Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2007 August 17

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August 17[edit]

Adding a citation[edit]

I just added a note to the H.G. Wells article that mentions Laura Ingraham calling him a fascist because he supported eugenics, and it says I need to post a citation. Can you explain to me the step-by-step proceduring for adding citations and footnotes on Wikipedia?

Chris Oakley 8:25 PM US Eastern, August 16th, 2007

See WP:CITE, WP:CITET, and WP:FOOT. --Teratornis 00:53, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Note that many intellectuals were pro-eugenics in the first half of the 20th century before the Nazis gave eugenics a bad name. See for example this remarkable "Plan for Peace" by Margaret Sanger. At the time, her comments were not nearly as shocking as they would seem today. --Teratornis 00:57, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Hi Chris. A few regular editors to the page felt that Ingraham didn't have the expertise on Wells, or indeed on eugenics, to make a worthwhile addition. However, a cited version of your contribution, using WP:CITET and demonstrating the process, was made and can be found here. See the talk page Talk:H. G. Wells#Darker side to Wells for the discussion. --Old Moonraker 10:58, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Signature problem[edit]

My signature no longer automatically gives a link to my talk page. I'm sure I must have done something dumb, but can't figure out what was. Any ideas? Thanks - Raymond Arritt 01:02, 17 August 2007 (UTC)

You probably have 'raw signature' checked in your preferences. If you do, you must create the link manually. Unchecking it should fix it, too. --Sopoforic 01:05, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks! Raymond Arritt 02:36, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Quote of the Day[edit]

Greetings. Is there a template or way to add the Quote of the Day[1] to my talkpage? Thanks for any help. Benjiboi 01:12, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I don't think it's possible to transclude across projects, and I can find no template on wikipedia which will do this. Sorry. --Sopoforic 01:51, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I'd say no, but you can have the (unofficial) Wikipedia "Motto of the Day" on your user page by adding, for example, {{motd}}. Confusing Manifestation 02:14, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Thank you! I'll check back in a few to see if something pops up.Benjiboi 03:18, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Does it make sense to suggest that such a thing is created? Benjiboi 03:18, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

how may I retire/quit?[edit]

I am a disgraced wikipedia editor. i wish to permanently retire my user id and not return to wikipedia. is there any protocol and/or methods that we should follow if we wish to quit? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.12.75.61 (talkcontribs)

Just stop logging in with the user id. -- Kainaw(what?) 01:18, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
You can also tag your user pages with {{db-g7}} to request them to be deleted. --Haemo 01:26, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
(edit conflict) OR add {{retired}} or {{retirement}} to your userpage or talkpage. Sorry to see you leave. SLSB talkcontrib 01:27, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
You cannot technically delete your account, because we need the them to comply with the GFDL license, but see m:Right to Vanish. Are you really disgraced, though? Wikipedia does give second chances; some former vandals have even become admins.--Max Talk (+) 02:03, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]


Passwords Cease to Work[edit]

I have been a regular user, and a semi-regular editor, however, my password has just ceased to work. Even when I request a new one from wikipedia, that password doesn't work, either. It's as if I have been blocked or something. Can I get some ideas on what to do?--70.157.48.193 03:19, 17 August 2007 (UTC) aka The Saxon[reply]

Are you sure you have your username correct? I can't find any userpages or contributions for User:The Saxon, User:TheSaxon, or any variation thereof. Hersfold (t/a/c) 03:26, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

A reference I wrote[edit]

I wrote the entry on racing driver Johnny Mowlem in conjunction with Mowlem himself and used Media Guides from both the American Le Mans Series and the Grand American Road Racing Association for additional information. I listed those references at the bottom of the piece when I submitted it. The submission is accurate and I would like to know what other references are needed.

