Wikipedia:Help desk
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November 29
Adding a Wikipedia page for someone
How do I create a wikipedia page for a relative of mine. He is a well-known author and community figure and it feels appropriate that he has a page on this fascinating site. Could someone please let me know the step-by-step on how to create a page for him? Thank you so much! IsaacGoldin1 (talk) 04:01, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- Hello, IsaacGoldin1. You have a conflict of interest regarding your relative, which you should declare on your now blank userpage. Because of that COI, you should use the Articles for creation process to create a draft to be reviewed by experienced editors without a COI. The single most important thing for you to know is that an acceptable Wikipedia biography primarily summarizes what published reliable sources entirely independent of the topic (your relative in this case) say about the topic. You cannot include your reminiscences. It cannot be based on the publisher's author page or any material used to promote his books. We take source independence seriously. Please read the notability guideline for people and the notability guideline for authors. I highly recommend that you spend a few weeks improving other articles to learn about how things work and to get a sense for our Policies and guidelines. Read other biographies of authors that are rated Good articles or Featured articles and model your work on them. Once you have gathered your list of reliable sources, then format them into references with bibliographic detail. See Referencing for beginners. Read and study Your first article several times during this whole process. Now, write your prose in your own words by neutrally summarizing what your reliable sources say, and then submit your draft to Articles for Creation. Cullen328 (talk) 04:26, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
Search for articles having titles with specific punctuation-marks.
Hi, I'm trying to find a way of searching for all articles with titles including specific punctuation. Specifically, I'm trying to find all the articles with titles incorporating geographical co-ordinates (Təzəkənd (39° 32' N 48° 24' E), Bilasuvar is an example) by searching for "' N" or "' E". and the wording "(near" (Təzəkənd (near Surra), Davachi is an example of this). However, unfortunately the search tool tends to strip out any punctuation marks when carrying out the search, meaning a search for "' N" returns all the results for "N", and a search for "(near" tends to return all the results for "near".
The reason why I am trying to do this is because these article tend to be non-notable, since if the subject is so obscure as to only be identifiable by geographical co-ordinates or being located "near" somewhere else, typically there is nothing to say about it. Also, often the location-data is wildly incorrect. FOARP (talk) 11:19, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- @FOARP: See regexp at Help:Searching#insource:. It's slow and hard on the servers so it's best to combine it with something else like intitle:near intitle:/\(near/ and intitle:N intitle:/' N/. I dont think it's possible to exclude redirects. PrimeHunter (talk) 11:58, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- Many thanks! FOARP (talk) 12:07, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
Reference issue
Good morning!
Can someone help me with a citation error I keep receiving? If you're able to look at my sandbox article draft, the issue I'm having is with reference 2. I used the citation tool in visual editor several times to pull the reference, and I've checked the data manually as well and cannot figure out why I keep getting this error at the end of it:
{{cite web}}
: External link in |website=
(help)
I've read through the CS1 error help page and don't see anything under "External link in |website=". I'm betting it's something simple I've overlooked but I'd appreciate any help you can provide.
Thesaltydispatcher (talk) 11:28, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- Delete the "https://". The bigger problem is that the draft, at first glance, looks like it fails WP:CRIME. Clarityfiend (talk) 11:36, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- I haven’t gotten to this part yet but I was wondering if I might be able to swing it because the crime led to a law named after the victim. The law was the first of its kind in the state that made necrophilia illegal. Do you think that might be enough to get it published?
- Thesaltydispatcher (talk) 12:08, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- That could be enough. Insane that it wasn't already illegal in Michigan, though. Clarityfiend (talk) 22:41, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- It really is mind blowing that it took until this past October for something so heinous to be illegal.
- Thesaltydispatcher (talk) 02:26, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- That could be enough. Insane that it wasn't already illegal in Michigan, though. Clarityfiend (talk) 22:41, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- Hello, Thesaltydispatcher. You have added a URL "https://www.wndu.com" in the website field. That field does not accept URLs. It is for the name of the website, which I assume is probably WNDU-TV. Cullen328 (talk) 11:43, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- Thank you!
- Thesaltydispatcher (talk) 12:01, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- @Thesaltydispatcher: The "help" link says "This error occurs when a URL is found in any parameter that is not one of these URL-holding parameters: ..."
|website=
is not on the list so the error applies.website
should only be used in citations which already have a link to a specific page at the website and then we don't want a second external link to distract.www.
is usually omitted so I would just say|website=wndu.com
, orWNDU.com
as they do themselves. You could also say|publisher=[[WNDU-TV]]
instead (not in addition) to link WNDU-TV. Wikilinks are allowed.|website=[[WNDU-TV]]
should only be used if the website itself is called WNDU-TV. PrimeHunter (talk) 12:13, 29 November 2024 (UTC)- That makes sense. I appreciate your thorough answer!
