Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2011 November 3

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November 3

Cleveland State University Poetry Center page

Hello,

This is a minor issue, but I'm misidentified as a hobbit on Wikipedia, and I'm hoping this problem can be resolved.

On the Cleveland State University Poetry Center page on Wikipedia, my name, Lily Brown, is listed under "Recent or Forthcoming Publications," and when you click on my name, you get sent to a page about hobbits. I'd appreciate it if someone could just fix the link.

Here's evidence: http://www.csuohio.edu/poetrycenter/AuthorBook/Brown.html

Thanks! Lily Brown — Preceding unsigned comment added by Brightobvious (talk • contribs) 00:46, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

I went ahead and removed the link. Is there a more appropriate Wikipedia page to link to, or should it link to nothing? SierraSciSPA (talk) 00:51, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Editing English spellings to other English Spellings

With all due respect to international variations in the spelling of certain English words such as replacing a Z with in an S in some words such as specialisation instead of specialization, I do not understand why I received a message indicating that it is not okay to change it from one spelling to another. They are both equally valid spellings and I do not really see how it is disrespectful if it is an international topic, such as medicine, to change it from one spelling to another, especially when wikipedia's own spell check does not recognize the international versions of the word spelled with an S in this case to be legitimate words. That being said, if it truly is against wikipedia policy, I will no longer make such edits though I maintain that they are legitimate edits and people in countries that use alternative spellings can change it back if they wish. Can you explain this more clearly? Thank you. Sincerely, DoctorK88

What you're looking for is WP:ENGVAR. Dismas|^(talk) 02:18, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

This does not address the inconsistency mentioned above about Wikipedia's spelling/editing tool not recognizing international but valid spellings of these words as correct. Wikipedia's spell check is misleading because of this inconsistency making it appear that Wikipedia prefers the American spelling of the word over British, Canadian, Australian, etc. spellings of the word. And again, if one spelling is not preferred over the other, why is it a problem to change it? Sincerely, DoctorK88

I don't think Wikipedia has a spelling/editing tool. My guess is that your browser is set to spellcheck in American English. --FormerIP (talk) 02:32, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

When asked by wikipedia if you have made a minor or major edit and someone describes the edit they have made to the page, wikipedia underlines these alternate spellings of the word in red much the way a program such as Microsoft Word underlines a word it does not recognize as legitimate (even if it is legitimate). That is what I am saying. That very well could be true of my browser too though I do not know. Sincerely, DoctorK88

I think it's your browser, not Wikipedia, that is doing the underlining. (Wikipaedia, I should say). --FormerIP (talk) 02:39, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Wikipedia does not have a spell check built in. Any spell checking that you are seeing is done by your browser. GB fan 02:41, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Right. See Wikipedia:Spellchecking. PrimeHunter (talk) 02:45, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Sorry. I thought you were more concerned with the policy rather than the spellchecking. And yes, that's your browser. Dismas|^(talk) 03:03, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

• Doctor, if I'm reading it right, the issue relates to this message on your talk page. If there's any article where you wish to change the English usage, and you face resistance from other editors, it is better to take the discussion up on the article's talk page and attempt to reach consensus with other editors on what could be the appropriate variation of English that could be used. Does that answer your initial query? Best. Wifione ^Message 06:03, 3 November 2011 (UTC)
• You ask, “if one spelling is not preferred over the other, why is it a problem to change it?” The answer is that what is preferred is consistent spelling within an article; so that ideally the spelling would be like all British or all American. Also we don’t want people edit warring over spelling. —teb728 t c 08:01, 3 November 2011 (UTC)
• teb728 is correct. Please see WP:RETAIN. Kierzek (talk) 18:08, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Just a quick question

This is just a quick question - I do not what did happen just now, but you might be able to identify what happened! I have an icon on my PC that I can press to log onto Wikipedia, and I did that just now (I normally use Google Chrome as my web browser). Normally, when I do this, I get "You are now logged in to Wikipedia" and all is OK. However, when I did it just now, I got a message "You are now logged out". Fortunately, when I clicked on the Google Chrome icon, I managed to stay logged in to Wikipedia, but I just wonder whether any one could identify what happened that led me to get the message "You are now logged out". Thank you in advance for any help that you can give, ACEOREVIVED (talk) 09:12, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

What URL does that icon take you to? -- John of Reading (talk) 09:59, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

You need to provide a bit more details. What is this icon? Is it a shortcut to Special:UserLogin? How did you get or generate the icon? Toshio Yamaguchi (talk) 10:11, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Yes, you are right, the icon is a shortcut to Special: Userlogin. I cannot remember now how I managed to get in on the screen of my laptop - I guess I must just have dowloaded it when I was on the Internet. ACEOREVIVED (talk) 11:09, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Things do seem to be working out OK for me now - when I press on the icon now, I do not seem to be getting "You are now logged off". I should say that I hope (and expect) that it was just a one-off incident - most of the time, when I click on that icon, I get into Wikipedia successfully with message about successfully logging in. I can get back to you if I have any more problems of this nature, but as I say, I am reasonably confident that this was just the odd one-off incident. ACEOREVIVED (talk) 15:29, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

S. Thaman

S. Thaman

This Movie is not listed under his filmography ??