Lee Elder —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 71.116.131.89 (talk)

You should probably read through these policies and guidelines - they'll give you the information you need to resolve the current problems and avoid them in the future.
Conflict of Interest
Reliable Sources and citing them
Adding footnotes
Manual of Style (formatting, article layout))
Hope this helps. Hersfold (t/a/c) 03:40, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
You are apparently User:LeeElder who created Johnny Mowlem. I don't see the mentioned references there. The only thing at the end is "Online: www.johnnymowlem.co" which I guess should have been http://www.johnnymowlem.com/. PrimeHunter 03:49, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
As a side note, that source is not acceptable as it is not a third-party source; that is, it is not separate from both Wikipedia and Johnny Mowlem. If you can find a reliable source that has no affiliation with us or him (such as a news article) that backs up your information, that would be acceptable. You should include several reliable third-party sources before including a first-party site. Hersfold (t/a/c) 03:53, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Bustitution[edit]

I happened upon a link for the page titled Bustitution. It looks like a dictionary entry - is this a good article? MarkinBoston 04:01, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

A concern I have about a certain "type" of articles[edit]

Hello, my name is Yakuria 04:57, 17 August 2007 (UTC) and I have a small proposal.[reply]

A lot of online comics have been posted here but have been deleted moments after there creation date. I've seen countless people try to make an article about there comic only to be deleted. I understand that a "real" encyclopedia would not have such "self-promotion" pages. But this is online. I would like to ask first if it is possible to allow online comics to make articles. You can even make such things like this a separate part of the site, comicwiki. The community of online comics is vast and ever growing. I do know that not all people are responsible and can easily abuse such an offer. If this becomes a problem I would happily volunteer my time to edit and maintain things. If this is not possible then I would like to ask permission to make an article on my comic. It is called "Connate Permanence" It shall release in September 2007. I would then like to make a wiki article about it on March 2007.


Thank you so much for your help and concern!


Sincerely, Yakuria 04:57, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]


P.S. (I am not sure if this question is in the right area. If not please move)

Wikipedia has a few non-negotiable requirements, one of which is that all article subjects need to be notable, as per Wikipedia: notability. There is also a specific guideline for online content, including webcomics, at Wikipedia:Notability (web). If the comic you wish to write an article about does not meet these requirements, the article will be deleted, and this is most likely why the web comic articles you mentioned have been deleted in the past.
Wikipedia:Not Wikipedia and Wikipedia:Alternative outlets list various sites that take material Wikipedia does not take, and one of these may be willing to take more articles on web comics. It's pretty unlikely that Wikipedia will be setting up a dedicated wiki for webcomics, because we all have our hands full with the dozens of different Wikipedias, as well as the Wikimedia Foundation's other projects. But, you could start up your own wiki if you wanted. The software that powers Wikipedia is free to use, and there are instructions at Wikibooks. Natalie 05:03, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
There is, in fact, Comixpedia, at http://www.comixpedia.org which may accept an article on your comic. I haven't looked to see if they have any kind of similar notability guidelines. Confusing Manifestation 06:47, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Autobiography of Edsel Pono[edit]

Hello, my name is Maria Mercedes, and I was trying to make a contribution towards the life of Ed Pono,under Edsel Pono, a famous inspirational speaker and an educator back in Negros Occidental. I already made before and it was considered for "deletion" with a comment of unbiased statement. I already revised some of the contents and still working for the others as I was reading his book and personal information from his friends and relatives. I would like to ask how to make this an article?

Thank you and God bless...

Maria Mercedes

Is there a template for[edit]

notifying wikipedians NOT to use the 4 seasons (spring, summer, autumn, winter) for indicating dates? A lot of articles say things like "This singer's debut album was released in the summer of 2000", using the 4 seasons for dates can be VERY confusing for people living in the other hemisphere. I would also like to remind all wikipedians NOT to use the 4 seasons for dates. Thanks. Oidia (talk) 06:38, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I don't know a template but you can write your own message with a link to WP:SEASON. PrimeHunter 15:14, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Top contributors to this page[edit]

Per link, the help desk has had 76,014 edits to date. Here the top contributors by number of posts:

Here are the top IP posters, sorted by IP

-- Jreferee (Talk) 07:42, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Nice to know. Lets hope it continues to be the same productive help desk it has been. — E talkbots 07:49, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
The Help desk edit counts appear to follow a Pareto distribution, much like edit counts on Wikipedia in general. --Teratornis 14:04, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

How to submit an Article[edit]

We have written an article about Modern African Art but cannot see how to actually place it on Wikipedia! Every link about how to write an article goes to the very useful page "Wikipedia:Your first Article" which tells one HOW to write a good article, but not where to put it! We cannot find anywhere that gives that advice. We did click on a page called "Sandbox" where there were a number of titles about Japanese Record Covers but no indication about how we should enter our article.

