Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2020 January 29

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January 29

process to edit and/or add to current information and an individual

I would appreciate assistance in describing the process of adding, or changing information in an existing biography — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:142:0:36E0:BD4E:594:7C35:4B2C (talk) 02:46, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

@/2601:142:0:36E0:BD4E:594:7C35:4B2C: If the article is about you, you have what's known as a conflict of interest, and instead of editing it yourself, you should visit WP:ER or Wikipedia:Simple conflict of interest edit request. If the biographical article is not about you, please visit Wikipedia:The Wikipedia Adventure to learn how to edit. You can also discuss your edits on the particular article's talk page. TimTempleton ^{(talk) (cont)} 08:31, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Edit I didn't make is attributed to me

Please let me know if this sort of thing is a random glitch: I made a wording change edit to this phrase: "Its grass roots are based in the trade union movement" in the lead of the article Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party. I then had to re-edit that sentence. A different edit from the first one was then associated with my name. How did this happen? My edits both went through, but the first one is not in the article history.--Quisqualis (talk) 02:59, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

@Quisqualis: The version you saved is almost identical to this 2011 revision of the article. If you happened to be looking at that revision when you clicked "Edit", the software would load that old text into the edit window. This diff shows the differences between that old revision and the version you saved - were those the edits you made? -- John of Reading (talk) 07:38, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

It's conceivable that I was looking at an edit by another user and didn't realize how old it was. This has happened once before, while examining the contributions of a very sporadic editor. Odd how the article (and its wording) distracted me from the fact that it was a diff. Thank you for figuring this out.--Quisqualis (talk) 15:02, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Edit title of the page

Please advise how to change the title of the wikipedia page. thanks — Preceding unsigned comment added by Jeanliim (talk • contribs) 03:03, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

@Jeanliim: It's a good idea for a new editor such as yourself to first discuss a title change on the talk page of the article. After you are sure of that the new title is preferred, then you change the title by "moving" the article. A new editor may not have "move" rights yet, so another editor may need to move it for you. Access the "move" function by clicking on the "more" tab at the top right of the article page. -Arch dude (talk) 04:12, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Can i post info for a new news company

Hi sir i am junior reporter from narailnews24.xyz I am trying to upload info for my company. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Narailnews24 (talk • contribs) 04:42, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

(Account is now blocked) --kingboyk (talk) 05:05, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Article Count

Is there a function with which I can get the number of articles in a specific namespace and/or in a different wiki? Greetings 2003:C3:EF00:F65A:50A6:B7F6:ED20:4431 (talk) 14:34, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

2003:C3:EF00:F65A:50A6:B7F6:ED20:4431, The {{NUMBEROFARTICLES}} magic word (6,819,039 in our case) can tell you how many are in mainspace (see mw:Help:Magic words#Statistics). This is a mediawiki feature so I think it should work on other wikis as well (follow the interlanguage links on wp:magic words and you should find out). Not sure if a similar thing exists for other namespaces. ~~ OxonAlex - talk 14:41, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Additionally, there is {{PAGESINNAMESPACE:namespace}}, which does exactly what you want, but is disabled by default, and has to be enabled by the Wiki you want to use it on. It isn't enabled here - {{PAGESINNAMESPACE:100}} doesn't work - it should tell you the number of portals. ~~ OxonAlex - talk 14:50, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Oh no! This would have been so much fun to use! And is it possible to use {{NUMBEROFARTICLES}} for a different wiki and language? Lets say the german wiktionary? 2003:C3:EF00:F65A:50A6:B7F6:ED20:4431 (talk) 14:56, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

2003:C3:EF00:F65A:50A6:B7F6:ED20:4431, yes. - see wikt:de:Benutzer:OxonAlex/test. Because it is defined by the Mediawiki software, it should work everywhere. ~~ OxonAlex - talk 15:00, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Oh sorry, I wasnt precise enough: Is it possible to link there from here? 2003:C3:EF00:F65A:50A6:B7F6:ED20:4431 (talk) 17:08, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

2003:C3:EF00:F65A:50A6:B7F6:ED20:4431, as far as I'm aware, it's not possible. ~~ OxonAlex - talk 09:14, 30 January 2020 (UTC)

Sad... But thank you! Greetings, 2003:C3:EF00:F608:1DF9:3663:B2:26C (talk) 12:16, 30 January 2020 (UTC)

