This is an archive of the help desk. Please do not edit this page. To ask a new question, go to this page.

February 5

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Questions about Intelligent Design

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I've asked some questions about ID during this past week.Two of them (in the Science section)just disappeared from the list of questions before they were even answered!What happened to them and where are they now?Tell me, please! Bowei 00:49, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Pages like this are archived after a couple of days. The information is still in the history, so if you go to Wikipedia:Reference_desk/Science and press the history button, you'll get an overview of all the modifications, so what you can do is press Next 50 several times until you get to the page just before the date was archived. If the question is unanswered, it might be wise to go the specific page and try to ask one of the major authors of the document whether they can help you. Dr Debug (Talk) 00:54, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

In this case it actually turns out that the question was deleted. If you take a look at the edit logs after when you posted your question, after much discussion and pointing out that Wikipedia is not a soapbox, your question was deleted because it was not deemed to be a scientific question. -- Natalya 01:04, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Merge request tag removal

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When someone proposes a merge, how long should the tag on the main page of it stay up before it can be taken down, assuming that there have been no counter-arguments to an argument against moving the page?

Specifically referring to Sex-selective abortion and infanticide, where my opposition to the move has been unanswered for a week. Fieari 01:24, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Generally, you might wait an amount of time going by how often the article is edited; if you here nothing from the editors of the article after a reasonable number of them are likely to see your comments, then go ahead. In general, try it and see — if anyone disagrees with you, they can easily reinstate it. In this case, I think it'd be fine to remove the tag now, without prejudice to someone wanting to reinstate it. -Splashtalk 02:33, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Edits

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I made an edit to an article (about the mitochondrion, more specifically, its inner membrane). As part of the edit explanation I uploaded an image with a longer explanation, an offer to help improve the existing cartoon, and a published reference that served as the basis for the edit.

The edit is in place.

1) Does someone (a reviewer?, the original author?) read the "supporting material" and decide whether to (1) question my edit or (2) follow up with me re possible further changes?

2) Searching on the image file name does not find it. I can't figure out how to find it or the explanation of the edit.

This is an interesting way to run an encyclopedia. Reminiscent of open source software development but much more open.

Thanks for your help.

Carmmann 03:37, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Possibly, but not nessisarily. Basically, the edit you made... is an edit. You are an official editor of the wikipedia. In general, we Assume Good Faith when people edit articles, in that we assume that you're trying to help, think that the edit would improve the article, is accurate, and all that.
On the other hand, vandals do happen, and for that reason, anyone can monitor every edit that happens. Check out the "Recent Changes" link to the left for all the changes everywhere on the site, and the "History" link above for all the changes to the article you're reading at the time. When you see these lists of edits, you can read the comments people make when submitting an edit, as well as seeing what they changed. Use the "Compare Versions" button, or just click the link next to an edit labeled "Last" to see what was changed. In this way, anyone can quickly notice if the person is just vandalizing the article... in which case anyone can then go to a previous version, copy the text, and return things to the rightful state.
Changes are usually scrutinized by a large number of people, mostly for obvious vandalism. Sneaky Vandalism, in which information is changed in subtle ways (changing a date, for instance) can be detected by looking at the edit summary... if they don't explain the source, it's usually reverted. We like to have all information Cited. Uncited information can stay for a little while, but we work hard to get sources for things.
When reverts happen, or when a controvery comes up, the Discussion Page is used. See the link at the top of each article.
In summary:
1) Yes. But YOU are the reviewer, and so is any other random person that wanders by.
2) See the "History" or "Recent Changes" links.
Any more quiestions? Fieari 04:06, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Editing categories

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How do you add articles to categories? Ksenon 04:02, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Put the following at the bottom of the article in question:
[[Category:<Name of category>]]
Fieari 04:08, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Of course if it's a person' biography or something like that, you should put [[Category:<name of category>|<last name>, <first name>]] so that they are listed in alphabetical order by their last name and not their first. See Wikipedia:Category for more info. Dismas|(talk) 05:12, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

ask for job

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how to apply as a flight attendnt in this airlins?

First, put your seat back and tray table in its fully upright and locked position. Then, go to another Web page that is more relevant to this subject matter than a page for seeking help about Wikipedia itself. Perhaps the sites of airlines, like American Airlines or Delta would have some useful information, such as contact information for their headquarters. *Dan T.* 04:16, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Dan, be nice. That could have been handled more diplomatically. Nevertheless, this isn't the place for that kind of question. You might get a friendlier responce over at Wikipedia:Reference desk though, or of course, at the airline websites as suggested. Fieari 04:23, 5 February 2006 (UTC

microsoft who created the company?

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who created the company?

Questions like this belong on the reference desk. This page is for help with using Wikipedia. But the answer to your question is on the Microsoft article. - Akamad 05:31, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Deleting talk pages

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Hi. I was wondering if it is possible to delete talk pages. Because I accidentally created these two talk page archives: Talk:Akamad/Archive01 and Talk:Akamad/Archive02, when they should have been at: User talk:Akamad/Archive01 and User talk:Akamad/Archive02. I listed the two to be speedy deleted, then realised that deleting the pages doesn't result in the talk pages been deleted. So my question is can the incorrect talk pages I created be deleted? Thanks. - Akamad 05:34, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Done. Evil saltine 05:37, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks. - Akamad 05:47, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Can you please advise HOW it is done? Garrie 03:55, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
As far as I know, only admins can delete pages - normal users can't. — QuantumEleven | (talk) 14:55, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

problem

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I'm having a rather strange problem. English Wikipedia seems to be blocked on my computer. I can't access it on any browser, including IE, firefox, and Opera (not that I can't edit Wikipedia, I can't even view the site at all, nor can I link to it from a google search). I can access any other website, including any other language wikipedia, but I can't get to English wikipedia. I'm writing from my friend's computer. No one else on the network in my dorm is blocked from Wikipedia, so I find this very strange. can anyone offer any help, or any possible reason why this could have happened? If this is the wrong place to post something like this, then please direct me to the right place.--Alhutch 05:38, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Only things I can think of would be a firewall issue or using a bad cached page. Try clearing out your page cache / internet files and setting the browser to load the page new each time. Then shut down and restart the browser before trying to access Wikipedia. If that doesn't work then check your firewall and/or browser allowed site settings to see if Wikipedia is somehow blacklisted. --CBD 17:10, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
thanks, I'll try that.--Alhutch 17:11, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Problem solved.--Alhutch 22:22, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Posting screen shots of technical issues

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I have some screenshots showing the problems I am intermittently having in having certain pages display properly (discussed here and here) I want to know where it would be appropriate to upload these pictures, and how to link to them, and so forth. Should I do it the same way as for any other pictures? Carcharoth 09:11, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Can't see an uploaded image... but others can!

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I'm having a rather strange problem with an image I uploaded for my first new article. The image file page is at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Badplanet_01.jpg

The problem is that I'm creating an article for that comic book, and I can't see the image for the cover of the first issue that I uploaded. But when I pasted that link to one of my friends thousands of miles away, he says he sees it just fine. I tried opening new windows of Firefox and IE, even restarting my computer... no dice. All I see is the image page in its entirety, minus the image in question.

I poked around a bit in the help section and Firefox's Content Options are checked for "Load Images" and unchecked for "from originating site only". Of course, a problem here wouldn't have made sense anyway, since I can see every other image on Wikipedia, including the on the "recently added images" page... except mine.

What's the deal?

If you look at the URL for the image itself, you'll see it contains "/ad/" (mediawiki assignes images to directories with essentially random alphabetic names). Clearly you're running one of a number of firefox ad-blocking programs which contains a pattern to block urls with "ad" in them. You need to either remove that pattern or add *.wikipedia.org and *.wikimedia.org to the extension's whitelist. -- Finlay McWalter | Talk 12:05, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Meaning of NPOV policy: Proportion of representation among experts OR among concerned parties

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The NPOV policy states: "we should present competing views in proportion to their representation among experts on the subject, or among the concerned parties."

Since the conjunction used here is or implying that the second part is but an alternative, should we take this to mean that if there are experts on the subject with different points of view, there is no need to look into how the topic itself affects concerned parties nor much less how the ordinary people opine about the subject.

I base my interpretation in that the decision on what is majority and minority viewpoints is based on reference texts (experts I presume) and prominent adherents. See NPOV policy: "From Jimbo Wales, September 2003, on the mailing list: If a viewpoint is in the majority, then it should be easy to substantiate it with reference to commonly accepted reference texts;* If a viewpoint is held by a significant minority, then it should be easy to name prominent adherents."

To summarize: the "or" means that if there are experts, commonly referenced texts and prominent adherents, we should not look into the opinions of ordinary people or how people in general feel about the subject? Thanks. Lafem 12:33, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The comma in that statement is a hypercorrection. I think this is a poorly-written way of saying "we should present competing views in proportion to their representation among concerned parties and experts on the subject" — that is, we should present all views to an appropriate degree, which is what the rest of the policy says. ᓛᖁ  15:50, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thank you Eequor. That's a very scholarly response. It seems very bad writing indeed if that is the intent and policy-makers could have just chosen another conjunction such as and. That is why I am bringing this up in other forums for others to see. Thanks again. Lafem 05:34, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

deletion of account

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How long does it take for you to stop using your account so it can get deleted? Cory pratt 8:09, 5 February 2006 (UTC)

Accounts don't get deleted. You can just stop editing if you like. I believe it has something to do with the GFDL license that says that user accounts have to remain in place so that edits can be attributed to the account even if the user no longer edits. Dismas|(talk) 13:51, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Film anniversary section

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I'm curious if something really belongs in an article. The specific item is the "Anniversary" section of the article for Fred Ward. It seems to be a listing, in poor grammar, of which films, in which Fred Ward acted, that came out X number of years/months ago as of this month. To me, this doesn't belong, which is why I've removed it once already, but an anon has brought it back. So does this belong? Dismas|(talk) 13:58, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Generally, you should ask these sorts of questions either in Request for Comments, or on the discussion page of the article. In this specific case though, since you asked, I would agree with you. Fieari 17:06, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks for your response. Dismas|(talk) 01:38, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

change account name

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Do any of you guys know how to change your wikipedian name because my name is kinda dull and I was wondering if its possible to change my account name. Cory pratt 9:11, 5 February 2006 (UTC)

Wikipedia:Changing username. But unless you're particularly proud of your edits so far, it would be simpler just to start a new account (and stop using the old one, to avoid complications). Markyour words 14:13, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Flagging an Article

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I have seen a flag at the top of some articles which states, more or less, that it has been suggested that the article is not written in the formal tone normally associated with an encyclopedia. How do I apply this flag to an article? In fact, how do I apply any flag to an article, such as POV, possible merging, etc.? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Feline Nursery (talkcontribs)

The flags - we call them templates - are listed at Category:Wikipedia maintenance templates. You apply the NPOV template by adding {{npov}} to the document. In general the policy / help page often includes the flags which are suitable if you think that a certain page needs to be changed. Dr Debug (Talk) 18:15, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
BTW: You can use ~~~~ to sign your questions. That way it is easier to contact you. Dr Debug (Talk) 18:16, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Be sure if you add these flags that you explain your concerns in detail (preferably with suggestions for improvement, but at least constructively) in the article's talk page (or wherever this particular tag suggests). If you don't, your ideas are likely to be unclear, and your flags can simply be removed. Notinasnaid 19:32, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Positioning of Show/Hide button

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I've been looking through the editing help pages in vain. Does anyone here know how to position the Show/Hide button in a nav frame for a page? Forcing it left or forcing it right is fine. Is it possible to force the Show/Hide button to appear directly after a piece of text? I've discovered that it is a javascript toggle, and it is mainly used to show/hide the Table of Contents (TOC), but I can't find anything about it at Wikipedia:Section. I did however find Template:Hidden and Template:Hidden_begin, if that is any help and someone can explain how these are doing what they do! Carcharoth 19:12, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I don't think that it is a template, because it's javascript. It might be listed in the commons.css or main.css but I'm not sure, because I don't recall the location of the css files (it's somewhere in the media directory). Hide/Show can be used to hide the TOC, but I never used it. Dr Debug (Talk) 19:33, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Do you want to reposition the Show/Hide button for all the pages you view on Wikipedia? Or do you want to reposition the Show/Hide button for anyone who views a particular Wikipedia page? The former might be possible by editing your own monobook.js file, the latter could be a bit trickier, perhaps even impossible. --PeruvianLlama(spit) 22:32, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
{{Hidden}} uses the sitewide "NavFrame" class in MediaWiki:Monobook.css. To hide a table of contents you can use __NOTOC__.--Commander Keane 22:36, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Starting new account

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How do you start a new account when you already have one. Because changing my user name on the same account is much too complicated. Cory pratt 2:28 5 February 2006 (UTC)

How about log out and create account? You know that you can rename an account as well. Dr Debug (Talk) 19:22, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Just create a new one, just the same as you created the old one.--Alhutch 22:34, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

WOMEN'S UNIFORMS IN WWII

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I AM LOOKING FOR PICTURES THE DIFFERANT UNIFORMS WORN BY WOMAN IN THE MILATARY DURING WWII. I NEED DETAILS ON THE PATCHES THAT WERE WORN ALSO? I FOUND THIS WEB PAGE GUST LOOKING FOR INFORMATION. HOPE YOU CAN HELP LYNN

This type of question belongs on the reference desk. The help desk (this page) is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please follow the link to the reference desk, select the relevant topic, and post your question there. Thanks. --Kwekubo 20:10, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

P.S. Please don't talk in ALL CAPITALS, because that is according scientific study harder and more difficult to read and ... it gives the impression that you are SHOUTING. Dr Debug (Talk) 22:39, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Etymologies: Wiktionary or Wikipedia?

