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Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2010 June 11

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June 11

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Global account

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Resolved
 – Avicennasis @ 01:58, 29 Sivan 5770 / 11 June 2010 (UTC)

I have a global account, User:William Saturn, which I do not use regularly on wikipedia. As a result, when I go to other projects and sign in as William Saturn, I come back to wikipedia and must sign out as William Saturn and sign back in as William S. Saturn. Is there a way to fix this, so that the William S. Saturn wikipedia account is global?--William S. Saturn (talk) 21:39, 10 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Unfortunately you cannot merge different usernames, but you can make your current account an SUL by visiting Special:MergeAccount. For more info, please see Unified login. Hope this helps! :) Avicennasis @ 21:48, 28 Sivan 5770 / 10 June 2010 (UTC)
Let's say I switch the names on here, would I be able to connect that way? --William S. Saturn (talk) 21:51, 10 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]
Correct. As long as the username is not already taken, it can be added to your SUL. If you want to use User:William Saturn here on English Wikipedia, simply sign in using that username and password, and it will automatically create the account here for you to use. :) Avicennasis @ 21:57, 28 Sivan 5770 / 10 June 2010 (UTC)
Is there a way to change usernames on other projects such as Commons and WikiNews? --William S. Saturn (talk) 22:03, 10 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]
Sure! On each wiki where you want your username changed, please ask a bureaucrat (type special:listusers/bureaucrat) to carry out the change. Sometimes Project:RENAME redirects to the local request page. If you have an unusual request – for a name change across many different wikis, for a change on small wikis that do not have a bureaucrat, or if you have already created the account you wish to change to, add a request to meta:Requests for username changes and a Steward will help you carry out the request. :) Avicennasis @ 22:08, 28 Sivan 5770 / 10 June 2010 (UTC)
Thank you very much, I have requested the rename on WikiNews and Commons. --William Saturn (talk) 22:24, 10 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]
No Problem. :) Avicennasis @ 01:58, 29 Sivan 5770 / 11 June 2010 (UTC)

Second User Account Created

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I am very concerned that a number of times I have saved edits to articles where my login name has not been displayed, but rather my IP address. This would not be a problem but for the fact that this creates a second account for me which is not allowed on Wikipedia. I am not prepared to be accused of using another account by stealth. How do we fix this problem?Minphie (talk) 00:04, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Most likely, your computer is not keeping your login information. However, you have no problem on Wikipedia. Editing by IP does not make a second account, and as long as you are not editing abusively (whether or no you are logged in). The policy on second accounts is WP:SOCK, which may help to clear up any confusion. Avicennasis @ 00:44, 29 Sivan 5770 / 11 June 2010 (UTC)
Editing as an IP address is allowed and is not an account. If you are willing to reveal the connection between IP address and account (this is optional and may be used by others to guess about your identity or location), then you can mention the IP address at User:Minphie, or just mention that you sometimes edit without being logging in. But you are unlikely to get into problems when you don't use deliberate deception. If the IP edits are unintentional then see tips on staying logged in at Help:Logging in. PrimeHunter (talk) 01:00, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Image editing error

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I'm trying to add the image SP in.svg to the category South Park images. However, whenever I go to add the category, it tells me that the file I'm trying to upload has a name that is too generic and thus has been blacklisted. I'm not trying to upload the file, I'm just trying to add a category, but every time I click the "edit" button or the HotCat category "(+)" button, I get that message. How can I get around this error? Thanks, Oxguy3[dubiousdiscuss] 00:05, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

The image is not on the English Wikipedia, it is located on Commons. Usually we do not categorize media that is located on Commons locally. You are getting the error because the page that you are adding the category to does not yet exist on this Wiki I presume. —TheDJ (talkcontribs) 00:21, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]
You could edit the commons page but commons:File:SP in.svg is already in commons:Category:South Park (cartoon). PrimeHunter (talk) 00:39, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

FONT TOO BIG

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I really need to know how to change the font size to this website, it's way too big and I can't view pages in it's entirety. It's really annoying because everything is way too big. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Quietstorm78 (talkcontribs) 00:24, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Try holding down Ctrl while pressing the '-' key on your keyboard or scrolling down on the mouse wheel. When you are logged in you can also try another skin such as MonoBook under the Appearance tab at Special:Preferences. PrimeHunter (talk) 00:32, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]
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Hi, in the My Preferences section, users like myself are able to create a signature like so many of the great ones here. I've created my signature, but it doesn't seem to be linked to my userpage. (I don't know how I did it, but one time I signed my comments on my alternate's userpage, it correctly linked my signature to my account; but I myself don't know how to do that at will).

