Lesson: Introduction to Wikipedia editing

The following lesson plan describes an overall introduction to editing English Wikipedia.

It is not intended as a literal step-by-step guide, instead it offers an outline by example, and should be tailored to suit the individual students.

Duration: Approx. 1 - 2 hours; easily split into shorter multiple lessons as appropriate

Remember that everyone learns at a different pace; there is no deadline. Some people will absorb all the facts very quickly, others may be initially overwhelmed; in the latter case, it may be appropriate to focus on the very basics and leave the rest until later. Conversely, if a "tech savvy" user is keen to learn intricate template encoding, then don't hold them back.

Materials

Welcome template with a link to a test page, User:Chzz/w
Sample text with sections User:chzz/Section example

Ethos

Teaching by doing; people are much more likely to learn and understand if they actually perform the edits themselves
A flexible approach; try to tailor examples to the users interests - e.g. use an appropriate picture in the examples; point them towards project groups that match their edits
Encourage questions
Use mistakes as opportunities; if the user messes things up with an edit, it is a great chance to show how easy it is to 'undo'
Encourage good practice from the very beginning - signing, using edit summaries, the need for references and so on

Objectives

Create a userspace test page (if not done in earlier lesson)
Use edit summaries
Bold, italics
WP:Wikilink and piped links
External links
Images, thumbnail
New == Sections == and the TOC
A simple template {{unreferenced}}
References - simple, named and a brief mention of {{citation}}
Leaving a talk-page message, signing, and message alerts (if not done in earlier lesson)

Example session

[03:28] * NewWikipedian has joined #wikipedia-en-ambassadors

[03:28] <Helpmebot> Welcome to #wikipedia-en-ambassadors, the Wikipedia Ambassadors help channel! Feel free to ask as many questions as you like, a helper should be around shortly to answer your questions!

[03:28] <Ambassador> Hi NewWikipedian

[03:28] <NewWikipedian> hi

[03:29] <NewWikipedian> first time I'm here

[03:29] <NewWikipedian> so how does all this work

[03:30] <Ambassador> This is the help channel, for English Wikipedia. So - are you a new user?

[03:30] <NewWikipedian> yes ..

[03:30] <Ambassador> Welcome, then. What is your username on Wikipedia?

[03:30] <NewWikipedian> actually I just joined as a member today

[03:30] <Ambassador> cool

[03:31] <NewWikipedian> NewWikipedian123 is my username

[03:32] <Ambassador> Ok, so, for a start - are you logged in now, in another window?

[03:32] <NewWikipedian> well I was til I came here .. in another window that is

[03:32] <Ambassador> OK - well, if you can open wikipedia, in another window or tab, and click on 'my talk page' at the top-right (near your username) you will see that I've left you a 'welcome' message

[03:33] <NewWikipedian> where is the welcome page? LOL

[03:33] <Ambassador> can you get yourself logged in?

[03:33] <Ambassador> I'll talk you through it from there

[03:34] <NewWikipedian> I opened a new tab and I"m still logged in

[03:34] <Ambassador> ok - near the top right, just after your user name, click on "my talk"

[03:34] <NewWikipedian> k

[03:34] <Ambassador> you'll see messages; one is a big "Welcome and introduction" with a cartoon picture, yes?

[03:35] <NewWikipedian> big page with lots of text

[03:35] <Ambassador> yep, ok; look for this line;

[03:35] <Ambassador> Play in your user area. For example, create User:NewWikipedian123/test.

[03:35] <Ambassador> Do you see that? in the box?

[03:36] <Ambassador> look for the red bit

[03:36] <NewWikipedian> um

[03:36] <NewWikipedian> I see a msg from ambassador-chick42

[03:37] <Ambassador> a few lines down, in the box it says;

[03:37] <Ambassador> * You don't need to read anything - anybody can edit; just go to an article and edit it. Be Bold, but please don't put silly stuff in - it will be removed very quickly, and will annoy people.

[03:37] <Ambassador> * Ask for help. Talk to us live, or edit this page, put {{helpme}} and describe what help you need. Someone will reply very quickly - usually within a few minutes.

[03:37] <Ambassador> * Play in your user area. For example, create User:NewWikipedian123/test.

[03:37] <Ambassador> ...can you see the part in red?