- Thesaltydispatcher (talk) 12:19, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- @Thesaltydispatcher: The "help" link says "This error occurs when a URL is found in any parameter that is not one of these URL-holding parameters: ..."
Title field when citing a web source without a title (e.g. long-form social media posts)
Hi all. I came across a citation (#24 on Wisdom (albatross)) of a Facebook post from an official United States Fish and Wildlife Service Facebook page that has the Missing or empty |title=
error. I looked through some of the help pages for citations and can't find any guidance on what to do when citing a web source that genuinely does not have a title (even the <title> tag of the page is just "Facebook") and the text within the source is longer than, say, a tweet (where you'd use the whole tweet as the title.) Is there any standard here? (I suppose the source could just be replaced with a different source per WP:RSPFB, but the source itself here seems acceptable -- it's an official post from a US governmental agency.) Thank you! Jokullmusic 14:35, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- "we're from the government, you can trust us.." Right.
- Regardless, I've thought for many years that cs1|2 should have an
|incipit=
parameter for those occasions (especially in older newspapers) where the 'article' is a paragraph or three without title. So too, I think that social media posts would be a suitable use for|incipit=
. Alas, no such parameter, but you might write:|title=Wisdom returns to Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge...
- —Trappist the monk (talk) 15:09, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- The same Facebook post has been used twice in the article, the first time with
title=Wisdom returns to Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge bringing more Thanksgiving joy to the Midway Atoll staff who celebrate witnessing Wisdom reaching at least 74 years old this coming winter.
so the two references could be given a common reference name. TSventon (talk) 15:13, 29 November 2024 (UTC)- Thanks all, noticed the first citation later on after posting this. Using an excerpt/incipit makes sense to me. Thank you! Jokullmusic 15:18, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- I looked at the talk page for {{Cite web}} and
title=none
is also an option, but the incipit is better in this case. TSventon (talk) 15:35, 29 November 2024 (UTC)- There are some cs1|2 parameters where the assigned value
none
has meaning (|type=
,|postscript=
). In{{cite web}}
,|title=none
has no special meaning:{{cite web |title=none |url=//example.com}}
→ "none".
- Only in
{{cite journal}}
does|title=none
have meaning – is suppresses title display entirely:{{cite journal |title=none |journal=Journal}}
→ Journal.{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)
- —Trappist the monk (talk) 15:51, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- There are some cs1|2 parameters where the assigned value
- I looked at the talk page for {{Cite web}} and
- Thanks all, noticed the first citation later on after posting this. Using an excerpt/incipit makes sense to me. Thank you! Jokullmusic 15:18, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- The same Facebook post has been used twice in the article, the first time with
Question About Adding Links to Useful Video Editing Guides
Hi everyone, I came across a helpful website that has a guide on using Zoom and [redacted] templates for video editing ([redacted]). I think it could be useful for people reading Wikipedia articles about video editing tools or templates. Before suggesting it, I wanted to check: Does Wikipedia allow links to external guides like this? What should I keep in mind to make sure the link fits Wikipedia’s guidelines? Just want to make sure I’m doing it the right way. Thanks! Elsarichard (talk) 16:23, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- @Elsarichard: Probably not a good idea. Starting with an external link and finding articles for it is too close to WP:LINKSPAM. Starting with an article and finding and incorporating sources is almost always the better approach. -Arch dude (talk) 16:29, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- Okay Thanks for letting me know. I'll take care for that. I'll not do anything that will consider me as a spam. Elsarichard (talk) 17:11, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- @Elsarichard: If you have any connection with this spammy looking site, with a URL that does not match either the product name nor its official website, no social media followers or content in its accounts (suspended on Twitter), and its Android app that requires a direct APK install(!), you need to declare it before you post about it here again. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 17:32, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
Wrong content
Hello dear Ms./Mr., In the following, there is an assertion that is not true and not even given reference to, which is a bit problematic o share misinformation about a race:
"Genetic data found that almost all modern Turkic peoples retained at least some shared ancestry associated with populations in "South Siberia and Mongolia" (SSM), supporting this region as the "Inner Asian Homeland (IAH) of the pioneer carriers of Turkic languages" which subsequently expanded into Central Asia."
I would like you to direct me in deleting this wrong content that does not even bother about giving reference.
