Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2010 November 16

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November 16[edit]

making mobile wiki default?[edit]

I was looking for something on wikipedia and had to switch to the main site, I now can switch back to the mobile site for default searches, any ideas? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.14.83.39 (talk) 00:42, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

If you go to Wikipedia:Enable mobile version on your mobile device and click on the link there, you will re-enable the mobile version.  A p3rson  00:59, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Dead people with Twitter links[edit]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wally_Parks for example. Wally has been gone 3 years. What is Wikipedia's policy on this? 72.144.138.44 (talk) 00:44, 16 November 2010 (UTC)DavidN[reply]

Wikipedia generally doesn't include things like Twitter links on articles of the deceased. This appears to be added by another user, and was not removed.  A p3rson  00:51, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
It's extremely unlikely that a link to somebody's Twitter feed has any place in any article here, per WP:EL. --Orange Mike | Talk 01:03, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Userboxes[edit]

Hopefully this will be my last userbox inquiry. Why is one of my userboxes not with the rest (below and to the right)? --The High Fin Sperm Whale 01:16, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Userbox tables float; it is not necessary to specify their positions as 'left', 'centre', 'right'. If all of them are set to 'left' then they will automatically wrap, or 'stack' horizontally. Intelligentsium 01:24, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
Thank you. One last thing, my on my userpage does it say 'Welcome... The High Fin Sperm Whale' rather than the username of the person viewing it? --The High Fin Sperm Whale 01:27, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
Because you are using the {{REVISIONUSER}} magicword, which displays the last person to edit the page (you). Intelligentsium 01:35, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
It only displays the reader on a preview. See mw:Help:Magic words#Technical metadata. PrimeHunter (talk) 01:40, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
So what can I add that will say the username of the reader? --The High Fin Sperm Whale 01:58, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
Nothing. PrimeHunter (talk) 03:47, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

wanted: someone to post my biography onto wikipedia[edit]

I'm a share activist and victim of the Australian judicial system having appeared before 20 judges in various Australian courts of record to defend and appeal the numerous contempt of court findings against me.

Below are the links to some of my cases.

I want someone to publish this information on Wikipedia together with some short biographical detail like :

Australian share activist and serial contemnor. Born 1953 , educated at Brisbane Grammar School , married Lindell in 1973 and now with 6 children. Graduated from the University of Queeensland with bachelor degrees in Commerce and Arts . Former publisher of share stock site The Chimes.Residing on the north shore of Sydney .

court cases cited on www.austlii.edu.au:

1. Australian Securities Investments Commission v Matthews [1999] FCA 164 (19 February 1999) [100%] (From Federal Court of Australia; 19 February 1999; 16 KB) 2. Asic v Matthews [2001] NSWSC 735 (30 August 2001) [88%] (From Supreme Court of New South Wales; 30 August 2001; 60 KB) 3. ASIC v Matthews [2009] NSWSC 77 (25 February 2009) [76%] (From Supreme Court of New South Wales; 25 February 2009; 63 KB) 4. Matthews v ASIC [2009] NSWCA 155 (22 June 2009) [70%] (From Supreme Court of New South Wales - Court of Appeal; 22 June 2009; 183 KB) 5. Australian Securities Investments Commission v Matthews [1999] FCA 803 (16 June 1999) [58%] (From Federal Court of Australia; 16 June 1999; 35 KB) 6. Matthews v Australian Securities Investments Commission [2000] FCA 288 (17 March 2000) [47%] (From Federal Court of Australia; 17 March 2000; 58 KB) 7. Matthews v Australian Securities Investments Commission [1999] FCA 1674 (17 November 1999) [47%] (From Federal Court of Australia; 17 November 1999; 12 KB) 8. Asic v Matthews [1999] NSWSC 763 (26 July 1999) [41%] (From Supreme Court of New South Wales; 26 July 1999; 15 KB) 9. Matthews v Australian Securities and Investments Commission [2009] HCATrans 197 (17 August 2009) [23%] (From High Court of Australia Transcripts; 17 August 2009; 33 KB) 10. Australian Securities Investments Commission v Matthews [1999] FCA 706 (27 May 1999) [17%] (From Federal Court of Australia; 27 May 1999; 29 KB) 11. Asic v Matthews [2000] NSWSC 392 (4 May 2000) [17%] (From Supreme Court of New South Wales; 4 May 2000; 16 KB 59.167.243.101 (talk) 02:12, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