[03:38] <NewWikipedian> looking for a red part

[03:38] <NewWikipedian> ok I see the play in user area part

[03:38] <Ambassador> ok - click the red bit

[03:38] <Ambassador> don't do anything else; I'll go through it, one bit at a time

[03:39] <Ambassador> so - you'll see a big empty edit box

[03:39] <NewWikipedian> yeah an editor

[03:39] <Ambassador> we're making a test page - you can try things on it...it is in your own user area, so it does no harm

[03:39] <Ambassador> ok, so - just write 'hello' and then...

[03:40] <Ambassador> ...underneath the big edit box, to the right, is a small 'edit summary' box. Do you see that?

[03:40] <NewWikipedian> i c it

[03:40] <Ambassador> ok - in the 'edit summary' just put 'test' It is important to *always* put something in the edit summary, to say what you are doing.

[03:40] <Ambassador> then save it (click 'save')

[03:41] <NewWikipedian> ok I clicked save

[03:41] <Ambassador> cool; one second...

[03:41] <NewWikipedian> does it have a captcha thing at the top?

[03:41] <Ambassador> ...ok, is it now asking you to type in some wiggly letters?

[03:41] <Ambassador> yes

[03:41] <Ambassador> please do that

[03:41] <NewWikipedian> sec

[03:42] <Ambassador> ...it's just because the account is new. It won't happen after a short time.

[03:42] <NewWikipedian> ok done

[03:42] * Ambassador looks...

[03:42] <Ambassador> ...yep, great, I see the page. So - we've made a page. Called "User:NewWikipedian123/test"

[03:42] <NewWikipedian> yes

[03:42] <NewWikipedian> :D

[03:42] <Ambassador> because it is called "User:NewWikipedian123/.....something..." it is in your own area, ok?

[03:43] <Ambassador> So, you can do anything you like there; to get the hang of editing.

[03:43] <NewWikipedian> ok I understand that part

[03:43] <Ambassador> Now...let me show you something...

[03:43] <Ambassador> ...if you click on 'my talk' again near the top right - to get back to your talk page, with the 'welcome'

[03:43] <Ambassador> ...let me know if you see the 'welcome' stuff again?

[03:43] <NewWikipedian> yes

[03:44] <Ambassador> ok, what I wanted to explain was...

[03:44] <Ambassador> ...the link is now blue, not red, yes?

[03:44] <Ambassador> Play in your user area. For example, create User:NewWikipedian123/test.

[03:44] <Ambassador> ...because, that page now exists.

[03:44] <NewWikipedian> k

[03:44] <Ambassador> a 'red link' is a non-existent page. A blue one is a 'wikilink'

[03:44] <Ambassador> cool; ok; click the blue link

[03:44] <Ambassador> you'll see the 'hello' page again?

[03:45] <NewWikipedian> yes

[03:45] <Ambassador> right; I just wanted to show you - you can always get back to it, like that. So, now, click the 'edit' tab at the top

[03:45] <Ambassador> you'll be back in the edit box, and you'll see the 'hello' yes?

[03:45] <NewWikipedian> yes

[03:45] <Ambassador> ok; now try adding '''something in bold''' and ''something in italics''

[03:46] <Ambassador> if you put text within three apostrophes, it will appear in bold

[03:46] <Ambassador> 2 for italics.

[03:46] <Ambassador> So, try that - any text you like - then remember to fill in the 'edit summary' - put "trying bold and italics" and then save it again

[03:47] <NewWikipedian> done

[03:47] * Ambassador looks...

[03:47] <Ambassador> yep, great. So that's bold and italics. Let's try something else... I'm gonna assume, now, that you know how to click 'edit' and you'll remember to put in the edit summary. So...

[03:47] <Ambassador> ...edit the page, and try [[sausage]] just like that. save it.

[03:48] <Ambassador> this is a 'wikilink'

[03:48] <Ambassador> so you could put 'trying a wikilink' in the edit summary - but anything is ok. 'testing' or whatever

[03:48] <NewWikipedian> done

[03:48] <Ambassador> When you save that, the word 'sausage' should be blue, yes?

[03:49] <NewWikipedian> yes

[03:49] <Ambassador> ok - click on it

[03:49] <Ambassador> you'll see the article about sausages

[03:49] <Ambassador> so does that bit make sense?