Kind regards,
Wikipedia user 131.104.23.89 (talk) 17:33, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
You are free to delete any unsourced assertion in any article at any time,but there is a ref at the end of the paragraph that might be intended to cover the whole paragraph. it's a whole lot better to try to discuss it first. step 1: add a {{Citation needed}} after the assertion. Step 2: add a section to the article's talk page requesting help to find a source. Step 3: wait about a week. Step 4: If there is no discussion, remove the material from the article. It is very important to avoid being contentious during all this mess: we are supposed to be trying to build an encyclopedia, not acting as battleground. It's especially important for you to do this if the other guy starts getting contentious. -Arch dude (talk) 18:18, 29 November 2024 (UTC)- It looks to me as if that is supported by the source cited at the end of the paragraph (Quote from the abstract: "However, western Turkic peoples sampled across West Eurasia shared an excess of long chromosomal tracts that are identical by descent (IBD) with populations from present-day South Siberia and Mongolia (SSM), an area where historians center a series of early Turkic and non-Turkic steppe polities.")
- But I haven't read it carefully.
- You certainly should bring this up on the talk page, as Arch dude suggests. ColinFine (talk) 18:21, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- The quotation in the highlighted text ("pioneer carriers", etc.) is taken from the paper cited at the end of the paragraph. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 19:33, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
Discussing unification of article and category title
Members of the Senegalese Lebu people are collected in Category:Lebou people. The different spelling is certainly not helpful. Where is a place to discuss which spelling should be used? --KnightMove (talk) 17:49, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- Probably in Talk:Lebu people. You could do it in Category talk:Lebou people, but I doubt if many people will see if there.
- There is a redirect Lebou people which directs to Lebu people so the difference is not a problem. But I agree it would be neater if they agreed. ColinFine (talk) 18:24, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
Swap article and redirect that differ only by capitalization
At present, the article is Wikiwoods and the redirect is WikiWoods. These capitalizations should be swapped. The German version is correct at w:de:WikiWoods. I tried moving the main page but the target exists — so catch 22. Can someone assist? TIA, RobbieIanMorrison (talk) 21:10, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- WP:RM/T is the place to request this. Lee Vilenski (talk • contribs) 21:14, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- @Lee Vilenski: Thanks, I'll head over there. RobbieIanMorrison (talk) 21:20, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
The citation I added does not show on the page (Inside Aircraft specs)
Hi all: The citation of my recent edit is not shown on the page after I saved (inside aircraft specs). Hopefully someone tells me what I've done wrong. Thanks! Now wiki (talk) 22:31, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- My guess would be that "combat range nmi" is not a valid field in {{Infobox aircraft}}. If you enter an invalid field the infobox will just ignore it. Just Step Sideways from this world ..... today 22:46, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- @Just Step Sideways The template in question is {{Aircraft specs}}, where these parameters are valid. As far as I can tell the ranges are showing correctly but it is the citation that is not. Is this because there is a single citation at the top of that section which is supposed to cover all the data? Mike Turnbull (talk) 22:54, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- Thx. But there is note #61 (IIRC) in the aircraft specs. Any thoughts? Now wiki (talk) 22:58, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- Thx. I checked, I believe it's a valid field. See here. Now wiki (talk) 22:57, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- @Now wiki: Some template parameters are processed in a way which doesn't allow references, e.g. if calculations on the value are performed like here to make conversions. If a template simply displays a parameter as it was written then references are allowed. PrimeHunter (talk) 23:49, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- Thx. Prob this is the reason. Any suggestion where should I put a citation? Now wiki (talk) 23:53, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- @Now wiki: See Template:Aircraft specs#Usage. It has already been fixed with
combat range note
.[1]. PrimeHunter (talk) 00:40, 30 November 2024 (UTC)- I see. Thx. Now wiki (talk) 00:45, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- @Now wiki: See Template:Aircraft specs#Usage. It has already been fixed with
- Thx. Prob this is the reason. Any suggestion where should I put a citation? Now wiki (talk) 23:53, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- @Now wiki: Some template parameters are processed in a way which doesn't allow references, e.g. if calculations on the value are performed like here to make conversions. If a template simply displays a parameter as it was written then references are allowed. PrimeHunter (talk) 23:49, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- @Just Step Sideways The template in question is {{Aircraft specs}}, where these parameters are valid. As far as I can tell the ranges are showing correctly but it is the citation that is not. Is this because there is a single citation at the top of that section which is supposed to cover all the data? Mike Turnbull (talk) 22:54, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
Search bar behavior while logged in on mobile
I've noticed some unusual behavior with the search bar when logged in on a mobile browser (Firefox on Android) and using the mobile view in the last couple of days. When I type search terms, the search bar populates a list of results as expected, but when I click on a result, the browser does not navigate to that page. Instead, it closes the search bar menu while leaving the search terms I typed in the bar the next time I open it.
