book

How Wikipedia Works

by Phoebe Ayers, Charles Matthews, Ben Yates

September 2008

Beginner

536 pages

15h 41m

English

No Starch Press

Read now

Unlock full access

Inside This BookWhat You Should Know Going InUsing This BookOur Approach to Understanding WikipediaIt’s Everyone’s Encyclopedia: Be Bold!
Types of ArticlesArticle and Content Inclusion PoliciesCore Policies: V, NOR, and NPOVUnderstanding the PoliciesOther GuidelinesNotabilityCopyrighted MaterialNon-encyclopedic ContentWhat Wikipedia Is NotNon-article ContentTypes of Non-article PagesNamespacesList of NamespacesSummary and What to Read Next
Wikipedia’s MissionWikipedia’s RootsAncient Greece to Today: EncyclopediasLate 17th Century: The Modern EncyclopediaWikipedia as an EncyclopediaThe 1960s and 1970s: Unix, Networks, and Personal ComputersThe 1980s: The Free Software MovementWikipedia and the Free Perspective1995: Ward’s Wiki1997: Open Source Communities2000: Online Community DynamicsWikipedia as a Wiki Community2001: Wikipedia Goes LiveWikipedia TodayUnfinished BusinessThe Wikipedia Model DebatedMisinformation: The Seigenthaler ScandalAmateur Contributors, Authority, and AcademiaWikipedia and Academic AuthorityWikipedia and ExpertsCase Studies in Academic AuthorityPseudonyms and Claimed ExpertiseThe Crowd of AmateursSummary
Searching WikipediaBasic SearchingVarying the SearchSearch OperatorsSearching Other NamespacesSome Special SearchesSearch Problems and Some AlternativesExternal Search EnginesWhen to Use External Search EnginesWhen Not to Use External Search EnginesWays into WikipediaWelcome to the Main PageNavigating the Main PagePortals into the EncyclopediaDaily ContentConstructing the Main PageDisclaimers, License, and PrivacyThe Omnipresent SidebarNavigationInteractionRecent ChangesThe Search BoxToolboxLanguagesJoys of HypertextA Hypertext PrimerThree Types of LinksBrowsing by TopicLists of ArticlesTraditional Classification SchemesDate-Related ArticlesBrowsing by CategoriesStructure of a Category PageNavigating CategoriesA Longer Journey Using CategoriesBrowsing by Page TypeFinding Excellent or Poor ContentFinding ImagesFinding Media FilesSummary
Anatomy of an ArticleThe Article TextBacklinksArticle HistoryReading a Page HistoryAnalyzing a Page HistoryEdit Summaries and Minor EditsTalk PagesReading and Contributing to Talk PagesMaking Good Use of Talk PagesEvaluating ArticlesMisinformation, Missing Information, and MistakesD-R-E-W-SDiscussion on the Talk PageRatingsEdit HistoryWriting and FormattingSourcesSummaryFinal Thoughts for Part I
Editing a PageUnderstanding the Edit WindowReading Article WikitextUsing the Edit Window ToolsMajor vs. Minor EditsHandling Major Editing TasksFixing Mistakes and Other Reasons to RevertWho Can Edit What?SyntaxFundamentals of Text MarkupBold and ItalicIndentation, Line, and Paragraph BreaksNumbered and Bulleted ListsInternal and External LinksInternal LinksRedlinksTricks with Internal LinksInternal Linking PolicyExternal LinksExternal Linking PolicySections and HeadingsLinking into and out of SectionsRemoving Formatting and Hiding CommentsSummary

