Help:Editing

This is a Wiki, which means that anyone can easily edit any unprotected page and save those changes immediately to that page. To request a change to a protected page, use the talk page.

Introduction

Editing a wiki page is not very difficult. Simply click on the "edit" tab at the top of a page (or on a section-edit link). This will bring you to a new page with a text box containing the editable text of the original page. If you just want to experiment, please do so in the sandbox, not here. You should write a short edit summary in the small field below the edit-box (you may use shorthand to describe your changes). When you have finished, press the Show preview button to see how your changes will look. You can also see the difference between the page with your edits and the previous version of the page by pressing the "Show changes" button. If you're satisfied with what you see, press the Save page button. Your changes will immediately be visible to other users.

You can also click on the "Discussion" tab to see the corresponding talk page, which contains comments about the page from other users. Click on the "+" tab to add a new section, or edit the page in the same way as an article page.

You should remember to sign your messages on talk pages, but there's no need to sign edits you make to regular articles. In page histories, the wiki software keeps track of which user makes each change.

Minor edits

When editing an article page on this site, a logged-in user can mark that edit as being "minor". Minor edits generally mean spelling corrections, formatting, and minor rearrangement of text. It is possible to "hide" minor edits when viewing the recent changes. Marking a significant change as a minor edit is considered bad behavior, especially when it involves the deletion of some text.

Major edits

All editors are encouraged to be bold, but there are several things that a user can do to ensure that major edits are performed smoothly. Before engaging in a major edit, consider discussing proposed changes on the article discussion/talk page. During the edit, if doing so over an extended period of time, the {{inuse}} tag can reduce the likelihood of an edit conflict. Once the edit has been completed, the inclusion of an edit summary will assist in documenting the changes.

Wiki markup

Wiki markup is the syntax system you can use to format a wiki page.

The table below is an elaborate list of various edits. The left column shows the effects available. The right column shows the wiki markup used to achieve them. If it confuses you, just type the text you want to include on a page and place {{cleanup}} at the top of that section; someone else can make it look "pretty" later.

You may want to keep this page open in a separate browser window/tab for reference. If you want to try out things without danger of doing any harm, you can do so in the Sandbox. Try opening the Sandbox in a separate window or tab and keeping this page open for reference.

Examples

What it looks like	What you type
Start your sections as follows: New section Subsection Sub-subsection Start with a second-level heading (==); don't use first-level headings (=). A Table of Contents will automatically be added to an article that has four or more sections.	==New section== ===Subsection=== ====Sub-subsection====
A single newline/carriage return generally has no effect on the layout. These can be used to separate sentences within a paragraph. Some editors find that this aids editing and improves the function diff (used internally to compare different versions of a page). But an empty line starts a new paragraph. When used in a list, a newline does affect the layout (see below).	A single newline/carriage return generally has no effect on the layout. These can be used to separate sentences within a paragraph. Some editors find that this aids editing and improves the ''[[help:diffs|diff]]'' function. But an empty line starts a new paragraph.
You can break lines without starting a new paragraph. Please use this sparingly. Close markup between lines; do not start a link or italics or bold on one line and close it on the next.	You can break lines<br /> without starting a new paragraph.
It's easy to create a list: Start every line with a star (asterisk). More stars means deeper levels. A newline in a list marks the end of a list item. An empty line starts a new list.	* It's easy to create a list: ** Start every line with a star. *** More stars means deeper levels. **** A newline in a list marks the end of a list item. * An empty line starts a new list.
Numbered lists are also good very organized easy to follow easier still	# Numbered lists are also good ## very organized ## easy to follow ### easier still
Definition list list of definitions item the item's definition another item the other item's definition Begin with a semicolon. One item per line; a newline can appear before the colon, but using a space before the colon improves parsing.	; Definition list : list of definitions ; item : the item's definition ; another item : the other item's definition
You can even create mixed lists and nest them like this can I mix definition list as well? yes how? it's easy as a b c	* You can even create mixed lists *# and nest them *#* like this *#*; can I mix definition list as well? *#*: yes *#*; how? *#*: it's easy as *#*:* a *#*:* b *#*:* c
A colon indents a line or paragraph. A manual newline starts a new paragraph. This is primarily for displayed material, but is also used for discussion on Talk pages.	: A colon indents a line or paragraph. A manual newline starts a new paragraph.
When there is a need for separating a block of text The blockquote command will indent both margins when needed instead of the left margin only as the colon does. This is useful for (as the name says) inserting blocks of quoted (and cited) text.	<blockquote> The '''blockquote''' command will indent both margins when needed instead of the left margin only as the colon does. </blockquote>
(See formula on right): This is useful for: pasting preformatted text; program source code; ASCII art; WARNING: If you make it wide, you force the whole page to be wide and hence less readable, especially for people who use lower resolutions. Never start ordinary lines with spaces.	IF a line starts with a space THEN it will be formatted exactly as typed; in a fixed-width font; lines will not wrap; END IF
Centered text. Please note the American spelling of "center".	<center>Centered text.</center>
A horizontal dividing line: this is above it and this is below it. Should be used sparsely, only when separating completely different, unrelated (groups of) meanings or separating threads on Talk pages. Some headings automatically include a horizontal dividing line.	A [[horizontal dividing line]]: this is above it ---- and this is below it.

