Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2007 June 19

=June 19=

Question : Wikipedia May28th page appears on June19th ??
Wikipedia Managers, Today (Tuesday 19th June 2007) the main page shows data that was last posted on May 28th 2007. Also the number of files on Home Page is different from the next page. We look forward to corrections as necessary. Regards, N G Singh, FPSA Nadi. -- —Preceding unsigned comment added by 210.7.17.52 (talk • contribs)


 * To better answer your question, would you please identify the particular data that was last posted on May 28th 2007 and is posted today (Tuesday 19th June 2007)). Also, would you please provide more information regarding your statement "the number of files on Home Page is different from the next page", particularly to what Home Page and what 'next page' you are referrring. -- Jreferee  (Talk) 00:03, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * I can't find where you're seeing that the page hasn't been updated by May 28. However, I suppose I still might be able to answer your question.
 * Pages like the Main page, certain Portals, and even some User pages use templates to hold the information. The Main page is actually set up to update daily.  It just includes content from other pages.
 * For example, the main page has a template called .  Users are able to update the template on a different page (Template:In the news), and it gets transcluded onto the Main page.  Therefore, there's little maintenance to be done with the Main page itself, but rather most is done on the template pages.
 * As for the second question, I'm not sure what you mean by the "number of files" on the Home page. Could you clarify a bit?  Thanks!  tiZom(2¢)  00:06, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * Perhaps the questioner garbled "number of articles" into "number of files" in the question. The Main Page uses this code:


 * to display: "Special:Statistics articles in English" which of course will change frequently on refreshing the page, as people create thousands of new articles per day here. However, I can't make sense of the question either. Maybe someday the Help desk won't rely exclusively on questioners already knowing enough about Wikipedia to be able to use proper (recognizable) names for everything they want to know more about. Maybe someday new users will be able to point with their fingers at the screen and grunt a sequence of simple words such as "Huh?" and we will be able to see what they are pointing at, as if we were standing behind them and peering over their shoulder at the same screen. Seriously, this is what it takes to provide remote support to people who don't know enough to write a coherent question. It's too bad that Cisco TelePresence 3000 costs US$299,000; we need a few more iterations of Moore's Law to knock that down to something reasonable. --Teratornis 17:23, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Name Font?
Sorry in advance if this is a FAQ, but how do you get your username a different colour and font?

Thanx.

SpeakoutLOUD 23:53, 18 June 2007 (UTC)


 * By changing your sig box and adding html tage like Hello and SpeakoutLOUD . Don't forget to select raw signature when doing that. --Tλε Rαnδom Eδιτor (ταlκ )  00:04, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * In fact here is one I made for you Kevinwong913 Speak out loud! . To use this sig post the following in your sig box, Kevinwong913  Speak out loud! . --<font face="Perpetua" size="3"><font color="Blue">Tλε Rαnδom Eδιτor  (<font color="Black">ταlκ )  00:08, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * I was goint to post "Either review WP:SIGNATURE or have <font face="Perpetua" size="3"><font color="Blue">Tλε Rαnδom Eδιτor (<font color="Black">ταlκ )  do it for you," but The Random Editor was faster on the draw. : ) -- <font face="Kristen ITC"><font color="Blue">Jreferee  (Talk) 00:14, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Thanx!

SpeakoutLOUD 20:36, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

interwiki image links
is it possible to link to and display images from another wiki language site? i've been trying to use this image "de:bild:Josef Hellmesberger senior.jpg" in an article without success. --emerson7 | Talk 01:29, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * No, only local images or those on the Wikimedia Commons can be used. Depending on the licence of the original, you may be able to move the image you want to the commons.- gadfium 01:50, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * danke --emerson7 | Talk 13:14, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Biograpy/Misinformation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tessa_Horst

I was doing research on reality television and came acroos this page. Just thought you should know that this is false and should probably be deleted.


 * It was vandalized. I fixed it now.  --Haemo 02:41, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Need my password!
I lost my password.....my id is "ritwingr" I can't remember my password though.

Help!

