Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2008 August 27
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August 27
[edit]Finding information within an old edit which may be delete
[edit]Hello, I remember using a resource which was called "A history of... transportation" (maybe it was modern, or motorized,) but anyways... at one point in time I had that source in an image. The image was in the article Steam tricycle,(Historical link) and it was File:A history of technology p424(coal bicycle).PNG. Anyways, I found the information I was looking for, but I was wondering if there was somehow we can search through the "text" that we've added (which is in our contributions)? You know what I mean, not just the edit summary of our contributions but the actual "edit" (ie.: the historical link[1])? Can we search the actual edit? It's obviously possible to look into the history of every edit, surelly there must be some type of bot that we could use to search? Similarly is there a way to search through the text (or as I call it "edit") we add to an article but then the article, or image, is deleted (such as the aforementioned image)? Can the first person responding to this please notify me on my talk page. Thank you. --CyclePat (talk) 00:52, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Help request - bunching
[edit]I really should know how to do this but I confess I don't. Can someone take a look at Karl Ferris and fix the bunching issues? Thanks in advance. – ukexpat (talk) 01:22, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- I fixed it using {{FixBunching}} as suggested here. It's not ideal because it results in some empty space on the right side, but I'm not sure how to get rid of that while keeping the edit links in the right place. Pyrospirit (talk · contribs) 01:34, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Great thanks -- I reduced the size of the first two thumbnails to default and that has removed the excess white space. – ukexpat (talk) 04:16, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Help questions
[edit]I need help with a few things. Please see below.
1.) I had Vundo, but it is now gone. How can I assure that it won't come back so I can use Wikipedia in the most effective way?
2.) I have a 1995 Dodge Ram. It has a forced induction, charge air cooled 5.9 liter diesel engine with a manual injector pump. The cost of a gallon fuel for this vehicle is very high and I only get 25 miles per US gallon of #2 Diesel and about the same on heating oil. Is there any way to improve the efficiency of this vehicle so that my transportation costs can be reduced?
3.) I am confused by the notability guidelines in WP:NOTE. There seems to be disagreement about their meaning during deletion discussions. Is there an official clarification regard this matter.
Thanks, Testmasterflex (talk) 04:33, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- 1) I would recommend a good anti-virus or anti-spyware program.
- 2) The Help Desk is for questions regarding using Wikipedia. I would recommend either a Google search or seeing the Reference Desk for help.
- 3) Is there something specific that confuses you at WP:NOTE? It seems fairly clear to me, although I'm sure some of that came with experience. If you have a specific problem with it I might be able to be a bit more helpful. Bvlax2005 (talk) 05:18, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- On your third question, the notability guidelines are quite clear; how they apply to an individual article is not, as many articles put up for deletion are borderline or an unusual case. Also, there is some disagreement among editors as to how inclusive Wikipedia should be with new articles of obscure or questionable notability. See also m:inclusionism and m:deletionism. Pyrospirit (talk · contribs) 13:31, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Newbie Account: banned ?
[edit]Hello, i have been making good edits to wikipedia since the last few months now, only via anonymous! ... and people keep requesting me to open an account,.... and now that i have created an account, wikipedia fails to open up,.... i cant even read it,... requesting page times out.... i at the same moment of time can read wikimedia thru the various proxy websites available ... so its definately not my browser or my ISP!
the only solution is digging thru my cookies and deleteing the wikipedia cookie! ... then everything works,.... if i login again,... it works till the time im browsing,... if i restart my PC, the same,... no page will open, requesting page times out!