[03:49] <NewWikipedian> far out

[03:49] <NewWikipedian> yes

[03:49] <NewWikipedian> how do I get back to my edit page

[03:50] <Ambassador> either 'back' in your browser, or, click 'my talk' at the top right, then follow the link in the welcome message

[03:50] <Ambassador> let me know when you get back to the test page

[03:50] <NewWikipedian> back

[03:51] <Ambassador> great, ok, cool. Now, you will come up on a question; imagine you want to say "I live in Eastwood" BUT the article about it is actually called "Eastwood, Florida" - you do it like this;

[03:51] <Ambassador> I live in [[Eastwood, Florida|Eastwood]]

[03:52] <Ambassador> In the middle there is a 'pipe symbol' - you know? A vertical bar

[03:52] <Ambassador> |

[03:52] <Ambassador> Try that;

[03:52] <Ambassador> it will link the word "Eastwood" to the article called "Eastwood, Florida"

[03:52] <Ambassador> a piped link

[03:53] <NewWikipedian> hmm

[03:53] <Ambassador> I'll go as slow as you like, so if you get lost, just say so, and I'll try to explain better.

[03:53] <NewWikipedian> the mouseover takes it to Eastwood,_florida ?

[03:53] <Ambassador> yes, exactly

[03:54] <Ambassador> click it

[03:54] <Ambassador> it should link to the correct article?

[03:54] <NewWikipedian> it adds the underscore?

[03:54] <Ambassador> no, it links to a different page name. Let me explain.

[03:55] <Ambassador> Imagine that, in an article, you want to write "He met John Smith." ok? But, we have lots of pages on lots of people called John Smith.

[03:55] <NewWikipedian> k

[03:55] <Ambassador> The one you want is, for example, "John Smith (Labour Party leader)" right?

[03:55] <NewWikipedian> k

[03:55] <Ambassador> So, you would write: He met [[John Smith (Labour Party leader)|John Smith]].

[03:55] <Ambassador> Does that make sense now?

[03:56] <NewWikipedian> mmmmmm

[03:56] <Ambassador> it is a way of linking from one word (any word, or words) to any article.

[03:56] <NewWikipedian> not sure why the | is there

[03:56] <Ambassador> e.g. I am a [[Dentistry|dentist]]

[03:56] <Ambassador> The

[03:56] <Ambassador> ok, let me show you.

[03:56] <Ambassador> click 'edit'

[03:56] <Ambassador> and put I am a [[Dentistry|dentist]]

[03:57] <Ambassador> save it

[03:57] <NewWikipedian> so dentistry is the name of the page and dentist is the actual link?

[03:57] <Ambassador> yes

[03:57] <Ambassador> exactly

[03:57] <Ambassador> you've got it

[03:57] <NewWikipedian> k

[03:57] <Ambassador> ok. something more fun. try adding this;

[03:57] <NewWikipedian> cool

[03:57] <Ambassador> [[file:flower.jpg|thumb|This is a flower]]

[03:57] <Ambassador> add that on a line, on its own

[03:58] <Ambassador> save it, see what happens

[03:58] <NewWikipedian> k

[03:58] <Ambassador> did it work? got a picture?

[03:59] <Ambassador> ah, you're a web designer, eh? this'll be easy then. It's a bit like HTML, but simpler

[03:59] <NewWikipedian> :D

[03:59] <Ambassador> you've already learned about half of it all, seriously

[04:00] <NewWikipedian> well.. yes.. web designer/graphic artist .. webmaster for a tv station

[04:00] <Ambassador> ok, so - the 'thumb' thing made it a 'thumbnail', so it can have a caption.

[04:00] <Ambassador> that's the usual way to add pics.

[04:00] <Ambassador> We don't mess around with the sizes, and all that stuff - we keep it simple; let the reader decide how to display it

[04:00] <NewWikipedian> k

[04:01] <Ambassador> ok, now try adding the following two lines, at the end;

[04:01] <Ambassador> == New bit ==

[04:01] <Ambassador> This is a new section

[04:01] <Ambassador> ...save that, let me know

[04:01] <NewWikipedian> its saved

[04:01] <Ambassador> great - that makes a new ==section==

[04:01] <Ambassador> you can have ===subsections=== and stuff too.

[04:01] <Ambassador> Now - please just wait 1 minute...

