Difference between revisions of "Help:Editing"
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| + | '''Editing policy has changed immensely''' in recent days. Please skim through this help page, especially if you have been made into a sysop. | ||
| + | |||
==General== | ==General== | ||
Before you take a stab at editing this site, make sure you understand how to edit. Here are a few tips: | Before you take a stab at editing this site, make sure you understand how to edit. Here are a few tips: | ||
| − | * | + | * '''Use correct spelling:''' This removes the hassle of moving poorly spelled pages. |
| − | * | + | * '''Use correct grammar:''' Try to make things understandable; unless you're going to be writing the entire article in completely unreadable chatspeek, don't do it at all. |
| − | * | + | * '''Don't comment on articles:''' There's a reason that there's a tab marked "discussion" on every page. This rule does not apply if the comment is for clarification or uncertain content. |
| − | * | + | * '''Learn about Wiki style:''' Wiki has its own editing style; go check Wikipedia's editing help for more information about linking, images, etc. This especially applies to headings. Don't use a <nowiki>"=="</nowiki> header followed by a <nowiki>"===="</nowiki> header; this screws up the table of contents. |
| − | * | + | * '''Keep pictures small:''' This site is privately payed for, and an overabundance of pictures will hike up costs. Keep image uploads to the site small, also. |
| − | * | + | * '''Do not erase pages:''' Only admins can get rid of pages; however, anyone can wipe them clean. Don't do this! Most pages have a purpose; if a page has been spammed, please delete that. Also, if for some reason you must erase a page, summarize a reason for it. |
| − | * | + | * '''Do not vandalize pages:''' Annoying vandalizations and deformatting of pages will result in bannage. Similarly, obvious spam (which tends to be enclosed in divs) results in immediate banning. |
| − | The best way to learn how to edit a page is to read [ | + | The best way to learn how to edit a page is to read [[Wikipedia:How_to_edit_a_page Wikipedia's guide]]. |
==RealCTY Editing Style== | ==RealCTY Editing Style== | ||
| − | ===New Pages=== | + | ===New Pages, Stubs, and Redirects (NEW!)=== |
| − | + | Please do not create stub articles; if you have a short spiel about something CTY-relevant, put it under the correct category in the [[Lexicon]], unless the page is already on the [[Special:Wantedpages]] list. Also, article subjects that could be condensed into a single page should be. A prime example is the [[Cucumber Cult]] page, in which many individual games were merged into the group which they were most commonly played in. | |
| − | + | Feel free to take things from the Lexicon and expand on them in full-fledged pages, though. | |
| − | + | Please create redirects with good judgment. If you really think that someone is going to spell "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" or "Istanbul" as "Istenbil," you probably don't belong here. | |
| − | When a page is created, bold the title of the page. This is done by linking to the page (using brackets). If you want to alter the plurality or something, use a piped link instead of, say, bold | + | ===Titles (NEW!)=== |
| + | |||
| + | Please correctly format all book, song, movie, game, etc. titles, whether by using quotes or by italicizing. | ||
| + | |||
| + | When a page is created, bold the title of the page. This is done by linking to the page (using brackets). If you want to alter the plurality or something, use a piped link instead of, say, bold markup. Wikipedia simply uses bold wiki markup, but I like initial links... so use them. | ||
===Categories=== | ===Categories=== | ||
| − | If you do create a new page, please categorize it properly. Put it under a site or two if applicable (if it's all sites, don't put it under any sites). Categorize it as a Game, an Activity, a Student Group, a Traditions, etc | + | If you do create a new page, please categorize it properly. Put it under a site or two if applicable (if it's all sites, don't put it under any sites). Categorize it as a Game, an Activity, a Student Group, a Traditions, etc. Things that don't fall into any category go under "General." |
Try to keep the categories at the bottom of the page to keep things organized. | Try to keep the categories at the bottom of the page to keep things organized. | ||
| Line 33: | Line 39: | ||
===Links=== | ===Links=== | ||
| − | Unlike Wikipedia, this site is relatively small, so linking is not necessary. However, if you like adding links (which is great), | + | Unlike Wikipedia, this site is relatively small, so linking is not ''absolutely'' necessary - it is, however, encouraged. However, if you like adding links (which is great), keep it to only one link to each page in any one article (e.g., if Lancaster is mentioned twice, only link to the site page once, preferably the first or most important time). |
| − | ===HTML=== | + | ===HTML and Wiki Markup (NEW!)=== |
| − | Make sure you understand Wiki's editing format. | + | Make sure you understand Wiki's editing format. '''Note that wiki markup (using <nowiki>'''text''' for bold and ''text'' for italics</nowiki> is preferred to using HTML tags. Also, note that "br" tags are unnecessary when making a new paragraph, but they are for a single line break. Please place "br" tags at the ends of lines, rather than at the beginning of the next line. Also, close your tags ("br /"). |
