Help desk
< May 5	<< Apr \| May \| Jun >>	May 7 >

Welcome to the Wikipedia Help Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current Help Desk pages.

May 6[edit]

help[edit]

Hi

I have never seen a site more complicated than this

I did a google search for 'schools nicaragua' and I saw a link from wikipedia for schools

our school was not listed I wondered how to get our school into that list

I created a wikipedia account

but..nowhere does it say how to get my website into the lsit

do I have to submit an article?

If I do, that is a joke,. nowhere can I finf how to do that. Lots of info on how to write it, ot edit it but now HOW TO GET it into wikipedia?

can anyone answer any of these?

thanks alot Dennis — Preceding unsigned comment added by Dennisoppelt (talk • contribs) 00:05, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Go to the page, click the button to edit it (the same thing you did to add this request for help here), and add it to the list in its alphabetical place. Is it a Spanish-language school? If so, put it in the list of Spanish-language schools; if not, put it up above. Put two brackets on each side of the name if it's not a Spanish-language school (just like the rest have), or if it's a Spanish-language school, do like the others: put one bracket, the school's website, the name of the school, and one bracket. Nyttend (talk) 00:49, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I think that most people use the form at the top of the page to add a question and not the edit button. RudolfRed (talk) 01:31, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Oops, I never use that form and didn't even notice it was there. Nyttend (talk) 01:52, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

That page is a horrible example of how things should look. External links should be kept to an external links section and not as used as a general list. If the schools are notable, we should have an article and a link to that article. If not, they should not be linked in the way that they are. See point #2 under "Important points to remember" of WP:EL for what I'm talking about. Dismas|^(talk) 01:36, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I know, but for the intro user, it's best to explain the most basic way first. Nyttend (talk) 01:52, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Help with template error[edit]

I was looking at the page Arden Middle School, and I noticed the template has what looks like is supposed to be a link to the talk page, but it says "see the [[|talk page]]". This appears to be coming from the "Merge school" part of the template. What's wrong and how can it be fixed? RudolfRed (talk) 00:12, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Hey, I modified the template by changing the [[{{{discuss|{{TALKPAGENAME:{{{1}}}}}}}}|talk page]]. to {{talk}}. There might be a way to change the template so it still says the talk page with a link to the talk page, but I feel like this works just as well. If you disagree I can play with it some more and see if I can't find something better. Ryan Vesey Review me! 00:23, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Looks fine. Thanks for fixing it. RudolfRed (talk) 00:51, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Sortable table isn't sorting[edit]

Any idea why the big table in List of counties in Ohio isn't sortable? I can't find any substantive changes in recent history, and I know that it used to be sortable. Nyttend (talk) 00:45, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I looked at scattered revisions in the history going back five years and did not see any which were sortable. So be bold and try it out! BTW, this brings back memories of playing at the Cuyahoga County Community College Chess Club--C⁶. Ma^t_chups 02:46, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Um, it's been sortable in recent times; I remember sorting it by population a few months ago when I visited it most recently. Nyttend (talk) 03:57, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

background blue![edit]

my back ground of wiki pages turn to blue. For only english language I see all the pages blue background. It is not changing with or w/o logging in. please help me how can i go back the original color. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Berkayocguder (talk • contribs) 02:08, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

There is a bug in the latest version of Google Chrome that shows a blue background if the browser zoom level is set below 100%. Reset the zoom to 100% with Ctrl+0 or adjust it with Ctrl++ and Ctrl+-. Does that solve the problem? —teb728 t c 02:52, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Complex numeric sorting question[edit]

Resolved

The article List of United States rapid transit systems by ridership has a sort table. One of the columns is the length of the system. If you try sorting, it comes out alphabetically

10 mi (16 kn)
117 mi (187 km)
16 mi (26 km)

because the cell contents are not purely numeric. So I figured I'd go in and add {{nts}} on all the numbers, easy enough. Except that the numbers are not hard-coded in the cells, they go through the template {{ridership}}, which is kind of ugly, as it takes the actual ridership and route length and produces a result with two numbers separated by | to populate two columns. Well, that template is used only in a couple of places and I thought it would be safe enough to edit it and call {{nts}} from there. Except that it calls {{convert}}, which is used all over the place.

