User:A8UDI/Rollback

How to quickly and easily use and understand rollback

Me: I frequently revert vandalism here on the English Wikipedia. I am a recent changes patroller and will revert many edits quickly and in a short span of time (I do not use Huggle), especially at night. Bare in mind I reserve the right to not be perfect. If I make a mistake by reverting something that shouldn't have been, I will most likely notice and revert my edits.

New users: continue reading =)

TIP:
High school pages and people (especially their 'personal life' section) are the pages that are typically highly vandalized.

What is it and how does it work?

Rollback is a tool implemented by Wikipedia to revert obvious vandalism. Plain and simply, it reverts edits by one contributor (IPs and users) to the last version of a page by the previous contributor.

It works instantly with Wikipedia's systems so that the edits are reverted before the "Action complete" page even loads. Thus, it is possible to revert another obvious vandalism again in the RC. This is what I call "double-reverting." =]

See the gallery below to see screenshots of it in action.

Criteria

Guide to using rollback in the recent changes: what to look for

Note:

Some edits are obvious to be vandalism right from the recent changes page.

It is okay to assume bad faith based on some of the pointers below, although it may not always be vandalism! Always check the diff link unless it is almost certain to be vandalism (see gallery picture below for an example).

Other edits require you to randomly click on the diff link to see the changes.

Rollback is intended to be used only for obvious vandalism, but as you will see, the hints and tips below will help guide your usage of it.

1. Anything in CAPITAL LETTERS (Tag: shouting) or all undercase letters without any punctuation periods commas etc that is not grammatically correct such as this is should be reverted as they violate the Manual of style.

2. Any blanked section, subsection or page should be assumed to be vandalism (or anything that looks like -2,000) will be reverted that does not have an edit summary that is not in a user's own userspace. (Tag: blanking)

3. Anything with repeating characters (such as: !!!!!!, .....) should assumed to be vandalism and will be reverted; especially if it has a (Tag) attached; also violates the manual of style. (Tag: repeating characters)

4. Anything in pretty colors should assumed to be vandalism and will be reverted.

5. Any incorrect links or errors/test edits (even if accidental) will be reverted (assuming good faith; please use the preview button).

6. Any added whitespace, deleted or added Wikilinks, or other edits that do not benefit the reader may also be reverted. (Assumed to be in good intention).

7. Random, single, uncited, one-lined sentences, (usually) pertaining to homosexuality should be reverted.

8. Uncivil edits, attacks, edit summaries or cursing out of context is most likely vandalism and should be reverted regardless of the article or user page.

9. Test edits, such as Italic text or bold text

10. Strange redirects by new users or IPs.

11. Removed references (Tag:references removed)

You may revert your own edits if you reverted something that is most likely not vandalism.

If you feel I may have misused rollback, please provide the diff link along with an explanation here and I will respond as soon as possible.

FAQs

Any administrator is able to assign you rollback rights. To apply for RB rights, click here. Bare in mind that it can be easily taken away if you misuse it. Remember, it is designed to only be used for vandalism.

Q:Why only vandalism?
A: Because you cannot leave an edit summary. It is designed to simply and rapidly revert unproductive edits.

Q:How is Twinkle's rollback different?
A: If you install Twinkle (literally 2 clicks in your prefs under "Gadgets"), you are basically given the same rollback rights as the real rollback, but there are some key differences:

Twinkle does not directly use Wikipedia's servers and thus it is not nearly as fast; but it is still effective.
Twinkle can be used for edits that are not obvious vandalism because you can leave an edit summary explaining your rationale (optional).
Twinkle allows users to specify the reason for rollback: [Rollback (Assuming good faith)], [Rollback] (No faith), [Rollback (VANDAL)]

Q:What requirements are there for getting it?
A: Approx 200 edits, some anti-vandal experience (you can still help patrol recent changes: here) and knowledge of user warnings (see below).

Warnings

Note: You do not need to be an admin to use the warning templates

Level 1 assumes good faith; obvious mistakes, errors, grammatical errors that do not hint at any purposeful malice. Example 'vandalism' (mistake) worthy of a Level 1 Template (General Note).

Level 2 assumes neither good nor bad faith, but I will use this template for vandals to start as a level 1 template for obvious, but fairly minor vandalism. I will use level 1 templates only for edits which good faith is clearly evidenced. Example vandalism for a Level 2 Template (Caution).

Level 3 assumes bad faith; I will may start with this template for BLP violations, curse words (censored or not) and incendiary comments. Example vandalism for a Level 3 Template (Warning).

Level 4/4IM assumes very bad faith. I will start with the 4IM template for severe vandalism: threats, hate or violence provoking language (or any use of the words: "nigger," "fag," "wetback" etc etc etc) and vulgar sex acts; typically accompanied by a blanked page. Example vandalism worthy of a Level 4IM Template (Only Warning).

Any unproductive edits past the 4 or 4IM level warning will result in a block, given the warnings are within a 3 day time frame.

Practice

Read the directions below first.

1. Click here: User:A8UDI/sandbox

2. Make at least 2 edits; preferably about 3 or 4. Make sure you click "save page" after each edit.

3. Click on the "History" button at the top.

4. Click "Rollback"