What is it with my account or my IP or both :-( 59.94.145.117 (talk) 06:09, 27 August 2008 (UTC) Msolution
- I've never heard of this problem happening to anyone else, so it is most likely an issue with your Internet connection or your browser. If your current browser is Internet Explorer, try switching to Firefox briefly and see if that fixes the problem. Also try restarting your modem (or whatever you use to connect to the Internet). Make sure that your security settings and/or firewall settings aren't blocking Wikipedia. If none of these work, I recommend you try browsing and editing Wikipedia through the secure server. Pyrospirit (talk · contribs) 13:38, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- User:Msolution has never been blocked. Your problem is not mentioned at Help:Logging in. I also guess it's a problem on your end, maybe temporary. Try logging in from another computer and another Internet connection to see whether that works. PrimeHunter (talk) 13:56, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Search Facility
[edit]Why is the search facility on wikipedia so bad? If you don't know the correct spelling for something, or you don't type it exactly as the article is named on wikipedia then you can never find what you're looking for. I notice this facility was slightly enhanced when they added the dropdown which displays all the articles that match what you are typing into the search box, but still it could be greatly improved. Who is working on improving this? 79.75.129.4 (talk) 07:00, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- The MediaWiki software does have a feature that suggests spelling corrections (such as what you might see on a Google search) however is currently disabled due to coding issues. If you do have problems finding a certain article I would recommend doing a Google search on the topic and include the word "Wikipedia" in your search. Bvlax2005 (talk) 07:13, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Including 'site:en.wikipedia.org' works better, as does going to Special:Search and selecting Google as your search engine. Algebraist 08:25, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- We also have a {{google wikipedia}} template that you could put on your user page if you created an account. Or your might like the {{Help desk searches}} template, which displays these handy Google search links:
- Including 'site:en.wikipedia.org' works better, as does going to Special:Search and selecting Google as your search engine. Algebraist 08:25, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Recover account without password and without access to email
[edit]I would like to recover a wikpedia account but I cannot remember my password and I also cannot remember the password for the email account to which the account was assigned. But I remember the name of the wikipedia account and the name of the e-mail account. What can I do to recover this account? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.58.197.60 (talk) 08:26, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Your email provider might have some way for you to recover the account without the password. Otherwise you're out of luck. Algebraist 08:29, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Simply put if you can't remember your password and do not have access to the e-mail associated with it you are out of luck. As mentioned above you can try to regain access to your e-mail, otherwise you would have to create a brand new account. Bvlax2005 (talk) 08:33, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Question about Jimbo
[edit]![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/fb/Yes_check.svg/20px-Yes_check.svg.png)
Is it true that Jimbo Wales got into a lawsuit with some jewish religious group? --BlasternMinnesota (talk) 10:00, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- The Help Desk is for questions regarding using Wikipedia. If there is no note of it on his Wikipedia page, I would recommend either a Google search or seeing the Reference Desk for help. Bvlax2005 (talk) 10:05, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Wow, what an unhelpful help desk. The Help Desk is for helping people, not for suggesting Google. And why isnt the Help Desk a desk? It is on a webpage. Shouldnt it be 'Help Page'? It is clearly not a desk, unless I turned my moniter on its back. --BlasternMinnesota (talk) 10:08, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Hilarious! — Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 10:33, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Wow, what an unhelpful help desk. The Help Desk is for helping people, not for suggesting Google. And why isnt the Help Desk a desk? It is on a webpage. Shouldnt it be 'Help Page'? It is clearly not a desk, unless I turned my moniter on its back. --BlasternMinnesota (talk) 10:08, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- I wish to rename the help desk 'Help Page' for legality purposes. How can I achieve this? --BlasternMinnesota (talk) 10:35, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Oh, Ouija, your antics never fail to amuse. — Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 19:07, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- See WP:DENY. --Teratornis (talk) 23:51, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Oh, Ouija, your antics never fail to amuse. — Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 19:07, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
health science/ medicines
[edit]![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/fb/Yes_check.svg/20px-Yes_check.svg.png)
Is there any treatment using mercury?if so why isit saying that mercury is poisonus? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 117.192.229.63 (talk) 11:01, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Have you tried the Science section of Wikipedia's Reference Desk? They specialize in answering knowledge questions there; this help desk is only for questions about using Wikipedia. For your convenience, here is the link to post a question there: click here. I hope this helps. Algebraist 11:05, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- You have deleted my comment for the 2nd time. Is there anywhere where I can report mischevious admins? --BlasternMinnesota (talk) 11:15, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Not when you have been blocked indefinitely. By the way, Algebraist is not an admin. PrimeHunter (talk) 13:44, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- And not likely to become one either if he or she continues to be so
