User talk:Mattbr/Archive 2

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Welcome to Mattbr's Talk Page Archive 2! April 2007 – This is an archive of past discussions. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on my current talk page.

Archives: March 2006 – March 2007 • April 2007 –

This is a Wikipedia user talk page. This is not an encyclopedia article or the talk page for an encyclopedia article. If you find this page on any site other than Wikipedia, you are viewing a mirror site. Be aware that the page may be outdated and that the user to whom this talk page belongs to may have no personal affiliation with any site other than Wikipedia itself. The original talk page is located at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Mattbr/Archive_2.

[edit] Article on Krishnamurthy Perumal

Hi Matt, This is concerning the article on My Krishnamurthy Perumal. I've added a couple of references for this article, as it has been tagged as unreferenced. The references are to official Government of India and Government of Tamilnadu website. I've also included a reference to a reliable website on Indian hockey (BharatiyaHockey.com). I hope this is sufficient to remove the tag on this article. If not, please let me know if more references are necessary.

I am new to Wikipedia, so kindly bear with me. Regards, Ganesh —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Ganeshkrish18 (talk • contribs) 18:51, 4 April 2007 (UTC).

Hi Ganeshkrish18, the first two references you have included are good for the verification of the specific facts in the article, but it would be good if another reference or two could be provided that cover more information in the article, such as birth information. These references may also help you to expand the article further. Have you had a look at other articles of similar people, as there may be references on those that might be able to provide some information. I would be tempted to leave the referencing tag on until additional references are found, after which it can be removed. Plus this might help to find someone who may have a reference that would be of use. You might also find Wikipedia:Citing sources of use. Hope that helps, mattbr 22:17, 4 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Signature

Hi there! I noticed you replied to a question at the help desk and signed it and I noticed that your signature was displaying the colour codes instead of the actual output effect (if you get what I mean!), I thought It would be the best thing to tell you so you can sort it out, I'd be hapy to help with this, should this be necessary.Tellyaddict 11:19, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

Hi Tellyaddict, I'm not sure what you mean. My raw signature code is '[[User:Mattbr|matt]][[User talk:Mattbr|br]]' and has no colour information in it. I think you have me confused with someone else! mattbr 11:26, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

Its just I saw it after you kindly answered a new users question at the help desk and it was just displaying the code as you have written above, maybe it was just me? Thanks - Tellyaddict 11:30, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

Can't see a problem, and it's not happened before. Maybe it is? mattbr 11:36, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] I wont stop

I wont stop editing Contra (series). I will keep going in favor of all the information I've put up here just so they can be deleted. If you want me to stop, assure me that my information (which is true, by the way) will not be deleted.

Do you understand? It will keep going until I get justice. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 69.156.9.43 (talk • contribs) 15:55, 8 April 2007 (UTC).

Continuation of your current editing will result in you being blocked and/or the page being protected from editing, so I suggest you stop. Other editors must feel that the information you are adding is not suitable or relevant for the article and are removing it and should tell you why in the edit summary. I suggest you leave a message on their talk page or leave a message on the article talk page about your additions and they should tell you why the information is being removed and what is needed to leave it in the article. You might also want to read Wikipedia:Policies and guidelines and Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not which might inform you further. mattbr 16:13, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Is that so?

Well let me just tell you what I added to the article so someone will know. The discussion page is always ignored. All I did was add more information by adding more ports that exist for Contra. There are quite a few ports that I added that some people removed, claiming they don't exist. Well, if they researched it, they'd find it. It's not like I need to source everything I write. It's easily findable. Next, I included a section that informed people about the pirate-type NES Contra games made and they deleted that. I don't know what's wrong with that section. It isn't wrong and many other game articles, like Mega Man, have information on pirate versions. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 69.156.9.43 (talk • contribs) 16:57, 8 April 2007 (UTC).

If there are reliable sources for the material you are adding, then I suggest that you add them when you add the content to provide evidence, and then the material won't be deleted because there is no source or because it can't be proved (although it could be for another reason). You say the evidence is easily findable, but others may not be able to find it and it is up to you to back up your additions. mattbr 18:56, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Contra Series Test

Watch: I'm going to make a section regarding the special unique pirate versions and we'll see how long it can last without being entirely removed. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 69.156.11.108 (talk • contribs) 01:04, 9 April 2007 (UTC).

[edit] Will you look at that?

You happy now? I just added a section regarding the pirate games of Contra with sources, and it gets deleted in less than an hour. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 65.94.149.111 (talk • contribs) 14:34, 9 April 2007 (UTC).

From what I can see, the information you added to Contra (series)#Pirate Versions is still in the article since its addition. Please also sign you post to talk pages with ~~~~. Thanks, mattbr 13:54, 9 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] DEFAULTSORT

Hi Flatterworld, I have noticed you have been adding the DEFAULTSORT template to articles recently. Just to let you know that this feature is a magic word and not a template, and the correct construction is {{DEFAULTSORT:Sortkey}} rather than {{DEFAULTSORT|Sortkey}}, using ":" instead of "|". The template was created to prevent confusion and shouldn't be used if possible. Thanks, mattbr 11:14, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

Thanks! :-) I think I've fixed them all now, but is there some way I can find out for sure? I want to avoid possible cut-and-paste errors down the line. Flatterworld 17:02, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

You could check Special:Whatlinkshere/Template:DEFAULTSORT and see if you have edited any of the articles. This list is a lot shorter than it was so it should be relatively easy! Thanks, mattbr 19:02, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] more DEFAULTSORT

I went ahead and fixed the rest of the ones I could figure out, but I'm confused about the bot ones at the bottom. Flatterworld 20:08, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

Thanks, you didn't have to fix them all! I have nowiki'd the bot logs and left a note on the plugin page to ask for them to be nowiki 'd in future. Thanks again, mattbr 22:12, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Are you happy now?????

You're happy now? Less than 2 days and then it's reverted! If you don't want me to vandalize it, then assure me that my work is not removed! How many times do I have to tell you it?!!

Vandalising will not achieve anything apart from getting yourself blocked and/or the page protected from editing, so I strongly advise you to not do so. I suggest you make your entry more encyclopaedic, emphasising the importance of the points you are making in relation to the article and its history. The editor who removed the content says it 'serves no purpose', so I suggest you make it serve a purpose by making it more encyclopaedic rather than just describing the versions. You should also provide links to reliable sources, as this makes it much easier to verify the information you have written, and it is up to you to provide references, not for others to find them. You should read Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not and Wikipedia:What is a good article? which may be of help to you. mattbr 15:37, 10 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Re: Edit summaries

In response to your message about always using edit summaries when I edit, -- you're right, I should. I sometimes don't know what to put but understand the need to do so – I'll try and make it a habit when editing. Thanks for helping keep Wikipedia a better place for us all. --J. Atkins (talk) 16:08, 11 April 2007 (UTC)

Just explain what you have done to the page so others can see easily what you have done. It makes it much easier to find who's done what and when they did it in the page history rather than viewing every diff! Doesn't have to be long, just enough to describe what you have done. Happy editing, mattbr 16:22, 11 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] {DEFAULTSORT}

Hi Schmiteye, I have noticed you have been adding the DEFAULTSORT template to articles recently. Just to let you know that this feature is a magic word and not a template, and the correct construction is {{DEFAULTSORT:Sortkey}} rather than {{DEFAULTSORT|Sortkey}}, using ":" instead of "|". The template was created to prevent confusion and shouldn't be used if possible. Thanks, mattbr 11:16, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

Hey! Thanks for the info on DEFAULTSORT. I don't quite understand the use of ":" rather than "|".