Pressing Enter does still go to the first result (if it's an exact match) or the search page. The search bar works the way I expect when using the desktop view (on the same mobile browser) or when I am logged out.
I rarely use the mobile view, so I don't know whether this is new behavior. Is this a known issue, or is there something I can configure differently to avoid this? Opus 113 (talk) 23:03, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- I've seen similar behavior on the desktop Chrome, though it has to do with navigating to specific populated results with the arrow keys. JayCubby 00:17, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
need help with formatting a list in a wiki-article
please take a look at this page: Employment of autistic people.
In the Intro I am trying to add:
6. In addition, other studies showed, that students with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder, including average to above average language and academic skills, may be a risk for having their social competence deficits attributed to lack of effort rather than lack of ability.
but it comes out with a dot instead of 6. Any ideas why? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Walter Tau (talk • contribs) 23:32, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
- For a numbered list, use # instead of *. However, it shouldn't be part of that numbered list, which consists of 5 items sourced to a Forbes article. The source explains 5 items. Adding a sixth, cited to a different source, would be confusing and misleading. The content makes more sense in the Social skills section of the article and I've moved it there. Schazjmd (talk) 23:50, 29 November 2024 (UTC)
November 30
Help with watchlist
How do I get new account creations from the user creation log to stop appearing in my watchlist? I don't even know why this started happening in the first place. Sandcat555 (talk) 06:30, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- Hi @Sandcat555, you can customize what you see in your watchlist by applying filters. At the top of the page, click Active filters (if they are hidden, you'll have to click Show first). A pop-up menu of filters appears; scroll through to Type of change and deselect Account creations. Schazjmd (talk) 13:23, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- @Schazjmd Thanks, that fixes it. Sandcat555 (talk) 05:25, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
Vandalism help request from Gowthamaprabu
The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.
I have noticed some vandalism at Kanguva. Repeated Boxoffice figures are removed. Personal abuse on editor. Would an editor please assist me with fixing it? Thank you, Gowthamaprabu (talk) 08:02, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
Table attributes
Is it possible to make Template:Episode table sortable or collapsible? TipsyElephant (talk) 12:35, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
For instance, I have two tables in my sandbox and I want to make them the same. TipsyElephant (talk) 13:58, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- @TipsyElephant: A sortable option has been requested several times [2] but is not currently supported. PrimeHunter (talk) 16:18, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
Adding references
Hello Can you please point me to a wikihow on how to add references to a page?
thanks Ramanp75 (talk) 20:31, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- Hi @Ramanp75. You can start with Referencing for beginners. You might also take a look at User:Nick Moyes/Easier Referencing for Beginners, which includes a video. Schazjmd (talk) 20:50, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
Vandalism on my page
My name is Perne 2601:4C1:CB00:3BB:3849:9EAE:FA53:514D (talk) 20:59, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- Silly IP... You sort of don't have anything. Link to the page affected? 2601AC47 (talk·contribs·my rights) Isn't a IP anon 21:04, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- IP editor, can you be more specific? Perne lists three men, all born in the 1500s. TSventon (talk) 21:06, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- You need to be more specific about what you're talking about as none of the Perne related pages Andrew Perne, Andrew Perne (Puritan), nor Ralph Perne have seen any edits in several months, nor does it look like you have edited any of these, at least not under the IP address you used to post this help request. TiggerJay (talk) 03:39, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
I'm having trouble accessing a Talk page
When I try to use the Talk page I keep getting, The "reply" link cannot be used to reply to this comment. To reply, please use the full page editor by clicking "Edit source". How do I reply?
