User talk:Hersfold/Archive 10 (October 2007)

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This page contains discussions dated during the month of October 2007 from User talk:Hersfold. Please direct all current discussions there. Thank you.

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Thanks

Thanks, Hersfold. The Wikipedist 05:42, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Sure! Like I said, feel free to drop by anytime if you need some pointers. :-) Hersfold (t/a/c) 13:54, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
How do you make a userpage? The Wikipedist 22:06, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
It's more or less the same as an article, only you get to make it look nicer. WP:USER has some guidelines on what to include, and The Transhumanist's envy-inducing Userpage design center has plenty of ideas for formatting and design. If you'd like, I could try to work with you to design one. Hersfold (t/a/c) 01:13, 5 October 2007 (UTC)

Re: User talk:Janbur

I know, that you were doing the right thing, but please read Janbur's reaction on your move (on the userpage again). This guy is so confused. First his articles disappear and then even the text of his userpage. So I tried to explain him the general rule and tried to explain him, why he should not be able to do on his userpage, whatever he likes, but other users may do so. All I could see was an announcement, that you moved the request, but I could not find it on the talkpage. Perhaps next time, you should move first and then write your answer. I did not expect this any more. I am sorry to have done you wrong and will explain this on Janbur's talkpage too.--Thw1309 14:36, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

The RickK Anti-Vandalism Barnstar

The RickK Anti-Vandalism Barnstar
I'm awarding you this RickK Anti-Vandalism Barnstar for your great contributions to protecting and reverting attacks of vandalism on Wikipedia. Wikidudeman (talk) 18:19, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Thanks very much! :-) See you on patrol! Hersfold (t/a/c) 18:20, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Jack Wilson (jazz pianist)

Hi. Is there any chance of withdrawing the AfD nomination for this guy? I admit I'd never heard of him before today, but it appears he meets the notability requirements by a country mile: signed to two major labels, and recorded with some of the biggest names in jazz over the years. The "blog post" provided by another user in the discussion is actually his bio from AllMusicGuide, the site being that of Verve Records. He died just last week and the article was created by Eric Reed (musician), a notable jazz pianist himself. It needs tidying up and sourcing but it's a great start compared to some of the music stubs on here. I can't see it going anywhere other than a unanimous keep — can we end the AfD early as a sign of good faith to the article creator? Thanks. Thomjakobsen 03:09, 9 October 2007 (UTC)

Ok, I hadn't realized that the blog post was a mirror of something useful. It looks like there's definitely some interest in cleaning up the article, which was the other main issue I mentioned. The British guy was screwing up my searching as well, which is probably why I didn't think there was anything to find. Thanks for pointing this out - I will close the nomination in just a moment and inform the author of the change. Hersfold (t/a/c) 03:18, 9 October 2007 (UTC)
Thanks a lot! I'm hoping to put some work into the article and I'd hate the original author to get discouraged by talk of deletion. It's great that we can avoid any further red tape, some people get rather too attached to their nominations and will follow them to the bitter end, so thanks again for assuming good faith on this one. Thomjakobsen 03:29, 9 October 2007 (UTC)

Very nice touch

I saw your note to User talk:Xyz7890 on their new article Luach.com. I thought it a nice welcome and appropriately AFG, particularly with regards to use of the "under construction" template. I might swipe your kind words for my future use because it was wa-a-ay kinder than I was going to be. But then, I had just done a brief Google and only come up with around 600 hits which mostly didn't seem very good as sources for the article. Anyway, just wanted to say good work. Pigman 05:41, 9 October 2007 (UTC)

Note to self

User:Dillio411 wants you to work on his user page. Hersfold (t/a/c) 15:06, 9 October 2007 (UTC)

Adminship

Hello, have you ever considered nominating yourself for adminship? RyanLupin (talk/contribs) 20:26, 9 October 2007 (UTC)

I have twice, and both attempts have failed. It seems every time I go for it, I royally screw something up which makes everyone think I'm not ready for it. Since my last RfA was just a little over a month ago, I'll probably wait a while longer before trying again, or letting anyone nominate me for it. Hersfold (t/a/c) 21:38, 9 October 2007 (UTC)
Well, I rarely check out the RfA as I think the process of nomination and selection is somewhat intimidating but if you are nominated, please let me now and I will definitely voice my positive support RyanLupin (talk/contribs) 21:40, 9 October 2007 (UTC)
Thanks very much. :-) I will certainly try to remember. Hersfold (t/a/c) 21:44, 9 October 2007 (UTC)