Statement by 2001:8003:2D08:C700:20A0:3930:BF76:A3EE

Hello I may already have an account Your access screens don't ask whether a password has been forgotten. I'm trying to ask about the possibility of editing not one article but a number, as follows: Because content on Wikipedia is provided by enthusiasts with a range of understanding related articles can be contradictory or selective or flawed from other reasons. My particular expertise is 'Fraternal Societies' and I don't claim to be the one and only opinion. But Wiki articles on, (a selection only), 'fraternal', 'fraternity', 'fraternal benefit societies', 'mutual aid', 'guilds', 'benefit society', 'fraternal organisation', 'greek letter societies', are all about the same phenomenon but a reader wouldn't know it. There's a whole lot more I could say about the problem presented by the proliferation of these articles. My suggestion is that they be brought into a single essay, perhaps by different authors, but with the aim of providing an historically (more) accurate family tree which would be clearer but still allow different opinions about details. I've been researching fraternal history for over three decades and could provide an outline but I can't arbitrarily collect up the many related essays and re-organise them without some sort of sanction. I'm not arguing that x, y or z are wrong and I'm right. I'm saying that I can help bring clarity to what is a very confused hodge-podge at present. My suggested family tree would necessarily go into the issues of how some differences of categorisation have arisen from personal gain motivations and that meanings of words, like brotherhood or 'fraternal' have changed over time not accidentally but to suit certain agendas. Cheers, Bob I am a donor and I have edited small parts of essays in the past. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2001:8003:2D08:C700:20A0:3930:BF76:A3EE (talk) 14:45, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

The article Guild says nothing about fraternal societies, so please don't try to merge it in with the others. You should start by deciding exactly what articles you do propose merging, and then discuss your proposals on the talk pages of those articles. (You can expect strong resistance, but it may still be worth trying.) Maproom (talk) 15:00, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Also note, 2001:8003:2D08:C700:20A0:3930:BF76:A3EE, that Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, and it contains articles, not essays. Because Wikipedia is crowdsourced, it requires that article content be vetted by citation of WP:Reliable sources. If your historical research has sources behind it which you can cite, then you could use it to write an article on Wikipedia. Otherwise, it would need to first be (not self)-published, in order to be used as a source for an article.

Rather than an overly lengthy article on the general topic of (all) fraternal organizations, you might consider writing a "history of fraternal organizations" article, outlining the evolution of fraternal organizations.--Quisqualis (talk) 15:28, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Regarding the first part of your comment, where you state you may have an account already but don't remember the password, if you remember the account name and if you linked it to an e-mail, you should be able to access it that way. However, if you never linked it to an e-mail address, it won't be recoverable. ~ ONUnicorn^{(Talk|Contribs)}problem solving 16:54, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Collapse navbar

I tried to collapse the navbar on Islamic Society of Baltimore, but it doesn't seem to be working. Could someone help? —  Melofors  TC  15:59, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

@Melofors: I've added the "state" parameter to the template definition. -- John of Reading (talk) 17:05, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Help:Cite errors/Cite error ref no input

— Preceding unsigned comment added by Ferryscribe (talk • contribs) 29 January 2020 16:44 (UTC)

 Fixed

@Ferryscribe: Hello, with this edit you added empty ref tags. (I.e.<ref></ref>) without any reference content. I have removed them. (Please remember to sign your posts on talk pages by typing four keyboard tildes like this: ~~~~. Or, you can use the [ reply ] button, which automatically signs posts.) and please link to pages where you need help. Thank you. Eagleash (talk) 16:52, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

talk page related something labelled false narrative and termed resolved

In a disscussion on a talk page what to do if someone label your comments as false narrative and put resolved with a tick. What an unregistered user can do to change that? Please help Thank you106.198.239.88 (talk) 17:38, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

You're going to have to include a link to the discussion in question, I'm afraid no one here can comment intelligently on a situation if we can't look it over ourselves. --Jayron32 17:48, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Thanks, Specifically how that label of false narrative and resolved tick can be removed? Is there some kind of nuetral dispute resolution or arbitration for that?