Links and URLs

What it looks like	What you type
George was the Godfather in this game. A link to another wiki article. Internally, the first letter of the target page is automatically capitalized and spaces are represented as underscores (typing an underscore in the link has the same effect as typing a space, but is not recommended).	George was the [[Godfather]] in this game.
Sam and Max were his partners. Same target, different name. This is a piped link. The "piped" text must be placed first, then the text that will be displayed second.	Sam and Max were his [[Goon|partners]].
Sam and Max were his partners. Prefixes/suffixes are blended into the link, unless they involve hyphens. Preferred style is to use this instead of a piped link, if possible. Blending can be suppressed by using <nowiki></nowiki> tags, which may be desirable in some instances. Example: a microsecond.	Sam and Max were his [[Goon|partners]]. [[micro]]<nowiki>second </nowiki>
See the project:blocking policy. A link to another namespace.	See the [[project:blocking policy]].
Forums#Other_Games is a link to a section within another page. #Links and URLs is a link to another section on the current page. #example is a link to an anchor that was created using an id attribute The part after the number sign (#) must match a section heading on the page. Matches must be exact in terms of spelling, case, and punctuation. Links to non-existent sections are not broken; they are treated as links to the top of the page. Identifiers may be created by attaching an id="..."> attribute to almost any HTML element. This doesn't work with legacy browsers. Include "| Link title" to create a stylish link-title.	[[Forums#Other_Games]] is a link to a section within another page. [[#Links and URLs]] is a link to another section on the current page. [[#example]] is a link to an anchor that was created using <div id="example">an id attribute </div>
Automatically hide stuff in parentheses: Mafia. Automatically hide namespace: namespaces. The server fills in the part after the pipe character (|) when you save the page. The next time you open the edit box you will see the expanded piped link. When previewing your edits, you will not see the expanded form until you press Save and Edit again. The same applies to links to sections within the same page (see previous entry).	Automatically hide stuff in parentheses: [[Mafia (game)|]]. Automatically hide namespace: [[help:namespaces|]]. <!--Or both: [[project: Manual of Style (headings)|]] But not: [[project: Manual of Style#Links|]]--> See help:Pipe trick for details.
mith's minions is a page that does not exist yet. You can create it by clicking on the link. To create a new page: Create a link to it on some other (related) page. Save that page (optional, see below). Click on the link you just made; the new page will open for editing. Please do not create a new article without linking to it from at least one other article.	[[mith's minions]] is a page that does not exist yet.
Help:Editing is this page. Self links appear as bold text when the article is viewed.	[[Help:Editing]] is this page.
When adding a comment to a Talk page, you should sign it by adding three tildes to add your user name: Mr. Flay or four to add user name plus date/time: Mr. Flay 12:10, 28 May 2007 (MDT) Five tildes gives the date/time alone: 12:10, 28 May 2007 (MDT) The first two both provide a link to your user page.	When adding a comment to a Talk page,you should sign it by adding three tildes to add your user name: : ~~~ or four for user name plus date/time: : ~~~~ Five tildes gives the date/time alone: : ~~~~~
Redirect one article title to another by placing a directive like the one shown to the right on the first line of the article (such as at a page titled "RAF"). It is also possible to redirect to a section. For example, "#REDIRECT [[Cop#Sanity]]" will redirect to the Cop page, and bring up the section on varying sanities. This may be confusing to users, so use with caution.	#REDIRECT [[Ready Aim Fire]]
What links here and Related changes pages can be linked as: Special:Whatlinkshere/Help:Editing and Special:Recentchangeslinked/Help:Editing	'''What links here''' and '''Related changes''' pages can be linked as: [[Special:Whatlinkshere/ Help:Editing]] and [[Special:Recentchangeslinked/ Help:Editing]]
A user's Contributions page can be linked as: Special:Contributions/UserName or Special:Contributions/192.0.2.0	A user's '''Contributions''' page can be linked as: [[Special:Contributions/UserName]] or [[Special:Contributions/192.0.2.0]]
To put an article in a category, place a link like the one to the right anywhere in the article. As with interlanguage links, it does not matter where you put these links while editing as they will always show up in the same place when you save the page, but placement at the end of the edit box is recommended so they are easier to find.	[[Category:Roles]]
To link to a category page without putting the article into the category, use an initial colon (:) in the link.	[[:Category:Roles]]
Three ways to link to external (non-wiki) sources: Bare URL: http://en.wikipedia.com/ Unnamed link: [1] (only used within article body for footnotes) Named link: Wikipedia Square brackets indicate an external link. Note the use of a space (not a pipe) to separate the URL from the link text in the "named" version. In the URL, all symbols must be among: A-Z a-z 0-9 . _ \ / ~ % - + & # ? ! = ( ) @ If a URL contains a character not in this list, it should be encoded by using a percent sign (%) followed by the hex code of the character, which can be found in the table of ASCII printable characters. For example, the caret character (^) would be encoded in a URL as %5E. If the "named" version contains a closing square bracket "]", then you must use the HTML special character syntax, i.e. &#93; otherwise the MediaWiki software will prematurely interpret this as the end of the external link. There is a class that can be used to remove the arrow image from the external link, but it is generally not necessary. One exception is wikilinks in Image markup. An example of the markup is as follows: Markup: <span class="plainlinksneverexpand"> [http://www.mafiascum.net/forum/viewforum.php?f=5 Mafia Discussion forum]</span> Display: WinObj See project:External links for style issues.	Three ways to link to external (non-wiki) sources: # Bare URL: http://en.wikipedia.com/ # Unnamed link: [http://en.wikipedia.com/] (automatically numbered sequentially) # Named link: [http://en.wikipedia.com Wikipedia]
Date formats: July 20, 1969 20 July 1969 1969-07-20 1969-07-20 Link dates in one of the above formats, so that everyone can set their own display order. If logged in, you can use Special:Preferences to change your own date display setting. All of the above dates will appear as "20 July 1969" if you set your date display preference to "15 January 2001", but as "July 20, 1969" if you set it to "January 15, 2001", or as "1969-07-20" if you set it to "2001-01-15".	Date formats: # [[July 20]], [[1969]] # [[20 July]] [[1969]] # [[1969]]-[[07-20]] # [[1969-07-20]]
Sound To include links to non-image uploads such as sounds, use a "media" link. For images, see next section. Some uploaded sounds are listed at Category:Sounds.	[[media:broken_glass.ogg|Sound]]

