Wikipedia:Help desk
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September 2
[edit]Biological
[edit]Who’s the father of Ingrid child in Vikings movie 105.113.40.254 (talk) 00:04, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Hi, this isn't a general help desk, this is to ask about using Wikipedia. 331dot (talk) 00:06, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- We have articles on two movies called The Viking, two called Viking, and one called The Vikings: we don't have an article on one called "Vikings", and I presume you aren't asking about the two TV series (one documentary, one drama) called Vikings, or the latter's sequel Vikings: Valhalla (see Viking (disambiguation)). There appears to be a further recent film Vikings: Revenge and/or The Viking Revenge about which we do not yet have an article.
- Please ask again at the Entertainment Reference desk and specify which movie (or series) you are referring to. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 94.1.209.45 (talk) 05:01, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
Referencing errors on Melicytus orarius
[edit]Reference help requested.
I find it difficult to parse the error which the bot noted that I introduced. I don't understand what is wrong, and the bare url page that was shared to explain the error was very long and confusing.
Thanks, Richlitt (talk) 00:44, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Does the help link at the reference (permalink) not answer your question? If not, what is it about the help text is not helpful?
- —Trappist the monk (talk) 00:53, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- The error message said "Missing or empty |title=". I've fixed it by adding the title of the page you cited. Maproom (talk) 07:21, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
Death of Ann Grocott
[edit]I am the daughter of Ann Grocott. Sadly Ann passed away on 7th April 2024. I would like her Wikipedia page updated. As her sole executor, I hold the Grant of Probate and am able to provided documentation to support this, such as a copy of her death certificate. Could you please advise what you require to update her Wikipedia page. Kind Regards, Nicolle Fogarty Nikkifogarty (talk) 02:03, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- It does not matter if you are her daugher or not, can you cite this claim? MacaroniPizzaHotDog (talk) 03:16, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- I am sorry to hear this, Nikkifogarty. As MacaroniPizzaHotDog suggests, the standard way to effect such an edit is to cite a reputable published source for it. As I look, I find this Facebook post. We normally avoid citing Facebook posts, but at a stretch we might be able to use this one, as its writer/poster seems to know what she's talking about here. But let's put it aside for now. Can you point us to any published reference for your mother's death? This wouldn't have to be on the web; it could be on paper only. (If not, there's yet another avenue.) -- Hoary (talk) 04:17, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Nikkifogarty: I'm very sorry for your loss. One option is that you could send a scan or photo of a death certificate to info-en-v
wikimedia.org. That mailbox is staffed by volunteers and there is at times a backlog, so the response may not be immediate. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 16:05, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Nikkifogarty: I'm also sorry for your loss. If an obituary was published in any newspaper, you may use it as a reference. It does not need to be a major newspaper, and it does not need to be online. -Arch dude (talk) 22:19, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
BLP policy
[edit]@Hoary and Pigsonthewing: would it be possible to add some advice to WP:BLP about this? There was some inconclusive discussion here in February 2024. TSventon (talk) 16:45, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- That's not really a suitable page to which article subjects or their representatives should be directed. We have WP:About you and WP:FAQAS. Note that a death certificate is not "self published". Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 16:52, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Thank you for asking, TSventon, but I've nothing to add to the response above. -- Hoary (talk) 21:57, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
Correct etiquette for problematic talk page comment
[edit]I was adding a talk post to the Talk:History of espionage and the only other comment feels somewhat racist.The title is "Excessive use of foreign words." They are arguing that the use of foreign words such as "shinobi" should be removed. I feel that I don't have the authority to remove it as a novice wikipedia editor, but it also feels like the kind of thing that should be removed. What is the best course of action when you see something that feels borderline and needs a second opinion? Spicygarbage (talk) 04:02, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- You might be interested in Wikipedia:Offensive speech#Dealing with offensive speech. It doesn't look bad enough for {{redacted}}, and remember to assume good faith, they might just not understand those words. You can just reply to the comment, letting them know why it could be racist. Other editors who watchlist the page may intervene after, and the OP might retract, fix their mistake or clarify.
- Don't remove the comment; only do so in cases of blantant personal attacks, vandalism or trolling. You can read more at WP:OTHERSCOMMENTS. Have a good day! win8x (talking | spying) 04:22, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- The writer seems to be making a plea for simple, unpretentious language. It's a reasonable point. I haven't bothered to check if the examples given really are there (e.g. if shinobi actually appears); if not, this should be pointed out in the response. Assuming for a moment that yes, the article is indeed riddled with fancy language, I don't think the writer makes the plea either persuasively or very helpfully, but I don't find the message offensive or racist in the slightest. I see no reason to remove it. -- Hoary (talk) 04:27, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- The writer would, I think, have a point if these foreign language words (they instance "mstovaris, shinobi, Pochtecas, quimitchin, etc.") were used without any explanation (I for one had never encountered any of them before), but it does appear that they are all either wikilinked to relevant articles or explained within the text: if any are not, however, they should be. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 94.1.209.45 (talk) 05:23, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
AfC
[edit]So, if I understand correctly, any undisclosed paid company can WP:BOGOF? Just make a draft about a notable person full of promo and fluff, have another account ignore much of the content review steps and publish it to mainspace and then if nothing happens within 90 days it cannot be returned to draft status and we need to have a full AfD (which will fail because the person is notable and AfD is not cleanup) so the only option left is a full rewrite by a neutral Wikipedian who does not care about the subject of the article and probably knows nothing about it so they have to waste a lot of time doing research (or ignore the fact that the horrible article exists, which is what 99% seem to do, which exacerbates the problem).
