Wikipedia talk:About the sandbox

Editing other people's sandboxes
If given permission by a person, are you allowed to edit that person's sandbox? I am helping somebody who is making a football season article in their sandbox and I think it would make it a lot easier.Crystalpalace6810 (talk) 18:38, 3 August 2022 (UTC)
 * Sure, as long as, if/when the text is re-added to the article, it is properly attributed, either by using the page move function or otherwise (see Copying within Wikipedia). Graham 87 03:23, 4 August 2022 (UTC)

Draft:Sandbox
Why exactly is "Draft:Sandbox" in draftspace? It just leads to confusion as it makes people think "oh this is the place for me to write my draft" and hten when they go back to work on it more, they find that either the sandbox has been cleared or someone else has added junk to it (yes, junk, as that is what's usually added to the sandbox page). ― Blaze WolfTalkBlaze Wolf#6545 12:57, 3 November 2022 (UTC)
 * As it says on the see also link, it was created for testing with VisualEditor. I don't know if that reasoning applies as much now though. Graham 87 14:42, 3 November 2022 (UTC)
 * See also link? Where would I find that? ― Blaze WolfTalkBlaze Wolf#6545 15:18, 3 November 2022 (UTC)
 * Oops, I mean the see also section of this page. Graham 87 12:31, 4 November 2022 (UTC)

Template-protected edit request on 21 March 2023
Please implement the starter code I put in Module:Sandbox/sandbox. I believe having some starter code would be really helpful for new users who need to get started with testing.

Thanks. Aasim - Herrscher of Wikis ❄️ 18:08, 21 March 2023 (UTC)
 * ✅.  P.I. Ellsworth &thinsp;, ed.  put'er there 01:50, 22 March 2023 (UTC)

Sentence that seems kinda out-of-date
The penultimate (second to last) sentence of the lead ['lede'] section of "About the sandbox" says:"For easy access, there is a link labeled 'sandbox' at the top right of every page between the Talk and Preferences links."

I think what we might have here, is ... a sentence that used to be true, but now ... things have changed, and it may not be [exactly] true any more.

After reading that sentence, (the one "blockquote"d above) I recalled that some time recently (well ... less than a year ago, iirc) there was some kind of "overhaul" of how pages are displayed, on the English Wikipedia. (At least, for some users ... such as me.) (I usually use a laptop or desktop PC for Wikipedia.)

I took a look at some example Wikipedia pages, (including e.g. my own "User:" page), and I found that:
 * [F1] In most cases, the "custom" of having a link to a "Talk:" page (usually displayed as an ['underlined'] hyperlink, and without any colon [":"] being appended) up at the top, is still being followed.
 * (but if we are talking about the hyperlink to a "Talk:" page that is below the title, which in turn is below some other stuff, then ... the part about "at the top" is not 100% right; plus, that one -- the one that is below the title, -- seems to be much closer to the left than it is to the right).
 * ...and, if we are talking about the hyperlink to a "Talk:" page that can be accessed via a pull-down menu that has entries 'such as'
 * User page
 * Talk page
 * Sandbox
 * Preferences
 * Beta
 * etc.
 * then ... well ... that one is (sorta) "accessible" via a method that is closely "involved with" [QUOTE:] << "the top right of every page" >>, but it requires the reader to know what s/he is doing, and first click on that little "head and shoulders" icon (with a little "letter Vee" [or "down arrow"] next to it) at the top right ... and, my guess is that ... some users are more familiar than others, with the recent changes. (and -- perhaps -- more familiar with the recent changes than I am.)


 * [F2] However, the hyperlink to the ["Special"] "Preferences" page, is WAY less omnipresent than [iirc] it used to be. When I tried to find it today, I first found a ("Tools") pull-down menu that started out with stuff like (under "Actions") entries for "Read", "Edit", "View History", "Watch", and "Move". It actually has 3 sections, and I eventually found an entry for "Special pages" down in the second section (the third [blue] link, under "General"). Eventually (later) I found out that one could go [more] directly to "Special:Preferences", without having to go there via the "Special pages" page ... if one clicks on that little "head and shoulders" icon at the top right. However, (as I may have mentioned already), I am still getting used to the "page layout" changes ... and there may even be some stuff that I need to re-learn, ... because it has been forgotten, after being learned.

Bottom Line
In my opinion, that sentence that says"For easy access, there is a link labeled 'sandbox' at the top right of every page between the Talk and Preferences links."was WAY more helpful (not to mention "correct") in the past, than it is now.

I am not suggesting "rolling back" the recent "page layout" changes, but IMHO if we are keeping them, then that sentence that is now kinda out-of-date (less "up to date" than I would prefer) should be looked at, and some changes should probably be made to it.