Can anyone help? My alternate account where I accidentally created the signature that links to my (main's) userpage is at User:EvilXANAPublic (it's for public computer usage only, by the way).

As I said, I don't know how to do that myself at my own will, so how do you do it? X.A.N.A. the Evil Virus (talk) 02:06, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

EDIT: (Scratch that, viewing my alternate account's page again, it was not linked at all to my userpage) X.A.N.A. the Evil Virus (talk) 02:06, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Your signature (as you have signed it on this post), is linked to your userpage. Thus, am I correct in assuming that you are saying you wish to have your alternate account's signature link to your main account's userpage? First, go to your preferences. Under "User profile", find the section headed "Signature" (should be the third one down). In the input field, type [[User:EvilXANA|EvilXANAPublic]]. Then check the box below the input field, that says "Sign my name using the provided wikitext." This is the basic concept of a signature. (More information) Intelligentsium 02:48, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Help fix Wikipedia page

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Hullinger [1][2]Jeff Hullinger is a multi-Emmy Award-winning[3] news and sports anchor from Denver.Jeff is a political reporter for Atlanta's NBC affliate WXIA (http://blogs.ajc.com/radio-tv-talk/2010/06/09/jeff-hullinger-gets-a-new-gig-at-wxia-tv/?cxntfid=blogs_radio_tv_talk&cxntlid=thbz_hm)

(...removed copypaste of Jeff Hullinger here  Chzz  ►  06:23, 11 June 2010 (UTC))[reply]

with more than 81 per cent voting for Jeff's return to Atlanta Television. Hullinger also drew 153 comments. http://blogs.ajc.com/radio-tv-talk/2010/06/09/jeff-hullinger-gets-a-new-gig-at-wxia-tv/?cxntfid=blogs_radio_tv_talk&cxntlid=thbz_hm

04:01, 11 June 2010 (UTC)04:01, 11 June 2010 (UTC)24.126.155.60 (talk)

Hi there. It seems you have just copied and pasted the text from the article on Jeff Hullinger to this page, but you have not said what kind of help you want with it. Chzz  ►  06:25, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Upload a Delphi application to Wikipedia.

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I like to upload to Wikipedia a Delphi application. It is not an image, but an on-line psychological test. The idea is that the test can be downloaded from an Article on Wikipedia, which is still in progress:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attention_Concentration_Test

Is this possible and how should I do this? I made the test myself, therefore, there are no copy-rights.

Mijn homepage: http://www.socsci.ru.nl/~advdv/ —Preceding unsigned comment added by Ad van der Ven (talkcontribs) 12:42, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

I'm sorry, but Wikipedia does not accept outside tests or applications to be uploaded to articles. More specifically, Wikipedia is a free encyclopedia, not a place for psychological testing. TNXMan 13:46, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

It was not my intention to use Wikipedia as "a place for psychological testing". It was only my intention to make it more easy for possible future users by giving them the possibility to download the test on the spot. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Ad van der Ven (talkcontribs) 16:44, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Into which article are you planning to add this information? If you only want to use Wikipedia as a storage place, that's unacceptable use of Wikipedia. If you crated the test yourself, it might also fail Wikipedia's original research rules. Everard Proudfoot (talk) 19:58, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

To Admins

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I just saw an example of a very rude vandalism in Portal:Turkey. Please check it. Thanks.Nedim Ardoğa (talk) 12:51, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

The vandalism was in Portal:Turkey/Intro; I've reverted it and given the user who perpetrated it a level-4 warning. For future reference, you don't have to be an admin to revert vandalism (I'm not one) - see WP:VANDAL for instructions on how to tackle it yourself. In cases where you do need admin attention, the Administrators' Noticeboard or administrator intervention against vandalism board are the best places to find them. Gonzonoir (talk) 12:57, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]
You can find this type of vandalism by using the Related changes link in the toolbox. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) talk 13:02, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Fighter

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sir, I would like to become a fighter pilot, do you recruit feom out side? I mean im from INDIA(Kerala —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.227.14.13 (talk) 13:55, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Hello. I suspect, based on your question, that you found one of our over three million articles, and thought that we were directly affiliated in some way with that subject. Please note that you are at Wikipedia, the free online 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 you cannot find what you are looking for, we have a reference desk, divided into various subject areas, where asking knowledge questions is welcome. Best of luck. TNXMan 13:57, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

edit charcterisation software bug?

