User talk:MER-C/archives/40

FYI

You will be very interested in this about the upcoming trial, and may wish to comment there. Kudpung กุดผึ้ง (talk) 02:26, 16 July 2017 (UTC)

Oh wow... they finally listened. Colour me amazed. MER-C 04:15, 16 July 2017 (UTC)

Very Nice welcoming, Think and use common sense... Sounds good to me

Why did you delete my son's page?09:19, 6 August 2017 (UTC)Pat6464 (talk)odn

Wikipedia is a volunteer curated encyclopedia which aims to cover our subject matter in a neutral manner. Michael Gilgan was created by a person(s) unscrupulously and deceptively abusing (100+) multiple accounts, and likely in return for undisclosed payments; in violation of both Wikipedia's Terms of Use and the very reason why this site exists. We do not tolerate such abuse. MER-C 10:46, 6 August 2017 (UTC)

Edit removed

Hi,

Could you please tell me why my edits were removed from the online reputation management page on Wikipedia? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Shreya161997 (talk • contribs) 06:54, 8 August 2017 (UTC)

A link to an article about SEO... whose addition to Wikipedia seeks to do exactly that, I guess? Wikipedia is an encyclopedia; any attempt to use it for link building, SEO, traffic driving or the like is spam. MER-C 08:24, 8 August 2017 (UTC)

Mistaken Deletion

Hello,

I just noticed that the wiki for Kraddy is now down. Could you tell me why?

Here is what I found in the deletion log: 13:08, 17 January 2017 MER-C (talk | contribs) deleted page Kraddy (G5: Created by a banned or blocked user (MusicLover650) in violation of ban or block)

I did not create the page but I am the artist Kraddy. I would like to change whatever needs to change and get my page back up. Can you let me know what needs to be done?

Thank you, Matthew Kratz / Kraddy — Preceding unsigned comment added by 23.241.113.205 (talk) 22:34, 10 August 2017 (UTC)

Wikipedia is a volunteer curated encyclopedia which aims to cover our subject matter in a neutral manner. The creator of that page was blocked for unscrupulously and deceptively abusing multiple accounts, and likely in return for undisclosed payments; in violation of both Wikipedia's Terms of Use and the very reason why this site exists. For the latter reason, you should not attempt to create an article about yourself. This is not a reflection against you, nor am I implying that Kraddy was a commissioned article, but the deletion was necessary to preserve the integrity of the encyclopedia. MER-C 09:52, 11 August 2017 (UTC)

Edits Removed

Hello,

Can you please tell me why are you deleting all my edits on different pages? How can you refer to it as 'spam' when I am referring a website for all the edits I am making?

Thanks — Preceding unsigned comment added by AzyV (talk • contribs) 11:19, 23 August 2017 (UTC)

Wikipedia is an encyclopedia; adding links or "references" to a site for SEO purposes or to increase traffic is spamming. I suggest you stop, otherwise your editing privileges will be revoked and/or the site added to a public blacklist preventing further link additions. MER-C 11:40, 23 August 2017 (UTC)

I have already stopped as soon as I got your email. But my question is that there are many other companies who have their own page and than they have their parts on all the articles (same as what I was doing). What makes us different from them as we all are doing the same thing? — Preceding unsigned comment added by AzyV (talk • contribs) 11:53, 23 August 2017 (UTC)

Wikipedia is curated by volunteers; any non-spam references or articles are there because we believe they enhance the encyclopedia. Needless to say, you're not the only one who has misused Wikipedia for promotion; not all are caught promptly. MER-C 12:17, 23 August 2017 (UTC)

Well I did that because others are doing it too. And just to correct you; I was not 'misusing' Wikipedia and I take your accusation as an insult. My only purpose was to give out more information about movies and entertainment. Maybe you should be on your toes more often and be at guard for everyone who is doing what I was doing to make everyone aware of the rules here. — Preceding unsigned comment added by AzyV (talk • contribs) 12:28, 23 August 2017 (UTC)

@AzyV: Re: "Maybe you should be on your toes more often and be at guard for everyone who is doing what I was doing to make everyone aware of the rules here." We are on our toes and we are on guard for spammers. Unfortunately there are too many people who think that spamming Wikipedia is the way to wealth and fame, and since Wikipedia is volunteer run, sometimes crap gets through. You should be aware that since you are directly related to that website, you have a conflict of interest. Conflict of interest is a basic ethical concept. Cyphoidbomb (talk) 15:54, 23 August 2017 (UTC)

User:Conceptmakerz13101992

You may wish to revoke talk page access.--Cahk (talk) 19:54, 29 August 2017 (UTC)

Done. MER-C 02:46, 30 August 2017 (UTC)

I want to make a page of our company history

Dear sir,

I would like to make a company page at WikiPidia, we are well known company in Saudi Arabia,

we will not add our product and services, we understand that, just an overview and milestone and history.

kindly let us know how we can do that. t

thanks — Preceding unsigned comment added by Yalrabiah (talk • contribs) 11:53, 30 August 2017 (UTC)

No, you can't because that's not what Wikipedia is for. MER-C 12:01, 30 August 2017 (UTC)

User talk:Dcaicollective

You may wish to revoke talk page access.--Cahk (talk) 15:40, 30 August 2017 (UTC)

Done. MER-C 04:45, 31 August 2017 (UTC)

Daniel Flannery

Just noticed this new article about Daniel Flannery has popped up, but on the talk page it says that an article of this name had already been deleted by you on 2 November 2016. Would you like to have a look at it, and see if it is substantially different from the article you previously deleted, or whether it should be put forward for deletion again? I must say it does seem very self-promotional. Richard3120 (talk) 03:55, 31 August 2017 (UTC)

Whoever wrote it actually put some effort into it as opposed to yanking the content from IMDB. I wouldn't be surprised this is a undisclosed commissioned article. Do you think the subject is notable? If so, it's probably not crap enough to stave off deletion (not excluding G5 if applicable). MER-C 04:59, 31 August 2017 (UTC)

