Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2020 December 15

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December 15

Sushant Singh Rajput

Dear Wikipedia,

Did you know that there are approximately 1 million messages going around to all Sushant Sing Rajput Fans that they should not spend a penny to to support Wikipedia until they change cause do death to: Under Investigation.

Please do this as soon as possible so we can start encouring donations.

Sushant Sigh Rajput was brutally murdered. There is not one picture of him that shows he was hanging. If you thouruly investigate the matter you will know that he was murdered. Plese corect this statement as soon as possible

Best Regards, Respectful SSRIAN Sushant Singh Rajput fan — Preceding unsigned comment added by 108.28.49.161 (talk) 01:23, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

This has been discussed more times than I can count. Please take your threats of withholding donations elsewhere. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) (🎁 Wishlist! 🎁) 01:45, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Donations do not determine content. Discuss on the article's talk page. Show citations to support the changes you want. RudolfRed (talk) 01:46, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

There isn't going to be any discussion on the talk page because this conspiracy theory is wholly unsupported by credible secondary sources and is reverted on sight if it shows up there because of how persistent those pushing it are. —A little blue Bori v^_^v ^{Takes a strong man to deny...} 02:29, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Donation

I have already made a monetary donation to Wikipedia and I’m tired of getting bombarded with the post every time I search for something. Could you please change this so that those of us that have donated can use the site without that notice taking over the page? Thank you. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Desi929 (talk • contribs) 02:13, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

@Desi929: If you go to your preferences, there is an option to turn off the fundraising banners. RudolfRed (talk) 02:26, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Desi929, go to your preferences, navigate to the Gadgets tab, then click "Suppress display of fundraiser banners". —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) (🎁 Wishlist! 🎁) 06:42, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Desi929 If you have closed one of the banners by clicking the X in it, that should also place a cookie on your computer recording that you closed one of the banners and that should prevent their display, but if you routinely clear cookies or block them in the first place, this will not occur(although the function described above will still work). 331dot (talk) 08:23, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Mater Christi College

Ref number 1 may have the page number (2) in the incorrect place. Please check that this ref. is correct. Thanks175.33.22.186 (talk) 06:14, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

 Done (It's OK; the software decides the order). Eagleash (talk) 06:57, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Donation

I donated $16.50 after being asked. I'm still getting those annoying requests for donations. How do I get them to stop — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2600:1700:C751:3390:9543:1FFC:8000:ECD7 (talk) 06:42, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

The software cannot tell who is at the other end of an IP address. Please create an account. Go to your Preferences, navigate to the Gadgets tab, and check the "Suppress display of fundraiser banners" box. For additional concerns please contact the Wikimedia Foundation at this email address: donate@wikimedia.org. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) (🎁 Wishlist! 🎁) 07:09, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Let us suppose you saw an advert for a charity appeal in a newspaper and as a result sent off a cheque to the charity that day. Would you feel offended if the charity repeated the appeal in the same newspaper the next week? I don't think you would. The requests for money from Wikimedia are not directed at you but at people who have not made a donation.Spinney Hill (talk) 09:23, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Exactly. Why does this question keep coming up? No one says "Well, I bought a Coca-Cola yesterday, now I never have to see one of their commercials again." --Khajidha (talk) 15:23, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

That's because Coca-Cola's advertising department takes a lot more care than the WMF to avoid annoying people.

That's funny, because I find many of Coca-Cola's ads FAR more annoying than any banner I've ever seen here. --Khajidha (talk) 16:03, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Download and install Adblock Plus. It's free. When you see a page with the banner, select "Block element" from the ABP dropdown, and select the banner. The banner will no longer appear on any Wikipedia pages. Other adblockers are available.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 11:31, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Where can I find newly created articles on wikipedia?

