Mikebrand
Welcome! edit
I hope you like this place — I sure do — and want to stay. Before getting too in-depth, you may want to read about the Five pillars of Wikipedia and simplified ruleset. If you need help on how to title new articles check out the naming conventions, and for help on formatting the pages visit the manual of style. If you need help look at Wikipedia:Help and the FAQ , plus if you can't find your answer there, check the Village Pump (for Wikipedia related questions) or the Reference Desk (for general questions)! There's still more help at the Tutorial and Policy Library. Plus, don't forget to visit the Community Portal. And if you have any more questions after that, feel free to post them on my user talk page or place {{helpme}} on your talk page and someone will be by to help you shortly.
Additional tips edit
Here's some extra tips to help you get around in the 'pedia!
- If you want to play around with your new Wiki skills the Sandbox is for you.
- You can sign your name followed by a datestamp using four tildes (~). You should do this after all your posts on talk pages.
- You may want to add yourself to the new user log.
- If you ever think a page or image should be deleted, please list it at the votes for deletion page. There is also a votes for undeletion page if you want to retrieve something that you think should not have been deleted.
- If you're still entirely confused, or would like to get a better grasp of your wikipedia skills, and you have an IRC client (or don't mind getting one), check out the Bootcamp. It's not what it sounds like, but it is fun and can help you with your editing skills.
- If you're bored and want to find something to do, try the Random page button in the sidebar, or check out the Open Task message in the Community Portal.
Some open tasks edit
You can help improve the articles listed below! This list updates frequently, so check back here for more tasks to try. (See Wikipedia:Maintenance or the Task Center for further information.)
Help counter systemic bias by creating new articles on important women.
Help improve popular pages, especially those of low quality.
Happy Wiki-ing, from +Hexagon1 (talk) 
04:12, 9 April 2006 (UTC)
Good job on San Antonio Spurs edit
Hello Mike! I noticed your creation of the position table on the San Antonio Spurs page- it looks good, well done! Have you seen The NBA WikiProject? It's where many editors who are interested in the NBA get together and collaborate on different NBA pages on Wikipedia. I think you should post a message on that WikiProject's talk page, showing people what you've done on the Spurs page, and perhaps it will become standardized on all the NBA pages across the encyclopedia.
Anyway, thanks for your edits, and let me know if there's anything I can do to help you settle in and enjoy Wikipedia! EWS23 | (Leave me a message!) 19:23, 20 April 2006 (UTC)
- Thanks for your response. I'll gladly promote the new player-position chart; I thought about just mentioning it there, but I at least wanted to get your permission first. Perhaps someone there (not me) will be able to tweak the appearance a bit. I'm glad you're enjoying Wikipedia, and I hope you decide to stay. We always need new, good editors. Let me know if you ever need any help with anything. EWS23 | (Leave me a message!) 03:24, 21 April 2006 (UTC)
- P.S.- You can track the discussion at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject National Basketball Association.
Dehydration edit
I'm glad you added the sentence of the chemistry meaning of dehydration. It pointed out a source of potential confusion. Looking through what linked to the article, I found a bunch of links that needed to be redirected to the dehydration reaction article. --Ed (Edgar181) 12:19, 5 June 2006 (UTC)
Re:Unsigned Draftees edit
Nope, "unsigned draftees" sounds good to me, unless someone else thinks of something. It would allow us to be more inclusive if someday they ever drafted an American kid and sent him overseas for a while. (Now that I think of it, that would have applied to David Robinson while he fulfilled his Naval duties...hmmm...) Anyway, I'm trying to think of how long the list would be. Obviously you got the three major ones. There's also Viktor Sanikidze, who perhaps we should make an article on. Is there anybody else I'm forgetting? EWS23 (Leave me a message!) 17:53, 24 July 2006 (UTC)
- Update: Okay, I've established the Viktor Sanikidze page. Feel free to add anything to it if you can find some other/new information, but I found that it was generally slim pickings. EWS23 (Leave me a message!) 19:36, 24 July 2006 (UTC)
- I don't recall having heard of Sanikidze. I'll probably do the table tomorrow during my lunch time. --Mikebrand 21:05, 24 July 2006 (UTC)
- Oh, and Sergey Karaulov, whose page we'll have to establish at some point as well. Wish we had a good source that listed these in one central location, I bet we're still missing a few. EWS23 (Leave me a message!) 21:39, 24 July 2006 (UTC)
- I don't recall having heard of Sanikidze. I'll probably do the table tomorrow during my lunch time. --Mikebrand 21:05, 24 July 2006 (UTC)