I'm not really sure – I'm not really interested in this subject area as such, I just try and tag articles with WikiProjects as and when I come across them. I haven't looked properly into the references yet, but the New York Times and The Peninsula references under "External links" don't mention the subject at all, and the rest of the references aren't inline citations so it's unclear what they refer to... it might be that his notability rests entirely on the Emmy nominations. Perhaps I should tag this with WP Biography and WP Films and let those WikiProjects decide, if they are at all active. Richard3120 (talk) 13:04, 31 August 2017 (UTC)

You know, after twenty minutes of searching, I think he does pass notability – I can't source every claim in the article, but there's enough mentions of him in reliable sources to stop this going to AfD again if I add them... I'll do that now. Richard3120 (talk) 02:28, 1 September 2017 (UTC)

SMILE! 11 Sept 2017

Hello MER-C, Me-123567-Me has smiled at you! Smiles promote WikiLove and hopefully this one has made your day better. Spread the WikiLove by smiling at someone else, whether it be someone you have had disagreements with in the past or a good friend. Go on, smile! Cheers, and happy editing! Me-123567-Me (talk) 16:51, 11 September 2017 (UTC)
Smile at others by adding {{subst:Smile}} to their talk page with a friendly message.

Thanks for the warm welcome!

Maybe instead of deleting my page you could have helped me improve it! And a cellist who's had a distinguished career who won the Naumburg Award, an Emmy and two Grammy nominations is "not suitable for the encyclopedia"? Really? Supremeshepherd (talk) 16:08, 16 September 2017 (UTC)

You passed off a promotional biography as an encyclopedia article. Why are you surprised that it was deleted? MER-C 04:14, 17 September 2017 (UTC)

My page with username:kwaolezzes was deleted after editing

I think deleted my page even after editing was a good idea. I lost vauable content in it. Help me get a new page as soon as possible Kwaolezzes (talk) 11:36, 17 September 2017 (UTC)

No. If you post similar content again, I will revoke your editing privileges. MER-C 11:41, 17 September 2017 (UTC)

Request to remove bollywoodlife.com from revertlist

• bollywoodlife.com: Linksearch en (insource) - meta - de - fr - simple - wikt:en - wikt:fr • Spamcheck • MER-C X-wiki • gs • Reports: Links on en - COIBot - COIBot-Local • Discussions: tracked - advanced - RSN • COIBot-Link, Local, & XWiki Reports - Wikipedia: en - fr - de • Google: search • meta • Domain: domaintools • AboutUs.com

Owned by Essel Group, who is also the owner of Zee Media, Daily News & Analysis, and many other which are considered reliable and are not blocked. Contains many film reviews and worthwhile information that can be added to Wikipedia. Used on more than 1000 pages. Request to be removed from the pages User:MER-C/RevertList.css and User:MER-C/RevertReferencesList.css. Thanks, King Prithviraj II (talk) 14:38, 21 September 2017 (UTC)

(talk page stalker) @King Pritvira: It is likely n the list because it was spammed. And it is recognised that it has value, that is why it is not blacklisted. Revertlisting is just a way to mitigate spamming. —Dirk Beetstra ^{T C} 17:10, 21 September 2017 (UTC)

@Beetstra: Then it should be removed from User:MER-C/RevertReferencesList.css, although I think that the link will still get removed as long as it stays in User:MER-C/RevertList.css, it seems like an umbrella term that covers urls in "< ref>" bars too. I see constructive edits like this and this getting reverted. There are a lot more, just naming a few. What is a possible solution to this ? Thanks, King Prithviraj II (talk) 18:42, 21 September 2017 (UTC)

Looking at the reason for blacklisting, I'll pull them entirely; I'm not convinced they should remain listed. I should aim to decommission my revertlists now that there is no need for them to be separate, but this is Super Low Priority(TM). MER-C 03:24, 22 September 2017 (UTC)

Deletion of new page 'dialogic education'

You deleted this draft page as it was also a blog and therefore not copyright free. The blog owner has now clearly put a CC license following instructions in wikipedia. Can I now add this text back and publish the page? If not what more needs to be done? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Dialogiceducation (talk • contribs)

> it was also a blog

You've already answered your own question -- no, and you cannot fix it. MER-C 03:21, 24 September 2017 (UTC)

Speedy Deletion for GHRA Webpage

Hi there,

It's my first time creating pages for wikipedia. You marked my first draft for speedy deletion so I tried to revise it so it wont violate the wikipedia guidelines and policies. My second draft was still marked for speedy deletion so I was wondering how I can fix this issue. Mary Rhodes talk 15:04, 25 September 2017 (ChST)

> Draft:GHRA WEBPAGE

> Wikipedia the free encyclopedia

If you don't see a discrepancy here, you shouldn't be editing. And no, merely changing the title of the draft will not fix the problem -- this is about the draft's content, which needs to be entirely rewritten to be compatible with an encyclopedia, and, more fundamentally, the reason why you signed up in the first place. MER-C 05:28, 25 September 2017 (UTC)

I was wondering how exactly will I improve my draft so it's ready for publish. I understand changing the title won't fix it of course but if you could tell me the specifics in my draft that I can work on that would be great. As mentioned, it's my first time creating pages for wikipedia so the more constructive criticism i get, the better i can avoid the same mistakes. Thank you. Mary Rhodes talk 16:01, 25 September 2017 (ChST)

You haven't addressed my primary concern. What (if any) conflict of interest do you have regarding the Guam Hotel and Restaurant Association? MER-C 07:33, 25 September 2017 (UTC)

Contemporary Museum Baltimore

Hello. The OTRS team has received a formal permission statement for the materials taken from [1]. I have tagged the talk page of the article with the appropriate template (Talk:Contemporary Museum Baltimore). Now, the user has contacted us wanting his/her writings reinstated. I saw your name at the page's history. I hope that I am contacting the right person. Could you please restore the previous version of that article? Thank you 4nn1l2 (talk) 19:14, 26 September 2017 (UTC)

(talk page watcher) 4nn1l2, it was actually I who reverted that page to its pre-copyvio state; MER-C kindly dealt with the revdeletion. Now that permission has come through, it may be appropriate for that revdeletion to be reversed. As for restoring the COI text copied from the website, it seems to me a very poor idea. Wikipedia is built on independent reliable sources and cares little or nothing what people or bodies say about themselves. May I suggest that you point the editor (and any other person who makes a similar request through OTRS) towards our conflict of interest guidelines? Justlettersandnumbers (talk) 19:58, 26 September 2017 (UTC)

I have reversed the revision deletion. As for restoring the content, absolutely not. They shouldn't have bothered copyright clearing it in the first place, and you, 4nn1l2, should have rebuffed them. Unencyclopedic, promotional dreck is unwanted regardless of its copyright status. MER-C 03:25, 27 September 2017 (UTC)

Justlettersandnumbers and MER-C, what you say makes sense to me. Thank you for your responses. I will follow what you suggested. 4nn1l2 (talk) 13:05, 27 September 2017 (UTC)

Wikipedia Threatens Its Contributors

I received this message for posting information about a company that I came across while working on my project as a student. My friend who had contributed on Wikipedia told me how if a company is a pioneer in something one should post in on Wikipedia that way not only can I work on my project but also post information that will help someone working on the same project in future.

