Difference between revisions of "Project:Editing Guidelines"

Revision as of 12:53, 15 April 2011

Help Portal:

Why should I contribute?

Just like Second Life itself, this wiki is powered by user content, whether it's a brief tip you want to share or an extensive how-to guide on a given topic. Plus, it's convenient for your own reference. Many valuable contributions are exactly that: you solved a problem for yourself, which in turn benefits fellow Residents.

Not a techy geek? Don't worry, Residents from all walks of "Second Life" contribute here, and having diverse perspectives on a single help page can truly be more the "sum of its parts". Need reassurance? See wiki myths busted.

Just like you didn't go from being a baby to a grownup in a day, knowledge on this wiki evolves gradually. There's no rush. Enjoy being checking back and becoming more comfortable over time, learning from others' contributions so you become more confident to do your own.

How can I contribute?

Every Resident can create new pages and add to many existing pages. There's no obligation to, but Linden lab welcomes your awesome contributions! Before you edit, we recommend being familiar with browsing this wiki, so you understand style, structure, and content. While there are similarities to other wikis out there, certain specifics apply here.

Editing pages

Editing an existing page is super-easy. You may want to first start by correcting a typo or other small change:

Click Log in in the upper right.
Enter your Second Life username and password.
Click Log in button.
Go to the page you want to edit.
Click the edit tab near the top.
Make changes, then scroll to the bottom and click Show preview.
If happy with your changes, scroll to the bottom and click Save page.

This video shows you how to do it in action:

<videoflash type="youtube">VJFGUv5KnG8|640|385</videoflash>

Tip: If you'd like to see a help page edited/created but aren't confident enough to do it yourself and don't know a more experienced friend who could help, feel free to ask Torley Linden.

Creating pages

To create a new page which can be edited by you and others, read the "Quickie Wiki Intro".

When creating a new page:

Help prevent wiki sprawl by editing existing pages rather than creating new pages when possible.
Use the simplest, most obvious name possible. You can always create a redirect and/or disambiguation page later if needed.
When a page is aimed at a specific audience, please include a brief introduction for people who aren't familiar with the content, or link to further information.

What's a "User" page?

^ Click to learn more.

Content

We appreciate any info that benefits our Second Life community. This excludes blatant ads and spam. All content must be suitable for general consumption ( General in terms of inworld ratings), and compliant with our Community Standards as well as the Terms of Service. While the wiki is a different tool than the blogs and forums, their discussion guidelines are also relevant here.

All content added to the Second Life Wiki must be compatible with our Terms of Use and Contribution Agreement.

Besides that, be bold.

Point of View

Articles should generally be written in the third person unless there's an exceptional benefit, commonly the attribution and accountability that comes with sharing personal experiences. Always consider context: for example, a legal document from Linden Lab must be presented in much more formal language than a subjective guide to creating art.

Second Life has a unique culture, so while we've been inspired by others' practices, this wiki's ultimate authority is Linden Lab, not rules made elsewhere. Specific moderation is done at the discretion of these Lindens. Note that while Wikipedia's NPOV can be a useful guideline, we don't strictly enforce it, and when it comes to comprehension, are more generous to include information, akin to TVTropes.

This wiki is for people helping build Second Life, not for complaints about Second Life or Linden Lab. Criticism which supports a feature requests or proposal is acceptable (e.g., "Here's problem X. Implementing Y will solve X."), but refrain from un-useful complaints. A page history's contains its complete list of contributions, so there's no need to sign articles — conversation should go in a page's accompanying Talk page (accessed by clicking the Discussion tab near the top of the screen).

"Edits by proxy" aren't allowed

Making edits on another Resident's behalf isn't allowed because it confuses accountability and is prone to drama which wastes everyone's time. Furthermore, your wiki editing privileges could be revoked. For example, Bob can't add a paragraph to an article and claim that Alice made him do that. This becomes especially troublesome if the edit is abusive. Rather, the correct path of action is for Alice to edit the page herself as best as she can, then Bob makes further edits. It only takes a few clicks for even a new Resident to begin editing the wiki as shown in this video, and while you can certainly seek help, you are responsible for all wiki edits made under your Second Life account name.

This relates to 3.2 in the Second Life Terms of Service:

3.2 You agree to use an Account Name in Second Life that is not misleading, offensive or infringing. You are responsible for activities related to your Account Name, and for keeping your password for this Account secure.

Localization

See Project:Languages for localization guidelines.

Removal of content

Residents can't permanently remove content from the wiki. Use redirects for merged or accidentally-created pages. Articles can be tagged with Template:Delete where redirects seem inappropriate (e.g., where the wiki is used in an abusive manner or where it violates copyright).

Linking of content

Please link pages to related resources to facilitate learning. Link the first appearance in text of a term in need of explanation (like avatar, grid, OGP, etc.).

Categorize your pages where appropriate. See the full list of available categories.

It's also awesome to have a "See also" section at the end of an article linking to related articles that the reader may wish to learn from next. See an example.

If a single article feels "too long", dividing it into smaller, focused articles and linking them is often the more accessible way to go. Articles are expected to evolve fluidly, so there's so single rule here — use your best judgment and keep learning by doing.

Namespaces

Geeky but good-to-know.

Main

The Main namespace is intended to hold most of the Second Life Wiki's content.

"Project" namespace

This wiki has a "Project" namespace. However, that's reserved for meta-info about this wiki itself, such as these editing guidelines, rather than about Second Life. On most MediaWiki installs, the "Project:" namespace is equal to the wiki's name, but it's unset on this wiki; thus, "Project:" is the sole way of getting to that namespace.

"Help" namespace

The "Help:" namespace is reserved for wiki-related help articles, like editing manuals. SL-related help should be added to the Main namespace.

"User" namespace

Every wiki contributor has their own, personal namespace.

Once you login, you can also view and edit your User: page by clicking your name towards the top right (to the left of the "my talk") link. For example, User:Torley_Linden and User:Zai Lynch.

Think of it as an extended profile compared to the one inworld. What can you do with it? Just about anything you wish, from expressing who you are to others, to tracking links to wiki pages you regularly edit for your own reference. Customizing your User: page is totally optional, but as you grow on the wiki, helps others understand who you are.

Obviously, the Point of View guideline doesn't need to be followed here.

Any content abiding by the wiki guidelines can be included in the "User" namespace as a subpage. For example, User:Torley Linden/Contact.

"Talk" namespace

See Project:Talk Page Guidelines for more info.

Templates

Use inclusion templates to ensure consistent navigation.
See Help:Editors Toolbox for a list of useful templates for editors.
See the list of all available templates.