[04:02] <NewWikipedian> k

[04:02] <Ambassador> I'm going to edit the page, and add a load more == sections == and some ===subsections===

[04:03] <Ambassador> ...ok, done that. please can you 'refresh' the page

[04:03] <Ambassador> now there are more than 4 sections, a 'table of contents' has appeared, yes?

[04:03] <NewWikipedian> ok this is getting fun now

[04:03] <Ambassador> the TOC is automatic; I didn't add it, I only added a load of junk sections

[04:03] <NewWikipedian> k

[04:04] <Ambassador> ok, right; now try adding this, at the top;

[04:04] <Ambassador> {{unreferenced}}

[04:04] <Ambassador> on the top line, on it's own - and save it

[04:04] <NewWikipedian> k done

[04:05] <Ambassador> Great. The {{ }} is for a 'template'. Templates...well, they can do all kinds of clever stuff - but basically they're for adding 'standard messages' and things.

[04:05] <Ambassador> They can take parameters, and all sorts - but that's getting a bit more advanced.

[04:05] <Ambassador> It's like a 'subroutine' - that's all you need to know.

[04:05] <NewWikipedian> like javascript

[04:06] <NewWikipedian> ?

[04:06] <Ambassador> ok, so - now you know how to 'tag' an article as needing references! cool!

[04:06] <Ambassador> yes

[04:06] <Ambassador> it's a way of putting 'some bit of standard code' on a page

[04:06] <Ambassador> So if you find an article with no references, you could add just that.

[04:06] <NewWikipedian> are u here all the time?

[04:06] <Ambassador> yes, pretty much, or somebody is; there are lots of other people in here, too

[04:07] <Ambassador> Do you have a bit more time, to learn how to add a reference?

[04:07] <NewWikipedian> yes

[04:07] <Ambassador> ok great - just follow this bit, and it'll make sense at the end of it;

[04:07] <Ambassador> Simple references. Edit the page and add these bits - it require two parts. Put these two lines at the top of the article;

[04:07] <Ambassador> Chzz is 98 years old.<ref> "The book of Chzz", Aardvark Books, 2009. </ref><

[04:07] <Ambassador> He likes tea.<ref> Tea website </ref>

[04:07] <Ambassador> *Then, right at the end of the article, put these two lines;

[04:07] <Ambassador> == References ==

[04:07] <Ambassador> {{reflist}}

[04:07] <Ambassador> *Save it, let me know if that works.

[04:08] <Ambassador> (copy and paste it, whatever, but - do it, for yourself - best way to learn)

[04:08] <NewWikipedian> which 2 go at the top?

[04:08] <Ambassador> Chzz is 98 years old.<ref> "The book of Chzz", Aardvark Books, 2009. </ref>

[04:08] <Ambassador> He likes tea.<ref> Tea website </ref>

[04:08] <Ambassador> ...those two lines at the top

[04:08] <NewWikipedian> k

[04:09] <Ambassador> and, right at the end of the article, put these two lines;

[04:09] <Ambassador> == References ==

[04:09] <Ambassador> {{reflist}}

[04:09] <Ambassador> Note, it doesn't matter if you mess anything up - everything can be 'undone' - it's a wiki

[04:10] <Ambassador> so don't worry about just trying things out

[04:10] <NewWikipedian> done

* Ambassador looks

[04:10] <Ambassador> ...slow internet...

[04:11] <Ambassador> OK - there it is

[04:11] <Ambassador> ok

[04:11] <Ambassador> notice the small [1]

[04:11] <Ambassador> click it

[04:11] <Ambassador> do you see how it works?

[04:11] <Ambassador> So - that is a simple reference. You can put anything you like between <ref> and </ref>. As long as you have a references section with {{reflist}}, the rest is automatic.

[04:11] <NewWikipedian> yes

[04:11] <Ambassador> great

[04:11] <Ambassador> refs are really important, on articles

[04:11] <NewWikipedian> k

[04:11] <Ambassador> you have to say where the info comes from

[04:12] <Ambassador> ok, I'll just show you one more bit about refs;

[04:12] <NewWikipedian> is that why the text I added before to an article was deleted?