The auditor who posted this is very rude and obviously representing the language they use at Wikipedia for every contributor, not at all thought out message on my talk page without knowing if I am in any way associated with the company. To the very rude person who posted it on my page, I am just a student who came across this company and its website, as I thought I should contribute to the community, I did so, but it turns out Wikipedia does not deserve anything. I donate every year to Wikipedia if you want to verify check it in your data base, but seeing how you guys behave with the contributors I will now stop doing so and also ask everyone on my university to stop doing so. Was a huge fan of this website until now that I have seen real attitude of the Evil people behind it. Do Not Ever Email Me about Re-Donating because Rude people do not deserve single penny.

And I Assure you i will share my experience throughout my campus, and it is now my primary goal to make sure you guys do not dupe any more students into believing you people are descent because you people are not. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Mihirs2007 (talk • contribs) 12:33, 28 September 2017 (UTC)

For the record: a quote from the deleted content:

Our core business is unique & innovative design. We create our own electronic and ergonomic design.

Promotional fluff like this is not tolerated. MER-C 08:36, 29 September 2017 (UTC)

For Your Information, I took a lot of the information from their website, I did not care to re-check the information. If you would have visited their website you would have noticed how much I relied on the online data for my project as well as the article. And that is why the " 'Our' core business is unique & innovative design. We create 'our' own electronic and ergonomic design.

If you had bothered to take the two minutes needed to understand the purpose of this website -- which lends the site its name and tagline -- you would not have drawn the reaction you did. MER-C 08:33, 11 October 2017 (UTC)

deleted page Draft:Dr. Maricar

Hello,

Thanks for reviewing my Article about Dr. Maricar can i request you for the source file so that I can change as per guidline and help from you.

Thanks in advance. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Deepak.mandal (talk • contribs) 17:26, 6 October 2017 (UTC)

You need to start from scratch -- your draft was essentially the doctor's CV and therefore totally inappropriate for an online encyclopedia. I do not undelete advertising. The same can be said for your userpage. MER-C 04:05, 7 October 2017 (UTC)

Your new tool

Thanks so much for taking a stab at the tool I suggested. I've been playing around with it, and I have a couple of comments:

• The first is that I have to develop a better strategy for what articles to put into the tool, since just loading in the articles with the most edits by a sock farm returns too many hits. I have a feeling that I'm going to have to be more discriminating and put in the articles that larger numbers of the socks edited, as opposed to the articles which have more edits by the socks in toto. But that's a problem for my side of things.

• It occurs to me that it would be helpful if the tool had a verbose and a non-verbose mode, so that in non-verbose mode just the number of edits for each editor and each article would be displayed, and verbose mode would get the detailed readout as you have it now. This would facilitate paring down the editors to be concentrated on, who could then be more closely examined in verbose mode.

• Also, it would be useful if the editors could be listed in descending order of how many articles they hit on. Again, this might be helpful in sorting the wheat from the chaff.

Please bear in mind that I am not a coder, and have little idea of whether what I'm asking for is a giant pain in the butt or a simple matter. If the former, please feel free to tell me that these suggestions are just not possible, or would take much too much time to do. I'm really grateful that you took my suggestion seriously, and I'll work with whatever you're able to come up with.

Thanks again, Beyond My Ken (talk) 04:42, 8 October 2017 (UTC)

Point 2: I need to get the revision information anyway, so I might as well return the full results. One way around this is to have the collapse boxes start collapsed.

Point 3: Sounds reasonable. MER-C 12:32, 8 October 2017 (UTC)

The two improvements I mentioned above are now live. MER-C 07:28, 9 October 2017 (UTC)

Thanks, I probably won't have a chance to look at it for at least a day. Beyond My Ken (talk) 07:35, 9 October 2017 (UTC)

User talk:Inventorygain11

You may wish to revoke talk page access.--Cahk (talk) 08:35, 11 October 2017 (UTC)

Already done. MER-C 08:47, 11 October 2017 (UTC)

Deleting my edits

Hello there

I totally understand what is Wikipedia has been build for , I didn’t use Wikipedia for promoting, I used it to include information about a major company in Japan , It’s not really different from the content of any big company page like google or all others , I need an explanation please . Ammar mou (talk) 16:46, 19 October 2017 (UTC)

And the warning title you posted on my talk page is different from the body , what is the violation here ? Copy righted content or advertising

Regards Ammar mou (talk) 17:18, 19 October 2017 (UTC)

I totally understand what is Wikipedia has been build for. I didn’t use Wikipedia for promoting

Our highly experienced and knowledgeable local staff will respond to your demands promptly, giving you peace of mind so that you can thoroughly enjoy your travels. [2] (admins only)

Quite evidently you don't. Did you read what you dumped into Wikipedia? Do you understand why that text was written?

what is the violation here ? Copy righted content or advertising

Both. MER-C 02:09, 20 October 2017 (UTC)

I'm sorry I might missed this part when I pasted some of the content , I'm totally not promoting , because I'm not having any benefits , I was trying to translate the Japanese wiki page and add some other resources

Quite evidently you don't. Did you read what you dumped into Wikipedia? Do you understand why that text was written

I confess that I made a mistake , but I made it with no intention ,and I totally know what Wikipedia and CC has been created for and I believe in that concepts starting with Wikipedia ending with the Blockchain and any kind of decentralization , please give me the chance to correct my mistakes and sorry again for the inconvenience.

