Template talk:School block/Archive 1

Account Creation
Shouldn't instead of just saying, "To prevent abuse, account creation via this IP address is probably also disabled.", a parameter is added to say yes account creation from this IP is disabled, or no account creation from this IP is not disabled, then if it is then say, "To prevent abuse, account creation via this IP address is also disabled.", otherwise make no mention of the subject. You can also only show the "from home" where its talking about account creation if account creation is blocked from this IP. This is all of course assuming this is technically possible woth existing wiki-markup.--Ryan (talk) 21:05, 21 September 2007 (UTC) It may be best to run an invite system for account creation from these areas, where accounts are created with a certain password and only allowed if everyone using that password is not banned. This allows for situations where there is a limited number of trustworthy people using a connection, although there are issues137.44.1.200 17:39, 18 October 2007 (UTC)

At home
Some young editors I worked with some time ago were at a residential institution, others will not have internet at home, if indeed they have a home! "Elsewhere" is a bit vague, but might be better. Rich Farmbrough, 15:36 18 December 2006 (GMT).
 * Besides "At Home" is too imperative I think, sometime like "elsewhere" I think will be better.--Ryan (talk) 21:32, 21 September 2007 (UTC)

Color
Can we change the color? This is my suggestion. -- HIZKIAH (User &#149; Talk) 20:42, 8 January 2007 (UTC)
 * We can't do anything to the template, only admins can...lol...but what color were you thinking of?--Ryan (talk) 21:35, 21 September 2007 (UTC)
 * Please post your design ideas in Template talk:Schoolblock/Temp. --Damian Yerrick (talk | stalk) 21:08, 2 November 2007 (UTC)

XHTML
Please change "&lt;br>" to "&lt;br />" in the template. This will make the template XHTML compliant. &mdash;Remember the dot (t) 22:57, 8 January 2007 (UTC)
 * Done, I think. Let me know if anything else needs fiddling. Luna Santin 23:15, 8 January 2007 (UTC)
 * I think that's all. Thanks! &mdash;Remember the dot (t) 20:17, 9 January 2007 (UTC)

Some notes
Perhaps this template should mention the action that may be taken at abuse reports in cases of persistent IP vandalism.

Also, as a matter of general interest, email headers can easily be forged and shouldn't be used for serious authentication. Feezo (Talk) 13:17, 15 January 2007 (UTC)


 * They can only be forged if you run your own SMTP server, or have access to an open relay/compromised zombie -- a skill beyond the knowledge of the typical primary/secondary student vandal. --  Netsnipe  ►  13:36, 27 February 2007 (UTC)

Use of this template
When I have to block a school IP, I usually soft block it for three hours. I like how this template explains how to register for an account, but the way it's phrased it looks like it's most appropriate for long-term use at the top of a talk page. I feel like if I were to use this template I'd have to come back three hours later, when it's expired, and remove it, because it would look very strange on an unblocked IP. How do others use this template? TomTheHand 17:00, 14 March 2007 (UTC)


 * I have a similar question: What do we do when the school block has apparently expired? For example, I just put a warning on 199.185.87.122, but I put it just below the school block message, which now looks like it no longer applies.  Can I just delete the old school block or do I reword it?  Rickterp 23:32, 14 March 2007 (UTC)


 * I'd like to suggest having this template take a "time" argument. By default, with no time specified, it would appear as it does now, but if a time is specified, "is currently disabled" will be replaced by "has been disabled for ".  Perhaps other tweaks might be necessary to really make it sound right.  Ideas? TomTheHand 12:12, 15 March 2007 (UTC)

I suggest that you don't use this template on an IP's talk page unless the block is long term (6 months/indefinite). It was originally designed for use as a block reason. --  Netsnipe  ►  08:44, 19 March 2007 (UTC)

Slight rewording requested
editprotected Despite the way it probably should be used, I have found that there are many many IP talk pages with expired blocks that contain this template. I recommend a simple change in the text "editing by anonymous users ... is currently disabled" to read "... may be currently disabled" to account for this. Otherwise, we will continue to have messages that are technically inaccurate. It's not a big deal, but probably worth the minor rewording. Deli nk 18:57, 31 May 2007 (UTC)
 * [[Image:Yes check.svg|20px]] Done. Cheers. --MZMcBride 20:12, 31 May 2007 (UTC)

