DWPriests - User contributions [en]

Help:Deleting a page

2008-10-02T08:40:00Z

Bdk: Reverted edits by 202.137.66.72 (Talk) to last version by Protonk

{{#ifexist: Template:PD Help Page/{{SUBPAGENAME}}|{{PD Help Page/{{SUBPAGENAME}}}}|{{PD Help Page}}}}

== When '''not''' to delete a page : ==
Typically you would delete a page if the contents are entirely inappropriate, and do not match the purposes of the wiki. In other situations you might prefer a less extreme course of action, for example...

* The page should have a different title - So just "move" the page to a better title. See [[Help:Moving a page]]
* The contents should have been placed on a different page - So "merge" the contents into the existing page and then create a redirect. See [[Help:Redirects]]
* The contents are already on a different page - So wipe away all the duplicate content and leave behind a redirect. That way, this page title (which made more sense to somebody), will helpfully redirect to the correct location of the information. See [[Help:Redirects]]
* The page is out-of-date - So update it! If the page describes a current or future event, which has now passed, reword all of the sentences to be in the past tense, that way you have created a page which acts as a historical record. Alternatively label the information as out-of-date, with a warning notice.

So in fact a straightforward delete is generally only necessary if the ''title'' of the page is inappropriate. In other situations, a merge and redirect is more appropriate.

=== Proposing changes ===
Deciding on appropriate content/page titles can be a difficult aspect of wiki organization, and one which can often provoke debates. If the merge or deletion you have in mind, is one which might cause upset, you should propose the change first. Do this by leaving a note to give your reasons on the [[Help:Talk pages|talk page]]. You might also establish a system for labeling the page itself, with a delete/merge proposal template, to make everybody aware of your intentions

=== Unlinking a page ===
If a page is no longer of any value, then you won't have any links pointing to it right? Well you might be surprised. The 'What links here' toolbox feature (bottom left) will tell you which other wiki pages link in to the current page. Always use this feature to check before proceeding with deleting. These related pages will need to be edited, to reflect the change.

== Deletion itself ==
'''Normal users''' cannot permanently delete a wiki page. This is an entirely deliberate design feature, which is an important part of why wikis work. Every kind of editing operation can be reverted by any other user, and that includes resurrecting deleted content. Try not to let it wind you up too much. It doesn't cause significant wasted space, and with nothing but a 'delete' label the page is effectively deleted anyway.

'[[Help:Sysops and permissions|Sysop]]' users ''are'' able to delete a page semi-permanently. See [[Help:Sysop deleting and undeleting]]. Typically sysops might look for delete labels, and do a proper delete on these pages, after a period of time. If for some reason you need a page to be deleted more quickly than that, you will need to contact a sysop to request this.

==See also==
* [[Help:Sysops and permissions]]

{{Languages|Help:Deleting a page}}

{{Help/Category|Help}}

Help:Tracking changes

2008-09-04T20:06:53Z

Bdk: rv, see Project:PD help#Editorial guidelines

{{PD Help Page}}
[[Image:M-en-recentchanges.png|thumb|370px|'''Recent changes''' shows the latest changes to articles, file uploads, deletions and page moves]]
MediaWiki offers a collection of special pages and tools to keep track of what is going on in the wiki. So you can watch for example:
* recent changes to all pages
* the revision history: all changes made to one page
* the contributions of one specific user
* newly created pages

The most interesting special page is '''[[Special:Recentchanges]]'''. It displays all edits, file uploads, page moves, deletions and other actions done in the wiki. In the menu on top it offers a collection of links to customize your display: limit the number of changes shown, the number of days or restrict it to edits to a certain namespace. You can also hide edits marked as minor (don't forget that major changes can be flagged by a user as minor anyway).

One line in recent changes consists of several links:
* ''diff'' displays the difference to the previous revision of the page,
* ''hist'' links to the revision history of the page,
* the link with the full title of the page brings you to the current version. If the title is in bold, it indicates that it is on your [[Help:Watchlist|watchlist]].

Next is a flag describing the article modification type:
*''N'' denotes a new page,
*''m'' a minor edit,
*''b'' an edit made by a bot.

Following the timestamp, it shows the page size difference to the previous revision, then the user is mentioned, with a link to their [[Help:User page|user page]] and their [[Help:Talk pages#User Talk pages|talk page]] and contributions, or to their [[Help:Talk pages#User Talk pages|talk page]] only in the case of anonymous users.

Last but not least, there is an edit summary, appearing in italics, if the user submitted one when they made the edit.

=== Enhanced view ===
If you are logged in and have JavaScript enabled, you can also try the "enhanced" view. Simply go to your [[Help:Preferences#Recent changes|Preferences]] and enable "Enhanced recent changes (JavaScript)"; this will make recent changes show edits divided by page rather than being listed individually. You will now see entries like the following:
:! 15:17 [[Main Page]] (4 changes; (+236) Page history) [Some User‎ (2×); Some Other User (2×)]
Simply click the blue arrow to the left of the page name and timestamp to expand that page's recent edits just as they were on the normal style. You can turn this enhancement on and off at will, so feel free to try both to see which one you prefer.

=== See also ===
* [[Special:Newpages]]
* Related changes: [[Special:Recentchangeslinked/Pagename]]
* User contributions: [[Special:Contributions/User]]
* History
* [[Special:Watchlist]]

{{Admin tip|tip=You may want to add important pages in your wiki to [[MediaWiki:Recentchangestext]], the intro shown at [[Special:Recentchanges]]}}

{{Languages|Help:Tracking changes}}

[[Category:Help|Tracking changes]]
[[Category:Recent changes|Tracking changes]]

File:M-en-pagetabs.png

2008-09-02T22:54:45Z

Bdk: Reverted edits by Rachyrach (Talk) to last version by 86.141.61.48

== Summary ==
Example page tabs screenshot for use in public domain help pages.

I grabbed this image and release it to the public domain, assuming that Mediawiki does not impose any restrictions on screenshots.

== Licensing ==
{{PD}}

Help:Protected pages

2008-09-02T10:31:24Z

Bdk: hmm, seems a bit outdated

{{PD Help Page}}
A '''protected page''' is a page where normal users are prevented from editing at all. Only a user with [[Help:Sysops and permissions|sysop permissions]] can edit a protected page. Likewise only sysop users can protect a page in the first place, or unprotect the page to lift the restriction.

There are several reasons why a particular page might be protected. Typically a protected page is one which has been repeatedly targeted with vandalism, or where it is believed that vandalism would have a unusually severe impact.

For sysop information see [[Help:Protecting and unprotecting pages]]

{{Languages|Help:Protected pages}}
[[Category:Help|{{PAGENAME}}]]

File:M-en-userlinks.png

2006-11-28T11:11:20Z

Bdk: Reverted edits by 87.230.124.129 (Talk); changed back to last version by Bdk

== Summary ==
Example user links screenshot for use in public domain help pages.

I grabbed this image and release it to the public domain, assuming that mediawiki does not impose any restrictions on screenshots.
== Licensing ==
{{PD}}

File:PD-Help icon.png

2006-04-21T01:11:37Z

Bdk: fix

* Icon for the [[Project:PD Help|Public Domain Help Pages]] on MediaWiki.org
* Logo combined by [[User:Bdk|<span style="color:#116611">:Bdk:</span>]] using
::[[commons:Image:PD-icon.svg|PD-icon.svg]] (''public domain'') and
::a reworked version of [[commons:Image:Feather.jpg|Feather.jpg]] by [[commons:User:Za|Za]] (''GFDL'', first Commons upload: 06:08, 29. Aug 2005)
{{GFDL}}