Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2009 July 2

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July 2

Going On - Disambiguation

Wikipedians, How do I start a new page with new material, when the name is already taken? For example, I'm starting a new page for the play "Going On" by Charles Dennis, but "Going On" currently links to a page about a video. Thank you for your help. 65.218.218.163 (talk) 03:08, 2 July 2009 (UTC) Cerberusrunning 7/2/2009

See WP:DISAMBIGUATION. – ukexpat (talk) 03:28, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Signature Error

For some reason, when I try to save this in my preferences, it says, "Error, Check HTML tags". Feel free to edit my signature without changing it's appearance to my this correct. Thank you ---Scarce |||| You shouldn't have buried me, I'm not dead--- 04:01, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Disambiguation of "reel"

I was looking up the word "reel" as a technical term in the context of slot machines, and found it on the slot machine page. The word reel took me to a page that discusses reels in the "purest" meaning of the word, i.e. machines about which long, slender objects are coiled. I checked out Reel (disambiguation) to see if the slot machine application was covered there, but it wasn't. I therefore added it.

Having added the slot machine-related disambiguation, I have automatically created a not-yet-existent new page called reel (slot machine). However, there is already information about slot machine reels on the slot machine page.

There is already information about reels on the slot machine page itself. Was following this "reel" thing through to the point I did, i.e. creating a whole new page for it, the right thing to do?

Tripbeetle (talk) 05:15, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

To start, a note about terminology. You have added a redlink to a disambiguation page; you have not "created" a page.

You're right that there is an issue, albeit a minor one. First, decide if you are going to create a new article under the title reel (slot machine). If so, you should move the long descriptive sentence you added at Reel (disambiguation) to the page you'll create, as well as adding more relevant information to make an good start at an article. (See Wikipedia:Your first article for suggestions.) If you do not intend to create a new article, you should move that descriptive text to the page slot machine in a relevant section.

Once you have done that, the description on the disambiguation page should be cut down to a minimum. (The point of those pages is to get readers to the article they want as quick as possible without being slowed down by non-vital text.)

• If you have created a new page, the disambiguation sentence should be something like "Reel (slot machine), a vertical disk that forms the main features of a slot machine", though the link would no longer be red due to your article creation.
• If you have put your information in the slot machine article, but still want to encourage someone else to create a new article specific to the slot machine reel, add a redlink to the desired article and a bluelink to the article with existing information: "Reel (slot machine), a vertical disk that forms the main features of a slot machine."
• If you don't think that Reel (slot machine) will ever be accepted as an encyclopedic article, drop the redlink entirely and use the disambiguation to get the reader to slot machine: "Reel, a vertical disk that forms the main features of a slot machine."

Just my .02. - BanyanTree 07:01, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

I've altered the disambig page to what Banyan recommended (final option) - and removed the link to "reel" in the first paragraph of Slot machine, as that lead to the wrong type of reel! If Tripbeetle thinks that the extra definition that was on the disambig page is required, I'd suggest it's put somewhere suitable on the Slot machine page. PhantomSteve (Contact Me, My Contribs) 07:55, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Question

Hi, why has the search thing changed? 78.144.182.99 (talk) 05:21, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Yeah, I noticed that too, I guess so ---Scarce |||| You shouldn't have buried me, I'm not dead--- 05:29, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

But Why has it changed? 78.144.182.99 (talk) 05:55, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Not sure, I'm starting to like it though, the screen used to be cluttered, and you'd have to scroll down to see your search results, I can see that some people may not be able to find them ---Scarce |||| You shouldn't have buried me, I'm not dead--- 06:34, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

(ec)Server admin log states "22:10 logmsgbot: brion synchronized php-1.5/InitialiseSettings.php 'Enabling new search UI formatting sitewide' " I'm guessing it's something the Usability Initiative has come up with to increase the visibility of the search field, but can't find a relevant discussion. - BanyanTree 06:36, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