Thank you Krios101 (talk) 22:10, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- If you're unable to do so, it's because the comments' time and date are linked in diffs, and if they're not signed in advance or later broken, than you can't use the reply function (like I am). Moreover, I think the question was self-answered by yourself. 2601AC47 (talk·contribs·my rights) Isn't a IP anon 22:21, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- And btw, you can edit the source of any individual talk section. 2601AC47 (talk·contribs·my rights) Isn't a IP anon 22:22, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- If you would like to reply using [edit source], use a new line, followed by a colon (:) with your comment. Don't forget to sign your comment with
~~~~
. Myrealnamm (💬Let's talk · 📜My work) 22:28, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
Wikipedia:Contents/Portals is unreadable
A large part of the contents of Wikipedia:Contents/Portals is displaying white text on very pale green - even in dark mode! It is unreadable. CornflakeCancer reported this on the talk page on 20 November, but there has been no response. -- Verbarson talkedits 22:53, 30 November 2024 (UTC)
- It appears fine on my screen with a bunch of blue links on white text. It would seem as if perhaps either your browser or your theming might be impacting this by changing the link color away from blue. TiggerJay (talk) 03:36, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- I see the same white-on-green display when I use a private browser window (rules out any non-default WP preferences) with no special theming added (Firefox on a desktop computer). It seems like the underlying content and style is pulled from Wikipedia:Contents/Types layout. The most recent change was on 18 July 2024 by User:Jon (WMF), but the underlying styles are from Wikipedia:Contents/styles.css, whose most recent change was on 5 November 2024 by User:TheDJ. Both of those are noted to be related to dark-mode. The styles.css change appears to be the one that triggered this poor color effect. DMacks (talk) 09:38, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- Looks like it's been fixed via changes to styles.css. DMacks (talk) 15:53, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- I see the same white-on-green display when I use a private browser window (rules out any non-default WP preferences) with no special theming added (Firefox on a desktop computer). It seems like the underlying content and style is pulled from Wikipedia:Contents/Types layout. The most recent change was on 18 July 2024 by User:Jon (WMF), but the underlying styles are from Wikipedia:Contents/styles.css, whose most recent change was on 5 November 2024 by User:TheDJ. Both of those are noted to be related to dark-mode. The styles.css change appears to be the one that triggered this poor color effect. DMacks (talk) 09:38, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
December 1
Help about a media handout license
File:Condition of raided GISB-linked children's home, 11 Sept 2024.jpg this is a police media handout per these articles crediting the Royal Malaysia Police for the picture. Can I use it without fair use? Does the crediting of the police by multiple media make it able to be converted to free use?
- https://www.nst.com.my/news/crime-courts/2024/09/1104471/updated-igp-20-raided-welfare-homes-tied-gisb
- https://themalaysianreserve.com/2024/09/15/pdrm-religious-agencies-urged-to-act-swiftly-decisively-on-exploitation-of-religion-issues/
- https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2024/09/12/police-raids-on-homes-shock-residents
- https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2024/09/11/global-ikhwan-denies-exploiting-children-vows-to-cooperate-with-probe/
(and more)
All of the articles above credit the Royal Malaysia Police for the picture. Thanks! N niyaz (talk) 01:20, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- I checked the Licensing, and it does say that it could be non-free. But, as the uploader, I can only recommend that you check out Wikipedia:Use rationale examples#Historical photographs. 2601AC47 (talk·contribs·my rights) Isn't a IP anon 01:59, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- Hello, N niyaz. The best place to get expert advice about this image is Wikipedia:Media copyright questions. As a general rule, widespread publication of an image in a press release does not change its copyright status. Cullen328 (talk) 21:30, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
Editing Zionism
- The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section. A summary of the conclusions reached follows.
- This is not a place for discussion pertaining to a contentious topic. As 331dot noted, take it there. 2601AC47 (talk·contribs·my rights) Isn't a IP anon 11:56, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
Hello. I am trying to edit the page "Zionism," which is extremely biased (and only told from the pro-Palestinian perspective). How do I edit it? Eisabelle (talk) 10:09, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- I wanted to add that the options for editing the page are never available, so it appears that someone is controlling it. Eisabelle (talk) 10:11, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- As can be seen in the top-right corner of the article, it has a WP:BLUELOCK. You can join the discussions at Talk:Zionism or start new ones, but read the previous ones first. Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 10:23, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- Eisabelle You are not permitted to do so, as you are not extended-confirmed(your account does not have 500 edits). I'm going to post more information about this on your user talk page- there are special rules when making edits related to the Israeli-Arab conflict. 331dot (talk) 10:12, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
Semi-protected edit request on 1 December 2024
Hey Wiki Team,
There are these two articles, State space (computer science) and Eight queens puzzle, that give the possible arrangements of eight queens on an 8×8 board as 64!/(8! × (64 - 8)!) instead of 64!/(64 - 8)! = 64×63×62×61×60×59×58×57 = 1.7846298763776×10¹⁴.
Please help in updating them.
I have an account, but editing proved to be daunting, as I am not au fait with the wiki markup language.
Sincerely, TPJ. 197.185.213.201 (talk) 12:23, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- Hello. If you have an improvement to suggest to an article, but for whatever reason you are not confident in editing the article, the best course is to suggest the change by opening a New Topic on the article's talk page - here Talk:State space (computer science) and Talk:Eight queens puzzle.