Mundhinam Paartheney

D :D :D :D :D :D ., Shame on wikipedia !!

~Sarandepp — Preceding unsigned comment added by 27.251.101.2 (talk) 09:36, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

(I have removed your email address to protect your privacy) Wikipedia is the work of many volunteer editors. If information is missing, that just means that no one has got round to it yet - it's not a cause for shame. If you have a reliable source to confirm the link between this musician and this film, then I suggest you be bold and edit the articles yourself. -- John of Reading (talk) 09:54, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Editing

hi I have noticed on a page that some funny person has written the mayors name with fukwit as middle name. This is rude slang that is used to disrespect the person and put him down. I would like to delete that, but I can't seem to be able to change the governor's name on the page. So how do I do that please? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 77.42.170.177 (talk) 10:28, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Thanks for pointing that out. I reverted the vandalism in Jieh. I did it by finding the edit that insert the nonsense in the history and clicking on "undo". —teb728 t c 10:43, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

More specifically I clicked on "Show history" on the article. Then I clicked on "prev" on the line for 125.255.23.237 (now the third line); that gave me this difference listing. I could see from the differences that this was the offending edit; so I clicked on "undo" on the right side. —teb728 t c 10:54, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

See more at Help:Reverting and Wikipedia:Vandalism. You can also edit the lead section by clicking the "Edit" tab at top of the page, but in case of vandalism it's better to check the page history because the vandal may have done other things. PrimeHunter (talk) 12:13, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

The Statement of Randolph Carter

Hello, I am trying to get a pdf version of Lovecraft's story entitled, "The Statement of Randolph Carter." It's in public domain, I can get a printable version, and it appears on my screen in text, but it will not download as a PDF. Am I doing something wrong? Ggiersch (talk) 13:08, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

I suspect, based on your question, that you found one of our over 6 million articles and thought we were affiliated in some way with that subject. Please note that you are at Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia that anyone can edit, and this page is for asking questions related to using or contributing to Wikipedia itself. Thus, we have no special knowledge about the subject of your question. You can, however, search our vast catalogue of articles by typing a subject into the search field on the upper right side of your screen. If you cannot find what you are looking for, we have a reference desk, divided into various subject areas, where asking knowledge questions is welcome. Best of luck. We don't put texts of stories in Wikipedia. --Orange Mike | Talk 13:33, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

You may also want to ask at the computing reference desk, as they might be able to assist you with the printing issue. TNXMan 13:55, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

If you were trying to create a pdf version from Wikisource:The Statement of Randolph Carter at our sister project, I initially had the same problem, but I was able to create a semi-usable pdf from Wikisource:Index:Avon Fantasy Reader 10.djvu pp 53-58, rendered as a book, but that maintained the page divisions of the original. I put in a request at Wikisource:Wikisource:Requests for assistance#Rendering a page in pdf, asking if there is a better way. —teb728 t c 22:37, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

One helper at Wikisource replied that this is a bug known for two years. Another suggested pasting the story to MS Word and saving it as PDF. —teb728 t c 04:39, 4 November 2011 (UTC)

Eslicarbazepine acetate origin and duplication

Hi there, I have recently been assigned a task for a client at work to create an article on their behalf focusing on Eslicarbazepine acetate (Zebinix). However, it seems there is already a page with content (but not up-to-date or inclusive of clinical/scientific references). How do I now go about creating the page requested by my client? Do we have to try and contact the originator (is this possible?) What would you suggest we now do considering the request we have had to ensure the page is totally relevant and accurate? Many thanks in advance for your help. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.83.201.10 (talk) 13:53, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

For reference: Eslicarbazepine acetate.

Step one is to take a few minutes and look at our conflict of interest policies, and then head over to read our neutral point of view policy. You will not be allowed to create a promotional page for Zebinix. That said, well-sourced and neutral information is welcome - and, to avoid all appearance of a conflict of interest, you might consider posting it on the article's talk page. If you put the sources and information there, I can help with putting it into the article. There's no need to go to the original editors of that article, but - if they're active - you might call on them to assist in updating what's already there. UltraExactZZ ^Said ~ Did 14:08, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Moving essay into WP namespace

I want to move an essay I have created in my userspace into Wikipedia namespace. The target for the move is Wikipedia:Gallery. Am I allowed to move it there? The essay is User:Toshio Yamaguchi/Wikipedia:Gallery. Toshio Yamaguchi (talk) 15:41, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

I wouldn't if I were you, because that redirect is a long-standing one, which has been used in the past to link to various gallery-related items and now links to the appropriate part of the Wikipedia:Image use policy (see Special:Whatlinkshere/Wikipedia:Gallery). Shifting an essay on top of it risks confusion. Far better to choose a new name for your essay. Bencherlite^Talk 16:04, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Ok, thanks. Can I have some input on what would be a good name for the essay?