There's a better solution than that. What about ? When this template is used in a block reason, "may be" sounds a little awkward, and it's not used anywhere but on user talk pages and in block reasons anyway.  Melsaran  (talk) 19:17, 5 September 2007 (UTC)
 * [[Image:Yes check.svg|20px]] Done. Cheers. --MZMcBride 02:27, 6 September 2007 (UTC)

Typo
editprotected Typo in final sentence - should be "is" not "it". Bencherlite 09:31, 12 June 2007 (UTC)


 * ✅ Done &mdash; Carl (CBM · talk) 14:36, 12 June 2007 (UTC)

Another typo: the phrase "its preferable" should be "it's preferable", or better yet, "it is preferable". In fact, avoiding contractions in text is usually a good idea, especially given that so many folks have trouble with this basic distinction. ~ Jeff Q (talk) 01:21, 12 October 2007 (UTC)
 * Since that typo was in the transcluded documentation, it is not protected and any user can edit it. I have done so. Cheers, Storkk (talk) 17:36, 10 December 2007 (UTC)

rewording request
I suspect that timid students may unwittingly be put off from encyclopedia use by this 'group punishment' aimed at the vandal(s). This risk could be mitigated somewhat by the addition of a sentence similar to: "You continue to have full access to read the encyclopedia." SaltyBoatr 15:19, 17 October 2007 (UTC)
 * [[Image:Yes check.svg|20px]] Done. Cheers. --MZMcBride 01:31, 18 October 2007 (UTC)

Special:Listusers
See post at Wikipedia talk:Username policyJeepday (talk) 14:39, 16 January 2008 (UTC)

I noticed on this User talk:209.105.213.101 the template Schoolblock whcih includes a link to Special:Listusers all of which is great. But when you open the list of user names the are almost exclusively deleted vandal only accounts or offensive ones like User:(2) Heil Hitler, motherfucker!. While I can see where directing school children to a list of user names that have been taken could be helpful could we find a way to provide the list of active accounts? Schoolblock is used on school IP's that have been blocked for vandalism, directing to a list user names created mostly to vandalize Wikipedia may not be the best choice. Jeepday (talk) 14:36, 16 January 2008 (UTC)


 * I noticed looking over Request an account that a lot of people requesting an account don't bother checking the list, so they probably should be directed there. We can't delete usernames, even blocked ones.  The right way to use the Listusers page is to enter the name you're interested in in the search box; the bad names only appear if you start surfing through.  There are some offensive names on the first page, though: what do people think about linking like this, which puts a 20-name limit on the page?  Then the first page doesn't include any offensive names.  Mango juice talk 16:25, 16 January 2008 (UTC)


 * If we can't limit the search to active names I think that is a workable solution. Jeepday (talk) 00:55, 17 January 2008 (UTC)

Can we convert this link into something like this? Alexius08 is welcome to talk about his contributions. 04:44, 30 May 2008 (UTC)


 * There's no way to do it while keeping a limit. The  is part of the URL, and Special:ListUsers&limit=20 as an internal link will bring up an error. Could you be more specific about what you want changed? Did you want to keep the limit? Thanks, PeterSymonds  (talk)  08:07, 30 May 2008 (UTC)


 * What about something like this instead? Alexius08 is welcome to talk about his contributions. 23:13, 30 May 2008 (UTC)
 * Done. --- RockMFR 03:45, 1 June 2008 (UTC)

SVG
There is an SVG version of the chalkboard image available, at Image:Nuvola apps edu miscellaneous.svg. The template could just be changed to use the SVG rather than PNG.  Soxred93 | talk bot 06:56, 6 April 2008 (UTC)
 * ✅ Happy‑melon 14:15, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

"with reference to this IP address" add actual IP
Please change the bracket (with reference to this IP address) to (with reference to the following IP address: ) which is then automatically changed to