If you are of real interest to people who are not connected with you, then surely one or more of these people will write an article -- one satisfying Wikipedia's demands for verifiability, etc -- without the need for any encouragement by you. -- Hoary (talk) 02:20, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
You could post this information at WP:AFC, but have a look at Wikipedia:Notability#person first, and the general notability guideline. You need to satisfy one of these if you are to be a suitable subject for a Wikipedia encyclopaedia article. By the way, thank you for asking, rather than just plunging in and writing one yourself. Many people do so without stopping to consider that their conflict of interest makes this a bad idea, and many inappropriate articles end up deleted as a result. Karenjc 08:56, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Donation through Indian Rupee[edit]

Hello,

I wanted to donate, whatever i can, from india. But I can't donate through Indian Rupee.

Could you please give access for "Donatio through Indian Rupee".

Thank you. Sankeerth hebbar.

<email removed> —Preceding unsigned comment added by 180.149.48.245 (talk) 06:47, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

I have removed your email address to protect your privacy. I'm sorry, even though this has been asked twice before further up the page, no-one has come up with a good answer yet. -- John of Reading (talk) 08:55, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
And please remember that this is a public forum, and anyone who e-mails you with something like "you can make a donation by transferring money to this account number" is attempting to defraud you. GiftigerWunsch [TALK] 14:33, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
I suspect the same user left both messages with a dynamic IP address anyway, but this appears to have been adequately answered at WP:EAR; guidance on donating to WMF can be found here. GiftigerWunsch [BODY DOUBLE] 14:34, 17 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Trying to add to the 'All's Well That Ends Well' information on staging of the play...[edit]

I had some information on interpretations of the play to add, but couldn't, because when I clicked the edit, the 'references' section came up immediately, and if I tried to move down the word, then I was told that this was not an acceptable edit... Any advice?

Jessica —Preceding unsigned comment added by Jessica Holsgrove (talkcontribs) 13:02, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Your edits were undone by Cluebot, a computer program that tries to assess contributions made by new users. It saw your second edit, saw that you were removing almost a paragraph of text without providing an edit summary, and decided that you were up to no good. May I apologise on behalf of User:Cluebot?
However, please don't add the material again without also indicating where the information is coming from. Wikipedia articles must be based on information and opinions that have already been published in reliable sources such as books, magazines, newspapers and such like. I've placed some introductory reading on your talk page. -- John of Reading (talk) 13:35, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Is there a UK specific version of Wikipedia?[edit]

Hi there, I love Wikipedia, despite what my lecturers told me about not using it as a source I found it extremely useful at university AND found out that most of my lecturers used it anyway for reference. I live in the UK and am English and find some of the terms confusing as a lot of them are written in U.S. English which, as it should by right, is evolving into an entirely different language. As a fledgling scientist I have an interest in many of your articles but have to refer to an online dictionary to find the definitions to make sure that my understanding of them is correct - mistakes have been made on assumption many times in history - and am wondering if there is a straight up, comprehensive UK translation available? It might save me time looking up words like 'Resistivity' (Resistance in the UK) and speed me along. I knowit may not be possible and, if it isn't, I shall happily keep using Wikipedia. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Cybrin (talkcontribs) 16:57, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