THANKS for listening. Mike Schwartz (talk) 05:18, 27 March 2023 (UTC)
 * Wikipedia's new skin, Vector 2022, was indeed recently implemented and has made several changes to the site's layout. As it says on user page, I'm blind and use a screen reader and am therefore not in any position to update the text. I've commented out the offending sentence for now but I'll post a question at the help desk about this matter. Graham 87 14:54, 27 March 2023 (UTC)
 * I have added "on a user icon menu or ...". Many registered users have chosen to keep the Vector legacy skin at Special:Preferences so both possibilities are now mentioned. PrimeHunter (talk) 15:31, 27 March 2023 (UTC)
 * Thank you. I probably did not realize that the old wording could still be correct "for some users". I think this solution -- (see the DIFF at https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:About_the_sandbox&diff=next&oldid=1146886169 e.g.) -- is a good one. It is better than before, and it still "takes care of" those users for whom the old wording is still applicable, and ... even if (even though) some readers might "stumble" a little, in [initially] trying to figure out how to interpret the new part about << "on a user icon menu" >>, ... at least they will be on the right track, and they will probably be able to either
 * figure it out on their own, or
 * figure out what to do ... 'with some help'.
 * (*** Good! ***) Mike Schwartz (talk) 00:55, 28 March 2023 (UTC)
 * --Mike Schwartz (talk) 01:06, 28 March 2023 (UTC)
 * I have tweaked it a little to make it easier to find. Our mobile version also has a user icon menu. PrimeHunter (talk) 02:22, 28 March 2023 (UTC)
 * excellent! Mike Schwartz (talk) 03:16, 28 March 2023 (UTC)
 * The original poster also started a technical village pump thread about this issue; as I said there, doing so without informing people at this page is not really on. Graham 87 05:05, 28 March 2023 (UTC)
 * The original poster also started a technical village pump thread about this issue; as I said there, doing so without informing people at this page is not really on. Graham 87 05:05, 28 March 2023 (UTC)

Sandbox header is too big
Especially in the 2022 Vector skin, the sandbox header is far too big. Barely four lines of text can be visible upon loading the page, compared with 15 lines of boilerplate. Is it any wonder that new users will want to remove the header? This issue of having to scroll the page up and down to save text and see what you have written makes editing Wikipedia seem much more difficult than it needs to be. Kk.urban (talk) 19:15, 9 August 2023 (UTC)


 * I agree, that header is a mess. Ca talk to me! 13:46, 12 November 2023 (UTC)
 * Header should be converted to an editnotice IMO. Mach61 (talk) 15:58, 13 November 2023 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 14 January 2024
X71 → X20 (Templates for discussion/Log/2023 December 14) 79.185.125.100 (talk) 19:25, 14 January 2024 (UTC)
 * ✅ Mach61 (talk) 19:31, 14 January 2024 (UTC)

You may be interested in a discussion at Village_pump_(proposals)
Note that merely shortening the header has also been proposed. Mach61 (talk) 14:31, 28 January 2024 (UTC)

What do I do in a sandbox
? 72.193.153.70 (talk) 19:28, 17 February 2024 (UTC)
 * Testingand experimentation. Graham87 (talk) 04:51, 18 February 2024 (UTC)

Custom Countries
Am I allowed to create my own custom wikipedia pages in the sandbox? for custom countries and such, not offensive or promotive in any way. RazorPantherz (talk) 00:07, 19 April 2024 (UTC)
 * No, Wikipedia is not a free web host. Graham87 (talk) 01:24, 19 April 2024 (UTC)
 * Sounds good, cheers. RazorPantherz (talk) 16:23, 19 April 2024 (UTC)

Multiple sandbox
Shouldn't there be multiple sandboxes? like in the Spanish Wikipedia, there are 10 sandboxes and there is a button that indicates if its occupied or not. It would be useful so that editors do no need to wait that another editor finishes their tests. Evolution-tasks2.pngBruce The Deus sandbox icon.svg 17:15, 24 May 2024 (UTC)
 * There are plenty of sandboxes attached to various pages. Graham87 (talk) 18:52, 24 May 2024 (UTC)

Link at User talk:Sandbox
Good day everyone,

I noticed the link at User talk:Sandbox for "Click here to reset the sandbox" brings to a version that is NOT clean. Clicking the link will insert the word "Sandbox" under the sandbox template. Later, the bot will clear it. I have fixed it now in at Template:Sandbox header. My real namm (💬pros · ✏️cons) 15:05, 3 July 2024 (UTC)


 * Ok, it seems like it is not possible to be fixed without making major changes to the template. The template works on other sandbox pages but not on User talk:Sandbox. My real namm  (💬pros · ✏️cons) 15:08, 3 July 2024 (UTC)
 * @SilverLocust fixed it. Don't know how my edit didn't work, maybe because I didn't purge. Thanks! My real namm  (💬pros · ✏️cons) 15:32, 3 July 2024 (UTC)