Wikipedia:Help desk
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July 27
Making a Wikipedia page
To whom it may concern I just sing up in Wikipedia because I want to make biography page for one of my astonishing professors. It would be highly appreciated if you guide me how can make this new page?
Best Regards Saeideh Salehizadeh, Saeideh.slz (talk) 11:43, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- @Saeideh.slz Some introductory reading for you: WP:Writing Wikipedia articles backward, WP:An article about yourself isn't necessarily a good thing and WP:Your first article.
- The summary of these may be that you can't make an acceptable WP-article about your professor, most people don't qualify for one, but it depends on the sources you can provide. Good luck! Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 12:10, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- Saeideh.slz, please also read about the neutral point of view, and leave out words like "astonishing". Cullen328 (talk) 17:47, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
Creating an article
Before creating an article, is there any section/page that I need to refer to if that particular article has already been rejected or in creation by someone else? Or should I proceed to create it anyways? Please advise Jeraxmoira (talk) 13:19, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- If it's been rejected (rather than declined), that means that in the opinion of the reviewer the subject was not notable enough to warrant an article here on English-language Wikipedia, so you would be wasting your time trying to recreate it. Can you tell us what the subject is? Maproom (talk) 13:39, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- I think you're asking to check if the article you want to create has been deleted before or already exists in draft form? Have a check of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Log?type=delete and search for the article name, and likewise at https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?search=&title=Special:Search&profile=advanced&fulltext=1&ns118=1. Qcne (talk) 14:47, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- Thank you. I will take a look at the delete and draft logs once. I am trying to create articles for the technicians of Indian Cinema. Jeraxmoira (talk) 16:01, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
RFK jr
Hi, RFK Jr is clearly not Anti-Vaccine, he has a concern about ONE of hunderds of Vaccines. To say he is promoting Anti-Vaccine misinformation is misinformation in itself. This should be edited, again he clearly has a problem with one vaccine and advocates better testing which is good for ALL of us Regards, Russell
This is wrong and probably politically motivated: He is known for promoting anti-vaccine misinformation, and public health–related conspiracy theories. 131.106.111.164 (talk) 14:47, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- IP editor, if you have a specific, sourced edit you wish to make to the article, you can make a request at WP:RFPP/E. Be very specific about the change you want made and be sure to provide at least one reliable source. There has been a great deal of disruption at the article, which is why both it and its talk page are extended-protected. 199.208.172.35 (talk) 15:14, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- Despite the misleading section header, the article in question is Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Cullen328 (talk) 17:41, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- I've updated it. - AquilaFasciata (talk | contribs) 18:04, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- I see that the first source supporting the assertion about his stance on vaccines was published in 2017. So, whichever vaccine he's against, it can't be one that was created since then, right? Girth Summit (blether) 17:54, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- Despite the misleading section header, the article in question is Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Cullen328 (talk) 17:41, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
President_of_El_Salvador
Someone please look into the President_of_El_Salvador page. I am not opening an account for this. It says, "The duration of the presidential term is five years and the president is eligible for reelection once consecutively as of 2021." That is phrased badly and probably incorrectly. That should probably say non-consecutively. 72.204.78.102 (talk) 17:36, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- Hello, IP editor. That article is not protected, so you can edit it yourself without opening an account. Cullen328 (talk) 17:44, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
Symbol meanings
What do these lines under certain years mean on "Timeline of national flags?" For example, there is a line on the year 1708 in Angola's section, with no flag, so does it represent something like colonization, or something else? Hankhill240 (talk) 18:04, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- Courtesy link: Timeline of national flags - 199.208.172.35 (talk) 18:23, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- @Hankhill240, in the case of Angola, it was a Portuguese colony until it gained independence in 1975; as best I can tell, those divisions correspond to the divisions down in Portugal's section, since those are the flags it would have been using. 199.208.172.35 (talk) 18:31, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- Your guess is right. Previously, these sections held the flag of the colonizing nation, and in this rev the flags were removed but the columns retained. WelpThatWorked (talk) 18:35, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
Date format
Hello there. I am looking at where are told the guidelines for editing English Wikipedia? Should we use English spellings? SHould we use normal dates, ISO 8601 dates or... US dates (like I saw on a recent article)? → Tristan ♡ (talk) 18:21, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
- @Jesus2099, those guidelines and others are part of our Manual of Style - WP:MOS. MOS:ENGVAR, for instance, addresses your first question, and MOS:DATES your second. 199.208.172.35 (talk) 18:24, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
July 28
Really disappointed to learn what Wikipedia did to Robert Kennedy jr.'s page. s
He is unable to edit his own page 2601:6C1:580:5DF0:63CF:E7BC:C681:9973 (talk) 03:26, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- What kind of help are you asking for? 119.245.86.251 (talk) 03:49, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- He doesn't have a page, neither does Trump, Biden or Musk. Wikipedia has articles about them. Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 07:30, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- The subjects of Wikipedia articles can edit what's written about them as long as they do so in accordance with relevant Wikipedia policies. They can also can seek assistance from others as explained here and here. However, there seems to be a strong tendency among many subjects of articles (and their representatives) to be more "not here" than "here" when it comes to Wikipedia, and many try and claim some type of ownership over article content; so, that's when they start having problems. It's for such reasons subject's of articles (and their representatives) are strongly encouraged to seek assistance via one of Wikipedia's various processes instead of directly trying edit such articles themselves, except in some very specific and limited cases. -- Marchjuly (talk) 08:25, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- Do you represent Mr. Kennedy or are you just articulating a public statement he has made? 331dot (talk) 08:28, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
Two questions
- The text in the editing field has changed since yesterday, from plain black to varying colours. Why, and can I change it back to original in preferences?
