User:Scarykitty/Cats

=How to be a great category editor=

User:Scarykitty/Quick-Cats for the condensed, easy cut and paste version of this article.

Getting started

 * If the article is already wikified, click on one of the early links to try to find similar articles with similar categories
 * If the article is not wikified, wikify it a bit, then check the links
 * Check "what links here"
 * Think of your own experience and what is similar to the article you are reading, search for that and check the categories there
 * Browse Categorical index OR
 * Browse Category:Categories

Common categories
Naming conventions (categories) This link has a long list of exactly how categories are supposed to be called. However, in my experience, here are come common ones:

Usually it's Fooian Fooers, like Category:Swedish writers

Companies
You will see a lot of company entries in uncategorized articles. Category:Companies of Foo (where Foo is a nation) Example: Category:Companies of the United States Category:Companies based in New Foo (where New Foo is not a nation, like a U.S. state) Example: [[Category:Companies based in California


 * Company pages can also call for tagging with
 * if it is an article that seems like straight advertising.
 * if it does not meet the notability criteria at WP:COMP

Musical groups
You will see a lot of musical groups in uncategorized articles. Category:Fooian musical groups Example: Category:American musical groups

Albums
A quick way to categorize an album is with Category:2000 albums or other year.

People
A quick way to categorize people is with Category:Living people Category:Year of birth missing or Category:1980 births

But please try to find at least one other category. Surely, no one checks these categories when trying to find American romance writers, for example.

Software
Most software is Category:Application software but this is one where I usually add checkcategory - see below.

Tagging Articles for Cleanup
As you read these new articles, you'll feel like you just want to fix them, or get rid of them, or at least let someone else know that these articles are just not up to snuff. Do add a category, because if you tag it right, the article will get better! Very common things:

Copyright violation

 * Do a google search on a phrase in the article and see if it comes up
 * If there is an external link, click through to it and 1) see if the information was taken from the website and more importantly 2) if there is a copyright notice on the website. If so, then mark with:

This marks it for speedy deletion.

When You Feel Like Someone else Will Care
When you are not sure about the category, or when you feel like someone else will care enough to refine the category, add this to the end. In my recent experience, most of the articles I mark checkcategory get a refined category, along with some editing and stub classifications as well, within a few days.

Watch Out For
Lists - try to add to a list category and a regular category. list categories are at Category:Lists