- I think you'll at the least need to explain why you think the given number is wrong and yours is correct.
- Ideally, such a calculation should not be done within the article but cited from a reliable source - otherwise it is original research, which is not allowed. I have tagged the section in the State space article accordingly. ColinFine (talk) 17:33, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- It seems to me that the number given, 4,426,165,368, is correct. Maybe you're assuming that the eight queens are all different. But that's irrelevant; as ColinFine says, what matters here is whether you can find a reliable published source for your claim. Maproom (talk) 17:39, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
Primary or secondary sources
Are official government websites considered a 'primary' source or a 'secondary source'? Sangsangaplaz (Talk to me! I'm willing to help) 14:37, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- Technically, by default, I believe they're primary sources, since they usually are in public domain and/or official statements, addresses,
accounts written by people who are directly involved
, etc.; I'd check out Using primary sources to see where it would fit. 2601AC47 (talk·contribs·my rights) Isn't a IP anon 14:46, 1 December 2024 (UTC) - Like all sources, it depends on what you're using it for. In most cases, it will be primary like 2601AC47 said. But sometimes government websites will have historical information like a short biography of a historical figure from the country, which would be a secondary source (although for something like this there are probably better sources anyway). Thebiguglyalien (talk) 21:01, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- Sadly there aren't. I was planning on using them as sources for List of governors of Mizoram to make it FL but I don't think that's possible. Not anymore. Sangsangaplaz (Talk to me! I'm willing to help) 09:38, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- Sangsangaplaz if you have a detailed question about FL rules, WT:FL might be a better venue. I was recently involved with the First women admitted to degrees at the University of Oxford FL nomination, where the contents of the list section are referenced to the Oxford University Gazette, a primary source. TSventon (talk) 10:24, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- Lemme ask there. Sangsangaplaz (Talk to me! I'm willing to help) 11:48, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- Sangsangaplaz if you have a detailed question about FL rules, WT:FL might be a better venue. I was recently involved with the First women admitted to degrees at the University of Oxford FL nomination, where the contents of the list section are referenced to the Oxford University Gazette, a primary source. TSventon (talk) 10:24, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- Sadly there aren't. I was planning on using them as sources for List of governors of Mizoram to make it FL but I don't think that's possible. Not anymore. Sangsangaplaz (Talk to me! I'm willing to help) 09:38, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
Spacing
I'm having trouble with the spacing on a page, as I added a blockquote, but then it caused a paragraph lower down to be stuck to the paragraph right under the blockquote, and it shows them as separated in the source editing, but in the visual editing the two are stuck together, and hitting the return key once to separate them does nothing, only when it's hit twice and now they're too far apart. Reaper1945 (talk) 15:21, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- I believe I fixed it now actually. Thanks in advance regardless. Reaper1945 (talk) 15:25, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- Anyway, you may report this issue (one of a handful, I'm afraid) at mw:VisualEditor/Feedback. 2601AC47 (talk·contribs·my rights) Isn't a IP anon 15:29, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
[[ ]] becomes ʽʼ when typed
I'm having an issue where the double brackets for links [[ ]] become ʽʼ when I type them consecutively. To get it to work properly, I've been adding spaces between them when I type then removing that space.
eg. [[ ]] becomes ʽʼ
Is there some sort of name/term for whatever is happening? Spagooder (talk) 20:50, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- Are you on the visual editor by any chance? Lee Vilenski (talk • contribs) 20:51, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- I switch between the two but I prefer the visual editor. Spagooder (talk) 20:56, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- It happens in the editor summary on the visual or the source editor. Spagooder (talk) 20:58, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- @Spagooder: I haven't heard of this. It sounds like a feature of your device or browser, possibly a browser extension. Does it also happen at other websites? Some software allows users to produce certain characters which are not on a keyboard by typing special combinations of characters. This may be an example of that. PrimeHunter (talk) 21:37, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- Only noticed it on WP, it's happened on several different computers that I've used, I don't have any plug-ins for Wikipedia. Didn't happen on my phone when I tried the desktop editor just now. Honestly at a loss, it just started one day. Spagooder (talk) 22:47, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- @Spagooder: Does it happen at https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Example&action=edit&safemode=1? Does it happen if you log out? Can you try saving and linking an example edit where it happens? PrimeHunter (talk) 23:27, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- Only noticed it on WP, it's happened on several different computers that I've used, I don't have any plug-ins for Wikipedia. Didn't happen on my phone when I tried the desktop editor just now. Honestly at a loss, it just started one day. Spagooder (talk) 22:47, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- @Spagooder: I haven't heard of this. It sounds like a feature of your device or browser, possibly a browser extension. Does it also happen at other websites? Some software allows users to produce certain characters which are not on a keyboard by typing special combinations of characters. This may be an example of that. PrimeHunter (talk) 21:37, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
Notability for Films
Recently I wish to create pages for films which I feel deserve to be on this site. Can a film which is rated on IMDB, or other sources be notable?