- Can timestamps in signatures be changed from UTC to local time zones? --40bus (talk) 15:11, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- 1. I'm not sure which field you're referring to, is this the Visual Editor, Modern Source editor, something else? It sounds like maybe the syntax highlighting in the old source editor but I can't quite tell.
- In normal source editor. Yesterday is was normal. --40bus (talk) 15:26, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- 2. You can install this userscript. WelpThatWorked (talk) 15:21, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- What do you mean by "varying colors?" Are different words different colors, or letters, or random?
- As for the second one, you can just type three tildes (
~~~
) and it won't add the date and time. That said, everything on WP is done in UTC so that everyone has the same time reference, so I would say it shouldn't really be priority. If you need a reference, you can use WP:UTC to add a clock to the top right so that you can always look at that. - AquilaFasciata (talk | contribs) 15:22, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- In Finnish Wikipedia, timestamps are based on local Finnish time. --40bus (talk) 15:26, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- @40bus As advised, Wikipedia uses UTC but if you wish to have timestamps rendered in your local time you can do that using a checkbox on Special:Preferences#mw-prefsection-gadgets Looking a this thread, for example, I see the timestamps as UTC+1 as that's how I've set my preference since I'm in the UK (British Summer Time currently). Regarding the colours, I suspect you just inadvertently hit the pen icon in the source editor (just left of the word "Advanced" in the toolbar). You could toggle it back but in my experience editing with the colours on is really helpful. Mike Turnbull (talk) 15:59, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- In Finnish Wikipedia, timestamps are based on local Finnish time. --40bus (talk) 15:26, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
How to add our company page in wikipedia
I want to create page on Wikipedia our company Shahid.choudhary5 (talk) 16:38, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- @Shahid.choudhary5, you should read two pages very carefully: WP:PAID and Help:Your first article. The draft you attempted to create on your user page (which is not the right place for one) has no sources other than the company's website and does not demonstrate that your company is notable in any way.
- Wikipedia is not interested in what the subject of an article says or wants to say about themselves, or what their associates say about them. Wikipedia is only interested in what people who have no connection with the subject, and who have not been prompted or fed information on behalf of the subject, have chosen to publish about the subject in reliable sources.. 199.208.172.35 (talk) 16:50, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- BOSS is another page that you might find helpful to read. ColinFine (talk) 16:51, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- Wikipedia is not like social media or a company's website. Articles here are not owned by the company concerned. Once created, they can be edited by anyone, provided that person bases the information on reliable sources. As a result, the outcome might not be to the company's liking. Mike Turnbull (talk) 16:54, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
what are the rules
what are the rules to write your own bio page. I see my brother page bernard pierre donnadieu. I want my own page. Donnadieu1950 (talk) 17:46, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- @Donnadieu1950, the rule is that you must be notable by Wikipedia's standards - see WP:NPERSON - and have reliable, independent, published secondary sources to prove it. I highly, highly recommend reading the following pages: WP:AUTOBIOGRAPHY and WP:An article about yourself isn't necessarily a good thing. 199.208.172.35 (talk) 17:55, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- Courtesy link: Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu for the curious - a completely unsourced article, unfortunately. 199.208.172.35 (talk) 17:58, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
Links translation (French/English)
hello,
I translate a French article to English. What can I do about links to articles in French that have no equivalent in English? Do I copy them as they are in the French version? Is there a procedure to follow in this case? F1sxo (talk) 20:02, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- @F1sxo You can use the template for inter-language links {{ill}} if you judge that it is worth keeping the link in your English version of the article: to people for example. For other considerations, please read WP:TRANSLATE. Mike Turnbull (talk) 20:06, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
Long term edit-warring over controversies section: How to handle?
