Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2011 November 23

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November 23

Hebrew lettering, drop-down feature

I have been contributing to a number of articles dealing with Jewish liturgy andrelated topics. I have notice that the drop-down feature for inserting Hebrew lettering has very poor visibility - and apparently very inadequate options - forthe Hebrew vowel points.

Some of the vowel points offered are so indistinct and small that they are readily confused with each other, and in at least one instance, choosing one particular vowel point from the drop-down feature actually inserts a DIFFERENT vowel point into the text of the article.

Please make the vowel points more distinct (and larger - at least on the drop-down chart) and make sure that a complete range is offered.

There are also a lot of blanks offered in the drop-down feature for Hebrew; I would guess that they were intended to provide the Biblical cantillation accents, but they are blank in that feature and I think it would be nice to provide the accents.

Looking over Wiki articles that use Hebrew lettering, I notice that some (older) articles have a very attractive, professional, Hebrew typeface, while the newer articles and the drop-down feature have only a sort of very plain mechanical sort of Hebrew font. Is there a way to get the more attractive Hebrew font??? Sussmanbern (talk) 00:24, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

I think this is one for Village pump (technical) - would you mind posting again there? Hopefully that will attract the attention of someone who is technical enough and can read and write Hebrew. When you re-post, could you give examples of the "older articles" and "newer articles" that you mention in your last paragraph? -- John of Reading (talk) 14:14, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Trouble formating a table

I have created sortable tables on this page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_lakes_of_the_Sawtooth_Mountains_(Idaho)

I have adapted the table from one that I have seen used to organize mountains because I have not been able to find a similar one for lakes.

The issue is on the first and third tables on the fourth column from the left ("max. width"). This column is in miles/kilometers, but I would like it to be in feet/meters as are columns 2 and 3. Can I get some help with fixing the details of the formatting? Thanks. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Fredlyfish4 (talk • contribs) 00:31, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

The {{epi}} template doesn't support that. Might want to try bringing up your concern with Buaidh. — Bility (talk) 00:49, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Editing an Article - No 'Edit' Button

How do I edit the "main body" of an article if there is no "Edit" button at the bottom of the section? Wildcarrotmusic (talk) 02:03, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Have you tried the Edit tab at the top? -- Jo3sampl (talk) 02:11, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

(edit conflict) Edit links are at the top of a section. The lead section has no edit link by default but you can click the Edit tab at top of the page to edit the whole page instead. If you still have problems then please link the article. PrimeHunter (talk) 02:11, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

See also Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Lead section#Editing the lead section. If you are editing the lead section, see the rest of the guidelines on that page, as Wikipedia has specific (and helpful) rules for editing it. --Teratornis (talk) 04:27, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

My guess is that it is protected from regular editors. 71.146.20.62 (talk) 21:31, 24 November 2011 (UTC)

Can't make a smaller version of an image

Occupy Davis has a banner image that won't render at any size but 100%. No clue how to fix that. --Tangledorange (talk) 02:51, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

It looks as if there is a problem with the file on Commons at Commons:File:Occupy_Davis_-_We_Are_the_99%.png, so it may be worth uploading a new version. - David Biddulph (talk) 03:41, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

metallic microlattice

Can this wafer be scaled up to a lorry chassis size or an aeroplane wing? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.4.167.226 (talk) 03:10, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Have you tried the Science section of Wikipedia's Reference Desk? They specialize in answering knowledge questions there; this help desk is only for questions about using Wikipedia. For your convenience, here is the link to post a question there: click here. I hope this helps. PrimeHunter (talk) 03:45, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Ted Serong :Correction

Please delete the last para from the article on Ted Serong. Ivan Bates is not his nephew. Ted did not have a sister. This can be verified in his two biographies. Thank you. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 120.151.14.190 (talk) 03:53, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Please note that, since Wikipedia is the encyclopedia that anyone can edit, you yourself can remove that material. There are "edit" buttons to the right of every section header as well as at the top of the page. You can press that button and remove the content that you are challenging. Since that claim has no inline citation and is not included in the cited sources, you are allowed to challenge that claim and remove it.--Slon02 (talk) 04:24, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Pasting options and more

First I pasted my raw watch list into my user page. Is there a way to make all of it high lighted blue so I could click it and it automatically goes to that article. And is there a way to make it appear up and down on my user page instead of side by side. One more I have a list of words on my word pad and i want to paste it to my raw watch list but it appears side by side can I change the paste format option to up and down so that it could save it on my watch list as a high lighted blue searchable article. Still having trouble on naming this List of plasma (physics) applications articles just wondering if it relates to what i put on this article that has every element aspect of plasma physics. Plus wonder if this old article List of Plasma (physics) articles name is better than the second one . Shawn Worthington Laser Plasma (talk) 04:29, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

To make links include each page title in [[]] brackets.