NBA vandalism edit
Hey. I see you've noticed some of the misinformation perpetrated by 70.225.66.22 (click link for full story). I've blocked this guy for 31 hours, but if you see him around (he seems to target the Spurs quite a bit, perhaps a Spurs fan gone down the wrong path) after the block expires, give him a {{bv}} warning and feel free to report him straight to me. (or to WP:AIV if I don't appear to be on and he's on a particularly bad spree) If he keeps it up, he'll get a longer block next time. Thanks. EWS23 (Leave me a message!) 03:37, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
- Thanks for the explanation. It's interesting to learn how the system works. I'll keep an eye out. --Mikebrand 10:15, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
- Well, there's a lot more details about how the whole anti-vandalism side of the wiki works, but it's a seedy underbelly that I don't blame most users for not getting involved in. ;o) Thanks for the help. EWS23 (Leave me a message!) 03:45, 5 August 2006 (UTC)
Wines template edit
I noticed you added the wines template to the Barolo article. I haven't seen this template before, and frankly, I'm wondering what value it adds? The apparent intention is to place the wine in question in the context of various styles and varietals, but the template doesn't provide the whole picture. If it did, it would duplicate information already found in the main wine article. I'd like to better understand what the motivation is for this template; please clarify. Gregmg 19:27, 5 October 2006 (UTC)
- I may be misunderstanding your question. The Wines template is designed to provide easy navigation between types of wine that are commonly available. Though the template does not explicitly state so, the intention of most who have contributed to it is for it to list the more common types of wine available in a restaurant or grocery and to not include very obscure wines. I think it serves the a similar purpose as most other navigational templates. Did I miss your point? --Mikebrand 00:28, 6 October 2006 (UTC)
NBA edit wars edit
Hey Mike, thanks for the heads-up. While I generally don't consider dispute resolution among my greater skills, I've sent messages to User:Downwards and User:Clipper471 to try to explain to them why their actions may be detrimental. Since you may know more about this conflict, feel free to review those messages and let me know what you think. Though I'm not quite as active on Wikipedia as I once was, please always feel free to send me a message if there's anything on your mind. Cheers, EWS23 (Leave me a message!) 22:37, 25 November 2006 (UTC)
Thanks for fixing my edit to Unitarian Universalism edit
I am always thankful and relieved when editors correct inaccuracies that I have inadvertently introduced into Wikipedia. This is just a simple note of appreciation. Keep it up, Dave Runger(t)⁄(c) 05:19, 23 December 2006 (UTC)
Date links edit
Because they are years, which should not be linked alone. Date links are for date preferences or links relevant to context. -- Renesis (talk) 03:26, 1 March 2007 (UTC)
- From the reference you linked, I see that "Stand alone years do not need to be linked but some users prefer it". Since the list has been built by many users over many months and they have followed the practice of linking years, it seems reasonable to allow those users to link the years. It does not seem necessary for one particular user to remove all the year links. --Mikebrand 03:47, 1 March 2007 (UTC)
- The links I have removed have not been set by "preference", they were set because this was the practice long ago. The link I posted above is also not the only link talking about linking years. It is perfectly fine to remove date links, because if an editor of that article actually likes the links in that context, they can always revert the changes. There is no need for inconsistency between articles "just because it's already like that." -- Renesis (talk) 04:01, 1 March 2007 (UTC)
- Fair enough. I trust, then, that you will not be going back and re-reverting on articles where the year links have been restored.--Mikebrand 12:05, 1 March 2007 (UTC)
- The links I have removed have not been set by "preference", they were set because this was the practice long ago. The link I posted above is also not the only link talking about linking years. It is perfectly fine to remove date links, because if an editor of that article actually likes the links in that context, they can always revert the changes. There is no need for inconsistency between articles "just because it's already like that." -- Renesis (talk) 04:01, 1 March 2007 (UTC)
Hi, I saw that you added Dolcetto in the wine template. Aren't there several different Dolcettos, though? Badagnani 00:34, 20 April 2007 (UTC)
- I had added a link to the article on Dolcetto. I think the article is the place to address the variety of Dolcettos, not the template. --Mikebrand 17:53, 20 April 2007 (UTC)
Updating scores edit
I only do it because it provides an additional purpose for me to watch a game. Either way, if I reduce edits, can I do the scores with the <----> tags attached. Soxrock 11:45, 22 May 2007 (UTC)