Regards

Ammar 15:25, 20 October 2017 (JST) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Ammar mou (talk • contribs)

I still think your explanation is unsatisfactory, but fine. Consider yourself to be on very thin ice. MER-C 07:28, 20 October 2017 (UTC)

Thanks for the Chance , I will not mess with that , Let's make the Internet a better place for everyone.

Ammar 18:13, 20 October 2017

User:Meenakshi Rana

Hey MER-C, I am a new editor on wikipedia. I already have submitted 2 drafts of general use. This time, i am also writing about on page optimization, if you may see my draft. In meantime i am learning how to use externel reliable sources and for that i used my clinic from where i am taking treatment and what resources for reliabilty i saw i used them. It's ok if you delete my draft article but why have you deleted my user page. It's not ustified. Plese revert your commited action. i want to complete my draft and be continued with wikipedia. Meenakshi Rana (talk) 08:23, 23 October 2017 (UTC)

User pages are to enhance collaboration and, like the rest of the encyclopedia, are explicitly not personal profiles and cannot be used for marketing or SEO purposes. The version I deleted does not comply with these policies. The abridged version was also deleted by another admin for the same reason. MER-C 08:54, 23 October 2017 (UTC)

Username search

I just saw your new tool and if looks to be really helpful. It also made me think you might know the answer to this question: is there currently a way to search for a string of characters in a username other than by listing what the username starts list. Last night when I was filing WP:Sockpuppet investigations/Pulpoman.smb, I was trying to figure out if it was possible to search for the .smb string. TonyBallioni (talk) 12:29, 25 October 2017 (UTC)

You would think so, but to the best of my knowledge the answer is no. If this is a userpage creating vandal, the sockpuppets are already tagged or the user talk page exists for some reason, you could get a poor man's version of what you want by using the existing search function (intitle:SEARCHTERM selecting the user and user talk namespaces). You could propose this in a couple of weeks time at the community wishlist survey. A better bet would be the Anti-Harassment team; I've pretty much gotten or getting everything I've asked for from them. Better sockpuppet detection tools are on their radar and you'll probably see this next year. MER-C 13:11, 25 October 2017 (UTC)

Good idea, re: anti-harassment. My primary dealing with socks is mainly for spam, so thats the context I was thinking of it in. Didn't even register that it could have positive benefits for anti-harassment work. Thanks for the pointer and all your work. TonyBallioni (talk) 14:49, 25 October 2017 (UTC)

Deletion

You beat me to it. I was preparing to delete User:Shubhamverma272175 as per being G11 and also as a copyvio of https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-best-site-seeing-places-in-Raipur. When I went to delete, it was already done. North America¹⁰⁰⁰ 11:08, 28 October 2017 (UTC)

BOO! Likewise, I wish you have plenty of spooky fun this Halloween, especially if those getting scared are the spammers and the sockpuppets). MER-C 12:00, 28 October 2017 (UTC)

I may extend my semi-wikibreak to a full one for a while. North America¹⁰⁰⁰ 12:15, 28 October 2017 (UTC)

Halloween cheer!

Happy Halloween!

---

Hello MER-C:
Thanks for all of your contributions to improve Wikipedia, and have a happy and enjoyable Halloween!
    – North America¹⁰⁰⁰ 11:08, 28 October 2017 (UTC)

Send Halloween cheer by adding {{subst:Happy Halloween}} to user talk pages with a friendly message.

S. M. Imamul Huq

Thanks. I'm pretty convinced there's a COI there as there is someone with the same name as that editor at the same University. Doug Weller talk 15:00, 7 November 2017 (UTC)

Copyvios, possible COI, is generally non-communicative, likely English as a second language -- this editor is certainly worth monitoring. MER-C 06:01, 9 November 2017 (UTC)

I saw this and thought of you

[3]. -- zzuuzz ^(talk) 00:08, 9 November 2017 (UTC)

What. Wonder what they're up to? MER-C 04:05, 9 November 2017 (UTC)

Intriguing, huh. All I can say is that this was a job lot. I can't necessarily say they're all the same person. -- zzuuzz ^(talk) 07:46, 9 November 2017 (UTC)

These pages were the result of a black hat SEO computer program as opposed to an actual human (this was one of the sites spammed by the above bunch of accounts, it's all over the tubes). The most that can be said is that the spammer(s) are running the same software. You shouldn't be surprised that they're using VPNs, webhosts and compromised machines. Is there anything off about the User-Agent string or other checkuser data? MER-C 08:52, 9 November 2017 (UTC)

Peter Kitson

Hi! Back in October, you rev-del'd a copyvio on Peter Kitson. Unfortunately, another IP added another copyvio from the same source today. Please could you rev-del again? Marianna251TALK 23:44, 9 November 2017 (UTC)

Done. MER-C 00:46, 10 November 2017 (UTC)

Cheers! Marianna251TALK 02:49, 10 November 2017 (UTC)

List of international meteorological stations

Hi MER-C, I was wondering if you could assist me with a second set of eyes. I came across the new article List of international meteorological stations. This is essentially a copy/paste job of raw unformatted data from another website. As it is presented, it has no value for Wikipedia and even if nicely reformatted it probably falls in the category of indiscrimiate data or mirror of data. I PROD'ed it for now, as it does not strictly fall into any CSD category. The article made it into to the Top5 of Wikipedia's largest articles, so I was wondering if you have any views if this should wait the prod process or may with some interpretation fall into G1 given the vast amount of dumped raw data. _pseudonym Jake Brockman ^talk 10:55, 10 November 2017 (UTC)

You made sense of it, so it's not nonsense and thus not a G1. PROD is the right way to go. MER-C 11:10, 10 November 2017 (UTC)

Hi MER-C

How can I request to remove a domain from the spam list? Don't really know if this is the place to ask this kind of question, I'm new here at Wikipedia. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.207.255.185 (talk) 10:52, 26 November 2017 (UTC)

(talk page gnome) @192.207.255.185: Please see MediaWiki talk:Spam-blacklist#Proposed removals to request removal of a domain and MediaWiki talk:Spam-whitelist to request whitelisting specific pages on a domain. —PaleoNeonate – 11:06, 26 November 2017 (UTC)

Hi again, I did go to the Proposed removals page, but I didn't understand how or where to send a request. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.207.255.185 (talk) 11:15, 26 November 2017 (UTC)

I was able to open a request, thanks! — Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.207.255.185 (talk) 11:30, 26 November 2017 (UTC)

Webhost rangeblocked (context). MER-C 11:49, 26 November 2017 (UTC)

User talk:Ifireflyled

You may wish to revoke talk page access.--Cahk (talk) 08:17, 29 November 2017 (UTC)

Done. MER-C 16:25, 29 November 2017 (UTC)

Hello MER-C

I've started to put together the basics of a wiki page for the boss of the old company I worked at 'James Spenceley'. It is linked from a few wiki articles but shows up as non existing page, however on another search It shows up as an article deleted by MER-C.

