User talk:A248

A Few Questions

I have a few questions about how Wikipedia works. I am a new user, and while I have read several pages about the policies and guidelines to acquaintance myself with the rules and the general atmosphere and aim of Wikipedia, there are a few things I am still unsure about.

I was initially somewhat confused as to how article talk pages and user talk pages work. It seems that edits are used to add comments. Indeed, edits are used for everything on Wikipedia. However, I resisted this conclusion at first, because it seems open to a flaw. If two users edit a page simultaneously, a race condition emerges and one edit may be overridden. So my question is, given this design decision, how does Wikipedia prevent or avoid situations of simultaneously editing?

My second question relates to the contribution process on Wikipedia. I contribute also to open source software development, in particular with pull requests via Github. There, any contributions I make are first reviewed by a project committer (project lead) before being merged into the main repository. My understanding of Wikipedia is that edits made are immediately visible on article pages. However, is there any sort of informal review process following an edit? More specifically, what I mean to ask is, should I make a mistake such as a typographical error, will it be noticed in a log of changes read by editors who spend their time on such things, or will it be fixed by the next user who comes along to the article page and happens to notice the typo?

Thirdly, I have found the recommendations on the use of real names in usernames. The article notes real names increase the potential for harassment. Is harassment a serious issue on Wikipedia? Has it happened before and to what degree? I mostly use my username when contributing to projects on the internet, but in some cases, notably git commits and JIRA accounts, I have used my real name or have had some reference to my real name in my profile. I've never had any cases of harassment in contributing code to or filing bugs on open source software. How common is it to use real names on Wikipedia?

Fourthly

Thanks,

A248 (talk) 01:47, 5 February 2021 (UTC)

1. WP:EDITCONFLICT
2. Both! A Wikipedia:Recent changes patroller might fix it or someone who just happens upon the article. I have fixed vandalism that persisted for three and a half years, but on well-trafficked pages, corrections happen quickly. Of course, you are more than welcome to return to the page and fix your own errors. Wikipedia is good but by no means perfect. We're a work in progress toward better processes.
3. I don't know, honestly, how prevalent harassment is on Wikipedia, and I suspect gathering good data would prove challenging—we don't know how many targets of harassment have simply quietly left. Even Wikipedians who have revealed their off-wiki identities don't edit under their real names: unsurprisingly, Jimbo Wales is not his real name. Perhaps some who edit Wikipedia in some official capacity—Wikipedia:Wikipedians in residence, for example—use their real name as a username...but even that is not, say, their full name.
4. No, thank you. Rotideypoc41352 (talk · contribs) 05:44, 5 February 2021 (UTC)

Hello A248 and welcome to Wikipedia! We're so glad you decided to join us. Let me try to add to Rotideypoc41352's answers.

• You are correct that edits are very central to Wikipedia. And you are also correct that edit conflicts sometimes occur (click the blue highlighted link for more info.). If an edit conflict occurs, the system will give options on how to reconcile your edit with the edit of the previous user. Sometimes you're allowed to simply merge your edit with the edit of the previous user. Other times if you find yourself in an edit conflict, you may have to reinsert your text in an entirely new edit. Edit conflicts can be frustrating and the system doesn't always detect them. Just try to be patient and don't get upset if someone accidentally erases your edit in an edit conflict. When trying to fix an edit conflict, make sure to clarify exactly what you're doing in the edit summary.

• As for your second question, you are again correct that most edits are visible once the user hits "submit." Some articles have what's called pending changes protection where an edit has to be "approved" or "declined" by a pending changes reviewer before that edit gets published (I happen to be a pending changes reviewer!). There are other similar mechanisms like this, but I won't get into them right now. But you're asking if there's any review after an edit has been submitted. The answer to that question is yes. Every single editor on Wikipedia has something called a watchlist. Editors are allowed to add any article on Wikipedia to their watchlist. If you have a particular page on your watchlist, and someone makes an edit to that page, your watchlist will automatically be updated. You can then review that edit at your pleasure. A more "problematic" edit (e.g. a disruptive edit or an act of vandalism), will normally trigger what's called an edit filter. The edit filter can prevent that edit entirely or it can "tag" the edit, and the edit will appear in a log where users can review it. Once again, the system is not perfect and mistakes do happen. As Rotodeypoc41352 already mentioned, recent changes patrollers help fix these errors. If you ever see a typo in an article, please correct it!

• As for your last question, I'm afraid I don't have a spectacular answer for you either!. I honestly don't know the statistics on harassment on Wikipedia. I won't sugar coat it; harassment does occur. If you are harrassed, please seek help from an administrator. Contributing under a pseudonym is far more common than contributing under a real name. But I do occasionally see real names as well. Some of our best admins (e.g., Joe Roe, Doug Weller) contribute under their real names. But it's really your choice. Remember, Wikipedia is one of the most highly trafficked sites in the world. If you decide to edit under your real name, just keep in mind that every single edit you make will be connected to your real name.

• I truly hope I could answer your questions. Feel free to ping me--by typing {{u|Dr.Swag Lord, Ph.d}}--or leave a message on my talk page. Enjoy Wikipedia! Dr. Swag Lord (talk) 06:09, 5 February 2021 (UTC)

Welcome!

Hello, A248! Welcome to Wikipedia! Thank you for your contributions. You may benefit from following some of the links below, which will help you get the most out of Wikipedia. If you have any questions you can ask me on my talk page, or place {{helpme}} on your talk page and ask your question there. Please remember to sign your name on talk pages by clicking or by typing four tildes "~~~~"; this will automatically produce your name and the date. If you are already excited about Wikipedia, you might want to consider being "adopted" by a more experienced editor or joining a WikiProject to collaborate with others in creating and improving articles of your interest. Click here for a directory of all the WikiProjects. Finally, please do your best to always fill in the edit summary field when making edits to pages. Happy editing! Peaceray (talk) 05:38, 21 January 2021 (UTC) Getting Started Introduction • Contributing to Wikipedia • Your first article The five pillars of Wikipedia • Simplified ruleset How to: edit a page • upload an image Getting Help Get help at the Teahouse Frequently Asked Questions Where to ask questions Department directory Request administrator attention Policies and Guidelines Neutral point of view • Verifiability • No original research Reliable sources • Citing sources • Content guidelines What Wikipedia is not • Biographies of living persons Manual of Style (Simplified) • Three-revert rule Copyrights • Non-free content • Image use policy External links • Spam • Vandalism • Sockpuppetry Deletion policy • Conflict of interest • Notability The Community Community Portal • Adopt-a-user program Assume good faith • Civility • Etiquette No personal attacks • Resolving disputes Build consensus • Village pump IRC channels • Mailing lists The Signpost (Wikipedia's newspaper) Things to do Task Center • Be bold in editing Maintenance • Peer review • Requested articles Join a WikiProject • Translating articles Cleaning up: General • Copy editing • Vandalism Miscellaneous Categories • Disambiguation • Stubs User pages • Talk pages Useful templates • Tools • User scripts

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Happy editing! Selfstudier (talk) 17:11, 11 February 2024 (UTC)

June 2024

Hello. This is a message to let you know that one or more of your recent contributions, such as the edit(s) you made to Conflict Kitchen, did not appear to be constructive and have been reverted. Please take some time to familiarise yourself with our policies and guidelines. You can find information about these at our welcome page which also provides further information about contributing constructively to this encyclopedia. If you only meant to make test edits, please use your sandbox for that. If you think I made a mistake, or if you have any questions, you may leave a message on my talk page. Thank you. Myrealnamm's Alternate Account (talk) 13:34, 5 June 2024 (UTC)