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I've been looking at my edits here [1] and am a bit confused - it says I have done over half my edits on a user page. Unless I am suffering from amnesia, I haven't done a single edit on a user page - some on user talk pages, sure, but not user pages. What gives? Chasuble (talk) 14:56, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Hi Chasuble - it looks from Special:Contributions/Chasuble like you have done a lot of work on article drafts in your userspace (e.g. User:Chasuble/List of objects in the British Museum's Department of Ancient Egypt and Sudan. These all contribute to your userspace edit count, so I think that's what you're seeing. Gonzonoir (talk) 15:04, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]
Ah - that'll be it - I thought it meant I had been editing other people's user pages (mine is stil red ...)! I forgot about user sub pages, dur. Thanks for explaining. Chasuble (talk) 15:10, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Taking vitamins

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Re: Vitamins - can I take Vitamin D, Selenium and Coenzyme Q10 at the same time? Thanks —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.79.219.176 (talk) 16:34, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry, we cannot answer questions of a medical nature here. Mjroots (talk) 17:28, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]
Mjroots is correct and you can read more about our reasoning for that on this page. TNXMan 17:46, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

downloading wikepedia??

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is there a way i can download wikepedia so i can have it on my computer to use if i am at a place with no internet source?? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 109.255.23.164 (talk) 17:10, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Yes you can, although it's huge and you may well experience problems with your ISP's download limits or your computer's memory capacity if you try. And of course, you'll have a snapshot of the encyclopaedia as it was at a particular moment, with none of the subsequent changes (and none of the images; they aren't included in downloads). Wikipedia:Database download is the place to find out more. Karenjc 17:43, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]
Also see links under WP:EIW#Download such as Building a (fast) Wikipedia offline reader, and links under WP:EIW#Redistribution such as Wikipedia:Wikipedia CD Selection. --Teratornis (talk) 19:44, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Universal Absolutism

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I've been trying to create a page on Universal Absolutism for several months now. I get about 1/4 of the way done, and the article gets deleted by some other member, but when I write to him as to why, he does not respond. I try again, putting the main concept down, and another member deletes it saying that I did not include references to outside sources, and made it a re-direct link to Absolutism, which by the way does not have any mention of Universal Abolutism until today when I put it there. I went back and made a third attempt at writing it, I put in in excess of 6 different references to online dictionaries, Websters dictionary, and 3 other dictionaries and other works both mentioned on google and other works, and I come back to finich the article and once again, another member has deleted it, including the references. I'm getting kinda Teed off that people keep on deleting my work, and even the few reasons thay have does not constitute enough of a case for a total deletion. I'm still trying to write it. Yes I'm not perfect.I need some help getting it right. But please dont completely white wash the drawing board for stupid errors. Is there a way to formally request the official addition of the page?

