CivWiki:Editing Guide: Difference between revisions

Content added Content deleted

Inline

Latest revision as of 17:58, 22 January 2024

This article is a beginner's guide to editing CivWiki. If you have questions or want additional help, feel free to join the CivWiki Discord.

See also CivWiki:Editing Projects for ongoing projects that you can help with!

Join the CivWiki Discord server!

FAQ

Q: How do I edit a page?

The excellent editing guide on Wikipedia explains how to edit and format a page. Wikipedia also has:

You must first create an account in order to edit CivWiki.

Q: How do I create a page?

Go to the url for the page you want to create and press "create".

Q: How do I upload an image?

Click the Upload file link in the left sidebar.

Q: How do I create a redirect?

Create a page with the following: #REDIRECT [[Mechanics and Plugins]]. This will create a redirect from that page to Mechanics and Plugins.

Q: How are templates used?

A template can standardize and save large amounts of time. To add a template to a page click 'Edit source' and paste in the template.

An example template is Template:Coord, used to affix a link to CCMap centered on specified coordinates. To center on x=0, z=0 with a viewing radius of 100, paste {{Coord|0|0|100}}. This will render as 0, 0

Q: Is there anywhere I can experiment with editing?

Yes! feel free to use CivWiki:Sandbox to experiment with editing, formatting, or getting familiar with MediaWiki (the software behind both Wikipedia and CivWiki).

Writing standards

Per CW:DEFER, articles on CivWiki follow Wikipedia's manual of style and are written from a neutral point of view. Nevertheless, CivWiki is not Wikipedia: in particular, content that is not written from a neutral point of view can remain as long as it is clearly stated to be opinion.

References

References should be used whenever possible. They can be anything from reddit posts, links to discord messages(screenshots of discord messages are also okay but a link is preferred), imgur albums/pictures, newspapers, or anything that has a name attached to the source which is easily verifiable.

Tips

Page checklist

In addition to content standards consider:

Relevant images to break up long walls of text
A short summary at top that can be understood without reading the full article
Page is not a stub (i.e. pages is too short to provide a relatively encyclopedic coverage of a subject
- Searching Civ subreddits and discords for relevant content will often turn up useful information, references and images
"If an article's title is a formal or widely accepted name for the subject, display it in bold as early as possible in the first sentence" (see here)

Dating information

Information that may quickly go out of date should be dated. (E.g. the population of X is 40 should be replaced with the population of X is 40, as of January 2020). If you find information that is not dated, affix the template:

{{when}}

Templates

Category:Civ templates has a number of useful civ-specific templates that may be useful.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{CivWiki meta}}
-This article is to serve as an introductory guide to editing this wiki. The goal is to provide a starting point for beginning editors that wish to contribute, helping them write articles with the consistency, clarity, and precision readers expect.
+This article is a beginner's guide to editing CivWiki. If you have questions or want additional help, feel free to join the [https://discordapp.com/invite/H74bEUp CivWiki Discord].
+See also [[CivWiki:Editing Projects]] for ongoing projects that you can help with!
+{|
+|-
+|{{Template:User CivWiki discord}}
+|-
+|}
 == FAQ ==
+[[File:CivWikiLarge.png|thumb|200px|Thank you for editing CivWiki!]]
-* '''Q: How do I create a page?'''
-Search for desired page name and press the central red link. You must create an account to edit.
-* '''Q: How do I upload pictures?'''
+=== Q: How do I edit a page? ===
-There is an 'upload file' link in the left sidebar under 'Tools'. Try to have your filename contain keywords: Files can then be easily searched using [[Special:ListFiles]] or [[Special:NewFiles]]. Ensure you attribute images : This can be as simple as writing authors name in summary when uploading
+The excellent [[Wikipedia:Help:Introduction|editing guide on Wikipedia]] explains how to edit and format a page. Wikipedia also has:
-* '''Q: How do I format my page?'''
+* [[Wikipedia:Help:Introduction to editing with VisualEditor|A tutorial for the visual editor]]
-Click the help button in editor toolbar to see basic syntax of links and formatting. Use <code><nowiki>{{Template:Civilization}}</nowiki></code> for a basic template. For examples and inspiration find a page in the [[Welcome to the Civclassic Wiki#Model pages|Model or Good Pages section]] and press edit in the top right. Copy the item you want and surrounding brackets: i.e. <code><nowiki>{{infobox ... }}</nowiki></code>. Additionally, when creating info boxes try to keep consistent with categories and order of other info boxes. Some specific formatting examples can be found in [[Editing guide#tips]]
+* [[Wikipedia:Help:Introduction to editing with Wiki Markup|A tutorial for the source editor]]
+You must first [[Special:CreateAccount|create an account]] in order to edit CivWiki.
+=== Q: How do I create a page? ===
+Go to the url for the page you want to create and press "create".
+=== Q: How do I upload an image? ===
+Click the [[Special:Upload|Upload file]] link in the left sidebar.
+=== Q: How do I create a redirect? ===
+Create a page with the following: <code><nowiki>#REDIRECT [[Mechanics and Plugins]]</nowiki></code>. This will create a redirect from that page to [[Mechanics and Plugins]].
+=== Q: How are templates used? ===
+A template can standardize and save large amounts of time. To add a template to a page click 'Edit source' and paste in the template.
+An example template is [[Template:Coord]], used to affix a link to CCMap centered on specified coordinates. To center on x=0, z=0 with a viewing radius of 100, paste <code><nowiki>{{Coord|0|0|100}}</nowiki></code>. This will render as {{Coord|0|0|100}}
+=== Q: Is there anywhere I can experiment with editing? ===
+Yes! feel free to use [[CivWiki:Sandbox]] to experiment with editing, formatting, or getting familiar with MediaWiki (the software behind both Wikipedia and CivWiki).
+== Writing standards ==
+Per [[CW:DEFER]], articles on CivWiki follow [[WP:SMOS|Wikipedia's manual of style]] and are written from a [[WP:NPOV|neutral point of view]]. Nevertheless, [[CW:NOTWP|CivWiki is not Wikipedia]]: in particular, content that is not written from a neutral point of view can remain as long as it is clearly stated to be opinion.
-== Why edit CivWiki? ==
-===Recruitment===
+=== References ===
-* Free advertising for your group
-* A single page to direct your nations new players so they can better understand the culture.
-===Free PR improvement===
-* Increase citizen patriotism and make your nation appear more legitimate
-* Having a backstory makes it easier for others to empathize.
-===Better subreddit content===
-* [https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/415706745566920716/422792069380177920/unknown.png Compare the old way of storing flags to the new] Its not hard to imagine projects like civball or political maps can be made easier
-* Reading about nations makes civ seem living and breathing: Building with more than just blocks
-===For future you===
-* This wiki will far outlast Civclassic. Next iteration read the wiki to learn from your mistakes.
-* Preserve your groups legacy.
+References should be used whenever possible. They can be anything from reddit posts, links to discord messages(screenshots of discord messages are also okay but a link is preferred), imgur albums/pictures, newspapers, or anything that has a name attached to the source which is easily verifiable.
-==Create a standard format==
-[[File:CivWikiLarge.png|thumb|Thank you for editing CivWiki!]]
+== Tips ==
-An effort is made to ensure info boxes have a common organization. Do not alter the order of information too greatly; it is much harder to reference many pages when data is scattered between pages. Headers break up the flow of information and are used to divide long lists of items. While the content may change from page to page, info boxes are commonly comprised of these items:
-{{columns-list|colwidth=15em|
-* Population
-* Location
-* System of government
-* Date founded
-* Demonym
-* Leader
-* Cities
-* Allies
-* Language
-* Religion
-* Activity
-}}
-If possible the location is included as a link to the CCMap or any other external map view of the point: [https://ccmap.github.io/#c=-5000,6935,r351 -5000,6935]. Like any well written page, create a summary and table of contents before further work is done. To view the source of an article's infobox, navigate to the article and press edit. From there, you can copy and paste the infobox to the new location, where it can be edited and filled with data for the new page.
+=== Page checklist ===
-Ensure images and files are saved with keywords in name. Flags should contain the name of the nation or group, as well as the word ''flag'', so that they can then be [[Special:ListFiles|easily searched]].
-==Higher standards==
+In addition to content standards consider:
-A good article is objective. It maintains a neutral viewpoint and represents the topic fairly. Articles should not use first person. While avoiding original research can be difficult in many cases, an effort can be made to reduce unreliability. Ensure that pages are properly [[Special:Categories|categorized]], allowing readers to quickly browse pages related to a topic defined by those characteristics. When a page meets the criteria<sup>[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Manual_of_Style/Words_to_watch#Unsupported_attributions ''what criteria?'']]</sup> for a good article, it is marked as high quality. As pages are completed some will be marked with model article. [[Verda]] is an example of good formatting.
+* Relevant images to break up long walls of text
-An effort should be made to avoid stubs. If the page is a sentence or two try to include it in the most similar existing page. When creating a new article using text from an older one, the first edit summary should link to the original article. Include pictures to create a dynamic flow to the text. Create galleries for articles containing pictures related to the topic, adding depth to the page. Nations, settlements, and key locations should be prioritized over people, and to a lesser degree, events.
+* A short summary at top that can be understood without reading the full article
+* Page is not a stub (i.e. pages is too short to provide a relatively encyclopedic coverage of a subject
+** Searching Civ subreddits and discords for relevant content will often turn up useful information, references and images
+* "If an article's title is a formal or widely accepted name for the subject, display it in bold as early as possible in the first sentence" (see [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Manual_of_Style/Lead_section#Format_of_the_first_sentence here])
-==Tips==
+=== Categories ===
-To create a page, search, then click the red text showing the page does not exist. Use the [[Special:Upload|upload]] link in left toolbar to for media content.
+To add a page to a category, add <code><nowiki>[[Category:category_name]]</nowiki></code> to the bottom of the page. For instance, to categorize a page as a civlization, add <code><nowiki>[[Category:Civilizations]]</nowiki></code> to the bottom of the page.
-Create a page with acronym name to redirect (I.e. Page name is TdC):
-<pre> #REDIRECT [[Tierra de Conciencia]]</pre>
+=== Dating information ===
-Mark inactive or disbanded groups with the inactive group template.
-<pre>{{Inactive-group}}</pre>
+Information that may quickly go out of date should be dated. (E.g. ''the population of X is 40'' should be replaced with ''the population of X is 40, as of January 2020''). If you find information that is not dated, affix the template:
-To categorize a page, link to the category in the article source.
-<pre>[[Category:Civilization]]</pre>
+<code><nowiki>{{when}}</nowiki></code>
-When linking to a location, provide a link to the location in ''CCMap'' or another external mapping site whenever possible. Include text to display instead of the hyperlink itself. The standard format for a link to ''CCMap'' location uses the values x, z, and view radius to orient the map. If x=10549 z=-834, radius for view=351:
-<pre>[https://ccmap.github.io/#c=10549,-834,r351 10600 -790]</pre>
+=== Templates ===
-When uploading flags to the wiki, follow the format
-<pre> <Nation name> <subdivision name (if applicable)> <flag> </pre>
-(e.g. Mount Augusta Insula flag.png)
+[[:Category:Civ templates]] has a number of useful civ-specific templates that may be useful.
-==Example Editing Chores==
-* Contributing to an existing or creating a [[Special:WantedPages|wanted nation page]] is always first priority: If you have done all you can for nation pages:
-* Create good templates - particularly an easy to use Nation creation template
-* Fix small common mistakes: Pages that [[Special:UncategorizedPages|lack a category]], pages without ccmap link and small formatting errors. To find these new pages use [[Special:NewPages]].
-* Place small icons next to nation names so list such as the Good pages sections are easier to skim
-[[Category:Meta]]
+[[Category:CivWiki administration]]