Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2020 July 8

= July 8 =

can't find cite error in Ossetian language Help:Cite errors/Cite error references no text
Please explain my cite error in Ossetian language. --Espoo (talk) 00:51, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * The wikitext parser is confused by the special characters inside two of the external links. I found this by "commenting out" those links. Your best workaround is probably to just link to the dictionaries and not try to link to the page with the word itself, or you may experiment with other workarounds. -Arch dude (talk) 01:55, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Thanks, but which ones? I'm going crazy trying to find them. It seems to be a combo i haven't found. --Espoo (talk) 02:18, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * I think it was the first two. Use "show preview", remove them all, and add them back one at a time until it fails. -Arch dude (talk) 02:26, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Thanks. I discovered that the error message "The named reference $1 was invoked but never defined" is confusingly also sometimes produced when a named reference is correctly defined if one tries to add a URL in the Template:Refn without using ref tags, for example when the URL includes the equals sign =, e.g. https://www.ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=Ossetia.--Espoo (talk) 08:46, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * The equals sign can mess up all sorts of refs and templates, including lang, columns-list and description. Sometimes you can include the parameter, eg   or you can use eq to generate = outside of a url. MinorProphet (talk)

How to Publish my Biography on Wikipedia?
Hi Wikipedia,

I would like to add my professional career biography on WikiPedia. Could you please let me know how to publish this information on your portal for public search about me. Please let me know.

— Preceding unsigned comment added by ZakiaHossain (talk • contribs) 01:16, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Wikipedia is not a place for people to publish their autobiographies or otherwise write about themselves. Please see the autobiography policy. Wikipedia also has no interest in aiding search results for you, in helping your fans find you, or otherwise helping your career. Social media is the proper place for you to tell the world about yourself.
 * You seem to have a common misconception about what Wikipedia is. Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, and as an encyclopedia Wikipedia is only interested in what others unaffiliated with the subject say about it.  A subject merits a Wikipedia article if it is shown with significant coverage in independent reliable sources to meet the special Wikipedia definition of notability(in this case, the definition of a notable creative professional).  Wikipedia is not interested in what the subject wants to say about themselves.
 * If you meet the notability criteria, eventually an independent editor will take note of your career and choose to write about you. Any article about you would not be under your exclusive control.  You could not lock it to the text you might prefer, or prevent others from editing it.  Any information about you, good or bad, can be in an article about you as long as it appears in an independent reliable source and is not defamatory. A Wikipedia article is not necessarily desirable, please read this page for more information. 331dot (talk) 01:21, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

Question about Wikipedia
Pretty much daily, people write here "Why does Wikipedia do this and that about so-and-so?" Apparently they think Wikipedia is a single, homogenous, coherent entity that has official employees and an official opinion.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Wikipedia is a project run entirely by volunteers. I, for example, am a typical Wikipedia editor. I am not employed by Wikipedia, nor do I earn any other income from it. I do this entirely as a volunteer, as an altruistic hobby. So do thousands of others. Most of us don't know each other. So we often engage in arguments.

Many people threaten to sue Wikipedia. Sue whom? There is no single "Wikipedia" entity. You can not sue the entire Wikipedia for something someone who the foundation behind Wikipedia doesn't even know, and is just doing this as a hobby, wrote.

How can we get people to understand this? J I P &#124; Talk 01:46, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * I certainly don't have a great answer for you. I've also wondered how people can all be aware (and even complain) that anyone can edit Wikipedia without taking on the corollary that it isn't homogenous. If you think of a good answer, please let me know Nosebagbear (talk) 08:18, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * A good solution that would also encourage very many new people to start contributing to WP would be to change the off-putting, formal, bland, boring "From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia" at the top of every page to something more welcoming and more informative, f.ex. "From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that its users make and are responsible for". --Espoo (talk) 08:55, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * An alternative to the suggestion above: From Wikipedia, the free volunteer-driven encyclopedia. — Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 )  20:16, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * "From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit, in the same way that anyone can pass a driving test - but there are rules and regulations and ways of doing things which you will just have to learn the hard way; and writing an entire WP article is considerably harder than driving a car (maybe a helicopter); and there are other drivers who may be subject to road rage; and sockpuppets who undermine your best efforts; and there are also certain reasons why you should not edit Wikipedia; but if you bow down and ask gratefully at the All-Knowing and Mighty Help Desk™, the helpful volunteers will show you the way." MinorProphet (talk) 18:36, 13 July 2020 (UTC)

Editing Archive?
I edited and put a link into one of the many questions I asked on the Reference Desk that are now located in the archive for future reference. However, a high-profile administrator reverted my edit and claimed that it was not constructive even though it was just adding a link in a question I wrote. Could anyone explain why my edit got reverted? StellarHalo (talk) 02:11, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Sorry about the mistaken warning, I've removed it. However I will note that you generally should not modify archived discussions. GorillaWarfare (talk) 02:13, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

Did I come across a conflict of interest?
I'm an Occasional editor who mostly makes corrections and is probably over zealous about truth and stopping Vandalism.