Ed


 * You can request a temporary password to be sent to your e-mail if you filed it during account creation. If you didn't file your e-mail information or cannot access the e-mail account, then you will have to re-create an account. - Penwhale &#124; Blast him / Follow his steps 03:23, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Constantly Vandalized Article
Can someone please protect Cyclops? One IP is consistently vandalizing it. Thanks and have a good day! --JDitto 03:43, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * You can request that over at requests for page protection. - Penwhale &#124; Blast him / Follow his steps 04:01, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

The offender has been reported at WP:AIV (not by me). Yechiel Man 04:09, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * When there's only one vandal, the general procedure isn't to request protection but to leave the appropriate warnings on their talk page, then once they hit a 3rd or 4th level warning and keep vandalising, report them on WP:AIV. Looking at the talk page, I'd personally say they've received the equivalent of a 3rd level warning, but if they vandalise again and you want to give them one more chance (in some form of WP:AGF, perhaps), leave Cyclops ~ and just keep an eye on their contributions for the next hour or so. Confusing Manifestation 04:08, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Help to get "Christian Bartolf" article restored
What to do against speedy deletion of "Christian Bartolf" article? Chrbartolf 19 June 2007


 * Deletion review is handled at WP:DRV. The article was deleted because it contained no assertion of notability. ·:· Will Beback  ·:· 04:58, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * UPDATE - Freakofnurture restored Christian Bartolf since it wasn't a speedy delete candidate (Bartolf founded the Gandhi Information Center). -- <font face="Kristen ITC"><font color="Blue">Jreferee  (Talk) 15:28, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Page created a week ago not showing up in search
On June 10 I created the page "COPSS Presidents' Award" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COPSS_Presidents%27_Award).

The page is still not showing up if I search Wikipedia for the exact title of the page (nor if I search for part of the title such as "COPSS"). If I understand correctly from the FAQ (http://tools.wikimedia.de/~tangotango/nubio/view.php?id=1), normally pages show up when searched within 30 hours of being created.

Is there something I should be doing differently?

Thank you.

Prix 04:36, 19 June 2007 (UTC) Prix


 * Wikipedia's search index is updated much slower than that unfortunately, it usually takes weeks for Wikipedia's search index to be rebuilt. <font style="background-color: skyblue;color:black;border:solid 2px darkblue"> akuyume TC 05:05, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * COPSS Presidents' Award shows up in Google search. --Teratornis 14:28, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

How to move & align an image/info box...
Hello! I'm very new to all this HTML code stuff, but I'm learning! Can you look at this artist's song page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torn_Between_Two_Lovers and please tell me how to align the image/info boxes from left to right instead of from top to bottom. What codes to I type in and where?

many thanks! PEPE


 * As for the images, they are part of the same Infobox used three times on the same page. It is designed to align to the right side of the page, thus the vertical arrangement. If you're interested in rearranging the images and information on the page, you could consider forgoing the Infoboxes and use something else (such as tables) instead. Or just dump the Infoboxes and fancy formatting altogether and incorporate each infobox's contents into paragraph-style text. Before doing so, however, you may want to discuss the format change with other editors first on the article's Talk page first. Jim Dunning |  talk  05:57, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Machine Tool
what is the difference between machine and machine tool?


 * Perhaps you could take a look at Machine and Machine tool, or you might get better answers at the Reference Desk. Peacent 07:27, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

triple poiint
why does all phases of water coexist at triple point? give the scientific reason behind it124.125.89.153 05:42, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * Don't hesitate to check with the Reference Desk for these types of questions (this page is for getting help on using Wikipedia itself), but check out Triple point. Jim Dunning | talk  06:05, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

uploadind data
how to upload data such as vedios ,images on our personal website, 124.125.89.153 05:45, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * I'm assuming you mean your WP userpage when you say "personal website", and not some other website, like Facebook or mySpace. If so, &mdash;


 * Short answer: click on 'upload file' in the toolbox, on the left sidebar, under the search box. Other info: Special:Upload is a direct link. Note that images either need to have some free license, or it needs to qualify as 'fair use', and have a fair use rationale. See WP:Image for wiki markup on showing images. (Thanks to Sepp above) Jim Dunning | talk  06:02, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Image link to another language section of wikipedia?
How do I use an image available in another wikipedia language in the english wikipedia..? Downloading & uploading the same picture at wikipedia.org seems so uneccessary. Electron9 07:42, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * If it's a commons image, you can use it anywhere just by using the normal [[Image:whateveryourimageiscalled.jpg]] format. If it's not a commons image, then you will in fact have to reupload it. This is irritating I agree, but necessary due to the differing image use policies on different wikis. --tjstrf talk 07:49, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Editor review tag?
Isn't there a tag that can be placed on an article so that experienced editors can drop by with some advice on how it can be improved? I'm taking about Prince George, British Columbia, which seems to be getting lots of helpful edits lately, but also some confusing and unsourced ones. I haven't contributed much to the article myself (although I do plan some associated history articles for it). Anyway, the article has been getting a little unorganized. See my comment on its talk page and the recent history.CindyBo 08:20, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * You could try Peer_review. This is more for articles that are getting close to completion and need some fine tuning to make them perfect. Hope this helps! - Andrew4010 12:36, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * The template I believe you want it peerreview. --<font face="Perpetua" size="3"><font color="Blue">Tλε Rαnδom Eδιτor (<font color="Black">ταlκ )  13:41, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Thanks! I used just that, it should be a big help.CindyBo 23:24, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Inputbox lay-out
Is it possible to change the padding between button and inputfield of an inputbox or get the button next to the inputfield instead of below?

