Wikipedia:WikiProject U.S. Roads/Newsletter/Newsroom/Issue3-2

Issue 2 (Summer 2010)

Publication deadline: 12 PM Pacific-3 PM Eastern on July 12.

Please sign up for what you want to write. Have it done by the publication deadline.

Introduction

Editor:

{{Infobox road}} upgrade

Editor: Fredddie

Over the last couple months, a number of us have set aside our quest to reduce the number of stubs for a different task: updating {{Infobox road}}. {{Infobox road}} was created by Hillrhpc (talk · contribs) back in 2005 when this project was just getting started. In 2006, SPUI (talk · contribs) and NE2 (talk · contribs), among others, expanded the template, created the large backend of the template that's still in use today. Over the next couple years, parameters were added to allow {{Infobox road}} to be used worldwide and not just in the United States.

Earlier this year, Imzadi1979 (talk · contribs) proposed adding some color to the template by creating a mockup. Fredddie (talk · contribs) responded with another mockup using the meta-template {{Infobox}}, which facilitates the creation of infoboxes. The result was positive; the mockup Fredddie made was preferred and the testing phase began. A number of us put the update through the wringer to make sure any issues that arose would be kept at a minimum. The new look of {{Infobox road}} went live on June 11.

After it went live, TwinsMetsFan (talk · contribs) began an overhaul of the backend of the template. Parameters were streamlined and new subtemplates were created. Rschen7754 (talk · contribs) created a page listing how other countries used highway infoboxes; the results were surprising. As of July 2010, we're going through and adding parameters to allow {{Infobox road}} to be used around the world! Instead of calling a subtemplate for each type of highway in each state, (that's over 150 subtemplates in just the US alone!), it calls 6 subtemplates total per country. Details on how it all works can be seen at Template:Infobox road/doc.

What started as a routebox for this project has evolved into a robust template with worldwide usage. Great job to everyone who's helped along the way!

Reviews needed at ACR

Editor: Dough4872

In recent months, our A-class review page at WP:USRD/ACR has been relatively inactive. The page currently has two articles awaiting reviews, U.S. Route 30 in Iowa by Fredddie and U.S. Route 113 by Viridiscalculus. The former has been at ACR since July 17 while the latter has been open since September 16. As of September 23, U.S. Route 30 in Iowa has been looked at by two editors, with no supports at this time, while U.S. Route 113 has been supported by one editor. These editors would appreciate their articles to be looked upon and critiqued by other USRD editors in order to be promoted to A-class. In addition, if you feel a B-class or GA-class article meets the A-class criteria, feel free to nominate it at ACR.

Feature 3 (if needed)

Editor:

Note: If you suggest a story then you are volunteering to write it, unless someone else decides to do so.

Project news

Editor:

Be sure to look through Article Alerts and WT:USRD.

State updates

Write the updates below. If signatures are present, remove them before adding to the newsletter.

Maryland

The most significant development of the past three months is a massive reduction in the number of stubs under the umbrella of the Roads in Maryland WikiProject. The stub count decreased from over 200 at the beginning of April to about 15 by the middle of June. All specific numbered highway articles in Maryland are now a minimum of Start-class. In addition to my work in expanding the stubs, credit goes to Dough4872 and Onore Baka Sama for their work in adding Route descriptions and Junction lists to those articles in need of them.

Part of the stub removal drive was consolidating those routes lacking enough information for their own articles, a task intertwined with the reduction and ultimate retirement of the minor routes list. The original plan hatched in late March was to expand more significant routes into their own articles and to place those minor routes lacking enough information for a suitable stand-alone article into the articles of their "parent." However, by the middle of May, consensus shifted away from placing related routes in their parent articles. The related routes scheme was less arbitrary than placing such highways in a minor routes list, but it was still arbitrary. A more objective approach was suggested to group all routes shorter than one mile together. That approach was adopted in the form of the List of state highways in Maryland shorter than one mile.

After that infrastructure was settled upon, the next step was to create articles for those routes in the minor routes list that were not shorter than one mile. Once all of those routes were removed, the remaining routes could then be transferred to the new list of highways shorter than one mile with minimal required revision. As of the middle of June, the final route longer than one mile was removed from the minor routes list. The remaining routes in the minor routes list are in the process of being added to the List of state highways in Maryland shorter than one mile, a process that should be completed by the end of July. At that time, all references and links to the minor routes list will be changed to point to the new list and the minor routes list will be marked for deletion.

Since the Spring 2010 newsletter, four articles have been awarded Good Article status: U.S. Route 220 in Maryland, U.S. Route 113, U.S. Route 219 in Maryland, and Interstate 895 (Maryland). In addition to retiring the minor routes list and continuing to improve the overall quality of Maryland highway articles, one goal for the near future is to comprehensively update the WikiProject front page to eliminate old information and make sure present guidelines are well communicated. This is especially important because editors come and go, so both veterans and novices need the most up-to-date information to properly continue the task of improving Maryland highway articles. — Viridiscalculus (talk) 17:45, 11 July 2010 (UTC)

Leaderboard and stub count

Editor: Scott5114

Selected article/picture from portal

Just make sure this is substituted before publication.

This month in USRD history

Editor: TBA

Maybe this should be scrapped since this is now on a quarterly basis? --Rschen7754 01:34, 11 July 2010 (UTC)

Good call. This quarter in USRD history sounds awkward. —Fredddie™ 03:02, 11 July 2010 (UTC)