Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2017 August 27

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August 27[edit]

Formatting Table Headers[edit]

Ugh, I can't figure out how to format table headers. I've looked in the help but can't figure it out.

On the page List_of_New_York_State_Historic_Markers_in_Ulster_County,_New_York I have a header that is fills the header cells blue and I'd like the columns to sort. I find that if I have no space between the % sign and the { in this specification of the header "  ! width = 8% {{NYS Marker color}}|'''Designator''' " I get a sortable column but the header cell is not filled in blue. If I have a space between the % and the { the column is not sortable but it is filled in with a color.

If someone has time, please explain to me what is going on, or direct me to where I can learn about this? Thanks. — Preceding unsigned comment added by HighAtop94 (talkcontribs)

@HighAtop94: The table was actually sortable. The sort arrows were invisible but could still be clicked. I made them visible by replacing background with background-color in {{NYS Marker color}} per Help:Sorting#Background colors in sortable headers.[1] Another thing is that black text on dark blue background is against MOS:CONTRAST. PrimeHunter (talk) 22:19, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Diffs of edits to extremely long pages[edit]

I'm currently making some edits to the United States page, which is extremely long with over 380k wikitext. When I try to load a diff of a simple edit, the pageload takes a very long time (and slows down my browser) because in addition to loading the diff it must load that entire revision. Is there a way to view diffs without viewing the accompanying revision? Thanks, CJK09 (talk) 00:26, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

@CJK09: Special:Preferences#mw-prefsection-rendering has the setting "Do not show page content below diffs". See also User:Mr. Stradivarius/gadgets/DiffOnly.js. PrimeHunter (talk) 00:39, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]
The script is exactly what I'm looking for, thanks!
Furthermore, is there a way to only load part of a very large page? (For example, to only load everything in United States#History instead of the whole United States article) CJK09 (talk) 00:42, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]
@CJK09: I don't know a convenient way to load part of a page. For an inconvenient way to view a current section with a known name, preview {{#section-h:United States|History}} somewhere or enter it at Special:ExpandTemplates. This method cannot view old revisions. PrimeHunter (talk) 01:29, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Heather Morris.[edit]

Hello. This is her Mom Jeannie Morris I was just wondering if you could correct a mistake in her profile on Wikipedia. Her Late Fathers name was Stan M Morris. Don't know who or where you got Bruce Randolf Morris but it is incorrect. Can someone fix that please 🙏 — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2605:E000:7F0F:C300:E847:7570:E9CE:A809 (talk) 00:58, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

I am trying to find any source on line that links Heather Morris with the name "Stan M Morris" and I am coming up empty. Could you please supply a reliable source that would back this claim? Most online sources state: Bruce Randolf Morris; who died of cancer when she was 14 years old. You could bring this to Heather's Talk Page here: Heather Morris Talk Page and address the issue. Thanks. Maineartists (talk) 01:11, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Her Wikipedia biography Heather Morris has no mention of Bruce Randolf Morris or her father's name. Please link the page where you saw Bruce Randolf Morris. It may be unrelated to Wikipedia. PrimeHunter (talk) 01:16, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Maybe the Google infobox when googling her name. Which probably gets a false positive from http://woodfuneralhome.ca/tribute/details/1798/Randy-Morris/obituary.html#tribute-start ArcticDragonfly (talk) 09:03, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]
I checked Google's infobox (Knowledge Graph) and it doesn't mention Bruce Randolf Morris for me. Many other sites do but I wonder why the poster blaims Wikipedia. The Google search Heather Morris father does claim Randolf Bruce Morris in a box at top but not an infobox, and it doesn't mention Wikipedia. PrimeHunter (talk) 10:21, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

The Alienist[edit]

There is a very large group of fans of the alienist desperate for any information as to what month or year to expect Paramount Television to air The Alienist on TNT. Even just a small hint would help. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.112.196.37 (talk) 01:36, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

You may have missed the notice at the top of this page that says, "This page is only for questions about using Wikipedia, not for general knowledge questions." In any event, I'm pretty sure that Wikipedia volunteers don't have any inside knowledge about the production or scheduling of television programs, so if someone here offers you a hint, I'd take it with a grain of salt. You might ask at the reference desk, I suppose. RivertorchFIREWATER 06:46, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

MacGregor[edit]

Dear Sir / Madam, I, Brian "Fred Worm" MacGregor, hereby request, that i, do not, appear on your site, in any, form, shape, or manner, in any, description, from this point onwards (27/08/2017) and, ask kindly, that all, references, to myself, about myself, are met with speedy deletion and / or removal, thank you, kindly. Yours, Brian "Fred Worm" MacGregor. (03.05am - 27/08/2017 - Uk Time). — Preceding unsigned comment added by Fredworm (talkcontribs) 02:11, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Edits made by this account are part of the historical record of this website. By making edits and saving them, you agreed to the Terms of Use, and you irrevocably agreed to release your contribution under the CC BY-SA 3.0 License and the GFDL. If it's any consolation, it seems extremely unlikely that the ill-written publicity blurb you posted as a draft article will ever be accepted as an article. --Orange Mike | Talk 05:26, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]
@Fredworm: You can request speedy deletion of the draft by placing {{Db-g7}} at the top of the page. Eagleash (talk) 09:54, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Regarding Brigadier General John R. D'Araujo Jr.'s Wikipedia Page[edit]