There is not and will not be a separate UK version. And resistivity is a different thing from resistance, on both sides of the atlantic. Algebraist 17:00, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
(edit conflict) The English Wikipedia is not entirely written in American English; articles which describe a subject related to Britain (e.g. London, Elizabeth II) are written using British English, and articles that relate to the United States (e.g. New York, Barack Obama) are written in American English. And no, as Algebraist says above, there will never be a version written entirely in British English. wackywace 17:04, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
For guidelines, see WP:ENGVAR. – ukexpat (talk) 17:21, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
See also American and British English differences, and the various articles linked from there. Ghmyrtle (talk) 17:43, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
As Algebraist said, resistivity and resistance are two diffeent things. Resistivity is a property of the *material*; resistance is a property of the *object* made from that material. You'll find details at Resistivity and Electrical resistance respectively, and this will tell you the relationship between the two quantities. David Biddulph (talk) 17:48, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

mise en examen pour un délit mineur (la personne est maghrébine)[edit]

Le fils de mon amie est incarcéré depuis DIMANCHE 14/11/2010 pour une non présentation au commissariat de police, car il y a queleques jours il avait été interpellé pour conduite en état d'ivresse. Etant Musulman, il ne doit pas boire d'alcool, mais la mauvaise influence de ses "copains" l'on conduit à la faute. Maxime, n'a pas osé en parler à sa MAMAN, de peur de réprimandes. Il a reçu une convocation de la police, pour le 14/11/2010, il l'a cachée de nouveau à sa Mère..... La Police l'a intecepté ce jour même, en lui demandant ses papiers, malheur pour lui il n'avait pas son permis de conduire avec lui. Donc, mise en garde à vue...... pour défaut de présentation de documents officiels. Or d'après la LOI, lorsque nous ne sommes pas en mesure de présenter ces documents sur le champ, nous avons 24 heures pour en fournir les preuves au commissariat sous les 24H00. Or depuis le 14/11/2010 Maximes est incarcéré comme un meurtrier, ou un voleur, sa famille n'a pas pu le voir, même pas un avocat...... EST IL CONSIDERE COMME UN TERRORISTE ? OU S'agit t-il de RACISME ? ou bien faut il faire du chiffre pour les STATISTIQUES? LA QUESTION EST LA !

eN TOUT 2T —Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.224.102.184 (talk) 17:55, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

D'abord c'est le Wikipedia ANGLAIS, pas le Français.
Deuxièmement le but de cette page est d'obtenir l'aide sur l'utilisation de Wikipedia, pas pour des enquêtes générales comme le vôtre.
David Biddulph (talk) 18:32, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]
Aussi, il ne faut absolument pas donner aucun avis ici sur des questions de la loi. --ColinFine (talk) 23:44, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Trying to change my contact name on Corporate Wiki[edit]

Am I able to change my contact name on Corporate Wiki? You have my maiden name listed and I would like my married name listed.

Thank you, Tore Roberts —Preceding unsigned comment added by Olccamb (talkcontribs) 17:59, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

What do you mean by "Corporate Wiki"? If you mean the internal wiki of your employer you will have to contact the administrator of that wiki. This is the help desk for Wikipedia, the encyclopedia. – ukexpat (talk) 19:04, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Incorrect info in 'Eastside Sun'[edit]

It seems that 1 or 2 people insist on listing The Eastside Sun newspaper as 'defunct' 'out of print' and having 'ceased publication'

All are untrue.

We are still alive and well, still publishing and distributing and (apparently) still pissing people off.

We know we are controversial, but listing incorrect Wikipedia information makes Wiki look incompetent.

Either correctly list us as a current publication or delete the entry!