(with reference to the following IP address: 66.66.66.66 )

whereas 66.66.66.66 is the relevant IP address. --Church of emacs (Talk | Stalk) 00:14, 18 May 2008 (UTC)
 * ✅ --CapitalR (talk) 23:23, 18 May 2008 (UTC)
 * If someone who is ed wants to edit a page, due to this change the name of the page he wants to edit is shown as his IP address (VPT report). As this causes more confusion instead of avoiding it, I've reverted this change. --Oxymoron83 12:24, 23 May 2008 (UTC)

Requested move
Template:Schoolblock → Template:uw-edublock — I'm proposing that we move this template to a more standard name so that it falls in line with other uw-block templates. There are four redirects to this page (School block, School Block, SchoolBlock, and Schoolblocked) that would have to be redirected to the new page, then we would move this talk page and redirect this template and talk page to the new name as well. — Ioeth (talk contribs friendly) 15:16, 13 October 2008 (UTC)

Survey

 * Feel free to state your position on the renaming proposal by beginning a new line in this section with  or  , then sign your comment with  . Since polling is not a substitute for discussion, please explain your reasons, taking into account Wikipedia's naming conventions.


 * Support as nominator. Ioeth (talk contribs friendly) 15:17, 13 October 2008 (UTC)

Discussion

 * Any additional comments:

I've struck through this proposal because I discovered that this template doesn't follow the same argument standards as the uw-block series of templates does. Changing the arguments of this template would be a bad idea because it is transcluded in many places and many people are familiar with it as it is now. For those reasons, I have withdrawn this proposal. Ioeth (talk contribs friendly) 15:34, 13 October 2008 (UTC)

"Please check on this list..." (a phrase from the template)
It's nearly impossible to do! Has anyone with responsibility for this template looked at "this list" lately? Said list of Users appears to include (or mainly be composed of) every foul name ever banned on Wikipedia. And it must be incredibly long. A few doses of viewing 500 names, then the next 500, quickly cured me of wanting to look further. What a sewer! Is this something you really want to expose schoolchildren (and their administrators) to? Couldn't it be dispensed with and a better method found of choosing available Usernames? Hertz1888 (talk) 17:11, 12 January 2009 (UTC)

Image
I think that the image trivialises the template and would be better replaced by one of the alert graphics. May I have views, please? TerriersFan (talk) 02:00, 27 February 2009 (UTC)
 * I can agree with that. Do you have alternative suggestions?  --Kralizec! (talk) 02:11, 27 February 2009 (UTC)
 * Since this informative, rather than a warning, we could perhaps move away from red. File:Nuvola apps important blue.svg and File:Nuvola apps important yellow.svg would be two options. TerriersFan (talk) 02:20, 27 February 2009 (UTC)
 * Oops; I forgot about this discussion. Unless someone objects I now intend to make this change. TerriersFan (talk) 04:07, 30 September 2009 (UTC)
 * Done. TerriersFan (talk) 15:37, 1 October 2009 (UTC)

Bringing this back
I think yellow would be more effective. Blue does not denote the seriousness of of issue, red is too much. Yellow works best. I also think the thickness of the border should be doubled or trippled. Nuclear Lunch Detected   Hungry?  15:04, 7 December 2009 (UTC)
 * I have no problem in principle with your proposal - do you have an image so we can see what you prefer? TerriersFan (talk) 23:32, 8 December 2009 (UTC)
 * Perhaps the one from the documentation: Ambox warning yellow.svg File:Ambox warning yellow.svg? — Kralizec! (talk) 00:26, 9 December 2009 (UTC)
 * Fine by me. TerriersFan (talk) 01:33, 9 December 2009 (UTC)
 * That was exactly the one I was thinking of! Nuclear Lunch Detected    Hungry?  14:02, 9 December 2009 (UTC)
 * Scratch that. That one was close. The exact one I was thinking of was Nuvola apps important yellow.svg... Slight difference. Nuclear Lunch Detected    Hungry?  14:05, 9 December 2009 (UTC)
 * Also, any thoughts on the border thickness increase? Nuclear Lunch Detected    Hungry?  14:05, 9 December 2009 (UTC)
 * Looks good; on my laptop it looks brown rather than yellow, mind. TerriersFan (talk) 15:14, 9 December 2009 (UTC)
 * Its a darker yellow, admittedly, however it is in keeping with the warnings which are all of the nuvola style, and I am one for aesthetic continuity. Nuclear Lunch Detected    Hungry?  06:12, 10 December 2009 (UTC)
 * P.S. I was tempted to suggest this Crystal Clear app error.svg, but that is too out there. Nuclear Lunch Detected    Hungry?  06:16, 10 December 2009 (UTC)