Who do I go to exactly if I think someone is trying to maintain a conflict of interest?

On a certain film an editor placed a picture of a certain actor who had a bit role in a film after his role was drastically reduced in the released film the public received.

He also brought his credit marker 4th under the credits.

He had also placed a photograph of a director who had nothing to do with the film in the article but was supposed to work on a cancelled sequel.

He had also removed a photo of the lead star and the actual director for the film and I believe that people who have not seen said film will be mislead into thinking that the role is more prominent.

I just want to say I have no feelings about all the actors involved in the film. What I do have is an indignation for the sake of truth. Is that indignation too heavy in this case?

Maxcardun (talk) 12:12 AM July 7 2020 (UTC)
 * ...Are you joking? You’re filing a conflict of interest claim? What is the conflict of interest exactly? I literally have no connections to Matthew Fox. None whatsoever. I feel I’ve explained this to you countless times in your talk page, on the Talk:World War Z (film) page, and now here, in that the image is there to convey that Fox, despite filming more scenes and having a bigger role in the film, was cut to a lone scene. It’s absolutely impossible for a reader to get misled because the caption under the photo specifically states that. Fox was moved to 4th placement because that’s how the billing block is formatted. This is a practice used across film articles on the website, we go by the credits on the films poster. And once again, the directors image in the section SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THE CANCELLED SEQUEL, is there explaining his role in said cancelled sequel. Why does this bother you so much that you’re now bringing this to help desk accusing me of having a conflict of interest when I absolutely have none of the sort? I’ve told you already how belligerently bad faithed you’re acting, now this is crossing into harassment territory.  Rusted AutoParts  09:16, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

As you can see he is now following ME around, and I didn't even mention him. Maxcardun (talk) 7:37 AM July 8 2020 (UTC)

, use the conflict of interest noticeboard - don't start silly arguments in the help desk. Ed 6767   talk!  13:47, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

Copy and Paste move problem
Someone just copy and pasted a draft article still awaiting approval into a redirect. Specifically Draft:Min Min (character) into Min Min (character). I, thinking that the article got approved, edited templates and articles linking to the new article. What do I do now that I know it was not actually approved?(Oinkers42) (talk) 04:15, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * I have reverted the copy&paste move Because the draft has substantial contributions by others, including the creating IP. Victor Schmidt mobil (talk) 05:53, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Thanks. (Oinkers42) (talk) 14:27, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

Attaching standalone PDF documents
Hello

Is it possible to attach a standalone PDF of a speech to a person's Wikipedia bio/page when no web link exists for the document?

Thank you — Preceding unsigned comment added by Keastlake1 (talk • contribs) 05:17, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * No, unfortunally not. You can howewer try to find said speech elsewhere online. In todays age, most speeches are recorded in some way, and either printed as a magazine or (at least for the cases I can observe) make their way onto Youtube via a Broadcast Television Sender. Victor Schmidt mobil (talk) 05:49, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

Help:Cite errors/Cite error ref no input
— Preceding unsigned comment added by Philosabhi (talk • contribs) 06:33, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Your empty reference was removed in . --David Biddulph (talk) 10:55, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Your empty reference was removed in . --David Biddulph (talk) 10:55, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

send me a new password please
I clicked on 'forgot my password' but haven't received a new password yet. Can somebody hep me please? I need to do this for a college professor. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.31.164.126 (talk) 09:31, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * You should make sure that you typed your email address in correctly, and that it is the address associated with the account. It is possible that there is a delay with the system as well. If the email does not work, you may need to create a new account and identify it as a successor to your original account. If you are working for this professor(even if not paid in money) you must review conflict of interest and paid editing. 331dot (talk) 09:48, 8 July 2020 (UTC)