Images

Only images that have been uploaded to the wiki can be used. To upload images, use the upload page. You can find the uploaded image on the image list.

What it looks like	What you type
A picture:	A picture: [[File:MafiaWiki_Logo.jpg]]
With alternative text:	With alternative text: [[File:MafiaWiki_Logo.jpg|MafiaWiki logo]] Alternative text, used when a mouse hovers over the image or when the image is not loaded in a text-only browser, or when spoken aloud, is strongly encouraged. See Image syntax for help on choosing it.
Floating to the right side of the page and with a caption: MafiaScum Wiki	Floating to the right side of the page and with a caption: [[File:MafiaWiki_Logo.jpg|frame|MafiaScum Wiki]] The frame tag automatically floats the image right. The caption is also used as alternate text.
Floating to the right side of the page without a caption:	Floating to the right side of the page ''without'' a caption: [[File:MafiaWiki_Logo.jpg|right|MafiaScum Wiki]] The help topic on Image syntax explains more options.
A picture resized to 30 pixels...	A picture resized to 30 pixels... [[File:MafiaWiki_Logo.jpg|30 px]] The help topic on Image syntax explains more options.
Linking directly to the description page of an image: File:MafiaWiki_Logo.jpg	Linking directly to the description page of an image: [[:File:MafiaWiki_Logo.jpg]] Clicking on an image displayed on a page (such as any of the ones above) also leads to the description page
Linking directly to an image without displaying it: Image of the Mafia Wiki logo	Linking directly to an image without displaying it: [[media:MafiaWiki_Logo.jpg|Image of the Mafia Wiki logo]] To include links to images shown as links instead of drawn on the page, use a "media" link.
Using the div tag to separate images from text (note that this may allow images to cover text):	Example: <div style="display:inline; width:220px; float:right;"> Place images here </div>
Using wiki markup to make a table in which to place a vertical column of images (this helps edit links match headers, especially in Firefox browsers):	Example: {| align=right |- | Place images here |}