Can you please advise or point me to a page that tells one how to actually submit/enter/place the article on Wikipedia


I did did register (Kiredor) & wrote a couple of paragraphs on the "Test" page yesterday and edited it with some corrections, but that seems to have vanished today. I tried to search for that entry but it does not come up on a search presumably replaced with more current entries.

Regards

Kiredor —Preceding unsigned comment added by Kiredor (talkcontribs)

Before creating an article, please search Wikipedia first to make sure that an article does not already exist on the subject. Please also review a few of our relevant policies and guidelines which all articles should comport with. As Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, articles must not contain original research, must be written from a neutral point of view, should cite to reliable sources which verify their content and must not contain unsourced, negative content about living people.
Articles must also demonstrate the notability of the subject. Please see our subject specific guidelines for people, bands and musicians, companies and organizations and web content and note that if you are closely associated with the subject, our conflict of interest guideline strongly recommends against you creating the article.
If you still think an article is appropriate, see Help:Starting a new page. You might also look at Wikipedia:Your first article and Wikipedia:How to write a great article for guidance, and please consider taking a tour through the Wikipedia:Tutorial so that you know how to properly format the article before creation. --Silver Edge 08:36, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Unable to create a thumbnailed image[edit]

Hi,

Iam unable to create a thumbnailed image using image:exmple.jpg|thumb I dont know the reason why is not happening.But when i try to display the image using image:exmple.jpg,the image is getting displayed.Can anybody please help me out???

Regards, Priya.N —Preceding unsigned comment added by Prinav (talkcontribs)

You want to use the brackets and spell/capitalize everything correctly: [[Image:Example.jpg|thumb|200px]]--Haemo 07:00, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Hi,

Thanks for ur response.Actually what i used is: [[Image:Example.JPG|thumb]] But it didnt work.Thats y i posted a request on helpdesk.Please do tell me solution.

Regards, priya.N —Preceding unsigned comment added by Prinav (talkcontribs)

[[Image:Example.jpg|thumb]]

Is this what you want it to look like? i said 07:14, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Hi,

I tried to create a thumbnailed image on the wiki page.But its not getting created rather it throwed an error.I tried [[Image:Example.JPG|thumb]].It isnt working.I tried to display the actual image which is working fine.For this i used [[Image:Example.JPG]]

Kindly somebody help me.

Regards,

Priya.N —Preceding unsigned comment added by Prinav (talkcontribs)

I believe it is because you are using [[Image:Example.JPG|thumb]] when you should be using [[Image:Example.jpg|thumb]], replacing the capital JPG with jpg. [[Image:Example.JPG|thumb|Image:Example.JPG]] [[Image:Example.jpg|thumb|Image:Example.jpg]] --Silver Edge 08:53, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Yes.I wanted like that only.but it is throwing some error when i try to use the same way as u did.I used tried using jpg extension also.Its also not working :( Kindly help.

Priya.N

Urticaria[edit]

The article on Urticaria regarding treatement and cause is incomplete

I'm a victim of Utricia myself and it is a rashes from hell...very very extremely torturous. Hence i really hope my piece of information will be publish to share.

I developed many sympthom similar to the cold/hot and other type of Urticaria. However later the actual caseu of my chronic Urticaria is actually identify by a doctor. It is due to parasite in my stomach from eating raw fish. My suffering duration was 1 year but was treated within 1 day by taking any parasite killing pill.

What you are asking is for your original research to be added to the article. Wikipedia does not accept original research. If you can find a verifiable and reliable source that mentions the same thing, feel free to add the information to the article yourself. -- Kainaw(what?) 11:57, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Shrinking row height on table.[edit]

Hi,

I've been trying to reduce the table at User:Peter cohen/sandbox to make it fit onto one page. I reckon there is enough space above and below the small characters in the cells for this to be achievable, but I can't get the rows to shrink. I've been tinkering with various keywords such as height but can only get the rows to expand not shrink with it.