Instructor
editprotected The word 'instructor' is only used in the USA. Suggest changing it to a more worldwide term, say, 'teacher'.  Kayau  Voting  IS   evil 16:08, 27 March 2010 (UTC)
 * ✅, changed to "tutor". Best, Peter Symonds ( talk ) 17:27, 27 March 2010 (UTC)
 * I think you misread? Teacher is a better generic term than tutor or instructor (imo). – xeno talk 17:37, 27 March 2010 (UTC)
 * Perhaps, but I was a little concerned about how definite we wanted to be. "Teacher" is school-specific, but the term isn't used, for example, at universities (at least in the United Kingdom they're not), which are also blocked with schoolblock. Tutor seems a bit more general for our purposes, in my opinion. Feel free to change; it's no big deal to me. Best, Peter Symonds ( talk ) 17:41, 27 March 2010 (UTC)
 * A tutor in Canada is typically someone you pay on the side to help you with schoolwork. University students might interpret it as "teaching assistant" (as they hold "tutorials") but not every professor has a TA. "Instructor" really may be the best fit. – xeno talk 17:45, 27 March 2010 (UTC)
 * I guess there'll never be a suitable compromise. "Instructor" in the UK is typically somebody you learn to drive with. :-p If "instructor" is the most widely-understood for that purpose, I've got no objections to a revert. Best, Peter Symonds ( talk ) 17:56, 27 March 2010 (UTC)
 * educator? There may be a more suitable term, but nothing comes to mind. – xeno talk 18:00, 27 March 2010 (UTC)
 * Um, I think instructor OR tutor would be better? I mean, then at least two types of people understand. (By the way, the word tutor is used the same way in Hong Kong. Those tutors keep posting adverts on the telly and the buses. You can't miss them.  Kayau  Voting  IS   evil 01:20, 28 March 2010 (UTC)
 * Well we could, but I wouldn't want it to grow into a long list of adjectives. It already has instructor or network administrator. – xeno talk 18:25, 28 March 2010 (UTC)

Congestion planning
Schoolblock is being used for the purpose of a user talk page notice upon the issuance of an anon block. Becase of this, it often appears multiple times on a user talk page. Because it contains detailed instructions for creating an account, which are subject to change, the template is not to be substituted. It also lacks the details of the standard blocking templates concerning type and duration of the block. I propose those concerned join me in studying how we may edit this template to make it more effective as a block notice by making it more similar to the standard block templates, making most of the template substitutable, but including a non-substituted template within it containing the instructions for creating an account. --Bsherr (talk) 00:21, 12 August 2010 (UTC)

Stylistic and code efficiency updates
This updated code accomplishes the following--
 * 1) applies standard user block dress to the template
 * 2) removes extraneous HTML code
 * 3) displays "thank you" only when accompanied by signature
 * 4) applies standard school-ip image to match other templates (note that this image still addresses prior concerns about including a symbol sufficiently indicating the gravity of the template
 * 5) applies proper layout code to image
 * 6) deletes deprecated "do not delete" template call

To edit, please create an account and log in

Due to, anonymous editing from your school, library, or educational institution's IP address disabled. You will continue to have access to read the encyclopedia. If you are logged in but still unable to edit, please follow these instructions. To prevent abuse, account creation via this IP address might also be disabled.