What if you see it yourself and comment, can you remove that? Moreover the discussion is still ongoing and I am preparing my response to that. 106.198.174.232 (talk) 17:59, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

What is the page where this discussion is happening? Like, no one here can comment on the discussion you have a question about unless we can read that discussion. If you'd like, you can use one of the methods at Wikipedia:Dispute resolution, however be aware that you're still going to have to link to the specific discussion. If you can tell us right here the discussion in question, I can look it over and maybe help you out. --Jayron32 18:07, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Thanks, How can you help please elaborate if you see it? and again I am preparing my response to persons labels and personal attacking tone. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 106.198.172.136 (talk) 18:14, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

As Jayron32 said above, we need context to be able to respond appropriately. Please tell us where to find the discussion in question. ~ ONUnicorn^{(Talk|Contribs)}problem solving 18:26, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Thanks Jayron32, ONUnicorn, please wait for sometime for that.

You appear to be editing while not logged in, 106.198.174.232. If you have an account, please log into it or tell us your user name. Otherwise, no help for you is possible, as your IP address keeps changing.--Quisqualis (talk) 19:16, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Thanks Jayron32, ONUnicorn, Quisqualis, do not have an account on wikipedia, here is the link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Citizenship_Amendment_Act_protests#Need_of_good_faith .106.198.173.160 (talk) 19:42, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Still unresolved. 106.198.239.88 (talk) 20:16, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

This looks like the sort of thing that Wikipedia:Dispute resolution is designed to resolve. I would recommend seeking a third opinion using the Wikipedia:Third opinion to help sort through the conflict you are having. If that doesn't work, there are options as well such as starting a request-for-comment at Wikipedia:Requests for comment that will also bring in more people to help work through the problems. I hope that helps! --Jayron32 12:45, 30 January 2020 (UTC)

Thanks Jayron32, may use and hope would help.106.210.98.249 (talk) 17:32, 30 January 2020 (UTC)

2 questions that are related.

Hello, so I have a 2 questions that are related, as the answer to the first directs the second. 1. A former NBA player was robbed yesterday for $500,000 in Jewelry. Is that notable enough for the "Law and Crime" section on Portal:Current events/2020 January 28

2. I added the information about that robbery to Portal:Current events/2020 January 28 yesterday. Other editors have been helping edit it, but me and User:Alsoriano have been going back/forth Adding it back (me) and deleting it (Him). I asked him on his talk page yesterday to explain why he keeps deleting it. He hasn't answered, but has deleted it 2 more times after I have added it back. What should I do? I feel like I started a "edit war" and I want to get out of it, however, User:Alsoriano isn't responding to let us talk over our opinions.

Thanks for the help.Elijahandskip (talk) 19:26, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

I don't think it's really notable enough really. it's hardly an international issue. Feel free to create a thread on the talk for it though. There is the 3 revert rule, however, they have commented on the edit summaries. I would suggest trying to get a consensus for inclusion on the talk page before readding per bold, revert, discuss. Best Wishes, Lee Vilenski ^{(talk • contribs)} 19:37, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Sok

Sok RNA is an antisense RNA that hybridize with Mok mRNA. Sok is not mRNA as shown in the figure. thank you for correcting that. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2607:FCC8:B04F:D900:9D64:CE29:E79C:B7BA (talk) 19:34, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Please let us know which article this refers to? In the future, please make recommendations on an affected article's talk page. Editors knowledgeable about an article's subject are likely to be monitoring the article. We have more than 6 million articles, and we only have about 50 random volunteers monitoring the help desk. -Arch dude (talk) 19:41, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

I think you'd be better off raising the point at Wikipedia talk:MolBio. I think the article the OP is refferring to is Hok/sok system - X201 (talk) 19:44, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Banned from #wikipedia-en-help

I got banned from the #wikipedia-en-help channel. Is there a way that I can be unbanned? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:IRC/wikipedia-en-help

--MikaelaArsenault (talk) 19:55, 29 January 2020 (UTC)MikaelaArsenault

MikaelaArsenault, you could politely contact User:Deskana or User:Thehelpfulone, who are the IRC contacts. There isn't really a set process, but a read of Wikipedia:Guide to appealing blocks may help. You will have to demonstrate that the reason that got you banned from the channel won't be recurrent. ~~ OxonAlex - talk 20:17, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Hi MikaelaArsenault, bans can be appealed in #wikimedia-ops on the same network, by replacing "-en-help" by "-ops" in the connection form. You likely understand why you have been banned for now, and I personally recommend coming back in, say, a month the earliest. If you have Wikipedia-related questions in the meantime, you can simply ask them here. Best regards, ~ ToBeFree (talk) 21:32, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

