Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2021 January 20

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January 20

Update

Doug3584030 (talk) 00:23, 20 January 2021 (UTC) Hello I was curious to check something online so I google dems wiki and while I was browsing the article, there had not been an update the senate seats were 46 and right now its 50 seats, I can edit it because its lock so if you have time one of the editors here can update it. Thanks

@Doug3584030: Welcome to the Teahouse. You should go to the article's talk page (whichever article that may be) and post your request as an edit request. Be sure to say exactly what you want to change, what to change it into, and give a reliable source. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) 00:34, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

@Doug3584030: I guess it's about 46 in the infobox in Democratic Party (United States). Two senators Bernie Sanders and Angus King caucus with the Democrats but are independent. Two Democratic senator-elects Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock were elected January 5, 2021 in Georgia runoff elections but haven't been sworn in yet. PrimeHunter (talk) 01:16, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

List of job titles and dates

Would copying a list of the job titles a person has had and the years in which they served in them, if it is written the same way in a source, be a copyright infringement or work with regards to criteria at Wikipedia:Copyright in lists? Thank you. Andysmith248 (talk) 01:37, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

@Andysmith248: There are very few places I can think of where such a list would be appropriate for an encyclopedic article, but if this is one of them, the criteria in Wikipedia:Copyright in lists (which you already found) should cover the copyright issues: the information is not copyrigtable, but form is copyrightable unless there is only one way to state the information. In most articles were the entire resume is applicable (e.g., were "jobs" are various government positions) Wikipedia has evolved other templated ways to convey the information. -Arch dude (talk) 20:25, 21 January 2021 (UTC)

@Arch dude: I'd like to know how the job titles and dates under 'Rundall' at [1] should be put in a biography. How do I know whether there is one way to state the information? How much should the 'form' be changed? Andysmith248 (talk) 20:45, 21 January 2021 (UTC)

@Andysmith248: Clearly, there is no "creativity" (i.e., copyrightability) in selection or order, and IMO there is no creativity in format, so you should be OK even with an exact copy. However, you will almost certainly do at least slight reformatting (bulletize and add links) and that further distinguishes your result. -Arch dude (talk) 02:59, 22 January 2021 (UTC)

@Arch dude: Thanks. Andysmith248 (talk) 10:04, 22 January 2021 (UTC)

Will I get an email when my page is approved?

How do I know if my wiki page is still in pending status or is it approved? — Preceding unsigned comment added by LordGriot (talk • contribs) 01:43, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

LordGriot, reviewers generally leave a notification on your user talk page, which should appear as a visible alert in the top-right corner of your screen. You can adjust whether or not you receive emails by going to your Preferences, navigating to the Notifications tab, and checking the box under the Email column for "Talk page message". —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) 02:03, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

LordGriot You would first need to actually submit it for review; I will shortly add the appropriate information to do so. 331dot (talk) 02:07, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Where should I propose that a pair of pages be moved?

Hi there, I am not a completely new editor, but back after a several-year hiatus. During my first tenure I made several mistakes, including "rogue" page-moving. Now I feel that two articles should be moved (Kelvin–Stokes theorem to simply Stokes' theorem and therefore the page currently at Stokes' theorem to Generalized Stokes theorem or some other appropriate title). But, I don't want to violate community norms again by doing this without asking. Where is the appropriate place to ask the community? Thank you! ChromaNebula (talk) 02:35, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

For run-of-the-mill moves, you'd go to WP:Requested moves#Technical requests, but this is so specialized, I'd recommend Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Mathematics. Clarityfiend (talk) 07:25, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Punctuation cleanup by bot

Greetings. Is there an easy way to automate replacement of “curly” quotation marks and apostrophes with "straight" ones, and other MoS-related standard formatting? Thanks. —Sangdeboeuf (talk) 04:35, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

@Sangdeboeuf: Bots are prohibited from doing only cosmetic work. See Wikipedia:Bots/Dictionary#Cosmetic_bot. You might want to take a look at WP:AWB and see if that can help automate it. RudolfRed (talk) 05:03, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

@Sangdeboeuf: AWB can perform a wide variety of formatting improvements - see its list of general fixes. When using AWB, hopefully you would be making additional article improvements at the same time as straightening the punctuation. GoingBatty (talk) 05:16, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Thanks. I see options for using AWB on Windows and Mac/Linux. I edit with Chrome OS/Android. Will AWB work on these devices? —Sangdeboeuf (talk) 09:22, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