A few hours ago, while I was patrolling Recent Changes, I noticed an IP edit on Tony Aquila that did nothing but remove the controversies section with no other comment, so I reverted the edit. Hours later, I noticed that a brand-new account also came by and deleted the controversy section, so I took a quick look at the page's edit history and realized that this has been ongoing back and forth for months now.
On one hand, it seems odd to me that so many people are trying to blank this section, but on the other hand, it seems odd to me that so many people are trying to keep the section on such a seemingly minor page.
What would be the proper way to deal with something like this? Is there a noticeboard or some process to get a more experienced set of eyes on the situation? mir :3 21:42, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- The sources being used in the controversy section are absolutely not fit for a BLP, so until there is high quality secondary coverage it's a BLP violation. ScottishFinnishRadish (talk) 21:47, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- Good to know, thanks for taking a look! mir :3 22:10, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
- This doesn't mean that anybody's looked for the high quality secondary coverage. I see the Dallas News reporting on a feud. Card Zero (talk) 14:01, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- Good to know, thanks for taking a look! mir :3 22:10, 28 July 2023 (UTC)
July 29
Question by User:Rtludwig
I am trying to add a photo to a page. I represent a university and I am trying to add a photo of the university's president to his Wikipedia page. The university owns the photo and has full rights to it. How can I add the photo to his page? Rtludwig (talk) 01:03, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- Hello, please read the welcome left on talk page before doing anything regarding your conflict of interest. To upload a file, please go to Wikipedia:File upload wizard, while noting the copyright and image use policy. If this is successfully done, I strongly recommend you make a request to add the image to the article. Let me know if you have any more questions. Happy editing Heart (talk) 01:19, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- OP now blocked. 331dot (talk) 10:03, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
Page Deletion
Hello, our page goy deleted automatically post publishing. Can you please help us with the same? Is there any changes required in the draft? 103.72.72.163 (talk) 04:24, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- Nobody can possibly help you with anything unless you tell us the name of the article/draft. AndyTheGrump (talk) 04:29, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- Hello, 103.72.72.163. Since you have not identified the page or company in any way, and your IP has made no contributions to Wikipedia other than this post, it is impossible to know what article or draft or company you are talking about. There are many valid reasons for an attempted article (not "page", and not "your/your company's" page/article, but "Wikipedia's article about your company") to be deleted, as Wikipedia has strict standards about subject eligibility and about the structuring, referencing and style of articles, all of which an unpracticed editor is likely to get wrong. For example: Wikipedia only summarises what has been published about a subject by sources independent of it, and only seeks to neutrally inform (see WP:NPOV) – promotion of the subject in any way is forbidden.
- If your company merits a Wikipedia article by being Notable in Wikipedia's jargon sense of that term (please follow the link and read), we are entirely happy to have one, but it should be mainly based on substantial published material from Reliable sources independent of the company, and once published should preferably not be directly edited by people personally connected to the company (although they can make edit requests for others to check and perform). Please be aware that the vast majority of companies in the world do not qualify as "notable".
- Please first learn some of our requirements by reading WP:PAID, WP:NOT, WP:Your first article and any other relevant policies etc. that other editors may suggest. Hopefully this will help get you on to the right track to achieving an acceptable article. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 51.198.140.169 (talk) 04:59, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- The page goy is just fine. Shantavira|feed me 09:53, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- Oy! {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 51.198.140.169 (talk) 06:15, 30 July 2023 (UTC)
Page Deletion
My page was deleted right after publishing. Can you help me with the reason for the same and how can I avoid this to happen agian? Christopher Charles Benninger (talk) 04:43, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- Could you say the page name? 🛧Layah50♪🛪 ( 話す? 一緒に飛ぼう!) 04:50, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- Your user page was deleted as it is appeared to be a personal web page, which falls under our policy of what Wikipedia is not. Please review WP:NOTWEBHOST before attempting to recreate your user page. Happy editing, Heart (talk) 04:59, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- Hello, Christopher Charles Benninger. The purpose of your user page is to tell other Wikipedia editors about you as a Wikipedia editor, such as mentioning encyclopedia articles that you have written and expanded, your plans to work on other articles, your thoughts about the encyclopedia, and so on. It is the wrong place to attempt to write an autobiography, and in any event, trying to write an autobiography is highly discouraged and very rarely successful. Please read WP:AUTOBIOGRAPHY, and please be aware that self-promotional activity of any type is not permitted on Wikipedia. Cullen328 (talk) 07:20, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
Wikipedia Entry: Creating a page without bias
Dear Wikipedia; I wanted to ask if it'd be possible to create a webpage, for the sake of better networking, and establishing definitive accomplishments. I did not want to create it myself, as it'd be a conflict of interest, but provide verifiable facts and resources to affirm honesty, integrity, and academic interest.