Character formatting

What it looks like	What you type
Emphasized text Strong emphasis Even stronger emphasis	''Emphasized text'' '''Strong emphasis''' '''''Even stronger emphasis'''''
A typewriter font for monospace text or for computer code: int main() For semantic reasons, using <code> where applicable is preferable to using <tt>.	A typewriter font for <tt>monospace text</tt> or for computer code: <code>int main()</code>
You can use small text for captions.	You can use <small>small text</small> for captions.
Better to stay away from big text, unless it's within small text.	Better to stay away from <big>big text</big>, unless <small> it's <big>within</big> small</small> text.
You can strike out deleted material and underline new material. You can also mark deleted material and inserted material using logical markup. For backwards compatibility, combine this potentially ignored new logical with the old physical markup. When editing regular wiki articles, just make your changes and do not mark them up in any special way. When editing your own previous remarks in talk pages, it is sometimes appropriate to mark up deleted or inserted material.	You can <s>strike out deleted material</s> and <u>underline new material</u>. You can also mark <del>deleted material</del> and <ins>inserted material</ins> using logical markup. For backwards compatibility, combine this potentially ignored new <del>logical</del> with the old <s><del>physical</del></s> markup.
Suppressing interpretation of markup: Link → (''to'') the [[F.A.Q.]] Used to show literal data that would otherwise have special meaning. Escape all wiki markup, including that which looks like HTML tags. Does not escape HTML character references. To escape HTML character references such as &rarr; use &amp;rarr;	<nowiki>Link &rarr; (''to'') the [[F.A.Q.]]</nowiki>
Commenting page source: not shown when viewing page Used to leave comments in a page for future editors. Note that most comments should go on the appropriate Talk page.	<!-- comment here -->
Diacritical marks: À Á Â Ã Ä à Æ Ç È É Ê Ë Ì Í Î Ï Ñ Ò Ó Ô Õ Ö Ø Ù Ú Û Ü ß à á â ã ä Ã¥ æ ç è é ê ë Ã¬ í î ï ñ ò ó ô œ õ ö ø ù ú û ü ÿ Used for non-English languages and certain usernames.	&Agrave; &Aacute; &Acirc; &Atilde; &Auml; &Aring; &AElig; &Ccedil; &Egrave; &Eacute; &Ecirc; &Euml; &Igrave; &Iacute; &Icirc; &Iuml; &Ntilde; &Ograve; &Oacute; &Ocirc; &Otilde; &Ouml; &Oslash; &Ugrave; &Uacute; &Ucirc; &Uuml; &szlig; &agrave; &aacute; &acirc; &atilde; &auml; &aring; &aelig; &ccedil; &egrave; &eacute; &ecirc; &euml; &igrave; &iacute; &icirc; &iuml; &ntilde; &ograve; &oacute; &ocirc; &oelig; &otilde; &ouml; &oslash; &ugrave; &uacute; &ucirc; &uuml; &yuml;
Punctuation: ¿ ¡ § ¶ † ‡ • – — ‹ › « Â» ‘ ’ “ ”	&iquest; &iexcl; &sect; &para; &dagger; &Dagger; &bull; &ndash; &mdash; &lsaquo; &rsaquo; &laquo; &raquo; &lsquo; &rsquo; &ldquo; &rdquo;
Commercial symbols: ™ © ® ¢ € Â¥ £ ¤	&trade; &copy; &reg; &cent; &euro; &yen; &pound; &curren;