@Sangdeboeuf: I don't see mention of Chrome OS/Android (I can't imagine using AWB on a phone). The best place to ask would be Wikipedia talk:AutoWikiBrowser. GoingBatty (talk) 16:10, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Note, if the curly quotation marks are visible to the user in the viewed page (as opposed to only visible in the editor), then it is *not* a cosmetic edit to change them to straight quotes, and as such I believe that a bot would be allowed to do this.Naraht (talk) 14:21, 21 January 2021 (UTC)

Be careful not to "clean up" characters that represent themselves, e.g., in code samples. Automatically changing paired delimiters to unpaired delimitoers can be just as damaging as automatically changing unpaired delimiters to paired delimiters. Shmuel (Seymour J.) Metz Username:Chatul (talk) 16:28, 21 January 2021 (UTC)

Harold Bloom

The Harold Bloom article states:

In July 2011, after the publication of The Anxiety of Influence and after finishing work on The Shadow of a Great Rock, Bloom was working on three further projects:

The cited source mentions that Bloom's most recently published book at the time was The Anatomy of Influence, not 1973's Anxiety of Influence. My edit correcting this has been erroneously reverted.

210.8.234.114 (talk) 06:41, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Thanks for correcting this. I have restored your edit.[2] We get a lot of random wrong changes of words and he did have a book with the other title. If you make an edit summary to explain your edits then other editors are less likely to revert them without checking properly. My edit summary said: "The Anatomy of Influence is from 2011, The Anxiety of Influence is from 1973". That is very unlikely to be reverted without a check. PrimeHunter (talk) 09:17, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Why is this section not asking for citations?

This section doesn't have citations. Why is this section not asking for citations: like some banner requesting to add citations? Rizosome (talk) 06:55, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

@Rizosome: Because no one added the tag to it. It's not automated. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) 07:01, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Wikipedia has not become self-aware yet ... but when it does, vandals better look out. Clarityfiend (talk) 23:24, 21 January 2021 (UTC)

What are the dispute resolution channels for user conduct disputes?

I am being accused by another user on Talk:Higashi-Ikebukuro runaway car accident (Special:Diff/999281046), without evidence, that I repeatedly attempted to login to their account. Then I tried to ask the user to retract the accusation, which was refused in Special:Diff/1001556013 with "you had better reflect yourself" in the edit summary. The discussion on the page currently only involves two users. What are the dispute resolution channels on English Wikipedia for these kinds of user conduct disputes? I am asking this question since WP:DRN is only for content disputes and I am not sure whether this should go to WP:AN/I. ネイ (talk) 10:11, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

This looks perfect for AN/I, actually. That noticeboard is specifically for stuff like this. —A little blue Bori v^_^v ^{Takes a strong man to deny...} 11:10, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Thank you very much! I will start a discussion at AN/I. ネイ (talk) 11:31, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Blocked

My Wikipedia account has been blocked — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2.51.154.35 (talk) 16:33, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Then you need to log back in to your account and follow the instructions in the block notice to request unblock. 331dot (talk) 16:34, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

The block notice and instruction are on your user talk page. Blocking limits your ability to edit anywhere EXCEPT your user talk page. S Philbrick(Talk) 17:58, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Translation conflict

I have an editing conflict with another editor in the page Valencian language. The problem is about how to translate the expression llengua pròpia into English. I'm not a native speaker of English and apparently neither is the other editor. What type of mediation or help could I use? --Jotamar (talk) 17:26, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Jotamar, try asking over at the language reference desk. There's usually someone there who's proficient in both languages that can answer your question. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) 17:35, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

@Jotamar: If neither of you can cite a published source, then your translations are (sort of) original research. In this case, we are in an awkward situation. You may need to try for a consensus among those who know both languages. I suspect that this will be best accomplished on some forum where folks who know the Valencian language hang out. If there is a Valencian Wikipedia, that would be the place. -Arch dude (talk) 18:52, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

@Jotamar: I think the Valencian language is also called Catalan. Forgive me if I am wrong the Catalan Wikipedia is at [:ca:Portada]]. -Arch dude (talk) 19:07, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

I've already asked in Wikipedia:Reference desk/Language#Help translating ''llengua pròpia'', as suggested. Thanks both of you. --Jotamar (talk) 19:13, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

The problem is that the term in question doesn't have an equivalent is English. I actually added a note mentioning it. Taurus Littrow (talk) 19:29, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Lawrence Stroll Profile

Lawrence Stroll is married to Raquel Diniz — Preceding unsigned comment added by 47.19.134.190 (talk) 18:25, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

If you have a reliable source that corroborates that claim, you may add it to the article. If you're unable to, leave an edit request on the article's talk page, with the information you want to add and provide the reliable source. —Tenryuu 🐲 ( 💬 • 📝 ) 18:46, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Its not Adam bridge its Ram setu build by Lord Rama.

The following discussion is marked as answered. If you have a new comment, place it just below the box.