I have seen this loophole been exploited quite a few times already, and its probably the tip of the iceberg. So we need to be able to return trash back to draft. If it went through AfC (which is meaningless as quality control) and how old it is (it can take a long time until a volunteer notices the article who is willing to fix the problems) should be irrelevant. Polygnotus (talk) 07:21, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
I must be missing something, right? Is it really this easy to publish trash into the mainspace and have everyone ignore it?
Can we just delete WP:NOTBACKDOOR because it, ironically, is used as a backdoor, not for deletion but by UPE and COI editors?
It was added here based on this but that was clearly a bad idea that backfired spectacularly.
Pinging @WhatamIdoing: because they probably know about these things. Polygnotus (talk) 07:21, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- I haven't looked into what you are describing, but it seems that you are calling for a change of policy. If so, that would be better done either on the talk page of one of the pages you cite, or at the WP:village pump. ColinFine (talk) 10:18, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @ColinFine: Not yet, I am trying to understand the situation. Polygnotus (talk) 15:56, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Polygnotus: Your post incudes several assumptions, not least "no one finds it within 90 days". Do you have evidence of all this actually happening? Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 15:19, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Pigsonthewing: Yes, of course. But I am trying to understand the situation in general, not talking about a specific set of articles. Polygnotus (talk) 15:56, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Then please share the evidence with us; not so that we can "talk about a specific set of articles", but in order that we can see and understand the processes involved. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 16:21, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Pigsonthewing: If I actually want to change policy (which is not my cup of tea, to put it mildly) I will probably have to make a list of examples, which will take a long time, and I will have to dig into the history of each of the articles I suspect have this history (which again will take a long time). For now I am just trying to see if my understanding of the situation is correct. Polygnotus (talk) 16:30, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Note that I made this edit. Polygnotus (talk) 16:31, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Then please share the evidence with us; not so that we can "talk about a specific set of articles", but in order that we can see and understand the processes involved. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 16:21, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Pigsonthewing: Yes, of course. But I am trying to understand the situation in general, not talking about a specific set of articles. Polygnotus (talk) 15:56, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- You are wrong, to the extent that none of this demands "a full rewrite by a neutral Wikipedian".
- A perfectly reasonable response to such a situation is to quickly WP:STUBIFY the article. If they're going to dump self-promoting puffery in the mainspace, then we can knock it down to something as small, boring, and non-promotional as "WhatamIdoing's Gas Station is a fuel station in Smallville.[1][2][3][4]" Keep all the notability-showing sources (but feel free to remove press releases, corporate web pages, etc.) and then move on to more interesting or worthy editing. Doing this is often quicker and easier than a fight at AFD.
- Another approach that's frequently effective is to check for copyvios, as this kind of puffery is often copied from their website, and then you can get a {{db-copyvio}} deletion. The point is, you don't have to do "a full re-write" to get rid of bad content.
- I also want to say: This is usually not important in the real world. Really.
- We tend to think in high-minded terms about how we need to Defend the Wiki™ from those evil hordes of self-promoting subjects, but under most circumstances, it doesn't really matter.
- For example, a while ago I wrote an article about a small-ish business that had gotten written up in a major newspaper. I wrote it because it was kind of an interesting business. A while later, someone re-wrote the article. From my POV, they added a bunch of marketing bafflegab and I suspect them of being a paid editor; from theirs, they were probably trying to update certain nuances about the company. Terrible, right? But...
- But: The article's only getting four page views a day (and some of those might be undetected bots or misclicks). That means that one in a 100,000,000 readers (page views) each day is going to see that. Most of them won't get past the lead. It will form, at most, 0.000001% of what readers see on Wikipedia, and therefore basically none of our reputation. If it affects our reputation at all, it might even be a boost to our reputation, because readers' needs often have little or nothing to do with an encyclopedia article. Someone who is looking for the company's official website isn't going to care about exactly what type of corporation it is or whether uses business buzzwords. They're just going to be glad that we had an article on this obscure company, and that it had an ==External links== section in it. Therefore, its existence might be a net positive for Wikipedia's reputation, even though I think my version was better in most (but perhaps not all) respects.