| − | === | + | ===Subpages and Page Organization (NEW!)=== |
| − | + | The so-called "Page Series" have been removed from the site with the advent of templates and the coming of portals. Page Series were implemented in order to better organize the site for mass edits and for finding pages. With templates, however, this is unnecessary, and it's better to name pages intuitively. | |
| − | + | The fake prefixes of Course:, Site:, and Song: have been completely removed. | |
| − | + | The fake prefixes of Hall of Fame:, Hall of Shame:, and Canon: (for Canon:CAR only) have had their colons converted to slashes. Therefore, the individual pages are now considered subpages of the main pages. | |
| − | |||
| − | |||
===Userpages=== | ===Userpages=== | ||
Userpages are meant for the pages of users. If you want to create a page about a person, that's fine, but there are two restrictions: | Userpages are meant for the pages of users. If you want to create a page about a person, that's fine, but there are two restrictions: | ||
| + | |||
# If you are making a page about yourself, create an account and put your info on your userpage if possible. Do not make an article about you if you have an account. Also, don't redirect an article with your name to your userpage; just change all existing links to re-link to your userpage. | # If you are making a page about yourself, create an account and put your info on your userpage if possible. Do not make an article about you if you have an account. Also, don't redirect an article with your name to your userpage; just change all existing links to re-link to your userpage. | ||
# If you are making a page about somebody else, do not give the title the prefix "User:". This is completely unnecessary, and also disrupts the naming system, especially since it leads to the belief in nonexistant users, as well as causing possible problems if a user creates an account under that name. | # If you are making a page about somebody else, do not give the title the prefix "User:". This is completely unnecessary, and also disrupts the naming system, especially since it leads to the belief in nonexistant users, as well as causing possible problems if a user creates an account under that name. | ||
| Line 65: | Line 70: | ||
===Placeholders=== | ===Placeholders=== | ||
| − | Placeholders are fine. Stubs are not. If you want to link to a page that hasn't been created yet, that's fine, but don't create the page and just write, "This page does not exist" on it. Try not to link to pages if you have no intention of making them | + | Placeholders are fine. Stubs are not. If you want to link to a page that hasn't been created yet, that's fine, but don't create the page and just write, "This page does not exist" on it. Try not to link to pages if you have no intention of making them. |
===Security=== | ===Security=== | ||
Revision as of 03:03, 3 July 2008
Editing policy has changed immensely in recent days. Please skim through this help page, especially if you have been made into a sysop.
General
Before you take a stab at editing this site, make sure you understand how to edit. Here are a few tips:
- Use correct spelling: This removes the hassle of moving poorly spelled pages.
- Use correct grammar: Try to make things understandable; unless you're going to be writing the entire article in completely unreadable chatspeek, don't do it at all.
- Don't comment on articles: There's a reason that there's a tab marked "discussion" on every page. This rule does not apply if the comment is for clarification or uncertain content.
- Learn about Wiki style: Wiki has its own editing style; go check Wikipedia's editing help for more information about linking, images, etc. This especially applies to headings. Don't use a "==" header followed by a "====" header; this screws up the table of contents.
- Keep pictures small: This site is privately payed for, and an overabundance of pictures will hike up costs. Keep image uploads to the site small, also.
- Do not erase pages: Only admins can get rid of pages; however, anyone can wipe them clean. Don't do this! Most pages have a purpose; if a page has been spammed, please delete that. Also, if for some reason you must erase a page, summarize a reason for it.
- Do not vandalize pages: Annoying vandalizations and deformatting of pages will result in bannage. Similarly, obvious spam (which tends to be enclosed in divs) results in immediate banning.
The best way to learn how to edit a page is to read Wikipedia:How_to_edit_a_page Wikipedia's guide.
RealCTY Editing Style
New Pages, Stubs, and Redirects (NEW!)
Please do not create stub articles; if you have a short spiel about something CTY-relevant, put it under the correct category in the Lexicon, unless the page is already on the Special:Wantedpages list. Also, article subjects that could be condensed into a single page should be. A prime example is the Cucumber Cult page, in which many individual games were merged into the group which they were most commonly played in.
Feel free to take things from the Lexicon and expand on them in full-fledged pages, though.