F r e e style 08:29, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * Trying using the parameter "break=no" underneath "width=30". This will place it next to it, as shown below.

Hope this helps! -Andrew4010 12:44, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * Great! Thanks very much!  F r e e style  13:07, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Template question
I was looking over a user category that was listed on UCfD a few times in the past, the last time quite recently, and I was wondering if there's a template for user categories that one would be able to use, similar to Template:Cfd result? Thankyou!&mdash; arf! 08:34, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * There may not be a need for such a template. However, I created a discussion thread for you here at the UCfD talk page to get a more definitive answer. -- <font face="Kristen ITC"><font color="Blue">Jreferee  (Talk) 15:51, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Error in the colored world map of parliaments classification.
greetings, I am Mohammed Al Saeed, an adviser at the Shura Council(Parliament) of Saudi Arabia. My comment is the following: The colored world map of parliaments classification either unicaneral or bicameral shows Saudi Arabia as a country with no parliament which is wrong.In Saudi Arabia there is a unicameral Parliament and it is a member of The IPU (Inter-Parliamentary Union)since April 2003. For verification please visit: www.ipu.org and www.shura.gov.sa

Best Regards, Mohammed Al Saeed Shra Council of Saudi Arabia <Contacts removed. mattbr 14:22, 19 June 2007 (UTC)>


 * I believe the image to which you are referring is Image:Unibicameral_Map.png. The user who uploaded that image last participate in Wikipedia on 2 November 2006. However, Gadren appears to have edited the image on May 5, 2007 and I have posted a request for Gadren to address your concerns. -- <font face="Kristen ITC"><font color="Blue">Jreferee  (Talk) 16:05, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * I don't know anything about this subject, but I have edited the image in accordance with this new information.

William J. Conlin (a.k.a. William J. Florence)
Did William J. Florence ever visit South Africa? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 155.234.240.25 (talk • contribs)


 * This help desk is specifically for questions about using Wikipedia. You probably want to bring this up at the reference desk, which can be found here.   Charlie - talk to me - what I've done  10:13, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

i did a page
and it was deleted: law firm of the year with suitable sources. can this be put back on, it took me ages.


 * The best thing to do would be to go here, and contact the admin who deleted your article. --<font face="Perpetua" size="3"><font color="Blue">Tλε Rαnδom Eδιτor (<font color="Black">ταlκ )  13:40, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * See WP:WWMPD. --Teratornis 14:17, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * Also, see Notability is not temporary - Wikinews, not Wikipedia, is better suited to present topics receiving a short burst of present news coverage. -- <font face="Kristen ITC"><font color="Blue">Jreferee  (Talk) 16:18, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Is there a place to ask how to interpret English sentences?
Is there a place in English Wikipedia where to ask for interpretations of specific English sentences? Translations does not make the grade, as it seems. --KnightMove 13:56, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * You could try Reference desk/Language, or contact a user in one of the subcategories of Category:Wikipedians by language. Google language tools may also be able to provide a translation. Hope that helps, mattbr 14:01, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * The first link seems to do good, thx. --KnightMove 14:13, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Not cited box?
I have cited my work and whoever put the not cited tag at the beginning has yet to remove it. How do I get rid of this.

