is what you'd like to do? Pedro :  Chat  09:53, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

thank you....no i do not want to write one about myself. just about anything in general —Preceding unsigned comment added by Leon.k.yates (talk • contribs) 12:03, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

If you want to create a new article, follow this advice:
Before creating an article, please search Wikipedia first to make sure that an article does not already exist on the subject. Please also review a few of our relevant policies and guidelines which all articles should comport with. As Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, articles must not contain original research, must be written from a neutral point of view, should cite to reliable sources which verify their content and must not contain unsourced, negative content about living people.
Articles must also demonstrate the notability of the subject. Please see our subject specific guidelines for people, bands and musicians, companies and organizations and web content and note that if you are closely associated with the subject, our conflict of interest guideline strongly recommends against you creating the article.
If you still think an article is appropriate, see Help:Starting a new page. You might also look at Wikipedia:Your first article and Wikipedia:How to write a great article for guidance, and please consider taking a tour through the Wikipedia:Tutorial so that you know how to properly format the article before creation. Confusing Manifestation 13:27, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] How Do I Disupute Neutrality?

Some weeks ago I added some concerns about the article on the TV Show Ugly Betty.

Much of the article is not NPOV. My detailed concerns are top of the list on the talk page of the article.

Since then nothing has happened. How do I formally dispute neutrality of the page?

Dagenham dave 11:42, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

You can put the following template at the top of the article: Template:NPOV. To display it on the article, use the curly brackets, like so: {{npov}}. I think people may have missed your message because latest comments typically go at the bottom of talk pages, so people are used to looking at the bottom of talk pages - you may want to move it. Neil ム 12:01, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] my preferences/skin

hi, can you help me??, i accidentally changed my skin preference and i want it back to the default. everytime i click on the default and save....nothing happens and i'm still stuck with the page and layout i don't want. can you advise me?? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Spd7002 (talk • contribs) 12:11, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

You need to bypass your cache. I don't know what kind of web browser you are using, but clear your temp internet files, hold down alt and click refresh, hold down ctrl and click refresh, hold down shift and click refresh (it does say "Mozilla: hold down Shift while clicking Reload (or press Ctrl-Shift-R), Safari: press Cmd-Opt-E, Internet Explorer: press Ctrl-F5, Opera/Konqueror: press F5."). One of those will do it. Neil ム 12:31, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
I have Internet Explorer 7.0. There are some skins (at least Cologne Blue but not all) I cannot change away from by clicking "Save" with the mouse. It works if I activate "Save" by pressing Enter (when Save is blue). If Save is not blue then press Tab or Shift+Tab until it becomes blue. I don't know what causes this problem but I would like to hear whether it's the same for you. If it isn't just me then it should be reported somewhere. PrimeHunter 14:21, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Author of book published in another country

I would like to write an article about a photographer that had 6 books published in Greece. The books are all bilingual: English and Greek. Now, as far as I know the books are available only in Greece a part from one that is available in amazon.com. She had some 10 solo exhibitions, all but one in Greece. I don't want to waste my (and the editor's) time to write an article that doesn't respond to the wiki standards (and will be deleted). The info on Wikipedia:Notability (people) do not make any difference on the Countries of publication of books. Thanks. --Dia^ 12:17, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

  • That is because the country of origin for the author or the books don't matter. Think along the lines of: who did the photographer photograph, did they win any awards? how well did the books sell? Those are the kind of things that help establish notability. If you want to work on the article in peace without deletion looming over its existence, write it on a subpage of your userspace first - for example: User:Dia^/Photographer. After that you can ask veteran users or people from a relevant WikiProject to take a look at it and suggest improvements. - Mgm|(talk) 12:40, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
    • Think along the lines of: who did the photographer photograph, did they win any awards? how well did the books sell? Those are the kind of things that help establish notability. Oh really? "Who did the photographer photograph?" may answer the question of notability in the eyes of the editors of Hello! magazine, but this is an encyclopedia. And it doesn't matter how well the books sold. But the winning of awards is notable. -- Hoary 23:27, 2 October 2007 (UTC)
  • Make sure that you provide detailed descriptions of the books, with titles in Greek as well as in English (if they have English titles at all). If you translate the titles into English, make it clear that these are nonce translations and not actual titles. Definitely provide ISBNs. Provide independent evidence for the claim that there was any solo exhibition or similar. Here is inspiration for you. (NB he's referred to by his personal name not in order to be chummy but because this is the Icelandic style.) -- Hoary 23:27, 2 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] fax modem

what is fax modem? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.177.207.67 (talk) 12:48, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