Expletives / Swear Words

To: User Talk:Hersfold

From: User talk:Joseph A. Spadaro

Re: My "Help Me" Request on Expletives and Swear Words

{{helpme}} Is it appropriate to use swear words / expletives in a Wiki article and/or in a Wiki chat/message/post? Thanks. (Joseph A. Spadaro 04:24, 10 October 2007 (UTC))

No. In fact, people have been blocked for cussing in the past. What you can do, is abbreviate the expletives like bc, but it is NOT RECOMMENDED on articles; in fact, it has been considered vandalism. You know what, what's even better is that you don't use cuss words at all. The only place you can use them is the Sandbox. Thank you. User:Goodshoped35110s/Welcome Signature 05:12, 10 October 2007 (UTC)
I'd like more people to weigh in, if possible. The above answer does not seem quite right to me. I am pretty sure that I have seen many swear words in Wiki articles ... no? For clarification -- I am referring to using the words in an appropriate manner -- as opposed to using them in the form of an expletive -- (if that made sense). In other words, is it an appropriate use to ask something like, "What is the etymological origin of the four-letter word F--K?" That is the usage I am referring to. Not saying something like, "Wow, it's pretty f--king hot in Texas in July." But -- what my question is getting at -- is it OK to use the real word (type in all four letters) and not just the f, k, and a bunch of dashes? (Joseph A. Spadaro 05:30, 10 October 2007 (UTC))
It really depends on the context. On an article such as African Elephant, an expletive has no place in the article and would be considered vandalism. I know many of the anti-vandal bots target edits with obscenities. One of ClueBot's case labels is "minor edit with obscenities". However, Wikipedia is not censored, of course, and so certain offensive words may be included if in a proper context. According to Wikipedia:Profanity, which I did not know existed until just now when I looked at WP:NOT, "Words and images that would be considered offensive, profane, or obscene by typical Wikipedia readers should be used if and only if their omission would cause the article to be less informative, relevant, or accurate, and no equally suitable alternatives are available." If the word would be used, it should not be censored (such as f*** or similar), nor should a disclaimer be used to warn against the content. Such is covered here. Swear words should not be used in general discussions, as it serves little purpose and would probably be part of a personal attack. The above answer is largely correct - however, there are certain contexts in which they are appropriate, as explained in that page linked above. Hersfold (t/a/c) 05:46, 10 October 2007 (UTC)
Hi. Thanks for your reply to my Help Me request the other day. Would you do me a favor? Take a look at the following link: User:Joseph A. Spadaro/Sandbox/Page25. This is a question that I would like to ask on the Wikipedia Help Desk / Reference Desk for Language at: Wikipedia:Reference desk/Language. Do you see any problems or this is just fine? Please let me know. Thanks. Please reply at my Talk Page: User talk:Joseph A. Spadaro. Thank you. (Joseph A. Spadaro 17:42, 10 October 2007 (UTC))
That looks fine to me. In that situation, there's really no way you can avoid writing things the way you did without confusing the heck out of the RD staff. This certainly sounds like an interesting paper you're writing, however - if I made the correct assumption based on what you're asking. Hersfold (t/a/c) 18:55, 10 October 2007 (UTC)
Thanks for your input. (Joseph A. Spadaro 02:05, 16 October 2007 (UTC))

Re:Help

Thanks for that :) --WriterListener 20:47, 11 October 2007 (UTC)

Quite welcome, glad to be of service. :-) Hersfold (t/a/c) 20:48, 11 October 2007 (UTC)

Rhys McInerney

I removed the speedy tag from this page as it now asserts some notability, but I agree that it should still probably go - it reads like a vanity bio for someone who was briefly on TV once. I'll AfD shortly if the creator doesn't back it up with references which actually mention the subject. Iain99Balderdash and piffle 07:24, 12 October 2007 (UTC)

Ok, thanks, I'll chime in on the discussion. Hersfold (t/a/c) 16:00, 12 October 2007 (UTC)