- The thing about unimportant subjects is that they're unimportant. You don't need to bother with a full re-write, because they're not important enough for that. Spend a minute or two removing the worst of it, and then move on. Think of it as the equivalent of Wikipedia:Revert, block, ignore: Apply a quick fix and stop worrying about it. If it ever gets an important amount of traffic, then an editor will notice it and spend time improving it then. Until then, readers benefit from Wikipedia having the information they're seeking, even if that information is just "That actor whose name you can't quite remember was Alice" or "The company's website is this one". WhatamIdoing (talk) 20:50, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @WhatamIdoing: Excellent, this is the kinda reply I was hoping for. I didn't know the word "stubify", but that is an apt description of what I did to the article. After removing all the promo and fancruft not much was left. I am not worried about Wikipedia's reputation, but sometimes editing Wikipedia does feel like protecting something against a horde of barbarians, which is unhealthy and not how a hobby should feel. Polygnotus (talk) 21:07, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- I know that feeling. Fortunately, we have ten thousand experienced editors working on our side each month, and editors like us make more edits in a day – and edits more likely to 'stick' – than the throw-away spammer accounts ever do. So whenever you feel like stubbing and WP:BLARing articles is not fun, feel free to step away for a while. There has always been someone willing and able to fill that gap (unless you do copyvio clean up. We never have enough folks at WP:CCI). WhatamIdoing (talk) 21:42, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @WhatamIdoing: Excellent, this is the kinda reply I was hoping for. I didn't know the word "stubify", but that is an apt description of what I did to the article. After removing all the promo and fancruft not much was left. I am not worried about Wikipedia's reputation, but sometimes editing Wikipedia does feel like protecting something against a horde of barbarians, which is unhealthy and not how a hobby should feel. Polygnotus (talk) 21:07, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
Name order for South Korean ICC judge
[edit]I want to create a stub on the South Korean judge Keebong Paek who was recently elected to the International Criminal Court (ICC), and I'm trying to figure out the appropriate name order. WP:NCKO says "Unless the subject is known to prefer otherwise, family name should be written first." This promotional video for his ICC candidacy published by the South Korean Foreign Ministry refers to him as Keebong Paek (which is the Western name order, given name first). I'm not sure whether I should infer from this that "the subject is known to prefer otherwise" – for all I know, the Ministry might have a policy of Westernization and he might be opposed to it. But this is also the form of the name that's consistently used to refer to him at the ICC, and even a Google search restricted to .kr sites yields a lot more hits for Keebong Paek than for Paek Keebong. On the other hand, a tweet from the Foreign Ministry (that published the above video) upon his election refers to him as Paek Keebong, and that's also the title of the article in the German Wikipedia (the only one that has an article so far).
I feel that much speaks in favour of using the form Keebong Paek that all his work at the ICC (by far his most prominent activity so far) will be associated with, but it would be a stretch to say that the subject is known to prefer it. How to resolve this?
Joriki (talk) 09:08, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Joriki: You might get better answers at WT:WikiProject Korea. Good luck! Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 15:14, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Pigsonthewing Thanks for the reply! The advice there was to use Keebong Paek. I’ve created the article under that name now. Joriki (talk) 20:52, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
Mullburies
[edit]Mallbarrier are not strawberies/ Mallbarires grow on ery prickly sticks like plants. Strawbrrier and other berries grow on plants on gtound. I ould find on picture of malbarroirs. When my parents ha a garden nears Warsaw, Poland i picked bowls of mulberries. can you show a picture? 174.83.93.53 (talk) 12:37, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Is this a question about the Wikipedia article Morus? Or about some other article. I can't tell what you are asking. ColinFine (talk) 12:43, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- IP editor: there are lots of pictures at mulberry and at commons:Category:Morus, including Commons:Category:Morus alba in Poland Mike Turnbull (talk) 13:18, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- "Prickly sticks" with berries sounds more like Rubus; maybe the raspberry, which is "Malina" in Polish. Maproom (talk) 14:31, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
Wikipedia scam
[edit]Hello, at the beginning of this year a company called Wiki Mastery contacted my company about a Wikipedia article. After a few months someone from Wikimedia foundation contacted us saying that it might be a scam.
Can you help me with this matter? Thank you. 5.2.203.38 (talk) 12:41, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Hello. What help are you looking for? Are you saying that you fell for the scam?
- If that's the case, I don't think we can help you, but you might start by reading WP:SCAM. ColinFine (talk) 12:45, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- I am concerned that you say the WMF contacted you. Usually WMF would not become involved unless you contact them, not the other way around. I suggest that you use the e-mail address in the WP:SCAM page to contact them instead of replying directly to whatever communication you got from "WMF". -Arch dude (talk) 13:10, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- These scammers frequently impersonate Wikipedia administrators or even WMF staffers. Be extremely cautious about any unsolicited emails making dubious claims, even if they seem plausible on first reading. Cullen328 (talk) 19:46, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Shaun Spalding from WMF Legal here (you can tell by the (WMF) after my username this is my official account). I can confirm that the Legal department has sent out emails to victims of the well known scams from WikiMastery, Elite Wiki Writers, and other related companies. This warning is meant to help victims of these scams understand the nature of the scam and get refunds (by charging back their credit cards). It's also meant to inform them of Wikipedia rules such that they won't be tricked in the future by other fraudulent actors. This has successfully led to refunds for victims in the past and we intend to keep doing this. So @Cullen328, @Arch dude, @ColinFine if people reach out in the future, this is an official legal department activity.
- That said, because we have been successful doing this, and because these companies thrive in an environment of chaos, they have started impersonating these emails. See https://www.reddit.com/r/Scams/comments/1dz6bmw/beware_of_scammer_posing_as_wikimedia_legal/ ... What is happening here is either (a) someone pretending that they are me to actually try to scam someone or (b) a scam UPE company trying to suggest that our emails from the WMF Legal department are fake to then have a public link to send to their clients to undermine their trust in our outreach. Either way, it's a bit sociopathic but that's the nature of these companies. Therefore, if anyone does receive outreach, they can always verify this by emailing trademarks@wikimedia.org (which is another general inbox that I read).