(double post removed) Did you look at fax modem? Neil ム 12:50, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
"Fax modem" is the name for several objects collecting dust on my shelves, having been obsoleted by the cable modem. If you would like to have a fax modem of your own, it's yours for the cost of shipping. --Teratornis 14:21, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
Our Fax article does not make this clear. A "Fax modem" is a modem that can be connected to a computer to allow the computer running suitable software to act as a Fax machine. Essentially all modern modem cards have this capability, and almost all consumer PCs still ship with modem cards. Before the early 1990's, many less cheaper modems did not have Fax capability, so the term was used to distinguish a modem capable of running a Fax protocol from a modem that cannot run a Fax protocol. With a fax modem (or any modern modem) and appropriate software, you can send and receive Fax images directly to disk files and not bother with paper unless you need it. -Arch dude 16:54, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
I changed fax modem to a disambig page directing the user to either modem or fax, depending on what it is they are truly interested in. Redirecting to fax assumes the person isn't interested in the modem. -- kainaw™ 17:05, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Suburban art

I'm at a loss! I submitted an article recently titled Suburban Art. It was deleted almost imediately. I had submitted an article about six months earlier called Suburban Primitive Art which had also been deleted. Here is my issue, the new article has little to do with the first and yet I highly doubt if it was even read. I have tried to contact the edititor but have heard no response. To cofuse me even more the new deletion dosen't even show up. instead it just says that the first article was resubmitted and deleted. HELP! Mopsybun —Preceding unsigned comment added by Mopsybun (talk • contribs) 14:25, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

I think your main problem is the fact that the article read like an opinion piece or essay rather than an encyclopedia article. It contained no references and did not establish that “suburban art” is regarded as a unique genre through the use of reliable sources. I’m not sure it should have been speedy deleted with criterion A7, but it was not deleted as a repost. Leebo T/C 14:31, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
I've restored it and moved it to User:Mopsybun/Suburban art, if anyone is interested in commenting on its status at the time of deletion. Leebo T/C 14:36, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Creating Wikipedia entry for school

I'm the Technology Director for a private school in Baltimore. Our school currently has no entry on Wikipedia. I'd like to do a project with out students to create a wikipedia entry for our school and link to notable alumni. I just want to make sure that we are following the rules. I don't want the kids to do all of this work only to have the page deleted. The page would be created for informational and educational, not marketing, purposes. Please advise. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rcsravens (talk • contribs) 14:53, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

That would be difficult, considering your students might have trouble following the neutral point of view policy when writing about their school, but it's possible I suppose. Firstly, you'll need to keep in mind that all information needs to be cited with reliable sources. Please review Wikipedia's policies and guidelines for more information. One of the most common reasons for articles to be deleeted early on is when they don't establish notability, but reliable sources would establish that. Leebo T/C 15:03, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
You might want to create the page as a "sandbox" in your userspace, for example User:Rcsravens/Jimbo Wales School for the Notable. Then, when you think the article is in a reasonable shape, you can move it to article space. If you want, you can find other editors (me, for example) to take a look at it first to let you know if it's likely to survive. Confusing Manifestation 23:18, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Help editing a picture

I'd like to clean the background of Image:Wisteria_sinensis_anatomia_en.png, which appears on the article Fabaceae, but I don't have the technical skills. I suppose this is a fairly easy task, is there a place here or in the Commons to put a kind request? Aelwyn 15:30, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

You could try the Commons:Help desk page on Commons. It looks like it probably just needs some photoshopping or a tweak to the contrast, but I'm not really skilled in that area. --h2g2bob (talk) 17:27, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Help editing article header Magnetic Resonance Imaging and the like

