Talk:Iowa-class battleship/FAQ

I added something to the article but it got removed. Why?

In all probability what you added was unsourced information or information cited to an unreliable source; such information is usually removed quickly because of the article's Featured Status. Featured Articles on Wikipedia require reliable sources for an independent verification of the facts presented, consequently any information added to a Featured Article without a reliable source is subject to removal from the article at any Wikipedian's discretion.

I see information in the article that has no source. What should I do?

This sources used in this article are cited at the end of each paragraph (known on Wikipedia as "per paragraph citation") so a check of the numbered note at the end of the paragraph should provide the source for the information. If this does not work, then add {{cn}} to the suspicious information to draw attention to information that may not be cited by a source. Alternatively, you may add reliable sources to the uncited information by using ref tabs (<ref></ref>). If you do add a source to the article consider using one of the citation template(s) to ensure that you add all necessary information from your source to the article.

The entire article makes reference to the ships as "she", shouldn't the battleships be referenced as "it"?

This is an issue that has come up repeatedly, and the consensus of the editors for the Military history WikiProject and its contributors is that ship articles on Wikipedia may use an all "she/her" format or an all "it" format, but the article may not alternate between the two forms of reference. The primary source of U.S. ship articles is the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS), which refers to all ships as "she" or "her", and as a result is it easier for some members to simply carry that format through the rest of the article.

Why is Battleship Battle Group abbreviated BBBG? Shouldn't it be BBG?

In United States Navy terminology "BB" is used to denote a "Battleship", while "G" refers to a ship capable of carrying and launching guided missiles. "BBG" would therefore translate into "Guided Missile Battleship", not "Battleship Battle Group". For this reason it is necessary to use three Bs: "BB" for battleship, "BG" for battle group.

Why doesn't this article compare the Iowa-class battleships to other battleship classes like the Yamato’s?

When originally featured back in 2005 the article did have a comparison section, however the presence of a comparison section resulted in a two month edit war over which nation's battleships deserved to be compared on the class page. Ultimately, a compromise was struck and the section left in until the March 2007 rewrite, at which time the comparison section was removed in accordance with What Wikipedia is not and Wikipedia's policy against Original Research. A discussion held in late 2007 reaffirmed the decision to omit any type of comparison of battleship classes in this article, thus any comparison information for the classes should not be discussed on this page.

If reliable sources were located could a comparison section be added?

Again, the answer is no. Since no Iowa-class battleship ever fought against an enemy battleship the best sources, even authoritative ones, would be speculative in nature. References that are speculative in nature are not reliable, and because Iowa-class battleship is currently a Featured Article the inclusion of such material would fatally compromise the article quality, which in the long run could result in a downgrading of the article. Worse, any openly visible comparison section in the article would invite another edit war to take place over the issue of whose battleships get a mention here. Edit wars are not tolerated on Wikipedia, and the presence of warring editors here may adversely effect the ability of contributors to edit the article as they please because articles involved in edit wars are almost always protected.

If the community does not approve of comparisons then why do you mention the Yamato-class in the notes section, and why is there a comparison site in the external links section?

The inline citation you are referring to was added solely to point out that other battleships individually had certain characteristics that exceeded the Iowa-class. A single reference to Yamato is made because Yamato holds the world record for largest naval guns ever put to sea. As for the external link, the website is in fact a comparison site for seven different battleship classes; however, the link is to a website maintained off Wikipedia. It was included here in part to dissuade critics who felt that some level of comparison was needed in the article. The link has survived the 2007 discussion regarding comparisons of class in Wikipedia articles, and as such is considered an acceptable substitute for a comparison section here on Wikipedia.

This article is long!

Yes it is. In part due to its length general and specific characteristics have been split, general information on the class history can be found on this article, info on the weapons used by the battleship can be found at armament of the Iowa class battleship, and the history of each ship can be found on that ship's individual page.