I HAVE noticed that many people are doing odd things with the cats when using {DEFAULTSORT}. For some reason people are doing things like: [Category:1953 births|1953 births] and so the sorting falls under "1" rather than using the {defaultsort} ordering. Any idea why anyone would do such a thing? It always seems to occur when someone uses {defaultsort}. Schmiteye 18:38, 14 April 2007 (UTC)

The functionality that sets the default sort key is a MediaWiki feature and is built into the software, rather than into a template. It is a magic word, like {{PAGENAME}}, and they use ':' rather than '|' when something can be defined, as using '|' will call a template. Because magic words are not as widely understood as templates, when it was first introduced not so long ago people were using '|' because the magic word is constructed almost identically to a template, and people were getting a red link trying to call a template that didn't exist. Template:DEFAULTSORT was created so people didn't see the red link and get confused, and the template just calls the magic word. There's more on this and why the template shouldn't be used on Template talk:DEFAULTSORT.

Regarding the sorting you have been seeing, I don't know why people would sort like that, especially for a birth category; it might just be someone who is not familiar with the syntax for including categories and confusing it for that used for links. Some categories are sorted differently, but that is rare and would be consistent across most of the pages in the category, and in this case, I think it would be safe to change it. Hope that helps, mattbr 21:52, 14 April 2007 (UTC)

Yes, that helps quite a bit. I went back to try to clean up after myself and I see it already has been done. Thanks again! Happy Trails! Schmiteye 00:54, 15 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Accusations of vandalism

From User talk:88.106.169.214 I am quite concerned. I can see that the following edit: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Massively_multiplayer_online_game&diff=next&oldid=110857922

was made by user:88.106.169.214, but it was not me. I was under the impression that I had a unique IP address from my ISP; clearly this is not the case. I notice that other edits that I have made from the same location (not logged in) bear the IP Address 88.106.214.198.

Any idea what I sould do and if/how I should pursue this. I am quite clear that the vandalism edit did not come from my computer, as I am the only one on these premises, hence the IP addess must be common from my ISP.

Concernedly User:TonyFleet-88.106.169.214 08:08, 5 May 2007 (UTC)

Hi Tony, sorry for the late reply but I have been on a wikibreak. I would think each ISP does things differently so you are best trying to contact them to find out what the situation is regarding this, hopefully they should be able to tell you more. The editors at Wikipedia:Reference desk/Computing might also be able to help you further. Hope that helps, mattbr 11:51, 11 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] adminship

Hi. Thanks for tagging all those talk pages. Of course, it would all be simpler if you had the delete button yourself. Ever thought of applying for adminshpip? Pascal.Tesson 14:50, 14 June 2007 (UTC)

Hi Pascal, you're welcome, and having the button would be useful for the looooong list I have, and to prevent clogging up CSD! Adminship is something that has crossed my mind before, but I haven't felt confident enough that I would pass to nominate myself. Do you think it would be a good idea to run? mattbr 15:11, 14 June 2007 (UTC)

To be honest, I don't know if you would pass because I'm not sure I know much about you. But on the surface you look like a good candidate. If you're interested, I'll go over your contributions (later though) and if I'm happy with it all, I'll gladly nominate you. Cheers, Pascal.Tesson 15:24, 14 June 2007 (UTC)

I would be interested, thank you. There's no rush as I have just got back from a two-month wikibreak and I'm just getting back into it, so it might be best to hold off for a little bit if you feel I would be a good candidate. Thanks again, mattbr 15:38, 14 June 2007 (UTC)'

Ok, so the above is the standard template. No rush for you to complete the nomination, just take the time to answer the optional questions and perhaps say a few words about yourself. When you're ready you can simply transclude the page at WP:RFA so that the fun can begin. Note that if you don't intend to do this right away, you should let me know so that I can update the edit stats on the talk page. Cheers, Pascal.Tesson 20:49, 14 June 2007 (UTC)

Ok, just remember to update the edit count before transcluding the nomination. Oh and for the next two weeks, please behave! :-) Pascal.Tesson 20:07, 15 June 2007 (UTC)

Darn... You caught me offguard! Nominator is 14th on the list of supports, I hope that's not a record. Best of luck with the whole thing and if you run into a bunch of oppose votes, remember to breathe in and breathe out. I've got no reason to think this will happen but RfA is a strange beast and can be pretty frustrating if you worry too much about it. In any case, 14/0/0 is a pretty good start so knock on wood. Cheers, Pascal.Tesson 04:05, 27 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Question

Just to let you know, I asked two questions in your RFA. Another user also asked you one. Black Harry (Highlights|Contribs) 00:55, 27 June 2007 (UTC)

I think that "another user" is an understatement at this point. Shall we move your RfA to Wikipedia:Wikipedia policy examinations/Mattbr? ;) Gracenotes^T § 17:11, 27 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Notability of Loppies Reply to mattbr

OK. I was thinking of the supporters as multiple - but the object of their obsession is, I accept, singular. Looked at that way, what you say is logical. Thanks for deleting it.

Academe 07:57, 29 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Help please

I inserted a British Asian actor on Preeya Kalidas. And signed the change - and my username's ended up in her imdb external link.

I can't see how it's happened in the edit panel - there's no trace of tildes in her link text.

As you've got a much better idea of what you're up to than do I, could you find the time to repair it please? Oh yes, and could you let me know how to fix it, please?

Academe 07:57, 29 June 2007 (UTC)

Hi Academe, when you type the four tildes and press save, they are automatically changed into a link to your userpage and the date and time you pressed the save button, so the tildes don't appear when you try to edit again, but your username and a timestamp do. You just need to find that and delete it like I have done here. Hope that helps explain, and just a reminder that signatures aren't placed in articles but your contributions are recorded in the article history. Cheers, mattbr 10:38, 29 June 2007 (UTC)

Many thanks.

I was a bit paranoid about my username appearing, especially when I get into main obsession - economics of the ex-Soviet Union and countries dominated by the USSR - as I have used the academe username at RIA Novosti, the Kremlin Montsame news, Ulaanbataar...and so on to gather info to produce a quarterly academic review on media freedom, journalists' murders and the re-Stalinization of the Russian economy...and so on.

You can see why, with with that sort of obsession, I feel the need to mess around with things dramatic and reality telly etc. to almost keep me sane.

I'm afraid the Loppies was really doodle to stave off the horror of who killed Litvinenko?, Who killed Politkovskaya?, Who killed Safronov?...and so on. I ought to have doodled in Word and kept it on my network/deleted it.

--Academe 17:52, 29 June 2007 (UTC)

That's OK. If you want to try things out on-wiki you can use the Wikipedia:Sandbox or you can create a subpage in your userspace, such as User:Academe/Sandbox, where material will not appear in the encyclopaedia. Also remember that your username will appear in the history of articles you edit and all your edits are recorded in your contributions, so please don't sign your contributions to articles. Thanks, mattbr 22:52, 29 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Abbreviations

Is there's a list of accepted abbreviations in entries to follow wikistyle - eg $10 million, $10m (which the FT, Guardian, BBC et al use) or $10 mn (correct, says the ISO)? Please?

