User talk:MonaLS

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Wikipedia:FAQ
You asked the following questions, which I will try to answer those where I have figured stuff out, after editing here a few months.

'':Completely totally baffled by Wikipedia, but going to try it out anyway. I want to add information to a category that has no articles yet. I can see how to edit the category, but can't figure out how to add an article under that category. Reading Wikipedia instructions so far is like reading a language I don't speak. Very intimidating. Anyone have a Wikipedia for Dummies article? :) ''

'':I'm 43 years old, am interested in all aspects of beads, especially glass, HTML, and making chainmail (mail). MonaLS 02:33, 29 January 2006 (UTC)''

I create an article first, or update one, then within the article I specify the category that it is in. For example, I have tried to contribute to Helping Hand Group. Near the bottom of this article someone added Category:Inactive WikiProjects because it is just the guy who started the project and me there, no one else contributing, so perhaps the project should be killed. User:AlMac|(talk) 05:28, 29 January 2006 (UTC)

Or another example. I found the article BPCS, realized it was just a stub, then added to it. Someone had flagged it with the category of software stubs compu-soft-stub meaning computer software article that needed a lot of work. I added a bunch of stuff to the article, then went looking for some category relevant to ERP but did not find one that was precisely correct, so instead I added Category:Production and manufacturing which is a major portion of ERP that this particular ERP package is relevant to. I may later add a more generic Category:ERP then go visit various articles and identify them as being in that category. User:AlMac|(talk) 05:33, 29 January 2006 (UTC)

There are some articles you might want to review, to see if you can make improvements to the content, such as: User:AlMac|(talk) 05:36, 29 January 2006 (UTC)
 * Chainmail
 * Society for Creative Anachronism

Thank you so much Heah and Almac! What is my "user page," and how do I find it? I did finally figure out how to add to the category I wanted, and added a bunch of stuff. Creatures Wiki Webrings And I have no idea how to properly reply to you, so I hope editing this page is okay. Boy is there a lot to learn here! MonaLS 09:38, 29 January 2006 (UTC)
 * Hi there. I too read your post on the new user's log and came over. This page is your user talk page, your user page is this: user: MonaLS. You'll notice 6 links at the top of the page, they should be (from left to right): "MonaLS", "my talk", "my preferences", "my watchlist", "my contributions" and "log out". The first link is to your userpage. When you sign you name after posting on a talk page using the "~", a link will be made on that page to your user page. To see what I mean, click on User:AlMac's name at the end of his post, or click on my username at the end of mine to go to my userpage. Have a look at this link for more information about userpages: WP:UP.
 * As to your question on how to reply to users: every user has a talk page. For example, this is your talk page. You'll notice at the end of AlMac's signature is the word "Talk" in superscript, click on that to go directly to the his talk page. You can then write him a message. In general, you'll notice that the "Talk" link is not part of everyone's signature (in fact most people don't have it, including me). To access these people's talk pages, simply go to their userpage, and go to the "Discussion" tab on the top of the page.
 * I hope this helps. I do agree Wikipedia is kind of overwhelming at first, but I guarantee to you that you'll get used to it. There are plenty of places to go if you need help, a good one for newbies is Clueless newbies. Also, don't hesitate to ask me if you ever need help. - Akamad 11:00, 29 January 2006 (UTC)

Hello, MonaLS

I edited your edit on the chainmail page, where you commented that stretching a coiled wire before cutting results in deformed rings. While this is easily possible, with practice, it is avoidable. The rings in the picture to the right are made with the method described. Some rings look deformed, but that is mostly due to abuse of the material during common use, and not a flaw in the manufacture.

Are you a chainmailler? if so, maybe we could talk. I am always interested in new ideas at the craft, and it is always good to reach concensus before editing and re-editing people's work. I certainly don't want to engage in an edit war!

Wayne 15:15, 1 July 2006 (UTC)


 * No edit war, I'd never engage in such a thing. :) I make jewelry, and use much smaller rings than would be used for clothing or armor. With the size rings I use, if I stretch the coil, the rings are noticably out of round. Perhaps it is a matter of material used in relationship to ring size? Thanks for reading my contributions! MonaLS 19:59, 1 July 2006 (UTC)


 * True. I usually use two sizes of rings; 3/16 and 11/32. The smaller ones take more care to avoid distortion than the larger ones. I can imagine what would happen with 1/8 or smaller. Wire gauge vs. inside diameter is important for material flexibility. If I used the 14 ga wire with 3/16 rings, it would be too stiff to wear. Wayne 15:15, 2 July 2006 (UTC)