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Do detailed etymologies of words or phrases belong here at Wikipedia, or over at Wiktionary? Etymologies are usually found in a dictionary rather than an encyclopedia, but then again there are articles like Abracadabra and Mannaz, so I'm not sure. —Keenan Pepper 20:18, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I think it depends more on the level of detail. Wiktionary is for dictionary definitions and etymologies can be very extensive and the examples mentioned above are genuine articles and even transcend a mere etymology, since Mannaz is the rune for M and Abracadabra is a magic word with references in literature. The entry for Abracadabra at Wiktionary [1] is quite different in style as well. Dr Debug (Talk) 21:27, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
So, for example, if I wanted to write an extended etymology of the word apricot (which has an interesting history), should I write it here or at Wiktionary? —Keenan Pepper 22:59, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
If it is an interesting and extensive etymology then I see no reason not to include it in the Apricot page. Dr Debug (Talk) 23:05, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

How to search ?

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Search about information for editing wikipedia, the helpdesk etc. Like i want to know how can i add redirects. like godparticle redirecting to "god particle". Or largest particle accelertor to LHC(which is the same thing btw) Is there some kind of "search all help" area? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 202.56.233.131 (talkcontribs)

There is a search box in the topleft of your screen. If you type redirect and "Go", you'll end up at the redirect page with a top link to Wikipedia:Redirect. If you want to search for a phrase then you can select "Search". To answer the redirect question, you can create a redirect by typing #REDIRECT [[DestinationArticle]]
P.S. You can sign your question with ~~~~. Dr Debug (Talk) 21:38, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Template creation

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How do you create, or put forward a request for a box template like this one?

{{Template:phase of matter}}

I would like to sum up a lot of topics in fusion power (which I have been working on) into something neat and tidy, rather than what I have created so far, this:

See also

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This is fairly informative, but looks cluttered and unsightly. I need advice. - mastodon 23:07, 5 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Is this something like what you want? If you need anything changing then just ask.--Cherry blossom tree 00:10, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]


February 6

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I've just took Image:CDMS_parameter_space_2004.jpg and drew a better version (vector-traced by hand) in PNG format Image:CDMS_parameter_space_2004.png. The original image was fair use. Are there any constraints on the license of the new image or I can release it as PD? Also, how copyrights work on graphical plots anyway? Can you even copyright scientific data? ☢ Ҡieff 03:08, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I take a book and copy it in my own handwriting. Is it a copyright violation? Yes, it is. Does that answer your question? I'm afraid that redrawing a copyrighted item doesn't make it public domain unless I'm mistaken. Dr Debug (Talk) 03:14, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I'm not sure if this applies. This is a plot of scientific data, not a creative work like a book. The only element I can imagine being copyrighted here are output file itself and the colors and etc used, not what it represents. I remember reading something about plots, physical and mathematical stuff not being possible to copyright, that's why I'm asking, to be sure. In any case we just forget it and let the fair use one *sigh*. ☢ Ҡieff 03:38, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
You know, I really need help here. The image will be deleted in 6 days otherwise, because I'm not fair-using the PNG. ☢ Ҡieff 23:58, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Writing msg's to IP's?

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Hello

I hope this is the right place to ask this.
I'm wondering, if I write a message to someone that doesn't have an account, like a user only identified by his IP-address, will it show the user that he has a new message, the next time he uses wikipedia? antabus 02:25, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

It depends on if the anonymous has a static or variable ip adress. If he has a static one, he will receive the message because his IP adress doesn't change. If he has a variable IP adress, like AOL users, he most likely won't recieve it because everytime that user gets a new ip adress. (anyone correct me if I'm wrong here) Garion96 (talk) 02:31, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
You are correct. However, if it is a dynamic IP, what will happen is that someone else will receive the message, and most of the time, it causes utter confusion. Titoxd(?!? - help us) 03:23, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Of course, totally forgot about that. Garion96 (talk) 03:38, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thank you both for your answers. I'll go ahead and take the chance that it's a static IP, and put in a disclaimer, if someone get's confused over it.

References

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I've been reading through pages about referencing but can't find the information I need. What happens if I have a website for a reference that is something like www.website.com, but I want to use subpages, like www.website.com/about.html, www.website.com/info.html, etc. Should I list about.html, info.html, etc. in the references section, or should I only list www.website.com in the references section? Is it sufficient to list inline references, in the form of the URL enclosed in square brackets? This is what I usually do. Q0 04:09, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Maybe I should make my question more clear:

  • Suppose an article has content that uses both website.com/page1.html and website.com/page2.html as sources.
  • Should I reference the content by putting website.com/page1.html in square brackets by the content that uses that URL as a source, or should I use ref tags?
  • In the references section, should I list both website.com/page1.html and website.com/page2.html or should I only list website.com in the references section?

Q0 05:38, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

  • How you reference them (with tags or after the statement in question is up to you, but I would certainly be as specific as you can about the subpages used. Imagine someone being asked to cite their source and them saying en.wikipedia.org That wouldn't be all that helpful would it. Personally, I would leave a link behind the specific statement. to make sure the reference is stuck to the right statement. IIRC adding another reference between 2 existing ones, could throw off the tag system, so it pays not to use those too early on. -- 131.211.210.10 08:42, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
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I was wondering if it is possible to make an internal link as an image. For example, I want what would intuitivly happen with this to actually work, but I'm sure it must be done another way.

[[Wikipedia:Help Desk|[[Image:Arwi_characters.jpg]]]]

OR, alternatively...if there is a way to remove the Arrow from this that would work to

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Help_desk [[Image:Arwi_characters.jpg]]]

OR, if it's possible for it to work via HTML

This way 
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Help_desk">[[Image:Arwi_characters.jpg]]</a>
gets this
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Help_desk"> </a>

OR this way
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Help_desk"><img src="wiki.jpg"></a>
gets this
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Help_desk"><img src="wiki.jpg"></a>

So if someone could give me one way of this working that'd be awesome. Thanks so much. Chris M. 04:59, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

You can't do it because it'd bypassing the image description page link that every single image links to. (Note that your second try doesn't link to the help desk like you wanted to, but to the image description page). Why would you need this for, anyway? ☢ Ҡieff 05:04, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Wondering if it is possible to be done because there are some articles that I thought might be useful with it, or my userpage. I know that it's bypassing the image description page, that was the point. Is it therefore not possible? Chris M. 05:08, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
There is {{Click}} which can do that function, but it doesn't function properly on all browser. The instructions can be found on Template talk:Click. Dr Debug (Talk) 05:12, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Nice, thanks :) Chris M. 05:31, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

You want to remove this page

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Check the page "anti". I don't know what it is, but it doesn't belong in wikipedia.

It was vandalized. I've reverted back to the good version. Thanks for the tip. Titoxd(?!? - help us) 07:35, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

redskins #36

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I'm a new redskin fan. My brother has been one for 15 years. I am a female bartender and asked my football fans If they where a redskin fan, what jersey would they get. they told me Sean Taylor. I went on ebay and bought a Sean Taylor jersey, not knowing his number. Paid $49.00 and was proud to wear it to my brothers when they played Giants. Everyone laughed and said he was 21. The one ebay sold me was #36. I wrote back to the one I bought it from on ebay and they said he changed his number. I need to know if Sean Taylor was ever #36 playing for the Washington Skins.

This page is for asking questions about the policies and technical aspects of Wikipedia. That page you want is the Wikipedia:Reference desk. Dismas|(talk) 08:10, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

New Entry Approval?

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I just added my first ever Wikipedia entry for a resource called OUTeverywhere yet it does not show when I do a search for it.

Do new articles have to be approved first before going live?

No, they do not. Your article is right where you said it was at OUTeverywhere although you may want to read Wikipedia:Guide to layout for info on how your article can be improved. Dismas|(talk) 10:05, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
The search index is always out of date, possibly by weeks. That's why it doesn't show up there.--Commander Keane 10:08, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

halp wanted!!

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i want to know how to pose a question in wikipedia ..for eg-what are latest developments in IT and ITES sectors in India?.

  • One of the sections at the reference desk would be the appropriate place to do this, but I'm afraid such a all-encompassing question wouldn't receive much of an answer. Try to be more specific and indicate where you already looked. - Mgm|(talk) 11:55, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Deleting an image that I uploaded

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How do I delete an image which I uploaded but then decided not to use? The image is Gaussian2.jpg which I developed myself and which I now want to delete.

I am a very new newcomer ... please spell out all of the details step-by-step on how I can delete that image.

Milton Beychok

  1. make sure that no pages use the images. In this case no pages use it.
  2. go to the image ( File:Guassian2.jpg )
  3. select Edit this page
  4. add the following text {{db-author}} (db-author means that you as the author say that it was mistaken)
  5. wait about an hour or so until an administrator deletes it.

Dr Debug (Talk) 19:10, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Someone has already nominated it for deletion: see Wikipedia:Images and media for deletion/2006 February 6. Use {{db-author}} only if the creation of this image was truly a mistake. But if you just changed your mind, by contributing you have released it and do nopt automatically have the right to insist on its deleton, although you can request it on WP:IFD. but in this case soemoen else has already done that. DES (talk) 19:15, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

trig formulas

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Explain why it is not necessary to memprize the function values for both 30 and 60 degrees? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.186.155.49 (talkcontribs)

Wikipedia is not the place to find an excuse not to do your homework. Now go and learn the sin 30, tan 60 and in a decade you can honestly say like me that you forgot the answers to the questions. Dr Debug (Talk) 20:10, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Or, if you're willing to trust my memories of GCSE maths from years back, Cos 60 = Sin 30 and Sin 60 = Cos 30. I don't think Tan 30 or 60 are very important. --Cherry blossom tree 22:46, 6 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

February 7

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Citing a resource other than Wikipedia

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3 or 4 months ago I was researching a subject (I don't remember what, now) in the 2005 World Book Encyclopedia and came across another interesting article (also, not remembered now). A portion of the entry mentioned that the smallest park in North America was Mill Ends Park, at 24-inches, in Portland, Oregon. I wanted to tell some friends about it so I came to Wikipedia to see if I could find it listed here. Since it is not, I thought this would be as good a time as any to hopefully contribute something to Wikipedia. How do I go about citing a source other than Wikipedia? ... or is this totally verboten?

Bill

If I read the above correctly then you have a source called 2005 World Book Encyclopedia and that is valid source. A source doesn't have to be webbased and many subjects have books and magazines as sources. P.S. Mill Ends Park Dr Debug (Talk) 01:17, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Hi Bill, welcome! You are able to read the content from another encyclopedia and use it and other sources to write a new article, but you cannot copy the text from another encyclopedia. WP:CITE should tell you all about how to make and use citations. jnothman talk 03:29, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Installation on Window XP

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Can i install mediawiki on Windows XP ,Because i Didn't find any zip file here or so.. The preceding unsigned comment was added by 210.18.82.34 (talk • contribs) .

