Forums > Senate Hall archive > SH:A few questions and other things since I'm new.
This page is an archive of a community-wide discussion. This page is no longer live. Further comments or questions on this topic should be made in a new Senate Hall page rather than here so that this page is preserved as a historic record. Toprawa and Ralltiir 07:51, February 25, 2012 (UTC)
Hi everybody! I just wanted to ask a few questions and bits and pieces, but before that, can I introduce myself? I'm super_redhead, and I'm happy to finally have made an account on my favorite source of Star Wars information!
My first question is also a request. I want to request permission, or someone else to create an article on Port Haven, a message board. I have seen the fan page requirements, and do believe it to fit into the criteria as it is popular and is listed on starwars.com. I need two things. Someone to tell me if it's alright if I do create it, and someone to help me out with typing it up correctly, if it is alright to make it.
That was my major question, but it would be good if someone could tell me how a newcomer like me could contribute to Wookiepedia. Images? Quotes? Any tips or good pages you want me to see? I will accept any help!
Thanks so much for your time! super_redhead 08:27, November 24, 2011 (UTC)
- Hello, and welcome to Wookieepedia. :)
If the message board does indeed meet our Notability of fan projects policy, they you are free to go ahead and create the article. However, if you are at least a bit unsure, the article will most likely end up deleted—we're quite strict in regards to this. Nonethless, feel free to also add the message board to "List of fan sites." As for what to do here... a lot of pages require attention. I suggest taking a look at Wookieepedia:Maintenance, a dynamic list with pages needing cleanup or something like that. Should you have any questions about the wiki or this, feel free to ask here or on my talk page. Cheers, 1358 (Talk) 13:12, November 24, 2011 (UTC)
- (Note: I wrote this at the same time Xd was posting, so I have no idea if I repeat what he told you...) Hey, SRH, and welcome to Wookieepedia! As far as your Port Haven group being notable enough for an article, you have to make sure the message board meets the criteria here: Wookieepedia:Notability of fan projects. If you guys are mentioned on Starwars.com, that means you pass the first criterion, but since you're a message board, you need to prove more notability than just that. The last criterion says you need to have "very large message boards with hundreds of users contributing daily". Is that the case? If so, go ahead and create the article!
- However, you will also need to provide proper citations for everything, especially if you attempt to establish notability within the article itself. Thus, if you write, say, "Port Haven is a message board with more than 500 active members," you will need to substantiate that fact somehow. You can do this by using inline references, which you type like this: <ref>Reference information goes here</ref> So, in my above example, you might say, "Port Haven is a message board with more than 500 active members.<ref>Port Haven membership registration page [URL].</ref> (There are actually very complicated citation templates for websites that you should ideally use; this is just an example of wiki reference syntax.) Then, to make sure users can read your references, you need to have a section at the bottom of the article that looks like this: ==Notes and references== followed by {{Reflist}}.