Where can I find newly created articles on wikipedia? Rizosome (talk) 07:05, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

@Rizosome: The newest articles are listed at Special:NewPages. -- John of Reading (talk) 08:13, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Gerard Schurmann

Hi helpful people! I had to revert a copyvio in the above article from Gramophone magazine. I'm confused as to if there's anything else I have to do - ask for the copyvio revisions to be removed (where?) or do anything about the editor who added it (only edit was this one, back in August). Advice gratefully received! ◦ Trey Maturin 16:08, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Hi Trey Maturin the correct template to request revision deletion is Template:Copyvio-revdel, which you add to the page in question. I've requested revision deletion for Gerard Schurmann. I also added a warning on the user's talkpage, although as the edits to Gerard Schurmann are their only contributions, I don't know whether they'll be coming back anyway. Joseph2302 (talk) 16:17, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Oh, marvellous! Thank you very much, Joseph2302! ◦ Trey Maturin 16:21, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Press Release as a source

When is it appropriate to use a Press Release as a source? Are they considered "Third Party" sources? I read these articles: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template_talk:Cite_press_release/Archive_1

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Cite_press_release

They show the technical side of how to cite a press release, but not the when and why.

Thank you. Adamreinman (talk) 17:22, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

@Adamreinman: Press releases are usually not appropriate, because they aren't third-party sources (since a press release is a company writing about itself or its close associates). However, these sorts of self-published sources under the criteria outlined at WP:ABOUTSELF: namely, for uncontroversial self-description. For instance, we could use a press release from Acme Inc. to support the claim that Acme Inc. sells widgets, but not that their widgets are the most effective widgets ever made (unduly self-serving), or that their competitor's widgets cause cancer (a claim about third parties). Vahurzpu (talk) 17:29, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

(edit conflict)It's easier if you give the context of where you want to cite the press release, rather than trying to explain when it is appropriate to cite a press release. However, to try to wrap your head around it, keep in mind that press releases are generally (but not always, it's context specific) primary sources.

Primary sources are sources which are close to the thing they describe, and they describe first hand knowledge of the thing. So, in history, a primary source is something like the diary or letters of someone who lived through an event. In science, a primary source is the published paper of the scientist who did the research. If you're talking about a company, that company's press releases are primary sources describing the company.

Secondary sources are based on primary sources. Someone reads and analyzes a bunch of primary sources (and other important secondary sources), then presents information about them in a secondary source. So, in history, a book by a historian who examined diaries and letters of people who witnessed the historical event is a secondary source. In science, a review article is a secondary source. If you're talking about a company, perhaps investigative journalism about that company is a good secondary source.

Tertiary sources (like Wikipedia) are based on secondary sources. The mission of Wikipedia is to summarize generally accepted knowledge about a topic. So our job in historical articles is to read several secondary sources about the topic and pull out the most important information from them. Our job in science articles is to read several review articles about a topic and pull out the most important information from them. Our job in articles about companies is to read what's out there about the company and pull out the most important information.

As a tertiary source, we need to limit our reliance on primary sources, and focus on summarizing secondary sources. That said, there are times when primary sources are an important supplement to secondary sources. A direct quote from a primary document, like the Constitution, or an original research paper, or a company's press release, may be the best, most succinct way of expressing an important point. It's fine to use a primary source in this fashion. But primary sources should never be the foundation of a Wikipedia article. ~ ONUnicorn^{(Talk|Contribs)}problem solving 17:35, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

The most likely page, judging from Adamreinman's contributions, is Draft:Penumbra (company). —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) (🎁 Wishlist! 🎁) 18:21, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Than you very much Tenryuu. I really appreciate your advice. Yes, I am trying to fix up the article about https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Draft:Penumbra_(company) I am trying to write a balanced view on the current controversy facing the company. There are a lot of press releases from the company - and many come up on news sites. For example: a Press Release by a law firm saying it will file a suit for investors: There are a lot of press releases like this. Are these relevant primary sources for the article? Thank you. Adamreinman (talk) 18:33, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

@Adamreinman: Another point to make is that while press releases can source uncontroversial info, they can't be used to demonstrate notability, since anyone can issue a press release. Your draft article needs more sources about the company to demonstrate notability, to move it from barely a weak keep to a good keep. I just did a search and didn't find a lot, but it is a fairly technical company and product, which is not covered by the mainstream press as much. TimTempleton ^{(talk) (cont)} 22:50, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

References

Notable person?