This article header requires capitalization, and I have been unable to find any resource describing how to edit the header. I need to edit several pages of acronyms that have mistakenly been expanded without proper capitalization, and I need to find the policy on the method. Please assist. Please leave a message on my Talk Page with links or explanations. Thanks ! Promodulus 16:30, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

There are a couple of replies on your talk page. Long story short: See Help:Moving a page. However, in this case, since one of the articles already exists, moving becomes more complicated because a copy-and-paste move does not preserve article history as is required under GFDL, so you have to go to Wikipedia:Requested moves. x42bn6 Talk Mess 16:38, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Webpage has expired

Suddenly, after years of updating Wikipedia without problem, I get "Webpage has expired" whenever I return to a page I have updated. I have unticked "Do not save encrypted pages to disc" in Advanced Internet options. One clue, I have moved to MS Vista. Can you advise please? Thanks Graham Bould GrahamBould 16:52, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

Correct me if I'm wrong, but are you clicking "Back" to return to the page? If you are, what you are doing is causing your browser to try and load the info from the edit screen again, which it can't do because it doesn't necessarily keep the content you've added. You need to click on an article link or something, because clicking "Back" when you are sending or loading unique data usually causes problems. Leebo T/C 18:45, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
Thanks Leebo. I think I have discovered the real culprit. In IE7, under Tools, Internet Options, Browsing history, Settings, I had "Check for newer versions of stored pages" = "Automatically" (this was the default). After changing this to "Never" the problem seems to have diappeared, & I can use the Back button without problems. Cheers GrahamBould 09:11, 27 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Who is this?

Image:Blantencypaastfold.jpg
¿?

Does anyone know who this man is? Thanks --Doorp 18:33, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

This is a page for questions about Wikipedia. You should ask questions like this in either WP:RD/E or WP:RD/H. -- kainaw™ 18:40, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Automatic translation into Spanish of material written in English

I consider myself a good translator into Spanish of texts originally written in English, but I am a poor user of computer techniques, so I beg you to inform me about the simplest steps I can take to translate into Spanish some articles, for example NET PROMOTER SCORE that is the last I have read in Wikipedia to-day. Thank you beforehand.

Rafael Aparicio Martin Bilbao, Spain. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 88.16.59.237 (talk) 18:50, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

I usually use Google language tools for machine translation, but there are others as well. Just be aware that machine translation is very crude and often misses key contextual clues. Don't forget to check also the "in other languages" section, to see if someone has written an article for the same topic on the Spanish Wikipedia. Leebo T/C 18:53, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Need help with article marked for deletion

I was browsing Wikipedia when I found MC Groovz Dance Craze. I'm currently trying to make it notable enough so it doesn't get deleted; so far I've added sources for the Lawsuit paragraph and I plan to look into several review websites to get enough information on the game so the article becomes readable at least. My question is mostly in regards to the References part; I added sources, but I don't know how to get them to show up down there. Am I doing something wrong? Or is that part affected by the deletion notice? Sorry, I'm not that good at adding articles and whatnot. Thanks! Kitsune Sniper / David Silva 19:11, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

Hi. :) When you add references to an article that hasn't had them, you have to give Wikipedia the notice where to unfold them. This is done under the ==References== section by adding <references/> or, as I did, {{references}}. Help:Footnotes is a pretty basic guideline on that. More information is available at Wikipedia:Footnotes. --Moonriddengirl 19:15, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
Ah, thanks! I tried adding that references tag to the page but it didn't do a thing. I've added a bit more information to the page now, and will hopefully be done by tomorrow. Thanks again! Kitsune Sniper / David Silva 20:46, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] editing pages

just a qucik message i think someone has been editing pages for a laugh see link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sasuke_Uchiha —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.192.11.222 (talk) 20:29, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

Thanks for bringing this to our attention. The vandalism should be completly gone(if there's some left feel free to revert/delete it yourself). AngelOfSadness talk 20:32, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
Nope, he did it again. I reverted it, though. Can someone IP ban this guy? Kitsune Sniper / David Silva 20:50, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] How do I report administrators behaving incompetently at my expense?

