Wikipedia:GLAM/University of Toronto Libraries/Editing

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Using Wikipedia in a nutshell: Wikipedia is the sum of what is known about various topics. What is contributed is more important than who contributes it. Create an account to edit ('one editor, one account') and, if you'd like, use account features in your user toolbar (top right menu) to customise your editing experience. To get started editing, you can improve existing articles or create new ones.

Basics[edit]

Wikipedia is the sum of what is known about various topics. Anyone is allowed to add or edit text, references, images, and other media here, including yourself. As such, there is no single point of authority, and decisions are made through reason-giving and discussion. In editing, we can try to show and assume good faith, and treat everyone's input as equally valuable (Wikipedia:Assume good faith). No one's input is more valid than anyone else's by default, regardless of who they are, how much recognition they have within or outside of Wikipedia, and how long they have been editing. What is contributed—and why, if you are discussing an edit—is more important than who contributes it.

Where to start[edit]

At first, the sheer size and scope of Wikipedia can seem a bit overwhelming. There is no need to understand everything from the start. We all learn as we go.

Keep in mind:

Show good faith. While you don't need to be registered to edit most pages, you can personalise your editing experience and help show good faith by creating an account. Rule of thumb: one editor, one account. This helps us all stay accountable as anonymous editors on Wikipedia and increase community trust. If you need to use multiple accounts (some possible reasons are listed here), disclose your alternative account(s) on your userpage to show good faith.
- Wikipedia:IPs are human too - If you are not registered or logged in, your edits will show up under your IP address. Although account creation is encouraged for responsible editing, unregistered edits (also called "IP editing") are not less valuable than registered edits.
- Wikipedia:Sockpuppetry - The misuse of multiple accounts (often called "sockpuppetry") is the opposite of showing good faith.
Wikipedia is a work in progress. Wikipedia is never "finished". An article can start off a stub (the "ugly ducklings" of Wikipedia, in their rougher and less complete stages) and, through contributions over time, grow into a good article (the "swans" of Wikipedia). But even good articles that many people have contributed to are not "finished". As time goes on and the world continues to change, the sum of what we know about the world in writing also changes. Wikipedia articles will ideally grow to reflect up-to-date information.
- Wikipedia:Article development describes the journey of an article as it goes from an idea in the contributor's mind to creation and growth. This is often not a linear journey, and articles only grow insofar as editors make the time and effort to contribute.
Be bold. You can't break Wikipedia. Wikipedia saves every edit ever made, so mistakes and errors can be reverted or overwritten. This is not an invite to be boldly destructive. This is an invite not to be excessively timid. Be bold, but also willing to learn.
- Help:Page history - You can view the edit history of a Wikipedia page by clicking View history to the left of the search bar.

Account features[edit]

Once you're logged in, see the user menu in the top right corner to access helpful editing features:

Sandbox is a scratchpad for any drafts and practice edits.
Preferences allow you to customise editing options so that they work best for you.
- For example, you can enable/disable your editor (visual vs source; see Preferences > Editing) or change your user profile.
Watchlist tracks edits to articles you contributed to or are otherwise interested in.
- To add an article to your watchlist, toggle the star icon to the left of the search bar.

How to edit[edit]

This is a non-exhaustive guide to editing, simplified and organised by type of edit. You can supplement the notes below with this DIY slide deck. You can also try some editing exercises.

On Wikipedia, you can improve old stuff (existing articles) or write new stuff (new articles). If you're new to Wikipedia, it may be helpful to start by improving existing articles. Please bear in mind that the instructions below take the English Wikipedia as their basis. Basic editing "how-to"s apply across all language Wikipedias, although templates are specific to each Wikipedia and you will need to find and use the appropriate ones.

Improve old stuff[edit]

Here are some ways you can improve an existing article:

Link one article to another. For example, in Eglinton West there is a sentence on reggae which should be linked to reggae.
Cite to verify statements which do not yet have a source. Everything on Wikipedia needs to trace back to a source.
Add sentences based on sources. Keep in mind:
- Please only summarise and paraphrase the information found in the source being cited, to avoid plagiarism and copyright issues.
- The source cannot attest to more than it claims.
  - For example, a source that says 'A' can only anchor 'A', not 'A therefore B'. To write 'A therefore B', you will need a source that says 'A therefore B'.
Reword or rephrase in favour of terms that are specific, up-to-date, and chosen by relevant individuals/cultures/communities.
- Prioritise sources that use such terms.
- See also: manual of style for writing on group/cultural identity and gender identity
Add templates to an article to make them easier to find, read, and improve.
- You can add an infobox to the top of an article. An infobox summarises key facts about the article's subject, and looks different based on topic. It can include an image or a map if appropriate and available.
  - The infobox should only summarise information which is in the body of the article. If you have new facts to add, write and cite that information in the body of the article then use the infobox to summarise.
  - There are many kinds of infoboxes. Use an infobox appropriate for the article's subject. Take a look at similar pages in editing view to see what others have used, or look on Wikipedia:List of infoboxes for infoboxes which are bolded and/or have a higher transclusion count (=more frequently used). Commonly used infoboxes include infobox song (example), infobox film (example), infobox musical artist (example), infobox person (example), infobox radio station (example).
- You can add these templates to the bottom of an article, if applicable:
  - {{authority control}} - if the article is about a person or an organisation
  - {{stub}} - if the article is small and needs more development.

Write new stuff[edit]

To write a new article, take the following steps:

Choose a topic whose notability can be established through several reliable sources. You should find at least 3-5 sources which:
- are independent from the subject of the article (avoid conflict of interest)
- stay constant over time (avoid social media)
- can be summarised without additional interpretation (avoid sources like a photograph with no accompanying description)
Look through related Wikipedia articles in case you find the same topic covered in a section of another article. Use a search engine to find relevant articles.
- For example, History of insulin is not an article in itself, but there are relevant sections in Insulin#History and History of diabetes#Insulin.
- If you do find a section which addresses your topic, you can build on that section instead of creating a whole new article. Or if the section is notable enough to merit its own article and you'd like to dedicate some time to creating it, you may do so. You can then link to the new, standalone article from relevant sections using Template:Main.
Gather many different sources on the topic. A Wikipedia article is the sum of what is known about a topic, so your collection of sources will be your writing material. No need to worry about perfection, but you can give it a strong start that others can build on.
To get a sense for article structure, refer to other well-developed articles on the same topic area (e.g. place, biography, organisation, event).
- Take a look at some recognised articles by topic in Wikipedia:Good articles. These will give you a sense for what your article can look like.
Draft the article, adding citations at the end of each sentence. If you used one source for many sentences, you may cite it at the end of the last sentence.
- You can draft the article in your Wikipedia sandbox. This is your scratchpad - you can find it in the top right corner of Wikipedia.
- Make sure to summarise and paraphrase the information you find in a source, to avoid plagiarism and copyright issues.

How to submit an article for creation[edit]

When you are ready, use Wikipedia:Article wizard to submit your article as a draft. The article will be pushed to draftspace and be titled "Draft:[Article name]".
While the article is in draftspace, others can help improve it before it is created in mainspace.
You can submit the article for creation by clicking Submit for review. If you don't see this button, add the code {{subst:submit}} to the top of your draft in the source editor. Once you publish changes, you will see a yellow tag which indicates that the article has been submitted for review.