Any suggestions? Or is this impossible? --Peter cohen 12:39, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I'm a little confused about what you mean by "one page." Pages on Wikipedia can be of (almost) any length. If you mean "one screen," that would depend on the user's hardware. For example, someone reading Wikipedia on an iPhone would need a very compact table, whereas someone who can afford a large display with high vertical resolution would be able to view your table with no problem. As far as how to shrink the table rows, I'm not sure. You might be able to adjust your view of the table with something in Help:User style, but that would not affect how other people see it. You could open the Editor's index and do a Ctrl-f search for keywords such as "table", "style", "customization", "CSS", etc. Maybe you will find a solution. --Teratornis 14:49, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Perhaps he means one page when printed? Leebo T/C 15:06, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
You're right that I've got myself confused over pages and screens. I wanted to shrink things so that on a "normal" set-up (i.e. a typical desktop or laptop where the user doen't need large print) the table would be about a screen long.) Much over and it might lose its appeal. Thanks for the pointers.--Peter cohen 19:25, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
The row height shrinks for me if class="wikitable" is removed and border="1" selected, but the wikitable looks better. PrimeHunter 15:06, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks, PrimeHunter. That's got me half way there, which is probably good enough.--Peter cohen 19:25, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Unspecific searching[edit]

This is basically my first time here, and I think I like it. I would like to hang around a bit more, get a feel for the place. I'd like to know if there is a way to search by general topic(s). Example: say I'm interested in reading about Islam, Islam vs. Christianity, Muslim life, Radical Islam, etc. When I type "Islam" in the search box, it takes me straight to a page. What I'd really like to see when I type in "Islam" is a list (or menu, whatever) of all of the topics there are that have Islam in the heading. Is there a way to do that?

Thanks in advance! --Bloodbought/Paid in Full 13:33, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

yes there is and they are called categories. At the bottom og each page there is a box called categories that shows all the categories that the article belongs too. The islam belongs to several categories, one of which is Category:Islam. HTH Theresa Knott | The otter sank 13:38, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Also note that if you click search on the search box rather than pressing enter or clicking go, it will produce search results even if a page exists with the name you entered. --Sopoforic 13:45, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
For detailed information about searching Wikipedia, see:
For example, perhaps you may find that searching Wikipedia with Google works more to your liking than Wikipedia's built-in search feature. --Teratornis 13:53, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Wow, thank you so much! Fast and very helpful, I certainly appreciate it. There is a ton of formatting rules here. I hope I did this thank you comment right. --Bloodbought/Paid in Full 14:22, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
The Help desk follows the talk page guidelines, even though the Help desk is not technically a talk page (go figure). However, we understand that many people who ask questions on the Help desk are very new to Wikipedia, and we hardly expect everyone to arrive with full knowledge of the massive Wikipedia manuals. Sometimes a user's question on the Help desk is their very first edit on Wikipedia, so the Help desk volunteers may reformat the questions a little to make them fit the style of the rest of the page. You are doing a lot better than some people we have helped. Getting back to your question, you can also drill down to content by starting at WP:CONTENTS, which you can also reach from navigation | Contents to the left side of every Wikipedia page. If you want to contribute to articles about Islam, see: Wikipedia:WikiProject Islam. --Teratornis 14:38, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

how to add wikipedia button[edit]

Hello there,

I' d like to add wikipedia button to my google desktop toolbar. Could you tell me the way how to do it?

Thank you15:09, 17 August 2007 (UTC)Kulayta

That's not a common question, so I don't know. Try asking at Wikipedia:Reference desk/Computing. Shalom Hello 16:02, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Don't think this is quite what you're looking for, but if you're using Firefox, you can find a lot of search plugins at http://mycroft.mozdev.org/Luna Santin (talk) 17:17, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Also take a look at this. --Tλε Rαnδom Eδιτor (tαlk) 23:05, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

stains[edit]

How do you remove mustard stains from jeans?

