Difference between revisions of "Contributing"

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At the moment we are establishing some basic layout for organizing information.  The best way to figure out how to edit pages is to look at some examples.  Go to a page you like and click edit, it will show you what the editor had to type in to make that page.  If you have something to add, but aren't sure you completely understand all the editing features, just do your best.  If it doesn't fit some format that we're following we can always change it.  Poorly formatted information is better than no information at all.
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The best way to figure out how to edit pages is to look at some examples.  Go to a page you like and click edit, it will show you what the editor had to type in to make that page.  If you have something to add, but aren't sure you completely understand all the editing features, just do your best.  If it doesn't fit some format that we're following we can always change it.  Poorly formatted information is better than no information at all.
  
The first thing you'll need to know is how to create a new article.  The best way to do this is to edit a suggesting page, link to the new article that you want to create, and then follow that link.  If you can't think of any pages that would be appropriate to link to your new page, don't worry.  You can edit any page at all, create the link to your new page, click "Show Preview", and then follow the link to create your new page, all the while never permanently saving the link you created on the original pageThe reason why there isn't a way to create new pages other than linking to them and then following the link is because if you don't link the page from any exisiting pages nobody will be able to get to it. The page becomes what the wiki calls an "orphaned" page. You can see the orphaned pages by following the link from the Special Pages section of the tollbox. Orphaned pages don't do anything helpful and are not really a part ot the wiki.  So in review, figure out what page is going to bring people to your new page, make a link, follow that link, add to the page, categorize the page.  That should be the work progression that everybody follows when making a new page.  
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One thing that's very important to know is how to create a new article.  The best way to do this is to edit an existing page, link to the new article that you want to create, and then follow that link.  If you can't think of any pages that would be appropriate to link to your new page, don't worry, there's still two easy ways to create your articleThe first is to use the search box to search for your new articleIf it doesn't already exist you will be presented with a link to create your new page.  If you create a new article in this method, be sure to put it in the appropriate [[Special:Categories|categories]].
  
We have some simple guidelines in place for naming new pages.  Omit any articles ("the" "a" "an") at the beginning of a name.  Also, capitalize each word in a multi-word title.
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The other way to create a new page is to edit any page at all, create the link to your new page, click "Show Preview", and then follow the link to create your new page.  Once you're done writing your new page you don't need to permanently save the link you created on the original page. 
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The reason why there isn't another way to create new pages is because if you don't link the page from any existing pages nobody will be able to get to it. The page becomes what the wiki calls an [[:Special:Lonelypages|"orphaned" page]].  Orphaned pages don't do anything helpful and are not really a part ot the wiki.  So in review, figure out what page is going to bring people to your new page, make a link, follow that link, add to the page, categorize the page.  That should be the work progression that everybody follows when making a new page.
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We have some simple guidelines in place for naming new pages.  Omit any articles ("the" "a" "an") at the beginning of a name.  Also, capitalize each word in a multi-word title.  If you come across any pages that don't follow this naming convention, feel free to move them to the proper name by clicking the "move" button at the top of the page.
  
 
All areas, lists of gear or mobs, or other pages which logically "contain" other pages should be created as categories.  Category naming follows the same rules as page naming, but use plural nouns when appropriate.  [[:Category:Mobs In Midgaard]], [[:Category:Gear In Apocalypse]] and [[:Category:Hero Tank Gear]] are some example categories.
 
All areas, lists of gear or mobs, or other pages which logically "contain" other pages should be created as categories.  Category naming follows the same rules as page naming, but use plural nouns when appropriate.  [[:Category:Mobs In Midgaard]], [[:Category:Gear In Apocalypse]] and [[:Category:Hero Tank Gear]] are some example categories.
  
To put a page in a category, put <nowiki>[[Category: blah]]</nowiki> anywhere on the page (but preferably at the bottom.  More specific categories are better places to put new pages.
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To put a page in a category, put <nowiki>[[Category: blah]]</nowiki> anywhere on the page (but preferably at the bottom).  More specific categories are better places to put new pages.
  
 
To link to a category page without making the page you're editing a part of that category, do something like <nowiki>[[:Category:blah]]</nowiki> <--that.  The important part is the colon ( : ) in front of the word Category.
 
To link to a category page without making the page you're editing a part of that category, do something like <nowiki>[[:Category:blah]]</nowiki> <--that.  The important part is the colon ( : ) in front of the word Category.

Revision as of 16:12, 30 January 2006

The best way to figure out how to edit pages is to look at some examples. Go to a page you like and click edit, it will show you what the editor had to type in to make that page. If you have something to add, but aren't sure you completely understand all the editing features, just do your best. If it doesn't fit some format that we're following we can always change it. Poorly formatted information is better than no information at all.

One thing that's very important to know is how to create a new article. The best way to do this is to edit an existing page, link to the new article that you want to create, and then follow that link. If you can't think of any pages that would be appropriate to link to your new page, don't worry, there's still two easy ways to create your article. The first is to use the search box to search for your new article. If it doesn't already exist you will be presented with a link to create your new page. If you create a new article in this method, be sure to put it in the appropriate categories.

The other way to create a new page is to edit any page at all, create the link to your new page, click "Show Preview", and then follow the link to create your new page. Once you're done writing your new page you don't need to permanently save the link you created on the original page.

The reason why there isn't another way to create new pages is because if you don't link the page from any existing pages nobody will be able to get to it. The page becomes what the wiki calls an "orphaned" page. Orphaned pages don't do anything helpful and are not really a part ot the wiki. So in review, figure out what page is going to bring people to your new page, make a link, follow that link, add to the page, categorize the page. That should be the work progression that everybody follows when making a new page.

We have some simple guidelines in place for naming new pages. Omit any articles ("the" "a" "an") at the beginning of a name. Also, capitalize each word in a multi-word title. If you come across any pages that don't follow this naming convention, feel free to move them to the proper name by clicking the "move" button at the top of the page.

All areas, lists of gear or mobs, or other pages which logically "contain" other pages should be created as categories. Category naming follows the same rules as page naming, but use plural nouns when appropriate. Category:Mobs In Midgaard, Category:Gear In Apocalypse and Category:Hero Tank Gear are some example categories.

To put a page in a category, put [[Category: blah]] anywhere on the page (but preferably at the bottom). More specific categories are better places to put new pages.

To link to a category page without making the page you're editing a part of that category, do something like [[:Category:blah]] <--that. The important part is the colon ( : ) in front of the word Category.

If you think that having your link say "Category:" in front of it is ugly, you can rename the link with a pipe ( | ). For instance, by typing [[:Category:Gear In Apocalypse|Apoc Gear]] I've made this link to the same page as the one linked above: Apoc Gear. BTW, link renaming works for all links, not just those to categories.

Other than that we don't have any big secrets to making nice Wiki pages. To edit a page, click on the edit link at the top of the page. From there the Wiki software does a good job of explaining the editing features. You can also use simple HTML to format a page if you'd like. If you can't figure something out, try looking here