Since first entering Wiki in January of this year, I have dealt with five administrators (acting in their capacity as administrators; I may well have dealt with others as simply fellow editors and never knew they were administrators), and only one of them did not demonstrate a lapse of competency in their postings to me. That one, incidentally, was interceding in an exchange between myself and one of the others, as he/she was repeatedly failing utterly to support his/her position, and the interceder did make a solid case for it, which I promptly accepted, and thanked him/her for explaining the other's ruling on a request I made. On another occasion, my posted refutation of a civility warning (and defense-in-advance of a posting to the same thread that I was in the process of proofreading when said warning went up on my talk page) must have been accepted as there was no further word from that administrator. (THESE should work against theorizing that I am a jerk unable to see my own misbehavior). If you want the details on all four incidents, ask, as stating on one's own volition that a specifically identified person has done something wrong seems to be a violation of the civility rules, no matter how guilty they are---unless you are an administrator, of course. I strongly request that some means of reporting such behavior be instituted. That a person filing such a complaint must be somehow disadvantaged by the alleged misbehavior to be allowed to file would be a perfectly sensible rule. Thank you. Ted Watson 21:18, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

I would suggest that WP:ANI is your first stop - make your post, short and to the point. --Fredrick day 21:21, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

And where possible provide diff links to any evidence - or failing that, normal links, so you aren't accused of making empty claims. Confusing Manifestation 23:13, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

About the links: Absolutely. I definitely left the implication of that as too much of one. My mistake, and my apologies. On the other hand, the troubles I refer to deal with their behavior toward me, rather than editing of my contributions; these things have been much stronger than either statement for which I received my two "Civility Warnings" (two completely separate incidents, the second being the thing about which I really want to complain). So diff links aren't really an option (not that I gave you any way to know that, of course; I deliberately tried to be non-specific above because of the civility rules, and because this is not the place to file the complaint itself). Links from Talk pages, of what I said, what they said, what was under discussion in the first place would be relevant. But yes, links that I did understand I should do but failed to make that clear. And thanks for the help (I know, I know, it's what you're here for). Ted Watson 20:47, 28 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Embed a web page within a wikipedia page

How do I embed a web page within a wikipedia page? What tag do I use? I stumbled across a wikipedia page a few weeks ago which had a window/box that displayed an external web page in it. I would like to use this capability, but unfortunately I cannot find it now and I have been unsuccessful finding anything in the Help. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 198.95.226.224 (talk) 21:19, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

I'm not sure if this is possible. Most likely, you probably saw a screenshot of a web page that was uploaded as an image and placed on the page. Happy editing, ARkY // ¡HaBLaR! 21:31, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
Was it like this :
. If so, then it was a screenshot I'm afraid. Woodym555 21:34, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
I think the user just means putting a URL into text. Just place one bracket around the URL, with a space afterwards and a description of the link. For example, [http://www.google.com Google] becomes Google. You can also skip the link description; placing a URL in single brackets (ie. [http://www.google.com]) will create this: [1]. Happy editing! GlassCobra 21:37, 26 September 2007 (UTC) Ah, no they don't. I didn't read closely enough. My bad. GlassCobra 21:38, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] please help

Dear Friend(s),

Help. My page was deleted and I am unsure how to contact the admin who deleted it.

17:32, 19 September 2007 MastCell (Talk | contribs) deleted "Andrew Lorand" ‎ (Expired PROD, concern was: this article is only self promotion of a non-public person)

My page has been up for a long time. It was listed under American Farmers and Anthroposophists categories. I am not a non-public person, but rather a published author, a former professor, a pioneer in various areas of agriculture (ecological agriculture) such as CSA (community supported agriculture) and biodynamics in the US and in Europe, with a long history of public talks and I have held public positions such as being the Director of the North American Biodynamic Association's Training Program, having been its Associate Director, having been a professor at two universities, having been a member of the Board of Directors of several non-profits and so on. Articles and scientific works of mine have received public awards and have served as background for other works. Recently a long interview with me was published in a major European Wine and Food magazine by the name of Falstaff. See www.falstaff.at. I do not consider the page self promotion, but rather stricktly informational. I found the wiki article to be short and to the point. I would like to see it restored. Thanks for any help you can give me. Sorry I was unable to figure out how to write the admin directly.