John R. D'Araujo Jr. (edit | talk | history | protect | delete | links | watch | logs | views)

For starters, I'd like to state that I am the nephew of Gen. John R D'Araujo. My name is Jordan D'Araujo. I am very upset at the fact that his page on Wikipedia states that he is the first "Filipino-American" general in the United States Army. That couldn't be further from the truth. He is 100% Portuguese, his grandparents came from the Azores and Madeiras islands. It upsets me that my uncle is misrepresented on this website. The citation also mentions that he fought for Filipino-American rights, which is false. I want to know, is there an issue with him being Portuguese? He fought for this country for an exceedingly long time. He was a 25 years old when he attained the rank of Captain during the Vietnam War and was already in the higher ranks of the military during Desert Storm. I am not saying that I have an issue with the Filipino people, but I do have an issue with him being called the first Filipino American in the military. He is Portuguese-American and I think he should be represented as such. I don't expect anything to be done about this, as I'm sure you have plenty of other issues to deal with, but it matters to me that his information is accurate. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2605:E000:C90B:7D00:5DED:66FA:556E:2E28 (talk) 02:12, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Wikipedia bases its information. not on what persons with a connection to the subject may say, but what is written about them in reliable sources. The information was added in this edit which includes a source corroborating the statement. If you have information which is different, you may propose changes via the article talk page as you have a conflict of interest but you must be able to cite a reliable source. Please sign your talk page posts by typing four tildes (~~~~). Thank you. Eagleash (talk) 03:09, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]
It seems odd that the sources would claim Filipino descent if he was actually of Portuguese descent. Your argument is with the sources, not with Wikipedia, but if he has no Filipino ancestry, then we want to correct the error. Please help by finding sources that give his true ancestry, then we can adjust the article. Dbfirs 06:49, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Despite running several types of search, the only source I could find to support what you say is this one, which I don't believe meets our guideline for reliable sources. Perhaps you have access to one or more print sources? If so, you could email OTRS with a scan of them. That would be the best possible outcome, but after reviewing the source cited in the article, I'm not so sure that the relevant sentence shouldn't just be removed. (You should not undertake any such action yourself, OP.) The publication seems reliable on its face for some purposes, but I suspect that the cited article, a feature story written in the first person, was an unsolicited submission, and I wonder how much fact-checking took place. RivertorchFIREWATER 15:11, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]
  • Is the source given so inscrutable as to be taken at face value without any skepticism given the OPs assertion? The article on the web site strikes me as almost an editorial and while I'm sure not being deliberately deceptive, could also be a case of "I heard this...". Are there any other sources as to his ancestry, whichever direction they point? CrowCaw 21:34, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

/* undefined */ undefined[edit]

I have been absent from Wikipedia for a good while now. I just noticed some odd behavior of talk pages. When a start a new section on a talk page, anything I enter into the "Subject/Headline" field is ingored. See for example here, here, here and here. What is the reason for this? -- Toshio Yamaguchi 10:42, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

It's the first time I have seen this so I guess it's an issue with your browser or account. Try removing User:Equazcion/NewSectionSummary.js from User:Toshio Yamaguchi/common.js. PrimeHunter (talk) 11:13, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Okay, removing the script solved it, as confirmed in this edit. Thank you. -- Toshio Yamaguchi 11:37, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Our college doesn't allow people to cite Wikipedia. Now I know why. The page on Oral Galvanism uses the word "disproven" and states without a shadow of a doubt, galvansim has been proven not true, which is TOTALLY different than not being proven true. Even the article that the writer uses in his/her footnotes says that it is valid, but yet to be proven true. Again, not proven true is the opposite of disproven. Please advise writers, if they want to be believed and not mocked in the scientific fields, to not use the "word" disproven unless it has actually been PROVEN FALSE. The writer here doesn't seem to realize that not proven true is not the same as proven false. He also needs to know that his OWN sources that he cites say it IS a "thing". He must have read the title of the article and ran with it. The sad thing here is, your bot won't allow changes because it thinks it's right the way it is. No wonder colleges don't allow wiki as a source. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:247:C200:7DF0:A090:2847:1DCB:3998 (talk) 17:08, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Well, you are likely to be reverted, by bot or by human, if you insert comment on article content into the article itself, especially if you use all-capitals ("shouting"). The thing to do is to express your concern in a reasonable, well-argued way on the article's talk page: Noyster (talk), 17:14, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Hello, IP user, and welcome to Wikipedia. As you've discovered, there is much in this huge project which is not reliable, and sometimes plain wrong; which is why your college rightly does not let you cite it. Thank you for your concern, and your willingness to help improve it. However, (just as in all human interactions) there are ways that are more and less likely to work. Please read about the bold, revert, discuss cycle. If you had changed the text to something appropriate for an encyclopaedia, rather than a shouty critical remark about the article, it is unlikely that a bot would have reverted you. It is possible that another editor would have done so, and then the two of you could start a discussion on the article's talk page. Or (given that this is likely to be a controversial area) you could go straight to the talk page, as Noyster suggests. --ColinFine (talk) 21:23, 27 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]
You can also start a discussion at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Medicine. Bring your sources. Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 21:48, 27 August 2017

(UTC)