You can find Windows installation instructions here. It includes instructions on downloading mediawiki and installing it. - ApolloCreed 06:05, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Citation help

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Rockero420 and I are having difficulty figuring out how to properly cite in Cantinflas. We've used a combination of web sources and book sources, and we're not sure how to do it. One of the issues is that there are quotes from books that need to be cited... we're not sure how to cite it inline. Are page numbers required? Looking at previous FAs, there are inconsistencies in the citation format. Some comments can be seen here... User_talk:Gflores#Cantinflas. We appreciate any help given. Gflores Talk 07:46, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I'm no expert on citation, so I left this one hoping there would be another response, but there should be no reason why not to combine web and book sources in one list. The bible on the topic is WP:CITE. Use of footnotes with <references/> is discussed at m:Cite/Cite.php. Currently you have used these footnotes exclusively for web pages, and a references section for print sources. There is no reason footnotes shouldn't include book sources, and for references to include web sites... jnothman talk 12:41, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Blanking Pages

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I know it's not good, I and you're not supposed to do it, etc. And I am not planning on doing it. I assume it means to delete everything in the source for the page? What is the effect? Does the page "no longer exist"? I was going to blank the sandbox but I thought I might get in trouble :-) Then I was going to create an article and blank it but I thought that might be worse... :-) So I figured I'd just try to get an answer. Thanks! --Abscissa 09:30, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

  • Blanking a page is technically just a normal edit like any other. The page won't cease to exist, it will be there, just blank. Nothing will happen to the page's history before the blanking, so the blanking can (and should!) be reverted to put the contents back. Really deleting a page requires AdministrativePower® (see WP:RFA), and usually even that can be reverted, but only by other admins. JIP | Talk 09:52, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I think WP:ADMIN is a better pointer on what adminship is... jnothman talk 12:32, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
 
And watch out for the Gunk, he likes to eat people who blank pages!
Really, blankings are a very annoying practice and probably never necessary. If you think a page should be deleted, then go to WP:AFD and WP:CSD to find out how is the process to do so. ☢ Ҡieff 18:38, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

How to write an article

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--Ashvidia 12:06, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

How is it that one starts writing an article on wiki and how to submit the same

Please help.

Ashvidia

Take a look at Help:Starting a new page for information about starting a completely new page. Wikipedia:Tutorial and Wikipedia:How to edit a page give you more specific information about editing pages. And if you want to test things with editing (though it looks like you've already gotten the basic idea), use the Sandbox. -- Natalya 12:21, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

National Animal & Bird?

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1. Which is the national animal & bird of U.S.A and Australia?

Please read the notice at the top of this page. This type of question belongs on the Humanities section of the reference desk. The help desk (this page) is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please click here to post your question in its proper place. Thanks. - Mgm|(talk) 12:50, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

help

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How can i receive latest messages to my mail id from WIKIPEDIA. what should i do?.I am already a member of WIKIPEDIA.Please help me.

Reading wikipedia Database dumps in Linux

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I cannot seem to find instructions for how to read wikipedia database dumps that i downloaded so that I could have access to wikipedia while I am offline. I would like to be able to read it within a web browser, similar to wikifilter under windows. I am running ubuntu linux. Any help is greatly appreciated. --Licensedlunacy 17:36, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Try using a program called XAMPP ([2]) which is a package enabling you to easily install Apache, PHP and MySQL. Then download the dump and put it into a new MySQL database using phpMyAdmin. Finally, install MediaWiki from [3]; the installation script will set up MediaWiki for the database you downloaded. Kidburla2002 11:59, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

National Guard Regulations

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How do you find a listing of all of the National Guard Regulations —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.232.87.162 (talkcontribs)

I think that the Wikipedia:Reference desk for such a question, however I don't think you can find it on Wikipedia because it's not really encyclopedic. Try the official site instead ( http://www.ngb.army.mil/ ). Dr Debug (Talk) 20:27, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]


i need help.

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Can someone please explain the confusing wikipedia copyright thing? I want to put pictures on here, but i have no idea if i have the right to or not, and what pictures are ok, ect. please, help me.

Dposse 20:29, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Any picture you have created yourself and where you don't have a problem that people use copy it. (Mention that you have created it yourself though)
Any picture which is in the public domain like the US government
Any picture which falls in the fair use categories like Covers, Screenshots, Logos (See: Wikipedia:Fair_use#Images )
If you upload a picture, say exactly where you got it from or whether you have created or scanned it yourself and select the correct license. Dr Debug (Talk) 20:38, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
That's just it. I don't understand about licensing. So, if i found a screenshot of a actress from a tv show or movie, it would be ok? what kind of pictures are not ok? Dposse 20:47, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Anything which is not a cover, screenshot or the other categories are usually not ok, because they will be copyrighted by somebody and cannot be used. So almost every picture of an actress is not allowed, but a screenshot or magazine cover of the same actress is allowed. Dr Debug (Talk) 20:53, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
If you own it, the negative and prints, and took them yourself, they are your property. With the appropriate tag, you can upload them and release them into the public domain in a few ways.
Try investigating some of the picture pages, as they could hold clues to what evidence people are using to claim various forms of PD/copywrite status. Just click on any picture to go to the page. This is not much, but may be of help. Good luck. --DanielCD 20:55, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]


so...

http://www.socal.com/absolutenm/articlefiles/1301-lisa1458ret_600.jpg

that picture is not ok?

but this one is: http://www.lisacuddy.com/Senator-Cuddy%20(11).jpg ??

seriously, this copyright thing is bullcrap.

Dposse 21:02, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

  • Copyright is to protect people who created material. Suppose you spent years making hundreds of beautiful photographs you rely on to get your income or suppose you wrote a book and someone made your hard work freely available on the internet without your permission - how would you feel. Copyright is meant to stop that from happening. It's not copyright that's crap, but rather the fact it's usually written down in hard to read legalese. - Mgm|(talk) 22:17, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]


I understand how it helps inventors or authors, ect. But pictures? It's kinda overkill to copyright pictures. but thats just my opinion.

anyway, i still need help here.

Dposse 22:39, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Why is it different? Taking photos may take hours or even days of work. Without copyright, someone could spend years collecting photos, spend tens of thousands of dollars travelling to take the photos, publish a book, and anyone else could then print copies and sell them instead. Wal-mart could copy the book and sell it without giving a bean to the photographer. That's what copyright is for. Basic rule: if you take the photo, you are free to give it away. If someone else takes the picture, you can't give it away for them, you need their permission. Fair use is a very limited way of justifying something that would otherwise be copyright breaking; the rules are strict, and you DO need to understand the legalese. If you don't, then I'm afraid it's simple: you must not put up pictures with unknown copyright, they will be deleted to protect Wikipedia from legal action. Sure, pictures will make an article look nice, but it's a rare bonus to find a photo we can legally use. If you want to spend months travelling the world with a camera providing the missing photos, Wikipedia will be eternally grateful. Notinasnaid 23:27, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

A new user has asked me about using such images as this, which he says were designed on WikiCities. I am not familiar with this and would appreciate any help in this regard.

 

If anyone has information about these things, message me, or see the message on my talk page. The newby's name is mbeychok, and he has made some very fine contributions to some important articles that don't see much action, such as Cooling towers. Let's help him get his questions answered. Thanks! --DanielCD 20:39, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Answered on your talk page User_talk:DanielCD. Dr Debug (Talk) 20:57, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
This is really just a matter of which rendering engine the site is using and with what settings. I'd suppose a few options could be changed to make Wikipedia's formulas render   smaller. Personally, I like the current size on Wikipedia better, because you can see tiny characters clearer. The PNG's should be transparent, though. ☢ Ҡiff 03:05, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

force question

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What is a force that opposes the motion of an object?

This page is for questions about Wikipedia policies and technical aspects. The page you want is the Wikipedia:Reference desk. Dismas|(talk) 21:47, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

How do you create an article

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I want to creat my own article. The question is, basically: how to do it? Could you please help me.

This same question was answered just a few questions up from yours. Basically, see Help:Starting a new article. Dismas|(talk) 21:57, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
(ec, didn't notice the similar question above) We have temporarily restriced article creation to registered members; thus, in order for you to create a new article you have to log in. It's quick, easy, simple, free, and painless - all you need is an account name and password! Click on the right hand corner link, and that page will have a "sign up now" link. Alternatively, you could request that the article be created for you first at Wikipedia:Articles for creation. For more information on creating pages, please see Help:Starting a new page. I hope you join us! Flcelloguy (A note?) 21:58, 7 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]


userpage

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My userboxes are like on top of eachother. It fixes when I rapidly press the refresh button though. How can I get it where it'll be goiod first time I go there? schyler 00:26, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

They look fine from here. I'm (unfortunately) using IE to view it. Dismas|(talk) 06:25, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
You might take a look at my page. I have experimented a lot in making my userboxes line up in an eye-pleasing way, using a combination of techniques. User:AlMac|(talk) 07:07, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

February 8

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Big thumbnails

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How can I generate big thumbnails? For example, let's say I want to include this tiny image  , resized to 100px, and with a caption. Well, the only way to include resized images with captions is with the thumb option, so let's try it:

 
Some caption here

... it didn't work. In fact, thumb doesn't work when the specified size is bigger than the original size of the image! On the other hand, if I had to include it without a caption, it is resized without a problem:

 

How can I solve this problem? --Fibonacci 00:37, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Well, you could always use raw code:

<div class="thumb tleft"><div class="thumbcaption" style="text-align:left">
 <div class="magnify" style="float:left">[[Image:Tst.png|100px]]</div>
 Like this?</div></div>

Which is rendered like:

Like this?

Ҡieff 01:00, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Not the kind of caption I was looking for. --Fibonacci 02:02, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Well, a more accurate copy of the thumbnail box HTML would be:
 
Some caption here
<div class="thumb tright">
<div style="width: 100px;">[[Image:Tst.png|100px|Some caption here]]
<div class="thumbcaption">Some caption here</div>
</div>
</div>
which is rendered as shown on the right. —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 18:18, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thank you!
So... it's impossible to do by "standard" means? Should I report it to BugZilla? --Fibonacci 02:28, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

You could always resize it in a photo-editing program and upload the enlarged version manually. enochlau (talk) 02:05, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I don't know how to use most of them, except for MS Paint. --Fibonacci 02:28, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Printing Articles

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Is there a way to print Wikipedia pages using the displayed format (i.e. skin like MonoBook) rather than the standard print format (i.e. everything in Times Roman, links converted to URLs, etc.?)

Also, Adobe Acrobat Pro 7 can't open Wikipedia pages (Adobe Acrobat Pro can convert web pages to PDF files by opening a web page/site in the application.) It returns a "General Error" (!) Any info on this? --RevWaldo 04:30, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

As to your second question, maybe it's got something to do with the Wikimedia servers not letting Acrobat connect - because there's an option there to download the entire site, which someone must've attempted to do before, and this is not allowed. I suspect this because Acrobat could download from my local MediaWiki installation, so the problem isn't in getting Acrobat to read MediaWiki pages. enochlau (talk) 04:56, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
You could be right there, although it seems reasonable to me that the WP angels could code the site to detect & block acts of inadvertent (or blatantly advertent) data-mining - "100 hits from the same IP in thrity seconds? (harsh whistle) TIME OUT!!!" --RevWaldo 19:42, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Wiki markup in Category code?

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I recently noticed, while editing an article, a category coded as [[Category:Films based on books|*]]. What's the significance of the |*, please? Her Pegship 05:29, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

When you use the second parameter ("text") on the category code [[Category:Name|text]], that text is used when doing the alphabetical sorting on the category page. This is useful for names, because you don't sort things as "James Bond" (J) but "Bond, James" (B). So you should use [[Category:Fictional spies|Bond, James]] to achieve that sorting. When using "*", that item will appear first on the sorting (because * comes alphabetically before than A when sorting), and this is useful to display main articles on the category, for example, adding on a "Spionage in literature" article [[Category:Ficional spies|*]]. And that's why. ☢ Ҡieff 05:38, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Basically, anything that's after the pipe indicates how it is sorted in Category:Films based on books. The * is a dirty trick to make it go to the top of the listing. Titoxd(?!? - help us) 05:33, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Ongoing vandalism on Hasty Pudding Theatricals

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Hasty Pudding Theatricals is being repeatedly vandalized from anonymous Harvard addresses today. Is there a simple mechanism for temporarily locking the article until the students get bored? Obviously grade inflation is leaving them with too much time on their hands. JohnRDaily 05:57, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Ask for semi protection WP:PP. That means that anonymous users and very new users can't edit the page. Dr Debug (Talk) 06:00, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks, very much. JohnRDaily 06:15, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

And, lo and behold, they're taking their frustrations out on my user page. Color me unsurprised. JohnRDaily 06:17, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

And, lo and behold, the SP didn't actually work: the vandalism on the theatrical page continues, albeit now directed at me. I take it the SP tag doesn't actually work unless you're an admin? JohnRDaily 06:20, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Can anyone clarify whethere semi-protection works for non-admins? I see a reference to SP being hackable on the protection page. JohnRDaily 06:33, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I'm really sorry. The whole thing is very unclear and I've pointed you to the wrong page. Will be back in a moment. Dr Debug (Talk) 06:39, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
No sweat, I'm grateful for the assistance. Navigating the administrative side of Wikipedia has never been my strong point.
I should have directed you to WP:RPP and there is a link on the first page, but glancing over it, it is not a good page at all, so we need edit that policy page ;) Anyway I've reported the anonymous user and warned him. Dr Debug (Talk) 06:46, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks, I'll happily retire from the field of battle and go to bed; my alarm goes off in 5.5 hours. Please drop me a note if there's any additional bureaucracy I should deal with. JohnRDaily 06:48, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
The bureaucrats have been informed and you have fought long enough with this user, so go to bed ;) Dr Debug (Talk) 06:49, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Membership

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Hello, My name is Ulas from Turkey and an avid reader and sometimes contributor of Wikipedia. I'd like to be a member too, but since that I'd like to contribute to Wikipedia pages of different languages, I'd like to know that if I become a member through, say, Turkish Wikipedia, can I be counted as a member of other wikipedias such as English Wikipedia too?

looking forward for your answer. Regards, Ulas of Turkey

    • Thanks WB, it really helped. I also checked other wiki sites seeing that everyone has a different user page in each site. All from this User (Eng), Kullanici (Tur) and Riyousha (Jap) pages, this has been clear for me.