I could create a fork, {{convert sortable}}, which passes its output through {{nts}} and modify {{ridership}} to call that, but as a programmer I don't like duplicating all that code. It seems that the real right answer is to modify {{convert}} to add an additional parameter which would force the addition of a numeric sort code. And maybe add some documentation to {{ridership}} while I'm there.

Do people agree with that approach? If so, where do I find someone with the experience and confidence in complex parser expressions to take on this change? Ma^t_chups 02:34, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

{{convert}} has a "sortable=on" option which probably does what you need. -- John of Reading (talk) 07:06, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks. I might have figured that out eventually, but I guess I gave up on scrolling through documentation. I've made the change and it works nicely. Ma^t_chups 19:02, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Creating a page for my movie[edit]

Hello, I am a new editor on wikipedia and would like to create a page for my feature length film "Suburban Rebels". I know it is in poor taste to create a page for my own film, so how would I go about creating it? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Urlevich (talk • contribs) 06:14, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

So you know it's in poor taste but you want to soldier ahead and do it anyway? See WP:COI. Dismas|^(talk) 07:25, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Another choice would be to list it at Wikipedia:Requested articles/Arts and entertainment/Film, radio and television#Film and television; anime is separate at the top of the page. You could include any reference in the edit summary. Dru of Id (talk) 08:04, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Unless enough independent reliable sources have written about the film to make it notable by Wikipedia's standard, any such article will be deleted, so unless you can find such sources, don't waste your time working on the article. --ColinFine (talk) 11:56, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Article / Photo Scheduled for Deletion[edit]

Hello to However can help me. I came across a photo that is scheduled for deletion.

I want someone to know that I object to the removal of this combat photo from World War Two.

I found and will use this reference in an article I am writing of the gorilla war in the Philippine Islands .

This is a piece of history of this Island nation that should not be taken from public use.

File:WWII_Filipino_bolo_duel.jpg

This picture shows one combat method used by the Filipino People to defend their homes. There are

very few left alive who remember these knives and those who used them for defense.

Please allow this picture and its description to stay so that other researchers of WW2 can find and

use it.

Thank You,

One American Researcher. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.48.57.218 (talk) 07:02, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I've linked the above file name so that it's easier for respondents to find. Dismas|^(talk) 07:22, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

The picture is copyrighted, so it will very likely be deleted. See the image use policy for more. AndieM (Am I behaving?) 11:58, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Nobody is arguing that the picture is not valuable. The problem is that it belongs to somebody else (copyright) so unless you can successfully argue that it meets the (very restrictive) criteria for using non-free images, it must be deleted to stay within the law. --ColinFine (talk) 12:04, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Redlinks that will forever be redlinks[edit]

If I have a redlink that is unlikely to ever have an article created at the target of the link, should that redlink be kept? WP:REDLINK says "Articles should not have red links to topics that are unlikely ever to have an article, such as a celebrity's romantic interest (who is not a celebrity in his or her own right, and thus lacks notability)." The problem I came across is the redlink is for a person having published a paper significant to the topic of an article. I don't know how to determine how "likely" it is that an article be created for that person, but on notability grounds it seems very unlikely. -- Toshio Yamaguchi (tlk−ctb) 09:09, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

It would help if you show us the redlink you are concerned about. Roger (talk) 09:18, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