Wikientries use all three forms.

Similarly is Prof Hugh Jolly (ex-StMary's, W2) really Prof. Jolly. And is David Tennant Dr Who or Dr. Who?

I used to be a journo before getting kind of academic and I'm used to having a set style to work to - for example, I worked on a provincial daily for a while where Hong Kong was Hongkong (like the bank ending in SBC). And the Mirror until about 2000 had Regent Street written thuswise: Regent-street (v. 19th Century)

Your help or your ppointing me in the right direction would ve appreciated. Academe 17:40, 6 July 2007 (UTC)

Kind of yes and no. The best place to find out these things is the Wikipedia:Manual of style, but here's my take. Probably the best thing is to not abbreviate if you can as this is an encyclopaedia and a few extra characters won't harm anyone and it leaves no room for ambiguity. For example use $10 million, Professor Jolly and Doctor Who (notice the article is at the full title). For other (real) doctors I would use 'Dr.'. You will find that different editors will have different styles, so you are best sticking to the style already used in the article (see Wikipedia:Manual of Style#National varieties of English). Hope that helps, mattbr 18:08, 6 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] SV Dynamo

Have many thanks for editing the Sportvereinigung Dynamo article. Thanks also for saving this article! --Kay Körner 20:21, 29 June 2007 (UTC)

		The Running Man Barnstar
		For fair support Kay Körner 20:28, 29 June 2007 (UTC)

Thanks and you're welcome, but my contribution to the article was very small and not really barnstar-worthy, but thank you anyway. mattbr 23:01, 29 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Kindness Barnstar

		The Random Acts of Kindness Barnstar
		Thankyou very much for reverting the vandalism on my userpage. Much appreciated.  :-) Lradrama 11:38, 2 July 2007 (UTC)

Thanks for the barnstar, they're blocked now to leave us to tackle someone else! mattbr 11:43, 2 July 2007 (UTC)

You're welcome. Happy editing! Lradrama 11:43, 2 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Template:British Odin class submarine

Thanks for putting me right on that. I can cut and paste code but I have no idea what it's really doing.... I was quite pleased with myself for having got as far as I did! Kim Dent-Brown ^{(Talk to me)} 14:42, 2 July 2007 (UTC)

You're welcome. Usually templates that have parameters, such as {{tnavbar-collapsible}}, describe on the page or on the talk page what you need to do to get it to work correctly. For more on templates in general, see Help:Template. Happy editing, mattbr 14:50, 2 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Rationale

Done. Hi I have created the Template:Filmrationale for use on film posters and limited screenshots. If you see film images without a rationale which are being used appropriately please add the tag youself. I hope it helps. If you see an image of a deceased actor without a rationale please add Template:Filmbiorationale . Thankyou ♦ Sir Blofeld ♦ ^{"Expecting you" Contribs} 19:06, 2 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Edits to Victoria Cross

Hi your recent edit [1] to Victoria Cross changed Warrent to Warrant even though this was a direct quote from a 150 year old source. In those days a form of old English was used. As such should it still be changed even though it is a direct quote. I would have thought it should be a verbatim quotation. I am inclined to revert Warrant back to Warrent or add (sic) if needed. Woodym555 17:26, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

Sorry about that, I hadn't realised it was a quote. I have reverted those changes and wrapped the text in {{lang|ang}} (which defines the HTML language as Old English) and will stop AWB wanting to make that change to that text in the future. Thanks, mattbr 17:41, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

Thankyou for your quick and productive response. I will use that template for the other direct quotes in the article. Thanks again Woodym555 17:43, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Thanks!!

Thanks for adding to my sub-article on List of Star Wars clone trooper commanders!!!! Clonetroop125 20:54, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

You're welcome. mattbr 21:02, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Your RfA

I am pleased to let you know that, consensus reached, you are now an Administrator. You should find the following forums useful:

Congradulations on becoming an admin! Jreferee ^(Talk) 17:43, 4 July 2007 (UTC)

• Administrators' reading list
• Administrators' how-to guide
• Administrators' Noticeboard

• Administrators' Noticeboard for Incidents
• Administrators' Noticeboard for Three-revert rule violations

Congratulations on your promotion and the best of luck with your new charge! Redux 22:44, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

Congratulations for that flawless RfA. My second nominee is also doing fantastically well so maybe I should do this more often! Anyways, now that you're an admin, it's time I let you in in the little secret that admins keep for themselves: adminship is a complete bore and isn't a great way to make new friends. Pascal.Tesson 23:00, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

• Congrats on your adminship,man!!! Clonetroop125 23:10, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

Congratulations! J-stan ^Talk 01:35, 4 July 2007 (UTC)

A belated congrats. Welcome to the ranks! Xiner (talk) 17:47, 7 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] You're welcome!

You're welcome for the support! As for mine, thanks for the good luck! :) Acalamari 16:37, 4 July 2007 (UTC)

Of course buddy, congrats! Now, get back to work!!! :) Jmlk17 20:28, 4 July 2007 (UTC)

you must allow the mark hayward page back HES IN A BAND AND THERE LOCALLY BIG

[edit] Userbox re-design

This user likes Winnie-the-Pooh.

I am trying to re-design this userbox to not use fair-use images, could you help me?  Tcrow777  talk  22:09, 5 July 2007 (UTC)

Sure. I have removed the fair use image and replaced it with some text instead for now. If you would like to use an image of some variety, I suggest you search the images at Wikimedia Commons, all of which can be used here on the English Wikipedia. When you find a file you like, just include it in the same way you would with an image uploaded here. You could also use any image here that has a free licence. You may also find Wikipedia:Userboxes of use if you want to change some other things. Hope that helps and let me know if you have any more questions, mattbr 07:38, 6 July 2007 (UTC)

Is there not a free image of Pooh somewhere? I need a free image that in on Commons.  Tcrow777  talk  22:23, 6 July 2007 (UTC)

Category:Winnie The Pooh is the category on Commons, would one of those be OK? Or there is Image:Pooh.jpg which is used on Winnie-the-Pooh and licenced under the GFDL? Otherwise you could try Mayflower to search the rest of Commons, but I don't think you'll find anything else. mattbr 08:55, 8 July 2007 (UTC)

Thank you!  Tcrow777  talk  00:57, 14 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Thanks re: abbreviations

Thank for your help on abbreviations. It’s still woollier than I feel comfortable with – you could find Dr. Crippen on one entry and find Dr Crippen on another – Crippen is a better example than Who, which is a TV show and, as far as I know, the Doctor’s been spelled out in full in its titles since William Hartnell first hurtled through time and space.

Oh, yes, I see you jst made adminship. Can't do pix, but verbal congrats anyway.

--Academe 08:39, 9 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Cobra

Cobra (UK English), (COBRA, US English) stands for Cabinet Office Briefing Room A and the emergencies committee that meets there — correctly, the Civil Contingencies Committee, set up under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004. But, if you look up ‘cobra’ (lc or CAPS) in the Wikipedia you get a snake. To get the real answer, you have to key in ‘Cabinet Office Briefing Rooms’.(NB No mention of A)

(Now, a question or, rather, three)

• Should a reference work assume (slightly inaccurate) prior knowledge of something before explaining what the abbreviation for it means?
• If I wanted to do a COBRA (UK committee) entry, should I, please?
• How does one disambiguate, please?