I also am interested in other languages, and would have liked to be mentioned for my edits on different language pages other than English, Turkish and Japanese (though mostly are inter-wiki linking) but we can't do anything for that, right.

Thanks again...see you later as fellow members :)

Indian Bank branche's code number

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What is the code number for Crawford(Trichy)branch Indian Bank?


Please read the notice at the top of this page. This type of question belongs on the reference desk. The help desk (this page) is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please follow the link to the reference desk, select the relevant topic, and post your question there. Thanks. -- Natalya 12:20, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Admin?

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Why did no-one vote for me? I voted for lots of you! RfA rocks! --Bling-chav 10:01, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Please see Wikipedia:Guide_to_requests_for_adminship, especially the "what RfA contibutors look for" section. Ideally, you should try to meet as many of those criteria as possible.
Good luck, and don't let this discourage you! :) --Ashenai 10:12, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Well, you see, it's the tricky thing about that. You haven't exactly done much other than vote for other people's RFA's. It's not all blind mutualism; you should do your best to contribute more widely to Wikipedia in order to be taken seriously as an admin candidate. However, I wouldn't discount the fact that you have participated in the way you did; everyone appreciates a good favour, and it does reflect well on a person. Minding that, however, it's best that you continue on, exploring and improving the community, that you might enjoy finding yourself a more suitable candidate when the time comes. -Tim Rhymeless (Er...let's shimmy) 10:16, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

A Question That I Thought Was Answered

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I had asked the same thing a few weeks ago, and there was no issue then(can't remember what I did to fix the problem in the end), but the same problem is coming up at Duke University with the template {{Duketime}}: the text is far too close to the table, hurting the style of the article. I've tried cellpadding and margin attribute fiddling per the Table Help page, but no dice. What am I missing here? Please give me a heads up on my talk page if you could. Karmafist 14:59, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Answered on your talk page. Dr Debug (Talk) 15:08, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Please help

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Please help. User 71.32.90.85 is now vandalizing my user page as well as other pages I edit. Thanks. Madchen Hoch 17:04, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

You have warned him already and he doesn't seem to be active anymore. If he returns within 24 hours after his last vandalism (so about 7:00 tomorrow) then list the user at Wikipedia:Administrator intervention against vandalism ( WP:AIV ). Dr Debug (Talk) 17:12, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks. Actually, I left a warning yesterday about an earlier vandal edit, and then a second one today for vandalizing my user page. Madchen Hoch 17:15, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Why is it vandalism when what is posted is undisputedly true? I thought this site was trying to have people edit pages to help with accuracy? My recent edit was true and certainly not inflammatory toward the other user. She is credited as (blanked) and she does work for a gaming company as a recruiter. Just ask (blanked). —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.32.90.85 (talkcontribs)

  • Accusations on Wikipedia (like saying she claims something that isn't true) are pieces of information that are particularly prone to causing problems. Therefore they need to be backed by reliable written sources. We can't have every single person who wants to check ask a person with the company. - Mgm|(talk) 18:38, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

My last edit only said "Sometimes credited as (blanked)". This can be checked on IMDB.com Undisputed. She works for a gaming company as a recruiter. This is also easily verifiable on job postings written by this user. I believe these statements to be fact and undisputed. Also, the picture on the screen is not this user. That also is fact. Are these facts problems for anyone? I do not think this user would dispute any of those facts. Sorry to make you babysit what are totally legit edits. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.32.90.85 (talkcontribs)

Adding unwanted statements which can be considered a personal attack to people's user pages is vandalism and you don't know her identity and her name is her own business even if she is making edit on behalf of her company. Her contributions have been according to the Wikipedia standards. Changing somebody user page with additions of personal information which may or may not be true is not according ot Wikipedia standards. Dr Debug (Talk) 23:50, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
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Anyone know the font colour (i.e. in #XXXXXX format) of unclicked wikilinks? As in the blue ones, not the purple ones. Cheers. --Malthusian (talk) 19:48, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

It seems to be #012BB8. JIP | Talk 20:01, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks. --Malthusian (talk) 20:39, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Request for...Readership?

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Is there any place to request that an article be read to evaluate, say, whether or not a tag it bears is the appropriate one? I thought maybe at Peer Review, but that's for articles that are on their way to FA status, and this article is nowhere near there yet. Then I thought maybe RfC, but that appears to be part of the discpute resolution process, and there is not really conflict over this. What happened is that an editor tagged an article to which I was the primary contributor as in need of clean-up. I took his advice, but he still seemed unsatisfied. I didn't want to remove the tag out of respect for his opinion (for the time being, I have simply changed the tag). I could always ask a wiki-friend, but I fear partiality towards me. I think a third opinion may be able to help both of me and the editor who tagged the article. Any suggestions?--Rockero420 20:10, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Personally I would use Peer Review. It is intended to be for articles on the FA track, but I think it would be okay to use for just general suggestions. -Greg Asche (talk) 22:19, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Here or the assistance page from the Village Pump may be good enough to get third opinions, but you failed to tell us which article you are referring to! jnothman talk 04:17, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Chicano Park.--Rockero420 06:44, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Wikipedia editing times

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I've looked at a reasonable number of RfA candidates' edit history at Interiot's tool, and it seems that by far of the most of them have edits throughout the entire 24-hour day, though considerably fewer at night time. What gives? Do these people sleep? I myself can't say I maintain a healthy sleep cycle but I still get at least 5 hours sleep every day. I don't think I've ever edited Wikipedia between 2 AM and 7 AM. (That's Eastern European Time, which is midnight to 5 AM UTC, or somewhere in the late afternoon for Merkins.) Is this common for all Wikipedians or have I picked a non-representative sample? JIP | Talk 20:49, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I would think some people stay up late on weekends or whatever, and edit late-night then. -Greg Asche (talk) 22:16, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I was actually quite surprised when I used Interiot's tool on myself - I didn't know I was editing at such ungodly hours. I suspect it's when I was pulling an all-nighter for a uni assignment and was checking Wikipedia every now and then. enochlau (talk) 23:55, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Where is the Interiot tool? ᓛᖁ  04:57, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
It's on the toolserver. It's a little stalkerish. You can opt out, though, which I might end up doing. — Knowledge Seeker 05:23, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

prince_albert_piercing

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It seems that in every page were wikify is inserted a gross picture of prince_albert_piercing is being displayed. namely Energy_Towers before my last edit. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.64.44.131 (talkcontribs)

Someone vandalised the template - vandalising templates is a common way of introducing vandalism to lots of pages at once. It's already been reverted and the page has been temporarily protected to prevent it happening again. --Malthusian (talk) 20:55, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

inquire about travel and employment help

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please am looking for a vacancy as an electrician in europe but i dont have any one to help me travel to that path.so am asking if really you can offer me a hand.my email address XX email address removed to protect user from spam XX


Please read the notice at the top of this page. This type of question belongs on the reference desk. The help desk (this page) is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please follow the link to the reference desk, select the relevant topic, and post your question there. Thanks. --Kwekubo 22:57, 8 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

This question does not belong on the reference desk. Wikipedia isn't able to help in answering your query. We do not deal with employment vacancies, we deal with reference knowledge. jnothman talk 04:02, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

February 9

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what are the cause of parkinson's disease

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Direct questions like this to the Reference Desk. -Greg Asche (talk) 03:54, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Better yet, use the search box on the left side of the page. Searching using the term 'Parkinson's disease' takes you straight to our article on Parkinson's disease. TenOfAllTrades(talk) 06:25, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Details about the punctuality of Vietnamese

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Sir' My name is Pournamy , I am persuing post graduation in Journalism.sir i just want some details about the punctuality of Vietnamese.And also some contact numbers of the members of Vietnam Embassy in South India.Hope u will consider my mail and please kindly reply me.

Direct questions like this to the Reference Desk. Angela. 10:24, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

how can I use this ???

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—Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.33.198.2 (talkcontribs)

Use... what? If you're looking for how to edit Wikipedia in general, try the tutorial or How to edit a page. --Malthusian (talk) 12:58, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Is this a CV?

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Image:Tri Nations Trophy.jpg. Is that a copyright violation or fair use? --HamedogTalk|@ 14:10, 9 February 2006 (UTC) Could you please reply on my talk page too?[reply]

If you click on the link to the picture you will find a detailed discussion of of the copyright status of it. Someone clearly believes it is a copyright violation. Maybe the problem is that you (if it is your upload) did not add a fair use rationale without which you cannot claim fair use. It's up to the uploader to demonstrate copyright suitability. Notinasnaid 15:18, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Note also, crucially, that fair use isn't a general defence. You have to say "it is fair use to use picture XXX on page YYY because ZZZ". It is the context that defines whether it is fair use, it isn't a magic phrase to get out of copyright. Notinasnaid 17:43, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Is what I added good? :It is fair use to use this picture of the Tri Nations trophy on the Tri Nations Series article because it is a low-resolution image and there is no suitiable free image avaliable. --HamedogTalk|@ 23:31, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I emailed the image holder and he said its okay to use his sites images on wikipedia -

Hi Hamish

Thank you for your request. It is no problem for you to use the images as described as long as there is a photo credit to Pro Sport Photos and our web address.

Regards

Simon


Unit 11 75 Peterborough Street P.O Box 36-394 Christchurch New Zealand

Mobile + 64 21 329-873 prosport@xtra.co.nz http://www.prosportphotos.co.nz/


Any images attached to this message are copyright to Pro Sport Photos and are subject to our conditions for usage. No image may be reproduced in any form without the express permission of Pro Sport Photos or the relevant agency or persons. For more details, contact us on the numbers above. For a full list of terms and conditions please visit our website, http://www.prosportphotos.co.nz/terms.aspx

Should that be added to the site? And can the Copy Vio be moved now? --HamedogTalk|@ 00:29, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

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As a result of this debate, which was a speedy redirect, I went in to redirect any links to the old page. But as you can see from the "What links here" page, there are a whole bunch of links still there, and I can't find them! It appears to have something to do with Template:State_Parks_of_Pennsylvania, but I've been over that template with a fine-tooth comb and can't find any remaining links in it to Bald Eagle State Forest, Pennsylvania. Can somebody tell me what I'm missing here? --Aaron 17:08, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Templates are cached, so it appears like there are still links towards the entry, but that is because a server still has the old entries in its memory and hasn't refreshed it yet. You can use &action=purge on a single article, but I don't know of a way to purge a whole list of URLs. Dr Debug (Talk) 17:32, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
AFAIK you need someone with a bot to make null edits to all the relevant articles, Bluebot (run by Bluemoose) has done this sort of thing before I beleive. Thryduulf 17:49, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks, Dr Debug and Thryduulf. I've put in a request with Bluebot. --Aaron 23:31, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Editing a Title

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The article "Franconia College" employs quotation marks in the title. Therefore, it cannot be found unless the quote marks are included in the search.

Is is possible to edit a title--in this case, to remove the quoatation marks?

Yes, but as a very new editor you aren't allowed to do that. I will rename the article for you. See WP:MOVE for this. You can request such things at WP:RM. Kusma (討論) 17:40, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Your article is now at Franconia College. Kusma (討論) 17:41, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Blocked IP

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I use a computer at school but because the IP address is spread across thousands of people it is blocked (abuse). As I am an admin can I temporarily unblock it so I can edit? --Thorpe | talk 17:48, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

If it is causing collateral damage, then yes you can unblock. It is always wise to mention you've done it on WP:AN/I though so nobody accuses you of hiding anything. You may also like to comment on Bug:550 - Blocks on anonymous users only. Thryduulf 17:51, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Black background

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Why does the image Mitochondrie.svg get printed with the black background? I can't see the numbers then. I'm using Mozilla and Windows XP. --Eleassar my talk 18:16, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I'm using Firefox 1.5 on Linux and I see no black background. Are you looking at the image as rendered by Wikipedia or viewing the SVG file directly in Mozilla? Both work just fine with me, but it's important to know which one your browser is having problems with. —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 22:06, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
The Wikipedia-rasterized version looks identical in Opera and Konqueror. Opera also renders the SVG itself fine except that the numbers are missing (but the background is still normal). Inkscape also renders it correctly. —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 22:13, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Whatever way I'm looking, it's printed black. I don't see it with the black background on the screen, it just gets printed so. I tried Firefox 1.5 but it's the same. --Eleassar my talk 11:53, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

September 11 Attacks article

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This morning I tried to expand this article by adding some more information. However, a couple minutes after I made the changes the article was reverted back to its original state. How are users supposed to update articles when they are changed back the next minute?