[04:12] <Ambassador> probably, yes. Anything without refs can be removed, by anyone

[04:13] <Ambassador> 'coz they can't tell if it is 'true'

[04:13] <Ambassador> (on an article, that is)

[04:13] <Ambassador> here, on your test page, it's fine

[04:13] <Ambassador> So - if you want to write an aritcle - it's best to work on it in your userspace first, you see - get it into shape

[04:13] <Ambassador> then you can 'move' it to the live area

[04:13] <NewWikipedian> I'm not sure I understand how to add a ref to something I added to an article

[04:14] <Ambassador> same way; the article would already have the ==references== section with the {{reflist}}

[04:14] <NewWikipedian> I was getting frustrated cuz I couldn't figure it out

[04:14] <Ambassador> so, you'd just write He was born in 1234 <ref> Some Magazine, April 1st, 2010 </ref>

[04:14] <Ambassador> or whatever

[04:14] <Ambassador> you should put all the details - the title of the article, the author, all that

[04:15] <Ambassador> make sense?

[04:15] <NewWikipedian> but I was quoting myself LOL

[04:15] <Ambassador> ah, well - can't do that. It all has to be 'verifiable'. That's kinda rule #1

[04:15] <NewWikipedian> as in post link?

[04:15] <Ambassador> hey, no worries; doesn't matter; it's a wiki

[04:15] <Ambassador> yeah, links, if it is on the net.

[04:16] <Ambassador> I didn't say, but... you format an external link like this: [http://www.google.com This is Google] just that.

[04:17] <Ambassador> So...bearing in mind you put everything between <ref> and </ref>, do you now see how this one worked;

[04:17] <Ambassador> He likes tea. <ref> [http://www.nicecupofteaandasitdown.com Tea website] </ref>

[04:17] <Ambassador> Does that make sense now?

[04:17] <NewWikipedian> what about .. "there is no such thing as a pixie -- just people" how would I ref that?

[04:18] <Ambassador> you can only add facts from e.g. books, newspapers, stuff like that.

[04:18] <Ambassador> Gotta 'prove' it

[04:18] <Ambassador> There is probably some book that says "Pixies are fictitious"

[04:18] <Ambassador> so you could ref that book

[04:19] <Ambassador> and you could prob find a book that says that, using Google Book search

[04:19] <NewWikipedian> my head hurts now lol

[04:19] <Ambassador> :-) Don't worry - there is LOTS of help available

[04:19] <Ambassador> you don't have to remember it; there are help pages for everything you could ever want to know

[04:20] <Ambassador> ok - one more little thing, would be a very good idea to learn - how to leave someone a message. OK?

[04:22] <NewWikipedian> k

[04:22] <Ambassador> Let's say you want to write to me. Click on 'my talk' again. Notice that I have 'signed' my name on your talk page - it looks like this: Ambassador (talk)

[04:22] <Ambassador> Can you see my 'signature' thing?

[04:23] <NewWikipedian> k i c it

[04:23] <Ambassador> ok; notice that if you hover over the left part - the 'Ambassador' - it is a link to user:Ambassador - that is my user page.

[04:23] <Ambassador> If you hover over the (talk) it is a link to User talk:Ambassador

[04:23] <NewWikipedian> k

[04:23] <Ambassador> I mean, if you move the mouse over the right-hand bit of my sig...you'll see it is a link. So - click it.

[04:24] <Ambassador> you'll then be on my talk page.

[04:24] <Ambassador> You should be on User talk:Ambassador (at the top, in big letters)

[04:24] <NewWikipedian> User:Ambassador

[04:24] <NewWikipedian> yes

[04:25] <Ambassador> ah, no - you got the wrong bit.

[04:25] <Ambassador> can you click 'back'

[04:25] <Ambassador> The 'Ambassador' part of my signature links to user:Ambassador my USER PAGE

[04:25] <Ambassador> The word (talk) in brackets, on the right of my sig, links to user TALK:Ambassador my TALK PAGE

[04:25] <NewWikipedian> will try again

[04:25] <Ambassador> ok - or, just go here;

[04:25] <Ambassador> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Ambassador

[04:26] <Ambassador> same thing

[04:26] <NewWikipedian> User talk:Ambassador

[04:26] <Ambassador> great. So - to leave me a message, click the 'new section' tab, at the top

[04:26] <NewWikipedian> k

[04:26] <Ambassador> And you get an edit screen - with a box for the "Subject/headline" and a bigger box?

