Help desk
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October 20[edit]

Help correct the reference of 2004 Opening ceremony Athens Olympics[edit]

I need help here to correct and fix the Opening Ceremony of Athens 2004 Olympics. I just put in the reference. 108.21.67.83 (talk) 01:54, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Fixed. Reference name was used more than once, which caused the error. 🛧Midori No Sora♪🛪 ( ☁＝☁＝✈) 02:00, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you very much. 108.21.67.83 (talk) 02:03, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Martineau family[edit]

Ref number 15 is in red - I cannot fix - bad device. Please fix if you can. Sorry 115.70.23.77 (talk) 03:25, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

It has "access-date=20 October 20233". I fixed it, but it should be easy for you to do next time. Also, please read WP:CITETRIM, one brief sentence does not need six references. RudolfRed (talk) 04:03, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

oops, typo I missed a word in my reply! RudolfRed (talk) 04:06, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Setting up an alternate acccount[edit]

Hi, I've set up an alternate account for edits when not on my main laptop. I like to test on mobile device and old computers, but I don't want to go log in to a bunch of random devices or stay logged in on my phone. So I tend to make small corrections as an IP. As I've been around, I've come to see many users create an alt, and I've seen a lot of people express the idea that there is something inherently fishy about logged out editing. I have several questions even after reading about alts:

Is there anything specific I need to do to edit with an alt? I've chosen a similar user name, put a notice, and linked both of my talk pages to each other.
Am I meant to fold my old IP edits into the alt account somehow? If you check the most recent edit on NotLD[1]: that's me and all other edits under that IP are also me.
Can I participate in discussions with the alt? I made it for small fixes, so this will likely not come up. I just want to make sure that I understand. I think if I want to participate in an RfC or AfD, I'm meant to not use this account, since it could appear as bonus person?

Sorry for the confusion, Rjjiii (ii) (talk) 05:15, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

From my general experience (others may point you to specific policies):

1. You have done exactly the right things – you have a good reason for having two accounts, and you have made their connection completely clear.

2. It isn't possible to combine IP edits into a named account, but you can if you wish mention on either or both of your User pages what IP(s) you have previously used, although this might compromise your anonimity if it's a fixed IP you still have, so you don't have to.

3. In such discussions, you can use either account, BUT you should only use one in any specific discussion or linked discussions.

Hope this helps, and links by others to written policies welcomed. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 5.68.252.202 (talk) 05:37, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks! Rjjiii (ii) (talk) 06:05, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

What are the rules....[edit]

where is the specials... 2603:6080:82F0:740:80F0:2A2D:873A:D504 (talk) 05:52, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

For the Specials, see The Specials. If you have something else in mind, please describe it, lucidly. -- Hoary (talk) 07:08, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Are you looking for the Wikipedia:RULES? Shantavira|^{feed me} 08:07, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Lost account access[edit]

Hello. I used to edit a lot of Wikipedia articles but have been away from it for a few years. I've forgotten my account password and the email address no longer exists -- the whole domain was closed by the company. How would I go about regaining access to my account? I remember an old password, though that must not have been the last one I used. Many thanks 2A02:6B60:E363:0:DD7:DBBE:9EBD:D690 (talk) 09:21, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

yeah, we can't help you here. you can create a new account, noting the username of the previous account on the new account's userpage. ltbdl (talk) 12:02, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

To expand on ltbdl's reply, it's not that we don't want to help you: it is technically impossible to recover an account where the password has been lost and there is no valid email attached to it. That's why ltbdl suggested creating a new account. ColinFine (talk) 13:09, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

There have been cases with a large edit count or elevated user rights where somebody with server access set a new mail address for an account if a user made a request at Phabricator with strong evidence it was their account. There are no standard criteria for it and English Wikipedia administrators like me cannot do it. PrimeHunter (talk) 21:41, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