I was planning on working on the article over the christmas holidays but wanted to check you have no objection to the article (assuming tha I properly research and reference it) or if there is another reason for the deletion and I shouldn't bother?

Tara2060 (talk) 22:31, 7 December 2017 (UTC)

He's probably worthy of inclusion, but your affiliation with the subject is starting to show in the prose. The reason for deletion was essentially deceptive and bad faith covert advertising, so I strongly recommend getting external review (this isn't my specialty). MER-C 11:14, 8 December 2017 (UTC)

Thanks MER-C. I just used a similar style to another telco person of interest Bevan Slattery as a base example to work from (which is an article I then edited to make less self promotional). What you've read is a pretty early draft, I'll be able to devote a lot more time to it over the holidays and focus on the prose further to make it less promotion. Thanks

Tara2060 (talk) 06:38, 13 December 2017 (UTC)

I'd be careful about using existing articles as a model unless they have been rigorously evaluated for quality. Wikipedia has plenty of shit articles, especially about business(wo)men and companies -- there are, for some reason, a lot of morons out there who refuse to understand that an encyclopedia is not a marketing medium. MER-C 18:58, 13 December 2017 (UTC)

Steven Grasse and Quaker City Mercantile

Hello MER-C, I'd like your recommendation for adding a biographical entry on Steve Grasse of Quaker City Mercantile. He's a notable person of interest inside of the distilling and advertising industries, and has created several popular brands that have become household names. There's already a fair amount of articles written about him, and he's published a few books.

You recently squashed https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:QuakerCityMercantile and I understand your reasoning for doing so. However the content there was potentially beneficial, if rewritten to the acceptable standards. That's the part I could use your recommendation for, please. Perhaps we should just start with a biography of Steve Grasse, and leave the commercial properties and companies out of it?

As a current employee of Steven's, I have a COI, so other than asking you for advice, I won't be writing any of the content myself. Thanks in advance for any guidance. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Digitalcraftsman (talk • contribs)

I suggest Wikipedia:Requested articles. When creating a listing, please provide some context so that anyone who browses this list knows exactly which person you're talking about and the best sources you have that demonstrate noteworthiness. MER-C 17:54, 10 December 2017 (UTC)

You&Oil natural skin care product company

Could you please provide what promotional or advertising content i published in my last article about the company You&Oil or what mistakes that i made writing it. It was supposed to be a wikipeCould you please provide what promotional or advertising content i published in my last article about the company You&Oil or what mistakes that i made writing it. It was supposed to be a wikipedia article about a company not a promotional advertisement. dia article about a company not a promotional advertisement. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Lukas675 (talk • contribs) 13:20, 12 December 2017 (UTC)

Bullshit. I should have revoked your editing privileges for posting that crap, an oversight I have rectified. MER-C 13:49, 12 December 2017 (UTC)

what happen?

why always my page delete? what happen? whats the fuck — Preceding unsigned comment added by Nandima godevithana (talk • contribs)

Somebody set up us the bomb. Read this, then try again. MER-C 18:31, 12 December 2017 (UTC)

Seasons' Greetings

...to you and yours, from the Great White North! FWiW Bzuk (talk) 03:46, 24 December 2017 (UTC)

Merry Christmas to you as well. MER-C 21:06, 24 December 2017 (UTC)

HNY

I can spam too:

Happy New Year! Best wishes for 2018, —PaleoNeonate – 01:57, 30 December 2017 (UTC)

You've got mail!

Hello, MER-C/archives. Please check your email; you've got mail!
Message added 02:42, 31 December 2017 (UTC). It may take a few minutes from the time the email is sent for it to show up in your inbox. You can at any time by removing the {{You've got mail}} or {{ygm}} template.

GAB^gab 02:42, 31 December 2017 (UTC)

Draft: Stag International

Hi, my draft on the mentioned topic was previously rejected by an editor. I resubmitted the same after making needful edits. You could have done the same instead of forcing it for speedy deletion. Suggest me pointers to improve or edit my article rather than straight away requesting for deletion. Very rude on your part. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Tanmoydas.1792 (talk • contribs) 09:45, 5 January 2018 (UTC)

You did not address the concern raised by the reviewer; the draft, being a corporate profile was thoroughly unsuitable for the encyclopedia. What, if any, conflict of interest do you have with this company? You needed to start from scratch, and now you have the opportunity to do so. MER-C 14:29, 5 January 2018 (UTC)

Your observations invited

As a fellow COI specialist, I'd love to see what you think of Wikipedia:Conflict of interest/Noticeboard#‎Tony Ahn PR/Reputation Management. – Athaenara ✉ 01:40, 8 January 2018 (UTC)

My general impression is that we have a tendentious editor trying to exhaust volunteers' patience. My blunt advice: stop wasting your time. He's clearly not here to improve the encyclopedia (as he puts his interests first), so his editing privileges should be permanently revoked. Unfortunately, I have bigger fish to fry than deal with this time sink. MER-C 14:57, 8 January 2018 (UTC)

Your clue possession is stunning as usual and I agree with your assessment. He admits to having several accounts, not all of them active. I know of three (and there's little doubt he has more):

• Archer904* (2006-2010)
• Noraft (2009-present)
• I'm Tony Ahn (2011-present)
• Category:Suspected Wikipedia sockpuppets of I'm Tony Ahn (partially disclaimed on COI/N)

When editing privileges revocation comes around, there might be some scrambling as he pops up with other accounts and/or anonIPs and/or meatpuppets that nobody nailed down yet. – Athaenara ✉ 17:10, 8 January 2018 (UTC)