- Yes, very confusing, but scammers never make things easy :) SSpalding (WMF) (talk) 02:01, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- Thank you very much, SSpalding (WMF) for checking in here. This is useful information. I am going to save your username and reach out to you if people who have been scammed compain here or at the Teahouse. Do you think that WP:SCAM needs updating? Cullen328 (talk) 02:11, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- For now, I personally think Wikipedia:Articles for creation/Scam warning describes the situation well: these companies are generally terrible at getting edits to stick on Wikipedia (some with proven 0% success rates). That page generally describes the modus operandi of the segment of industry that Wikimastery style companies inhabit. SSpalding (WMF) (talk) 02:34, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- @SSpalding (WMF):Thanks for the info. This is why I directed the user to contact WMF using the address at WP:SCAM rather than replying to an e-mail. This is generic advice for anyone who receives an unsolicited scam warning from any organization: do not reply directly. This goes for credit card companies, utilitiy companies, the IRS and other government agencies, your bank, etc. On the phone, always hang up and call back on a number you find separately. Via e-mail, always send a reply to an e-mail address you find separately, etc. -Arch dude (talk) 04:00, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- Yep, definitely good advice given! Thanks. SSpalding (WMF) (talk) 02:34, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- Thank you very much, SSpalding (WMF) for checking in here. This is useful information. I am going to save your username and reach out to you if people who have been scammed compain here or at the Teahouse. Do you think that WP:SCAM needs updating? Cullen328 (talk) 02:11, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
Could someone help me delete this wikipedia about me?
[edit]This page, is about me. If possible I would like it removed. Its affecting my current job position.
Happy to provide ID! Nicholasparnell50 (talk) 14:14, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- After reading the pre-2020 revision of this article, I assume that a majority of the content was not about you (or about someone with a similar name). Either way, you as an individual are probably not notable enough for a Wikipedia page, having won Style Wars which doesn't even have its own Wikipedia article. GeorgeMemulous (talk) 14:19, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- I've nominated the article for speedy deletion due to a lack of notability. The article is likely to be removed, and won't be created again unless you do something important enough and with enough coverage to be considered notable enough for a Wikipedia article. GeorgeMemulous (talk) 14:24, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
Done Malinaccier (talk) 14:31, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @GeorgeMemulous: I am perplexed, if "Style Wars" doesn't have its own article, then what is Style Wars? FWIW, both Justapedia and Infogalactic also have these articles. Fabrickator (talk) 14:46, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- The article Style Wars is apparently about "an American 1983 documentary film", not a competition with the same name. TSventon (talk) 14:51, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- As an interesting aside, both the the Justapedia and Infogalactic versions lacks the article's history, and thus attribution. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 15:07, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Malinaccier: Hang on - if "the pre-2020 revision of this article [was] about someone with a similar name", then who was it about? Who usurped it? Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 15:02, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- It was about a fashion stylist named Nicholas Parnell who won a TV game show (the same subject as the 2024 version of the article). GeorgeMemulous was (I assume) allowing for the possibility that the requestor was somebody with the same name but not the subject of the article. Malinaccier (talk) 15:09, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Not quite.
- On the revision history, the requesting account deleted most of the article on 8 December 2020, and didn't request deletion until now. The deletion of much of the article was unchallenged, and indeed looking at that revision from 7 December 2020 it is possible that the sources were mentioning a different individual with the same name. Either way, none of the articles were specifically about them, and after the requestor deleted most of the page's contents the article was a 2 sentence stub for nearly 4 years until today. Even back then it didn't have much indication of notability. GeorgeMemulous (talk) 15:20, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Correction: The requesting account was created today, and the article was nearly blanked in 2020 by an account also with 'Nicholas Parnell' in its username. The near-blanking went unchallenged as the article already failed notability back then and was likely an orphan article. GeorgeMemulous (talk) 15:23, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Hmm, my read is that it seemed very likely to be the same person. In any case, I did not think this was a controversial deletion, but if there is interest in disputing this deletion, I am happy to provide a copy of the article's text circa 2020 and 2024 and having a formal deletion discussion at AfD. Malinaccier (talk) 15:45, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- Correction: The requesting account was created today, and the article was nearly blanked in 2020 by an account also with 'Nicholas Parnell' in its username. The near-blanking went unchallenged as the article already failed notability back then and was likely an orphan article. GeorgeMemulous (talk) 15:23, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- It was about a fashion stylist named Nicholas Parnell who won a TV game show (the same subject as the 2024 version of the article). GeorgeMemulous was (I assume) allowing for the possibility that the requestor was somebody with the same name but not the subject of the article. Malinaccier (talk) 15:09, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @GeorgeMemulous: I am perplexed, if "Style Wars" doesn't have its own article, then what is Style Wars? FWIW, both Justapedia and Infogalactic also have these articles. Fabrickator (talk) 14:46, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
Close controversial move
[edit]Can someone close Talk:Al-Tabaeen school attack#Requested move 10 August 2024. There seems to be consensus to move but i do not want my first (second?) move close to be in such a controversial topic AlexBobCharles (talk) 15:35, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @AlexBobCharles For closures on controversial topics, it's probably best to request at WP:CR. Mike Turnbull (talk) 17:31, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
Glitches when typing on talk pages
[edit]Hello all. I'm sure there's a better place to ask this, but for the past few months when I edit talk pages to add new topics, there has been an annoying glitch which makes typing nearly impossible. Basically, once I press shift, whatever I am typing gets sent to the beginning of a paragraph in reverse order.
For instance, if I type "The first three letters of the English alphabet are ABC," that turns into "BCAThe first three letters of the English alphabet are."
I've noticed this happens when I switch tabs, such as when I'm grabbing sources. It is affecting me here, too. I would appreciate any advice here. Ornov Ganguly TALK 15:53, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Oganguly: Please save an edit where it happens so we can check whether something inserted non-displayed characters like right-to-left markers. If it only happens for new topics then you can probably avoid the problem by disabling "Enable quick topic adding" at Special:Preferences#mw-prefsection-editing. What is your browser? PrimeHunter (talk) 16:43, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @PrimeHunter, disabling quick topic adding and editing resolved the issue completely. Thank you.