--Academe 08:39, 9 July 2007 (UTC)

Thanks, Help:Images and other uploaded files will help you with pics when you need them.

Regarding Cobra/COBRA, the former should take you to the snake article, and the latter should take you to Cobra (disambiguation) where there is a link to Cabinet Office Briefing Rooms. There is also a link to the disambiguation page at the top of the Cobra article, so you can still find the page. To answer your questions, I'm not sure I fully understand the first, could you explain further? The second, you should probably expand Cabinet Office Briefing Rooms or Civil Contingencies Committee depending on what information you are adding, and finally, Wikipedia:Disambiguation should cover that. Hope that helps, mattbr 17:14, 9 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] The page I created

I just wanted to put a factual page about the j.o. collins company on Wikipedia. It didn't have advertisements, and you can remove the link to the official website. I was just curious why that isn't allowed. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Patrickgolden (talk • contribs) 19:45, 9 July 2007 (UTC)

Unfortunately, the way the article was worded made it sound like an advertisement for the company to promote it, and as this is an encyclopaedia with a neutral point of view, advertisements are deleted. The company also fails to meet our notability guidelines, specifically those for companies, as it did not indicate how or why the subject is notable: that is, why an article about that subject should be included in an encyclopaedia. I hope that explains. Regards, mattbr 20:01, 9 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Question 1: Part the 2nd

If the question was: 'Should a reference work assume prior knowledge of something before explaining what the abbreviation for it means?., what I meant was that should I want to know what Cobra/COBRA is, you'd have to know what it was an acronym for for before you could find it in the wikipedia - when I tried I had to key in 'Cabinet Office Briefing Room' to avoid getting a snake. Were I not politics-nut and news-junkie, I wouldn't have known how to get the answer to my question. From what you say, it seems someone inetlligent with a knowledge of the more recondite things one can do in the world of wiki, has already done a disambiguation, which would direct the politics virgin to the the right place. The entries don't make it clear that that Cobra/COBRA is the Civil Contingency Committee and its Secretariat, the friendly reptilean name is used, I suspect, because the full name sounds a bit threatening.

Those of us d'un certain âge ('who're getting on a bit to be nerds') remember the Regional Seats of Government in which national and local government planned to cower after the Soviet Union nuked us (viz Channel 4's When The Wind Blows and BBC TV's The War Game) - and getting chased by police who wanted to arrest us while we tried to expose the RSGs, which successive governments refused to admit existed - until about 1990. (Enough of the ramble.)

But I think you've answered the question — if only because it wasn't worth asking.(Boing! Zebedee calls) Academe 00:52, 10 July 2007 (UTC)

what's this next line please? http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=User_talk:Mattbr&action=edit&section=18#

Yes, some degree of knowledge is assumed as people usually have some idea of what they are looking for (eg COBRA contains ministers and meets at a time of emergency), and the description after the link should provide enough information for reader to know that the link is the place they want to go without being too long (usually no more than one line). Feel free to change to description to make it more clear. On the link, do you mean my reply to the question? If so, I'll copy my reply across shortly. mattbr 08:27, 10 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Pix

Aha, pix. I’ve read the how-tos and I think I was less confused beforehand.

I phoned the press office for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and they/it emailed me snaps of Lee Mead, one’s quite useful for the top of page mugshot – it’s a 1200x1806 pixel jpg – and the 2007 poster art – a 4982x4235 pixel jpg - for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat page, rather than using the 1991 poster art, which is what’s on the page now. As they were issued as press handout images, in the knowledge that they were heading for a new role as wiki-illustrations.

As far as I can gather I have to declare that these are publicity shots, somehow and upload them –equally somehow – to the wikipedia. Once they’re up there, as far as I can gather, it’s surprisingly straightforward, apart from boiling down a pic that’s 1200 pixels wide to something like 230 pixels, so it fits in a traditional biog box. At a rough guess, it would be about 346 pixels deep. (I’ve been looking at page tops in ‘edit’ as a bit of self-training — emulating what others do is a way of learning — and cancelling my way out, so as not to mess up other people’s work. I even copied a pic from Any Dream Will Do (TV series) to the Lee Mead page as an exercise. Without major loss of life.)

But it hasn't helped me with uploading and tags. They still have me stumped.

So what do I do, please?

And if one says ‘imagesize = 230’ (or some such) in the box details, does that automatically resize the pic on the entry page (with a little click-me-to-expand-me thing), please? It would seem logical to me — but that probably doesn't mean much.

Academe 21:12, 10 July 2007 (UTC)

Images are a bit complicated here, and unfortunately there are a number of hoops to jump through before they can be used, especially if they are not available under a free copyright licence. I assume both images are copyrighted? (This is going to be a yes unless it clearly states otherwise, so I'll assume they are.)

There shouldn't be a problem with the poster, and firstly you'll need to scale down the actual image to under 300px in width (any good image editing program should be able to do this, if you have Microsoft Office try Microsoft Office Picture Manager – if not let me know). Then go to Wikipedia:Upload, select the promotional photo option and fill out the details in the boxes at the bottom. Give the file a descriptive name (such as 'Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat poster 2007.jpg'), and choose the poster option from the drop down box. Now with non-free content (as this poster will be), you will need to meet the Wikipedia:Non-free content criteria, which means you will need to include a rationale as to why you are using it. The best way to do that is to use the {{Non-free media rationale}} template as described at Wikipedia:Fair use rationale guideline and on the template description page. Fill out the template fields and put it in the summary box, then you can upload then use the image.

The one(s) of Mead are more tricky as Wikipedia doesn't allow any non-free images of living people which could be replaced by a freely licence image (whether one exists already or not). Could you describe the image before I go any further?

And on the resize thing, yes it should resize it and you can always click an image to take you to the description page. mattbr 22:23, 10 July 2007 (UTC)

Copyright. I phoned the Really Useful Group's publicity people ands asked for pix to use on the wikipedia. The images they emailed me were for that purpose. I assumed that meant they were publicity shots — and therefore usable.

As a journo, I bceame more savvy than most about copyright law — it put food on the table. So I phoned theatrical publicists Peter Thompson Associates for pix to avoid any unpleasantness and asked in so many words for a mugshot to use on the Lee Mead page in the wikipedia. I assumed that meant they were released for that purpose.

If necessary, I could email Peter Thompson and ask them them to give me permission in writing to use in the wikipedia of the pictures they released for use in the wikipedia.

Tell me, please, and I'll mail them.

--Academe 09:19, 11 July 2007 (UTC)

This is where it gets a bit complicated. Unfortunately permission for use on Wikipedia is no good (they can be deleted without discussion ("speedily deleted") under speedy deletion criterion I3) as the material still has restricted use. The licences the site uses allows free use, including for commercial purposes, by anyone, providing the content is licence under the same licence and the source is acknowledged. This means that you, I, or anyone can take the whole of Wikipedia and sell the infomation under the same licence (the GFDL), acknowledging Wikipedia and make a profit (though don't forget it is free here!). There are a number of mirrors and forks of Wikipedia about. Copyrighted images are allowed if no free alternative could be made that provides substantially the same information, so for example single and album covers, film posters, logos and images of dead people are allowed because no freely licensed alternative could be made, but in the case of living people, anyone could go out, take a picture of that person and release it under a free licence, therefore any copyrighted image is potentially replaceable and fair use cannot be claimed. So the poster is fine, but any images of Mead with a non-free licence cannot be used (there are a very small number of situations where they can be used, but they mustn't be replaceable and general promotional shots are).