 * Even if you are editing on behalf of a college professor, you cannot use the professor's account: you must use your own account, not one that is ever used by anyone else. If you are assisting a professor to retrieve a password on the professor's account, then if you end up seeing that password, the professor should change the password before continuing to use the account. -Arch dude (talk) 15:10, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

How to choose bgcolor?
How to choose bgcolor of Infobox for the seasons of Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi. Thanks Pritam Shaw (talk • contribs) 10:21, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

And one more query, while using {bgcolor="#7FFFD4"} or any other color which has a code like "#7FFFD4", do I have to remember the code (probably not) to use it or have to copy it from somewhere. Pritam Shaw (talk • contribs) 10:40, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

Could anyone please guide⬆️ Pritam Shaw (talk • contribs) 13:43, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * , if you type "hex color picker" into Google they'll give you a color picker where you can copy the code (marked with HEX) and replace the current bgcolor content with to change it. Hope that helps Ed 6767   talk!  13:48, 8 July 2020 (UTC)


 * Hey Ed 6767, First of all thankyou for your answer and please answer this question too "How to choose bgcolor of Infobox for the seasons of Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi. Thanks"-Pritam Shaw (talk • contribs) 15:30, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * I guess you mean the background of the headings. I'm not sure whether you are asking how to set a background color in the code or how you might decide which color to use. I don't know about the latter. Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi uses Infobox television at the top right infobox. It does not have a parameter for background color. The template code says  with no option to change it. But the seasons in the sections use Infobox television season which does have a   parameter. Some alternative spellings are also accepted. PrimeHunter (talk) 17:25, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * How to decide which color to choose for Infobox of the different seasons of Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi.Pritam Shaw (talk • contribs) 07:24, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * If the show doesn't associate seasons with a color then I would use the same color for all seasons. If the show in general is not associated with a color then I would omit the parameter and use the default color. I don't know the show and don't know why color was added to some of the season articles like different greens [//en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Fear_Factor:_Khatron_Ke_Khiladi_6&diff=797049511&oldid=795957014][//en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Fear_Factor:_Khatron_Ke_Khiladi_6&diff=942404369&oldid=941417256] in Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi 6. PrimeHunter (talk) 07:39, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * , Okay let's say in general. I've seen articles of different TV shows making the background color of a particular season same as the color in the poster of that season . So, is it the correct way??Pritam Shaw (talk • contribs) 10:08, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * That sounds OK. I don't edit in the area but found Manual of Style/Television: "Colors for the seasons are often selected based on the series logo, DVD or promotional artwork, or for other reasons." PrimeHunter (talk) 10:55, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * , Thankyou😊-Pritam Shaw (talk • contribs) 13:27, 9 July 2020 (UTC)

my account
How do I change details in my Wikipedia account e.g. my email address

thanks — Preceding unsigned comment added by JifJaf (talk • contribs) 12:41, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * At the top right of any page, Click on "Preferences". In the "User profile" tab, where you already are, find the section "Email options". Click on "Change or remove email address". Maproom (talk) 12:45, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

Write article on a topic which is not available in wikipedia
can copy my own website content here. I think it is good because I m not copying from others websites  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2401:4900:4681:5B63:F1CF:3396:E871:AB5B (talk) 13:44, 8 July 2020 (UTC)


 * Hello, IP user. The answer is "almost certainly not", for several reasons. First, if you have published it on your website, then unless you explicitly release it under a licence such as CC-BY-SA, it would be a copyright violation. Secondly, because it is very very very unlikely that material you have put on your website is appropriate for a Wikipedia article. Please see Your first article to begin understanding how very difficult it is to write a new encyclopaedia article for Wikipedia. --ColinFine (talk) 13:50, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * I'll expand my answer a bit further. A Wikipedia article is a summary of what independent reliable sources have already published about a subject. Unless your site is that, then it is not appropriate. Wikipedia is not interested in what you (or I, any random people on the internet) think, or know, or believe: it is only interested in what reliably published sources have said. self-published sources are rarely usable, even as references. --ColinFine (talk) 13:54, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

Unable to process PayPal donation
... unable to process donation to tohttps://donate.wikimedia.org/. When singing in to PayPal I get this (pasted) response:- attempted to sign in to PayPal using LastPass:-

"With a PayPal account, you're eligible for Return Shipping on Us, Buyer Protection and more. Please enter the valid CAPTCHA code. "