If you take a look at the history of the article, your edit was removed because it was described as "uncited speculation". Regardless of whether or not is was speculation, in an article of that magnitude, you want to be sure to have sources to back up what you edit. -- Natalya 19:29, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks for your help. I was not aware of the history pages. But if I cite sources for the information, what guarantee is there that someone won't just change it back saying the cited source isn't good enough, or what have you? There is a lot of information within that article already that I would classify as "cited speculation."
You have no such guarantee -- if this bothers you, Wikipedia will probably drive you crazy. As for the quality of the other information in the article, if you feel it's subpar, feel free to to challenge it on the talk page. --Quasipalm 19:51, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Additionally, your edit seems to be redundant with 9/11 conspiracy theories#Claims United Flight 93 was shot down. --Quasipalm 19:54, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
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I would like to use this image in Cantinflas. I know it's copyrighted, but am I still allowed to use it? I'm a bit unfamiliar with copyright. I read something about fair use? Does that apply here? How would I go about using this (legally)? I've checked WP:C, but I could use some help from somebody. Thanks. Gflores Talk 19:52, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

No, because the site has a clear copyright message and even though "Columbia pictures" who is credited according to that page could mean a photograph from a press kit, it is unclear. The publicity tag only applies for pictures which you can determine that. Dr Debug (Talk) 19:59, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
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I assume there is policy on this around somewhere, but I can't find it. Can lists be copyrighted? This is in reference to The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll and http://www.rockhall.com/exhibitions/permanent.asp?id=658. -Greg Asche (talk) 20:24, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Wikipedia for Children?

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Do you have a version of this for kids? I'm a teacher and love this site. I would just like it if there were a place where kids could read easy to understand language about all the same topics.The preceding unsigned comment was added by 207.157.220.63 (talk • contribs) 9 February 2006.

Try the Simple English Wikipedia. --Quasipalm 21:19, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Self Reference

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The self reference templates... is self reference in reference to wikipedia? If I want the superscript page to include a bit that mentions <sup> </sup> (which I would have found easier than having to traipse through a load of help articles) do I need to make it italic and centred?

Also, if this is the case, the self-reference page could do with a self-reference explaining how to deal with self-references (on wikipedia). self-reference --Username132 22:22, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Self reference in case means that the templates in the article namespace self-reference because they link to articles in the user, talk, or Wikipedia namespace.
An alternative explanation is that the reference to self referencing is because the template fails the Avoid self-references guideline so it references its self to assert that it itself is self referencing and should have a self self reference because it fails the self reference guideline ;) Dr Debug (Talk) 22:59, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Okay, I've added a bit to the superscript page. Would you or someone else please format it according to guidelines and then I'll follow that example in all other such situations. --Username132 23:14, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
The page looks fine :) So if you continue to make pages like that then you've already mastered the Wiki Dr Debug (Talk) 23:20, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Subscript In Titles

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The appropriate name for one article is TFIID. Since I don't think that can be put in a title due to technical reasons, is there a template I can use to explain this, as in subjects that begin with a lowercase letter? --Username132 23:18, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Looking at Category:Articles with unsupported titles, there doesn't seem to be a category for that. That's a chemical formula is it? If so, maybe write the article at the expanded name using words instead? enochlau (talk) 23:23, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
(after edit conflict) Just copy the text from the {{lowercase}} and change it a bit. Copy everything upto < noinclude > and use the same text in your document but then with TFIID instead of {{{1}}}. Dr Debug (Talk) 23:25, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Now I'm all kinds of confused... It's not a chemical, it's the name of a protein and the II refers to its interaction with a different protein.

Dr_Debug, the article should be complete 02:00 GMT. Could you check that I did it right? The article will be TFIID --Username132 00:17, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

No problem. Dr Debug (Talk) 00:19, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
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How do I add hyperlinks to an article that I posted? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Selfgov (talkcontribs)

There are two kinds of hyperlinks. One is the wiki like hyperlink. You can create those links by writing [[hyperlink]]. An external link can be made by writing the full URL, like http://www.google.com Dr Debug (Talk) 23:51, 9 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
In addition, external links can have different titles by placing them in brackets. I.E, [http://www.google.com Google's main page] becomes Google's main page.--Max Talk (add)Contribs 07:24, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

February 10

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trouble

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does this thing cost anything?

if so can i cancel my account if not could i get in trouble for putting on information that is considered inapropriate? if so then cancel my screenname. pls someone find a way for me to check my response

No, Wikipedia is free of charge. It depends what you mean by getting into trouble—certainly, we don't think it's very nice when visitors vandalize our encyclopedia, and troublesome users may be blocked. But you're not the first user to get a bit carried away when discovering the allure of editing. Feel free to look around a bit more, and hopefully find a way you can contribute as well. We're always happy to have more help. Please let me know if you have any further questions. Copied to User talk:Btom1993.Knowledge Seeker 05:12, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Also, you can not get in any trouble beyond getting banned, but profanity is discouraged except for when it is relevent

loss of login session

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Since this afternoon, I kept losing the login session. 9 out of 10 pages that I opened would state that I was not logged in. But if I kept clicking on the refresh button, the page would show me as logged in occasionally. The outcome is kind of random. It is annoying because most of my edits would show up without my login name in the edit history. Is it a known problem? When will the problem be fixed? 67.161.43.148 05:17, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

  • It's probably a problem on your end rather than on the software or server end. You may want to check if you are blocking [[cookie (comp
    • I don't think so because the symptoms corrected itself after a few hours in my case. Looks like a server side problem to me. If no one looked into it, nothing will be done to revent it from happening again. Kowloonese 02:05, 15 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
  • Select the Keep logged in button thingy. It's a known bug with some browsers which invalidate the cookie after a couple of hours. If you choose Keep Logged In then it'll be no problem. Dr Debug (Talk) 05:25, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
This is an intermittent problem which has plagued us for a couple years. To fix it:
  1. Clear your cookies for the site.
  2. Log back in.
--Brion 05:42, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Could this be caused the the timing and time stamps of the cookies? perhaps the system clocks of the serverr and the client did not sync up correctly. Kowloonese 06:32, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Working on database dump

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Hello, I'm from Thai Wikipedia. I'm wondering if anyone can point me out where to get the answer or re-ask this question. I want to extract the red-link article names from a specific category. Now I did download Python and Python Wikipedia framework, but I still could not find any that matched my needs. Thank for any answer. --manop 07:18, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I probably misunderstand, but there should never be any red links in a category. Category pages are built from [[Category:name]] entries in other existing pages. Notinasnaid 12:22, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Ohh sorry, my fault. I would like to say that I need the article names which are not already created within all articles in the specific category :)--Manop - TH 16:33, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Catergorising Unusual Ground Marking Stub

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I've tried hard, but I can't seem to find an appropriate category for this stub. Can anyone suggest one? Black-Velvet 14:14, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Your Embasy in UK

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I would like to know the address of your Embasy in UK.

I want to visit and would like a visa.

Also I am from Nigeria in Africa, do I need a visa.

Martha Jegede.

I have to say I think you are very lost. I don't think even we know which embassy you mean. This is a page for help with editing Wikipedia. Notinasnaid 18:13, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

"DID YOU KNOW"

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How do you go back and get and article from "did you know" We are looking for the article about emerald wasp ?

Wikipedia:Recent_additions has an archive of "Did you know" entries. You can also try the search function, though I tried it myself and didn't come up with anything for 'emerald wasp'. --Malthusian (talk) 18:45, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Silly question???=

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Hi guys. I am Fragolino, from Italy. I haven't found the place where you "vote for deleting pages". Does such kind of procedure exists in your Wiki? How Do you delete your bad articles??? Do You have too the WND rule??? Please copy your answer here http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discussioni_utente:Fragolino

Bye Bye --Fragolino - (segui il bianconiglio) [[4]]

Italian and Pole bot rampage of September '05

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Would you please care to tell me more about the Italian and Pole bot rampage in September of last year? I saw a brief mention of it on WP:Announcements, but I'd like some more details, please. What exactly happened? What articles did they add, and what were the results of this "rampage"? --Shultz 22:15, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

February 11

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People's opinions

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Hello, I'm looking for page that contains list of people's/users opinions about Wikipedia. Where is it? Thank you! 61.5.68.53 01:46, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The Wikipedia article has a section on what the media and academics think of us. --Malthusian (talk) 15:57, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

POV tag on articles with no talk pages

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Is there a general guideline or idea about whether it really "makes sense" or not to put a POV tag on articles, but not put anything in the talk page at all to comment on why one did it, or what exactly was POV? I'm specifically talkinga bout articles with no talk page at all, or one with absolutely nothing germane to the POV tag. Granted, one can usually tell by reading the article, but sometimes it isn't clear what the person who put the POV tag on had in mind. Aaronw 02:33, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

You can put a tag without any comments, however feel to remove it when you don't think it is necessary and there is no explanation. Dr Debug (Talk) 02:44, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
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I have a question about copyright.

Some time ago the UN published a work, which was then cited and converted into a derivative work by the OECD this is a graph of scientific data. Who owns the copy right and how should it be classified in wikipedia ?Cadmium

That'll be very unclear. Even if the original work was public domain there is a copyright on the derivative work, so if there is no clarity. The OECD website states:
The OECD wishes to enhance public access to information about its activities, and it maintains this Web site, and the information, documents and materials presented herein (collectively, the "material"), for informational purposes only. All contents on this Web site are protected by copyright. The OECD is pleased to allow those who may choose to access the site (the "User") to download and copy the materials for their personal, non-commercial use. No other use of the material is authorised without prior written permission from the OECD. [5]
So unless the data specifically says otherwise it is probably copyrighted material. Dr Debug (Talk) 09:28, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

How long until a new article is indexed for text search?

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I posted a new article three days ago (02/08/2006). I can navigate directly to it from this Category, but I can not get to it using the text search box. Is there a delay in indexing new articles or did I miss something when creating it? Xanov 15:00, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

If you enter the exact article name in the search box and click the Go button, you will be taken to the correct article; this works just about as soon as the article is created—within seconds or (on a slow day) a few minutes.
Entering the same name (or a part thereof) and clicking Search doesn't yet lead to any search results. As you've surmised, the article word search index is updated relatively infrequently; I think it's every week or two, but I'll leave that for someone who's better-versed in our database to answer.
To improve the chances that someone wil find the article in the meantime, you might create one or more redirect articles under likely search terms for the individual. (Instructions for creating a redirect can be found at Wikipedia:Redirects). For the article Dattatreya Gopal Karve it might be useful to have a redirect from Dattatreya Karve as well, for instance. TenOfAllTrades(talk) 15:16, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
  • Also, apart from the redirects nothing links there. Linking to it from relevant articles makes it easier to find, for both people and indexing bots (from for example Google). - Mgm|(talk) 12:12, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Customized templates?

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I have been looking for a way to do this on my own for some time now, and i have failed miserably, so here is my last attempt. I have seen people have, for example, customized User Namespace Templates (such as subst:test1, etc). How do I make one for myself, and once i have made it, how will i access it when in someones talk page? --Deemo 16:49, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

If you want to create templates for your own personal use, the best thing to do is to create a user subpage, such as User:Deemo/Mytemp, then when you want to use that template type {{subst:User:Deemo/Mytemp}}, replacing 'Mytemp' with the actual name of the subpage. --Malthusian (talk) 17:31, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry i need info please

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My girl friend and her daughter moved from san angelo ,tx to placied ,tx in good faith to live on a man word .After she moved her know he wants her out of his grandamas house .she moved her becouse he told her she could live in as long as she wanted .Becouse she want date him shes trying to throw her and her daughter out on the street and younges daughter hasa dis abuilaty she is claasified as being blind.

What rights does she have in texas how long should she be abel to find her and daughters a place to live.

Thanks Bobby

Please read the notice at the top of this page. This type of question belongs on the reference desk. The help desk (this page) is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please follow the link to the reference desk, select the relevant topic, and post your question there. Thanks. --Max Talk (add)Contribs 18:50, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

What when in dispute with moderator of a a page?

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Namely, if i see that moderator deletes controversial editions that are internationaly accepted by historians but he does not accept that him self? Thanks —Preceding unsigned comment added by Djenka018 (talkcontribs)

In content disputes there is not much difference between a moderator or a normal user. The first thing is to talk to a person about his/her opinions and not to start an edit war (ie changing information back and forth) and start to discuss the change on the Talk page of the article. If you feel that you are in a deadlock, please look at Wikipedia:Resolving disputes because there are several options available to get other people to look at it.
After looking at your edit history it seems to just started talking on talk pages. Please remain civil there and try to talk about the content of the article and not to get personal in any way. Please remember that content arguments often require a lot of talking, so my advice is to go back to the talk page and talk some more. Dr Debug (Talk) 19:10, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
P.S. Please sign your message on all talk pages with ~~~~, because this will make it clear who is saying what when.