mischeeveousmisscvehheousmischeviousnotty Wanderer57 (talk) 14:11, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- And not likely to become one either if he or she continues to be so
IP requests a redirect
[edit]Can a registered user please redirect Social Anarchism or Lifestyle Anarchism to Social Anarchism or Lifestyle Anarchism: An Unbridgeable Chasm. Alternatively, should the latter be moved tyo the former? Do Wikipedia's naming conventions for books recommend including the subtitle? Thanks —Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.42.88.45 (talk) 11:47, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Done by Algebraist. Pseudomonas(talk) 12:29, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Thanks. Could you also get Alexander Tabarrok pointing at Alex Tabarrok? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.42.88.45 (talk) 19:01, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- You could just create an account and do this yourself, you know. Users can create pages immediately after signing up. Algebraist 19:03, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Done. — Twas Now ( talk • contribs • e-mail ) 19:18, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Uploading a jpg image
[edit]I am trying to ask a question about who the painter of a portrait of Marchese di Astorga, Viceroy of Naples 1672-675 might be. I am finding it impossible to find out how to upload the image despite creating an account for myself. However I have managed to place the image on Commons, but how do I move it to a question page within Humanities (or a general question page)? Jblln1234 (talk) 13:46, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- You can display an image in a similar way to linking to a page, by using square brackets. For example, [[Image:Marchese di Astorga]] (using the name of the image you uploaded). For the purpose of asking a question at the reference desk, it would probably be better to link to the image by putting a colon (:) in front, like this: [[:Image:Marchese di Astorga]], so that the image doesn't display (possibly slowing down the page) but people can easily go to the image in question.--BelovedFreak 13:53, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Thanks but as you can see I am not very good at this: the link doesn't seem to be working. Suggestions?Jblln1234 (talk) 14:49, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- An editor has fixed your reference desk post.[2] See more about images at Wikipedia:Picture tutorial. PrimeHunter (talk) 15:28, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Thanks for the assistance: looks good now. I will certainly look at the tutorial. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.208.130.2 (talk) 20:42, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Gettin a pag deleted
[edit]Hi all,
how do i get a page i made by accident deleted without getting a warning? i was trying ot make a sub page for old talk but accidentily made it anormally page--Andrewcrawford (talk) 14:00, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Place {{db-g7}} at the top of the page. Cheers! TN‑X-Man 14:02, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- I have deleted Archiveold/Old. PrimeHunter (talk) 14:29, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Thank youAndrewcrawford (talk) 15:16, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- You may want to see the instructions under WP:EIW#Archive, if you haven't slready. --Teratornis (talk) 23:39, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Thank youAndrewcrawford (talk) 15:16, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- I have deleted Archiveold/Old. PrimeHunter (talk) 14:29, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Page moved, but talk page didn't
[edit]Help! I moved Brennan Torpedo to Brennan torpedo but the talk page wasn't moved, though the history page was. I didn't untick the default "Move associated talk page". Salmanazar (talk) 14:09, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Check again. It looks like it's been moved now. PerfectProposal 14:13, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Talk:Brennan torpedo already existed (with only content a message about redirecting to Brennan Torpedo). It required an admin to delete Talk:Brennan torpedo when moving Talk:Brennan Torpedo there. I have done it. PrimeHunter (talk) 14:15, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Thanks! Salmanazar (talk) 14:27, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Talk:Brennan torpedo already existed (with only content a message about redirecting to Brennan Torpedo). It required an admin to delete Talk:Brennan torpedo when moving Talk:Brennan Torpedo there. I have done it. PrimeHunter (talk) 14:15, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
unified login
[edit]I just made an account and it has automatically been put into the global login system. How can I get out of this? I use the various wikimedia projects under a different name on each, and whereas before I would log into each individually, now when I log into wikipedia I am automatically logged out of all other wikimedia projects and logged back into them under the wikipedia global name. This is extremely frustrating as I then have to re log back into each project again and again. Is it possible for a user to be taken out of the global login system? 79.75.211.94 (talk) 14:35, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- You'll have to ask a steward over at meta.- Trying to dig up a link here... :P PerfectProposal 14:45, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Please login, and see [3] PerfectProposal 14:59, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Making a Page Searchable? And Public
[edit]Hi,
I would like to put a page up on the chatity I work for. I created an account called Chai Cancer Care and have created a page but can only search for it within 'Users' other charities have their own pages which are not User pages. How do I do this please? What have I done wrong?