... but,. I wasn't asked to enter a Captcha code or image check, so I have given up donating today. The same problem existed about 2 weeks back, except that then, I gave up hunting for a way to let you guys know. Regards, Geoff. Em Geoff.MySurname@MyDomain.com — Preceding unsigned comment added by Geoff Lezemore (talk • contribs) 18:19, 8 July 2020 (UTC)


 * Hello, . Here, you are addressing thousands and thousands of Wikipedia editors, none (or hardly any) of whom have anything to do with the Wikimedia Foundation's fundraising and donation system. Please go to https://donate.wikimedia.org/wiki/Problems_donating for help. --ColinFine (talk) 18:28, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

Need clarity as who should be labelled as a 'paid editor'
Hello There,

I enjoy reading Wikipedia and I started a habit of updating the information in Wikipedia where I found it is either out of date or details are missing. I must say my experience recently is not so good. Today I am labelled as 'paid editor' for a missing page that I created for an very well know Indian asset management company. Link - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axis_Asset_Management_Company. I found this missing page from the main page at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutual_funds_in_India. When I go to the main page of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page, there is a mention that it's a 'free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.'. Now when I have created the page I am being labelled by an wikipedia admin being a 'paid editor'. I take this an insult to my volunteering work.

Can someone please help me in telling me that what is wrong with the page https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axis_Asset_Management_Company and why I am being labelled as a 'paid editor' by an admin.

Cheers! Checkright (talk) 18:41, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * I think because of your limited editing history and the stub [] you created for Axis' Asset Management group (subsequently turned into a redirect), it gave the appearance that you might be trying to promote the group or its mutual fund. It's possible that you were misjudged, but I can't make that determination. Regardless, I don't think there's enough sourcing in your stub for a standalone article, and discourage people from including competitor info (it's a spam magnet and is better to use a category), but you could look into adding a plain sentence or two about Axis Asset Management Group as a new section in Axis Bank. TimTempleton (talk)  (cont)  20:06, 8 July 2020 (UTC)


 * Many thanks for your feedback. I appreciate that my content had limited info but I created the content looking at the structure that was available for similar category of companies. I take your feedback adding the details in an existing page. My disappointment here is not around whether the page I created, it is around how admins are leveling the volunteering work as a 'Paid' even with out giving feedback.Many Thanks you for your constructive feedback. Checkright (talk) 04:26, 9 July 2020 (UTC)

Commons SVG image not being displayed properly in Wikipedia iOS app
I've been trying to add the following SVG file ( which I created using Draw.io and Inkscape ) to the HP Saturn article :



The problem is that the the iOS Wikipedia app doesn't display the above SVG correctly -- I just get a blank box.

Does anyone know what the problem might be? I remember that the image used to be displayed correctly, so, maybe it's a problem with the iOS app?

Thanks,

Jdbtwo (talk) 19:13, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * I see a lot of the "inkscape:" namespace within the SVG. It's possible that the app has trouble with this. In Inkscape, try save as... Plain SVG. I'm unfamiliar with the app, but if it can display local files the way any browser can, you can check your file locally without uploading it to the Wikimedia servers. You can certainly do this with the iOS native browser as a cross-check. -Arch dude (talk) 23:04, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * You might also find a better-focused audience at c:Commons:Help desk. —[ Alan M 1  (talk) ]— 23:28, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

Use of hyphenation in compound modifiers
Particularly, I'm interested in phrases like "second most dexterous"; could anyone please tell me if it should be "second-most dexterous" or "second-most-dexterous", in either case before a noun? Sorry if this has been asked here before, or if it was covered in the MOS section on hyphens and I missed it while skimming through it, since I only focused on the text in red (sorry not to have read the whole thing). (Edit: Just read through the whole, with varying amounts of paid attention; I'm pretty sure the answer to my question isn't covered there; no offense to the writers of that section.)--Thylacine24 (talk) 19:52, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * I would say that since writing "most dexterous" is not hyphenated, and "second" modifies "most", it should be "second-most dexterous". I have no idea if that logic is "correct". —[ Alan M 1  (talk) ]— 23:34, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Thanks. Just to clear, you do understand that I'm talking about phrases like the "second-most dexterous typist" and not "the typist who is second-most dexterous", right? Sorry to be condescending; I'm just trying to be absolutely sure about this.--Thylacine24 (talk) 00:39, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * If you were saying "most dexterous typist", you would not hyphenate it. "Second" is modifying "most", not "dexterous". "Second-most dexterous" is correct. Schazjmd   (talk)  00:49, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Okay, thanks.--Thylacine24 (talk) 21:50, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * This is definitely a can of worms. I would suggest that no hyphens are needed at all. This web page has a good discussion, invoking the Chicago Manual of Style. The Manual recommends not using hyphens "unless ambiguity threatens", using this pair of examples:
 * the most skilled workers (most in number) but
 * the most-skilled workers (most in skill) MinorProphet (talk) 21:59, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Thanks, but I'm comfortable with the one hyphen. It seems most appropriate to me. Sorry to be arrogant about it. (Edit: Added extra indent. Sorry to not test my replies on the preview option first.)--Thylacine24 (talk) 22:22, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * , you can alternatively use secondmost. — Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 )  22:03, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Thanks, but as I stated above, I'm comfortable with the one hyphen. Again, sorry to be arrogant about it. (Edit: Fixed template, which lacked vertical bar. Sorry about that, and again, for not testing the preview option first.)--Thylacine24 (talk) 22:22, 9 July 2020 (UTC)