• FYI: I presumed to quote you (diff) in that discussion. – Athaenara ✉ 07:37, 10 January 2018 (UTC)

(Got a thank for quoting you! – Athaenara ✉ 10:50, 10 January 2018 (UTC)

I came back to the Archer904* account I mentioned above and can't find what I was looking into that day that made me think it had anything to do with Ahn et al. The guy said he was "CEO of Technomancer Press" (in 20:15, 4 September 2006 UTC upload summary for a file which was deleted the following day) and except for a half dozen edits has been inactive since December 2008. – Athaenara ✉ 14:50, 12 January 2018 (UTC)

i cannot respond to any of the points on my account..

i wanted to address them all, and i thought i had by stating that i understood the rules and that i was not interested in making mods to items reflecting faceless technologies nor would i be paid or accept any payment for any mods i make on the site..

i literally have all intentions to be a genuine contributor to the site and information within, but frankly this seems like a bunch of self interested old school sysops that aren't even reading the information i am typing, and just feeling all mighty and powerful..

the name/handle was approved under ScottRichardsFaceless but since i am still blocked i literally have not been able to reply to the section where comments were made..

so let me know your thoughts and opinions and any other information you might want. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 108.189.10.211 (talk) 15:01, 8 January 2018 (UTC)

You need to log in.

Stating that you have understood the rules is not enough, you actually need to show it. I've seen many an unblock request where the user states exactly that, but it is blatantly obvious they haven't even read the block message. In your next unblock request, you need to provide a convincing answer to the third point (i.e. be specific, briefly describe an edit(s) you would like to make -- for example, I'm going to expand this article with these sources).

Please use correct punctuation in correspondence, otherwise other editors may not take you seriously. MER-C 15:15, 8 January 2018 (UTC)

Coming here from another lead because I nearly blocked this IP for block evasion - which I think under the circumstances would have been appropriate, their talk page does not appear to have been blocked. Anyway, it's your call. Kudpung กุดผึ้ง (talk) 17:48, 12 January 2018 (UTC)

Deva Vatala National Park Article Re-Creation

Hey Mer-C! How are you? I hope you're doing. I am currently working on the Wildlife section of South Asia. I wanted to know that you've deleted the Deva Vatala article because of sockpuppet. I want to write that article with my knowledge, information and references. So I wanted to know if I can re-create that without copyrights infringement and with verified references? Waiting for your response. TylerBlack97 (talk) 16:39, 8 January 2018 (UTC)

You've minimally rewrote [4] at Sind krait. That sounds rather familiar. You need to convince me (or some other admin) that you understand our copyright policy (hint: read Wikipedia:Copying text from other sources). MER-C 17:28, 8 January 2018 (UTC)

Database Access

Just a heads up - if you're interested in Database access - it's pretty easy to get. Just create an account on wikitech, then request toolforge access. It can take a few days - but it's generally pretty easy. There are a few caveats as well however, we don't get access to page text, or revision text / changes, nor anything personal (emails / etc). If there's anything I can do to help, or if you have any questions - please let me know. This week is super busy for me, but I will probably try to port over that tool this weekend. SQL^{Query me!} 02:06, 29 January 2018 (UTC)

Thanks for letting me know; I'll keep this in mind. My tools are hosted on an external server to avoid downtime issues with Toolforge (that includes the DB replica there) but I've got the feeling that I want to run queries that the API cannot help me with easily some time in the near future. MER-C 20:35, 29 January 2018 (UTC)

In the meanwhile I'm always happy to run queries as well (could set up a private API possibly for specific static queries) if you need / exceed the 30 min limit on quarry. SQL^{Query me!} 22:43, 29 January 2018 (UTC)

SEEDS Foundation - Draft Removed for 'Advertising'

MER-C,

I hope you are well.

First off - I would like to know, why was my draft classed as advertising? It was simply a Wikipedia page for a charity we run.

Secondly - Why was my draft deleted? I spent time and effort into creating my first ever Wikipedia page, and this was simply a slap in the face.

Thirdly - You threaten of having me banned from Wikipedia, due to 'Advertising'. WE CREATED AN INFORMATIVE PAGE ABOUT SEEDS FOUNDATION. It is a CHARITY/NON-PROFIT, so I don't understand how you can have the nerve to delete such a page claiming that we were advertising 'a brand'.

I really expect a reply from you ASAP.

Kind Regards,

Rob — Preceding unsigned comment added by AngloSkillsCollege (talk • contribs) 10:03, 8 February 2018 (UTC)

Non-profits can (and are) promoted just like companies. You do not get to subvert the purpose of this website because it's a non-profit. If you are unable to (or refuse to) understand why that page was advertising, you shouldn't be editing Wikipedia. Hint: "Due to this, the school strives to equip the students with the knowledge and skills to enable them to better themselves in society and lead better lives. ... SEEDS also operates a branch in Azad Kashmir, Pakistan (now known as 'SIES') - and the progress we have made in Pakistan can be seen by the growing percentage in literacy, education, and skilled proffessions in Muzaffarabad". MER-C 12:12, 8 February 2018 (UTC)

A doubt regarding promotion through wikipedia

Hi,

I am just a regular editor on wikipedia mostly working on deorphaning articles. I came across an orphaned page about Spring Board International Preschools. It seemed to be a promotional page, and so i looked at the editor and his talkpage. He had warnings from you.

In october 2017 you issued a warning to the user |Jayaramcsit2 regarding not using wikipedia for promotion. I did a bit of research on the edits made by that user and it seems to me based on the articles he/she created that the person is affiliated with |Manchu Family. All the created articles are exclusively talking about various educational institutions set up by Vishnu Manchu and his father Mohan Babu. As far as i know there is some policy that says if you are People Relations manager for a group you write on wiki you need to mention it, and i have a strong suspicion that the aforementioned user is one.

My doubts:

1.) Is my evidence enough to prove that the person is affliated with the group (his only edits are on 10 pages about the group's institutions)

2.) If he is affiliated do we leave that person about to make his own edits and in a way promote his company, or do we issue a warning?