If you want, you could ask them to release an image under a licence Wikipedia can use (such as the GFDL, some Creative Commons licences such as cc-by-2.5, cc-by-sa, cc-by-sa-2.0 and cc-by-sa-2.5, or they can release it into the public domain), and there is information on this at Wikipedia:Requesting copyright permission including some example letters. Don't forget to email the permission to the permissions address on that page if you are successful. Hope that explains, and good luck! mattbr 17:49, 11 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] About Dhime/Dhimay

Please do not move articles by copying and pasting them as you did with Dhime/Dhimay because it splits the article's history, which is needed for attribution and is helpful in many other ways. In future please use the move tab at the top of the page to move an article as this also moves the article history. See Help:Moving a page for more information. If there is an article that you cannot move yourself using the move link at the top of the page, follow the instructions at Wikipedia:Requested moves. Also, if there are any other articles that you copied and pasted, even if it was a long time ago, please list them at Wikipedia:Cut and paste move repair holding pen. Thanks, mattbr 17:24, 15 July 2007 (UTC)

Thanks for the suggestions. I had done this in this case because there was no significant history in that page. Clearly, the page was created by cutting and pasting my edit in Newa music. I hadnt created a page back because I did not know the standard spelling and much reliable data on the instrument. There is no need to redirect "dhime" to "dhimay" as I have not seen my spelling of "dhime" being used anywhere else. Thank you. --Eukesh 17:54, 15 July 2007 (UTC)

Any alteration of the encyclopaedic content is a significant edit, and that contribution must be recorded even if it is changed later, so the changes made at Dhime need to be kept. Aside from making it much much easier to comply with the requirements of the licence the site uses by keeping it in one place, the move feature also means that the history of Dhime is clear so that if another article was created in the future at that title on a different topic, the edit history does not have those of a different topic. And if that title then has to be moved somewhere else and another topic created at that title, you can see what a mess we would get into with keeping track of all these edits if they weren't moved with the article!

The splitting of content from another page can only be done by cutting and pasting it as it is virtually impossible to be able to split the edits people have made to a page. The creating of the page by the 'splitter' is also a significant edit and needs to be recorded at the new article. There is no harm in leaving the redirect at Dhime for now, as this is the spelling that has been used here in the past and it makes it much easier to find the new article title. There are also a number of links form other pages to that title. Hope that explains further, mattbr 18:46, 15 July 2007 (UTC)

Thanks for the additional info. I get your point. There is just one thing that I would like to add. I think that new editors need to discuss at the discussion page of an article before making a "hostile takeover" and creating a stub out of a few sentences of an article. I think such edits are useless, unjustified and besides aiding to the "personal number of edits of the editor" aids to nothing but creating friction amongst editors. I work in English version sometimes only (I am more active in Nepal Bhasa, Hindi etc). I think you are more active over here. In my opinion, there should be a consensus that a editor cannot just copy and paste significant amounts of an article to create new articles in a page where s/he has no contribution, without discussing the matter with the other editors of the page. Thanks again.--Eukesh 17:31, 16 July 2007 (UTC)

If the topic has possibilities for expansion beyond a few lines and into an article, then there should be no problem with the split. If such a change has been made, no matter how many edits the person has, it should be welcomed. As this is a legitimate scenario, this type of action should not be discouraged, which it would be if discussion was forced, meaning that that person might not contribute and expand the topic. It is also difficult to explain that discussion is advised in this situation, as how do readers (of the encyclopaedia) find out without forcing them to read pages and pages of rules and regulations in the Wikipedia namespace, which would again discourage them. And also don't forget that an account with no edits might not have an inexperienced editor behind it! mattbr 21:50, 19 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Richard Mercer

The above page was deleted for plagiarism. Please restore as I have express permission from the web site writer to use the information in wikipedia. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Svsmoke (talk • contribs) 04:32, 18 July 2007 (UTC).

Unfortunately permission for use on Wikipedia is no good as the material still has restricted use. The licences the site uses allows free use, including for commercial purposes, by anyone, providing the content is licence under the same licence and the source is acknowledged. This means that you, I, or anyone can take the whole of Wikipedia and sell the infomation under the same licence (the GFDL), acknowledging Wikipedia and make a profit (though don't forget it is free here!). There are a number of mirrors and forks of Wikipedia about which provide Wikipedia content under their own name. Content copied here that is not licensed under the GFDL, as in this case, can be deleted without further discussion as a copyright infringement (speedy deletion criterion G12). If you want, you could ask them to release the text under a licence Wikipedia can use (the GFDL, or they can release it into the public domain), and there is information on this at Wikipedia:Requesting copyright permission including some example letters. Don't forget to email the permission to the permissions address on that page if you are successful, and the source page should also indicate the licence chosen. Although I haven't looked into it fully, the person in question may fail to meet the notability criteria, specifically those for people, and the reason why the person should be included in an encyclopaedia needs to be asserted. Until that release it obtained, I cannot undelete the article. Hope that explains, mattbr 21:57, 19 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Template:Universities navbox a slight problem

I just came across your wonderful template. I guess, I see slight problem with it. While the center alignment used in the template is fine for short lists, as well as the "dot" as separator, it could pose a problem for longer lists. Those lists could do very well with a left alignment and a "pipe" separator. Check the history of Template:Private Universities of Bangladesh if you are interested to know what I mean. That handsome template has lost its looks in an effort to comply to your ideals. Is it possible to have two kinds of formatting for longer and shorter lists? Or is it possible to make a compromise that works for both? Please, respond to my talk page. Aditya ^{(talk • contribs)} 21:44, 18 July 2007 (UTC)

It is fairly standard to have centre aligned text in a navigational template like this whatever the topic as they are mostly based on a standard template (which this uses). The use of the dot has also become common as the use of a pipe breaks the master template. To help, you could use Template:! to generate a pipe or you could try splitting the list into two or more (such as North and South) to break it up a bit? mattbr 22:18, 19 July 2007 (UTC)

Should standardization completely rule out the need for navigability in a navigation box? The particular case I mentioned has created has become difficult to use, and pretty demanding on time and patience. While the average Wikipedian may have plenty of both, we can hardly assume the same about people who come to the Wikipedia to look for useful information presented in concise and friendly way. I am looking for a way to improve the longer lists, not a way to demolish standardization. Is there no way that we can improve on the standard template? Aditya^{(talk • contribs)} 09:43, 21 July 2007 (UTC)

Longer lists are always harder to navigate than smaller ones whatever the list/topic, so you could try to split it up. As I mentioned previously, you could try North/South, or any other suitable groupings. You could also shorten the names, as the template is for universities in Bangladesh, you don't necessarily have to mention those parts of the name. So for example American International University - Bangladesh could become American International, United International University could become United International and Northern University, Bangladesh could become Northern. Some this wouldn't really be appropriate for, such as International University of Business Agriculture and Technology, but this could significantly cut the amount of text in the list and make it easier to navigate.

Of course you don't have to use the standard templates, but they just help to create a more uniform appearance in the boxes across the project. mattbr 10:18, 28 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Ryan Roxie Wikipedia Page

Hi there - was wondering why the photo I post of Ryan Roxie keeps getting removed. The photo was provided to me by Ryan Roxie who has requested I post the picture on his wiki page. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 203.202.43.48 (talk • contribs) 04:31, 20 July 2007 (UTC).

