User talk:Benbuschfeld

Hello, Benbuschfeld, and welcome to Wikipedia! Thank you for your contributions. I hope you like the place and decide to stay. Our intro page provides helpful information for new users—please check it out! If you need help, visit Questions, ask me on my talk page, or place  on this page and someone will show up shortly to answer your questions. Happy editing! ELEKHHT 08:50, 10 August 2013 (UTC)

Modern architecture
I notice you added some text to the modern architecture article. It's well-written and clearly this is a topic you know well. There are no citations however and someone may tag (add a notice) to the section requesting some. At worst, someone may delete the whole thing as unsourced (which I would argue is drastic as what you have added is useful). We have to make sure no original research is added to the encyclopedia, as it is meant to be a tertiary resource. If you have references available, they should be added to show where you took this information. If you are having difficulty with formatting let me know or leave a note on the article talk page. Thanks for your contributions. freshacconci talk to me  14:18, 9 August 2013 (UTC)

Architecture in Germany
Writing balanced articles. Some articles are "generic". They cover a huge amount of information in a small space, and constitute a summary of a large field that may be dealt with in a hundred or so smaller articles. These generic articles need to be balanced in their content.

The article on the architecture of Germany tries to summarise the entire history using a few lines, and one photo for each important style. There is no room for a long list of buildings of one type e.g. housing estates. If you add them, then you need to add a list of town halls, a list of Gothic cathedrals, and list of Baroque Pilgrimage churches, a list of Romanesque Castles etc etc etc. etc.

In other words, regardless of how much you know about a particular area, the general article, is almost never the right place to write it all! This is about creating g a balance.

Also, don't add random off-the-topic information. The fact that a number of modern buildings have been designated World Heritage items tells the reader nothing about the architecture, except that it is considered important. That is the sort of information that needs to be including when you write a monograph about a particular building, or a particular architect.

AJM's advice to new editors

 * Look at the article to see how it is laid out. The Table of Contents is the best place to start.
 * Read the article to see if what you want to add or remove is appropriate, necessary, or adds value.
 * Search for the right place to put it.
 * Check Use the "Show Preview" to make sure that what you have done is appropriate and correct.
 * Discuss any change about which you are uncertain, by placing your proposed text, or just a suggestion, on the talk page. Someone who watches the article will usually answer in a day or so. You can monitor this by clicking the watch tag at the top of the page.
 * Be aware
 * that an addition inserted between two sentences or paragraphs that are linked in meaning can turn the existent paragraphs into nonsense.
 * that a lengthy addition or the creation of a new sub-section can add inappropriate weight to just one aspect of a topic.

When adding images
 * Look to see if the subject of your image is already covered. Don't duplicate subject matter already present. Don't delete a picture just to put in your own, unless your picture is demonstrably better for the purpose. The caption and nearby text will help you decide this.
 * Search through the text to find the right place for your image. If you wish it to appear adjacent to a particular body of text, then place it above the text, not at the end of it.
 * Look to see how the pictures are formatted. If they are all small thumbnails, do not size your picture at 300 px.  The pictures in the article may have been carefully selected to follow a certain visual style e.g. every picture may be horizontal, because of restricted space; every picture might be taken from a certain source, so they all match.  Make sure your picture looks appropriate in the context of the article.
 * Read the captions of existent pictures, to see how yours should fit in.
 * Check the formatting, placement, context and caption before you leave the page by using the Show preview function, and again after saving.
 * Discuss If your picture seems to fill a real identifiable need in the article, but doesn't fit well, because of formatting or some other constraint, then put it on the talk page and discuss, before adding.
 * Be aware that adding a picture may substantially change the layout of the article. Your addition may push another picture out of its relevant section or cause some other formatting problem.
 * Edit before adding. Some pictures will look much better, or fit an article more appropriately if they are cropped to show the relevant subject.