To make a vertical list begin each line with ":" as I have done here. ":" is to cause indenting.

Or you begin each line with "*" for a bulleted list.

How about editing the list of words on your word pad to begin each item on a separte line. —teb728 t c 06:40, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

But of course, as you realise, just starting each item on a separate line in the wiki source isn't enough to separate it. It either needs an indent or bullet as you suggest above, or a blank line to separate. - David Biddulph (talk) 10:53, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

And as for your article List of plasma (physics) applications articles or List of Plasma (physics) articles (or whatever): IMHO you should request its deletion; on Wikipedia we use WP:Categories for that purpose, in this case Category:Plasma physics. But the way you formatted that list is just what you should do with your watchlist. —teb728 t c 11:01, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

rate this page - I am highly knowledgeable about this topic (optional)

Dear Sirs, Presently there is an option to "rate this page". One of the options is "I am highly knowledgeable about this topic (optional)". I would like that you change the tick box into a 5 star rating as I am sometimes a (very) little knowledgeable on the subject, sometimes highly. Thank you. Ton Jeursen. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.232.230.50 (talk) 10:59, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Thank you! I'll copy your suggestion to mw:Talk:Article feedback. -- John of Reading (talk) 11:43, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

I support that. I think "highly knowledgeable" is going to cause some potentially excellent editors to pause, and not respond.--SPhilbrickT 15:26, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Cable Co. going HD

How Can you Report A Cable Co. that has not gone HD like there susposed to have — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.164.252.177 (talk) 11:31, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

This page is for questions about editing Wikipedia. Please consider asking this question at the Reference desk. They specialize in knowledge questions and will try to answer any question in the universe (except how to use Wikipedia, since that is what this Help Desk is for). Just follow the link, select the relevant section, and ask away. You could always try searching Wikipedia for an article related to the topic you want to know more about. I hope this helps.--♫GoP♫_T^C_N 11:56, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

If you post on the Reference Desk, it would save time if you say which country you are in and give some more details about why you believe they should have gone HD. --Colapeninsula (talk) 16:11, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

There is no law I'm aware of that require them to go HD, digital on the other hand, yes. CTJF83 16:28, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

I know that broadcasters were required to go digital, but are you sure cable providers were? (This OP’s ISP offers digital TV at $17 over analog.) —teb728 t c 04:53, 24 November 2011 (UTC)

Adding information to a Wikipedia article

For the Route 66 (song) article, I clicked on the edit tab and put in the Juggernaut Jug Band after Depeche Mode. Then I clicked on preview, but my addition wasn't there, although I could still see it in the edit box. Then I clicked on save page, but it didn't save my change.

I just wanted to let you all know. I will try to do the tutorial soon.

Thanks, Pat

P.S. My source is the Sarasota (FL) Weekly Planet, 3-2-05 - 3-8-05. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.72.75.122 (talk) 11:44, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

hello,

I reverted your edit, as it was unreferenced and the jug band is not notable anyway. There is no reason to put it behind Nat, Perry, Chuck, Stones and Mode; "and numerous others" means there are more versions, but the mentioned covers are the most noted. Your edit was saved, but it does not appear because you must bypass your cache to see your changes. Regards.--♫GoP♫_T^C_N 11:55, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

(edit conflict) PS: In this text I made typos; if you bypass your cache, the newest edit is visible. Regards.