SCO-Linux controversies edit
Okay you reverted me, on the grounds that 'lack of citations isn't grounds for deletion'. Beg to differ. WP:V. Anything on Wikipedia without citations, such as the weasel-worded criticisms I deleted, fails the verifiability test and can be deleted unless someone cares to source it. Not to mention that the phrase from the letter quoted in the article doesn't appear anywhere on google, other than the original or in Wikipedia and/or wikipedia mirrors. Sourcing something solely on the primary source is original research, and that's grounds for deletion too. You, or someone else, had better fix this paragraph up with citations soon, and everything in it should be justifiable per Wikipedia policies, or I'm chopping it out again --Aim Here 13:19, 16 July 2007 (UTC)
- Since you have already made the effort to attempt to cite sources for the para, and were not able to, I will not stand in your way of deleting that para again. My concern, which apparently doesn't apply in this situation, is when people use a lack of a citation to delete valid content. The vast majority of content in Wikipedia is not cited and deleting it all would reduce WP to a tiny fraction of its current content. Most of WP's uncited content is valid, but I will not further defend the para you want to delete.
- Thanks for fixing my Talk page. I hadn't yet taken the time to see what was wrong. --Mikebrand 12:07, 17 July 2007 (UTC)
- You're welcome. I'll leave the article as-is for a few days, just in case someone does fix it, but I wouldn't hold my breath. --Aim Here 17:36, 17 July 2007 (UTC)
Sucanat edit
A {{prod}} template has been added to the article Sucanat, suggesting that it be deleted according to the proposed deletion process. All contributions are appreciated, but this article may not satisfy Wikipedia's criteria for inclusion, and the deletion notice explains why (see also "What Wikipedia is not" and Wikipedia's deletion policy). You may contest the proposed deletion by removing the {{dated prod}} notice, but please explain why you disagree with the proposed deletion in your edit summary or on its talk page. Also, please consider improving the article to address the issues raised. Even though removing the deletion notice will prevent deletion through the proposed deletion process, the article may still be deleted if it matches any of the speedy deletion criteria or it can be sent to Articles for Deletion, where it may be deleted if consensus to delete is reached. If you endorse deletion of the article, and you are the only person who has made substantial edits to the page, please tag it with {{db-author}}. Vectro 19:33, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Wine table issue? edit
I came across your user page and saw that you are working on a table for wine which has issues. What are they, and can I help? - LA @ 16:21, 10 July 2008 (UTC)
hey edit
good job —Preceding unsigned comment added by JMS Old Al (talk • contribs) 12:24, 24 March 2009 (UTC)
Texas talk page clarification edit
Thanks for the clarification/wikification to my comment. Over the past few years, I guess I've gotten into the nuanced chatter that has occurred throughout the wikiprojects, and forgot some people might not have any idea what terms such as MoS might mean, and what the GA criteria might be. Thegreatdr (talk) 23:58, 24 April 2009 (UTC)
- No worries. I had spent about 10 minutes figuring out what those acronyms meant, so figured I'd provide the links for others. --Mikebrand (talk) 02:33, 25 April 2009 (UTC)
I figured i would say, nice work on the Texas page. Thanks for all the hardwork. Oldag07 (talk) 00:47, 29 June 2009 (UTC)
Unreferenced BLPs edit
Hello Mikebrand! Thank you for your contributions. I am a bot alerting you that 1 of the articles that you created is tagged as an Unreferenced Biography of a Living Person. The biographies of living persons policy requires that all personal or potentially controversial information be sourced. In addition, to ensure verifiability, all biographies should be based on reliable sources. If you were to bring this article up to standards, it would greatly help us with the current 940 article backlog. Once the article is adequately referenced, please remove the {{unreferencedBLP}} tag. Here is the article:
- Olu Famutimi - Find sources: Google (books · news · scholar · free images · WP refs) · FENS · JSTOR · TWL
Carlos Slim edit
Hi, just a tip about Carlos Slim, which you have recently edited. You added his mother's birth location but this has been present in the article before. I put it in there while doing a big expansion a couple of months ago, during one of the many periods of rampant vandalism and POV pushing. The problem, it turns out, is that it is one of many facts that Slim himself is inconsistent about. The Lebanese POV-pushers found that elsewhere on his own website he refers to her being born in a village in Lebanon. There was a big row on the talk page and in the end I told everyone that the only solution was not to mention the birthplace at all.