Re:Category messages

Awesome! I've been waiting for someone to help me start this thing. I guess we should make a new page for this first, so others can join in. Should it be Wikipedia:Category page templates or Wikipedia:Category message boxes? Something else? About the design itself, I don't want to go ambox, because I like how each namespace has a different style for templates, however, maybe we can work in some aspects of the ambox. Once we create the project's page, I'll post examples of current category templates, and we'll go from there. Rocket000 04:52, 13 October 2007 (UTC)

I'd go with Wikipedia:Category message boxes, simply because they're largely going to serve the same purpose as the article message boxes, with information about the content rather than directions for discussion of the content. I'll go ahead and make a skeleton version of the page based on what's at the article message box page.
As for design, we probably won't need the stackable feature of the ambox, since there's usually only one template message per category. The main issue will be color coding and making them all fit a similar design. Hersfold (t/a/c) 05:17, 13 October 2007 (UTC)
Sounds good. I'm rounding up all the different style types currently being used. I'll keep a look out for the page. Rocket000 05:24, 13 October 2007 (UTC)

Re: User:1967 Summer of Love

Thanks very much for keeping tabs, however the changes I recently made to the aformentioned User page, were indeed intended, as that also is one of my pages. Thanks again. Taye 05:03, 13 October 2007 (UTC)

Ack! I'm sorry! Ok, in that case I do apologize. I've edited your old user page to an automatic redirect, which is usually the standard practice. The less links people have to click, the better. Hersfold (t/a/c) 05:17, 13 October 2007 (UTC)
Not a problem.Taye 23:45, 13 October 2007 (UTC)


Re: Image:Herbert Dreilich Wikipedia.jpg

Thank you for your very quick response to my uploaded photo, which I had copied from the German-language entry with the same title as mine. In trying to understand how to place it into my entry, I discovered the original was in the Wikimedia Commons, with full permissions for use given there. I was able to place that original version into my entry ("Herbert Dreilich"). Please delete the one I uploaded if you are able. I tried to figure out how to do that but have not yet gotten there. With best regards, —Preceding unsigned comment added by Sonja Strom (talk • contribs) 05:09, 13 October 2007 (UTC)

+

Thanks again for your second message. Yes, we are on the same page... : - ) OK, now I know better what to do, and in the future will look for that symbol. Sonja Strom 05:14, 13 October 2007 (UTC)

I've already tagged it for deletion - an administrator will come by shortly to deal with it. Don't worry about it too much. If you're interested, I think you'd be a good candidate for the Adopt-a-User program - it's a tutoring program designed for new users to work with an experienced editor until they learn the ropes. It works really well. I'd take you on myself, but I've already got an adoptee and don't have much spare time anyway. In any case, see you around the wiki! Hersfold (t/a/c) 05:17, 13 October 2007 (UTC)


That sounds like a good idea. For my next project I will do that. This is the first entry I started myself. Sonja Strom 05:27, 13 October 2007 (UTC)

Errors in Tables & Charts

To: User talk:Hersfold

From: User talk:Joseph A. Spadaro

Re: Template Limits

Can anyone please help me with the following error? I can't figure out how the error arises and, thus, how to correct the error. Any insight is appreciated. Thanks. This is an error that I am repeatedly and consistently getting. I am trying to take two different charts/tables and to "cut and paste" / combine them together into one of my sand box pages, so that I can work on them together. The first chart is located on this page: List of Best Actor winners by age at win. The second chart is located on this page: List of Best Actress winners by age at win. When I "cut and paste" the two charts together onto the same sand box page, this is what consistently happens: see User:Joseph A. Spadaro/Sandbox/Page22. As you see, some type of error occurs in the second chart at Positions # 36 and below. I have tried this several times, and the same error always seems to occur at around the same position ( # 36 or so and below ) of the second chart. Does anyone have any idea why this is happening ... and how to fix it? Thanks. (Joseph A. Spadaro 01:29, 16 October 2007 (UTC))