- For other details, I use Firefox 129.0.2 (64-bit). I suppose saving an edit now wouldn't be necessary unless you would like to know for the future? Ornov Ganguly TALK 17:22, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Oganguly, please look in Special:Preferences#mw-prefsection-gadgets and see if you have the "Google Trans" gadget enabled. If you do, try turning it off. WhatamIdoing (talk) 20:59, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
username
[edit]What is my user name ?? i have email ID but cant remember my uid. 2001:4490:4839:D1C:9C48:F0CA:D471:512E (talk) 16:07, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- If you are asking about a Wikipedia login name, there are some suggestions at Help:Logging in#What if I forget the username? -- John of Reading (talk) 16:38, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
Uploading a watermarked non-free file
[edit]I am working on a draft Draft:2021 Naperville–Woodridge tornado and would like to add a non-free image of the tornado. As far as I know, only one image exists of the tornado itself, and I assume it's non-free. The problem is I can't find the original creator of the image, and a TinEye search reveals that the image was uploaded by ILStorm_Chasers on Twitter, which has been suspended. The image has a clear copyright watermark, but, again, is the only image of the tornado that exists. What would be the procedure for adding this to Wikipedia, or is this one best left not added? GeorgeMemulous (talk) 23:46, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
- I think this would fall under the 'fair use' rationale, since clearly no-one can take another photo as the subject is no longer extant.
- You are probably already aware that non-free images, even if appropriate, can only be used in actual articles, so should not be added to drafts. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 94.1.209.45 (talk) 00:09, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- One more thing. The image is conspicuously watermarked, with the watermark taking up a not insignificant portion of the image. It can be cropped to remove this however. Should, once the article is published into mainspace, a cropped image without the watermark but with proper attribution be used? The image is also in a portrait viewing angle and should ideally be cropped anyway. GeorgeMemulous (talk) 14:24, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
September 3
[edit]Line under topicons
[edit]Does anyone know why the line under the topicons at my use page doesn't stretch across the whole page anymore? Now the line abruptly ends once it reaches the topicons. ~WikiOriginal-9~ (talk) 00:14, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- I don't know what you mean. I can't see a line stopping. (And I'm guessing that when you say "topicons" you refer to the row of + icons linking to apparently random articles that you have for some unexplained reason put across the top of your user page). ColinFine (talk) 09:25, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- @WikiOriginal-9 I don't see any line either at your page or at that for User:David notMD who, like you, uses these icons to indicate the articles they have brought to good article status or to a DYK. If you are concerned about this, you probably need to consult the technical experts at WP:VPT, maybe providing a screenshot. Mike Turnbull (talk) 11:23, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- @WikiOriginal-9: I don't see the issue in the default skin Vector 2022 but I see it in Vector legacy and MonoBook. What is your skin? If it's not the default then please always say it when you ask interface questions. PrimeHunter (talk) 14:45, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
Mobile skins
[edit]Despite me changing my skin to Monobook, I still see it as Minerva Neue. Is there a reason why? OhHaiMark (talk) 04:43, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- @OhHaiMark this a better question for WP:VPT. I successfully changed from Vector22 to Monobook and Minerva in Special:Preferences without issues. The setting is stored in database, so I am unsure what issues might cause it. Can you confirm you are signed in to the same account? Or try opening your account in a new browser/device? ~ 🦝 Shushugah (he/him • talk) 13:49, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- @OhHaiMark: Your post was made in the mobile version which reminds of Minerva Neue. The bottom of the mobile version has a "Desktop" link which uses your skin preference. PrimeHunter (talk) 14:37, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- Thanks! OhHaiMark (talk) 02:02, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- @OhHaiMark: Your post was made in the mobile version which reminds of Minerva Neue. The bottom of the mobile version has a "Desktop" link which uses your skin preference. PrimeHunter (talk) 14:37, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
Looking for Reasonable Biography Writing Services
[edit]Can anyone recommend how to select the right biography writing services? Please make sure their services are consistent in providing engaging and well-researched content. Jhonparatha (talk) 09:49, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- If you're asking about creating articles for Wikipedia, the answer is, don't.
- If you (or whoever you are thinking of) meets Wikipedia's criteria for notability then eventually somebody will write an article. If they don't, then nothing anybody can do will can create an article, and your money will be wasted.
- Added to which, many services offering to write Wikipedia articles for money are scams: see SCAM.
- The fact that you are considering paying somebody to write a Wikipedia article indicates that you probably share the common misconception that Wikipedia has anything at all to do with promotion - i.e., telling the world about something or somebody. Promotion is not permitted anywhere on Wikipedia.
- A Wikipedia article is only possible if there is already substantial material published about a subject.