Just a heads-up because the "fact" is likely to be taken out by someone fairly soon, and probably replaced with the Lebanese village again! - Sitush (talk) 07:34, 4 May 2011 (UTC)
- Thanks for that info Sitush. I suppose one option would be to state the inconsistency in the article saying something like "There is uncertainty regarding Linda Helú's birth place with sources reporting either Parral, Chihuahua[2] or Lebanon[3]." What would you think of that? Once a definitive source is found, it can be referenced and the article changed. --Mikebrand (talk) 13:13, 8 May 2011 (UTC)
- Are you sure about the Profit Magazine article for Carlos Slim? It is quite clearly a copyedited version of his own published biography and some of the phrases appear to be identical to those which I wrote for Wikipedia some time ago. We could be in circular reference territory here. - Sitush (talk) 08:47, 11 May 2011 (UTC)
Siglo XX edit
If band is notable is your burden to prove. Can't expect immediate agreement. Good luck. WJKovacs (talk) 04:25, 22 July 2011 (UTC)
The article Coastal Christian Academy has been proposed for deletion because of the following concern:
- unreferenced private school; appears to have 14 students
While all constructive contributions to Wikipedia are appreciated, content or articles may be deleted for any of several reasons.
You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{proposed deletion/dated}} notice, but please explain why in your edit summary or on the article's talk page.
Please consider improving the article to address the issues raised. Removing {{proposed deletion/dated}} will stop the proposed deletion process, but other deletion processes exist. In particular, the speedy deletion process can result in deletion without discussion, and articles for deletion allows discussion to reach consensus for deletion. Mojo Hand (talk) 23:16, 3 March 2014 (UTC)
Hi,
You appear to be eligible to vote in the current Arbitration Committee election. The Arbitration Committee is the panel of editors responsible for conducting the Wikipedia arbitration process. It has the authority to enact binding solutions for disputes between editors, primarily related to serious behavioural issues that the community has been unable to resolve. This includes the ability to impose site bans, topic bans, editing restrictions, and other measures needed to maintain our editing environment. The arbitration policy describes the Committee's roles and responsibilities in greater detail. If you wish to participate, you are welcome to review the candidates' statements and submit your choices on the voting page. For the Election committee, MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 13:52, 23 November 2015 (UTC)
ArbCom Elections 2016: Voting now open! edit
Hello, Mikebrand. Voting in the 2016 Arbitration Committee elections is open from Monday, 00:00, 21 November through Sunday, 23:59, 4 December to all unblocked users who have registered an account before Wednesday, 00:00, 28 October 2016 and have made at least 150 mainspace edits before Sunday, 00:00, 1 November 2016.
The Arbitration Committee is the panel of editors responsible for conducting the Wikipedia arbitration process. It has the authority to impose binding solutions to disputes between editors, primarily for serious conduct disputes the community has been unable to resolve. This includes the authority to impose site bans, topic bans, editing restrictions, and other measures needed to maintain our editing environment. The arbitration policy describes the Committee's roles and responsibilities in greater detail.
If you wish to participate in the 2016 election, please review the candidates' statements and submit your choices on the voting page. MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 22:08, 21 November 2016 (UTC)
ArbCom 2023 Elections voter message edit
Hello! Voting in the 2023 Arbitration Committee elections is now open until 23:59 (UTC) on Monday, 11 December 2023. All eligible users are allowed to vote. Users with alternate accounts may only vote once.
The Arbitration Committee is the panel of editors responsible for conducting the Wikipedia arbitration process. It has the authority to impose binding solutions to disputes between editors, primarily for serious conduct disputes the community has been unable to resolve. This includes the authority to impose site bans, topic bans, editing restrictions, and other measures needed to maintain our editing environment. The arbitration policy describes the Committee's roles and responsibilities in greater detail.
If you wish to participate in the 2023 election, please review the candidates and submit your choices on the voting page. If you no longer wish to receive these messages, you may add {{NoACEMM}} to your user talk page. MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 00:29, 28 November 2023 (UTC)