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Wikipedia is source of right knowledge providing any miss information is legally offensive. The real name of this bridge is RAM SETU, where SETU means bridge in Sanskrit and its build by Lord Rama as proven and supported by many ancient proofs. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.75.56.227 (talk) 18:39, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Please see the interminable discussions at Talk:Adam's Bridge. -Arch dude (talk) 18:44, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Help with creating new username

I used to edit Wikipedia under the username Vorbee, and before that, ACEOREVIVED. Unfortunately, my old laptop (a Dell Inspiron) conked out. I have now invested in a new laptop, a Ryzen Radeon Pavilion. I would like to start a new userpage, but am having difficulty. Is there a tutorial on Wikipedia about starting new userpages? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.5.53.33 (talk) 18:59, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

@86.5.53.33: first of all, when you want to create a userpage, you need an account. Fortunally for you, the older account (ACEOREVIVED) has set an email adress, so you can visit Special:PasswordReset, insert ACEOREVIVED in the Username field and click the giant red button. If you are lucky, an email with a temporary password then arrives at your inbox, that you can use to log in. If you no longer have access to the old account, or the email fails to arrive within reasonable time (around a day), then you unfortunally only can create a new account using a different username. Victor Schmidt (talk) 20:13, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

That sucks! I am an old editor and do NOT appreciate being LOCKED OUT of my veteran account.2601:8B:C302:D530:78D1:F676:AAA1:A7B1 (talk) 05:20, 21 January 2021 (UTC)

I'm sorry for you. But you are locked out in the same sense as if you had locked your papers in your safe and then lost the key: it's nobody else's doing. Except that you are welcome to open another door to the safe any time, by creating a new account. (And when you have created another account, you are welcome to put notes on both your old and new user pages explaining what's happened and pointing to the other one). --ColinFine (talk) 11:15, 21 January 2021 (UTC)

How recent is "recent edits"?

In the Page Information, it tells how many watchers visited "recent edits". What does that mean? Like when I see 27 of 28 watchers have visited recent edits, does that mean they visited the most recent edit? Or that they've visited an edit made in the past 30 days? Or what? Thanks! —valereee (talk) 20:19, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

@Valereee: According to Help:Page information, it's the number of watchers "who have visited any revision made 180 days or less earlier than the most recent one." -- John of Reading (talk) 20:28, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Yes, and 180 days is linked to mw:Manual:$wgWatchersMaxAge. Some MediaWiki defaults are changed for Wikimedia wikis in https://noc.wikimedia.org/conf/highlight.php?file=InitialiseSettings.php or https://noc.wikimedia.org/conf/highlight.php?file=CommonSettings.php, but not wgWatchersMaxAge. PrimeHunter (talk) 21:04, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

@PrimeHunter you've lost me lol...wut? —valereee (talk) 21:15, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Never mind. John of Reading only said "According to" so I gave evidence that "180 days" is correct. PrimeHunter (talk) 21:24, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

John of Reading, thanks, I swear I did try to find the answer myself lol. Well, good grief. I would never have assumed 'recent edits' meant as long as six months. Is that even useful information? —valereee (talk) 21:13, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

The top right of many interface pages have a "Help" link. Adding WP: to a search also often works like WP:page information. PrimeHunter (talk) 21:24, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Thanks! I'd searched on WP:recent edits! —valereee (talk) 17:06, 21 January 2021 (UTC)

On this day page January 20

Your on this day page for January 20th has an error. Quoting your page as follows:

1961 - ‘John F. Kennedy is inaugurated the 35th President of the United States of America, becoming the youngest man to take the office, and the first Catholic.’

Theodore Roosevelt was the youngest to take office at 42 years old upon William McKinley’s assassination. John F. Kennedy was 43 and was in fact the youngest President to be elected in an election. If that’s what the sentence means it should be clarified. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2600:387:0:9A2:0:0:0:3 (talk) 21:32, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Fixed. ChipotleHater (talk) 21:35, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

Am I permitted to evasively self-Draftify

I made an article. Not my first. It was tagged WP:ADVERT. I was working on a different area (NYC hospitals) since then, and didn't cycle back to deal with improving the article. The article was tagged DB-SPAM.I disagree. May I draftify the article to "buy" time - I don't want it deleted, and I know it deserves better . . . I did make one new edit (3 citations). Is it OK to self-draftify Hampton Sheet ? Pi314m (talk) 21:57, 20 January 2021 (UTC)

To my knowledge, there is no prejudice against recreation as a draft of a page deleted under G11 (ad). So, I will go ahead and move it to the draft space for you. ‡ Єl Cid of Valencia ^talk 22:05, 20 January 2021 (UTC)