- It seems a bit complicated, but one of the best things you might try is to create a subpage of your user page (like User:Super redhead/Sandbox or whatever) to create a dummy version of the article. Then bring it to an establishes user's attention here or on their talk page, and they can give you feedback on the article before you take it live. That's perhaps my biggest piece of advice for you at this time. :)
- As for other ways to contribute, be bold and just start editing articles! If you are truly at a loss for what to do, just start clicking the "Random article" link and see if you see anything that needs work, fixing typos, adding missing appearances or references, adding images if you have them (thought this is another potential minefield, so don't be shy about asking for help), adding quotes, etc. Eventually it might be a good idea to create a short article of your own. If you're truly daring, you can try to get something you've created to be named a comprehensive article or good article. Maybe one day you can write your own featured article as well. Good luck! ~Savage
13:16, November 24, 2011 (UTC)
- Thank you for the great response! I'll use the instructions on that sourcing or linking as soon as I make a sand box. This response was really helpful to me! I can't wait to start working on some articles! super_redhead 19:09, November 24, 2011 (UTC)
Okay. The sandbox is created (User:Super redhead/Sandbox) and all I need to add are a few images. Could someone look at it and help me improve on it, or direct me to someone who would be happy to help?? Thank you, super_redhead 21:18, November 27, 2011 (UTC)
- OK, I took a look at it. It appears to be a good site, but the primary question here is whether it's sufficiently notable. To be notable enough for an article, the site needs to pass one of the recognition requirements and the content requirement is the link I just gave. The site is linked to from the official site, so there's official recognition. Content, however, is an issue; the requirement states that "a website must have substantial content beyond the message board to be considered notable." I see a calendar with only five events on it for this month (two of them simply national holidays and none SW-related), an EU release schedule, and an arcade, which I can't see what's in there since I'm not registered. I don't think that qualifies as "substantial content". The exception to that rule is "a handful of very large message boards with hundreds of users contributing daily." Looking at the active topics, I see that only 23 threads have been posted in within the past 24 hours, so it doesn't qualify under the exception, either. I invite anyone else who thinks otherwise to chime in, but although I appreciate the work, I don't think this site passes the notability requirements, despite the link from SW.com. Master Jonathan — Jedi Council Chambers Monday, November 28, 2011, 03:08 UTC
- MJ appears to be right. You've done a pretty good job creating the article in your sandbox, but I think that the site will have to pick up a little more before the article is added to Wookieepedia.--Cal Jedi
(Personal Comm Channel) 03:13, November 28, 2011 (UTC)
- I completely understand, but if it's the content that's the problem, then that can soon be met, I believe. The website is planning a blog and expansion to more members. If I postpone the publishing of the article 'till after these things have been created and fleshed out, could it then meet the requirements? And until then I could put it out of my mind for a small while, and get used to Wookiepedia for a bit. Sound reasonable? super_redhead 11:37, November 28, 2011 (UTC)
- How many contributors do you guys get posting each day? You mentioned you had 300 or so members, but how many actively post on an average day? If the number is high enough, you may still qualify. MJ above said he only saw 23 active threads in the past 24 hours, but that may not disqualify you if there are some 200-300 people contributing to those 23 threads! :) But, yeah, I'd suggest you but this particular article on your back burner and try to edit some other articles for a bit, get your bearings, gain some experience. I would like to note that I really appreciate your open-minded and civil response to the feedback here; we've had other website folks get really angry when we told them they didn't meet certain requirements. At any rate, your site seems to be on the cusp; perhaps let it develop a bit more while you yourself dive into the rest of Wookieepedia. ~Savage 13:26, November 28, 2011 (UTC)
- Indeed. Good luck with getting used to Wookieepedia, and Cheers from me for keeping your civility. :) --Cal Jedi
(Personal Comm Channel) 16:33, November 28, 2011 (UTC)
- Indeed. Good luck with getting used to Wookieepedia, and Cheers from me for keeping your civility. :) --Cal Jedi
- How many contributors do you guys get posting each day? You mentioned you had 300 or so members, but how many actively post on an average day? If the number is high enough, you may still qualify. MJ above said he only saw 23 active threads in the past 24 hours, but that may not disqualify you if there are some 200-300 people contributing to those 23 threads! :) But, yeah, I'd suggest you but this particular article on your back burner and try to edit some other articles for a bit, get your bearings, gain some experience. I would like to note that I really appreciate your open-minded and civil response to the feedback here; we've had other website folks get really angry when we told them they didn't meet certain requirements. At any rate, your site seems to be on the cusp; perhaps let it develop a bit more while you yourself dive into the rest of Wookieepedia. ~Savage
- I completely understand, but if it's the content that's the problem, then that can soon be met, I believe. The website is planning a blog and expansion to more members. If I postpone the publishing of the article 'till after these things have been created and fleshed out, could it then meet the requirements? And until then I could put it out of my mind for a small while, and get used to Wookiepedia for a bit. Sound reasonable? super_redhead 11:37, November 28, 2011 (UTC)
- MJ appears to be right. You've done a pretty good job creating the article in your sandbox, but I think that the site will have to pick up a little more before the article is added to Wookieepedia.--Cal Jedi
