Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2012 August 28

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August 28

Main page vandalism

POTD link has been edited to appear as "Orange spider conch oboma sucks". May want to correct this... — Preceding unsigned comment added by 121.200.227.10 (talk) 00:26, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Reverted here. Goodvac (talk) 00:37, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Actually, that vandalism was substituted onto the cascade-protected page. Would an admin remove "oboma sucks" from Template:POTD protected/2012-08-28? Thanks, Goodvac (talk) 00:44, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Done about three minutes after you asked by another admin. --Jayron32 01:30, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

WikiProjects

What WikiProjects are of interest to this article. Thanks! TBrandley 01:43, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Wikipedia:WikiProject Television is the most broad; you can find more specific Wikiprojects from there which may be a more closely related fit. --Jayron32 01:49, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Okay. Thanks. I have the "Awake task force". How about WikiProject United States? Thanks, TBrandley 01:51, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Edit warning question

I received the following note from ya'll, however I have never made any edits to your site. To be honest, I didn't know that users could even make alterations to your listings. Please let me know how, when, and what information was submitted for alteration. This scares me a bit that maybe my pc got hacked into, so any help that you can give me would be appreciated.

Always, DZ

Welcome to Wikipedia. The recent edit you made to the page Cedar Park High School has been reverted, as it appears to be unconstructive. Use the sandbox for testing; if you believe the edit was constructive, please ensure that you provide an informative edit summary. You may also wish to read the introduction to editing. Thank you. J.delanoygabsadds 01:28, 11 September 2009 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.114.236.90 (talk)

Your IP address was probably assigned to someone else at that time. You can ignore that warning if you didn't make the edit in question. If you create an account, you won't have any problems having someone else's edits attribitued to you. RudolfRed (talk) 02:14, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

The quoted message from User talk:70.114.236.90 is from 2009. You can see edits from the IP address at Special:Contributions/70.114.236.90. IP addresses are often reassigned to other customers of an Internet service provider so it's not an indication that your pc got hacked. There is also an explanation in the box at the bottom of User talk:70.114.236.90. PrimeHunter (talk) 14:47, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

How do I remove my IP address from the revision history?

On the Lorraine Ashbourne article I recently make an edit mistake without logging in. Now my IP address is available for all to see. I am very uncomfortable with this and was wondering if there is any way I can delete it or undo the edit to hide it. Thank you — Preceding unsigned comment added by Mike08766 (talk • contribs) 02:40, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

You should email the email address at Wikipedia:Requests for oversight explaining what the problem is, and where, and they will sort it out for you. --Demiurge1000 (talk) 02:44, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Occasionally a registered editor will edit while logged out. While not usually an egregious issue, there can be some concerns about attribution and privacy.

• If you made an edit without logging in, you cannot go back and directly tie that edit to your account. If your desire to account for the edit overrides your desire for anonymity, you can log in, make a dummy edit, and add a note in the edit summary about the previous edit.
• If you make a comment on a talk page without logging in, then your signature will include your IP address. You can log in and edit the comment by replacing the signature. Be aware that the WikiScanner tool (currently non-functional) will retrieve these actions from the database and record them at the Poor Man's Checkuser, thus connecting your username and IP address.
• If you feel that the connection between the IP address and your username is an issue, then you can request that the edit be removed; see Wikipedia:Oversight#Policy and Wikipedia:Requests for oversight.
• Wikipedia does show a message box when an unregistered or logged out user edits a page. This may not be obvious— as a visual reminder you can make the Save page button green when logged in by adding this rule to either Special:MyPage/skin.css or Special:MyPage/common.css:

/* Turn the "Save page" button green when logged in */
INPUT#wpSave {
    background-color:#88ff88;
}

• If you use Firefox, you can disable the Save page button while logged out by installing Greasemonkey and the MediaWiki: Prevent anon editing script. This must be applied to each computer you use and will not be available on public computers. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 16:39, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

facts about shakargarh

hello sir i have read your article written on shakargarh. there is a big mistake in the literacy rate that you mentioned there (9.99 %) actually the literacy rate is 87 %. plz check it out and change it. shakargarh is one of the tehsil of pakistan who ve high literacy rate. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 119.154.17.205 (talk) 04:38, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Shakargarh (edit | talk | history | protect | delete | links | watch | logs | views)

The article used to say 85%, then it was changed to 99.9%, then to 9.99%. Now you have changed it to 87%. Can you tell us where your figure has been published in a reliable source? Readers can only trust the content of a Wikipedia article if they can check the facts for themselves. -- John of Reading (talk) 07:09, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Is including a screenshot of a movie in an article about an actor considered fair use

Would including a screenshot of the movie "Tombraider" in Angelina Jolie considered fair use. I think it is. Because it's an illustration of the performance, the talent, the style of the actress in question. After all an actor becomes famous for the roles they portrayed. Showing their pictures smiling at an award ceremony doesn't make as much sense as showing a screenshot of their acting, portrayal of a certain roles they are best known for. Ebaychatter0 (talk) 05:06, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

No, the use you describe is not allowed at Wikipedia. It may be allowed in an article about the film, if what the image displays is discussed in the text (for exmaple, something about the costume or appearence is vital to the plot of the film), but in practice including "fair use images" in biographies of living persons is rarely within policy, regardless of what rationale you may provide to the contrary. --Jayron32 05:37, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