External appear Internal

Resolved

 –  – ukexpat (talk) 14:28, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Is there a way I can make an external link appear internal? With out the File:External link.PNG symbol appearing? Thanks! ---Scarce |||| You shouldn't have buried me, I'm not dead--- 05:34, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

You can use the <span class="plainlinks"></span> tags (eg: <span class="plainlinks">http://en.wikipedia.org</span> produces http://en.wikipedia.org) but notice that the colour is lighter than a normal link. Chamal ^talk 05:41, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Wow, you are just knocking out help desk questions, one after another! Thank you, I've been looking for this! ---Scarce |||| You shouldn't have buried me, I'm not dead--- 05:53, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

There is also a {{plainlinks}} template. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 10:34, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Hw to name an article?

I have created an article by the name "Java Tips" but i'm not able to find it thru wikipedia search engine Is there any other procedure to name an article. If so then kindly inform me. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Mail2.hn (talk • contribs) 06:35, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

The "article" is your user page, User:Mail2.hn. See Wikipedia:Your first article for how to to create an article. But your page would not be appropriate as an article, and if in article space would be speedily deleted. Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, not a collection of how-to tips. Sorry —teb728 t c 07:09, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Maybe you could try WikiBooks. All the best, Kayau (Talk to me! See what I've done! Sign my guestbook!) 04:15, 5 July 2009 (UTC)

in 1mg of magnesium sulphate what is the quantity of magnesium and sulphate

in 1mg of magnesium sulphate what is the quantity of magnesium and sulphate —Preceding unsigned comment added by 114.143.50.180 (talk) 08:14, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

This page is for questions about using Wikipedia. Please consider asking this question at the Science reference desk. They specialize in knowledge questions and will try to answer any question in the universe (except how to use Wikipedia, since that is what this Help Desk is for). Just follow the link and ask away. You could always try searching Wikipedia for an article related to the topic you want to know more about. I hope this helps. PhantomSteve (Contact Me, My Contribs) 08:25, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

That looks, however, like a homework problem: The Reference desk will not do your homework for you. So if you ask there be sure you show them that you are trying to solve the problem yourself. —teb728 t c 08:54, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Please, don't ask your homework here. Wikipedia is for people who want information, but not for people who want answers. All the best, Kayau (Talk to me! See what I've done! Sign my guestbook!) 04:14, 5 July 2009 (UTC)

Is this information correct?

"...The program was normally broadcast live from a New York City studio; however, Cooper often broadcasted live on location for breaking news stories. He died on July 1, 2009 in Los Angeles while covering the events surrounding the Michael Jackson deathBold text."

I tried googling it but to no reports of his death. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 60.48.34.22 (talk) 09:24, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Not true - vandalism has been reverted [1] --59.95.119.198 (talk) 09:58, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

All pages starting with...

Resolved

 –  – ukexpat (talk) 14:27, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

I often use the "All pages starting with..." function on Wikipedia, but it seems to have disappeared with a recent reformatting of the search options. Is there still a way to generate a list of all pages starting with a particular series of characters? Neelix (talk) 11:45, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

I'm not familiar with the function, but when I start typing in the search box I get a dynamic list of suggestions, which seems to be the same functionality. Does this work for you? If not, maybe try re-enabling JavaScript? Cheers, TFOWR^{This flag once was red} 11:48, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Yes, but with some more typing, e.g. if you type something like Special:PrefixIndex/toy into the search box you'll get the page starting with "toy". --rainman (talk) 11:51, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

That's great; the PrefixIndex works well. Thanks very much! Neelix (talk) 12:28, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Special:PrefixIndex can also be reached by clicking "Special pages" in the toolbox to the left and then click "All pages with prefix". PrimeHunter (talk) 12:29, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

If you use PrefixIndex a lot, you could add it to your personal toolbar with JavaScript. Algebraist 13:04, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Wikipedia pages

I am creating some tutorials to show how to use my companies software. I want to show how to link to a web page. Is it aceptable to include a screen shot of a wikepedia page as an exmpale of how this works?