Removing AfD template from articles

Am I allowed to remove the AfD template from an article, where the editor closing the AfD discussion missed it? Toshio Yamaguchi (talk) 11:58, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Yes, as long as the closure was performed correctly, you can remove it.--♫GoP♫_T^C_N 12:03, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

The closure was performed correctly, just that the template was left on the article. Thanks. Toshio Yamaguchi (talk) 12:05, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

renaming a page

I want to change the name of the Integrated Transport Smartcard Organisation to just ITSO as we do not call ourselves the long name now because we don't just do smartcards and we don't just do transport. However I do not get a move tab and I can't find out how to contact you on the name change help pages. plse advise. Also someone else has written stuff about ITSO which is inaccurate. how do i get this corrected plse ITSOEditor (talk) 13:54, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

It can't be moved to just ITSO, as the article ITSO already exists, as a disambiguation page covering a number of different meanings for those initials. You would need to think of an alternative name, unless it were obvious that your ITSO is the primary use, and the others could be moved to ITSO (disambiguation). I notice that you still haven't addressed the point which was raised on your talk page in January 2010 that your user name appears to represent an organisation rather than an individual, so please read WP:CORPNAME and WP:COI. If there are things in the article which are inaccurate, the best bet is to raise those points at Talk:Integrated Transport Smartcard Organisation. - David Biddulph (talk) 14:33, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Banque de Credit National, s.a.l.

Dear Sirs, When reviewing your website we found that you have old information regarding Banque de Credit National s.a.l. and wanted to advise you of the new changes.

History and background BCN was established in 1929, registered under No. 8220 at the Commercial Registry of Beirut and registered under No. 36 on the list of banks published by Banque du Liban.

BCN today A new acquisition was concluded in 2010. The main shareholders are:

• Mr. Lutfi Fadel El Zein 75% • Cheikh Saleh el Saggri 15%

The current address 108 Marfaa Bldg. 1st floor Allenby Street Beirut Central District P.O.Box: 110-204 Tel: 961 1 99 08 08 Fax: 961 1 97 51 40

Board of Directors • Dr. Marwan Iskandar Chairman • Mr. Lutfi Fadel Zein • Cheikh Saleh Al- Saggri • Mr. Mohamad Fadel Zein • Mr. Shady Refai • Mr. Adel Nassar

Senior Management

• Dr. Marwan Iskandar Chairman • Mr. Abdulrahman Rifai Executive General Manager • Mr. Anis Naamani Deputy General Manager - Operations • Mr. Ziad Sabban Deputy General Manager - Banking

BCN’s strategy is to develop a distinct image, identify a niche and provide value for money personalized and specialized financial services, and be recognized as a solid and professionally managed service provider.

We would appreciate if you can amend your records accordingly

Anis Naamani Deputy General Operations — Preceding unsigned comment added by 178.135.88.1 (talk) 13:55, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Can you give the name or URL of the page that is displaying inaccurate information? According to this search, the Wikipedia encyclopedia only mentions the bank twice, each time with no extra detail at all.

Note that Wikipedia is not a business directory and does not aim to cover all businesses and organisations; see the FAQ page for organisations. -- John of Reading (talk) 14:24, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Source of funding for Wikipedia

How do I contact Wikipedia to talk to them about and idea I have which will give them huge potential income? I need to speak to Jimmy Wales directly but can find no way of corresponding with him. I've read his appeal, I have an answer. What now? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.46.93.216 (talk) 15:27, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Maybe try his talk page? Writ Keeper ⚇♔ 15:37, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Jimmy's a busy guy, so probably better to use the e-mail address at Foundation:Donate - in the middle of the green box at the right hand side of the page. – ukexpat (talk) 18:34, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Ban templates

Where are they found? There's a user that is simply using their account for promotion. MyKingdom200 (talk) 17:23, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Here: Wikipedia:Template messages/User talk namespace/Multi-level templates; and here: Wikipedia:Template messages/User talk namespace -- Obsidi♠n Soul 17:26, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Also please note that these are warning templates, not ban templates. Please do not use them inappropriately (especially if this is a content dispute), read the different guidelines (Wikipedia:WikiProject user warnings/Usage and layout) on using the templates first. If you think the user is disruptive enough to be blocked/banned, report him/her instead to Wikipedia:Administrator intervention against vandalism (again read the instructions carefully, AIV only applies to very special cases).-- Obsidi♠n Soul 17:31, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Is it this that you're referring to? 71.146.20.62 (talk) 21:36, 24 November 2011 (UTC)

Only administrators can block users though. So he won't have much use for that template.-- Obsidi♠n Soul 09:44, 25 November 2011 (UTC)