Subscripts: x1 x2 x3 or x₀ x₁ x₂ x₃ x₄ x₅ x₆ x₇ x₈ x₉ Superscripts: x1 x2 x3 or x⁰ x¹ x² x³ x⁴ x⁵ x⁶ x⁷ x⁸ x⁹ The latter methods of sub/superscripting cannot be used in the most general context, as they rely on Unicode support which may not be present on all users' machines. For the 1-2-3 superscripts, it is nevertheless preferred when possible (as with units of measurement) because most browsers have an easier time formatting lines with it. ε0 = 8.85 × 10−12 C² / J m. 1 hectare = 1 E4 m²	x<sub>1</sub> x<sub>2</sub> x<sub>3</sub> or <br /> x&#8320; x&#8321; x&#8322; x&#8323; x&#8324; <br /> x&#8325; x&#8326; x&#8327; x&#8328; x&#8329; x<sup>1</sup> x<sup>2</sup> x<sup>3</sup> or <br /> x&#8304; x&sup1; x&sup2; x&sup3; x&#8308; <br /> x&#8309; x&#8310; x&#8311; x&#8312; x&#8313; &epsilon;<sub>0</sub> = 8.85 &times; 10<sup>&minus;12</sup> C&sup2; / J m. 1 [[hectare]] = [[1 E4 m&sup2;]]
Greek characters: α β γ δ ε ζ η θ ι κ λ μ ν ξ ο π ρ σ ς τ υ φ χ ψ ω Γ Δ Θ Λ Ξ Π Σ Φ Ψ Ω	&alpha; &beta; &gamma; &delta; &epsilon; &zeta; &eta; &theta; &iota; &kappa; &lambda; &mu; &nu; &xi; &omicron; &pi; &rho; &sigma; &sigmaf; &tau; &upsilon; &phi; &chi; &psi; &omega; &Gamma; &Delta; &Theta; &Lambda; &Xi; &Pi; &Sigma; &Phi; &Psi; &Omega;
Mathematical characters: ∫ ∑ ∏ √ − ± ∞ ≈ ∝ ≡ ≠ ≤ ≥ × · ÷ ∂ ′ ″ ∇ ‰ ° ∴ ℵ ø ∈ ∉ ∩ ∪ ⊂ ⊃ ⊆ ⊇ ¬ ∧ ∨ ∃ ∀ ⇒ ⇐ ⇓ ⇑ ⇔ → ↓ ↑ ← ↔	&int; &sum; &prod; &radic; &minus; &plusmn; &infin; &asymp; &prop; &equiv; &ne; &le; &ge; &times; &middot; &divide; &part; &prime; &Prime; &nabla; &permil; &deg; &there4; &alefsym; &oslash; &isin; &notin; &cap; &cup; &sub; &sup; &sube; &supe; &not; &and; &or; &exist; &forall; &rArr; &lArr; &dArr; &uArr; &hArr; &rarr; &darr; &uarr; &larr; &harr;
<math>\sin x + \ln y</math> sinx + lny <math>\mathbf{x} = 0</math> x = 0 Ordinary text should use wiki markup for emphasis, and should not use <i> or <b>. However, mathematical formulas often use italics, and sometimes use bold, for reasons unrelated to emphasis. Complex formulas should use <math> markup, and simple formulas may use <math>; or <i> and <b>; or '' and '''. When necessary, wiki markup is preferred over HTML markup like <i> and <b>.	<math>\sin x + \ln y</math> sin''x'' + ln''y'' <math>\mathbf{x} = 0</math> '''x''' = 0
Spacing in simple math formulas: Obviously, x² ≥ 0 is true when x is a real number. To space things out without allowing line breaks to interrupt the formula, use non-breaking spaces: &nbsp;.	Obviously, ''x''&sup2;&nbsp;&ge;&nbsp;0 is true when ''x'' is a real number.
Complicated formulas: <math>\sum_{n=0}^\infty \frac{x^n}{n!}</math> See Help:Formula for how to use <math>. A formula displayed on a line by itself should probably be indented by using the colon (:) character.	: <math>\sum_{n=0}^\infty \frac{x^n}{n!}</math>

No/limited formatting

showing exactly what is being typed

A few different kinds of formatting will tell the wiki to display things as you typed them - what you see, is what you get!