I think I know, and there really isn't anything you can do about it. In order to prevent the servers from crashing in on themselves, there is a set limit as to how many templates you can place on a single page. On your sandbox, you're calling the template {{age in years and days}} 160 times. The template, when called, also calls the templates #ifexpr: (eight times), #expr: (four times), {{age}} (two times), and {{age_in_days}} (two times). As a result, every time you call the template {{age in years and days}}, you're calling (1 + 8 + 4 + 2 + 2 =) 17 templates. The main template has a bunch of other content as well, and each of the sub templates has a load of content, and when all of this adds up to your page, the software can't handle it all, so gives up after a certain point. In this case, entry #36 in the second table. This page gives more detail about how it works and why, but I'm quite sure that's the problem. And the only way you can really fix it is to split things back up - which is what you were trying to avoid in the first place. Sorry. Hersfold (t/a/c) 02:38, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
Thanks for the insight. So, are you basically saying that there is nothing at all that I can do (to get what I want)? That is, my list can include 80 actors on the same page ... but it cannot include 160 actors on the same page? Am I understanding that correctly? I imagine that there must be other lists on Wikipedia that have more than 80 (or so) items with templates in it -- no? Furthermore -- assuming that there is nothing that I can do -- is there something that anyone else can do? In other words, are there computer programmers / wiki admin's / etc. that can expand these limits ... and resolve this problem ... or it's just all set in wiki stone and that's that? Thanks. Please reply at my Talk Page -----> User talk:Joseph A. Spadaro. (Joseph A. Spadaro 03:52, 16 October 2007 (UTC))
Uh, yeah. Basically. You can try to trim down the content of the page (perhaps remove the # column), which should help some. Substituting templates will also help, but will make the page less readable. The main thing is that when all of those templates get transcluded on the page, it gets REALLY HUGE and too large for the system to display all at once without causing a security risk, server crash, or both. You can try asking at the Tech Pump for more suggestions, but I'm really afraid there's not much that can be done. Sorry. Hersfold (t/a/c) 04:48, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
Thanks a lot for your insight and for helping to spot the problem. I would have never figured that out on my own. Thanks again. I will check over at the Village Pump, as you suggested, and see if there is any fix that can be implemented. Thank you. (Joseph A. Spadaro 19:45, 21 October 2007 (UTC))

Thank you for your help at the helpdesk

Sebastian has smiled at you! Smiles promote WikiLove and hopefully this one has made your day better. Spread the WikiLove by smiling at someone else, whether it be someone you have had disagreements with in the past or a good friend. Cheers, and happy editing!
Smile at others by adding {{subst:Smile}} to their talk page with a friendly message.

It was nice meeting you again! — Sebastian 06:56, 16 October 2007 (UTC)

I'd wondered where you'd gotten off to. Hello again, and you're welcome! Hersfold (t/a/c) 13:29, 16 October 2007 (UTC)

Do Or Not

Do you believe or not in superstition? Please leave an answer on my talk page. Pokemon Buffy Titan 10:58, 16 October 2007 (UTC)

~*Hums the Waltz*~

Shall we dance? LOL. We're bumping into each other over at WP:AFC. I didn't know you were still working on it until I just got an EC, so sorry if I borked anything for you! Ariel♥Gold 20:20, 16 October 2007 (UTC)

Oh, I'm sorry! I got one edit conflict, but I didn't realize I was messing up yours. I managed to fix the one EC, though, so no worries (on my part). I'm done there for now, so you *should* be ok.... Hersfold (t/a/c) 20:22, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
Only one? Wow! Did you check the history? I mean, we were editing exactly at the same time multiple times, and neither of us got an edit conflict! We must be in tune! (Hence perhaps why our dance is so pretty? lol) That's pretty amazing, when you think about it. But I'm done fiddling around there too! Hee hee. Ariel♥Gold 20:24, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
That is rather astounding. We probably backed up the server, making edits so fast. Oh well. Hersfold (t/a/c) 20:30, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
Hee hee, maybe we can consider it a "stress test" for how fast the server can handle change? LOL. Ariel♥Gold 20:36, 16 October 2007 (UTC)

Thanks

HELPDESK SAYS YOU HELPED ME.....THANK YOU, I'M NEW TO WIKIPEDIA..ADU65

You're quite welcome. Let me know if you ever need help with anything help. Hersfold (t/a/c) 21:32, 16 October 2007 (UTC)

Thanks

Just a quick thank you for the quick revert to the vandalism on my userpage. Giles Bennett (Talk, Contribs) 20:47, 18 October 2007 (UTC)

You're welcome, of course. Apparently you must have done something to really annoy that guy - nice work! Hersfold (t/a/c) 20:49, 18 October 2007 (UTC)
Erm, I think I must have reverted his (pretty rude) vandalism to User:The sunder king‎, then given him a vand4im warning. Nothing he didn't deserve, I guess! Giles Bennett (Talk, Contribs) 07:50, 19 October 2007 (UTC)

Umm...

