Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2010 October 11

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October 11

problems with image coding

I've just added an image to the "Alec Su" page (in the right-hand info box) and although I followed the proper coding it does not display properly (there is text above and below the image that is part of the coding and should not appear). Can someone help fix this? Thanks! Emfarrell (talk) 05:02, 11 October 2010 (UTC)Emfarrell

Looks like someone already did fix it. Some infoboxes (but not all) require you to drop the "File:" prefix from the image name. You just have to try it both ways next time to see what works right. --Jayron32 05:14, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

(e/c) You followed image coding for placing a stand alone picture outside of an infobox. Infoboxes wrap images with their internal coding, which usually is just the file name or sometimes the file name without "file:". Size and placement are also supplied by the infobox. Alt text takes a separate infobox parameter. So I made the image display by changing your coding to just:

| image                   = Alec_Su.jpg

I also changed your alt text to something more conforming with its purpose, which it to provide a description for blind people so they have an idea what the image contains, which rarely resembles the image caption, as you had duplicated for it. Here's the diff of the changes. Cheers.--Fuhghettaboutit (talk) 05:16, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

I have a general question based upon this change. Should Fughettaboutit's edit indicate he's Taiwanese rather than Chinese, or should the main article indicate he's Chinese rather than Taiwanese? Thanks. CaptRik (talk) 10:33, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

Option "MathML if possible" doesn't work

The option "MathML if possible" doesn't work at all. The pages I read still render math formulas as PNG, even after I purge the cache, while all other options like "Always render PNG" work properly. I found a similar question in the archives which was not answered. My browser is Firefox 3.6.--Netheril96 (talk) 06:14, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

As you said, this has been asked before (in June 2007). There was a previous mention about it at the Reference desk in December 2006 where the responder said I don't think it works, since it requires the full page to be valid XML, which the rest of the software does not yet support. This also covered the issue. There was a question about MathML and Firefox (with Firefox 3.0.14) here, does that help? Beyond that, I can't help (I'm not a mathematician, and I know nothing about MathML) -- PhantomSteve/talk|contribs\ 11:22, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

How to invite others to read my post

I am a new user of this service and I just posted an article that could be made better and corroborated by other persons that I know. How do I invite them to read this post and make their contributions towards improving it.

Thanks. Thomasofem (talk) 10:46, 11 October 2010 (UTC)Thomasofem

Hi Thomasofem. There are a few places where you could get others to read and edit/add to your draft article. Firstly, go to "Requests for feedback" and add User:Thomasofem/Dr. Okoi Arikpo there; secondly you could ask at the relevant WikiProjects: WikiProject Chemistry, WikiProject Anthropology, WikiProject Law, WikiProject Politics and WikiProject Nigeria.

A quick look at it shows that it needs tidying up (the language is not as encyclopedic as we would normally use!) and there appears to be a few direct quotes from books, which are probably more than fair-use provisions allow. I'll have a look and see if I can tidy it up a bit. -- PhantomSteve/talk|contribs\ 11:01, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

I have tagged it as a copyright violation, I'm afraid. -- John of Reading (talk) 11:07, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

And I have deleted it as such. Tomasofem, Wikipedia cannot use text copied from another website - it needs to be written in your own words. I looked for some reliable independent sources of information, but although I can confirm his position as Nigeria's External Affairs Commissioner and so on, they are only minor mentions - usually along the lines of "Nigeria's External Affairs Commissioner, Dr. Okoi Arikpo, told a press conference in Lagos..." -- PhantomSteve/talk|contribs\ 11:11, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

If you can find reliable independent sources, please use them to expand the existing article Arikpo Okoi rather than starting from scratch. -- John of Reading (talk) 11:14, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

References combined with google books

Hello,

I'm a university student and I use wikipedia all the time, when I need something. Mainly, I'm reading articles, which have good references on books and I have an idea, how to make wikipedia even better.

If it would be possible (I don't know exactly to whom should this idea go to), to modify references in articles, so they point on books in store in books.google.com. So the person can immediately go to a book, which was referred to in an article of his/her interest.

So if you could help me direct this inquiry to someone, who can actually do something about this, or write it directly to code of wikipedia webpage, when someone writes an article, he/she could put in references by searching in google books and it would be connected then :-).