Here are my interests on including certain films:
I am not associated to these films but wish that these being included on this site. Aitzaz Imtiaz (talk) 21:26, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- Hi @Aitzaz Imtiaz. The Wikipedia:Notability (films) guideline can help you determine whether there should be an article about a film. You might also find Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Film to be useful. (By the way, IMDB is not a reliable source for Wikipedia articles.) Hope that helps! Schazjmd (talk) 21:39, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
Layout to fix in a banner
At Wikipedia:Categories for discussion/Speedy, the layout of the backlog banner is in disarray due to the banner not being above the {{Deletion debates}} template.
There are some '<includeonly>' and '<noinclude>' parameters at the top of the page, so I am not sure what is the best way to fix the banner problem, I am too afraid I may break something.
Could someone please help? Veverve (talk) 22:36, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- @Veverve: {{backlog}} says "This page has a backlog ..." It refers to what is further down on the page itself and not what is linked in {{Deletion debates}} so I think it would be confusing to display it above that template. PrimeHunter (talk) 23:19, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- @PrimeHunter: the banners should not be compressed like that, as it makes them very difficult to read. See how such a banner is correctly displayed at: Wikipedia:Redirects for discussion.
- Thus, the banner at Wikipedia:Categories for discussion/Speedy should be fixed. Veverve (talk) 23:31, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- @Veverve: I thought you meant directly above {{Deletion debates}} with the same width. The page looked OK on my desktop screeen but not in a narrow window. Is [3] OK? PrimeHunter (talk) 23:52, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- Yes, much better, thank you! Veverve (talk) 23:57, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
- @Veverve: I thought you meant directly above {{Deletion debates}} with the same width. The page looked OK on my desktop screeen but not in a narrow window. Is [3] OK? PrimeHunter (talk) 23:52, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
December 2
Is the US National Weather Service a primary source?
The National Weather Service is by no means unreliable but WP:PRIMARYSOURCE states that primary sources should be avoided in many cases. Obviously, the tornadoes themselves aren't writing editorials about how great they are, but almost every other source for US severe weather knowledge is going off of what the NWS reports. Should the NWS be considered a primary or secondary source for their reporting on severe weather events? (Also, if they aren't, there are a lot (probably thousands) of articles that heavily directly cite them... so retroactively implementing primary source considerations might be a bit of a pain.) Departure– (talk) 00:26, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- Personally I will disagree with classifying weather reports by government agencies as primary sources. Even assuming that they are, based on Policy 1 ("Primary sources that have been reputably published may be used in Wikipedia, but only with care, because it is easy to misuse them.") and 3 ("A primary source may be used on Wikipedia only to make straightforward, descriptive statements of facts that can be verified by any educated person with access to the primary source but without further, specialized knowledge.") of WP:PRIMARY, it seems that presentation of these weather data would be acceptable in Wikipedia articles. Tutwakhamoe (talk) 04:41, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- Are they the ones conducting the raw research and publishing it? Then yes, those are primary sources for their findings. A secondary source is one that reviews primary research/findings and uses them to produce interpretation/analysis. It's totally fine to use primary sources to fill in basic details. But if an article is predominantly based on sourcing like this without any proper analysis of its historical significance? Then we've encountered the Wikipedia:Existence ≠ Notability problem and there's probably no justification to have an individual article for it. Thebiguglyalien (talk) 06:10, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- Like other US federal agencies, the raw data and the algorithms to process it are PD. If you don't like the "primary" source, you can verify by creating the maps yourself, easier than you think. And if you don't trust the data or the algorithms either... Didn't the feds create the Florida hurricane? Jimfbleak - talk to me? 09:09, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
Press template not displaying all
The "This article has been mentioned by multiple media organizations:" template at Talk:Asian News International has 2 items in the wiki-text, 31 and 32, that don't show up in the saved template, and I can't figure out why. Help? Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 11:18, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- Gråbergs Gråa Sång That is a feature, Template:Press says
Up to 30 sources can be added to the template.