Please create redirects with good judgment. If you really think that someone is going to spell "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" or "Istanbul" as "Istenbil," you probably don't belong here.
Titles (NEW!)
Please correctly format all book, song, movie, game, etc. titles, whether by using quotes or by italicizing.
When a page is created, bold the title of the page. This is done by linking to the page (using brackets). If you want to alter the plurality or something, use a piped link instead of, say, bold markup. Wikipedia simply uses bold wiki markup, but I like initial links... so use them.
Categories
If you do create a new page, please categorize it properly. Put it under a site or two if applicable (if it's all sites, don't put it under any sites). Categorize it as a Game, an Activity, a Student Group, a Traditions, etc. Things that don't fall into any category go under "General."
Try to keep the categories at the bottom of the page to keep things organized.
Links
Unlike Wikipedia, this site is relatively small, so linking is not absolutely necessary - it is, however, encouraged. However, if you like adding links (which is great), keep it to only one link to each page in any one article (e.g., if Lancaster is mentioned twice, only link to the site page once, preferably the first or most important time).
HTML and Wiki Markup (NEW!)
Make sure you understand Wiki's editing format. Note that wiki markup (using '''text''' for bold and ''text'' for italics is preferred to using HTML tags. Also, note that "br" tags are unnecessary when making a new paragraph, but they are for a single line break. Please place "br" tags at the ends of lines, rather than at the beginning of the next line. Also, close your tags ("br /").
Subpages and Page Organization (NEW!)
The so-called "Page Series" have been removed from the site with the advent of templates and the coming of portals. Page Series were implemented in order to better organize the site for mass edits and for finding pages. With templates, however, this is unnecessary, and it's better to name pages intuitively.
The fake prefixes of Course:, Site:, and Song: have been completely removed.
The fake prefixes of Hall of Fame:, Hall of Shame:, and Canon: (for Canon:CAR only) have had their colons converted to slashes. Therefore, the individual pages are now considered subpages of the main pages.
Userpages
Userpages are meant for the pages of users. If you want to create a page about a person, that's fine, but there are two restrictions:
- If you are making a page about yourself, create an account and put your info on your userpage if possible. Do not make an article about you if you have an account. Also, don't redirect an article with your name to your userpage; just change all existing links to re-link to your userpage.
- If you are making a page about somebody else, do not give the title the prefix "User:". This is completely unnecessary, and also disrupts the naming system, especially since it leads to the belief in nonexistant users, as well as causing possible problems if a user creates an account under that name.
Lexicon
Keep things alphabetical, and brief. Do not simply copy an article onto the Lexicon. Especially refrain from doing the opposite, and copying Lexicon stubs into full-fledged article pages; this is unnecessary and becomes a hassle.
Userpages
Make userpages instead of articles about users.
Placeholders
Placeholders are fine. Stubs are not. If you want to link to a page that hasn't been created yet, that's fine, but don't create the page and just write, "This page does not exist" on it. Try not to link to pages if you have no intention of making them.
Security
Editing, creating pages, etc. has been limited to logged-in users. This makes it easier to warn and track users who have vandalized pages, have made formatting errors, etc. Sorry for any inconveniences caused by this, but you ought to make accounts anyway. Yaaaay for accounts!
Other Stuff
Summer 2007
The new catalog for Summer 2007 has been posted on the web.
http://cty.jhu.edu/summer/catalogs/oscatalog.html
Post-CTY Depression
Hey all! The new forum for the online CTY community will be at Post-CTY Depression. It's more active, and has its own domain name. So, if anybody needs a forum, go there. Hopefully, it'll be more solidly established after next session.
End-of-Summer Announcement
Hey all!
School has started for pretty much all of the RealCTY community. Therefore, since everyone has less time on their hands, I would like to request that nobody make any large-scale changes to the site. Please continue editing, but try to keep new categories and the such to a minimum. Also, when making new pages, make sure first that it would not be better off in the Hall of Fame/Shame or Lexicon. If it doesn't seem to fit into a specific category (i.e., a non-site category), it probably belongs somewhere else. Stubs should be put in the Lexicon under the correct site and in alphabetical order, instead of being made into new pages.
Have a great year, everyone!
Header of the Day
If you haven't noticed, I take great pleasure in changing the header of this page. So, instead of changing at midnight each day, I'm got a "Quote of the Day" feature added. If you have any headers you would like to have possibly appear, put it on the Talk page. Make sure it starts with "From RealCTY," unless the point is that it doesn't.