If editing is required for class projects, please have your instructor or network administrator contact us (with reference to this IP address) at [mailto:unblock-en-l@lists.wikimedia.org unblock-en-l] from an email address listed on your school's website. Alternatively, if you have no Internet access at home, you may [mailto:unblock-en-l@lists.wikimedia.org email us] using your school-issued email address, telling us your preferred username. Or you may use the form here. An account will be created for you. Please check on [ this list] that the username you choose has not already been taken.

--Bsherr (talk) 00:32, 12 August 2010 (UTC)
 * Bsherr, I had this page on my watchlist. I'm okay with it, but rather than make the change I think we should let it sit seven days to make sure there aren't any big issues, since it's a well-used template. After that time, drop a note on my talk page and I'll either make the change or drop the protection level temporarily so you can do so. tedder (talk) 04:39, 12 August 2010 (UTC)
 * Sure, no urgency. I'm grateful for the double-check. --Bsherr (talk) 05:47, 12 August 2010 (UTC)


 * Would it be simpler to sync the contents of the template's sandbox? I'm slightly wary of doing this, since this talk page isn't heavily watched and that seems a pretty major change to a widely-used template. May I suggest you post notifications at WP:AN, WT:BLOCK and WP:VPP, then ping my talk apge in a few days if there are no objections. HJ Mitchell  &#124;  Penny for your thoughts?   02:37, 24 August 2010 (UTC)
 * The contents of the sandbox and the above code are the same, so yes. I don't understand what could be objectionable about this change, but I don't have an alternative but to follow your suggestion. --Bsherr (talk) 03:48, 25 August 2010 (UTC)

✅ I went ahead and did this, as I had promised to Bsherr. The changes are actually small. tedder (talk) 03:52, 25 August 2010 (UTC)

A space is missing in the code, causing "in" and "with" to concat. Please replace the first paragraph of code with the code below: To edit, please create an account and log in  --Bsherr (talk) 04:03, 25 August 2010 (UTC)


 * Done. tedder (talk) 04:10, 25 August 2010 (UTC)
 * Thank you, tedder! --Bsherr (talk) 04:35, 25 August 2010 (UTC)

Edit request
"...educational institution's IP address is/may be disabled"->"...educational institution's IP address is/may be blocked (disabled)", boldening optional.Jasper Deng (talk) 01:31, 19 March 2012 (UTC)
 * ✅, but without the bold to reduce harshness. Tra (Talk) 20:19, 20 March 2012 (UTC)

Edit request on 25 September 2012
Please push the main template code from User:Nathan2055/sandbox. I've made some edits to hopefully clean up the template and make it easier to read. Thanks, Nathan2055talk - contribs 23:12, 25 September 2012 (UTC)
 * Looks good &mdash; Martin (MSGJ · talk) 09:55, 26 September 2012 (UTC)

Make a request template
Maybe make a template to say this IP may / is a school IP? Cat 5120 (talk) 03:46, 13 March 2013 (UTC)

Requested edit
Please make the link on "class project" go to WP:Student assignments. Thank you. Biosthmors (talk) pls notify me (i.e. ) while signing a reply, thx 11:51, 7 October 2013 (UTC)
 * Yes check.svg Done — Mr. Stradivarius  ♪ talk ♪ 12:23, 7 October 2013 (UTC)

Update ACC link
The link to ACC (where it says "filling out this form") needs to be updated to https://accounts.wmflabs.org, since the tool has recently moved to Wikimedia Labs. Fun Pika  01:45, 8 January 2014 (UTC)
 * Yes check.svg Done — <span style="color: #194D00; font-family: Palatino, Times, serif">Mr. Stradivarius  ♪ talk ♪ 03:54, 8 January 2014 (UTC)

Template-protected edit request on 14 August 2014
Please change the link of UTRS from tools:~unblock to http://utrs.wmflabs.org/

GZWDer (talk) 09:35, 14 August 2014 (UTC)
 * ✅ — xaosflux  Talk 13:27, 14 August 2014 (UTC)