Starting New ArticlesDeciding What to Write AboutBefore Starting a New ArticleAvoiding Treacherous TopicsStarting the ArticleClick a RedlinkTwo More Ways to Start an ArticleTitles Are TrickyDrafting the ArticleDon’t ForgetWriting WellConsulting the Manual of StyleIntroduction and Topic SentenceComprehensiveness and Appropriate LengthStructureReadabilityAudienceUse of LanguageGraphicsApplying Basic Content PoliciesReviewsQuality and the Good StubResearching ArticlesGood Wikipedia ResearchDoing ResearchReliable SourcesReferencing StylesUsing FootnotesReferencing TemplatesEditing Alongside OthersChanging What Others WriteWill Your Own Edits Be Kept?Edit SummariesNo OwnershipSummary
CleanupFlagging ArticlesCleanup CategoriesCleanup TasksRewritingExpanding StubsWikificationFact-Checking and ReferencingHelp, an Article About Me Is Incorrect!Copyright ViolationsVandalism PatrollingCleanup Editing ToolsProjects: Working to Improve ContentWikiProjectsWikiportalsWriting CollaborationsProcessesWhat Processes CoverDeleting ArticlesDeletion ProcessesHelp, My Article’s Being Deleted!A Deletion Case StudyFeatured ArticlesSummary
Redirect and DisambiguateRedirectsCreating and Editing RedirectsLimitations on RedirectingDisambiguation PagesDisambiguating Articles About PeopleDisambiguation TemplatesMerge, Split, and MoveMerging ArticlesHow to Merge ArticlesSplitting ArticlesMoving PagesLimits on Moving PagesUndoing a MoveContentious Title ChangesCategorizeCategorizing BasicsCategories and Content PolicyCreating New CategoriesSubcategoriesCategorization ProjectsHousekeepingWhen a Page Move Is BlockedDefault MeaningsAvoiding Disambiguation PagesControlling Category SortingCategories and Templates for RedirectsProcess-Style ResolutionsSummary
Images and Media FilesFinding and Adding ImagesSearching for Images to UseImage Licenses and Fair UseUploading Your Own ImagesUsing ImagesUsing Multimedia FilesTemplatesUsing TemplatesUsing ParametersHow Templates WorkVarieties of TemplatesHow to Build TemplatesLaying Out ArticlesTablesFormatting ColumnsSpecial SyntaxHTML and CSSMathematical FormulasVariables and Magic WordsSummary
Birth of an ArticleDeletionMaintenance TaggingEditing ImprovementsPotential MergeDiscussion and Content TagsCategoriesBots ArriveIncoming WikilinksArtie Is MovedIn Good TimesIn Bad TimesBad Times, and a True StorySearch Engines Find the ArticleNew RelativesGetting the PictureGood ArticleSummaryConclusion to Part II
On ArrivalRegistering an AccountPrivacy“Anonymous” EditsUsernames and Real NamesDeleting, Renaming, and Having Multiple AccountsIs a Username Taken?Creating the AccountSetting Your PreferencesSetting Your SignatureCustomizing Skins and Installing ExtensionsUser Pages, Watchlists, and Edit CountUser Page ContentGuidelinesUser Talk PagesWatchlistsRSS NotificationContribution History and Counting EditsUsers and AdministratorsUser LevelsAdministratorsRequesting Help from an AdministratorBecoming an AdministratorSummary
Wikipedia’s CultureAssumptions on ArrivalRandom Acts of KindnessThe Open DoorSoft SecurityCommunicating with Other EditorsTalk Page GuidelinesVoting and DiscussingOn-Wiki ForumsAsking Questions and Resolving ProblemsGetting NewsMailing Lists and Internet Relay ChatMeetups and ConferencesWikiphilosophiesFunny BusinessWho Writes This Thing Anyway?DemographicsSystemic BiasWikipedians on WikipediaOperational Analysis: Raul’s LawsPractical Values, Process, and PolicyMore Research RequiredSummary
The Spirit of WikipediaThe Five PillarsIgnore All Rules and Be BoldAssume Good FaithWhat Is Policy?Official PolicyPolicies and GuidelinesHow Policies Are Created and DevelopedHow Policies EvolveHow to Interpret Policies and GuidelinesLetter of the LawList of PoliciesContent PoliciesSocial PoliciesEnabling PoliciesGeneral PoliciesList of GuidelinesSeven Policies to StudySummary
Content Disputes and Edit WarsComing to ConsensusResolving a Dispute: DiscussionMore Steps for Resolving a Content DisputeIneffective SolutionsCauses of Content DisputesCase Study: GdańskResolving Disputes Between EditorsDispute Resolution ProcessesThe Nature of Formal EvidenceArbitration CommitteeBlocks and BansShort BlocksLonger BlocksBansSummaryConclusion to Part III
Languages and ScriptsThe Long Tail of LanguagesGetting Involved in Other LanguagesScript SupportLinks Between LanguagesEnglish in Global FocusSummary
Wikimedia CommonsSearching and Browsing CommonsUsing Commons Material in WikipediaParticipating in CommonsInclusion GuidelinesUploading ImagesCategorizingOther Sister ProjectsWiktionaryWikinewsWikibooksWikiquoteWikisourceWikispeciesWikiversityLinking Between Projects and Copying ContentHow to LinkMoving Content Between ProjectsOther WikisStarting Your Own WikiWiki SoftwareSummary
The Foundation: Mission and StructureInfrastructure and the BoardFoundation-Level PolicyFundraisers and DonationsWikimedia Chapters and OutreachMediaWikiThe Meta-WikiProject CoordinationTranslationNew ProjectsCommunicationLooking Back and Going ForwardEarly DaysContinued ValuesSummaryConclusion to Part IV
Guidelines for ReuseExamples of Reuse
Wikipedia as a Classroom Reference ResourceGuiding Student Use of WikipediaAssigning Wikipedia Editing
Common Edit SummariesDeletion and Maintenance SummariesAutomatically Added Edit Summaries
Part IPart IIPart IIIPart IV
PREAMBLEAPPLICABILITY AND DEFINITIONSVERBATIM COPYINGCOPYING IN QUANTITYMODIFICATIONSCOMBINING DOCUMENTSCOLLECTIONS OF DOCUMENTSAGGREGATION WITH INDEPENDENT WORKSTRANSLATIONTERMINATIONFUTURE REVISIONS OF THIS LICENSE

Content preview from How Wikipedia Works

Chapter 4. Understanding and Evaluating an Article

Once you’ve found the content you’re looking for, the next thing you need to know is what you’re looking at. With an understanding of namespaces and content types in Wikipedia, you can easily tell whether you’re looking at an article, a discussion page, a community page, or a user page; and once you know how to search and browse the site, finding articles on your topic is simple. The next step is assessing an article’s quality.

Understanding how to read all the components of an article—from its edit history to its discussion pages—is key for skilled and sensible reading of Wikipedia. Experienced editors and readers use many tricks to quickly evaluate pages and understand their state. It’s a matter ...