While it may be possible to make a fair use argument for using an image of one of an actors roles on their page, I don't think the rationale advanced by Ebaychatter0 is strong enough. It would be a major shift in policy as the standard would be met by most actors. Really what you would need is a strong case that the article on a particular actor was fundementally incomplete without the fair use image, for an actress with many famous roles like Angelina Jolie, I don't think that standard is going to be met. Monty₈₄₅ 05:53, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Challenging a closing

Hello, I was involved in a Talk page discussion (not about a deletion or move) that I believe was closed prematurely and capriciously. Is there any formal or informal way to challenge the closing? Wikipedia:Closing_discussions appears to be the relevant resource but it says nothing about this. I started a discussion on the closing administrator's talk page but that was not well received. Thanks in advance. --Nstrauss (talk) 08:03, 28 August 2012 (UTC) Just open another thread with the same topic and mention "I think the above discussion is closed prematurely... " 221.203.139.100 (talk) 11:38, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

A better option is to approach the person who closed it and ask them to reconsider. Lay out your case that it was premature, and ask them to reopen it. If they refuse, then ask the community to review the result at somewhere like WP:AN. But a) ignoring the first close (as recommend above, badly IMHO) or b) bypassing the "ask them nicely" step are usually bad ideas. Start with a private request to reconsider, then take it to the community to assess the action. That's usually the best way to handle it. --Jayron32 13:34, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Thanks! --Nstrauss (talk) 20:16, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

For future reference, when I opened this issue at WP:AN/I I was told that was the wrong place and that the correct place was WP:DRN. --Nstrauss (talk) 06:59, 29 August 2012 (UTC)

Parsing a math formula fails

Why does the LaTeX parser not like <math>\mathbb{Q} \big( \sqrt{1 – p^2} \big)</math>? What exactly is the syntax error here? -- Toshio Yamaguchi (tlk−ctb) 13:22, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

There is an embedded ndash in your expression. Replace it with a minus sign and you get

$\mathbb {Q} {\big (}{\sqrt {1-p^{2}}}{\big )}$

Gandalf61 (talk) 13:33, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

...which is exactly the result I wanted. Thanks. -- Toshio Yamaguchi (tlk−ctb) 13:36, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Removing a Redirect

Who do I appeal to to have a "redirect" removed. The name Henry "Flagg French" redirects to "Daniel Chester French" (his son). That makes no sense. If the redirect was removed, since there is at this time no article on Henry anyone searching for his name will see which articles include his name (which are several). But because there is a "redirect" on the name it only goes to Daniel Chester French's page. I would also like to create a page for Henry French as he was a statesman, inventor and the father of Daniel Chester French. Who or how do I eliminate the "redirect" so I can create an article for Henry. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Mejkravitz (talk • contribs) 14:29, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

You can create an article by simply replacing the code #REDIRECT [[Daniel Chester French]] with your article. I see you already know how to edit the page. If you want the redirect deleted without replacing it with an article then you can nominate it for deletion at Wikipedia:Redirects for discussion. PrimeHunter (talk) 14:40, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

wikireader does not work?

I just purchased my wikireader and put the batteries in. Turned it on and the first page that says wikireader Wikipedia In Your Pocket. And that is all it will do. touch screen does nothing, search does nothing. It is just stuck on the very first page? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.93.218.156 (talk) 16:16, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

This page is for questions about using 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. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Mdann52 (talk • contribs)

The WikiReader is produced by a company not associated with Wikipedia, thus we can't help here. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 16:42, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Verifying Articles

I am currently working on a page to upload and had questions regarding verifying articles and their accessibility. Our page will reference scientific articles from journals. Do we have to link the page directly to a full copy of the article? Can it link to just an abstract or even a general publication site that solely lists the articles?

Dls046 (talk) 18:32, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Sources used to verify content in Wikipedia articles do not have to exist online to meet minimum Wikipedia standards; they can be purely print sources. If, however, they do exist online, it is useful to give a "courtesy link" to a place where they can be read. It also isn't a requirement that sources be freely availible. They can be behind paywalls. For Wikipedia purposes, even if it isn't availible at no cost, a link to an abstract and a doi number (see Wikipedia:Digital Object Identifier) is usually sufficient. See Wikipedia:Verifiability and Wikipedia:Citing sources for some detailed guides on how to cite journals. --Jayron32 18:37, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Ignoring your question for a moment, your use of the phrase "Our page..." worries me. Accounts should be for the use of one person only and not groups of people. If there are multiple people working on an article, they should each have their own account. Dismas|^(talk) 20:55, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Finding incoming links

In what manner could I go about finding articles linking to another article but with a specific section in mind? Specifically I'm looking for articles containing Caliber#Caliber_as_measurement_of_length. Brad (talk) 20:49, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Wikipedia:WHATLINKSHERE#Limitations says that it can't be done... well, not easily... Dismas|^(talk) 20:53, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Scott Moorhouse incorrect facts

Scott was not 6 when he lost his leg he was 6 weeks old when the accident happened and a year old when amputated He does not have a below knee amputation but a thru-knee amputation. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.99.249.58 (talk) 21:40, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

I'm assuming you're talking about the article on Scott Moorhouse. Now it says he was 6 weeks old when he lost his leg but you'll need a reliable source to back the other claim up. A boat that can float! (watch me float!) 04:09, 29 August 2012 (UTC)