Thanks —Preceding unsigned comment added by Great Irish (talkcontribs) 19:01, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Periodic table template[edit]

The template is not working right. Green is not showing for liquids. Can anyone fix that? 173.49.140.141 (talk) 19:29, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

It's working for me. Which ones are you expecting to be green, apart from bromine and mercury? David Biddulph (talk) 19:34, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Translate[edit]

I operate a Wikimedia site and I want to translate from english to french. I want to keep the same content and tables of the original page. I want to name the translated page to Fr."English name" How do I automatically translate the page and save it under a new name for further editing? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.34.149.142 (talk) 21:27, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry I inadvertently piggybacked on your question an entry which I deleted70.44.61.61 (talk) 23:38, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

This is the help desk for Wikipedia: you should ask questions about Mediawiki in general at Meta. --ColinFine (talk) 23:48, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Jewellery article inaccuracy[edit]

I emailed info@wikimedia.org who replied as follows: "Thank you for contacting us for assistance. However, we are unable to assist you with this matter via email." "Instead, we suggest that you direct your inquiry to our help desk <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WP:Y>, which is staffed by a larger group of volunteers who are experts on issues such as searching, printing, how to edit, and problems with particular web browsers."

I am a editing neophyte so I hope this is not an inappropriate correspondence concerning what is a common error in English language usage regardless of nationality vis à vis the term "Jewelry". Please see below the entry I placed in the "discussion" location for my explanation. The last entry in the discussion of this issue was back in 2007 so there has never been an adequate resolution of this issue.

According to the Oxford Dictionary Online (which indicates that such usage is "widely regarded as uneducated") and The New Oxford American Dictionary application available with the Apple operating system ( which indicates "Avoid the pronunciation |ˈjoōlərē|, widely regarded as uneducated"), "jewellery" should be changed to "jewelry" for all instances in this article because it is inferior English usage not a national variant as is the spelling "colour" typically seen in the UK as opposed to "color" typically seen in the US. The root word is "jewel" expanded to "jewelry" indicating items containing jewels. The all too common mispronunciation as |ˈjoōlərē| in the United States as well as Great Britain apparently has yielded the all too common misspelling "jewellery". The fact that this mispronunciation and misspelling is ubiquitous doesn't make it right, and allowing it to remain perpetuates through dissemination this inferior English. The article should be titled "Jewelry" redirected from "Jewellery" not as it is at present. —Preceding unsigned comment added by MarkFengya (talk •contribs) 21:07, 16 November 2010 (UTC)

Please advise if I should address this inaccuracy in another manner. My aim is to increase the credibility of Wikipedia through accuracy within articles. While the somewhat democratic editing environment is a strength of the Wiki world, I think we can all agree that when information is simply not correct in terms of content or language used to convey the information, it should be corrected to increase the credibility of this great online encyclopedic experiment.

Thanks for all you do,70.44.61.61 (talk) 23:31, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

My copy of the Oxford English Dictionary lists both spellings, and says "In commercial use commonly spelt jewellery; the form jewelry is more rhetorical and poetic, and unassociated with the jeweller. But the pronunciation with three syllables is usual even with the former spelling." (The pronunciation it means is /dʒuəlrɪ/ as opposed to /dʒuələrɪ/: it does not consider a pronunciation /dʒulərɪ/.) Nothing about "uneducated" there: are you sure it wasn't just referring to the pronunciation?.
I have no doubt that "jewellery" is the more common spelling: The British National Corpus contains 1231 instances of it, as against 11 of "jewelry".
In general, the thing to do when you find spelling errors in Wikipedia is to correct them; but in this case your changes would probably all have been reverted by other editors. Talk:Jewellery would probably have been a better place to ask the question than here, but here is acceptable. --ColinFine (talk) 00:08, 17 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Citations/ Sources[edit]

I live in a small developing country where contacting local celebrities are not that difficult, what if I have a citation as "Unpublished interview"? Would you accept that? I have spoken to the "celebrity" myself for information on him. Please keep this into consideration and don't delete my page, it is about "Starvey" a local television comedian who is a popular person and seems to be an upcoming character in television.Star1yellow (talk) 23:43, 16 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]

No, that is not acceptable. The guiding principle is verifiability: if a source is published, then any reader can in principle go and check for themselves (though it might be difficult to track down in some cases). If it is not published, then in principle an arbitrary reader cannot check.
Also please see WP:BLP and WP:UPANDCOMING. --ColinFine (talk) 00:10, 17 November 2010 (UTC)[reply]