- If you're talking about some other context than Wikipedia, I'm afraid we can't help you. ColinFine (talk) 10:45, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
Distributive behaviour
[edit]Hello,
I’d like to report disruptive behaviour on the page On the Right Group, as my edits are reversed without justification. 2A02:A420:27D:39C7:E5F5:B0B7:10B9:D65E (talk) 10:54, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- The issue has been swiftly resolved; the user has been blocked after making mass disruption edits. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2A02:A420:27D:39C7:E5F5:B0B7:10B9:D65E (talk) 11:29, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
Reporting a user
[edit]Hello, these two users 2001:999:400:EA71:21C1:8C71:9204:9572 and 91.152.225.81 keep vandalising iraqi and kurdish topics without an account, they keep editing sources and showing off as a (baathi) like racist arabs who try to vandalise topics within that federal country, I really appreciate if an administrator sorted them out, Thanks. ZagrosianSigma (talk) 11:26, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- ZagrosianSigma for future reference the correct page for blatant vandalism is WP:AIV and for tendentious editing, Wikipedia:Dispute_resolution. Sungodtemple (talk • contribs) 13:38, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- I reported there too but it got deleted and I have no idea can you help me out? ZagrosianSigma (talk) 14:12, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- Your post at WP:AIV was removed by @Ad Orientem, along with some other reports, because they were not instances of "obvious vandalism or obvious spam". Ad Orientem had previously suggested taking it to WP:ANI. ColinFine (talk) 19:12, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- I reported there too but it got deleted and I have no idea can you help me out? ZagrosianSigma (talk) 14:12, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
Wikipedia:AFD/List of statutory instruments of Scotland, 2024
[edit]Should the initial post here not be signed? --Jax 0677 (talk) 12:26, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- Jax 0677 Scrolling through WP:AFDT it should be signed, I think. Sungodtemple (talk • contribs) 13:39, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- Actually, this edit would beg to differ. While I have you here, Wikipedia:Village_pump_(technical)#Dark_mode_when_logged_out_of_Wikipedia still needs to be addressed. --Jax 0677 (talk) 14:09, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- Also, should Rajput not have a hatnote pointing to Rajput (disambiguation)? I think I have read somewhere that a hatnote should point to a disambiguation page just in case someone does create one. Also, I misunderstood that you were agreeing with me that the initial post should be signed. --Jax 0677 (talk) 19:26, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- It should be signed and I have used {{subst:unsigned}}.[1] PrimeHunter (talk) 00:00, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- Also, should Rajput not have a hatnote pointing to Rajput (disambiguation)? I think I have read somewhere that a hatnote should point to a disambiguation page just in case someone does create one. Also, I misunderstood that you were agreeing with me that the initial post should be signed. --Jax 0677 (talk) 19:26, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- Actually, this edit would beg to differ. While I have you here, Wikipedia:Village_pump_(technical)#Dark_mode_when_logged_out_of_Wikipedia still needs to be addressed. --Jax 0677 (talk) 14:09, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
Fix a technical malfunction
[edit]Why in this entry Walter Huston there is written "website=ignored" in the Oxford source cited? 2A02:B023:F07:52F4:BD4A:3161:2856:CD3 (talk) 12:48, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- There are several ways of fixing such things, but this worked. Deor (talk) 13:44, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
Air France Flight 091
[edit]Air France Flight 091 Jasper 554 (talk) 23:39, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- Jasper 554, if you have a question about using Wikipedia, then what is the question? -- Hoary (talk) 23:42, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- I want to create pages Jasper 554 (talk) 23:45, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
- Presumably you have some question about this. Perhaps Help:Your first article answers it. -- Hoary (talk) 00:07, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- I want to create pages Jasper 554 (talk) 23:45, 3 September 2024 (UTC)
Courtesy link: Air_France_Flight_091 currently tagged for CSD. @Jasper 554: you should start new articles in your sandbox or in Draft space. RudolfRed (talk) 00:51, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
September 4
[edit]Rajput
[edit]Should Rajput not have a hatnote pointing to Rajput (disambiguation)? I think I have read somewhere that a hatnote should point to a disambiguation page just in case someone does create one.
Also, Wikipedia:Village_pump_(technical)#Dark_mode_when_logged_out_of_Wikipedia still needs to be addressed. --Jax 0677 (talk) 00:13, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- Jax 0677, "Rajput (disambiguation)" is merely a redirect to Rajput (surname), which disambiguates between people with this surname. We're all volunteers: you are most welcome (i) to turn "Rajput (disambiguation)" into an actual disambiguation page for "Rajput", (ii) to link from the former and (iii) to link to it from Rajput. ¶ If an issue brought up at WP:Village pump (technical) a week or more ago is yet to be addressed, then give it a bump at WP:Village pump (technical); or, if appropriate, bring up the matter on WT:Village pump (technical). -- Hoary (talk) 02:14, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Hoary:, I tried to place a hat note, but it got reverted. I may need to consult WP:3PO. --Jax 0677 (talk) 11:21, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
User stats
[edit]Why does my user ID not display?I checked before and after date change in Greenwich. On 2 devices. DMc75771 (talk) 01:07, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- @DMc75771: Please clarify your question. What user ID and where is it not showing that it should be? RudolfRed (talk) 01:14, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- @DMc75771 if you are editing from the mobile interface, your username will be shown when you click on the person icon located at the very right of the top navigation bar. – robertsky (talk) 05:34, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
Active users
[edit]it didn't show on the active user screen. DMc75771 (talk) 01:22, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- Where in Wikipedia is this "active user screen", DMc75771? -- Hoary (talk) 02:02, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- After some searching I guess it's Special:ActiveUsers. Please link pages you refer to. I don't know why DMc75771 isn't listed there. PrimeHunter (talk) 02:13, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
How to Post Article.
