Wikipedia:WikiProject Mathematics/Editor resources

Wikipedia:WikiProject Mathematics is an informal collection of editors who seek to improve and maintain the mathematics articles on WIkipedia. This page contains a collection of advice and resources that we find helpful.

How to write a great mathematics article

Editors are encouraged to be bold, but not reckless, in editing articles. If something seems wrong, feel free to fix it or move it to a talk page for discussion. If an article or section needs to be rewritten, or if you have something to add, feel free to do so yourself. Other editors will often respond to an initial change by editing the article themselves, so even a few small edits can lead to significant improvement.

The main point in writing any article is to keep the intended reader in mind; an article on Fermat's Last Theorem is very different than an article on étale cohomology. Some editors have written advice about writing on Wikipedia:

The Wikipedia Manual of Style for mathematics also offers useful suggestions on how to structure a mathematics article, as well as on the writing style and many other issues.

Wikipedia standards

The five pillars of Wikipedia contain the general principles guiding the encyclopedia.

It is important that material in articles can be attributed to reliable sources. There are encyclopedia-wide policies requiring verifiability of article content and prohibiting many forms of original research. The scientific citation guidelines explain the ideals we have for attribution in mathematics articles. Special guidelines apply to biographies of living persons.

How to deal with content disputes

What I had to face, the very bitter lesson that everyone who wants to write has got to learn, was that a thing may in itself be the finest piece of writing one has ever done, and yet have absolutely no place in the manuscript one hopes to publish.
—Thomas Wolfe

Different editors will often have different opinions about the proper content of an article. The way to resolve such disagreements is by discussion; the content of articles is decided by consensus rather than voting. Remember that, in many cases, all editors involved will understand the mathematics but disagree on how to write about it, in which case merely describing the mathematical ideas will not change anyone's mind. Previous discussion in the talk page archives of the article may show how the article came to its present state.

In every case, avoid repeatedly reverting the edits of another editor (except in case of obvious vandalism). It is unproductive for reaching consensus and can lead to you being blocked under the three-revert rule if continued. The essay WP:BRD describes one strategy for finding conensus on the content of an article.

How to deal with vandalism

Vandalism is a fact of life at Wikipedia. For one-time vandalism to a single page, the best solution is to revert it and forget it. There is no requirement to report it anywhere. If you wish, you may place a warning template message on the user's talk page. These warning messages let other editors know that the user has engaged in vandalism before. Please be aware that some vandalism is caused by new editors testing whether they truly can edit any article, so the content of the user's edit should be taken into account when warning the user.

Editors who disface many pages in a short period of time, or who repeatedly vandalize a single page, may be blocked if they do not appear likely to stop vandalizing. Blocks are intended only to slow down vandalism, not to punish editors; a typical block for vandalism will last no more than 24 hours.

Only administrators have the ability to block users, and a procedure must be followed to request a block. The first step is to place an appropriate warning template message on the vandal's talk page. If the editor continues to vandalize after a high-level template is placed, the editor may be reported at WP:AIV, where an administrator will decide whether to block the user.

Some editors repeatedly add the same material to a single article despite consensus against doing so. For example, an editor may claim that he or she has a new proof of Fermat's Last Theorem and wish to add this to the article. If any editor makes more than three reversions to the same article within a 24 hour period, this may be reported at WP:AN3.

More complex situations that require a detailed analysis by an administrator may be reported at WP:ANI.

Syntax and Style

Figures

Creating graphs and diagrams

Referencing

Reference resources

Wikipedia standards

WikiProject Mathematics

User interface customization

You can customize many aspects of the user interface using CSS and Javascript.

CSS customization
JavaScript customization
Popups — a JavaScript extension that many editors find helpful.

Vandalism

Warning templates
WP:AIV — for continued blatant vandalism after warnings.
WP:AN3 — for four or more additions or deletions of the same material at a single page within a 24 hour period.
WP:ANI — for complex situations requiring an administrator.