Wikipedia:GLAM/University of Toronto Libraries/Editing

Basics
Wikipedia is the sum of what is known about various topics. Anyone is allowed to add or edit text, references, images, and other media here, including yourself. As such, there is no single point of authority, and decisions are made through reason-giving and discussion. In editing, we can try to show and assume good faith, and treat everyone's input as equally valuable (Assume good faith). No one's input is more valid than anyone else's by default, regardless of who they are, how much recognition they have within or outside of Wikipedia, and how long they have been editing. What is contributed—and why, if you are discussing an edit—is more important than who contributes it.

Where to start
At first, the sheer size and scope of Wikipedia can seem a bit overwhelming. There is no need to understand everything from the start. We all learn as we go.

Keep in mind:


 * Show good faith. While you don't need to be registered to edit most pages, you can personalise your editing experience and help show good faith by creating an account. Rule of thumb: one editor, one account. This helps us all stay accountable as anonymous editors on Wikipedia and increase community trust. If you need to use multiple accounts (some possible reasons are listed here), disclose your alternative account(s) on your userpage to show good faith.
 * IPs are human too - If you are not registered or logged in, your edits will show up under your IP address. Although account creation is encouraged for responsible editing, unregistered edits (also called "IP editing") are not less valuable than registered edits.
 * Sockpuppetry - The misuse of multiple accounts (often called "sockpuppetry") is the opposite of showing good faith.
 * Wikipedia is a work in progress. Wikipedia is never "finished". An article can start off a stub (the "ugly ducklings" of Wikipedia, in their rougher and less complete stages) and, through contributions over time, grow into a good article (the "swans" of Wikipedia). But even good articles that many people have contributed to are not "finished". As time goes on and the world continues to change, the sum of what we know about the world in writing also changes. Wikipedia articles will ideally grow to reflect up-to-date information.
 * Article development describes the journey of an article as it goes from an idea in the contributor's mind to creation and growth. This is often not a linear journey, and articles only grow insofar as editors make the time and effort to contribute.
 * Be bold. You can't break Wikipedia. Wikipedia saves every edit ever made, so mistakes and errors can be reverted or overwritten. This is not an invite to be boldly destructive. This is an invite not to be excessively timid. Be bold, but also willing to learn.
 * Help:Page history - You can view the edit history of a Wikipedia page by clicking to the left of the search bar.

Account features
Once you're logged in, see the user menu in the top right corner to access helpful editing features:
 * Sandbox is a scratchpad for any drafts and practice edits.
 * Preferences allow you to customise editing options so that they work best for you.
 * For example, you can enable/disable your editor (visual vs source; see Preferences > Editing) or change your user profile.
 * Watchlist tracks edits to articles you contributed to or are otherwise interested in.
 * To add an article to your watchlist, toggle the star icon [[File:MediaWiki Vector skin white star watchlist icon.svg]] to the left of the search bar.