This is a help desk for Wikipedia. You are probably looking for The Reference Desk. -- Kainaw(what?) 16:58, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Wikipedia:Reference desk/Miscellaneous would probably be the best ref desk to use. --Tλε Rαnδom Eδιτor (tαlk) 23:11, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Incorrect image licensing?[edit]

I came across this image which appears to have been copied from here and uploaded by user BaconBreakfastPan, apparently for the sole purpose of vandalising a user's page. Now the vandalism has been reverted, the image has become orphaned. The original site's gallery page states "All content and design (c) 2004 Steve James. No reproduction or republication without written permission". I now suspect that the image's {{PD-self}} licensing is incorrect and the image should therefore be deleted - unless BaconBreakfastPan can prove he is in fact the actual creator of the work. If you agree with my analysis, how do I go about flagging the image for deletion? Astronaut 17:09, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

According to WP:IFD, you tag the image, its caption, (if it in use), and inform the uploader that the image is up for deletion. The templates and a full explantion of the three step process is found here.CindyBotalk 20:44, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Looks like User talk:BaconBreakfastPan is just coming off of a block and also made an enquiry here at the help desk a couple of days ago [2]. Doesn't seem to have anything to do with the picture though, and the PD-Self tag does seem suspect to me as well, until the uploader can prove differently.CindyBotalk 20:59, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Right to walk away from a project?[edit]

Along the lines of Right to Vanish, but not as severe, do I have the right to terminate my involvement in editing certain articles? More importantly, do I have the right not be bothered by other editors who wish to drag me into discussions and edit wars involving these articles?

Specifically, in light of recent events involving the fiction-related articles (proposals of mass episode deletions, warring over merges, warring over whether or nor this are notable, etc.), I have decided not to be involved with any more fiction articles. I left a note on my talk page telling other editors not to ask for my vote"help" in discussions. Is there any policy I can point to if someone insists that I'm obliged to help based on previous edits to a particular article? - SigmaEpsilonΣΕ 17:29, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

There's no specific policy, but you are free to ignore their requests. A polite reminder to review the note at the top of your talk page and/or a gentle pointer to WP:CANVASS would be perfectly acceptable. If the comments being on your talk page bother you, you can archive or delete them, but this is sometimes seen as rather impolite and should be reserved for editors who persistently ignore your polite requests. We're all volunteers here, after all, and nobody can compel you to work on anything that you don't want to. TenOfAllTrades(talk) 17:53, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
(ec) I don't think there is an actual policy on it, but if anyone says you're obliged to do something like that, by all means tell them that they're wrong and ignore them (WP:DGAF). You may want to use a slightly larger banner on your talk page, until people get the hint. May I suggest {{warning}}, and then eventually scaling back to something like {{important}}. --Pekaje 17:58, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Sandbox vs Article[edit]

I just added material to the creativity page. In the sandbox it looked right. But when I saved it, the formatting went a little nutty. Why would sandbox be okay but not the actual page?WMCEREBELLUM 17:29, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

You forgot the "<" symbol on one of the "</ref>" tags. Also you should put asterisks ("*") at beginning of each line of the large list of references. Finally, the references section should go at the end of the whole article, not the end of the section. I fixed these thing for you. Welcome to Wikipedia, and happy editing. - SigmaEpsilonΣΕ 18:03, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Sorting pages by the latter part of the title[edit]

Is there any clever way to pull out the latter part of a page title for category sorting? For instance, if I had a series of pages Noun 1, Noun 2, etc (or 001, whatever), is there any way to get it to sort the 0s before the 1s, but *under* 0s and 1s rather than N? ParserFunction, perhaps? 64.126.24.11 18:13, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Use [[Category:Whatever|1, Noun]] and [[Category:Whatever|2, Noun]] - SigmaEpsilonΣΕ 18:51, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Argh, I knew I was leaving some crucial piece of information out. The pagenames are sequential (about 1000 of them) and a lot of the categorization is done based on entries in a template. I think I can just use {{PAGENAME}} for the template titlebar and change the title variable in the template to a sort key. Thanks, you did help, in a way... 64.126.24.11 19:30, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
You might also want to try the {{DEFAULTSORT}} template. It automates the process and sorts correctly based on what you've described. If you can give me a link, maybe I can help. - SigmaEpsilonΣΕ 23:36, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Adding new links[edit]

One of the pages I have been working on has been edited by another contributor to provide a link to another article, with the comment "(article needed"). Whilst I appreciate the contributor might be thinking of creating a new article, it doesn't actually exist yet, so the link appears as a red-link. Is it not better to create the new article first, and then go round creating appropriate links to it? Astronaut 18:13, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