Review assistance
Hi, new here. I just added a lot of information and several citations. Can the "This article needs additional citations for verification" message be removed? Can someone review it for me? Here is the page https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandarin_(Jacksonville). Thank you! Lekarren (talk) 20:09, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Usually if it's just 2-3 things that are unsourced, you can flag them with the citation needed template. If it's more than that, I'd leave the additional citations template at the top. See the recent edits I made to the article. It's close to just having the individual statements flagged versus the whole article. TimTempleton (talk)  (cont)  21:45, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * I saw the "citation needed" notes that you made and I added those citations. I had added most of the citations on the page originally, but see you made those two notes that they were needed. I'm sorry if I misunderstood something - is that all I needed to do? I appreciate how you reorganized the material, makes a lot of sense. Do I need to do more on it for it to not have the warning message on the top?Lekarren (talk) 23:58, 8 July 2020 (UTC)
 * When you are using the same reference more than once in the article, they should be merged, as shown in WP:REFNAME. --David Biddulph (talk) 00:11, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * thank you. No matter how many times I stare at the directions for refname, I don't understand what to do. Can you show me once on the page? I even tried to see how it is done on other pages. For example, on this page https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacksonville,_Florida citations 190 and 191 are the same, but I don't see what you mean by refname. Lekarren (talk) 01:14, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * Instead of trying refname, I removed the redundant citations, replacing them with new citations from additional sources. Hopefully the page doesn't need citation help now. Review please. Thank you all. Lekarren (talk) 01:52, 9 July 2020 (UTC)
 * All refs are horrible and beastly and a source of endless pain. To concatenate refs, do this for the first ref: For subsequent refs to the same link, do this:  . This will appear as:  For subsequent refs to the same link, do this:  and all will be good. It's best to use quotes when defining the name for the first time. The name can be defined once anywhere in the article, it doesn't have to be the first instance. If you edit a single section which doesn't contain the original defining ref name, you will get a warning message when you press Show Preview, but it sorts itself out when you press Publish Changes. Sometimes. Best of luck. MinorProphet (talk) 22:34, 9 July 2020 (UTC)


 * Thank you, I'll keep those directions for the future. I added different sources, instead, and hopefully that will work to get the warning label off the page. Perhaps you have time to review? Thanks again. Lekarren (talk) 22:49, 9 July 2020 (UTC)

Magrath
Good Afternoon,

I work for the Town of Magrath and would like to edit this pagehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magrath

The logo has changed and there is a photo we would like to update.

Could you please let me know how to do this.

Thank you.

Jessica — Preceding unsigned comment added by Town of Magrath (talk • contribs) 22:55, 8 July 2020 (UTC)


 * I believe that you're editing with the best of intentions, but your username breaches the rules here. (A username must be for a single person, and mustn't be, or appear to be, for a group or organization.) Please simply abandon the username (which you seem to have used only for the one edit above) and adopt a different one ("Jessica in Magrath", for example). Once you've done that, the simplest procedure might be to write on Talk:Magrath that Magrath has a new logo and that this may be found at such-and-such a URL ( http(s)://whatever.whatever/whatever/whatever ). Because you work for the town, Wikipedia's "conflict of interest" guidelines mean that you shouldn't edit the article directly (other than to revert vandalism, etc), but you'd be most welcome to continue to make informed suggestions for the article on Talk:Magrath. -- Hoary (talk) 01:06, 9 July 2020 (UTC)