Hello. Is a copyright attorney known for being a troll deserving of a Page? Having seen pages deleted in the past, this seems a stretch to me that he would be consider Of Note. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Liebowitz — Preceding unsigned comment added by Likeybikey (talk • contribs) 17:59, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

@Likeybikey: The guideline is WP:NBIO. We don't make judgments based on why a person is notable. RudolfRed (talk) 18:06, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

@Likeybikey: Richard_Liebowitz is clearly notable (multiple articles in reliable sources). We also have articles on Hitler, Attila the Hun, Jeffery Epstein, and Charles Manson. -Arch dude (talk) 19:03, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Northwestern Dispensary image: OK for Wiki?

At https://collections.nlm.nih.gov/catalog/nlm:nlmuid-101461802-img it says "Copyright:The National Library of Medicine believes this item to be in the public domain"

Can I/how can I make this part of the (Northwestern Dispensary) article?

?Commons ?EnWiki Pi314m (talk) 21:24, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Since it is public domain, it is suitable for Commons. Please see https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:UploadWizard . That link provides step-by-step instructions on uploading and identifying the license. Just upload save the photo to your computer and upload it there. If you have specific questions after attempting, ask at Commons:Help desk or you can bring a more specific question here as well. ‡ Єl Cid of Valencia ^talk 21:33, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Not at all important, but curious

So, this is so not important but could someone explain this to me. I noticed today that, at the top of each article and next to each section heading, it says "Edit source" but it used to just say "Edit". Did I screw up something in the settings unwittingly or was there an update or am I just going crazy or something? The more I look at that "Edit source" the more it bothers me. Please help. Thanks, EDG 543 (message me) 21:27, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

@EDG 543: It says "view source" on my PC if the page is protected, but "edit" otherwise. On what page(s) do you see "edit source"? TimTempleton ^{(talk) (cont)} 22:22, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Timtempleton, thank you for the reply. Mine says "Edit source" on every page that I can edit. This one, my userpage, and any random article I happen to be viewing. I recall it saying "Edit" prior to today, even earlier today I believe. I don't know what happened. Thanks, EDG 543 (message me) 22:30, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Hello, EDG 543. If you choose Preferences -> Editing, there is a dropdown to let you specify which editor(s) Wikipedia will offer you. --ColinFine (talk) 22:34, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Good info - it's been so long since I changed my preferences. EDG 543 - you can restore defaults at the bottom of the editing tab with one click. My checkbox editing settings, from top to bottom, are on off on off on on on off on off. TimTempleton ^{(talk) (cont)} 22:56, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

@Timtempleton and ColinFine: I have fixed the issue. Thank you both so much! I have no idea why that bothered me so much, but it did. Have a blessed day! Thanks, EDG 543 (message me) 23:00, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

What is status of Live Chat?

The header at the top of the page says that Live Chat is unavailable, but no explanation given. WP:IRC does not mention anything about IRC being down (which I assume is what "Live Chat" means). Where can I find out why Live Chat is unavailable? Is there a phab for it? RudolfRed (talk) 23:43, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

See Wikipedia:Administrators' noticeboard/Incidents#Users excessively posting about Caliphs of Islam at help desk. -en-help and the helpers therein have been receiving a massive amount of related harassment, such that drastic measures have to be taken to kerb it. —A little blue Bori v^_^v ^{Takes a strong man to deny...} 23:49, 15 December 2020 (UTC)

Thanks. I knew that the Help Desk got hit, I didn't realize it was so pervasive. RudolfRed (talk) 17:01, 16 December 2020 (UTC)