The link is Waldemar Meissner links. -- Toshio Yamaguchi (tlk−ctb) 09:20, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Don't worry about it. What harm does it do anyone if some mathematician takes two years to get a round tuit? Britmax (talk) 09:25, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I don't believe Waldemar Meissner will ever have an article. If it should be a redirected, the most appropriate target would be Walther Meissner, Waldemars son. However I think such a redirect might be confusing and I don't have a better redirect target. Thus I think the wikilink should be removed altogether, but I couldn't find a guideline for such a case. -- Toshio Yamaguchi (tlk−ctb) 09:29, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Oh, WP:REDNOT seems to be the applicable guideline. -- Toshio Yamaguchi (tlk−ctb) 09:32, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

(edit conflict) I removed the redlink. -- Toshio Yamaguchi (tlk−ctb) 09:38, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Clickable Image Map[edit]

How to add a clickable image map in a Wiki article? So, that if the cursor is hovered over the image, a hand like thing may appear, on which we may click and reach the name printed in the map, in that particular place.--Jagadhatri(২০১২) 09:36, 6 May 2012 (UTC) Please leave me a Tb template whenever replying.Thanking you in advance.--Jagadhatri(২০১২) 10:08, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

See mw:Extension:ImageMap. PrimeHunter (talk) 10:38, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

But how do I get the coordinates? Like they have done here:

poly 133 343 124 287 159 224 189 228 195 291 222 311 209 343 209 354 243 362 292 466 250 463 Dr Johnson - Dictionary writer poly 76 224 84 255 43 302 62 400 123 423 121 361 137 344 122 290 111 234 96 225 Boswell - Biographer.........--Jagadhatri(২০১২) 10:43, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

You must either work them out manually by measuring on the image, or use an external tool. mw:Extension:ImageMap#See also links to some tools. PrimeHunter (talk) 11:12, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

See {{Image label}} for an alternative to image maps. This allows you to place named links on an image without text. PrimeHunter (talk) 11:22, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

UAE name change[edit]

On the UAE article, an IP changed all the mentions of Persian Gulf to Arabian Gulf. There are two reasons I'm not being bold and reverting it myself.

I don't know the correct policy on this issue (changing names without consensus)
I don't want to get dragged into a ugly naming dispute (and possibly an edit war)

Perhaps one of you can find the correct policy and either let the changes stay or revert them. Thanks, David1217 (talk) 15:34, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Looking through the geographic naming disputes I've run into before, the closest I can get you is Wikipedia:Naming conventions (geographic names) and Persian Gulf naming dispute; perhaps someone else can be more specific. Dru of Id (talk) 17:00, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Per the article on Arabian Gulf, it could refer to the Red Sea or the Persian Gulf, "a body of water sometimes controversially referred to as the Arabian Gulf or The Gulf by some Arab countries" (→ ambiguous). I'd apply WP:BRD; revert the bold IP edit, drop a note on his/her user talkpage, and start a new section at Talk:UAE. If it doesn't find input you can always request for comment. benzband (talk) 17:41, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I have reverted it all to Persian Gulf, as this is what Wikipedia calls that body of water. If the IP wants to get things changed, he should start by presenting his case at Talk:Persian_Gulf. Maproom (talk) 19:20, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Template assistance[edit]

I need some assistance with Template:Merge school. It appears that articles with this template are not being placed in the articles to be merged by month categories, or possible the bots that date maintenance tags aren't doing this. Could someone please check whether this template works properly. D O N D E groovily Talk to me 15:59, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Control image size, with a caption?[edit]

In User:DanDaniels/sandbox, the editor wants a caption for the first image (the ampoule on the right), but wants a smaller image. According to Wikipedia:Extended image syntax, you can have a caption with "frame" or "thumb" but not otherwise. There must be a way to do this, any ideas?--SPhilbrick (Talk) 16:37, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Hi Sphilbrick, with "thumb" you can still adjust the size by defining the width in pixels. Thus [[File:Glass ampoule for isothermal microcalorimetry.png|thumb|100px|caption]] would produce the picture you see on the right. To change the size just change the "px" value (minimum 1px). benzband (talk) 17:30, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I knew it would be simple but thanks. Somehow, I decided that "thumb" and ""nn px" were mutually exclusive. --SPhilbrick (Talk) 17:46, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Glad i could help. However "nn px" doesn't seem to work with "frame". Cheers, benzband (talk) 18:27, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Proposed BLP deletion policy[edit]