Thank you Daiyusha (talk) 11:38, 8 February 2018 (UTC)

The new articles are not as terrible as the trash I deleted but still have clear promotional intent. I've revoked his editing privileges. MER-C 12:17, 8 February 2018 (UTC)

Restoration of ndunkel sandbox

Hello! One of my students, ndunkel, was working on a project for my class in her sandbox. You deleted this sandbox--would you kindly restore it? This will allow me to help her correct errors prior to publication. JediLibrarian (talk) 18:14, 8 February 2018 (UTC)

The page you refer to was partially written in the first person. I do not restore advertising under any circumstance. She needs to start from scratch. Please make it absolutely clear that if she posts anything similar, her editing privileges will be revoked for adding content that is obviously not suitable for this encyclopedia. MER-C 19:15, 8 February 2018 (UTC)

This is a 9th grade student learning to use Wikipedia. She worked in her sandbox, an area specifically designed to learn how to use Wikipedia. None of the reasons you cite fall into Wikipedia:Misuse of the sandbox. As you'll note Wikipedia:About the Sandbox, some rules which apply to normal Wikipedia entries do not apply to the sandbox. Removal of a sandbox for a violation of the Manual of Style, such as rules governing first-person pronouns, expressly violates guidelines clearly articulated in the entries linked above. I ask, again, that you restore her sandbox so that I can teach my student about how to properly use Wikipedia. JediLibrarian (talk) 23:30, 10 February 2018 (UTC)

Apologies if I wasn't clear -- the deleted content was first person advertising. Advertising is not tolerated anywhere on Wikipedia. I do not need to quote a policy to justify this as it is obvious, but here you go. It also turns out to be a copyright violation (of [5] and possibly elsewhere; read this so you know what I'm referring to), therefore it must not be restored under any circumstance. Both of these policies are strictly non-negotiable. MER-C 13:53, 11 February 2018 (UTC)

I disagree with your decision. While Wikipedia recognizes that content such as abuse cannot exist anywhere, it also recognizes that beginners must have an environment with relaxed restrictions in which to learn. We learn through our mistakes, but there is an appropriate and inappropriate way to teach. Your approach, deleting a page and threatening to remove editing privileges, does not teach--it punishes. Given our differing interpretations of the function of a sandbox, I have referred this matter to the Administrator's Noticeboard. JediLibrarian (talk) 15:26, 11 February 2018 (UTC)

I appreciate your clarification and the ensuing discussion we had. I understand your perspective, having gained some glimpse into the work admins like you do on a daily basis to make Wikipedia a better place.JediLibrarian (talk) 14:31, 12 February 2018 (UTC)

@JediLibrarian: I'm going to carry on the discussion here, ANI isn't a suitable venue for it. For reference: Special:Permanentlink/825661679#On_Using_a_Personal_Sandbox_for_Learning.

The steepening learning curve is a consequence of Wikipedia's maturity, diminishing returns and increasing quality of content. Take our article on pi. In the early days, it didn't exist and it was easy to write something. As content is added, improved, cited to reliable sources and the topic covered more comprehensively, it becomes exponentially more difficult to make a constructive contribution. Now that it's featured and been on the main page, the bar for adding something is very high. The same process applies to the encyclopedia as a whole, we are transitioning from a focus on content creation to content maintenance and improvement. This is a good thing. Most of the easy to create articles are gone, except where there is systemic bias. Creation of new articles is difficult not only because of this, but because of the measures we have to put in place to keep the spammers out (if you want a rude shock, search "wikipedia article creation service"). It is easier to create articles in other languages because those Wikipedias are less complete. Consequently, the probability of deletion (tagging) of a new article is a lot higher than a user sandbox.

The reason I suggested to focus on sourcing is (1) it is easier, (2) you need to learn it anyway if you want to create a decent article while minimising the probability of a deletion surprise and (3) it teaches your students information literacy and research skills while still causing collateral improvements to Wikipedia. I also forgot to say that students can expand existing articles as a step in between. As Mr rnddude said, From one standpoint, it could not be [technically] easier to start writing an article than it currently is. Type in the name of the article you want to write, click the link to edit, and start writing. From another, writing a [decent encyclopedia] article takes time, research, and ability. Not everybody is capable of, or interested in, this. You need to be able to walk before you run. MER-C 15:46, 12 February 2018 (UTC)

There's a certain irony in this natural progression. Remember when the former Editor-in-Chief of Encyclopaedia Britannica likened visitors of Wikipedia to visitors of a public toilet? Wikipedia worked, for years, on proving that collaboration could create quality. Later, some researchers would conclude that Wikipedia exhibited "epistemic virtues". "Experts" originally cautioned that Wikipedia could not exhibit the same cognitive authority as paid resources. Those experts have been proven wrong. But in adopting the good characteristics of those previous cognitive authorities (encyclopedias), Wikipedia has absorbed some of the bad qualities as well.

It's hard to use Wikipedia these days. Even telling students to register for an account is hard. Our school's IP address is blocked (I'm sure most schools have had their share of vandals). Students' phones IP addresses are blocked too, so they have to register at home. If students want to upload a picture (even one they took), they need a verified account. So they make 10 quick edits, then get their account blocked because quick edits look like a bot to admins. Then the type of image they can upload has changed over the years. Several years ago, book covers, album covers, company logos, etc. were considered part of the public domain. They're not anymore. Then if they upload an image, and start typing text, it could irrevocably disappear. Could it be easier? Sure. Create a new website, like wikiacademy or wikipediaed, or something. Partner with Khan Academy to create tutorials, teaching kids Wikipedia's mark-up language and the content-creation process. Build a whole course out of it, then when students finish, they're ready to start contributing to Wikipedia. You and Mr rnddude are wrong about the ease of learning to create content: Wikipedia's tutorials engage visual learners, but that represents but a fraction of the learning styles out there. Having video tutorials brings in auditory learners, and having space to experiment brings in kinesthetic learners. Wikimedia's financial statements show what, $100 million in the bank? The foundation has doubled, maybe tripled employees over the past five years? For a small fraction of their resources, they could engage students around the world in a revolutionary way.