The photo keeps getting removed for a number of reasons. I deleted it because it was licensed for use on Wikipedia only, which we cannot accept (such images can be deleted without discussion ("speedily deleted") under speedy deletion criterion I3) as the material still has restricted use. The licences the site uses allows free use, including for commercial purposes, by anyone, providing the content is licence under the same licence and the source is acknowledged. This means that you, I, or anyone can take the whole of Wikipedia and sell the infomation under the same licence (the GFDL), acknowledging Wikipedia and make a profit (though don't forget it is free here!). There are a number of mirrors and forks of Wikipedia about.

It was then deleted again because copyrighted images are only allowed if no free alternative could be made that provides substantially the same information, so for example single and album covers, film posters, logos and images of dead people are allowed because no freely licensed alternative could be made, but in the case of living people (as in this case), anyone could go out, take a picture of that person and release it under a free licence, therefore any copyrighted image is potentially replaceable and fair use cannot be claimed.

The current version of the image currently has no copyright information on it, and will be deleted if this information is not provided. In all these cases, a notice is placed on the image description page to say that it will be deleted and why it will be deleted. Information was also placed on the talk page of the uploader (User:Poster idol, which I assume is you) in two of these cases providing notification of deletion.

If you want, you could ask him to release the image under a licence Wikipedia can use (such as the GFDL, some Creative Commons licences such as cc-by-2.5, cc-by-sa, cc-by-sa-2.0 and cc-by-sa-2.5, or he can release it into the public domain), and there is information on this at Wikipedia:Requesting copyright permission including some example letters. Don't forget to email the permission you receive to the permissions address on that page if you are successful, otherwise the image will be deleted again. Hope that explains, mattbr 10:37, 28 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Image speedy

I've noticed that you've recently speedy deleted Image:BBKingTrey.jpg. I'm certainly not judging the decision to delete it, but I don't know if anyone affiliated with the Phish articles realized it was in jeopardy -- there was no message left on the talk pages of either article. We just decided to delete an entire section of Phish (a GA) based on that image: "a picture is worth a thousand words". I don't know who originally uploaded it, I don't know the source, but I would have put some effort into keeping it, had I known it was tagged. Any help you can offer would be greatly appreciated. —  MusicMaker5376 03:43, 30 July 2007 (UTC)

Unfortunately the image page did not fully specify the source of the image only saying 'Press release for "All Access" DVD release, 2003' which isn't accurate enough (Who issued the release? Was the image obtained from a third party? etc) so that the proper copyright status/holder can be determined. The image had been tagged since 17 July and the uploader was notified, but unfortunately there is no requirement for the image uses to be tagged before deletion. The uploader hasn't been active for over a year and has no email specified so it is unlikely that the source can be obtained from them. The best thing to do would be to try and find the image again (the original text may help you) and upload the properly sourced image. Also as a non-free image, you would need to ensure the image meets the non-free content criteria and that a non-free media rationale is specified for it. Hope that helps, mattbr 17:34, 30 July 2007 (UTC)

Well, if the uploader hadn't been active for over a year, don't you think it might have been wise to notify someone else? I understand that you don't have to, and I know that these unsourced images are presenting a problem, but in the past, we've received messages on the articles' talk pages, and the problems have been rectified. Thanks, though, for giving me what was there as a source -- I'll try to see if I can find the image, get it properly sourced and whatnot, and re-upload it. —  MusicMaker5376 21:09, 30 July 2007 (UTC)

Another user tagged the image as having no source and notified the uploader. Images tagged for more than seven days may be speedily deleted at any time under criterion I4, and there is no requirement for any other notification, apart from tagging the image description page, or checking of the activity of the uploader (I only did this so that you knew that this was a dead-end). This copy of the image needs deleting, and it is unfortunate that a replacement has not been found before the deletion, but that should not cause the deletion of a section in an article. The event depicted should be notable for the significance of the event itself, not whether there is an image to show this event. The use of a fair use picture should include a critical commentary including the importance and significance of the event and if the text can be removed from the article just because there is no picture, then the event should probably not be included in the article whether there is a picture or not. Good luck with finding another image, mattbr 22:01, 30 July 2007 (UTC)

I probably wasn't terribly clear. The section that was deleted was a section delineating several of the artists who have "sat in" with Phish and was removed before the picture was deleted. It was basically just a list that presented a citation nightmare and didn't necessarily convey any more information than the picture of a band member playing with B. B. King conveyed. The event depicted in the picture didn't require explanation and, for the most part, established its notability on its own, and did it better than the paragraph did. But, since the picture is gone, I'm not sure what we're going to do. I'm in the process of trying to find the source, but it looks like it might be a useless endeavor.... —  MusicMaker5376 22:40, 30 July 2007 (UTC)

If the event in the picture didn't/doesn't require any further explanation in the text then it probably shouldn't be included as it is clearly not that a significant event. If the meeting was a pivotal point in the career of the band (eg this meeting was the start of a long relationship in which King became a co-writer with the group leading to a number of hit singles) then it probably should be included. There is more on the inclusion on non-free content at on the site at Wikipedia:Non-free content. mattbr 18:00, 31 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Thank you

on this edit.

Anynobody 00:53, 19 August 2007 (UTC)

You're welcome! mattbr 07:29, 19 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Thanks

Thanks for sorting the Michael Rich / Michael Rich (cyclist) mess earlier. Regards, Severo^TC 19:45, 20 August 2007 (UTC)

You're welcome, and thanks for spotting it! mattbr 19:51, 20 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Found Another Zeitgeist Page Needin Saltin

Right here: Zeitgeist Project. -WarthogDemon 14:48, 25 August 2007 (UTC)

Please can you provide a link to the deletion discussion as it isn't in the history of the page. Thanks, mattbr 14:56, 25 August 2007 (UTC)

I just realized my mistake and placed it in the db-tag. -WarthogDemon 14:57, 25 August 2007 (UTC)

Done, and in future there isn't really any need to let someone know, as the page will be deleted in due course. If you feel the page should be salted, writing in the edit summary should suffice. Thanks, mattbr 15:15, 25 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Belarusian Wikipedia article

Why did you speedily-delete it? Esn 18:25, 25 August 2007 (UTC)

The deletion log says:

14:39, 25 August 2007 Mattbr (Talk | contribs | block) deleted "Belarusian Wikipedia" ‎ (Speedy deleted per (CSD r1), was a redirect to an non-existent page. Using TW.)

