Help:Menu/Joining Wikipedia

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 * Joining Wikipedia Edit
 * Joining Wikipedia Edit

Wikipedia is more than just an encyclopedia. It is a world-wide community of people who volunteer their time and share knowledge in order to make the world a better place. You are welcome to join us in this important mission...

Getting an account

 * Why create an account? (to get more privileges and to make communication easier)
 * Choosing a username
 * How to log in

Teamwork

 * Who writes Wikipedia? (Anyone with Internet access)
 * We are Wikipedians
 * Talk pages &mdash; how to communicate in Wikipedia
 * WikiProjects &mdash; collaborate with others to develop your favorite subject areas
 * Quick directory/Department directory

Getting started
Just go for it! &mdash; the easiest and fastest way to get involved is to click on the edit tab at the top of an article that interests you, and improve the article in the editor that appears.


 * Keep in mind...
 * The Five Pillars (the core rules)


 * Tutorials:
 * Main tutorial &mdash; will help anyone become a Wikipedia contributor.
 * Editing &mdash; almost every page has an "Edit" tab.
 * Formatting &mdash; the basics on coding.
 * Links &mdash; the basics on internal links.
 * Sources &mdash; the basics on adding references.
 * Talk pages &mdash; the basics on how to communicate with others.
 * Policies &mdash; there are some things to keep in mind when editing Wikipedia.
 * Registration &mdash; registering a username is optional, but encouraged.
 * Graphics &mdash; the basics on how to use graphics.
 * Images &mdash; the basics on how to use images.
 * IRC (live chat) &mdash; to access the freenode IRC servers, follow the directions here.
 * tutorials &mdash; place this on your user page to display a navigation box with helpful links


 * Overviews:
 * Plain and simple &mdash; the basic mechanics of Wikipedia
 * Primer for newcomers &mdash; an overview for new contributors
 * Advice for parents

Where to next?

 * For comprehensive help, see The Missing Manual and the Help directory
 * If you wish to express an opinion or make a comment, Where to ask questions will point you in the correct direction.
 * If you're looking for things to edit, the Community portal has lists of open tasks, or you can join a subject-specific WikiProject.
 * If you would like to create a new article, Starting an article will explain how to create a new page, with tips for success and a link to Wikipedia's Article Wizard, which can guide you through the process of submitting a new article to Wikipedia.
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