Many thanks,
Please see Your first article.
- Ensure that you have an account and you are logged in. If you don't have an account, create one
- Make sure the subject is notable enough to have their own article
- Find references
- Make sure no article on the subject exists under a different title by typing the subject into the search box to the left (←) and clicking 'Search'
- Type the page name in the search box to the left (←) and click 'Go'
- Click 'Create this page'
- Create the article, including all your references, making sure you adhere to the Manual of Style and our article layout guidelines
- Be aware that Wikipedia deletes thousands of new articles for failing to adhere to our policies and guidelines. New articles by new users are at extra risk of deletion, due to new users' unfamiliarity with our rules. Consider gaining experience by editing existing articles before attempting to create new ones
PerfectProposal 14:53, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- (edit conflict) For a page to have an article on Wikipedia, it must first meet the notability guidelines. Regardless of whether your organization meets these guidelines, however, it might not be a good idea for you to create an article on it. Since you work for this charity, you have a conflict of interest when writing about it on Wikipedia. One of the most important Wikipedia policies is maintaining a neutral point of view in all articles, which can be very difficult for people with a close connection to the subject of an article.
- You can still request that someone else create the article through Wikipedia:Requested articles. Or, you can write the article yourself, as long as you make sure that it is as unbiased as possible and uses reliable, independent sources to verify all information in it. If you cannot find reliable and independent sources, it almost certainly does not meet the notability guidelines.
- Some useful information on how to write and create a new article is located at Wikipedia:Your first article. Pyrospirit (talk · contribs) 15:01, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
WIKIPEDIA ELECTION
[edit]![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/fb/Yes_check.svg/20px-Yes_check.svg.png)
Go to User:ElectionDemocratic/Election08 and cast your vote! --ElectionDemocratic (talk) 14:52, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- (sigh), I think this is another ouija sock. Admin? PerfectProposal 14:54, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Agreed. This appears to be the same guy, at least based on editing patterns. TN‑X-Man 14:58, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- It seems that the user's been blocked, and the page deleted now. PerfectProposal 15:07, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Agreed. This appears to be the same guy, at least based on editing patterns. TN‑X-Man 14:58, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
How babies are made
[edit]Ok i've heard the story about sex, but i dont buy it. i mean how can it be possible that an egg and sperm makes a human being??? seems impossible to me so i was wondering whether there are any alternative theories as to how babies are made? Cheers. Dylan. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.75.129.4 (talk) 16:53, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
This page is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please consider asking this question at the Wikipedia:Reference desk. They specialize in knowledge questions and will try to answer any question in the universe (except how to use Wikipedia, since that is what this Help Desk is for). Just follow the link, select the relevant section, and ask away. You could always try searching Wikipedia for an article related to the topic you want to know more about. I hope this helps.PerfectProposal 17:13, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
To H.R.Manager
[edit]Dear Sir, I would like to ask you if you have a employe named Le Mihn Thia in your bank or not,Thanks. Waiting your reply Dr.Sameh Aziz —Preceding unsigned comment added by 41.233.187.45 (talk) 17:02, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Please do not include contact details in your questions. We are unable to provide answers by any off-wiki medium and this page is highly visible across the internet. The details have been removed, but if you wish for them to be permanently removed from the page history, email this address.PerfectProposal 17:15, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Hello. I suspect, based on your question, that you found one of our over two million articles, and thought that we were directly affiliated in some way with that subject. Please note that you are at Wikipedia, the online free encyclopedia that anyone can edit, and this page is a help desk for asking questions related to using the encyclopedia. Thus, we have no inside track on the subject of your question. You can, however, search our vast catalogue of articles by typing a subject into the search field on the left hand side of your screen. If that is not fruitful, we have a reference desk, divided into various subjects areas, where asking knowledge questions is welcome. Best of luck. PrimeHunter (talk) 17:29, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Dotted box around lead section
[edit]![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/fb/Yes_check.svg/20px-Yes_check.svg.png)
Hello, The article Cambridge special access scheme has a dotted box around the first paragraph. Can someone fix it? --80.202.87.84 (talk) 17:05, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- It appears that when the dated prod was removed, a space character was left in front of the text in the first paragraph. By removing the extraneous space, the formatting was fixed.