Hi. I believe the article on Sylvie Etienne should be deleted as a BLP under WP:GNG (the only sources in the article are from the subject's own defunct website and I've not been able to find any reliable sources with Google). The article claims notability as the creator of that website, so WP:SPEEDY A7 doesn't apply. My question is whether WP:BLPPROD can be used on this article. The policy says that the article must have literally no sources so I think my question boils down to this: does writing the URL of a website that no longer exists inside a couple of ref tags constitutes a bad source (in which case I'll set up an AfD) or no source at all (in which case it can be BLPPRODded). Thanks for your time. Dricherby (talk) 18:48, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Of course, it might help if I gave the correct page. It should be Sylvia Etienne. Sorry about that. Dricherby (talk) 19:50, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I felt that maybe the lack of replies meant my question was too technical for the helpdesk so I also asked on the BLPPROD talk page. It was suggested that, if in doubt, one should not use BLPPROD and this advice has now been added to the description of the procedure. I'm happy to count this query as resolved. Dricherby (talk) 16:28, 7 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

A Biased user?[edit]

Sorry if this is the wrong place to say this. After I made a minor edit to the grammar of this article I said in the Edit Summary that it was alright to revert it if there was a problem. I later checked my contributions page and, after a few other links, found that my edit was changed back by a user named Dofedave. Whilst they way it was reverted was perfectly fine, is a person watching a page with the same name unbiased in their views, especially when you check his User page. Is this allowed, or should something be done?

Thanks, Joe1000000 (talk) 18:49, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Perhaps you should discuss it with them. I will put a COI notice on their talkpage in the meantime. Hghyux (talk to me)(talk to others) 19:02, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Duplicate article, how to deal with the talk page?[edit]

Resolved

Hi everyone; although I'm an admin over in the German-language Wikipedia, I'm not familiar with many procedures here, so here's my question: I discovered that the very short article Balmfluh Castle, created in November 2011, was about the same ruin in Switzerland as the older and more comprehensive article Balm ruins, so I changed Balmfluh Castle into a redirect to Balm ruins - which, I hope, is the correct approach? This, however, leaves the talk page at Talk:Balmfluh Castle - what should be done with it? In the German Wikipedia, we would delete it (it only contains some standard templates, no discussion). Is it a Speedy deletion G8 here ("talk pages with no corresponding subject page")? Although I think the redirect should remain. Gestumblindi (talk) 19:16, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

There's no problem with keeping the talk page. In the event that someone needs to discuss the redirect itself, it's a place to do it. Things like Wikiproject templates can be changed to redirect-class, meaning they don't need rankings on the article quality scale. If there's nothing of value either there or in the talk page history, you can delete it as G6 - uncontroversial maintenance. D O N D E groovily Talk to me 19:24, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks, I changed the template to {{WikiProject Switzerland|class=redirect}}; if that's fine, then, well... fine :-) Gestumblindi (talk) 19:35, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Episode list[edit]

I've been trying to create the episode list template on another MediaWiki, I've copied the code from the English Wikipedia, it didn't work properly, does someone know the code that could be used on other MediaWikis. Tate Brandley Stockwell 19:27, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Have you tried WP:VPT?— Vchimpanzee · talk · contributions · 20:10, 10 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Live/Deleted edits[edit]

I popped my name in an edit counter and saw these two categories of edits. Someone tell me the difference please.Ankh.Morpork 20:32, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Your "deleted edits" are the edits you made to pages that have since been deleted. Your "live edits" are those to pages that still exist. -- John of Reading (talk) 20:49, 6 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]