I hope then this question will find a good person, who would like the idea as much as I do. Best Regards,

Jan Tinak 158.193.95.139 (talk) 12:17, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

This can only realistically be done by the person writing/editing the article. There is the facility to do this on (for example) Template:Cite book, which has |url= as an option, which can point to the Google Books page. As such, what you want is available, but not as an automatic thing - you need a human to find the Google Books content and link to it! -- PhantomSteve/talk|contribs\ 12:23, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

This article - Hong Song-dam - uses {{cite book}}: this...

• * {{cite book|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=xYfv1tROm1YC&pg=PA49&dq=%22Hong+Song+Dam%22&hl=en&ei=uLysTPDcBYXMswbmkoijBA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22Hong%20Song%20Dam%22&f=false |title=Visual Arts and Religion |publisher=Books.google.co.uk |year=2009 |last1=Alma |first1=Hans |last2=Barnard |first2=Marcel |isbn=978-3-8258-0708-5 |accessdate=2010-10-06|ref=harv}}

... renders as ...

• Alma, Hans; Barnard, Marcel (2009). Visual Arts and Religion. Books.google.co.uk. ISBN 978-3-8258-0708-5. Retrieved 2010-10-06. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)

I really, really, like Google books...! TFOWR 12:28, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

• The publisher of this example is LIT Verlag, not Google, who is a web host and need not be included in the cite.
• You should link to the book cover; here it would be http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=xYfv1tROm1YC.
• The example shows |ref=harv, which is needed only when using shortened footnotes or parenthetical referencing.
• I don't see how this can be automated, since different editions and printing may not match the reference actually used by the editor. {{Cite doi}} and {{Cite pmid}} use specific identifiers, so a bot works for those. --— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk

Good catch on the publisher and the link: normally I preview, then use the ISBN link in the preview to fix the URL. In this example ref=harv was useful, as the article uses Harvard references for each cite. I don't think this can be automated, either - though I've been thinking something like a Greasemonkey script for Google books could be possible. Outside my skill-set, though, and I don't use Firefox anymore. TFOWR 14:22, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

<-I endorse the notion that using a link to Google books should be encouraged, although there are technical hurdles to doing it automatically. However, one way to help is to spread widely that there are easy ways to get a Google books citation written. I use the Wikipedia citation tool for Google Books which is quite useful. Find the material in Google books, then simply copy the url into the tool, and it generates a formatted citation you can copy and paste into the article (Don't do this blindly, you should check to make sure it is right, particularly page numbers.)--SPhilbrickT 14:15, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

For example, in the article mentioned above by TFOWR, if you go to the link, and use the tool it generates:

• Volker Küster (1 July 2009). Visual Arts and Religion. LIT Verlag Münster. pp. 49–. ISBN 9783825807085. Retrieved 11 October 2010.

which resolves the problem noted by Gadget850. As noted, you have to pay attention to page numbers. The name is mentioned on page xi, 49, 51, and 52, so you should take care to decide which page numbers belong in the cite, but the tool does make your work easier.--SPhilbrickT 14:32, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

Thanks for that link, SPhilbrick. Very useful tool. Karenjc 16:20, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

screed

Resolved

 – Politely, I might add, in the face of some quite unnecessary vituperation. – ukexpat (talk) 17:50, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

I will not be using this site again, because of your decision to make the new skin mandatory, this leaves less room for content, and more room for advertising, meaning you don't care about content anymore, you only care about money, several wiki's I use have already left the site and set up their own page, I have bookmarked these to avoid having to get to them through your greedy site.

Thanks for forgetting why you are really here.

Go fuck yourselves. Sell Outs.— Preceding unsigned comment added by 92.4.229.243 (talk • contribs)

First, the new skin is not mandatory. If you create an account, you can adjust your preferences to select the old skin, or one of several others.