[04:27] <NewWikipedian> yes

[04:27] <Ambassador> ok, great - put in any subject you like, and any short message you like, and...

[04:27] <Ambassador> ...at the end of the message, put ~~~~ that is, four 'tilde' characters

[04:27] <Ambassador> then save it

[04:28] <NewWikipedian> k

[04:28] <Ambassador> superb. Seriously, you've now learned more stuff than most people learn in their first 3 months on Wikipedia.

[04:28] <NewWikipedian> yeah?

[04:29] <Ambassador> yep; so - now, I have a big orange bar, saying "you have new messages"

[04:29] <Ambassador> so, one sec, I will reply on your talk page - please dont' do anything at all yet.

[04:29] <NewWikipedian> k how do I get to my talk page lol}}

[04:29] <Ambassador> wait a bit; don't click anything

[04:30] <Ambassador> right - now, please can you click on 'random article' which is on the left, just under the wikipedia globe

[04:30] <Ambassador> you'll see some random article. But, the point is...you should also see a big orange thing at the top, saying "you have new messages"

[04:31] <NewWikipedian> k

[04:31] <NewWikipedian> i c it

[04:31] <Ambassador> great

[04:31] <Ambassador> and you can click it, to see the reply.

[04:31] <Ambassador> That's about it.

[04:31] <Ambassador> Whenever anyone leaves you a message on your own talk page, that orange thing appears.

[04:32] <Ambassador> ...and that is how we chat to each other on-wiki

[04:32] <Ambassador> the ~~~~ thing was to 'sign' your name - which does two things;

[04:32] <NewWikipedian> the reply goes to the bottom of the page?

[04:32] <Ambassador> 1. It adds your name, and the date/time

[04:32] <Ambassador> (yes)

[04:32] <Ambassador> 2. It provides a link to your own user page/user talk page

[04:33] <Ambassador> yeah - we always add new stuff at the end of talk pages

[04:33] <Ambassador> a new thing in a new section

[04:33] <NewWikipedian> k

[04:33] <Ambassador> if you're replying to something, you can just put it in the same section

[04:33] <Ambassador> you can indent with a colon

[04:33] <Ambassador> Hello ~~~~

[04:33] <Ambassador> :Hello to you too ~~~~

[04:33] <Ambassador> ::How are you ~~~~

[04:33] <Ambassador> :::I'm fine ~~~~

[04:33] <Ambassador> ...etc.

[04:33] <Ambassador> making a thread

[04:34] <NewWikipedian> k

[04:34] <Ambassador> fantastic

[04:34] <Ambassador> any questions, about anything?

[04:34] <NewWikipedian> mmmmmm don't think so

[04:34] <NewWikipedian> oh wait... yes

[04:34] <NewWikipedian> who r u ? :D

[04:35] <Ambassador> I'm just "Ambassador" :-)

[04:35] <Ambassador> If people want, they can be anonymous. Nobody really knows much about me.

[04:35] <Ambassador> I'm in England.

[04:35] <NewWikipedian> man / woman / live in the US?

[04:35] <Ambassador> Nobody knows if I'm a man or a woman.

[04:35] <Ambassador> They guess, but they're not sure :-)

[04:36] <NewWikipedian> mmmmmmm it was like that when I was an msn sysop .. no one knew

[04:36] <Ambassador> OK - what will impress you - as a web person - is this; the history thing on pages.

[04:36] <Ambassador> If you go back to your test page here;

[04:36] <Ambassador> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:NewWikipedian123/test

[04:36] <Ambassador> ...and then click the 'history' tab

[04:36] <Ambassador> ...I think you'll be impressed

[04:37] <Ambassador> You can see every single edit to the page - ever. You can view any old version. You can undo changes. Nothing is ever lost.

[04:37] <Ambassador> And you'll also see why the 'edit summary' is important

[04:38] <Ambassador> (well...it is on articles, anyway - when there are hundreds of people editing them, for years)

[04:38] <NewWikipedian> I saw that page earlier when I was stumbling around trying to make sense of everything earlier today

[04:38] <Ambassador> great, eh?

[04:38] <Ambassador> so you can see who did what, and when

[04:39] <Ambassador> and you have the links to talk to them

[04:39] <NewWikipedian> yes

[04:39] <Ambassador> that's how it all works.