Oh. :) 71.146.20.62 (talk) 04:41, 26 November 2011 (UTC)

I'm using a "PS3" and I can't disable the mobile version of Wikipedia

I would like to permanently disable the mobile version of this site on my ps3, but the prompt does not show up at the bottom of the screen. How do I disable the mobile version on a ps3? 71.219.39.215 (talk) 18:38, 23 November 2011 (UTC)Steve

Hi there Steve! Try to click the following link or manually enter the following URL in your browser http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Help_desk&useformat=mobile&mobileaction=disable_mobile_site and see if it works. Cheers, CharlieEchoTango (talk) 19:03, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Editing a link

I was just checking an article on William Amhurst Tyssen-Amherst and found a link which is intended to take the reader to my website - www.amhersts-of-didlington.com - but for some reason the link is not working and I wanted to correct it as when I click on it in the article, it appears as URL NOT FOUND and the address ends with /%20 ??

Any advice gratefully received...! — Preceding unsigned comment added by Annie 343 (talk • contribs) 18:42, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

I've removed the %20 from the link, so it now works. You could have edited the page yourself; I don't think that WP:COI prevents you from correcting such an obvious error. - David Biddulph (talk) 18:49, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

This is a great example where I agree that WP:COI is definitely not a problem. It's actually a great asset, as who better than the host himself would know how his site has changed and how to fix existing links to match the new layout. DMacks (talk) 20:07, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Help with Wikipedia:FAQ/Categorization

I still need help If i wanna add a article to plasma physics category do I first put Category:Plasma physics and than how and where do I add plasma globe to it. Please show example I am still confused on where to add plasma globe for categroy physics.Plus if i wanna add more plasma related articles for plasma category do I have to add another Category:Plasma physics to it.Shawn Worthington Laser Plasma (talk) 18:46, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Which section in Wikipedia:FAQ/Categorization are you struggling to understand? Note also that I have changed your links above from [[Category:Plasma physics]] to [[:Category:Plasma physics]], as your links had added this page erroneously to the category. - David Biddulph (talk) 18:53, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Do I add it like this to plasma physics category Category:Plasma physicsPlasma globe or do i add plasma globe under Category:Plasma physics and can I still keep adding plasma related articles to it with out adding another Category:Plasma physics. i just need a example on where to add the articles.Shawn Worthington Laser Plasma (talk) 19:00, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Ablation is one of the articles in Category:Plasma physics. Go to the Ablation article, click "Edit", and scroll down to the bottom. There you will see the text [[Category:Plasma physics]]. That's what you should add to any article that you think belongs in the plasma physics category. -- John of Reading (talk) 19:33, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

(more) ...and I have undone your edit to the page Category:Plasma physics. That's not the way to do it; see Wikipedia:FAQ/Categorization#Editing articles. -- John of Reading (talk) 19:36, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Thanks so how did You add plasma globe to Category:Plasma physics. Plus who edits and adds these article words.Shawn Worthington Laser Plasma (talk) 19:56, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

No-one has yet added Plasma globe to the category. You can do it: go to Plasma globe, click "Edit" at the top of the page, and scroll down to near the bottom where you'll find these three lines:

[[Category:Gas discharge lamps]]
[[Category:Nikola Tesla]]
[[Category:Novelty items]]

Add a fourth line after these three, so that it says

[[Category:Gas discharge lamps]]
[[Category:Nikola Tesla]]
[[Category:Novelty items]]
[[Category:Plasma physics]]

Then click "Save". -- John of Reading (talk) 20:03, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Omg thanks i should of listen the first time I thought You had to add plasma globe in the category physics section I will limit my question for now on and try to zoom in more on your guy's reply's.Shawn Worthington Laser Plasma (talk) 20:19, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

This is a common problem for new users on Wikipedia, as the category feature violates the principle of least astonishment for many people. Most people would expect to edit a category page to add an article to it, but on Wikipedia the category feature works backward from that. To add an article to a category, you have to add a link to the category to the article. The MediaWiki software that powers Wikipedia then automatically adds the link that you see on the category page. When I was learning how to edit on Wikipedia I had to read the Help:Category page several times to figure it out. Then there are also some lists of physics articles that editors directly edit, e.g. Index of physics articles and Outline of physics. See Wikipedia:Categories, lists, and navigation templates for a comparison. --Teratornis (talk) 21:32, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

PUBLIC COMPANY USING WIKI NAME - COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT

There is a public company using the name WIKIFAMILY, INC.