"Page: Cortiva Institute" —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.88.36.66 (talk • contribs)


 * Anyone can remove it. Just edit the article and remove the tag at the top. --Kainaw (talk) 14:51, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * I'm afraid Kainaw is wrong above, I suggest not removing the tag, the article only has one reference which has no URL/domain to link it to and to make it a reliable source so unfortunately it is still uncited, if the information in the article is from the official website then you could cite it, see how to cite sources, Cheers --<font face="Trebuchet MS"> The Sunshine Man 14:52, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * So, you are saying that "Not Cited" tags cannot be removed? Then, how do they get removed?  Is there some special code so that only administrators can remove them?  Or, was Kainaw correct in stating that anyone can remove them?  I'm confused now. Youth in Asia 15:04, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * They can be removed, but the article does need to be cited properly or someone else will just put it back. Remember, they're there to call other interested editors in to help out with clearing up those issues. In this case, though, the article definitely needs more - right now, I'm not sure it meets notability guidelines. Tony Fox (arf!) review? 15:46, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * If you remove the Not Cited tag without adding any references, it is likely that someone will list the article for deletion. The article now has no independent references since the listed link is not independent of the topic of the article. It is best to add Wikipedia reliable sources to the article in response to the Not Cited tag. -- <font face="Kristen ITC"><font color="Blue">Jreferee  (Talk) 16:24, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Mention in footnotes
I recently reviewed the article on Temperomandibular Joint Disease and although I had written the original article using my old user name I no longer see any reference in the edits. Please advise Elsmere808 —Preceding unsigned comment added by Elsmere808 (talk • contribs)


 * I don't see any article on Temperomandibular Joint Disease. Youth in Asia 15:06, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * I think he means Temporomandibular joint disorder, commonly called TMJ. --Kainaw (talk) 15:26, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * Temporomandibular joint disorder is from 2001 where some article versions were not kept (see Usemod article histories). The oldest recorded version from 23 September 2001 has edit summary "minor copy-editing". And something weird happens if you click "older edit" at . PrimeHunter 22:03, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * Back in the olden days, when Wikipedia was carved on rocks, the database was in a different format. There was a mass conversion at some point, and the conversion was noted as the oldest edit in the histories of the articles which existed at the time.  It's possible that that notation no longer exists, I'm not sure, but it's impossible to see the edits which existed prior to that database conversion.  Corvus cornix 18:13, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Selective eating disorder
I have recently added an entry on Selective Eating Disorder or SED, a newly acknowledged eating disorder. How do I ensure that those searching for "SED" can find it without typing in the full name of the disorder? Thank you very much for your assistance. kenknight10


 * I added Selective eating disorder to the Sed (disambiguation) page. -- <font face="Kristen ITC"><font color="Blue">Jreferee  (Talk) 16:27, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Links to other language Wiki articles that are FA
I have a question regarding links to other language Wiki articles that are Featured Article status. At Jude Law, one user in particular keeps removing the link, which lists the Russian wikipedia article with a star next to it, because it's FA status. I have replaced the link several times, with the belief that is the way one links to other FA articles in different languages. I noticed, however, that at Jane Austen, both and Jane Austen are present. Is this proper, or did someone merely forget to remove the second link? Am I correct in adding the FA Russian link? Why are others removing it, if I am correct? Guidance would be most appreciated. María ( críticame ) 15:52, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * I checked the source code for Julius Caesar, which is featured in a half dozen languages of Wikipedia. The  template does need to be added, and if people keep removing it for some reason, tell them to please stop.  The link FA template is not redundant with the standard interwiki link - you need to have both. Yechiel Man  16:07, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Getting a sidebar of "In other languages"
I recently made a Welsh version of the Mount&Blade page. I would like to know how to get "Cymraeg" to show up in the "in other languages" box. Thanks in advance.
 * To create a link with a Wikipedia article in another language, you add that language's two or three-letter code, followed by a colon and the article's name in that other language. Thus,

Mount&Blade I'll take care of this for you. Yechiel Man 15:58, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Thanks :)