There are differing philosophies. Some feel that red links encourage readers to create new articles by showing that the item needs one, while others may feel that it's poor form. If a subject is indeed notable, it's probably okay to have a red link, but if someone just turns any random group of words into a red link, that's unnecessary. Leebo T/C 18:50, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
OK. Thank you. Your comment has prompted me to create my very first new article on Seismic shadowing. Unfortunately, I am NOT an expert in the field and it would be really useful if someone else could come and check what I have written and correct any errors. Astronaut 19:59, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

The edit toolbar icons[edit]

Does anyone know where the range of these icons are housed on wikimedia? Lifelike23 18:36, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

You can find them all on this page. - SigmaEpsilonΣΕ 19:02, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

help please[edit]

I am from Poland/Polska I need a polish editor or admin urgent thank! --JimmiWalese 18:57, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I suggest you try Portal talk:Poland/Poland-related Wikipedia notice board or any of the users in Category:User pl. -- Rick Block (talk) 19:46, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Adding to a Sock puppet case.[edit]

How would i go about adding a new person to an old sockpuppet case? It is an different I.P., reason being they were on vacation in another country while the old sockpuppet case was filed. However, there is good proof and many diffs to support my case. The user is active (but was blocked for 3 days today). User does not have any other accounts but the i.p. -  LaNicoya  •TALK• 20:05, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

current event[edit]

how would I add a headline to Yasser Arafat's wikipedia entry showing the recent current event: http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Yasser_Arafat_may_have_had_HIV at the top?

Thanks.

Hi! You can type
 == Title of section ==
 
to create a headline. :-) Stwalkerster talk 20:53, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
You could also add {{wikinews}} to Yasser Arafat#External links, so readers can find the Wikinews entry. PrimeHunter 22:01, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Wikipedia's Budget[edit]

Hello. How are Wikipedia's donations spent on 2006? How much was spent on administration? Thanks in advance. --Mayfare 20:50, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Wikipedia and some other wikis are operated by the Wikimedia Foundation. There is budget information for 2004 and 2005 at Wikimedia:Budget. I don't know about 2006. PrimeHunter 21:54, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Posts Deleted[edit]

Hello, my name is J.R. Journey and I am a radio programmer in Portsmouth, OH as well as a big fan of country artist Reba McEntire. I was online today and added some album reviews for Reba's latest albums and didn't know till I was finished that I was doing something wrong. I got a message saying it was vandalism I was doing. I don't understand why because everything I posted was factual. Is there a reason I cannot add to Reba's album reviews I do not know about? I had no intention of vandalizing anything. Sorry if I did something wrong.

A response as to why this happened would be greatly appreciated.

- J.R. Journey

(email removed)

It seems as if you've contributed a review section to Room to Breathe (Reba McEntire album) and Reba 1's. Because your contributions had no sources and were not written in a neutral Point of View WP:POV, they were removed as vandalism. Take a look at some of the guidleines for contributing to wikipedia or suggest changes on the talk page of the article. Also don't sign your contributions in articles... but do sign on talk pages, like here at the help desk. You use four tildes like this ~~~~Hope this helps.CindyBotalk 21:25, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Yes actually that helps a lot. I didn't know what I was doing wrong. So as long as I don't sign the review, they are okay? They were actually written as part of our radio station's monthly newsletter. I just added them to wikipedia. The station doesn't have a website so there is no source for them really except that they were written by me. Can you explain the 'neutral point of view' to me? I still don't get that.

71.244.159.173 21:31, 17 August 2007 (UTC) J.R. Journey[reply]