Thanks

Adrian —Preceding unsigned comment added by Awplant (talk • contribs) 12:25, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

See WP:REUSE. – ukexpat (talk) 14:25, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

how can i save the page

Hi can you guide me that how can i save my search pages in Wikipedia's account means if i open ten pages daily and i like one page to save so that if in future i want to re-open that particular page so is it possible to save particular pages on my Wikipedia's account? i will be thankful to you for this guideness —Preceding unsigned comment added by Farooquet (talk • contribs) 13:19, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

The simplest way is to use your browser's bookmarking feature. Algebraist 13:22, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

You can also watch the page by clicking on the "watch" tab at the top of the article. Then, by clicking on "my watchlist" at the very top of the page, you can access and see all the recent changes to all the articles you've watched. a little insignificant 14:32, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

See Help:Watchlist for more information about it Spitfire^Tally-ho! 14:34, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Maybe you could put the links on your own userpage. I've seen an editor do it before. All the best, Kayau (Talk to me! See what I've done! Sign my guestbook!) 04:10, 5 July 2009 (UTC)

Merchant Navy

we need the information about marchant neavy —Preceding unsigned comment added by 117.200.161.163 (talk) 14:59, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

You might find what you are looking for in the article about Merchant Navy. If you cannot find the answer there, you can try asking your question at Wikipedia's Reference Desk. They specialize in knowledge questions and will try to answer just about any question in the universe (except about how to use Wikipedia, which is what this help desk is for). I hope this helps. TNXMan 15:00, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

You could also try the Merchant Navy Association’s official website Spitfire^Tally-ho! 15:34, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Sortable tables

In the Oil by country article, there is a large sortable table. At first this seems to work Ok, but if I sort the "Consumption (bbl/day)" column twice to get the highest consumption at the top of the list, the subsequent data is sorted alphabetically and not numerically (eg. 950,500 is followed by 950 then by 928,600). Is this a limitation of the sortable table, or is there some trick to fixing this? Astronaut (talk) 16:49, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

In fact it seems to only the "Consumption (bbl/day)" column with this problem. Astronaut (talk) 16:54, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

The comma is treated as a sortable character. Either remove the commas or add a sortlink with {{sort}}. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 17:56, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

According to Help:Sorting the JS used is now clever enough that that shouldn't be a problem, and the other columns appear to be sorting as they should. Algebraist 18:37, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Why is there ActiveX on WP?

I'm seeing atop every WP page viewed, a warning notification from Symantec Antivirus that "Your security settings do not allow Web sites to use ActiveX controls installed on your computer. This page may not display correctly." Is there some way to make my preferences such that no ActiveX is used? LeadSongDog come howl 17:21, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

You probably want WP:VPT. Algebraist 17:28, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Thanks, will try.LeadSongDog come howl 17:38, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Lara Croft

I am led to believe that the creator of Lara Croft sold his "rights" to his creation and then supposedly, went on (or was going) to create an "Old Sea Captain" character, that travelled the world. Did this come to fruition or have I been misled?, or if it did come to fruition, what were the games called? Secondly, has the creator of Lara Croft done anything since Lara Croft and if so what?. I can be best reached on my works e-mail address <blanked>

Thank you for the opportunity to be involved in this fantastic Lara Croft interest. Neil s evans (talk) 18:17, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

You might find what you are looking for in the article about Lara Croft. If you cannot find the answer there, you can try asking your question at Wikipedia's Reference Desk. They specialize in knowledge questions and will try to answer just about any question in the universe (except about how to use Wikipedia, which is what this help desk is for). I hope this helps. TNXMan 18:22, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

See Galleon (video game). -- kainaw™ 18:33, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Using the same reference