Block Help
When I was a new user, I went onto Wikipedia at school. The IP there was blocked, so I logged in. I think this resulted in a block of my account, which was lifted quickly. I would like to partcipate in the Adopt-A-User program someday, so will this hold me back? P.S. can I remove the unblocked notice from my talkpage? ~Crowstar~ 17:07, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * 'Autoblock lifted or expired' means that you were editing from an IP previously used by a vandal (given that you were at school, this isn't particularly surprising; however, this isn't what happened here). Yes, you can remove the message, as it's information and not a warning. (If a user gets autoblocked a lot, it can be worth looking into sometimes). There is something quite confusing going on here, though; 66.230.200.146 is registered to the Wikimedia Foundation. The date of the autoblock request is the giveaway; on 17 May 2007, one of the Wikimedia 'squids' was installed incorrectly and its IP started showing up for lots of edits (Wikipedia was detecting its own IP, not that of the editor). The bug was quickly fixed, but it lead to some problems, like the one you've seen here. So especially in this case, feel free to remove this message, or even to copy my answer here as an explanation of what happened. See also User talk:66.230.200.146. --ais523 17:16, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Notability of bootleg albums?
Does anyone know if articles about bootleg albums are notable enough for inclusion in WP? I've just discovered a article on Sk8er Girl, an Avril Lavigne boot, which occasionally pops up on eBay and the like. I can't find any mention of bootlegs/'unofficial albums' at WP:MUSIC. Does the general criteria for albums also apply in this case? --Kurt Shaped Box 18:39, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * This search shows some bootleg AfD debates where almost everybody say delete, but I haven't compared notability. PrimeHunter 18:57, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * I'd say subject bootlegs to the same notability criteria as normal albums. That means that things like the Beatles bootlegs (which have been discussed several times in literature) are likely to pass, and random bootlegs with no references fail. Confusing Manifestation 23:19, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Signatures
I know how to edit my signature, but how do I add in a link to my talk page? All my efforts in very, very bad HTML have failed. Any help appreciated.-- NeoNerd  20:02, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * Just change User:NeoNerd to User_talk:NeoNerd-- VectorPotential Talk 20:03, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * Hmmm, that should have been obvious :). -- Neo  Nerd  20:22, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Where is the deletion discussion for this?
Template:User against censorship has been deleted/censored!, however i cant find, or there doesnt seem to be any discussion about/reasoning for it being deleted. If there was a discussion, where is it? Willy turner 20:55, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * The template was deleted by User:Clyde as per the speedy deletion policy section T1 (see under templates). Bjelleklang -  talk <font style="font-size:8px; color:red; font-face:arial">Bug Me 21:09, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * The deletion has been challanged, and is now being discused at Deletion review/Log/2007 June 19. DES (talk) 00:04, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Specifying dimensions in region-aware form
I think I remember that there is a way to specify dimensions so that they are rendered according to a user's locale. Let's say I want to specify that something is 228mm x 281mm. What's the right way to code this? Joshua McGee (talk) 20:59, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * I don't know how, but my sincere advice is - don't worry about it. If it's really important, you can find the alternate units by using a calculator and putting them in parentheses.  The Google search engine has a calculator, so if you type "50 degrees Fahrenheit in Celsius" it will show "10 degrees Celsius" at the top of the results page.  Other than that, Wikipedia generally doesn't have a convention for standardizing units outside a strictly scientific context. Yechiel Man  23:17, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

How do I stop persistent vandalism from one particular IP address
Hello. Any entry I created about a local band Voom is being persistently hacked from one particular IP address. The attacked are coming from an ex band member. I have rolled back the entries a couple of times now. All the malicious edits are coming from one IP address, but the sure doesn't have an account/talk page, so I'm not sure how I go about warning them. I've searched the knowledge base but couldn't find much information about anonymous vandalism. Any advice appreciated.
 * Let an admin know, and he/she'll take care of it :) I gave the user a final warning, but let me know if it happens again so I can put a temporary block on the IP. Bjelleklang -  talk <font style="font-size:8px; color:red; font-face:arial">Bug Me 21:07, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * Hi - sorry - I'm still really not sure how I go about reporting this. Am I supposed to put WP:AIAV on the page? Or something else?
 * Click on WP:AIV, click "edit", then follow the directions there to report a user. --Haemo 22:30, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * See Template messages/User talk namespace. You should usually only go to WP:AIV if a vandal is still active after receiving a last warning. As said above, Bjelleklang gave a last warning and there are no edits since, so you should not do anything now. Bjelleklang is an administrator (with power to block editors and IP's) and offered to help if it happens again, so you can also report it at User talk:Bjelleklang. PrimeHunter 23:10, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * Bear in mind that making a request to a specific user tends to be slower than making a request to a page like WP:AIV if that user isn't online at the time, though. --ais523 13:30, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

