Help:Editing: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 08:51, 8 March 2019

The lead editors of Sprocket School are Rlyon and Rfhall — reach them at info@sprocketschool.org if you have any questions.

If code intimidates or bores you, email your suggestions and contributions to info@sprocketschool.org and we will take care of the rest!

To edit Sprocket School yourself, email us at info@sprocketschool.org to create an account.

Like Wikipedia, Sprocket School was made using software called MediaWiki. MediaWiki has extensive instructions on editing and formatting on their website.

General pointers

Request a real or otherwise recognizable login name (if you are comfortable doing so) so your colleagues will know who you are.
The current user list is here.
You can see recent contributions to the site on the Recent changes page.
Look at an article's editing history by clicking the "history" tab at the top of any page.
Each page has a "discussion" tab at the top. This is a good place to ask questions and make suggestions about a given topic.
You can "sign" your contributions to the discussion page (or any other page) by typing "-- ~ ~ ~ ~" - without the spaces! - or by just hitting the little button that looks like a signature at the top of the editing box. It looks like this: -- Rfhall (talk) 00:44, 3 August 2013 (PDT)
You can upload images here. Follow the instructions on that page to use the image in any of the articles.

Starting a new page

A list of pages that need to be written: http://www.sprocketschool.org/w/index.php?title=Special:WantedPages
Instructions for starting a new page from scratch: http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Help:Starting_a_new_page

Editing an existing page

Click the "edit" link at the top of an article to edit it.
A list of pages that exist already (which you may wish to edit): http://www.sprocketschool.org/w/index.php?title=Special:AllPages
Mediawiki's guide to basic editing: http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Help:Editing

Editorial Guidelines

Use neutral language

Avoid absolutes, like "this is the worst/best practice or piece of equipment", or any other language that veers into the territory of personal opinion.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-Like Wikipedia, '''Sprocket School''' was made using software called '''Mediawiki'''. MediaWiki has extensive instructions on editing and formatting on their '''[http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Help:Contents website]'''.
+The lead editors of Sprocket School are [[User:RLyon|Rlyon]] and [[User:Rfhall|Rfhall]] — reach them at info@sprocketschool.org if you have any questions.
+<span style="color:#007ab7">'''If code intimidates or bores you, email your suggestions and contributions to <span style="color:#ae0a94">info@sprocketschool.org</span> and we will take care of the rest!'''</span>
-<center>'''To get started with Sprocket School, [http://www.sprocketschool.org/w/index.php?title=Special:UserLogin&type=signup&returnto=Main+Page create an account].'''</center>
+<span style="color:#ff0000">'''To edit Sprocket School yourself, email us at info@sprocketschool.org to create an account.</span>
-'''Starting a new page'''
-* A list of pages we want to have that don't exist yet: http://www.sprocketschool.org/w/index.php?title=Special:WantedPages
+Like Wikipedia, '''Sprocket School''' was made using software called '''MediaWiki'''. MediaWiki has extensive instructions on editing and formatting on their '''[http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Help:Contents website]'''.
+===General pointers===
+* Request a real or otherwise recognizable login name (if you are comfortable doing so) so your colleagues will know who you are.
+* The current user list is [http://www.sprocketschool.org/w/index.php?title=Special:ListUsers here].
+* You can see recent contributions to the site on the [http://www.sprocketschool.org/wiki/Special:RecentChanges Recent changes page].
+* Look at an article's editing history by clicking the "history" tab at the top of any page.
+*Each page has a "discussion" tab at the top. This is a good place to ask questions and make suggestions about a given topic.
+* You can "sign" your contributions to the discussion page (or any other page) by typing "-- ~ ~ ~ ~" - without the spaces! - or by just hitting the little button that looks like a signature at the top of the editing box. It looks like this: -- [[User:Rfhall|Rfhall]] ([[User talk:Rfhall|talk]]) 00:44, 3 August 2013 (PDT)
+* You can upload images [http://www.sprocketschool.org/wiki/Special:Upload here]. Follow the instructions on that page to use the image in any of the articles.
+===Starting a new page===
+* A list of pages that need to be written: http://www.sprocketschool.org/w/index.php?title=Special:WantedPages
 * Instructions for starting a new page from scratch: http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Help:Starting_a_new_page
+===Editing an existing page===
-'''Editing an existing page'''
 * Click the "edit" link at the top of an article to edit it.
 * A list of pages that exist already (which you may wish to edit): http://www.sprocketschool.org/w/index.php?title=Special:AllPages
 * Mediawiki's guide to basic editing: http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Help:Editing
+===Editorial Guidelines===
-'''On cooperative editing: things to keep in mind'''
+==== Use neutral language ====
-*Anyone can edit any page on the wiki, provided they've registered for an account (see top right corner). This means that, ideally, every page will ultimately be written by anyone in the community with relevant knowledge.
+Avoid absolutes, like "this is the worst/best practice or piece of equipment", or any other language that veers into the territory of personal opinion.
-*Because this is a tool intended to serve a relatively small field, everyone should try to register under a real or otherwise recognizable name. The current user list is [http://www.sprocketschool.org/w/index.php?title=Special:ListUsers here].
-*You can look at an individual page's editing history and how it's changed over time by clicking the "history" tab at the top of any page. Any change that's been made can be unmade from here, too.
-*Each page also has a "discussion" tab at the top. This is a good place to ask questions and make suggestions about a given topic. You can "sign" your contributions to the discussion page (or any other page) by typing "-- ~ ~ ~ ~" - without the spaces! - or by just hitting the little button that looks like a signature at the top of the editing box.