- Note: The prod was removed with no maintenance to resolve the issues that caused it being added. As a result, I've inserted {{notability}} and {{unreferenced}} tags to the article, which are issues which should be addressed to avoid someone choosing to submit the article for a more formal WP:AFD review. --- Barek (talk • contribs) - 17:19, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
User page
[edit]How do you create a user page? Thank you.Voiceperson (talk) 19:44, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- You have one. Dendodge|TalkContribs 19:45, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- If you mean a user subpage, see WP:Subpages#How to create user subpages. Algebraist 19:52, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Your user page is User:Voiceperson as you wrote.[4] PrimeHunter (talk) 20:04, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Thanks to all. And yes, Algebraist, I meant to say subpage.Voiceperson (talk) 21:16, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
how do you become a admin
[edit]how do you become a adminstroter cause i dunno know —Preceding unsigned comment added by Cyberdemon4 (talk • contribs) 19:57, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- See Wikipedia:Requests for adminship. A lot of edits are required to have a chance. PrimeHunter (talk) 20:00, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Please see WP:RFA to learn more about the process. Expanding on what PrimeHunter said, as you have two edits - this one being one of them - I'd say you are unofficially 6 months and 4998 quality edits away from meeting most editor's minimal requirements. Instead, for now, I might read the five pillars of Wikipedia, and focus on making some solid contributions to the project. Tan ǀ 39 20:01, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
how do you ban user ( why are users not allowed to ban other users )
[edit]how do you ban a user and why are user not allowed to ban other users cherrs cyberdemon4 —Preceding unsigned comment added by Cyberdemon4 (talk • contribs) 20:05, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Only administrators are allowed to block other users. Banning users is done by editor consensus, as discussed on WP:AN, WP:ANI, or similar forums. Tan ǀ 39 20:09, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- There would be chaos in Wikipedia (well, more chaos than there already is) if any user could block another user. Administrators have received the trust of the community at Wikipedia:Requests for adminship. If they abuse the block tool or other admin tools then risk losing their adminship. PrimeHunter (talk) 20:28, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Another Ouija sock? GtstrickyTalk or C 20:46, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- I considered the same but the account was created [5] before OuijaBoardOuijaBoard's disruption started that day, so I chose to assume good faith for now. PrimeHunter (talk) 21:01, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Another Ouija sock? GtstrickyTalk or C 20:46, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Copy Editing John Perry Barlow Article
[edit]Your JPB entry says that the song Cassidy is about Neal Cassady, (true) and Ellen Cassidy, (FALSE) These lines, "Catch-colt draws a coffin cart. There he goes now, here she starts: Hear her cry." Refers to the passing of Neal Cassady, Jack Kerouac's Dean Moriarity, as well as Ken Kesey's driver of the bus, Furthur, documented by Tom Wolfe in the Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, as well as the birth of Cassidy Law, daugher of Eileen Law and Rex Jackson. A catch colt refers to an unregistered or undocumented colt. The coffin cart refers to Neal Cassady's death in Mexico at 42. Here she comes refers to Cassidy Law's birth. Eileen named Cassidy because she loved the movie, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
My references for this include personal conversations with Cassidy Law, 3 December 1992, personal conversations with John Balow on numerous occasions from 1971 until the present, the fact that I was there when the first two lines of the song were scribbled on a napkin by John and Bob Weir while collaborating on Weir's solo album, Ace, and finally, I cite, Skeleton Key (A Dictionary for Deadheads) David Shenk & Steve Silberman. Main Street Books, Doubleday & Co., 1994; 388 pp. ISBN 0-385-47402-4, of which I was a contributing author.
Your directions for editing Wikipedia are verbose and convoluted. I'm a smart guy who reads very well. I still haven't figured out how to fix this misinformation in your Barlow article myself. Help me.