Early-day New Mexico Uranium Discovery

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I recall reading of an early-day prospector discovering uranium not far from Grant's New Mexico, and would like to find the details of who, when and where that discovery occurred. Have been unable to locate a source. Can you help?

Please read the notice at the top of this page. This type of question belongs on the reference desk. The help desk (this page) is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please follow the link to the reference desk, select the relevant topic, and post your question there. Thanks. -- Natalya 19:50, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Help with Userboxes

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Could someone with experience (and free time) try to organize my userboxes (user:weatherman90)? Somehow, they got out of order and they are all scrambled...and not even contained in the box anymore. I want them to be in 3 columns and in an enclosed box. Thanks! Weatherman90 20:14, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I've put in a test on your talk page, because I prefer that instead of editing your userpage. I hope that it was what you had in mind. Dr Debug (Talk) 20:29, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I made an attempt, not sure if it's what you had in mind. Feel free to revert. I just noted when I came back to leave this message that you wanted three columns. Sorry, should have read more carefully. I don't know how to do that. --Fuhghettaboutit 20:34, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Problem Solved, Thanks!

wikifying internal uploaded images without the image appearing

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I am by no means a new user here but I still run into problems. I am trying to keep a list on my userpage of images I have uploaded, and have them wikified links. For example, ImageExample.jpg. However, when I do that, the image itself uploads to the page, rather than the lnk to the image page. Of course, I could use single brackets and make the wikipedia http page a link like this ImageExample.jpg. But I would prefer to know how to do it with a regular link. I imagine there must be some code analogous to < nowiki > maybe? to do this. As a stab in the dark I tried <noimage></noimage>. Bubkis. Thanks in advance. --Fuhghettaboutit 20:22, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Use a semicolon before the file name. eg. [[:Image:Example.jpg]] would produce a regular link. -Greg Asche (talk) 20:29, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thank you. --Fuhghettaboutit 21:53, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Do you have information on Pschographics of the Panhandle of West Texas

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Direct questions like this to the Reference Desk. -Greg Asche (talk) 20:30, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Dreamgirls, the broadway play

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Do you know where I can purchase a copy of the broadway play DREAMGIRLS?


Please read the notice at the top of this page. This type of question belongs on the reference desk. The help desk (this page) is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please follow the link to the reference desk, select the relevant topic, and post your question there. Thanks. --Malthusian (talk) 20:52, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Inserting pictures

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How do I insert pictures (JPEG format) in articles? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.131.191.117 (talkcontribs)

WP:PIC has a full tutorial. But briefly, first you have to make sure that either the image is uncopyrighted (e.g. public domain, or taken by yourself), or fair use. See the image use policy for full details. Then the image must be uploaded, either here at (Special:Upload) or at the Wikimedia Commons. Only uncopyrighted images may be uploaded to the Commons; fair use images must be uploaded here. You need a user account to upload files, but all you need is a username and password.
Then, to insert the picture into an article, you use the syntax [[Image:imagename.jpg]]. It is almost always preferable to use some of the extra parameters for inserting pictures; perhaps the most common use is something like [[Image:imagename.jpg|thumb|right|Caption goes here]], which resizes the image to standard size, places it on the right of the article, and adds a caption. Again, see WP:PIC for examples on how to get the image exactly how you want it. --Malthusian (talk) 21:03, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

What is encyclopedic?

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I vaguely remember reading an article about what kind of information Wikipedia is trying to propagate, but today am having trouble locating it. It's probably somewhere really obvious and I am just reading over that line or something. Thanks in advance. --64.142.65.33 21:45, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

What Wikipedia is not, possibly? --Malthusian (talk) 21:55, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Yup, that is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you. --64.142.65.33 21:59, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Why is this being deleted?

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Is this a paradox of sorts? - Akamad 23:54, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Adrian Targett

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- Adrian Targett, close DNA match to cheddar man, teaches in local school Kings of Wessex Community School. He lived only 800 yards from the discovery of Cheddar Man and was highly sought after by the media in 1997 when he appeared on Richard and Judy and was also requested for an interview on the David Letterman show but declined as he dislikes flying. He did, however, do an interview in Holland where he was asked whether he should become King of England as he has the longest proven relatives, he replied saying "The Queen can stay doing what she is trained to do and I will stay doing what I'm trained to do, teaching History".

I am placing it in the Cheddar Man article

Question

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Is there a Wikipedia Nobel Committee? An idea i have, just want to know if it was already taken. WikieZach 23:27, 11 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not sure if I'm getting this question right but anyway, not quite, be we do have some sort of "awards". See Wikipedia:Barnstars. ☢ Ҡiff 00:05, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Well, I think I saw something somewhere about such a thing. I know about Barnstars, if there isn't one, then how's the idea?

WikieZach 00:11, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

What would the purpose of the committee be? — Knowledge Seeker 02:37, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
To encourage Wikipedia usage, so that they can pick a person to win awards. Just an idea. WikieZach 03:37, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I'm sure I saw a 'featured user' vote somewhere, similar to a 'featured article', but can't find it now. Anyway, I don't like the idea of popularity contests. --Malthusian (talk) 12:26, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

February 12

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correction: word noni

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word noni in Samoa its spell nonu, Tahitian call it noni.. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.141.118.163 (talkcontribs)

If you've found a mistake somewhere in Wikipedia, click on 'Edit this page' at the top of the page and correct it. Be bold! --Malthusian (talk) 12:29, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

More than one edit

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What happens if two (or more) people are editing a page at the same time, wouldn't the last person to save the page not delete what the other person wrote? DJ John 01:46, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

What happens is an edit conflict. The first person to hit "save" actually has his/her text saved; the second one gets a message that says something to the effect of "Someone else has edited this page since you began, please check for vandalism and resubmit". Hermione1980 01:49, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Also, the software attempts to reconcile the changes. If it is able to incorporate both changes (for instance, if people edit different sections, it will perform both. — Knowledge Seeker 02:58, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Skin problems

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I am having problems with Wikipedia and its look. Originally, I have Wikipedia set to the standard skin, but now, it has switched to a look in which EVERYTHING is written in Times New Roman. Problem is I can't click certain internal links, because it only allows me to click on the Left most link on each page, usually languages. Is there any way to change it back to normal? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 205.188.116.71 (talkcontribs)

Hm. Since you're not registered you should simply get the standard monobook skin. I can only assume that this is either a problem with your browser or a technical cockup on our part that has already been fixed. Sorry I can't be more helpful. If the problem continues then you might get a better response at Wikipedia:Village pump (technical)--Cherry blossom tree 12:57, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

electric cars :

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live in u.s. and would like to know, if their is a place I could buy , a eletric car, if I would like too, and how and where can i do that, thank you , rich leuellen

You might find what you are looking for in the article about [[]]. If you cannot find the answer there, [{{subst:fullurl:Talk:|action=edit&section=new}} click here] to post your question at [[Talk:|that article's talk page]]. If that doesn't solve your problem, you can try asking your question at Wikipedia's Reference Desk. They'll be glad to answer questions about anything in the universe (except about how to use Wikipedia, which is what this help desk is for). I hope this helps. tiZom(2¢) 02:52, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Weapon legality?

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Do we have an article on legality of various sorts of weapons, in various jurisdictions, etc? -Tim Rhymeless (Er...let's shimmy) 03:36, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Please read the notice at the top of this page. This type of question belongs on the reference desk. The help desk (this page) is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please follow the link to the reference desk, select the relevant topic, and post your question there. Thanks. --Malthusian (talk) 10:51, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I placed this here as what I considered a truly Wikipedia-related question; that is the location of a page that it seems we ought to have. I wasn't actually asking a question on the Help Desk about non-Wikipedia content. But fine, I'll ask there, too. -Tim Rhymeless (Er...let's shimmy) 19:32, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Formatting translations

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Is there an easy way to format translations so that one block of text can be shown on the left side of the page, and the second block of text can line up with it on the right side of the page? Or does this have to be done with something horrible like tables? Thanks, Makemi 04:34, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I don't know enough about code to give you a proper answer. But you could do what I always do, which is to copy and paste the code from somewhere that does it right, such as Dalai Lama (song), and replace the text there with yours. Hope that helps. --Malthusian (talk) 11:06, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Dalai Lama (song) uses a table, but it's a very simple one. La Marseillaise uses a wikitable, which is probably even simpler. I'll quote the chorus here so you can copy it:
French lyrics
Refrain
Aux armes, citoyens,
Formez vos bataillons,
Marchons, marchons !
Qu'un sang impur
Abreuve nos sillons !
English Translation
Chorus
To arms, citizens!
Form your battalions!
Let us march, let us march!
Let impure blood (of our enemies)
Soak the furrows (of our fields)
If you want a straight block of text rather than breaks after every line (as in a poem or the lyrics to a song) then you should just miss out the colons (:). Hope this helps. --Cherry blossom tree 12:44, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks, I think I've got it. Makemi 15:21, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Tables

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I need some help editing tables. I want this table http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Super_14_Season#Current_table to look like this table http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Super_14_Season#Week_1. I want the large table to have the top 4 rows blue, like the top row of the small table. How do I do this? --HamedogTalk|@ 06:55, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Is this what you're after? All I did was add 'class="wikitable"', which seems to have fixed it. If you want something else just whistle.--Cherry blossom tree 12:35, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
No, I want the top four teams (Crusaders, Hurricanes, Bulls, Brumbies) highlighted to identify they are the top four teams and are in the playoff positions. --HamedogTalk|@ 13:50, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Ah. Do you want just the top 4 teams or would you like the whole table with the top 4 highlighted in some way? Here's a few versions, if if you want something else then come back, or maybe find someone who is better with tables.--Cherry blossom tree 15:51, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks, I will take the first. --HamedogTalk|@ 23:40, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

enquiry abt Dr.Ama Ogbo

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Dear Sir i want to know about DR.Ama Ogbo and his family who was the personal adviser to the president of ivory cost i m told that he was murdered in the rebel is it true i will like to no whree his family memebers are


Please read the notice at the top of this page. This type of question belongs on the reference desk. The help desk (this page) is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please follow the link to the reference desk, select the relevant topic, and post your question there. Thanks. --Malthusian (talk) 11:03, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Advance fee fraud! -- Zondor 11:13, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Glossary

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Achtung bitte seinen Sie Vorsichtig mit dem Tod von Dr Ama Ogbo Personal adviser. Hier sind Verbrecher und Banditen am Werk, die einen geldtransfer über Vereinigtes Königreich (England)abwickeln möchten. Hier soll man Geld über Western Union überweisen, und eine Kate Ogbo angebliche Tochter. Please be careful. Das ist eine Professionelle Geschichte mit Weltweit agierenden Betrügern. Auch ich wäre fast darauf hereingefallen von angeblichen Pastoren, Rechtsanwälten und der Gefälschten fakschen Standard Life Bank

Are there instuctions on making a talk page archive?

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I hope there is an existing article that describes how to do this. If there isn't, there ought to be and I'd be glad to help write it. I'm asking because I suggested making a talk archive page to a user who blanked their talk page. I felt kind of dumb suggesting they make an archive page and not including a link on how to do so. – ApolloCreed 10:29, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

WP:ARCHIVE has the full instructions. It's really as simple as adding a link to a subpage to the main talkpage (e.g. User_talk:Redcomusic/Archive, then going to the edit history, finding the blanked material, and copying and pasting it over to the subpage. --Malthusian (talk) 10:50, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
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User:Reverend Abramovich has uploaded a number of hentai images to Wikipedia: Image:22bbb.jpg, Image:2_2_sailor_mercury_hentai.gif, Hentai - sailor moon - mars in a thong.JPG and Image:24jjj.jpg, claiming via the tag that he is the creator and that he releases them into public domain. There seems to be good reason to doubt that they are his - the wildly different drawing style between the Mercury, Mars and the other pictures, for one - but I don't know how you'd go about actually proving a copyvio of this sort. Should I just take them to IfD or is there a way to prove their source? --Malthusian (talk) 10:48, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Image:22bbb.jpg comes from www.hentaifactory.com - there's a link to the site in the bottom right - and the others are in a similar style. You could maybe e-mail webmaster@hentaifactory.com to ask who owns the copyright to the images. I expect it'll turn out that it isn't User:Reverend Abramovich.--Cherry blossom tree 12:52, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Since they're not used in any article, and do not seem likely to have any encyclopedic value, you could just delete them citing WP:NOT#Wikipedia is not a free host, blog, or webspace provider and WP:SNOW. If they're not gone or used in an article by tomorrow, I'm minded to do just that myself. —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 13:35, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

This user may be a sockpuppet of Timecop (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · nuke contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log). I've requested a CheckUser to confirm this. —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 16:40, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Maureen Wadia

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Hi

I would like to know the educational/family background of Maureen Wadia (wife of Nusli Wadia- Bombay Dyeing, India).