• For the record, I thoroughly explained why I banned this user, and I told them repeatedly that if they continued the behavior that resulted in the ban, they would be removed for an extended period of time. ToBeFree and myself have spent several hours over the last few weeks helping them and they were given multiple final warnings that if they continued to try and engage helpers in their content disputes and inappropriate edits, they would be banned, and they acknowledged this warning several times with assurances they would not repeat it. Praxidicae (talk) 21:33, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

A couple of corrections and comments regarding the above replies:

1. User:Deskana is the (fairly inactive) "channel contact" for #wikipedia-en-help, Thehelpfulone is not listed as a channel contact per Freenode's channel registration information and I've updated the relevant page where they were mistakenly still listed to reflect the more current information. There isn't an "IRC contact". There are "group contacts" which manage all the Wikimedia channels from a Freenode perspective, but that's not relevant here.
2. Any appeal would be best heard in #wikimedia-ops ^connect. ToBeFree called out the channel name correctly, but potentially confused matters by stating "...by replacing "-en-help" by "-ops" in the connection form" which would instead result in something incorrect. I've provided a direct link to the correct channel here.
3. I did look over the discussions that Praxidicae and ToBeFree are referring to. I can concur that it was requested multiple times that MikaelaArsenault refrain from the above-mentioned behavior. The Wikipedia IRC help channel is not for repeatedly discussing content disputes, or attempting to draw helpers into said content disputes - we must studiously remain neutral regarding content and only advise regarding guidelines, policy, and technical editing help. We regularly advise where to go for dispute resolution, but do not engage in such disputes. They did acknowledge these warnings, said they would not persist, but did persist anyway. I would politely recommend, as ToBeFree did, that MikaelaArsenault drop the stick for awhile, and come back at it with a fresh perspective in a month or two.
4. For context as to why I'm chiming in, I am a "super op" for #wikipedia-en-help and "global op" for the WM IRC channels. As such, I see it as sort of a responsibility to try and review such things.

Anyway, that's my two cents (and a dime). Waggie (talk) 01:11, 30 January 2020 (UTC)

I tried getting on the #wikimedia-ops channel, but I get a message saying that we couldn't connect to the server and that the connection timed out.

MikaelaArsenault (talk) 20:53, 30 January 2020 (UTC)MikaelaArsenault

@Waggie: In case you aren't watching... Mikaela seems to be having trouble connecting. Mikaela has come to WP:Discord to ask about this IRC channel ban and after posting this Help desk topic, I've asked them to drop the topic there and stick to this venue. -- ferret (talk) 22:31, 30 January 2020 (UTC)

I'm also having trouble with getting on the main Wikipedia channel as well.

MikaelaArsenault (talk) 22:38, 30 January 2020 (UTC)MikaelaArsenault

Thanks, Ferret. I agree, MikaelaArsenault should probably stick to this venue here. I'm not sure why they'd be having timeout issues, but that's not something we can help with. Waggie (talk) 21:16, 31 January 2020 (UTC)

KDOG radio San Mateo needs to be added to wikipedia

Hi, I'm currently a part of a student produced radio station in San Mateo, CA. When I did a search for KDOG, it came up with some radio station in Minnesota, and made no mention of our station. There should be some clarification made so that people won't get our station confused with a station in Minnesota. I'd like to add a page about it, but, it could also be added into an article that concerns KCSM-FM. KDOG was going to be broadcast on KCSM-FM's HD radio substation, but that idea got scrapped due to the possibility of KCSM-FM being sold in the future.Patddfan (talk) 21:30, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

You should be bold and add to the article. I'll put some links on your Talk page. Whatever you add should be backed up by reliable, published sources which you cite. Take your time and edit carefully.--Quisqualis (talk) 21:36, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

Hi Patddfan. I recommend you reach out to the editors at the Wikipedia radio station project. They are very experienced with radio station articles and are the best source to answer the question you're asking here. Orville^talk 21:37, 29 January 2020 (UTC)

@Patddfan: Four-letter station names starting with K or W are assigned by the FCC. The use of KDOG by any station other than the authorized station is problematical, but maybe the Wikiproject will have guidance for you. -Arch dude (talk) 01:14, 30 January 2020 (UTC)