Andrew Lorand, Ph.D.

To start, I would recommend against posting your email address here and have removed it. If you would like to discuss a deletion that MastCell completed with that administrator, I suggest contacting them here. For guidelines on deletion policy, specifically on seeing something restored, please read deletion review and, perhaps deletion as well. I am not familiar with your page, but I would caution you to read up on what Wikipedia is not. Into The Fray T/C 22:17, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
As an afterthought, please also review the notability guidelines for biographies, neutral point of view, the conflict of interest guidelines and the guidelines on autobiographical articles. Cheers, Into The Fray T/C 22:20, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Is there a way to make multi-level numbered lists?

Is there a way to make multi-level numbered lists; i.e. with the number from the level up included in the next level:

1. Topic one
   1.1 Subtopic one
   1.2 Subtopic two
   1.3 Subtopic three
2. Topic two
   2.1 Subtopic one
   2.2 Subtopic two
3. Topic three
   3.1 Subtopic one

I know that by using the hash # and double hash ## I can get lists, but I was wondering if there's a way to carry the upper level number down.

Thanks very much! --Alangentile 22:07, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

See User:Into The Fray/cheatsheet for an example that I stole.  :) I don't think that you can get the markup to generate levels labeled 3.1, though, but I might be wrong. Into The Fray T/C 22:09, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
Thanks, Fray. Yeah, I got the autonumbering, but I was looking for that complex one "3.1, 3.2, 3.3, etc". I've looked around everywhere and nobody seems to have any tricks... Thanks for the suggestion, though! --Alangentile 22:56, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
(I hope you don't mind that I indented the main topic headings in your example list so the whole thing would format the way you probably wanted to show it.) In general, the way to get maximum control over ordered list numbering in MediaWiki is to use HTML lists rather than wikitext lists. With HTML lists you can use CSS to do some interesting things. I Googled around a bit and found a Web page which describes some CSS that might work:
The CSS we would need to insert, somehow, would be:
OL { counter-reset: item }
LI { display: block }
LI:before { content: counters(item, "."); counter-increment: item }
The CSS looks straightforward, but the question is how to cram that into some wikitext inline. I tried shoving it into a <span> tag below, but that does not work:
  1. Topic one
    1. Subtopic one
    2. Subtopic two
    3. Subtopic three
  2. Topic two
    1. Subtopic one
    2. Subtopic two
  3. Topic three
    1. Subtopic one
I don't know how to make this work. Maybe someone who knows more about CSS can chime in, either telling us how to do it, or telling us that it can't be done. Also note that something seems to be wrong with nested list items, which do not appear in the same order on the rendered page as they do in HTML. I recall seeing this problem before. --Teratornis 03:33, 27 September 2007 (UTC)
It might be possible to use that CSS if you can define it as a style class. But only administrators can add a new style class to Wikipedia (specifically, to MediaWiki:Common.css). --Teratornis 03:45, 27 September 2007 (UTC)

Thanks, Teratornis, for the help. I tried this on a test wiki, inserting the css into the main css page (for learning purposes, I have access to both the main and common css pages, but not on Wikipedia itself). The css worked well, creating the nested numbered lists, except that all bullets then became numbered as well (a problem especially on the side menus). Any ideas for an overwrite that can be used in the css to exclude bulleted lists? Thanks again for your help. --Alangentile 23:49, 3 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Forgotten my user name password

How do I get my username and password? My e-mail is the same as when I registered. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.255.107.164 (talk) 23:38, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

If you have given your email address to your account (for example when you registered) and you remember a page you have edited while logged in, then you can try looking for your username in the page history and then request a new password by email for the username. You can also just create a new account and write down username and password this time. PrimeHunter 00:10, 27 September 2007 (UTC)