[edit]I work in entertainment, and I would like to submit my contributions, and articles, but for some reason would i'm having a hard time figuring out how to submit properly each article. Betanstyle (talk) 05:08, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- Hello, Betanstyle. I am sorry, but your user page is the wrong place to post the draft of an article. Plus, an unreferenced biography of a living person is a policy violation. You should spend a few weeks improving existing articles before taking on the difficult and daunting task of writing a new article. Spend a lot of time reading and studying Your first article and its links. Cullen328 (talk) 05:41, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Betanstyle: I have left some links to guidance on your talk page. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 08:30, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
Undoing multiple edits / Also, query on Outing
[edit]When undoing a string of recent edits, is it necessary to select each edit individually and select 'undo' each time, or is there a way that one can select the last 'good' version of the article and revert directly back to that version in a single process?
(The issue relates to the following thread at WP:COIN, here.) Axad12 (talk) 06:51, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- Incidentally, there is also another issue on that thread re: whether outing should be struck, removed or something else. Any input on that point would also be very much appreciated. Axad12 (talk) 06:55, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- It's easy to go to the article history, click on the date "15:28, 12 August 2024", and then click on "restore this version". And, I don't see it as "outing" when the person has chosen to use his own real name. Maproom (talk) 07:45, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- Okay, so when I click on "15.28, 12 August 2024", where is the option to select "restore this version"? Apologies if I'm missing something but I don't see it. Axad12 (talk) 07:52, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- Perhaps clicking "15.28, 12 August 2024", then "edit source", then scroll to the bottom, add edit summary as "reverting to [etc]" and then click "publish"? Axad12 (talk) 08:13, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- You can also use the undo function to undo multiple consecutive edits by selecting the first and last of the offending edits, clicking "compare selected revisions" to view the diff, and clicking "undo". (WP:UNDO) Perception312 (talk) 15:31, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- Perhaps clicking "15.28, 12 August 2024", then "edit source", then scroll to the bottom, add edit summary as "reverting to [etc]" and then click "publish"? Axad12 (talk) 08:13, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- On the outing question…
- The relevant policy (WP:OUTING) says
Posting another editor's personal information is harassment, unless that person has voluntarily posted their own information, or links to such information, on Wikipedia. Personal information includes real-life name, date of birth, identification numbers, home or workplace address, job title and work organisation, telephone number, email address,
etc. - My interpretation is that just because someone is editing under their real name doesn’t entitle other editors to post information that they have discovered about that person from a brief Google search. I’d be interested to hear the opinions of others on this point.
- Surely it's preferable to simply say “off-wiki evidence suggests that this account has a conflict of interest on this subject”. In the case in point even that would have been unnecessary, as the account was an SPA making unsourced edits in relation to the internal operation of an organisation and removing criticism, so the COI was transparent even without giving specifics. Axad12 (talk) 09:21, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- Okay, so when I click on "15.28, 12 August 2024", where is the option to select "restore this version"? Apologies if I'm missing something but I don't see it. Axad12 (talk) 07:52, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- It's easy to go to the article history, click on the date "15:28, 12 August 2024", and then click on "restore this version". And, I don't see it as "outing" when the person has chosen to use his own real name. Maproom (talk) 07:45, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
Wikipedia:Did you know
[edit]Hello, I am looking for a page on English Wikipedia that has articles on naval topics (like sailor biographies, warships) in the "Did you know" project. Where can I find these types of articles? Hope someone can help. Have a nice day! P. ĐĂNG (talk) 08:32, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- @P. ĐĂNG, if you don't get a good reply here, you can try Wikipedia talk:Did you know. The closest I find is this page where you can search the hooks:WP:DYKA. Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 12:10, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- @P. ĐĂNG Articles that have generated a DYK will be placed into the category Category:Wikipedia Did you know articles, with a template on their Talk Page. You can use a tool like WP:PetScan to intersect that category with any other categories of interest to you. Mike Turnbull (talk) 15:49, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
Disambiguation links
[edit]I believe that I have read somewhere, that when a disambiguation page is linked by a hat note, that the hat note should almost always refer to the page using the "(disambiguation)" suffix, just in case someone moves a disambiguation page to a title containing "(disambiguation)". Do you know of a page in the Wikipedia domain where this is documented? --Jax 0677 (talk) 12:19, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Jax 0677: See Wikipedia:Disambiguation#Links to disambiguation pages for the rule and reason. PrimeHunter (talk) 12:31, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- (edit conflict) you should probably read Wikipedia:Disambiguation. As Rajput currently has three meanings it may not need a disambiguation page, so I have added the third meaning to the hatnote. If you do create a disambiguation page, you should include all three meanings starting with the primary one.
- I see you started a discussion on the article talk page, you could have pinged the editor who was reverting you and asked them directly if you disagreed with or didn't understand their reverts. You need to try a discussion and allow some time before asking for a third opinion as explained on the third opinion page. TSventon (talk) 12:42, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
Exempting sections from auto-archiving?
[edit]As relates to Help:Archiving a talk page, how might one exempt a specific section of e.g. one's user talk page from being auto-archived.
Cf. [2] for the details of my current set-up. Biohistorian15 (talk) 18:29, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Biohistorian15 This is supposed to work: User:DoNotArchiveUntil. Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 19:09, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
Updated Photo Help
[edit]Hello! I am Kathy Taylor of Tulsa, OK.
I am unable to update the photo on my profile. The photo on the page is very dated and I would like for a more recent photo to replace it. Below is a list of current and verified photos that would work great for my page.
Wiki URL: Kathy Taylor (politician)
Personal Website: - https://kathytaylor.co/
News Stories and Website Mentions:
- https://utulsa.edu/news/letter-from-the-dean-march-2024/
- https://tulsaworld.com/news/local/business/article_0b1bb25a-b8db-11eb-9507-1736a18722ed.html
- https://www.lobecktaylor.org/board/kathy-taylor
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathytaylortulsa/
Thank you for your help. Please let me know if I'm not in the right place, or if I can provide anything further to get the photo changed over.