If the old domain name is unregistered (lapsed or squatted), you could buy it and set up an email account there to receive the password reset emails for the old account. If the domain name is still owned by the company or usurped by e.g. a scummy gambling site, you're outta luck, but I would encourage you to register a new account and embrace the experience of rebirth. Demonstrate to yourself the ways you've changed since you were last active here, what within you has remained constant, and maybe what parts of yourself have lain dormant that you'd like to reclaim. Mystically, Folly Mox (talk) 22:28, 21 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Link[edit]

Added a name to a list, and I was able to get the name to link but the band associated shows up on Wikipedia as; Raspberries (band), if I leave out ‘band’ it just links to a page about the fruit. If I add band in parentheses it says page not created. Tamastein (talk) 13:24, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Here is how to do a link (click edit to see the markup): Raspberries (band). If you don't want the word 'band' to appear, write Raspberries. Girth Summit _(blether) 13:27, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

@Tamastein - The link to the band Raspberries in the Open-handed drumming article is correctly formatted. Happy editing! GoingBatty (talk) 14:08, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

To close a discussion[edit]

I opened a discussion by creating new section in talk page of an article. Now that I was satisfied to close discussion. Can I do it? And if YES then what is the template. I seen below my section an edit request was closed using a edit request answered template. Is their any such template to close a discussion?? Thanks in advance! `~ᴀɴᴋʀᴀᴊ ɢɪʀɪ🎇✨ 14:56, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

There is no formal process required to close a discussion on a talk page, unless it is already formal in some way (such as an WP:RFC).

Often, people simply stop posting to a discussion. But you can use a template such as {{resolved mark}} (

Resolved) if you wish. See Template:Close for a list of such templates. ColinFine (talk) 19:44, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

People from Mallemort cat[edit]

Hi Folks!!, I created this category. I don't know if its correctly formed. I found four people who were from that town. If somebody could take a look at it. Thanks. scope_creep^Talk 19:34, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Courtesy link: [[:Category:People from Mallemort]]. --ColinFine (talk) 19:47, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

University president[edit]

I am in the communications department at the University of the District of Columbia and need to add our President to wikipedia. Can you please assist? Ashantai1983 (talk) 19:40, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

To add to what Arch dude says: first, thank you for asking, rather than just ploughing in and trying it. Secondly, I recommend you read BOSS first. ColinFine (talk) 20:06, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

@Ashantai1983: Sure!

Mandatory first step: declare you status as a paid editor: see WP:PAID
Read several ariticles here on similar subjects as yours: (university presidents) to get a feel for the proper tone and format.
Make certain that your subject is notable by our definition. Notability is the only absolute requirement for a Wikipedia article. See WP:N. Do not skip this step.
Gather references that establish notability. Your university web site is not by itself sufficient, because it is not "independent of the subject".
Proceed to WP:YFA
Come back here if you have further questions.

-Arch dude (talk) 20:01, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Party apportionment diagrams[edit]

Is there a generally recognized order in sorting party apportionment diagrams on legislative articles. Pages on French parliaments seem to order the diagrams ideologically (left-wing to right-wing). Diagrams I create go by majority to minority (left to right). I figured I'd make sure if one is more common than the other before creating a bunch more. Krisgabwoosh (talk) 20:45, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Sorted ideologically
Sorted by majority

I would think left to right in Europe. Previous graphics could also suggest a format. The Left–right political spectrum was apparently invented in France. TSventon (talk) 22:17, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

I would have a mild personal preference for sorting ideologically from left to right. I also have two comments:

Your Bolivian example starts with two singletons, at the majority end. My guess is that these are two members with special roles (like the Speaker in some English-speaking countries).
In both your examples, small parties appear as straggling or broken lines. It would be better to shown them as connected clumps — though I appreciate that programming that would be hard. Maproom (talk) 08:04, 21 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

For point two, that's an easy fix as I have a bit of know-how on editing svgs. In terms of your first point, this actually brings up a second concept I was curious about: is there an ideal way to show members of individual parties within a larger alliance? In this instance, I took the two non-party members (red and green) and bordered them with the alliance's colors. Krisgabwoosh (talk) 18:21, 21 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]