As a result of this incident and ensuing discussion, I will change my assignment. Next year, I will have students translate an existing page into another language. Maybe the small town where they visit their grandparents has a great entry in Italian but a poor entry in English (or French, etc.). Maybe there is no Simple English entry for a biology concept they have studied. I do teach sourcing, and my student's are capable of quality work. But they do need more structure, particularly given tightening guidelines.JediLibrarian (talk) 23:30, 13 February 2018 (UTC)

On another note, the link you provide for the archived discussion does not work. It appears to have been removed! JediLibrarian (talk) 23:32, 13 February 2018 (UTC)

I agree that translation will prove a rich learning experience for your students; I've recommended it myself to newbies multiple times. I also agree that the WMF does not spend donor funds effectively. But on the rest, I think we agree to disagree. (By the way, I fixed the link). MER-C 22:12, 14 February 2018 (UTC)

Adding a title to the blacklist

I think you are familiar how to do this (or would know who would), so pestering you about it: if you look at Wikipedia:Miscellany for deletion/Draft:BookMyShow we have a clear case of needing a title on the blacklist because salting isn't going to help. I don't trust myself to figure out how to do it on my own, so thought I'd reach out. TonyBallioni (talk) 11:00, 14 February 2018 (UTC)

Done... also found out that undelete title searching is somehow broken. Sigh. WMF. MER-C 11:31, 14 February 2018 (UTC)

Speedy deletion (no contest button) of Hayley Sparkes

Hi - I created a page for "Hayley Sparkes", following a similar template to that of similar celebrities that perform similar roles as she does.

We were very careful to try and adhere to all the rules and policies of Wikipedia.

However it was "speedy deleted". I think because content was similar to her website, which we also worked on together.

I can appreciate that this may have been the case. Our apologies if the content was too similar, we would like to rectify this.

Hayley was fully involved in the creation of the page.

Can we review the content, so we can look to get a page that follows the rules and policies please?

We didn't get to take a copy of the page content, and so I am wondering if it is possible to retrieve a copy somehow?

Many thanks, Simon. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Simon.goodchild (talk • contribs) 19:58, 14 February 2018 (UTC)

We were very careful to try and adhere to all the rules and policies of Wikipedia.

How about this one? And this one? And this one? You have either misunderstood or refused to abide by the purpose of this website; your actions to date serve to undermine its integrity. I shouldn't have to explain to you the concepts of "encyclopedia", editorial ethics and integrity. Our readers expect independent, unbiased coverage of our subject matter.

As for the content, it was a minimal rewrite of her website. There isn't anything worth undeleting and there is nothing you can do to write an acceptable article. MER-C 21:43, 14 February 2018 (UTC)

Sorry to bother you-

-but this was recreated eight minutes after your deletion :) it looks substantially the same in its promotionalism? Take care! >SerialNumber54129^{...speculates} 11:50, 19 February 2018 (UTC)

It was somewhat improved but still promotional; Jimfbleak deleted it. It's not yet bad enough for the banhammer. MER-C 15:07, 19 February 2018 (UTC)

Page Deleted From Your End, Want to know the grounds on which you decide to remove my page

Hi MCR,

I got this message from your end, 12:27, 11 January 2018 MER-C (talk | contribs) deleted page User:MantoshSingh/sandbox (G11: Unambiguous advertising or promotion)

So, after reading this message let me inform you the background about my page which I was trying to publish. Actually we have a community of experts named scmGalaxy. We all are professionals and working together in collaboration since 8 years. We published various helpful free tutorials on different tools & technologies. Our community provides training, consulting & support TO IT's organizations & professionals & freshers who wants support or services related to different technologies. Moto of the page creation just want to share our experience of our 8 years long journey. Please look after this let me know, can we create a page or not in WIKIPEDIA. — Preceding unsigned comment added by MantoshSingh (talk • contribs) 10:03, 22 February 2018 (UTC)

If you can't figure out why that page and what you have written just now is typical marketing bullshit and why said bullshit is not allowed on Wikipedia, you shouldn't be editing. I should not have to explain to you what an encyclopedia is (hint: see WP:NOT), nor should I have to explain basic media ethics. MER-C 17:15, 22 February 2018 (UTC)

User:Shafiqabu

I was curious, why did he require a indef ban? It didn't quite seem that clear on his talk page why it was such a harsh ban. Because I thought he did some decent work on wiki at times. Regards, Govvy (talk) 12:48, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

1. [6][7].
2. I do not hand out temporary blocks for copyright infringement and view them as counterproductive. They need to prove that they understand the policy before they are allowed to edit again, as it is a prerequisite for contributing constructively and central to the goals of this project. A block that expires does not achieve that. When an unblock request is lodged that explains in their own words what they did wrong, why passing off someone's images/text as their own harms Wikipedia and what they'll do to change they will likely be unblocked.
3. Zero communication via user talk means the banhammer is the only option. Wikipedia is a collaborative project.
4. He's had 24000 edits and 5 years to figure out points 2 and 3. It's not hard, and there are no excuses for an editor of that tenure. MER-C 13:00, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

Ok, well, English isn't his primary language, but I understand that, I just thought an indef ban seemed a bit excessive for an editor who done some good work at times.

On a similar issue I've mentioned Fetx2002 who uploads tons of copyrighted images in the past. I don't think Fetx has ever been banned, know, he is still active and I don't trust the guy and feel a few admins should keep an eye on him. Regards Govvy (talk) 14:47, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

Sigh... 15 of 19882 edits to user talk, been here for coming up to eight years. Orphaned non-free images aren't a big deal, but falsely claiming you are the photographer and that you freely license the image is. MER-C 16:49, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

Well, I don't know, but Shafiq pretty much wrote History of Kelantan FA and also 2018 Kelantan FA season which I thought was decent work, then on that season article after the ban, User:Qifahs17 took over edits, I assumed it was the same guy doing a ban evasion, but I can't use the tools to find out. Govvy (talk) 20:41, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

His unblock requests made it clear that he didn't understand the copyright policy. I forgot to mention that if a temporary block expires, the user can keep on infringing for months or years because nobody is bothered to follow up properly. Yes, it might seem harsh, but indefinite is not forever. I also forgot to mention that passing off another's image as one's one is also Wikipedia:Plagiarism, which is anathema to Wikipedia's aim of being a credible encyclopedia. As for the new account, it could be him socking (seen the same edit pattern many times before) but I'll let it pass until he starts repeating the same mistakes. (See also Wikipedia:Communication is required). MER-C 21:34, 24 February 2018 (UTC)