• Wikipedia:Gallery - would need a consensus to eliminate the redirect
• Wikipedia:Gallery article - in analogy to list articles (see Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Stand-alone lists)
• Wikipedia:Gallery page - would be very similar to the existing Wikipedia:Gallery pages

Is there another good possibility that I missed? Toshio Yamaguchi (talk) 16:35, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Yes: keep it in your userspace? Category:User essays says "An essay here may be moved categorically into the Wikipedia namespace, Category:Wikipedia essays, if it is frequently referenced, as evidenced by becoming an evolving expression of multiple editors." Your essay is less than 24 hours old and is not yet frequently referenced. Try adding the essay to the "see also" sections of related pages, or mentioning it on their talk pages, to see what happens. Bencherlite^Talk 16:49, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

WP:ESSAYS (which is the governing policy in this case) says: "Essays that the author does not want others to edit, or that are found to contradict widespread consensus, belong in the user namespace." I neither have the intention to disallow others from editing the essay, nor do I think this essay contradicts widespread consensus. Toshio Yamaguchi (talk) 17:00, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Fine, do what you want. How about Wikipedia:Suggestions for gallery pages? It's only your new essay, after all, not a guideline or policy, and it might be an idea to avoid too "official" a title. Bencherlite^Talk 17:07, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Done as you suggested. Toshio Yamaguchi (talk) 17:25, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Correct Name

My name at the top of the page which is about me is incorrect...It says my name is leslie craig wilkinson ,it is Peter wilkinson..would it be possible to change it to the correct name please.

Regards,

pete wilkinson — Preceding unsigned comment added by Petewilkinson (talk • contribs) 19:26, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

I'm assuming you're referring to Peter Wilkinson (musician)? UltraExactZZ ^Said ~ Did 19:37, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Wikiblame shows that the birth name was inserted here, in February 2008. No source is indicated. The name went from Leslie Wilkinson to Leslie Craig Wilkinson here, in November 2008. Again, no source is apparent - and, from what I can see, every source that seems to confirm the Leslie Craig Wilkinson name is actually a mirror of Wikipedia. Unless someone objects, I'm going to remove the birth name per WP:BOLD. UltraExactZZ ^Said ~ Did 19:47, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

 Done. On second thought, this is a WP:BLP - so, per WP:BOLD, I've removed the birth name. Thanks for pointing that out. UltraExactZZ ^Said ~ Did 19:51, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

David Burton-Richardson

i have added the ref www.saatchionline.com regarding this article. that is a verifiable source. so hopefully no deletion.

thanks — Preceding unsigned comment added by Junieaaabbb (talk • contribs) 21:41, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Do you have a question? As that is what the help desk is for. CTJF83 22:01, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

That link verifies nothing about David Burton-Richardson. So it doesn't provide "at least one reference" for a biography of a living person. —teb728 t c 22:52, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Junieaaabbb, I have already answered your previous question about this article on WP:New contributors' help page/questions, explaining why your previous generic links were inadequate and providing a number of links to pages which explain the policies. Please read them, and if you don't understand what the policies mean, ask here. Making wild attempts to meet policies you have not understood is a waste of your time and everybody else's. --ColinFine (talk) 23:48, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Junieaaabbb, you wrote he has received "press, magazine and TV coverage". If that is so, cite the articles where he was covered—don't cite the journals; cite the specific articles. —teb728 t c 04:27, 4 November 2011 (UTC)

Problem with reflist

Can someone modify the {{reflist}} tag so it displays all of ref 10 in the left column, and refs 11 and onward in the right column? Thanks. HurricaneFan25 | talk 23:24, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

If you are talking about, Hurricane Cindy (1959), it looks like you have it fixed. GB fan 23:39, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

Nope, doesn't look like that for me. HurricaneFan25 | talk 23:43, 3 November 2011 (UTC)

I guess it is browser specific. It displays in 2 columns on Google Chrome and Firefox but one column on Internet Explorer. What browser are you using? GB fan 00:35, 4 November 2011 (UTC)

Firefox 3 on a MacBook Air, 1200 x 800 resolution. HurricaneFan25 | talk 00:36, 4 November 2011 (UTC)

Don't know. It looks right on Firefox 8 Windows 7 and 1366x768. GB fan 00:48, 4 November 2011 (UTC)

Works okay on Safari on MacOSX. The last few words of ref 10 are in the right column but there are two columns. Dismas|^(talk) 02:12, 4 November 2011 (UTC)

Per the reflist documentation: "The use of columns can result in widows and orphans, where a citation at the bottom of a column may be split to the top of the next column. There are CSS3 selectors that could resolve this, but they are not yet supported by any major browsers." ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 09:03, 4 November 2011 (UTC)