I'm creating a new Wiki Project to work alongside the CVU and I want its page to look nice. I was hoping you'd tell me of a few userpages you admire. Please respond on my talk page. Thank you, --Gp75motorsports 12:32, 19 October 2007 (UTC), Wikipedia Users' Alliance

User:AzaToth's got a pretty good one. User:The Transhumanist of course is widely recognized as the userpage expert, but you probably already know that. My adoptee, User:Audacitor has a pretty good one as well. Hope this helps some. Hersfold (t/a/c) 16:25, 19 October 2007 (UTC)

Thanks, that helps a lot. I appreciate it. Best,--Gp75motorsports 16:33, 19 October 2007 (UTC)

Sure, glad to help. Hersfold (t/a/c) 16:33, 19 October 2007 (UTC)

Thanks!

I appreciate your offer to help! but I am concerned about a guy who is putting weird things on my page ( I was actually warned by a co-worker about this dude!) any advice? I hear he is a weirdo.

Peace, love and Wikipedia for all!


Claraparks 22:37, 20 October 2007 (UTC)

Sure, glad to help. I'm not quite sure what you mean by weird things... I noticed you received a rather severe warning, but I can't really tell what for. You may want to ask the editor what it was for - maybe it'll help clear things up. Happy editing. Hersfold (t/a/c) 01:52, 21 October 2007 (UTC)
If you want the background info on what's up (and you have a few spare minutes) you can read about it here. Precious Roy 02:16, 21 October 2007 (UTC)
Ah. Well that would rather explain a bit. Thanks. Hersfold (t/a/c) 03:04, 21 October 2007 (UTC)

Never mind

I think I figured out the character box thing. I didn't realize that adding what I was adding didn't auto-generate information. Thanks for the response. Otto4711 18:31, 22 October 2007 (UTC)

Ok, glad you got it working. Let me know if you still need help. :-) Hersfold (t/a/c) 18:41, 22 October 2007 (UTC)

Camp Pioneer

I contested the prod because I felt it was a bad faith nom (which incident I reported at ANI) and knew our crack team of WP:ORE WikiGnomes would be able to bring it up to snuff. Thanks for the heads up though. Katr67 19:26, 22 October 2007 (UTC)

Ok, thanks. I've tossed in my two cents at the ANI discussion as well. Hersfold (t/a/c) 19:40, 22 October 2007 (UTC)

Thanks for your recent help...

Brett, thank you for your recent responses to my help requests. I think that as long as the user page for my second account continues to stay in Wikipedia and redirects to my original account's page, I will be happy. --Lance E Sloan 19:45, 24 October 2007 (UTC)

You're quite welcome. This sort of thing happens to a lot of people, actually, and I don't think we've had many problems with it. Let me know if you ever need any further assistance, I'll be more than happy to lend a hand. :-) Happy editing! Hersfold (t/a/c) 21:21, 24 October 2007 (UTC)

ka-nigit & Grammar Nazi

I have one question: what is a ka-nigit? And what da**** is a Grammar Nazi?! I do hope it's harmless.--Fecchi 19:52, 24 October 2007 (UTC)

He he he. "Ka-nigit" is a reference to Monty Python and the Holy Grail - I'm assuming you've never seen the movie, but in one scene King Arthur is called a "silly ka-nigit (knight)" (among other insults) by a rather rude French guard. As for a Grammar Nazi, it is completely harmless, it just means I'm a bit of a stickler when it comes to proper grammar at times. If it's at all offensive, please let me know, and I'll take it down. Hersfold (t/a/c) 21:29, 24 October 2007 (UTC)

bot

Didn't mean to scare ya. I tried ten other names and all were taken. You can monitor me if you'd like, I probably won't edit much. --Mudbot —Preceding unsigned comment added by Mudbot (talk • contribs) 07:01, 25 October 2007 (UTC)

SSP case

CHeck out the update I made. — Rlevse • Talk • 11:44, 26 October 2007 (UTC)

Thanks, I've replied. Hersfold (t/a/c) 20:04, 26 October 2007 (UTC)