contact info to me can be found at <blanked>

A better solution is to create the page as a user subpage (if you don't know how, just ask, although you'll have to be registered). Then edit to your heart's content, and when you think you ar ready, ask for advice at WP:FEED.--SPhilbrickT 19:01, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]
We can't reply to email addresses, and another user has removed your contact details to deter spammers.
There's a lovely definition of Universal absolutism at Absolutism but, as you say, you put it there today. It's a redlink and has no sources, so it's not a reliable addition and should probably be deleted. I googled the phrase "Universal absolutism", but I can't find any trace of it elsewhere (plenty of stuff about Absolutism, and some that also mentions the word "universal", but not as a distinct phrase with its own definition). I'm not saying UA doesn't exist as a concept, but the thing about Wikipedia is that it only describes things that are already independently notable, and notability is linked to verifiability; i.e. something must be already described in reliable, checkable, independent sources if it is to merit an entry in this encyclopaedia. Do you have any sources to demonstrate (a) that Universal absolutism is an established, accepted concept in its own right, and (b) that it is sufficiently important to have its own article, rather than a brief description on the Absolutism page? If so, I would suggest that you write the article as a draft in your user sandbox space, rather than as a work-in-progress in the mainspace where it is vulnerable to deletion. You say you've created articles before, so you must have an account (IP addresses can't create new articles). Sign into it, then type this in the search box "User:(yourusername)/Universal absolutism". This will take you to a screen where you can create the page. Work on it until you're happy, then list it at WP:RFF where you can get feedback before it goes live. Doing it this way will help minimise the risk of publishing an unsuitable article which gets nominated for deletion. Alternatively, if you want someone else to turn your material into an article, visit WP:AFC, although it can take a while for requests to be met. Karenjc 19:01, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]
See Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Universal Absolutism. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) talk 11:53, 12 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]
For your information, Wikipedia is an encyclopaedia, not a dictionary, so you can cite thousands of dictionaries, but it will still be rejected. You could be better off on our sister project, Wiktionary. Kayau Voting IS evil 10:53, 13 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Incorrect info on the 45th Grammy Awards Wikipedia page

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Resolved
 – Avicennasis @ 18:57, 29 Sivan 5770 / 11 June 2010 (UTC)

Under Wikipedia's 45th Grammy Awards page (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/45th_Grammy_Awards) there is a list of all the winners for that year (2003). Under the Gospel Category for "Best Southern, Country or Bluegrass Gospel Album" the winner was "WE CALLED HIM MR GOSPEL MUSIC: THE JAMES BLACKWOOD TRIBUTE ALBUM" and there were a number of recipients, one of which was Larry Ford. However, the "Larry Ford" listed in that category is NOT the gospel singer, Larry Ford. If you click on the name "Larry Ford" in the category it takes you to the page of a "Larry C. Ford" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Ford) who is deceased and was a biomedical researcher and gynocologist from Irvine, CA. The ACTUAL recipient of the Grammy Award for the above-named category was the gospel singer "Larry D. Ford" best known for his appearances on the Gaither Homecoming Series. His website is www.larryford.com. Please correct this information.

--Redstorm911 (talk) 18:47, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

I have changed it to a redlink since it seems we do not have an article (yet!) on the gospel singer. Thanks for pointing this out! Avicennasis @ 18:57, 29 Sivan 5770 / 11 June 2010 (UTC)

Editing with factual content

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Hello,I am the actual living person trying to add factual info regarding myself . Sometime ago all of the info pertaining to my adult career was deleted(I don't know why or by whom) . Everytime I uploaded my edits it was taken down today,I was told I was Soapboxing. I even visited another person's page from my industry and tried to copy it's format,so I don't understand why I'm being told this. I also wanted to update my photo and can't find the info to do so.

Thank you Midori/Michele —Preceding unsigned comment added by AllMidori (talkcontribs) 21:58, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Your edits ran afoul of several of Wikipedia's guidelines and policies. Most importantly, you have a conflict of interest and are officially discouraged from editing the article except to correct unambiguous errors of fact. You also did not cite reliable sources to verify the information that you added. You must remember that Wikipedia, as any encyclopaedia, is a tertiary source, not a primary source. Articles posted here can only base off of sources that others have already written and published; this is not a place to post new information that cannot be found anywhere else. Even if you are only correcting factual errors you still need something to back up what you are saying. Many users try to get around this by saying "It's about me and I'm adding it, of course it's correct" -- this doesn't mean squat when working on Wikipedia unless you have sources. Finally, your edits were unduly promotional in nature and did not keep a neutral point of view. Wikipedia is not a place to advertise yourself or your business. I strongly recommend you read and understand all of the linked pages before editing the article again. Xenon54 (talk) 02:11, 12 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

residency code

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I was unable to find the residency code for Lake Hiawatha NJ. Where can I find said code? Thank you! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.125.198.213 (talk) 23:05, 11 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Hello. I suspect, based on your question, that you found one of our over three million articles, and thought that we were directly affiliated in some way with that subject. Please note that you are at Wikipedia, the free online 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 upper right side of your screen. If you cannot find what you are looking for, we have a reference desk, divided into various subject areas, where asking knowledge questions is welcome. Best of luck. Avicennasis @ 00:42, 30 Sivan 5770 / 12 June 2010 (UTC)