Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2023 January 25

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January 25[edit]

Can Administrator ban Eliminator ?[edit]

Can Administrator ban Eliminator ? Because they are also maintenance members. 27.3.1.196 (talk) 01:47, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

(i) I don't know what you mean by "eliminator". (ii) Administrators block; they (working individually) don't ban. -- Hoary (talk) 02:30, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
"eliminator" is a user group that exists on some wikis but not the English Wikipedia. So this is in the wrong place in addition to being barely intelligible. I'll try to answer anyway: nothing (technically) stops admins from blocking eliminators (on wikis where that group exists) or even other admins. * Pppery * it has begun... 02:44, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
This page is for general help with Wikipedia, for bans/blocks WP:ANI is appropriate, however 'eliminators' are not here on the English Wikipedia so unfortunately we cannot help. Thanks for your query, if you need any other help with anything relating to using Wikipedia feel free to ask. -- StarryNightSky11 03:23, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

sluggishness[edit]

a few minutes ago i just sent a request from my email address and now i'd like to know why you're refusing to allow me to change my password? 68.185.16.109 (talk) 05:01, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Not quite sure what this means but you may get better help on this at WP:VPT. What exactly are you trying to do?--♦IanMacM♦ (talk to me) 07:51, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

how can i change my username[edit]

how can i change my username Brian (talk) 12:38, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Brian.dawe, see WP:Rename. Sungodtemple (talkcontribs) 12:43, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
@Brian.dawe: First use WP:RENAME, afterwards you may request a new username via this link, check that the requested username you wish to use, isn't promotional, offensive, disruptive or any other violation of Wikipedia's Username Policy. -- StarryNightSky11 02:13, 26 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

For the interested, it says you can do it without registering. Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 13:05, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

What have you done to Wiki!!! The main page is a smaller size than before and cannot be made full size as before?[edit]

What have you done to Wiki!!! The main page is a smaller size than before and cannot be made full size as before? Mogouk (talk) 17:48, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Mogouk There should be a toggle in the extreme lower right corner that you can use to increase the page with. The default skin has changed, see WP:VECTOR2022 for more information. You may switch back to the old skin in your account preferences. 331dot (talk) 17:50, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
331dot I don't see this toggle. Uporządnicki (talk) 02:09, 26 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Quite a number of us don't see the toggle. It was raised here some days ago, but it is still unresolved. There was a suggestion that it was connected with zoom level, but (for me at least) that doesn't seem to be the answer. I'll see whether we can get any more sense at WP:VPT. - David Biddulph (talk) 08:42, 26 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
@Mogouk: If for some reason you don't see the in the lower-right corner of the window even after zooming out, you can uncheck Preferences → Appearance → Skin preferences → uncheck Enable limited width mode. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) 09:07, 26 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
I have the toggle thingie now. And toggling it changes the toggle thingie--and does absolutely nothing else. I've tried this on a Mac and on a Windows PC. Same results--the little toggle symbol changes, and nothing else. Uporządnicki (talk) 10:53, 27 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
I correct myself. I've just seen one more thing that the toggle thingie changes. To the left of an article, there is the table of contents. The table of contents has a scroll bar to its right--between the table of contents and the article. Toggling that toggle thingie moves that scroll bar about an eighth of an inch to the left and right. It doens't change anything in the table of contents; it doesn't change anything in the article; it doesn't change the width, position, or layout of either. It just moves the scroll bar over a little bit. Uporządnicki (talk) 12:38, 27 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

how do i get the website back to normal?[edit]

 – Refactored heading due to length. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) 18:39, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

@Theredesignisterrible: Are you asking about a sudden change to Wikipedia's appearance? It is because the default skin has changed from the Vector legacy (2010) skin to the new Vector (2022) skin. If you would like to change back to the old one, you can, as a registered user, click on the in the top-right corner and choose Preferences. Once there, go to Preferences → Appearance → Skins → check Vector legacy (2010).
If you would like to leave feedback, you can do so at Wikipedia talk:Vector 2022. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) 18:39, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

editing wikipedia page[edit]

I have been trying to edit my Wikipedia page for about a week now and every time I change something it never stays and it reverts back to its original page. We keep getting messages from Wikipedia “authors” saying you did not explain what you changed when I went into great detail of what I changed every single time. I am not understanding exactly what needs to be done and no one has explained to me what I need to do. Please inform me of the EXACT STEPS that need to be done in order to make the changes I must make on a Wikipedia page for them to stay. Joeltenthplanet (talk) 18:43, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