Second, Wikipedia does not display any advertising. If you are seeing Wikipedia content surrounded by advertising, then you are looking at a Wikipedia mirror, and not at Wikipedia itself. -- John of Reading (talk) 15:03, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

Third, since Wikipedia doesn't host any other unrelated wikis, it is not possible that they would "leave the site and set up their own page". I think you are looking at a mirror site, not Wikipedia. If you decide to complain to them about their advertising policy, I hope their volunteers are also polite and tolerant in the face of abuse, particularly when it's unnecessary. Karenjc 16:43, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

My guess is that the OP is talking about the banner at the top that links to a personal appeal by Jimmy Wales for donations, which does look like an an ad to someone who doesn't read it. For those who DO read it, they will see that the banner is asking for donations to AVOID having to sell out. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 174.91.12.159 (talk) 02:30, 12 October 2010 (UTC)

The banner is very annoying, takes up too much space and cannot be blocked in any effective manner. It should have been set up so that once a person clicked on it, it would never come up again. Pretty dumb idea to keep it there the way it is. - KitchM (talk) 02:20, 13 November 2010 (UTC)

Calories In Your Whole Wheat Bread????

All I am trying to find out Is ......Can someone Please tell me how Many Calories are In a loaf of your whole wheat bread...PLEASE...I am trying to eat Healthy and for the very first time In My Adult 58 year old life I went to your resturant today just to buy a loaf of your Whole Wheat Bread...No one knows anything about the calories....My Home E-Mail Address Is...<removed for privacy reasons> ...Thank You Very Much For Your Answer....Have A Great Day...... <removed for privacy reasons> —Preceding unsigned comment added by 97.81.3.147 (talk) 16:00, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

Short answer to your question, is it depends on the type and quantity of whole wheat bread consumed. Also, 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 want them to be permanently removed from the page history, please email this address. Feinoha ^{Talk, My master} 16:10, 11 October 2010 (UTC)r

Also, please note that Wikipedia is an online encyclopaedia, and this is a page where you can get help using it. It doesn't run any restaurants, and it doesn't sell bread. You would probably get a better response by contacting the restaurant company. Karenjc 16:28, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

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. --Orange Mike | Talk 16:41, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

Usernames for admin attention

On WP:Usernames for administrator attention, are new reports placed at the top or the bottom of the human reported section? Kansan (talk) 16:13, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure that new reports are added to the top of the list. At least it seem what WP:TWINKLE does. Feinoha ^{Talk, My master} 16:17, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

Why Wikipedia...

sometimes freezing? I mean it doesn't load sometimes funnily enough. Everytime the problem emerges I look at the task manager, but i can't find any processes that disturbes wikipedia. I checked other sites, but they work fine.-- ♫Greatorangepumpkin♫ T 16:41, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

What browser are you using? If it's Firefox that experiences the "freezes" (particularly when I try to view 100+ Diffs). I'm not sure if it's the browser or Wikipedia. Maybe one of the more technically inclined people might know. Feinoha ^{Talk, My master} 19:38, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

The real techies hang out at the Techie Pump so it may be better to ask there. – ukexpat (talk) 19:50, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

Ten Ten Day

The date October 10 has significance for (at least a portion) of China. I was a member of the USAF which participated in a celebration called '10-10', with the Chinese Air Force in 1963. I'd like to understand the significance of the date of October 10, to the Chinese. I didn't quite get the significance.

Thank you —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.122.144.30 (talk) 18:54, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

You might like to read the article Double Ten Day -- John of Reading (talk) 19:01, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

Add a page

Hi,

I am trying to add a page about a charitable organization. How can I start a page in Wikipedia from scratch? Thanks.

MU

Collapsing text of draft article

Who We Are Founded in 2009 under the maxim “knowledge is power,” Soul Pop U is a fiscally sponsored organization of the New York Foundation for the Arts whose mission it is to reconnect art, culture, and entrepreneurship with schools and communities across the country and around the world. Artists sponsored by Soul Pop U are not only revered for their musical superiority, but are also extolled for their academic, professional, and civic accomplishments - making them role models for our leaders of tomorrow. What We Do Soul Pop U sponsors outstanding artists, sending them into the community to introduce young people not only to the entertainment industry, but also to inspire them to achieve their full potential. We do this through school assemblies or community presentations which combine live performances as well as fireside chats with audience members. These interactive presentations incorporate performance, Q&A, arts education, and motivational speaking. Soul Pop U artists are Ivy-league graduates, accomplished corporate professionals, and are responsible and active civic participants. We are therefore able to offer fresh, educational, inspirational, and new perspectives on what it means to “go for the gold”. What Is Soul Pop? Soul Pop is smart mainstream music infused with classic sensibility and virtuosity. Soul Pop U believes in this progressive genre because of its main tenet: empowerment. We look for artists who offer first-class talent and innovative performances, coupled with compelling personal histories. This rare combination makes our artists true examples to follow in their communities, and ambassadors to the world. For Soul Pop U, this is the ultimate, not only in arts education, but also in personal development and achievement.