YouTube links
What is Wikipedia's policy or guideline regarding YouTube links? Can they be added as long as they don't violate copyright? MrBlondNYC 21:34, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * See External links. PrimeHunter 22:09, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Botched talk page archive move
Somehow I turned the main talk page for Bible into Archive 2 in an attempt to move a prior archive attempt that was archived as Talk:Bible into a Talk:Bible/Archive 2. So basically the main talk page now redirects to here and doesn't link back to the main article. The archive I was trying to move over onto the Archive 2 space is here. I suspect that this was caused by how that page was previously archived. How can this be fixed? Thanks. -- Broken Sphere 21:39, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * Issue has been resolved by Wimt. -- Broken Sphere  22:01, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

question....
i dont know if im spelling this right, but i really need to know what and isottonic is so please help me!
 * See isotonic. PrimeHunter 22:07, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

UK census information
Hi, I was wondering how I can get historical population statistics from the UK census? The census has been running since 1801, and I'd have though it would be easy to get info, but it's proving a bit tricky. Any help offered would be very helpful. — <font face="Verdana">Jack · talk · 22:08, Tuesday, 19 June 2007
 * Try looking here. In the future, please send questions like this to the reference desk. Yechiel Man  23:14, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Silly Question
HI there. I have a silly question. I'm trying to get my son a free ticket on a train (he's a fanatic) and i need to answer a piece of trivia first. Anyone know how many times Perry Mason asked Della Street to marry him in the Perry Mason books?

Thanks, Dani Ham


 * Yeah, that is a silly question. You'll have to figure it out on your own. Yechiel Man  23:12, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * To put it a little clearer (and perhaps a smigeon politer), this is the Help Desk for Wikipedia, ie. the place to ask about how Wikipedia works. We do have a reference desk for general knowledge-based questions, and someone on the Entertainment desk may be able to help you there. Confusing Manifestation 23:16, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

100% factual but displeasing additions to articles, is it permitted?
I am just seeking further clarification regarding a controversial topic.

I would like to add material to an existing article, or create a new article. The content is widely known to be factual, and externally verifiable. Would it be appropriate to add such material even if it may be displeasing to, for example, an institution or individual.

For example, there exists an article regarding a university. In this article, it is claimed that this institution is the largest, and best institution in this particular country. Both of these details currently in this article are widely known to be false. I would like to edit this article, specifically these details by providing factual data which is widely known and externally verifiable. In essence, I would like to remove details which are expressing an opinion as fact, and replace said details with fact, or, at a bare minimum, state that the information currently present are opinions and not fact.

It is know that providing such details would be perceived by this institution as damaging, even though this information is in fact true by the most sophisticated philosophical meaning of truth.

I do not want to be accused of vandalizing or defacing an article. Thus my question before you now.

Jasonalangraves 23:46, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * You may remove any unsourced information (the information you say is false, presumably). You should also add better information (and include Reliable sources to back up the new statements). Your changes may be reverted by another editor though. If that happens, just discuss with the other editor on the article's talk page to resolve differences before moving forward. Articles should not have opinions not attributed to a reliable source in an article, so you can remove those also. Sancho 23:51, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
 * One other thing... "The threshold for inclusion in Wikipedia is verifiability, not truth." (from WP:V). Sancho 23:53, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * (after edit conflict)If content is accurate, and supported by citations of reliable sources it can and should be included no matter who is upset or displease Wikipedia is not censored. In removing unsourced opinion, you might do well to discuss the mater on the talk page of the article involved, or perhaps to use who asking who said that an institution was the best, largest, etc. Opinions should be attributed to specific people, and sourced. If you are adding content with which others may disagree, it might be well to include a reliable source citation right away, and perhaps to discuss the matter on the talk page -- certainly discuss the matter on the talk page if your edit is reverted or changed in a way you disagree with. Above all, do not engage in an edit war if others disagree, instead seek additional input or follow our dispute resolution procedure. DES (talk) 23:54, 19 June 2007 (UTC)


 * (edit conflict)If it's controversial and verifiable, then go ahead and add it. If the text that's already in the article is unsourced and biased, then go ahead and remove it. Bear in mind, though, that opinions should never masquerade as fact even if they are verifiable. So for instance, if X Y and Z newspapers said that the university of foo bar was a bad university, you could only go as far to say it's been criticised, not that "it IS a bad university". If your statements are based on league tables or statistics, you can only quote those statistics, and not draw a conclusion that because of the statistics, the university must be bad. Hope that makes sense, - <font face="Trebuchet MS">Zeibura (Talk) 23:58, 19 June 2007 (UTC)