Tracking down the school associated with a school block
Is there a process for working with schools identified when this block is used? If we know it's a school IP, this seems like a good recruiting opportunity, since a student might be able to go to one of the powers-that-be in the school to try to set up a Wikipedia good citizenship course. The course could be something as simple as a 20 minute video that a teacher can show a class; we'd just need to come up with something that's high quality and hopefully isn't a lot of work for teachers to use. Right now, I'm pretty lost in the maze of policy pages/recommendations/stern-whatevers that show up on the talk page of a blocked school. I'm going to start hunting in Education program/Ambassadors, but hit "save" before I disappear down the rabbithole. ;-) -- RobLa (talk) 04:01, 10 January 2016 (UTC)
 * I don't think there's anything like that in place, in relation to blocks. Most contact I've had with school administrations is them begging us to block their IP addresses from editing. If you find something useful to offer them, it should be added to this template as it's the main point of contact with schools experiencing blocks. -- zzuuzz (talk) 04:41, 10 January 2016 (UTC)

TfD
This template is being discussed at WP:TfD. Can someone tag this template appropriately? PCHS-NJROTC (Messages)Schoolblocks are like gun-control, they only stop good faith contributors. 00:26, 12 May 2016 (UTC)
 * ✅ — xaosflux  Talk 00:37, 12 May 2016 (UTC)

Proposed Improvements by User:PCHS-NJROTC
To edit, please create an account and log in <div id="School_block" class="lastRevInfo floatright" style="display: none; padding: 2px; border: 1px solid #000;"> [ Last edited]: Last edited by: (UTC)

We appreciate your interest in improving Wikipedia, and we hope this does not discourage you. We welcome diversity in our editing community, and hope to include young editors, educators, school officials, and school support employees. Unfortunately, due to excessive abuse from your school (or another institution sharing the same IP address) we had to disable anonymous editing per the blocking policy. You will continue to have access to read the encyclopedia. If you are logged in but still unable to edit, please follow these instructions. To prevent abuse, account creation via this IP address is probably also blocked.

If account creation is disabled and you are unable to create an account elsewhere, you can request one by [//accounts.wmflabs.org/ filling out this form]. Please check on [ this list] that the username you choose has not already been taken. If editing is required for class projects or work assignments, please have your instructor, supervisor, or network administrator contact us (with reference to this IP address) at the [//utrs.wmflabs.org/ Unblock Ticket Request System] with a contact email address that is listed on your school's website. Thank you for your cooperation, we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience.


 * I made the first paragraph a little more friendly, addressed paid editing, and removed the assumption that the IP is blocked for vandalism (so this template can properly be used for other forms of abuse, such as edit warring). PCHS-NJROTC  (Messages)Schoolblocks are like gun-control, they only stop good faith contributors. 01:25, 12 May 2016 (UTC)
 * Hi, I implemented your changes in the template's sandbox. Please note that all templates have a sandbox subpage where you can experiment and then request changes to be made to go live. Looking into the request now. — Andy W. ( talk  · ctb) 02:55, 12 May 2016 (UTC)
 * I'd like to defer to another editor. Some of the phrasing has softened quite a bit, which might be a good thing, but this is on the border between being bold and needing consensus for me. Maybe you can start a conversation with others to achieve a rough consensus before it's live. — Andy W. ( talk  · ctb) 03:01, 12 May 2016 (UTC)

To the editor looking into this request, please note the ongoing merge discussion here. — Andy W. ( talk  · ctb) 03:06, 12 May 2016 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: please establish a consensus for this alteration before using the template. As Andy noted, the wording is softened. The requested edit also removes a parameter, which is considered a breaking change. —&thinsp;JJMC89&thinsp; (T·C) 04:21, 12 May 2016 (UTC)

Edit request
Hi. I would like to request that this change to Template:Anonblock made in January by be made to the same link on this template. In other words, please change:

→.

Usernames are global and therefore availability should be checked from the global account list (Special:CentralAuth) and not the local one. Thanks –72 (talk) 01:24, 25 October 2017 (UTC)
 * Yes check.svg Done —RP88 (talk) 02:40, 25 October 2017 (UTC)
 * Thanks, and also for noticing the erroneous "|limit=20". Seems I need to re-read what I write a little more carefully before posting! –72 (talk) 03:12, 25 October 2017 (UTC)