Thanks, YJ

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maureen_Wadia"

How d I find the synonym of "liability" and other legal terms? Thank you


Please read the notice at the top of this page. The help desk (this page) is for questions about using Wikipedia. This type of question does not belong here. Try looking for answers in the article about Liability. If you cannot find the answer there, click here to post your question at that article's talk page. If that doesn't solve your problem, you can try asking your question on the reference desk. Thanks. --Malthusian (talk) 17:30, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Watchlist doesn't update

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My watchlist doesn't seem to update. Two articles I'm watching that I know have been edited, Ariel Sharon and List of U.S. states by population, don't appear as having been edited. There have been no updates on my watchlist since Feb. 10. I personally made changes to the List of U.S. states by population both yesterday and today and they haven't appeared, and the Ariel Sharon article was updated yesterday at least, probably today as well, but it doesn't show. What's the problem? Jack Daw 15:51, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Did you try clearing your cash(e)? On Firefox you hold down shift while refreshing. This seems to fix a myriad of problems on Wikipedia. Makemi 15:55, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I don't have firefox I have explorer. what's cash(e)? Jack Daw 17:03, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I think it's cache. See Wikipedia:Bypass your cache for instructions with Internet Explorer.--Cherry blossom tree 18:17, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Also, this can sometimes happen if the article has been moved and you're watching a redirect to it, though that seems unlikely with these articles. Have you tried unwatching them and then watching them again? I have no idea why that would work but it might. Sorry I can't be any more help.--Cherry blossom tree 16:01, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Yeah I did try that but it didn't work. I also logged out, made an edit, logged in to see if it had registered, but no. Jack Daw 17:03, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Hmmm this is weird: When I click "my watchlist" it shows only those up to Feb 10, but when I click "Show last 3 days" for instance it's all in order. Well well I guess I'll have to live with that. Thanks anyway

It's very clearly a browser caching problem: Wikipedia would serve the correct thing to the browser, but because the browser second-guesses what it's going to be sent based on what it's been sent before, it doesn't bother asking Wikipedia for the content; when you send a different query, by clicking "show last 3 days" the browser can't second-guess (load from cache) so it has to ask Wikipedia, but if you click that button again later, the cache may still kick in. If you can't work out how to change cache settings for IE, the other popular Windows web browsers handle it somewhat better, so a good solution may be to try Opera or Firefox. jnothman talk 23:24, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Help settle an edit war

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I and User:Kurieeto disagree about whether Chocolate and slavery can be included in Category:Chocolate or Category:Chocolate industry. Kurieeto claims that since the article is related to chocolate, it should be in either of those categories. I, however, think that because every single other article in either category is actually about chocolate, it would be out of place in them. For example, you eat Mars bars. You don't eat chocolate and slavery. Milka makes and sells chocolate. Chocolate and slavery doesn't make or sell chocolate. I need more opinions here. JIP | Talk 16:04, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I'd say Category:Chocolate is appropriate, but Category:Chocolate industry is probably redundant. The former category does contain articles on various non-edible chocolate-related topics, like Theobromine, Broma process and Conrad J. van Houten. I see no reason why Chocolate and slavery wouldn't fit. —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 16:48, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

adding Wikipedia to my address book/bookmarks

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Every time I enter: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page to the address-add box, I get back the message "This is not a proper address. What address should I use to access the Wikipedia encyclopedia? My address is (e-mail address removed). Thanks for your assistance.

Are you sure this is exactly what you are typing? If you are copying it from somewhere, you may have accidentally copied a space or a hidden character preceding it. Try just typing in "en.wikipedia.org" and hitting Go. jnothman talk 23:15, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
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When I try to use certain links in your site, I cannot select them or when I click on them, nothing happens. Ts occurs anywhere that there are links on the left side of the page, even being able to type this message took some experimenting on where I could get the cursor to appear. Another example is a presidential biography page, the links in the table below the president's picture do not work. Is this normal, or is it just with my computer?


Signed,

   --64.12.116.11 16:39, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
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I would much appreciate it if someone could tell me how to make a trunked link to an internal section of an article. Example: I want to link directly with a trunked wikilink in an article I am editing, to the ==Art and culture== subsection of Wikipedia's article on Manhattan. --Fuhghettaboutit 17:42, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

You'd type [[Manhattan#Art & Culture]] which gives Manhattan#Art & Culture. You can pipe this as normal. Make sure you get the capitalisation correct, which is what I just spent 10 minutes trying to figure out.--Cherry blossom tree 18:13, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thank you! --Fuhghettaboutit 18:37, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Image

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My name, T. Colin Campbell , has personal photo that I would like to change. How do I do this?

You can upload a new photo (see on the left side of this page in the toolbox : "Upload file") by using an appropriate copyright tag: see : Wikipedia:Image copyright tags and Wikipedia:Uploading images. As to deleting the present image, follow the guidelines in Wikipedia:Image use policy. JoJan 21:19, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]


how do I write an article for Wikipedia?

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Just go to Help:Starting a new page and follow the instructions there. You'll need to create an account first, though, but that takes less than thirty seconds and is free. --Kwekubo 21:17, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I think the questionner is already registered. If you want to write a new article just type the title of your article into the search box, press go and (assuming it hasn't already been created) you'll see a screen saying "No page with that title exists". There should also be a link to create your article. If you click the link you'll be taken to an empty edit screen where you can write your article. Alternately, you can copy en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=My new article&action=edit into your broswer's address bar, replacing "My new article" with the name of the article you want to create. The choice is yours.--Cherry blossom tree 21:19, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Confirm delete text location

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When I go to delete a page, I get the usual "confirm delete" page. Where is the MediaWiki page that has that text on it? It needs a slight copyedit. Hermione1980 22:45, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

MediaWiki:Confirmdeletetext. In general, you can answer this kind of question by searching Special:Allmessages. -- Finlay McWalter | Talk 22:59, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Thank you. I could not find the Allmessages page for anything, and it was frustrating because I knew I had seen it before. I just couldn't remember what it was called. Hermione1980 23:12, 12 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
To give you a clue on how to find it in the future, you could have gone from Wikipedia:MediaWiki namespace, in turn from Wikipedia:Namespaces; or Special:Specialpages if you had remembered it was a special page.

February 13

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What is the HTML code for the Wikipedia search bar on the left side of the page? I would like to put it on my site.

Howard Frank Mosher

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I wrote a brief article about the author, Howard Frank Mosher, but somehow it came out titled "Howard frank mosher" (i.e., with lower case letters beginning his middle and last name). How do I fix this?

Dlcrane 01:25, 13 February 2006 (UTC)Dlcrane[reply]

You can move the article by the "Move" button at the top, however you ahve to be a registered user for at least 4 days because it was often misused in the past. There is a page called Wikipedia:Requested moves where you can ask for a name to be changed. This page is also for moves which cannot normally be done with the software. For example when the target page already exists.
In this case Aranda56 moved it for you, so your page was moved already. Dr Debug (Talk) 01:37, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Skippyballs

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Capitalization of book titles

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Normally all important words of a book title are capitalized. But I have some books whose title is in all lower case. One is starting out: pawn endings which I've referenced in endgame and other places. Should I capitalize it normally, or use the all lower case format it uses in all places? (I couldn't find this addressed anywhere.) Bubba73 (talk), 02:30, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Normally you would capitalize titles unless the book is specifically known as "pawn endings". Dr Debug (Talk) 02:36, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Yes, it is specifically all lower case on the front of the book, the edge of the book, the title page, and the back cover. However, when they refer to the book in the description of the book on the back cover, it is capitalized. Bubba73 (talk), 02:57, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Summaries on the back cover are usually written by somebody else as part of the advertisement so it could be honest mistake. If the author intended the title to be lower case only it is probably wiser to leave it that way. You are refering to the book by Yuri Averbakhc, because Amazon has it in lower case as well (except for the initial capital, but that's probably software related). Dr Debug (Talk) 03:06, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Actually I'm referring to a different book Flear, and you can see the cover there. It is part of a series of books, and they all have the title in all lower case. Bubba73 (talk), 03:10, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
However a google turns up many mixed case entries. So feel free to change it or not. If it is like those J-Pop albums where they have chosen all capitals it is different, but I doubt whether this is the case. Dr Debug (Talk) 03:16, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Well, I put it and its companions in standard capitalization in several places, so I'm going to leave it that way. Bubba73 (talk), 04:08, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Check if there is any official title for it given on the page with copyright and publishing information. jnothman talk 06:34, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
There is no title on the copyright page, see here and click on next. However, all references to it other than the book cover itself put it in standard form, so that's how I'm going to leave it. Bubba73 (talk), 23:57, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

posting

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How do I post an article? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.143.19.51 (talkcontribs)

By getting an account or by requesting a page at Wikipedia:Requested articles. Dr Debug (Talk) 03:24, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

how can i find out how much a silver certificate. 1935

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"Hi..well if this note was in Uncirculated condition the best it would sell for is $6.If it had 2 or 3 folds then it's value would be $2.50.Since your note is well circulated probably grading fine.This note is very common with collectors and in this fine grade it would only be worth face value." [1]


Please read the notice at the top of this page. This type of question belongs on the reference desk. The help desk (this page) is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please follow the link to the reference desk, select the relevant topic, and post your question there. Thanks. - Mgm|(talk) 09:44, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Help Please Urgent Attention Neccesary Bremner wafer

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The Company of Bremner wafer wishes to review the article for Bremner wafer before it goes to press. I would be much more confortable if an administrator were to edit the page. In addition, all images containing the Bremner wafers, the logo ,and the tins are available (meaning the company allows use of the images). Please Help! Thank you to anyone who helps. Ram32110 04:16, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

What do you mean by going to press? All changes take effect immediately. You may request a peer review if you would like.Flying Canuck 06:27, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Certainly is interesting, however, if they do allow such images. Can somebody follow up on that? -Tim Rhymeless (Er...let's shimmy) 09:53, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Created pages

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Is there any tool that can show me a list (or at least the number) of pages I've created? -Tim Rhymeless (Er...let's shimmy) 09:51, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Go to Special:Contributions while you are logged in. You might also be interested in Kate's edit counting tool. There are a number of spinoffs of the later which provide other information, e.g. interiot's tool. —WAvegetarianCONTRIBUTIONSTALKEMAIL03:02, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I just realized that you asked about pages you created. You can look through your contributions for a N mark, denoting a new page. —WAvegetarianCONTRIBUTIONSTALKEMAIL03:05, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Yeah, I'm looking for something more specific than that, if possible. I've created quite a few pages, and for some reason, my contribution history doesn't always show pages I've created with a N next to them. -Tim Rhymeless (Er...let's shimmy) 04:32, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Apparently this is harder than it seems; see bugzilla:4150. — Catherine\talk 03:15, 16 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

New page indexing

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How long does it normally take for a new page to be picked up by the Wikipedia search facility?

How Do I Make Columns On Wikipedia

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How do I make columns on wikipedia?

You will need to look in the edit window to see the solutions:
OR
  • Liverpool
  • Arsenal
  • MU
  • Chelsea
—Preceding unsigned comment added by Commander Keane (talkcontribs)

'Remember me' no longer works

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Every time I close my browser, I get logged out of Wikipedia, and have to log in again, even though I turn on 'Remember me' every single time. I've already tried emptying the cache and using both Firefox and Opera, no joy. Anyone know of any other reasons why this could be happening? Thanks. --Malthusian (talk) 23:45, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

In fact, it seems to be logging me in and out at random. I was adding a warning to an anon's page just now, and when I clicked preview I was logged out and my IP address appeared as my signature... but when I clicked 'Preview' again I was logged in and my signature appeared as normal. And now I've come back to the help desk I'm logged out again. I can't imagine how this could be anything to do with the cache, I'd never been to that anon's talk page before. --212.225.62.108 23:50, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I've had the same thing today, along with a lot of other problems. Bubba73 (talk), 23:51, 13 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
The same goes for me, too. -Tim Rhymeless (Er...let's shimmy) 02:58, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I figured it was related to the server crash earlier. Are logins still doing this? ᓛᖁ  03:02, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
This was related to the server crash. Thanks to the great work of our dev staff, particularly User:Brion VIBBER, everything is better now. —WAvegetarianCONTRIBUTIONSTALKEMAIL03:07, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

blank lines between bulleted lists

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I usually put blank lines between bulleted lists (consecutive lines starting with "*"), but most editors take them out. On my screen, they make no visible difference but they make it a lot easier for editors working with the text. Is there a policy on this? Bubba73 (talk), 00:02, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

In my opinion the blank lines make it harder to use and read (takes up more space). Most of the tutorials show it without spaces (and I don't think anyone has suggested doing it your way), so I think no spaces is the defacto style. BrokenSegue 01:14, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Adding a blank line closes a list, so the way you're currently doing will create, instead of a single list with 5 items, 5 lists with one item each. You can prove this using the ordered list:
Without blank lines
  1. Item 1
  2. Item 2
  3. Item 3
With blank lines
  1. Item 1
  1. Item 2
  1. Item 3

See that the numeration doesn't work? So yes, keep them without the space, please. ☢ Ҡiff 02:44, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I know it doesn't worked with numbered lines (starting with #) but I was thinking of lines starting with an "*". On my screen, this:
  • line 1
  • line 2
  • line 3

looks almost exactly the same as:

  • line 1
  • line 2
  • line 3

(I had to get out a ruler to tell that there was any difference.)

and if the text after the "*" runs more than one line, it is much easier for the editor to see the individual items. I also prefer to use a space before lines starting with ":", "::", etc, to make it easier for someone editing the text to see. Bubba73 (talk), 03:07, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

PLease add them without spaces. There is extra white-space between them (I notice it without a ruler) and I think it is harder to edit. BrokenSegue 21:38, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Go to checkmate and go down to "Quick checkmates in the opening" and edit that, and look what a mess it is without any blank lines seperating the items. Bubba73 (talk), 01:57, 15 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

February 14

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How to delete an uploaded image

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I uploaded an image file to go wth an article I was writing, then later uploaded it again under a better name. How can I delete the first upload?