Resolved

 –  – ukexpat (talk) 19:20, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

I have written several sections from the same reference but when I reference each paragraph it comes up at the bottom as 4 or 5 references from the same source. Is there a way I can write it once and then reference other parts the same but have it under one reference at the bottom? Thanks (p.s, sorry for using the word "reference" so many times). —Preceding unsigned comment added by Plane Person (talk • contribs) 18:35, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

See Wikipedia:Referencing for beginners#Same ref used twice or more. Theleftorium 18:39, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Thanks a lot! —Preceding unsigned comment added by Plane Person (talk • contribs) 19:05, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Also dealt with at WP:NAMEDREFS. – ukexpat (talk) 19:20, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

You might also look at Template:Rp if you want to cite different pages of the same reference.--SPhilbrickT 02:22, 3 July 2009 (UTC)

Live bookmark in Firefox

I'd like to watch some of the bot contribution pages so that it shows up in some kind of live feed in one of my windows, probably in Firefox. I notice that I can get an RSS feed from any contribs page in a "live bookmark" on Firefox, but I'm not sure what that means. Is there a way for me to hear something and see something in real time by subscribing to a bot's contribs page? - Dank (push to talk) 19:00, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Using an RSS feed won't enable you to see realtime updates as they happen - the browser page displaying the feed will have to be refreshed to show changes, but I think it can be set up to refresh automatically at a set interval. – ukexpat (talk) 19:23, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

What instructions have you read so far? I've never tried this, but you could read Wikipedia:Syndication, RSS, Features of Mozilla Firefox#Live Bookmarks, and Livemark. Perhaps due to Wikipedia's WP:NOTHOWTO guideline, the articles are rather thin on specific instructions. A search on Mozilla's site finds Reloading Live Bookmarks. --Teratornis (talk) 19:27, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Thanks. - Dank (push to talk) 22:53, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Template for "over-prosed" biographies?

I routinely see biographic entries of (mostly) actors that contain long ramblings of "He starred in the movie X. He then starred in the movie Y. Later he played the chief on the TV series Z. Then he ...".

To me, this extremely annoying: It is hard to extract the relevant information from the text, and the stylistic weakness makes me cringe. In place, I would strongly prefer that the actual prose was restricted to deeper statements about a limited number of particularly noteworthy parts, and that the long listings were kept as actual lists/filmographies.

Unfortunately, I have not found a corresponding template. Anyone with a recommendation? 88.77.135.6 (talk) 21:09, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

{{copyedit}} should do the trick. See the template documentation. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 22:25, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Thank you. I had hoped for something more specific (cf. e.g. templates like Advert or Buzzword), but, short of adding a new template, copyedit for="something or other" seems to be the best solution.88.77.151.114 (talk) 08:49, 3 July 2009 (UTC)

Asking questions

Has Wikipedia considered implementing or adopting or test-driving a utility that would allow users to pose questions about an entry (article?) or to the author(s)? How about adding a 'field' in which readers can suggest other content. (Maybe the readers aren't subject matter experts, but they still would be in a position to put forward unknowns of interest.)

I don't know if my question is addressed elsewhere, but that would add tremendous value to Wikipedia I think.

Thank you in advance.

~Kevin Terpstra

<blanked> —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.208.54.118 (talk) 23:32, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Actually, we have something like that already. At the top of each page is a "talk" tab. This allows readers to make suggestions about the content of an article without actually editing the article. If someone has a question about the article, they can ask there or at one of our reference desks. It's often (correctly) pointed out that Wikipedia is not easy to learn. However, the talk page can be a great place to get started. TNXMan 23:43, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Just to be clear, article talk pages are for discussing the content of the article, not for general questions about the subject. But as Tnxman says, general questions are welcome on the Reference desk. —teb728 t c 00:48, 3 July 2009 (UTC)

Some article talk pages have a box showing that the article is maintained by one or more editors who may be able to answer questions. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 02:15, 3 July 2009 (UTC)