@Joeltenthplanet: If you really are Joel Gallen, you are strongly discouraged from editing about yourself, even more so if you're pulling from unverifiable knowledge and not from reliable sources. I would suggest that you confine your edits to edit requests on the article's talk page. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) 18:46, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Joeltenthplanet: you removed referenced (and therefore already public) information about yourself, and added unreferenced information about things that anyway haven't happened yet. Both are against Wikipedia's policies. And, as Tenryuu has said, you shouldn't be editing an article about yourself; instead you can make suggestions for edits on the article's talk page, preferably mentioning sources that confirm anything you want to add. Maproom (talk) 19:00, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Tenryuu 🐲 Maproom Actually, the alleged reference about where he lives and his son links to a 404. Uporządnicki (talk) 19:15, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
I now understand I must cite the new information I insert. I did not know that before.  I apologize.  Do I do that by clicking cite and adding the URL that proves that information correct?
Is it possible to get on the phone with someone so we can better understand each other and I can confirm I am who I say I am?
May I ask who is editing my page if I am encouraged not to? There are major shows missing that I would like to update. Is there someone I can talk to in order to inform them of what needs to be updated/removed?  Do I need to send someone a draft of what I want to be changed and wait for approval? If so, where/how do I do that? Joeltenthplanet (talk) 20:07, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
I don't think anyone here on enWiki is going to communicate via a phone call. ― Blaze WolfTalkBlaze Wolf#6545 20:10, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Can I email someone?
I just received a message that I have been partially blocked but haven't published any changes today. I just want to better understand how I can make my changes stay. Who do I need to talk to about making changes to my page? Joeltenthplanet (talk) 20:21, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Your best bet is to get the attention of uninvolved editors through an edit request at Talk:Joel Gallen as mentioned earlier. It is also in your best interest to read Wikipedia:Ownership of content (i.e., you are the subject of the article, and you do not have any rights to ownership over it) and Wikipedia:An article about yourself isn't necessarily a good thing. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) 20:28, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
@Joeltenthplanet: you will find some advice at WP:AUTOPROB, and you may also be interested in the plain and simple guide to conflict of interest. Ivanvector (Talk/Edits) 20:31, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
@Joeltenthplanet: there is nobody to call or e-mail, because that is not how Wikipedia works. We have more than 6 million articles, and in any given 30-day period we have more than 100,000 editors, all volunteers. Each editor does whatever tasks they choose to do, with almost no formal co-ordination. The editors that are interested in a particular article work collaboratively and openly to reach a consensus by communicating on that article's talk page. Please open a conversation there. If nobody replies, then add the syntax {{edit request}} to the material you added on the talk page. -Arch dude (talk) 22:14, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

How do I make my edits, "Constructive"[edit]

A good fellow by the username of @materialscience, sent me a message saying he/she undid my edits to the Winfield, WV page. He/She told me my work did not appear as constructive. TurkeyVultureHistory (talk) 22:41, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry, I meant @Materialscientist. TurkeyVultureHistory (talk) 22:43, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
@TurkeyVultureHistory your two edits added information but did not provide a reliable source that readers could use to verify that what you wrote is factually correct. Wikipedia article cannot be based on what editors know, or think they know, but only on what is already published and can be cited. Anything else we call original research and is hence "unconstructive". Mike Turnbull (talk) 22:55, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Thank you. Next time I'll be sure to add my citations.
Thank you a ton, Mike. TurkeyVultureHistory (talk) 22:59, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
@TurkeyVultureHistory: Unless an edit is fixing typos, grammar or spelling errors, any added information must contain at least one Reliable source otherwise it can be considered 'unconstructive' as unsourced information isn't allowed here. StarryNightSky11 02:09, 26 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
I have never warmed to the term "unconstructive" as it pertains to "disruptive editing" at WP as the terms have a connotation of intent. It is important to reiterate that the term "unconstructive" can refer to accidental edits made by uninformed editors. The fact that by definition WP policy relates "good faith" with "harmful" is discouraging. The redirect for "unconstructive" to "disruptive" teeters back and forth between "intentional" and "unintentional". Considering unsourced content makes up a considerable part of WP but is not considered "unconstructive", it might be beneficial to welcome new editors with something other than a term such as "unconstructive". Maineartists (talk) 02:46, 26 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]
RedWarn has "quick rollback no reliable source" as a default option. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) 03:03, 26 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Hello, could you please connect Nazran uprising to already existing Russian page Назрановское Восстание and Gligvi to already existing Russian page Глигвы? Thank you.WikiEditor1234567123 (talk) 22:50, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

As has been mentioned before, such links need to be made in Wikidata. I've done it for the second pair, but ru:Назрановское Восстание doesn't exist so you'll need to sort that out for yourself. David Biddulph (talk) 23:05, 25 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]

My apologies, it's Назрановское восстание, not Назрановское Восстание. WikiEditor1234567123 (talk) 16:52, 26 January 2023 (UTC)[reply]