No, even if you don't sign them, they may not be okay. Start with reading WP:NPOV, which explains a lot of that very important policy. Then take a look a similar articles that are WP:FA meaning featured articles, that are considered of very high quality. Reading those gives a person a good idea of what ideal articles look like. A list of musician's articles that are featured articles can be found here. Then go through the WP:Tutorial and the WP:Manual of Style.I know it's a lot to wallow through, but it's worth it.CindyBotalk 21:44, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Your edits were not in keeping with our policies for a number of reasons, but they absolutely WERE NOT VANDALISM. Your edits to Reba 1's were removed with the edit summary "reverted good faith edits by Jrjourney. using TW" ([3]) so that editor acknowledged that your edits were in good faith. The same editor reverted your edits to Room to Breathe with the edit summary: "reverted to revision 151899538 by Brusegadi; AGF - unencyclopedia. using TW" ([4]). A little more cryptic but note that "AGF" stands for "assume good faith." Your talk page is a virginal red so no one has warned you there. Are you sure you didn't misread some of the edit summaries near yours in the article history, which were reverts of actual vandalism?--Fuhghettaboutit 21:47, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Okay I see now. You edited both with your logged in name and with your ip address. Context is everything, While your edits standing alone were not vandalism, repeated adding of the same material after being told they were not proper could be considered vandalism.--Fuhghettaboutit 21:51, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks again ... I didn't know why my posts were being deleted and thats why I kept posting them again. And although I did post before I read the terms of use such as the 'neutral point of view' policy, I believe thats the only mistake I made.

Making mistakes is what Wikipedia is all about. The typical cycle is:
  1. Edit something.
  2. Oops, someone else changed it.
  3. RTFM.
  4. Go to step 1.
The problem with an original album review is that it is an opinion piece. See: WP:NOT#OPINION. You cannot write your own original album reviews on Wikipedia, because, obviously, different people may have many different opinions about a given album, so we cannot write about its quality as if we are writing about objective facts. However, you could cite from someone else's published review, because it would be a fact that some notable reviewer had published some statements about the album. If you want to edit original reviews of albums, check out some of the other wikis, for example see the music category on WikiIndex. --Teratornis 23:54, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I notice you said that they were from a monthly newsletter; if you wait until your newsletter is published, then you could cite the newsletter as a published source for reference, but make sure to keep an encyclopedia-style tone. Kuronue | Talk 21:43, 18 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

what can be done?[edit]

about this image? Image:HD Logo.jpg.

I don't see an actual image there, which doesn't make me feel very good about it at all. If you have another version of the image that actually displays something and doesn't trigger the malware filter, then upload it in place of the existing image. Make sure when you do so that you add the appropriate licensing information. I'm guessing by the filename that it is supposed to be a company's logo, in which case you should label it with {{Non-free logo}} and give very clear statements about where you got the image, who the copyright belongs to, and where you intend to use it. Hersfold (t/a/c) 22:02, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
It was uploaded as an Adobe Photoshop image, which is a very non-standard format and essentially useless. I took the liberty of converting it to a JPEG as the filename indicated, and rescaled it to 300px wide, in order to comply with our fair use criteria. You still need to add a fair use rationale, explaining in detail why it is allowed to be used here. That is, assuming it is a copyrighted logo, which just about every logo in existence is. --Pekaje 13:59, 18 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Images as Background for Book Cover[edit]

This is too complicated for me. I hope you can help me. I have written a small book on my son’s testimony as a US Marine for the third time in Iraq. This is in Portuguese and it would be published in Brazil, later on it would also be published in the US. As background pictures, I was hoping to use the following pictures: WW2_IWO_JIMA_Flag_Raising (and)USMC_455 (this is the Nov.2004 in Fallujah, during Operation Phantom Fury I am confused about being able to legaly use part of those pictures on the cover and counter cover. Please Help Thank you. Sebastian. 201.53.69.71 21:16, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Image:WW2 Iwo Jima flag raising.jpg is held under copyright, so unfortunately we're not the people you need to contact about that. The picture was taken by Joe Rosenthal, so either he or the Associated Press owns the copyright to that image. You will need to contact one or both of them in order to obtain permission to use that image. (P.S. - As Mr. Rosenthal is in fact dead, you should probably contact the AP about that. Failing that, his family. DON'T ask for Joe.)
As for your other picture, I'm not sure which one you are referring to. However, if you check the image page, there should be a licensing tag that shows the copyright status. If you see a big red copyright symbol, like this one: the image is copyrighted and you must contact the owner of that copyright to obtain permission. The source of the image should be provided on the same page. Anything else should allow you to use the image without requesting permission, provided you do so within the terms of whatever license applies. For example, most free licenses require that you attribute the author of the image, and so forth. For more information, see WP:COPY. Hersfold (t/a/c) 22:13, 17 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]