Is the company using "Wikifamilies, Inc." infringing on Wikipedia's protected name?

Cut and paste this URL into your browser to see their SEC filings. Your copyright infringement attorneys may be interested in this. Thanks.

OR SEARCH FOR WIKIFAMILIES, INC.

http://sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?company=kensington+leasing&match=&CIK=&filenum=&State=&Country=&SIC=&owner=exclude&Find=Find+Companies&action=getcompany — Preceding unsigned comment added by 50.37.125.211 (talk) 19:59, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

"Wiki" is a common word used by many companies and organizations. It is not owned by Wikipedia or MediaWiki as a trademark. In fact, there are many places where you will find the statement that Wikipedia is a Wiki. A wiki is not Wikipedia. -- kainaw™ 20:05, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

See WP:NOTWIKI, and WP:REUSE for the conditions to reuse Wikipedia's content. Wikipedia started in 2001 (see: History of Wikipedia), but the first wiki was called WikiWikiWeb, which started in 1995. Therefore Wikipedia took the word "wiki" from someone else. There are only a few copyrighted things on Wikipedia which in some sense belong to Wikipedia, such as the copyrighted Wikipedia logos and Wikimedia logos. There are also many copyrighted images under fair use which are generally not freely copyable. --Teratornis (talk) 21:12, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

From our article on the wiki:

A wiki is a website that allows the creation and editing of any number of interlinked web pages via a web browser using a simplified markup language or a WYSIWYG text editor. Wikis are typically powered by wiki software and are often used collaboratively by multiple users. Examples include community websites, corporate intranets, knowledge management systems, and note services. The software can also be used for personal notetaking.

The term wiki isn't specific to Wikipedia; we're just one example – albeit the best-known example – of the use of wiki software. Unless they're using the Wikipedia name (which is one of the Wikimedia Foundation's trademarks) they're not doing anything wrong. TenOfAllTrades(talk) 23:47, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

I have new info ?

Here is a link about Amelia Earhart that i found out about today . I went to add the link and it would not let me.

the news people of msnbc reported that they found new pictures never before seen until now of amelia earhart

here the link as follows:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45406213/ns/local_news-los_angeles_ca/#.Ts1bJThj25k — Preceding unsigned comment added by Brain codane (talk • contribs) 20:49, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

The article is semi-protected; you will be able to edit it when your account is autoconfirmed. - David Biddulph (talk) 21:19, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

• Unfortunately, the Amelia Earhart article is semi-protected, which means that only autoconfirmed users (people with accounts at least 4 days old and with at least 10 edits) may edit it. Although you could get autoconfirmed status, another way of adding information to the article is to make a request for someone to edit the article for you at Talk:Amelia Earhart. You can do this very simply by going to the article, clicking on the "view source" tab, and use the "submit an edit request" link on the bottom right. If you make a reasonable request there (and if you source it), you shouldn't have any problems getting someone to edit it for you. You can read more about making edit requests for protected pages here.--Slon02 (talk) 21:24, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Creating a page

How do we create a page in order to link the information to a listing? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.208.174.34 (talk) 22:07, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Please be more specific about what you want to do. There are a couple of words you use that suggests that you may not understand Wikipedia's policies, but I may be misinterpreting your words. Specifically you say "we", which makes me think that you represent an organisation: if so, please read WP:ORGFAQ. The other word is "listing": Wikipedia does not contain listings, as it is not a directory or calendar.

If I have misunderstood, I apologise. But if you clarify what you want to do, that might allay my concerns. --ColinFine (talk) 22:50, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

See also the reply to your previous question at #Add hyperlink to text. —teb728 t c 23:59, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Paypal link

The site seems to have a problem with the paypal link... When I click to make a paypal donation and try to login, it flips out... Just thought y'all should know. Cleared cache and cookie, Norton 360 antivirus current, and restarted puter... still an issue. Happy Thanksgiving!69.180.162.254 (talk) 23:13, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Thanks, I've copied this comment over to Wikipedia:Village Pump (technical). --Philosopher ^{Let us reason together.} 02:11, 24 November 2011 (UTC)