	What it looks like	What you type
<nowiki> tags	The nowiki tag ignores wiki ''markup''. It reformats text by removing newlines and multiple spaces. It still interprets special characters: →	<nowiki> The nowiki tag ignores wiki ''markup''. It reformats text by removing newlines and multiple spaces. It still interprets special characters: &rarr; </nowiki>
<pre> tags	The pre tag ignores wiki ''markup''. It also doesn't reformat text. It still interprets special characters: →	<pre> The pre tag ignores wiki ''markup''. It also doesn't reformat text. It still interprets special characters: &rarr; </pre>
Leading spaces	Leading spaces are another way to preserve formatting. Putting a space at the beginning of each line stops the text from being reformatted. It still interprets wiki markup and special characters: →	Leading spaces are another way to preserve formatting. Putting a space at the beginning of each line stops the text from being reformatted. It still interprets wiki ''markup'' and special characters: &rarr;

Table of contents

Having at least four headers on a page triggers the Table of Contents to appear in front of the first header (or after introductory sections). Putting __TOC__ anywhere forces the TOC to appear at that point (instead of just before the first header). Putting __NOTOC__ anywhere forces the TOC to disappear. Putting {{TOCright}} moves the Table to the right side of the page.

Tables

There are two ways to build tables:

• in special Wiki-markup (see Help:Table)
• with the usual HTML elements: <table>, <tr>, <td> or <th>.

For the latter, and a discussion on when tables are appropriate, see Help:Table.

Variables

(See also Help:Variable)

Code	Effect
{{CURRENTWEEK}}	18
{{CURRENTDOW}}	5
{{CURRENTMONTH}}	05
{{CURRENTMONTHNAME}}	May
{{CURRENTMONTHNAMEGEN}}	May
{{CURRENTDAY}}	3
{{CURRENTDAYNAME}}	Friday
{{CURRENTYEAR}}	2024
{{CURRENTTIME}}	21:34
{{NUMBEROFARTICLES}}	4,983
{{NUMBEROFUSERS}}	11,526
{{PAGENAME}}	Editing
{{NAMESPACE}}	Help
{{REVISIONID}}	139340
{{localurl:pagename}}	/index.php?title=Pagename
{{localurl:project:Sandbox|action=edit}}	/index.php?title=MafiaWiki:Sandbox&action=edit
{{fullurl:pagename}}	http://wiki.mafiascum.net/index.php?title=Pagename
{{fullurl:pagename|query_string}}	http://wiki.mafiascum.net/index.php?title=Pagename&query_string
{{SERVER}}	http://wiki.mafiascum.net
{{ns:1}}	Talk
{{ns:2}}	User
{{ns:3}}	User talk
{{ns:4}}	MafiaWiki
{{ns:5}}	MafiaWiki talk
{{ns:6}}	File
{{ns:7}}	File talk
{{ns:8}}	MediaWiki
{{ns:9}}	MediaWiki talk
{{ns:10}}	Template
{{ns:11}}	Template talk
{{ns:12}}	Help
{{ns:13}}	Help talk
{{ns:14}}	Category
{{ns:15}}	Category talk
{{SITENAME}}	MafiaWiki

NUMBEROFARTICLES is the number of pages in the main namespace which contain a link and are not a redirect, in other words number of articles, stubs containing a link, and disambiguation pages.

CURRENTMONTHNAMEGEN is the genitive (possessive) grammatical form of the month name, as used in some languages; CURRENTMONTHNAME is the nominative (subject) form, as usually seen in English.

In languages where it makes a difference, you can use constructs like {{grammar:case|word}} to convert a word from the nominative case to some other case. For example, {{grammar:genitive|{{CURRENTMONTHNAME}}}} means the same as {{CURRENTMONTHNAMEGEN}}.

Templates

The MediaWiki software has support for templates. This means standardized text chunks (such as boilerplate text) can be inserted into articles. For example, typing {{stub}} will appear as "This article is a stub. You can help by expanding it." when the page is saved. See Special:Allpages for the complete list.

Hiding the edit links

Insert __NOEDITSECTION__ into the document to suppress the edit links that appear next to every section header. Use with caution, as this means editors have to load the entire document into the edit window to make any changes.