The non-existent page it redirected to was Belarusian Wikipedias which was deleted after Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Belarusian Wikipedias. Such redirects can be speedily deleted according to WP:CSD#R1. mattbr 18:59, 25 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Page Move

Hi there, you seem to have had a bit of trouble with page moves and the James Gleason article. I have moved the original page back there so we can work out exactly what to do. You mentioned there is another actor and a producer with the same name. Before creating a disambiguation page, are these two notable enough to have an article here on Wikipedia? If so, we can work out where to put the pages. If not then we don't really need to. Let me know and we can sort it out. Thanks, mattbr 19:35, 27 August 2007 (UTC)

Also, I have deleted James Gleason (James Gleason (actor, May 23, 1882 – April 12, 1959) which you created during the page moves, which I assume is the redirect you wanted deleting when you added an entry at Wikipedia:Redirects for discussion. In future, such pages can be speedily deleted under the Wikipedia:Criteria for speedy deletion, criterion G7. All you need to do is add {{db-author}} to the page and it will be deleted by an administrator in due course. Thanks, mattbr 19:46, 27 August 2007 (UTC)

Greetings. Thanks so much for your help on the James Gleason page. The issue si that there was a comment on that pages talk page in reference to the fact taht there is an actor currently living who is doing a great deal of work (lucky him.) and so, while he does not have a wikipedia entry, it would prove helpful to be able to have the disambiguation. Both actors are in the IMDB and so there is at least some information that can be included in an article here on Wikipedia. Mabibliophile 14:22, 28 August 2007 (UTC)

I've had a quick look at the IMDb entry for the second actor and he don't seem to have had any recurring major parts (I don't know if any of the others are of any significance). Wikipedia:Notability (people) is the guideline here. Do you think that he would pass the criteria there? From the IMDb list, it looks doubtful. If yes, then I would put a page at James Gleason (disambiguation), linked to via a dab link at the top of the main page, as we don't usually have a disambiguation page at the main page for a list that only has one existing article. Once the article is created, then the pages can be moved as appropriate. If not, then there isn't really any need for the page as there is currently no prospect of it becoming of use. mattbr 19:54, 30 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Please re-register

[edit] Your help would be appreciated...

I see you were the closing admin, and you closed it after a discussion with only one participant other than the nominator.

I left a question for the nominator. The nominator did not give me a heads-up about the nomination, which is a conventional courtesy for other kinds of deletion nominations.

I have just checked Wikipedia:Templates for deletion, and Wikipedia:Templates for deletion#How to use this page says:

It is generally considered civil to notify the good-faith creator and any main contributors of the template that you are nominating the template. To find the main contributors, look in the page history or talk page of the template.

I don't know what the nominator is talking about with his assertion of redlinks. I don't remember the template containing redlinks. Nor do I see the existence of redlinks being listed as one of the criteria that would have made it eligible for deletion.

I am new to template deletion. Could you clarify for me which of criteria that make a template eligible for deletion this template satisfied?

Ah. Hold the presses. Nominator tells me "take it to deletion review".

So, do you think I should take it to deletion review?

Cheers! Geo Swan 03:27, 7 September 2007 (UTC)

Thanks for your courteous reply. I was shocked to learn that the nominator was himself an administrator. I'd characterize his reply as more or less a Foxtrot Oscar. I am afraid that as I have more interactions with the wikipedia's corps of administrators I come across an alarming minority who seem to think that elevation to adminstratorship frees one from the obligation to comply with WP:CIV.

The nominator said he told me that he wasn't familiar with the recommendation in the deletion policies that nominators give that heads-up. He suggested that those provisions must be recent -- since he started working on deletion. I know these provisions aren't recent.

I checked his contribution history. This administrator is an active participant in the deletion fora -- including closing debates. I think it is really shocking that he thinks he can close discussion -- and delete articles -- even though he is not familiar the policies he is administering.

The main reason I think the refugee camps I have written about are worthy of coverage is that having stayed in one is advanced by American counter-terrorism analysts as sufficient reason for them to be held, permanently, in extrajudicial detention in Guantanamo. My memory may have played me false. I may not have started this category. But the nominator's posting history shows that they didn't advise anyone.

I didn't start the similar Template:TrainingCamp, I am the most frequent contributor to it. I did start the similar Template:AfghanGuestHouse.

My recollection is that one of the elements of this template, like those other two templates, is that it includes any articles it was transcluded into in a related category. So, whose responsibility is it to make sure any categories a deleted instance of a templated was transcluding into an article stayed included? If it is my responsibility, as the person who originally transcluded it, I am in need of a reminder of the wording of that category.

Cheers! Geo Swan 04:26, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

No transcluded categories? That is good to know. Thanks! Geo Swan 18:59, 12 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] New user creating tooooo many wikilinks

Hello,

Could you get someone to keep an eye on Kathleen.wright5 who seems to be creating unnecessary wikilinks all over the place in some BBC articles - just newbie over-enthusiasm, methinks - but don't know how I should report this.... had to RV some of her stuff. Cheers Zir 18:41, 14 September 2007 (UTC)

Whenever you see Kathleen.wright5 and something like "Internal Links Added" in the history, then take a look at the discussion page & you'll find someone moaning (probably me) ...... Zir 23:27, 14 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Christopher Orr

Thanks for sorting out all that mess! Much appreciated.  :)

— madman bum and angel 22:44, 14 September 2007 (UTC)

You're welcome! Thanks for spotting it. mattbr 22:59, 14 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] {{rewrite-section}}?

Why deprecate? {{cleanup-rewrite}} applies to the whole article, not just the tagged section. — Coren ^(talk) 21:11, 15 September 2007 (UTC)

You caught me in the middle of updating the documentation! :) {{cleanup-rewrite}} already supports specifying if it is being used for a section, it just didn't say so in the 'Usage' section (it also supports adding a reason, also not documented) which I was in the middle of updating. Both {{rewrite-section}} and {{sectionrewrite}} are both only for sections, and it seems silly to have 3 templates when 1 will do. If you want, you could make the section templates transclude {{cleanup-rewrite|2=section}} or move the functionality to {{rewrite}} which is currently a redirect (it has a past incarnation of the template though in the history, making moving more difficult). mattbr 21:32, 15 September 2007 (UTC)

I didn't feel one way or the other, I was just wondering. The update in docs, however, is indeed needed then.  :-) — Coren ^(talk) 22:45, 15 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] THANKS!

I owe you one man. I'll make up your barnstar right now! Tyler Warren 11:42, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

For you Mattbr the Editor's Barnstar for fixing my userpage!Tyler Warren

You're welcome. Thanks! mattbr 12:09, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] template company importance

YOu didn't pass the parameters to template Notability - just in case you have done or will be doing other conversions. Rich Farmbrough, 19:44 16 September 2007 (GMT).

Apologies, I don't think I've done any others but I'll check. Thanks for fixing it. mattbr 19:53, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Return to the Lost World

Thanks to have dictate it to me! —Preceding unsigned comment added by Visor87 (talk • contribs) 12:52, 21 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Need help

Hi, could you please delete this page ASAP, it's in the way for a move. Thanks. --MrStalker ^talk 14:32, 22 September 2007 (UTC)

The talk page has been moved, and in future please use {{db-move|page to be moved here}} so the admin knows what needs moving there and can perform the move for you (the target page is automatically deleted during the move). Thanks, mattbr 14:41, 22 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit]  ?

