User talk:Dougcfp

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Hello, Dougcfp, and welcome to Wikipedia! Thank you for your contributions, especially what you did for Black Heritage Trail - Columbus, Georgia. I hope you like the place and decide to stay. Here are some pages that you might find helpful: I hope you enjoy editing here and being a Wikipedian! Please sign your messages on discussion pages using four tildes ( ~ ); this will automatically insert your username and the date. If you need help, check out Questions, ask me on my talk page, or ask your question on this page and then place  before the question. Again, welcome! Drmies (talk) 21:21, 28 July 2011 (UTC)
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July 2011
Welcome to Wikipedia. Although everyone is welcome to contribute to the encyclopedia, one or more of the external links you added to the page Columbus, Georgia do not comply with our guidelines for external links and have been removed. Wikipedia is not a collection of links; nor should it be used as a platform for advertising or promotion, and doing so is contrary to the goals of this project. Because Wikipedia uses nofollow tags, external links do not alter search engine rankings. If you feel the link should be added to the article, please discuss it on the article's talk page before reinserting it. Please take a look at the welcome page to learn more about contributing constructively to this encyclopedia. Thank you. Muhandes (talk) 11:23, 29 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Thank you for reformatting and organizing the information about The Black History Trail (columbus, Georgia). Clearly, I am a new contributor and I appreciate your efforts on my behalf. The initial organizer and curator of the trail, Judith Grant, passed away some years ago and I have taken on revitalizing this trail as part a larger project of bringing Columbus, Georgia's multicultural, dynamic heritage to the internet in a compact and comprehensive way. Part of this process is to share important information with credible sites like wikipedia to that end.  I assure you that I have no desire to manipulate wikipedia's excellant reputation to increase the ranking of another site.  You may have noticed the site that was referenced in the links is relatively popular in it's own right. I do take exception to the assessment that linking externally to factual information is spam. However, I respect the policies of wikipedia and intend to comply with them fully. Could you refer me to documentation about how I can, within wikipedia's guidelines, share the resources available on the external site?  Over the years of using wikipedia's information, I have noticed external sites are linked with great frequency. Thanks. Dougcfp (talk) 13:32, 29 July 2011 (UTC)
 * I apologize if the text above is a bit general, it is just a standard notice used for all types of external links usage. I accept that much of it (the parts about spam and rankings for instance) is not relevant in this case. However, the general policy for external link usage does hold. The relevant policy is WP:EL. In essence, you can link the official website on the article itself, but linking it on any other article will usually not be allowed. However, linking the article where it is relevant, is not only allowed, it is recommended. So for example, I just added it to Black Heritage Trail and Columbus, Georgia. Looking at the sites visited I dare guess that some of them have pages. It should be OK to add it there as well. For instance I located First African Baptist Church (Columbus, Georgia) which has an article since it is listed by the NRHP. I linked your article there as well, see that page for an example (mind that it would have helped if I could find a source with the trail list of sites). You can probably locate more sites which have pages and link there. Best regards. --Muhandes (talk) 16:06, 29 July 2011 (UTC)


 * Thank you for your kind and prompt response. The information you have provided is very helpful.

I would like to submit to you that the web address, http://www.greatercolumbusga.com/black-heritage-trail, is the official site for the trail. The trail's 30 important historic sites, as a trail, are not found anywhere else on the web. That is because Ms. Judith Grant, Columbus, Ga resident and creator/curator of the trail passed away before she could complete the project. I have since taken on publicizing and reviving her project. Using an incomplete entry on the www.Americantrails.org website along with Ms. Grant's documentation I am in the process of bringing the trail and it's significance to the public by use of the internet. Mr. Stuart Macdonald,American Trails Magazine and website editor, National Trails Training Partnership, http://www.AmericanTrails.org is in the process of acquiring the original submission documents from the National Park Service in DC on my behalf so we can facilitate a more complete link from the American Trails website to the official site listed above. You been most helpful in showing me how to use some of the vast Wikipedia resources to share this trail with the world and I am most appreciative. I will find the individual sites that are currently on Wikipedia, update them and add the individual sites to Wikipedia that are not listed. With that in mind, I am hopeful that you can approve my request to link the 30 sites to http://www.greatercolumbusga.com/black-heritage-trail on The Black Heritage Trail (Columbus, Georgia) Wikipedia site. On this authoritative site you will find a complete list of the trail, a trail map and the Columbus Times article announcing the trail as being certified as a National Recreation Trail. Also, an archive of photographs, articles, interviews, historical facts, and resolutions can be found increasing daily in this ever expanding archive that is the electronic home of The Black Heritage Trail (Columbus, Georgia) Thank you for your consideration. Dougcfp (talk) 19:25, 29 July 2011 (UTC)


 * I want to clarify something. Wikipedia is not a soapbox or means of promotion. I am therefore not going to help you promote the trail, and you shouldn't use Wikipedia to promote it. I think the trail is notable, and as such it can be mentioned where relevant.
 * For the matter itself, indeed http://www.greatercolumbusga.com/black-heritage-trail is the official website. The relevant guideline for official links is WP:ELOFFICIAL, and it allows for linking it at the external links section of Black Heritage Trail (Columbus, Georgia).
 * As for using that website on other places, I am going to do that only as a source. WP:V requires every fact to be verifiable. If I say "The First African Baptist Church is featured on the Black Heritage Trail" I must show a source to prove it. This is done by providing an inline citation, see WP:CITE on how to do that, and see an example on First African Baptist Church (Columbus, Georgia). Linking as external link, or adding the links like you did at Columbus, Georgia is promotional and is against policy.
 * I hope this is all clear. Getting around the Wikipedia maze of policies and guidelines is not easy. Take it one step at a time, and I hope you stay with us not only for this trail. Best regards. --Muhandes (talk) 20:47, 30 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Thanks for clarifying so many things for me. I do appreciate your time and effort. Navigating the maze of policies and guidelines is indeed a challenge and I will certainly study the references you have provided.  I think, however, for now at least, I not as concerned as I should be about increasing the popularity of Wikipedia.com to the detriment of providing information that would increase the popularity of The Black Heritage Trail.  Of course I will be a user and a contributor as always, but only to the degree that my efforts can serve a mutually beneficial purpose and not solely as a volunteer minion for Wikipedia.com. Have a wonderful day!