—Preceding unsigned comment added by Soulpopu (talk • contribs) 19:08, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

Please see the messages on your talk page -- John of Reading (talk) 19:33, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

The rules of darts

Could you tell me that if a person playing darts throws a double bullseye, what 2 combinations could you use to win your first 2 darts? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 207.63.100.162 (talk) 20:17, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

This page is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please consider asking this question at the Entertainment 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 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. -- John of Reading (talk) 20:24, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

(edit conflict) This page is for help about using Wikipedia. If you want help on this subject, or any others, then try our Reference Desks. In this case you might find the Mathematics Reference Desk of some help. — Fly by Night (talk) 20:27, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

(Agreed, go to refdesk...just being as I happen to be here) There is no such thing as a 'double bull' - the red bullseye is worth 50 points; the outer, usually green, is worth 25. The bull does count as a double for a finish, though. Most darts games are played to 501 or 301, and the max score from 3 darts is 180, so you cannot finish in one round. You might be interested in Nine-dart finish. (Apologies to all, yes, this should be on refdesk...)  Chzz  ►  05:01, 12 October 2010 (UTC)

Listening to articles

Here at our small shop, we would love to listen to Wikipedia articles all day. Is there any way to do this? If not, it woull make a great feature. A "Play List" of Wikipedia articles would make great listening. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.232.69.146 (talk) 20:35, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

See Wikipedia:Spoken articles. Apparently a team of volunteers have recorded over a thousand of the best Wikipedia articles. -- John of Reading (talk) 20:48, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

Transclusion

I'm a bit confused by this section of the transclusion page. It says that if I put the template in two places then anything posted on one page will appear on the other. But surely, when I edit either page I'll just see the template at the top of the page. Any text I add will get tacked on after the template and will only appear on that page. I would need to edit the page that the template links to for all pages to include that edit, wouldn't I? — Fly by Night (talk) 20:46, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

It's poorly explained but I guess it refers to transcluding pages with section headings. This is not limited to subpages. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Rushel Shell is currently transcluded at both Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Log/2010 October 10#Rushel Shell and Wikipedia:WikiProject Deletion sorting/Sportspeople#Rushel Shell (and others). Clicking the section edit link at any of the pages will edit Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Rushel Shell instead of editing the page where edit was clicked. The edit will therefore become visible on all the pages (although it may not be displayed on a given page until that page is itself edited, purged or the job queue gets around to update the page rendering). PrimeHunter (talk) 01:12, 12 October 2010 (UTC)

Update to Paul Williams (saxophonist) article

Hello,

I would like to have the Paul Williams (saxophonist) article updated. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Williams_(saxophonist)

He has a website that contains biographical information www.PaulHucklebuckWilliams.com. If the article cannot be corrected please direct people to learn more about him by visiting his website at www.PaulHucklebuckWilliams.com

Thank you —Preceding unsigned comment added by Huckleboogie (talk • contribs) 21:27, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

I've added the link to the article Rojomoke (talk) 07:39, 12 October 2010 (UTC)

Additions

I am an underwaterphotographer and have been for nearly 40 years. How do I go about being included in that category?207.6.102.44 (talk) 22:42, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

Categories are for articles. Is there an article about you? And if so, does it state that you are an underwater photographer?--SPhilbrickT 23:02, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

Of course, if you were to register an account, you could include that information on your user page. Mjroots (talk) 08:40, 12 October 2010 (UTC)

But categories such as the OP asked about can't be used on User pages. 216.93.213.191 (talk) 01:53, 15 October 2010 (UTC)