Talk:2013 Sydney Roosters season

Ref template clean up

I've cleaned up the "cite web" templates per WP:CITEHOW, MOS:ALLCAPS, WP:DEADREF and Template:Cite web. I didn't change any of the article content. I simply fixed the referencing syntax and the template parameters that were being incorrectly used.

The website Zero Tackle seems to be a news aggregator for NRL related news. In other words, it does not seem to generate its own original content, but simply takes stuff from other websites and reposts it. This is perfectly OK for a website to do, but it's better to use the original source whenever possible when citing sources for Wikipedia article. Zero Tackle links the original sources for its posts at the bottom as "Read more at XXXX" so these links should be used for |url= in the cite web template whenever possible.

When the original source link was dead, I checked the Wayback Machine for an archived version. If I found one, I used |deadurl=, |archiveurl=, and |archivedate= per the instructions given for the cite web template. If I could not find an archived version, I used |via= to use Zero Tackle as a convenience link.

I also added |date= to the templates. This parameter is for the date the article/post, etc. was originally published/posted. It's not the same as |accessdate= since that parameter is for the date the source was last accessed or verified by a Wikipedia editor. Generally, the "date" should never be changed unless its to correct an error, but the "accessdate" should always be changed each time a new editor checks the source.

Finally, I also cleaned up |last= and |first=. These parameters are for the names of the authors of article/post; They are not for the names of person being written about. If the name of the author can be determined from the original source, then all that needs to be done is to add their first and last names to the appropriate parameter in the template. If, however, the name of the author can not be determined from original source, then you can simply not use "last" and "first" at all, or use |author= instead by writing something such as author=<!--Staff writer(s); No by-line-->.

This kind of clean up is pretty standard per Wikipedia policy and guidelines. If any one feels differently, please discuss. -- Marchjuly (talk) 02:14, 26 October 2015 (UTC)