To date, I helped to create one of the 1st disability graduation stoles (entered and accepted by the Ward M.Canaday Center for Special Collections), co-founded Disability Cultural Centers United (a non-funded communications network spanning the US, focused on developing and fostering relations across academia), and published "How Rainman Ruined Autism's Image", connecting the film Rainman to the Autism genocide Clock of 2006, Judge Rotenberg's Center for Education, and the #StopTheShock movement.
If this is not possible, I understand, and appreciate the honesty in both your response and practices. You're an invaluable resource to creating forms of research via references and citations. Thank you for what you do, and I hope that all is well.
Sincerely, Fletcher Grey
P.S. I can also forward citations, contacts, references, and proof of accomplishments whenever needed! 24.140.179.37 (talk) 18:16, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- Wikipedia has articles and not just "webpages". This isn't just semantics, but an important distinction. You are correct that it is inadvisable to write about yourself, although it is not forbidden(see the autobiography policy). Also note that an article about yourself is not necessarily a good thing. There are good reasons to not want one. You cannot lock an article about you to the text that you might prefer, or prevent others from editing it. Any information about you, good or bad, can be in an article about you as long as it appears in an independent reliable source and is not defamatory.
- However, if independent reliable sources give you significant coverage as to how you meet the special Wikipedia definition of a notable person, you could merit an article. It would be best if you allowed this to organically develop- by an independent editor taking note of coverage of you in reliable sources and choosing on their own to write about you- instead of attempting to force the issue by either soliciting someone to write about you or doing it yourself. However, you are welcome to post at Requested articles to make a request- although it is severely backlogged almost to the point of uselessness- or if you feel you can set aside everything you know about yourself and only summarize what others say about you, you can use the article wizard to create and submit a draft for review by independent editors. 331dot (talk) 18:25, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- To add to @331dot's comment, you state that you wanted a Wikipedia article about yourself "for the sake of better networking, and establishing definitive accomplishments". I am afraid this it not what Wikipedia is for.
- Have a read of Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not which explains this in more detail. If you want a place to network and show your accomplishments, then a better place is LinkedIn or a professional web page. Qcne (talk) 18:27, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- Thank you, Qcne, and I apologize for possibly going against what Wikipedia stands for. I'm cognizant of the possible negatives that could happen, and appreciate the honesty you've brought forward. I apologize if there were responses here I didn't see, as I had to step away for awhile.
- In particular, I appreciate you saying not to force these things to happen, and for them to be organic. I've often put my nose where it wasn't welcome or shouldn't be, and hope that (at some point), I could end up as someone to further help the disabled cause. My former professor has an article because of his advocacy work. There's this weird feeling of pushing to make someone proud. Maybe there's time to reflect on that.
- I'll revisit this when I'm older. Reading these links was helpful. Because I asked, would my name be added to the list of names where creation of an article would become harder in the future? I wanted to ask just in case I've created undo trouble. 24.140.179.37 (talk) 20:16, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- Don't worry - you did the right thing by asking and nothing will be held against you!
- As your career progresses you may pass the Wikipedia:Notability (people) threshold and someone will create an article about you. Best of luck with your career, Qcne (talk) 20:20, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
Questioning the use of infinity in heat capacity
Trying to visualize heat capacity scenarios I understand most but an infinite heat capacity could have business opportunity. I read an explanation whereby input doesn't get contributed correctly but for a time function wouldn't the time be infinite and not the heat capacity? I'm essentially questioning an infinite heat capacity, like space but not in context with this particular question? Still interested in potential limits to this definition. 209.133.126.10 (talk) 18:28, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
- You're better off asking at the science help desk. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) 19:21, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
Election maps
How can I make my own proper election maps to use them for wikipedia? For example, the one similiar to the one used in the 2022 French presidential election. Or like the one used in the 2010 Bosnian general election. Are both of them made the same way, and if so is it using some kind of wiki app? Bakir123 (talk) 21:37, 29 July 2023 (UTC)
July 30
I screwed up editing my own bio
Hi---- My bio was created by others and was incorrect and out of date etc-- so I wrote a new one, only in doing so, I deleted my photo an all the information in the box norm ally at the top right- in fact, that box no longer exists! Everything in that box was correct--- please help me get that back, along with the photo. THANKS and BLESSINGS . Tim Sullivan New Rebellion Entertainment (talk) 01:32, 30 July 2023 (UTC)
- I've restored the previous version for now. I'm sure someone will advise you on updates. Knitsey (talk) 01:40, 30 July 2023 (UTC)