I have split the last two press items into a second press template. TSventon (talk) 12:52, 2 December 2024 (UTC)- Live and learn. Thanks! Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 13:00, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
my edits get autoreverted automatically - all edits dissapear
thie issue first happened on Nov 27; i edited a few articles since then and the issue is persistent: anytime i make an edit (grammar, add references etc) i see the changes in preview and they are visible but as soon as i publish it, any changes disappear. the log says that the autorevert is manual which i have to click to undo. this never happened before. i never missclicked abything, my profile does not have any bans or warnings... if anyone has any idea on whats up - do let me know, thank you!
attaching a few articles where you can view the logs for more:
Space011 (talk) 13:22, 2 December 2024 (UTC) (formatted by CiaPan (talk) 13:46, 2 December 2024 (UTC))
- @Space011 Looking at your edit-history, [4], for some reason, you have reverted yourself manually a few times, starting November 26. You didn't before that. How/why this happens, I assume unintentionally, I can't say. Maybe someone else has a guess. Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 13:47, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- @Space011: The edit history of articles indicate your own actions tagged as Manual revert. This may happen e.g. when you step back through the viewing history in your browser – when you switch to some view which resulted for example from a Preview action, the browser may have to fetch the old temporary version of the page somewhere in the editing process. Then the browser should warn you it needs to resubmit the editing form to obtain that temporary version. If you accept it, you may inadvertently commit an edit and (re)store some old, possibly original, version of the page. Of course, I'm just guessing, but... do you sometimes use the browser's 'back' button after editing an article? --CiaPan (talk) 13:57, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
Articles not corresponding with each other - conflicting information on all four.
I am currently looking at four different articles, none of which correspond with the others. Information in those four articles is not the same, and I am trying to work out what to do with them.
The articles are: List of presidents of the Assembly of Madrid, Enrique Ossorio, Isabel Díaz Ayuso and Next Madrilenian regional election. The problems are:
- Enrique Ossorio's article lists him as the 12th president of the Assembly of Madrid, since 2023, but also lists Isabel Díaz Ayuso as the President at the same time. However, the List of presidents of the Assembly of Madrid has him as the incumbent President.
- Isabel Díaz Ayuso's article lists her as the president of the Assembly of Madrid, but she doesn't appear in the list of presidents at all.
- The Next Madrilenian regional election is for the 14th assembly, but there is no information as to the existence of the 13th assembly.
In short, I am now very confused, and trying to work out what to do with this, because those articles need updating, but I don't know where to start, or how.
Help is needed, preferably from someone with a knowledge of Spanish politics.
Thank you, Dane|Geld 15:04, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- DaneGeld, Wikipedia:Reference desk/Humanities might be able to help. In this case, I recommend checking es Wikipedia articles if the en articles are unclear. As far as I can see
- The en article and es:Anexo:Presidentes de la Asamblea de Madrid (via Google translate) list Concepción Dancausa Treviño as the president of the 6th and 7th assemblies, so Ossorio can be described as the 12th president of the Assembly of Madrid, but the assembly is the 13th and the next assembly will be the 14th.
- Díaz Ayuso is President of the Community of Madrid, a different post. TSventon (talk) 15:24, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
When/How to Split a Particular List Article
Currently, the "List of Eastern Orthodox saints' article contains over 900 entries in its table and is over 315,000 bytes in size. On certain internet connections, this takes quite long to load, not to mention it may take a lot of scrolling to find a certain entry, particularly for mobile users. Furthermore, I plan to add over 2000 more applicable entries to the list in the future; obviously the article will have to be split into 2 or possibly more articles to contain these entries in a navigable and efficient manner.
My questions are, when and how should I split the article? Although the current article is quite large enough by itself, splitting into 2 now seems a useless endeavour as they will be likely be need to be splitted again considering a grand total of ~ 3000 entries is a lot to share between only 2 articles.
It may be noted that I'm currently the only major contributor to the article in the past year and when I don't edit it, no one really edits it except bots and the occasional user. Despite this lack of editing enthusiasm, the article brings a relatively substantial amount of page views, despite not many other articles linking to it.
Thanks in advance. 𝔅𝔦𝔰-𝔖𝔢𝔯𝔧𝔢𝔱𝔞? 16:21, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- Take a look at List of military aid to Ukraine during the Russo-Ukrainian War; it has quick links by letter(perhaps an interim solution). If a split is needed, alphabetically would be the best option, perhaps at the midpoint(if half are below the letter H, and half above, split there) 331dot (talk) 17:00, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
- An alphabetical list of that size could certainly use an index. I have added it.[5] PrimeHunter (talk) 18:11, 2 December 2024 (UTC)
Naming the deceased
If I make an article about a disaster that kills only one, is it appropriate to mention the name for that individual that is widely reported in media? Departure– (talk) 17:53, 2 December 2024 (UTC)