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Help:Editing
From Dirtopia, The Off-Road Encyclopedia
This Editing Overview has a lot of wikitext examples. You may want to keep this page open in a separate browser window for reference while you edit. Each of the topics covered here is covered somewhere else in more detail. See box at right for that
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Editing basics
Review policy and conventions
- Make sure that what you want to write belongs where you want to put it. The operator of the site likely has specific plans for the site, and your content might be deleted or unappreciated. You can always use the talk pages to ask questions or check to see if your idea will be accepted. Please make note of the license your contributions will be covered with.
Start editing
- To start editing a MediaWiki page, click the Edit this page (or just edit) link at one of its edges. This brings you to the edit page: a page with a text box containing the wikitext: the editable source code from which the server produces the webpage.
Type your changes
- You can just type your text. However, also using basic wiki markup (described in the next section) to make links and do simple formatting adds to the value of your contribution.
Summarize your changes
- Write a short edit summary in the small field below the edit-box. You may use shorthand to describe your changes.
Preview before saving
- When you have finished, click Show preview to see how your changes will look -- before you make them permanent. Repeat the edit/preview process until you are satisfied, then click Save page and your changes will be immediately applied to the article.
Most frequent wiki markup explained
Here are the 6 most frequently used wiki markups.
| What it looks like | What you type |
|---|---|
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You can italicize text by putting 2 apostrophes on each side. 3 apostrophes will bold the text. 5 apostrophes will bold and italicize the text. (4 apostrophes don't do anything special -- there's just 'one left over'.) | You can ''italicize text'' by putting 2 apostrophes on each side. 3 apostrophes will bold '''the text'''. 5 apostrophes will bold and italicize '''''the text'''''. (4 apostrophes don't do anything special -- there's just ''''one left over''''.) |
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You should "sign" your comments on talk pages: | You should "sign" your comments on talk pages: <br> - Three tildes gives your user name: ~~~ <br> - Four tildes give your user name plus date/time: ~~~~ <br> - Five tildes gives the date/time alone: ~~~~~ <br> |
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Section headings
Headings organize your writing into sections. The Wiki software can automatically generate a table of contents from them. Subsection
Using more equals signs creates a subsection. A smaller subsection
Don't skip levels, like from two to four equals signs. Start with 2 equals signs not 1 because 1 creates H1 tags which should be reserved for page title. | == Section headings == ''Headings'' organize your writing into sections. The Wiki software can automatically generate a table of contents from them. === Subsection === Using more equals signs creates a subsection. ==== A smaller subsection ==== Don't skip levels, like from two to four equals signs. Start with 2 equals signs not 1 because 1 creates H1 tags which should be reserved for page title. |
marks the end of the list.
| * ''Unordered lists'' are easy to do: ** Start every line with a star. *** More stars indicate a deeper level. *: Previous item continues. ** A new line * in a list marks the end of the list. * Of course you can start again. |
A new line marks the end of the list.
| # ''Numbered lists'' are: ## Very organized ## Easy to follow A new line marks the end of the list. # New numbering starts with 1. |
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Here's a link to a page named Official position. You can even say official positions and the link will show up correctly. | Here's a link to a page named [[Official position]]. You can even say [[official position]]s and the link will show up correctly. |
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The weather in Moscow is a page that doesn't exist yet. You could create it by clicking on the link. | [[The weather in Moscow]] is a page that doesn't exist yet. You could create it by clicking on the link. |
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You can link to a page section by its title: If multiple sections have the same title, add a number. #Example section 3 goes to the third section named "Example section". | You can link to a page section by its title: *[[List of cities by country#Morocco]]. If multiple sections have the same title, add a number. [[#Example section 3]] goes to the third section named "Example section". |<pre> You can link to a page section by its title: *[[List of cities by country#Morocco]]. If multiple sections have the same title, add a number. [[#Example section 3]] goes to the third section named "Example section". |
Minor edits
A logged-in user can mark an edit as "minor". Minor edits are generally spelling corrections, formatting, and minor rearrangement of text. Users may choose to hide minor edits when viewing Recent Changes.
Marking a significant change as a minor edit is considered bad Wikiquette. If you have accidentally marked an edit as minor, make a dummy edit, verify that the "[ ] This is a minor edit" check-box is unchecked, and explain in the edit summary that the previous edit was not minor.