-Kathy Taylor
~~~~ KathyTaylorTulsa (talk) 22:18, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- Please see Wikipedia:A picture of you for the best practices for uploading a photo of yourself to Wikipedia or elsewhere on a Wikimedia project. GeorgeMemulous (talk) 22:20, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- Please also note that it is not "your profile" it is an encyclopedia article about you.
- The short answer to your question is that Wikipedia requires that images of living persons be freely licensed, as opposed to being copied from copyrighted websites. Wikipedia's copyright policies are significantly stricter than many other websites. Just Step Sideways from this world ..... today 22:48, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- KathyTaylorTulsa, your website has a standard "all rights reserved" copyright notice. We cannot use any images from that website for that reason. Cullen328 (talk) 01:52, 5 September 2024 (UTC)
- Hi KathyTaylorTulsa. You can, however, license the images on your website in a way that makes it easier for others to use as explained in creativecommonswiki:Marking your work with a CC license. Be advised though that you can only do this if you're the copyright holder of the image in question. In the case of photos, it's generally the person who takes the photo, not the subject of the photo, who is considered the copyright holder. Before you start re-licensing any photos, though, you might want to make sure it's really something you want to do. It would probably be a good idea to speak with someone who has a better than average understanding of what it means to release your creative content under the type of licenses Wikipedia accepts before uploading any files because such licenses tend to be irrevocable and only offer minimal restrictions; for example, any license that places restrictions on commercial reuse or derivative reuse is considered too restrictive for Wikipedia's purposes even though other websites might have no problem with it. -- Marchjuly (talk) 02:08, 5 September 2024 (UTC)
Vynalrecords
[edit]Vynalrecords Friendly ian (talk) 22:45, 4 September 2024 (UTC)
- @Friendly ian: Do you have a question about Wikipedia? It's not clear what "vynalrecords" is supposed to mean. Do you have a question about the Wikipedia article "Vinyl record"? -- Marchjuly (talk) 01:32, 5 September 2024 (UTC)
September 5
[edit]Is it appropriate to place infoboxes after a section heading?
[edit]Each US president has a separate article about their presidency. These articles include an infobox that contains a few pieces of information and navigation links to the preceding and succeeding presidencies. (Here's the article on Biden's presidency, for reference).
However, three presidents (William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, and James A. Garfield) had presidencies that were too short to warrant their own articles. Any links to their presidencies redirect to the presidency sections of their personal articles (Presidency of William Henry Harrison, Presidency of Zachary Taylor, Presidency of James A. Garfield). Since these sections are being used as a substitute for separate articles, I think they should have the presidency infobox. Taylor's section already has one.
However, I wanted to make sure that there's no rule that says infoboxes must be at the top of an article. Would this be considered proper usage? TheLegendofGanon (talk) 00:27, 5 September 2024 (UTC)
- Hello, TheLegendofGanon. I agree with you that these presidencies were too brief for their own articles. If so, why are presidency infoboxes desirable or useful? Cullen328 (talk) 03:51, 5 September 2024 (UTC)
- My main concern is navigation. If someone is clicking through, using the infoboxes to go from one presidency to the next, then they'll eventually hit one of these short-tenured presidents. The lack of an infobox might throw them off a bit, and they might have trouble finding the next president. It wouldn't be too hard, granted, but we should make it as easy as possible to navigate around the site. TheLegendofGanon (talk) 07:29, 5 September 2024 (UTC)
where is our article on the fraction slash?
[edit]I can't seem to find it anywhere. We show how different fonts display it, and I wanted to use the syntax for another article.
(There's a table with the fraction 1/2 composed of normal digits and the Unicode fraction slash, with each row defined as a different fonts.)
— kwami (talk) 03:56, 5 September 2024 (UTC)
- Hello, Kwamikagami. Take a look at Slash (punctuation). Cullen328 (talk) 04:02, 5 September 2024 (UTC)
- Thanks, but I don't see it there. They don't even use it in the examples in the 'fractions' section. — kwami (talk) 04:05, 5 September 2024 (UTC)
- Ah, I found it. It's at Unicode superscripts. Thanks! — kwami (talk) 04:32, 5 September 2024 (UTC)
Remove
[edit]Moved to Wikipedia:Teahouse --112.208.236.135 (talk) 04:37, 5 September 2024 (UTC)
Two articles created on the same topic, my bad.
[edit]So this article got created, but weirdly enough, it didn't appear in the WikiData list on the french Wikipedia.
Pélicot affair, created earlier, and my creation, Mazan rapes case.
The issue is this affair has three possible names. I don't know which name to choose for it. We obviously need to merge them, but I really don't know what to do, any help to rule this thing out would be welcome.
Personally I'd be more for Pélicot affair, since the other user created it first, and because why not, but the french wikipedia opted for Mazan rapes case, so honestly I don't know what to do there, would like some help to figure it out.
I don't know what the rules are about cases and affairs article names.
Thanks for any help! Global Donald (talk) 04:22, 5 September 2024 (UTC)
- Global Donald: I see that Mazan rapes case is longer, better sourced, and written in much better English. I would hope that Pélicot affair can be deleted, and superseded by your version. But I don't know if Wikipedia protocols would allow this. Maproom (talk) 06:57, 5 September 2024 (UTC)