Could you run a checkuser on User:King Nitro and User:Jack Nebulax? HIYO 23:05, 27 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] WP:BBC

Hey there Matt. I see you are using AWB to tag lots of pages as being part of WP:BBC. This is great, except for the fact I now have the task of going through them all to assess them. :P If I got my self approved for AWB, would it make my job quicker? I would be able to join in the hunt for more article to assess :P Thanks, Tiddly-Tom 16:48, 21 October 2007 (UTC)

To be honest it's not that much quicker to asses articles using the standard AWB (I think there is a plugin that makes it quicker but I haven't tried it, I think there is also a script about too) but it does make it easy to find and tag articles using the list comparer and the prepend function. I have added you to the approved users list so you can use it, but please read the rules of use first (by editing with AWB you confirm your acceptance of these rules and failure to abide by them will result in your name being removed). There is a user manual if you get stuck, but let me know if I can help. Happy editing! mattbr 17:20, 21 October 2007 (UTC)

Thanks. I am starting with some simple cleanuping. Can I, and is it advisable to get it to remove multiple wikilinks from articles? And can I get it to automatically remove the clear up tag when I have done it? Thank You Tiddly-Tom 18:05, 21 October 2007 (UTC)

P.S. I am doing Spelling, General, Autotag and Unicodeify, if all theise are sorted, does this meen it has been cleared up? :P Tiddly-Tom

Removing multiple wikilinks is one of those things that needs judgement applied to it, so getting it to remove them all is not really advisable. For example, multiple links to the same article in the same sentence/paragraph is not advised, whereas the same link at either end of a 100kB article is probably OK. Plus there is piping and linking to headings to take into account, as it may not be apparent (to the reader) the same article is being linked to.

Again cleanup is one of those subjective things, and doing all the automatic things doesn't necessarily mean the article has been cleaned up, eg the refs might be a mess or there is excessive bolding or the Headings Have Capitalised Initial Letters when they shouldn't or there are too many links or too few links or there are too many or too few headings etc etc. They are also mostly minor formatting things that shouldn't really be done without doing something else at the same time. Fixing typos is one of those something elses, and I usually run with the edit summary "Typo fixing and other fixes". Don't forget though that some typo changes it makes are not really typos, eg it may be in a quote that is spelt wrongly, it may not be in English (best to wrap it in a language template such as {{lang|2-digit language code}} (if inline) or {{lang-de}} and variants (if the language name is in front) as AWB doesn't fix typos wrapped in a template (they also set the "language" of the text as read by browsers)) or it may be a name. If it is correcting something it really shouldn't be, such as a common first name, just report it to the typos talk page and one of the people there will remove it from the list.

Sorry that was a bit long, but I hope it helps! mattbr 19:25, 21 October 2007 (UTC)

No problem, I like long replies :P Other than the Clear Up categories, what else do you suggest I could try while getting used to AWB? Sorry if it seems that I am pestering you, just tell me to go ask someone elce if this is the case ;) Tiddly-Tom 19:30, 21 October 2007 (UTC)

Probably the other general thing is fixing links to disambiguation pages, but it is most useful for doing something specific you want to do to lots of pages, such as adding project banners, adding/removing/changing a category, updating infoboxes, and anything you can do with the find-and-replace feature, and also generating a specific list of articles to work through eg pages that are in Category:A but not in Category:B. You might also find something to do at WP:BOTREQ. If there is something you want to do (within reason), it can probably do it in some way, if not the devs are always open to feature requests. mattbr 19:57, 21 October 2007 (UTC)

Cool, I think I might give something like that a go when I get board of what I am doing at the moment :P Is the Cleanup back log the best place to look, as I have skipped over 1000 pages so far and only got 34 edits! Thanks, Tiddly-Tom 20:41, 21 October 2007 (UTC)

For doing typo fixing, it doesn't really matter. I usually pick a page and load the what links here (do pages in different topics so you don't check the same pages all the time) and let it go, do something else until it finds a typo and beeps at me, make any other fixes and save or ignore and then go back to the other thing I was doing and so on. If you want to properly clean up the pages making manual edits as well, then you are definitely in the right place! mattbr 20:52, 21 October 2007 (UTC)

I can make it beep? ~*Big Eyes*~ Tiddly-Tom 20:55, 21 October 2007 (UTC)

(←)Yes, go to 'General' > 'Preferences', tick 'Flash' and 'Bleep', then on the 'Set options' tab tick 'Skip if no typo fixed' and then start it running and minimise the window, then when it has found a page with a typo to fix, the minimised bar thing at the bottom of the screen will flash and it beeps. mattbr 21:06, 21 October 2007 (UTC)

Thanks so much for your help today, although I am sure I will be back sometime ^.^ Tiddly-Tom 21:31, 21 October 2007 (UTC)

I could tell you were about when I saw pages going into the category :P You don't happen to know where I can find the plugin for assessment do you? Thanks, Tiddly-Tom 08:41, 22 October 2007 (UTC)

The plugin I was thinking of was User:Kingbotk/Plugin, but it appears that is more for tagging rather than assessment. There is an assessment script described at User talk:Outriggr/assessment.js, but I have no idea if or how it works! You might find another if you dig around Wikipedia:WikiProject User scripts/Scripts a bit. mattbr 08:51, 22 October 2007 (UTC)

I had a play with Kingbotk's plugin, but I couldn't use it to assess articles, because I could not get it to show me the article at the same time. How do you find, and then tag the articles? Tiddly-Tom 17:46, 23 October 2007 (UTC)

I use the ListComparer to find articles, just load the contents of Category:WikiProject BBC articles in the List 1 box and then load the articles of another category in the List 2 box, such as BBC television programs, then right click and convert to talk the second list and hit compare. If you then save the Only in List 2 list, these are the talk pages that are not in the WP:BBC cat and therefore not tagged. After closing the ListComparer, you can then load this list back into the main Make List box, add some basic text to the Append/Prepend box (I use {{BBCproject|class = |importance = }}) in the More.. tab and select Prepend, add an edit summary and go! It should then add the empty box to the beginning of the talk page (move it as required), right click in the edit box and view page in browser, view the article and add your assessment into AWB then save. mattbr 21:36, 24 October 2007 (UTC)

I have did what you above suggested for around 60 articles. It worked well, thanks. Today I try to do the same, I set up everything the same, but I don't see what I am adding to the article in the edit box! If I could move it up, I could see it (I know because if I click and drag up, and then copy and then paste into word pad, it comes up with what I am adding! Can you help? Thanks, Tiddly-Tom 11:33, 26 October 2007 (UTC)

Looks like you are suffering from the bug Wikipedia talk:AutoWikiBrowser/Bugs#First lines of edit box not displayed, which appears to be due to the fact I asked for the edit toolbar show/hide preference to be saved in the settings. Sorry! Hopefully this will be fixed in the next release. In the mean time, setting a new settings file might solve the problem. mattbr 22:41, 26 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Tags

Per multiple administrators, tags go underneath infoboxes. CelticGreen 23:28, 25 October 2007 (UTC)

In order to avoid an edit war due to this disagreement, I've asked on the Admin board for their opinions. CelticGreen 23:44, 25 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Re:AWB encountered IOException

Just so you know, i deleted because it had already been reported, marked as "fixed" as it was a bad release by Max - Wikipedia_talk:AutoWikiBrowser/Bugs/Archive_4#AWB_encountered_IOException

Other bug is now fixed though!

Reedy Boy 21:09, 4 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Zeitgeist (video)

• A draft userspace article has been created. Please see Wikipedia:Deletion review/Log/2007 November 8. Pdelongchamp 20:04, 8 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] confused at deletion of my user page

I did not have time to personalise it so i listed my blog address. Why was my personal page deleted?

cheers, shira aka Universal Health Care Cantaora —Preceding unsigned comment added by Univhealthcarecantaora (talk • contribs) 16:30, 17 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] sorry

Ok, I hadn't realized taht user pages were meant to be only related to work on Wikipedia. My apologies. Health Care Can. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Univhealthcarecantaora (talk • contribs) 16:56, 17 November 2007 (UTC)