John F 00:42, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

append {{db|creator's request}} to the end of the picture's description page and an admin will come through and delete it for you. BrokenSegue 00:47, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Articles in Category:NPOV disputes that don't have the template in them

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1980 Winter Olympics medal count and 1920 Summer Olympics medal count are two articles that are in the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:NPOV_disputes but when I go to the article themselves there's no NPOV tag and took a quick look in the history and couldn't see where they were. Am I getting some bad cached info from something? On another subject, is there a way to make a wikilink to a category without actually putting an article IN that category? Aaronw 00:59, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, there is a way: category:NPOV disputes ([[:category:NPOV disputes]]). It also works on images, templates, etc.
WAvegetarianCONTRIBUTIONSTALKEMAIL01:15, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

User Pages and Userboxes

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In my user page, my boxes automatically shift into a collumn on the left. How can I space them out? I'd prefer larger, more horizontal boxes. --Scorpios 00:58, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]


Edit this and look at it:
Whoops, that won't do what you want (I misunderstood). Bubba73 (talk), 01:25, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Take a look at User:Nightstallion/userboxes. —WAvegetarianCONTRIBUTIONSTALKEMAIL01:54, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Where is the "new articles" link?

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How do I get to the page that shows new article contributions for the day? --Sadi Carnot 01:36, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I think you want Special:Newpages. It is found under the Special pages link in the toolbox. This will be on the left hand side of your screen using the default skin. —WAvegetarianCONTRIBUTIONSTALKEMAIL01:56, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Experts vs. Non-Experts

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So I know that Wikipedia is frequently criticized for having inaccurate information; one of the most frequent specific criticisms involves Wikipedia's inherent "anyone can edit" nature. Not just because people can anonymously fabriacate information, but because there are those people who have only superficial knowledge of a topic and then author an encyclopedia article that may be inaccurate or incomplete (but appear to be correct to most readers). Personally, I didn't think this was much of an issue, as I assumed that if a "real" expert came along, they would fix whatever problems existed in those articles. But now, I am involved in a situation that casts doubt on my assumption. I am not an expert on many things, but I am less than a year away from a Ph.D. in Social Psychology. My graduate training involved dozens of graduate classes in social psychology, research methodology and statistics. I teach several undergraduate courses on these topics at a university. But when I discover inaccuracies in an article that is on the specific field of my doctoral training, my edits and comments are met with resistance--not by other experts, but by a single Wikipedia editor who, despite having no real training (perhaps a single undergraduate course) in my field, purports to know better than I. This editor is smart, well-read, a prolific Wikipedian and knows just enough to be dangerous, but a social psychologist he is not (his bio says he is currently an undergraduate philosophy major). Other individuals have attempted to make edits to the page, only to have them reverted by this editor. How do I assert my expertise? Can I assert it? I feel like this is the exact situation that turns many people off of Wikipedia. -Nick 01:39, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Assert your expertise by backing up everything you say with references. Good references cannot be argued with. 01:57, 14 February 2006 (UTC)
There are some that repeatedly delete good/excellent references that contradict their POV. Bubba73 (talk), 02:07, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Tell me about it. The references I cite are often countered with references from outside the main academic field that only semi-address the specific topic. -Nick 02:09, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I think I've had material published by the Smithsonian Institution deleted in favor of stuff froma blog. Bubba73 (talk), 02:32, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I think the dispute resolution process may be what you're looking for. First step is to try and work it out with the editor, if he's intractable then you can begin to request the involvement of the wider community to seek a consensus.
What you can't do is 'assert your expertise'; this is the Internet, and claiming to be a social psychiatrist (whatever that does) carries no weight. Your references do carry weight, make sure you know them and can explain to a relative layman why they are authoritive (when I say layman, I mean a fairly intelligent and well-read layman who can tell the difference between a good source and a bad one). --Malthusian (talk) 09:10, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

If your source is more authoritative than theirs it should be more significant in an article. If they disagree with your decision on what authoritative, refer them to Wikipedia:Verifiability and Wikipedia:No original research for an objective way of analyzing the authoritativeness of a given source.--Urthogie 19:05, 21 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Adding info on Holiday

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I would like very much to be able to add either to an article about Environmental Holidays (although I don't believe there is one just yet) or the article on Raccoons a note about International Raccoon Appreciation Day. While there is little to no published writing on the holiday, it is celebrated Oct. 1st of every year in at least four countries.

I realise it's hard to keep out the bogus junk, but I still would like to put up SOMETHING.

Thanks for your time!

BSL The preceding unsigned comment was added by 67.188.195.105 (talk • contribs) .

So do it. As long as the submissions are well cited and relevant, there shouldn't be any reason why your edits shouldn't stay. You may want to check out Help:Starting a new article for more info. Dismas|(talk) 04:41, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
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The preceding unsigned comment was added by 68.149.119.206 (talk • contribs) .

  • This would be a feature of your browser, not of Wikipedia. JIP | Talk 11:16, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
  • You could do this by writing a greasemonkey script if you're using firefox. Another way is to modify your User:68.149.119.206/monobook.js file. I've modified mine to do this and it works with Firefox 1.5 and IE 7 beta 2. You could do it by adding the text below to your monobook.js, but note that you are trusting me to not put anything nasty in search-focus.js (I haven't!). Take a look at mine for reference.
// Set focus to search input
document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="' 
             + 'http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:ApolloCreed/search-focus.js' 
             + '&action=raw&ctype=text/javascript&dontcountme=s"></script>');

ApolloCreed 19:11, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

See also bug 1864 --Commander Keane
There is strong opposition to implenting this; if you are interested in this I would suggest you follow the above advice for local modification. — Knowledge Seeker 07:44, 15 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Placing images from Wikipedias in other languages

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It is very easy to put up an image from English Wikipedia: image:file.jpg.

How can I take an image from Wikipedia in another language and place it on an English-language Wikipedia page on the same topic? Is it possible. The image I would like is at Vietnamese Wikipedia. Bathrobe 07:07, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The best way is to use commons:Main Page for shared pictures. You can of course save it from one wiki and upload it in another, but commons is meant for shared media and you can simply use the filename and if it is not on the local wiki, it'll be shown from commons. Dr Debug (Talk) 07:20, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
  • The commons has a stricter acceptance policy. Fair use images are not allowed there. If your image is not free, you'll have to reupload it on the wiki you want to use it on. - Mgm|(talk) 10:55, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

missing text in wikipedia articles

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Often when i am browsing wikipedia articles there is text randomly missing from the articles. Sentences end midway and there is a blank before the article abruptly resumes. This seems to happen at least once in a majority of articles i look at. As an example, the last article i viewed was "baron" and half a sentence is apparently missing in the first paragraph.

Is this a problem with my computer or internet explorer, or a problem with wikipedia, or a problem with the article content or what? can it be fixed?

This may be a problem with your browser. I was unable to find the problem you allude to in baron. The first paragraph is

Baron is a specific title of nobility or a more generic feudal qualification. The word baron comes from French baron, itself from Frankish baro meaning "freeman, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman." Ultimately it seems to mean a burden bearer.

Walter Siegmund (talk) 11:42, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

How does an article get in the index?

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Hi,

I recently wrote a small article. I can get to it via other pages which link to it, but cannot find it through the search function. Is this a time thing, i.e. index updated perioidically (how often?) or should I do something to make it appear in the index?

Thanks, John

  • It's hard to say. Developers have to do it manually and since it strains the servers to check all articles, they usually do it at low-traffic moments. Apart from that, I really don't have a set time to give you. - Mgm|(talk) 17:35, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Ok, that's fine. I just wanted to make sure I had not missed something I should do. John F 10:39, 16 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Balance, or spreadsheets

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How can I print a balance, or spreadsheet?

Flag Image Templates

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Does anyone know of a set of templates similar to {{USA}} which include only the flag at the 20px size? I am planning on doing a lot of Olympic results, and I don't want to look up the name of the flag image for every one of them :o\ tiZom(2¢) 17:07, 14 February 2006 (UTC) (I've repeated this question at Talk:List of flags)[reply]

Can't you just copy those templates from last year's results, or from the results of some other sports article? - Mgm|(talk) 18:11, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I'm looking at trying to do a first-second-third place type thing where each position could be taken by any nation in the world. I could memorize every flag image name, but I'd really prefer not to :o) Also, I'm doing a lot of them, and it just takes too much time to type! tiZom(2¢) 19:18, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

  • Well, if you're not going to remember the template names, you're still going to need to remember the image names of said flags to make a template like that work. I prefer copying such images from pages that already have them. No remembering required which is great for my sieve of a brain. - Mgm|(talk) 22:33, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Sure. Well, the template names could be formatted - like {{JPN-flag}} and {{SWE-flag}}. Kind of like the one I mentioned before. It's REAL easy to just type {{NOR}}, for example! tiZom(2¢) 23:08, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Wow. I *just* realized that they are already formatted the same way (e.g. Image:Flag of Germany.svg, Image:Flag of Mexico. Sorry! I guess it would still be easier, as I'm using templates where the 3-letter code is already an argument, to have the template call up the flag with a template similar to the {{NOR}} example above. But then again, that would be using meta-templates. Ah, well. tiZom(2¢) 23:16, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Sonny Mercan

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Hello can anyone help me and give me an idea of what I'm doing here? I'm trying to put a page for Muhammed Sonny Mercan but whenever I try to do so it doesn't get registered. It's quite a few days now that I'm trying to get that page up on Wikipedia but all invain. The page is supposed to be Muhammed Sonny Mercan an environmentalist person of Turkic ancestry, the indigenous people. So can anyone please tell me what to do? The preceding unsigned comment was added by Sonny Mercan (talk • contribs) .

OPEC

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Hello,

I just have a question which was assigned to me by my teacher. Why was Vienna,Austria the headquarters of OPEC although it was nota member of OPEC?

I need an urgent reply... THANKS~


Please read the notice at the top of this page. The help desk (this page) is for questions about using Wikipedia. This type of question does not belong here. Try looking for answers in the article about OPEC. If you cannot find the answer there, click here to post your question at that article's talk page. If that doesn't solve your problem, you can try asking your question on the reference desk. Thanks. --Malthusian (talk) 21:44, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

You won't have much luck there, either. One of the policies is not to expect them to do your homework for you.--Max Talk (add)Contribs 04:47, 15 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

image copywrite issues

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Hey, I'm General Gerbil, a new user. I'm trying to make a page about a band i am a fan of, and i need to know, is it ok to use images of the band and their albums if i have explicit permission directly from the band? How would i prove that i had permission to use the pictures? Btw the band is And Then I Turned Seven..., and they are a local group so i would be able to obtain permission by email.

God Bless, GG —Preceding unsigned comment added by General Gerbil (talkcontribs)

For the full policy, see Wikipedia:Image use policy. Briefly, the images must be released by the copyright holders under a free licence, or be fair use. Licences which restrict distribution to Wikipedia are not free enough. See Wikipedia:Image copyright tags for which free licences are compatible with Wikipedia. To be fair use the images of the band would have to be part of a press release.
Also, this is slightly tangential to your question, but note that Wikipedia has specific guidelines for what bands can have articles written about them: see WP:MUSIC. Bands that fail these criteria may be deleted, and local bands frequently fall under them. We do this because it's difficult to keep articles about 'non-notable' bands verified and written in a neutral point of view. --Malthusian (talk) 22:54, 14 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]