[04:39] <Ambassador> and that's how ALL wikis work - not just English Wikipedia

[04:39] <NewWikipedian> nice

[04:39] <Ambassador> so it's a great skill to know.

[04:39] <Ambassador> Wiktionary, Wikiversity, German/French/Japanese Wikipedia, Wikibooks, Wikiquote, etc etc etc

[04:39] <Ambassador> all same

[04:48] <NewWikipedian> nothing like learning something new

[04:48] <Ambassador> yes; it really is good fun on Wikipedia

[04:49] <Ambassador> I warn you - it's *very* addictive!

[04:49] <NewWikipedian> yeah sure ... lol if I don't get it all deleted cuz it's not perfect syntax

[04:49] <Ambassador> yeah - unfort, it is quite a steep learning curve, the first bit

[04:50] <Ambassador> it's supposed to be 'anyone can edit' - and they can...but...there are all our policies and rules and stuff.

[04:50] <Ambassador> we do try and keep it simple, but it's massive; 3 million articles

[04:50] <Ambassador> there are literally hundreds of edits, every minute, every day

[04:50] <Ambassador> new articles every minute, too

[04:51] <NewWikipedian> so I can add something to an article if I have a <ref> link to where it was said elsewhere?

[04:51] <Ambassador> It has to be 'notable' - which means...

[04:51] <Ambassador> significant coverage in reliable, independent sources

[04:51] <Ambassador> (that's the policy)

[04:51] <Ambassador> so - 3 or more newspaper articles about it, fine

[04:51] <Ambassador> some books

[04:52] <Ambassador> something like that

[04:52] <NewWikipedian> always wondered bout that

[04:52] <Ambassador> (there is a whole lot more to it, but that is the gist of it)

[04:52] <NewWikipedian> ppl r always quoting wiki articles

[04:52] <Ambassador> yes, well...of course, not all articles are good

[04:52] <Ambassador> lots are terrible.

[04:52] <Ambassador> but...you shouldn't trust the article - you should check the references out

[04:53] <Ambassador> we do have quite a lot of articles rated as 'good article' and 'featured article' - they are all pretty accurate

[04:53] <Ambassador> but we do also have a LOT of really bad articles, with no references

[04:53] <Ambassador> we're working on it

[04:54] <Ambassador> the idea is, every day, it gets just a little bit better

[04:54] <NewWikipedian> so how'd ya'll delete my additions so quick if you have so many w/o references?

[04:54] <Ambassador> we watch edits, pretty much as they happen.

[04:54] <NewWikipedian> hmm

[04:55] <NewWikipedian> I'll keep trying to add some text til I get it right lol

[04:56] <Ambassador> heh; well; you can start off w/ easy stuff. Like, just, fixing spelling, or fixing a section heading error, etc.

[04:56] <Ambassador> by doing so, you pick things up; like, IDK, how to change the size of a pic or something

[04:56] <NewWikipedian> I'll read the code

[04:57] <Ambassador> ...and you talk to people, and learn how things work. You maybe get involved with the discussions about deleting bad articles...whatever.

[04:57] <NewWikipedian> that's what I do .. analyze code

[04:57] <Ambassador> There are loads of different things to get involved in.

[04:57] <Ambassador> Ah - yeah - the templates; they're fun

[04:57] <Ambassador> it's not exactly a full-blown programming language

[04:57] <Ambassador> but, it's quite impressive, what you can do

[04:58] <Ambassador> like e.g. that {{unreferenced}} thing. When you add that to an article, it is also put into [[category:articles lacking references]]

[04:58] <NewWikipedian> might be fun to learn it

[04:58] <Ambassador> (only, because that test page was in user space, it actually didn't add it to the category! it's clever)

[04:59] <NewWikipedian> so r u retired programmer

[04:59] <Ambassador> it only adds live articles to the category

[05:00] <Ambassador> My professional background is mostly in IT. Not really programming though - well, a bit

[05:08] <NewWikipedian> well I better get to bed.. thanks for your help

[05:08] <Ambassador> no problems

[05:09] <NewWikipedian> nice to meet u btw

[05:09] <Ambassador> yes - nice to meet you too, NewWikipedian; I hope to see you again. Cheers!

[05:10] <NewWikipedian> salute! :D

[05:10] * NewWikipedian Quit (Quit: Page closed)