<address, phone number, and email removed>Bvlax2005 (talk) 20:43, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
(Nobody ever writes or calls anyway, and you can verify this information from Barlow as well googling his phone numbers and email address.) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.117.69.179 (talk) 20:40, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- If you wish to edit a page you can click the "edit this page" link at the very top of a page. From there you can make changed. However, all sources must be verifiable, which a personal conversation would not meet the requirements. Bvlax2005 (talk) 20:48, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- The article reference at Ellen Cassidy's name actually said another name and I couldn't find any support for Ellen Cassidy, so I changed it.[6] PrimeHunter (talk) 20:54, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- At the top of every article is a tab that says 'edit this page' or you can read WP:EDIT. Cheers GtstrickyTalk or C 20:57, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Your criticisms of Wikipedia's instructions are too vague to be constructive. What instruction pages did you read, and what passages did you find "verbose and convoluted"? What is your standard for judging documentation? Can you point us to another do it yourself, collaborative editing project of comparable size which has instructions you consider to be better? (Wikipedia has 6,869,037 articles and 47,826,723 registered users.) While I agree that anything can be improved, I have never seen a system with Wikipedia's complexity which has better internal documentation. There are many simpler systems, to be sure, but none of them are among the top ten most popular Web sites. Simpler systems are generally less capable, and therefore they appeal to fewer people. Wikipedia is unlike anything which ever existed before, which means a new user must grasp a number of startlingly new concepts and (usually) overcome some false initial assumptions. Some new users find themselves lost in a maze of hypertext when they first look at the online documentation. If you want a structured introduction, you may like the book: Wikipedia - The Missing Manual. However, lots of people are able to learn Wikipedia just by reading (and re-reading) the online documentation, trying things, and above all being persistent. There are lots of smart people on Wikipedia, but not many of them can honestly claim everything made sense the first time they looked at it. --Teratornis (talk) 23:24, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Hector Elizondo
[edit]You missed his appearance in Your Momma wears combat boots in which he costarred with Barbara Eden in 1989/90. The made for movie was directed by Anson Williams and was filmed at Fort Benning Georgia —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.178.169.24 (talk) 21:03, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- You can add it to the article Héctor Elizondo! (It is mentioned at IMDB). Anyone can edit Wikipedia; take a look at Wikipedia:How to edit a page if you have any questions as to how (or, just ask them here). -- Natalya 21:07, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- I added Your Mother Wears Combat Boots to Héctor Elizondo.[7] PrimeHunter (talk) 21:14, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
cream pie
[edit]I just came accross a very offensive image when looking up about cream pie on here. See Creampie (sexual act). Why does this article come up when search about cream pies. I think many people like me, and even lil kids will find it by mistake and be really shocked. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.75.232.238 (talk) 21:49, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Short answer? WIkipedia is an encyclopaedia, and is therefore not censored. Images are selected on the basis of their ability to inform readers about the content of the article concerned - for more information see this page. GbT/c 21:51, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- And, for the sake of completeness, we do actually have an article about cream pies (of the non-sexual variety) which you can find here. GbT/c 21:52, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Can this page be given a warning and the image be closed so the user has to choose to open it? Donek (talk) 22:58, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Why? We're not censored, we have a Content disclaimer, and the user only sees the image if he/she's chosen to view an article with 'sexual act' in the title. Algebraist 23:02, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
I am not asking for censorship. I am concerned about people who may stumble onto the page and may be offended by the image. I know it is difficult to stumble onto such a page but I think journalistic ethics might play a role in a free online encyclopedia as it publishes material. Donek (talk) 23:08, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- If i may comment, this sexual act is apparently something which happens internally so the image certainly does help to illustrate the act in my opinion and should be removed. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.75.232.238 (talk) 23:16, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- Much of Wikipedia's content is offensive to someone. We aren't about to hide all that content; that's what we have a disclaimer for. If individual users want to avoid certain images, there's some help at WP:Options to not see an image. Algebraist 23:20, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- See Wikipedia:Perennial proposals#Content warnings and WP:EIW#Censor. Wikipedia rejects the idea of placing content warnings on potentially offensive articles. However, I have previously noted that everyone is free to set up their own collaborative filtering site which could act as a portal to Wikipedia. That way, for example, people who discover that they share the same biases and sensitivities could collaboratively construct a system of ratings for Wikipedia articles (or the whole World Wide Web, for that matter), and have their browsers shield them from material that upsets them. This would also be helpful for Muslims who become extremely agitated when they see Muhammad cartoons and so on. --Teratornis (talk) 23:34, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- I read once about a Soviet dissident who claimed his captors tortured him in the Gulag by placing him in a refrigerator, with a physician observing him, until he became hypothermic, whereupon they would remove him before he would die, warm him back up, and start the cycle again. After his release, he found himself experiencing symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder whenever he saw a refrigerator. To avoid subjecting such a person to emotional distress, Wikipedia would need to place a content warning on all its articles relating to refrigerators. But these warnings would clutter the site for all the other people who don't need them. This is why the most efficient place for content filtering is the client rather than the server, since the need for content filtering is highly subjective. --Teratornis (talk) 23:47, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- I might add that we may have to wait for the Semantic web before we can implement this type of filtering efficiently and reliably. Particularly when the porn industry likes to re-use innocent everyday terms such as cream pie and facial to refer to considerably less innocent behaviors. --Teratornis (talk) 23:59, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- I read once about a Soviet dissident who claimed his captors tortured him in the Gulag by placing him in a refrigerator, with a physician observing him, until he became hypothermic, whereupon they would remove him before he would die, warm him back up, and start the cycle again. After his release, he found himself experiencing symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder whenever he saw a refrigerator. To avoid subjecting such a person to emotional distress, Wikipedia would need to place a content warning on all its articles relating to refrigerators. But these warnings would clutter the site for all the other people who don't need them. This is why the most efficient place for content filtering is the client rather than the server, since the need for content filtering is highly subjective. --Teratornis (talk) 23:47, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- See Wikipedia:Perennial proposals#Content warnings and WP:EIW#Censor. Wikipedia rejects the idea of placing content warnings on potentially offensive articles. However, I have previously noted that everyone is free to set up their own collaborative filtering site which could act as a portal to Wikipedia. That way, for example, people who discover that they share the same biases and sensitivities could collaboratively construct a system of ratings for Wikipedia articles (or the whole World Wide Web, for that matter), and have their browsers shield them from material that upsets them. This would also be helpful for Muslims who become extremely agitated when they see Muhammad cartoons and so on. --Teratornis (talk) 23:34, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
Is it possible to move it further down the page so people do not have to see it immediately, but only if interested? Donek (talk) 00:45, 28 August 2008 (UTC)
- Yes, you can move the image anywhere in the article, but other users could move it back. I have no idea what other users would do. There is some discussion on Talk:Creampie (sexual act) about previous images that had been in the article. You could mention your concerns on that talk page and see what the other editors think. Personally, I would lean toward moving the image down so it doesn't just blast right out at someone who accidentally stumbles onto the article, but the article is not very long, so on a large monitor the image would probably be visible anyway. (When I was a kid, I used to read the World Book encyclopedia, and it didn't have any images like that one.) --Teratornis (talk) 03:52, 28 August 2008 (UTC)
Moving an image to Wiki Commons
[edit]Hi, can somebody tell me how I can easily move an image from wikipedia accross to commons? The image I wont to move is a free image and has been released into the public domain so there shouldn't be any problems there, but if it's gonna be too much hassle to move it accross then i wont bother. Thanks. 79.75.232.238 (talk) 22:51, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- The best way is to use CommonsHelper. Wikipedia:Moving images to the Commons has more information. Algebraist 22:58, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
{{FixBunching}}
[edit]What did I do wrong here? Admiral Norton (talk) 23:22, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- As you discovered, it's mid not med, and FixBunching needs its newlines. Algebraist 23:24, 27 August 2008 (UTC)
- (E/C) You needed to spell it correctly: "mid" not "med;" and they should all be on separate lines. Regards. Woody (talk) 23:25, 27 August 2008 (UTC)