Template talk:R from Unicode code

Changing category sorting

 * I've changed this template so it no longer uses the first parameter for sortkeys, and instead automatically gives each page a sortkey. The sortkey is generated through removing the 'U+' and converting the remaining number from hexadecimal to base 10 using hex2dec. This ensures the pages are sorted by their code point index, which is the way the Unicode Standard sorts them and the most straightforward way I can see to sort them.

I've pinged you 3 because you've used this template with the sortkey parameter in the past. Also, based on my personal experience, Redrose seems familiar with templates and probably has an idea of what should be done with all of the templates that now use an unnecessary parameter. E to the Pi times i ( talk  &#124;  contribs ) 22:12, 28 March 2019 (UTC)
 * If the parameter is now truly unused (and it certainly appears so), you don't actually need to do anything. You could set up an AWB run to remove the param from all current uses, but you might be pulled up for WP:AWBRULES no. 4 unless you can carry out some beneficial change at the same time. Same goes for sending in a bot to do it, here the applicable policy is WP:COSMETICBOT. -- Red rose64 &#x1f339; (talk) 16:21, 4 April 2019 (UTC)
 * The parameter is indeed completely unused in the template itself because the template code no longer contains any s. Thanks for the reply; that confirmed what I expected given COSMETICBOT (which is why I didn't preemptively use AWB to remove them). My concern was wasted time from people referencing example uses of this template, but this is probably unfounded because I have now added a note discouraging use in the template's documentation. In any case, the first parameter is now used in the minority of cases because I systematically tagged all of the untagged Unicode character point redirects using AWB (which incidentally turned the template into a high-risk template; I didn't realize that would happen automatically). In the future, I can imagine a bot automatically creating these redirects for all assigned code points (perhaps of my own proposing!), so the perceived issue may become moot eventually.
 * On related note, many Unicode code point redirects also include ; it could be merged into this template if it's deemed reasonable to universally pair the two templates, or removed entirely if it's deemed unnecessary. Currently, I personally favor removal, because calling a code point a "topic" seems a bit of a stretch to me. If one of these outcomes is reached, then the template parameter could be removed concurrently with modifying the template layout. I'd like to do some more research and thinking before proposing anything, though. E to the Pi times i  ( talk  &#124;  contribs ) 05:07, 6 April 2019 (UTC)