View source for Wiki help

===Welcome!===
Welcome to the Commons Transition wiki!

Here on the Commons Transition Wiki we are working on original approaches to complex problems.  You will find peers from all over the world collaborating here on the wiki.  We use the wiki as a knowledge base for P2P Transition and Open Coop practices. 

Here you will find some basic instructions to help orient you on how we would like the wiki to evolve. Taking the time to get acquainted with these guidelines and on how to use MediaWiki tools in general will make your work easier, so please do explore the wiki before jumping in with both feet!

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===On Standards ===
Our standards come from trial and error as well as being oriented towards the long term vision of a Commons Transition Knowledge Commons.  Please accept what is written below as a hope for fruitful collaboration.
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===Getting Started===

; Please ask us to register and create and account : One you confirm your email address you may edit pages on the wiki.

;Use your UserPage or the [[Sandbox]] for practice : Gain familiarity with [[How to Edit Wiki pages | making links and new pages]].  Your user page is linked from your username in the top right menu of the page.

;Become familiar with [[Help:Using Citations | using citations]].

;Gain more skills at editing : If you aren't sure how to format something, visit the [[How to Edit Wiki pages | Editing Help page]] for more information.

;Want to become a Pro? : If you want to know everything about editing and [http://mediawiki.org Mediawiki] (the software for this site) try the [http://meta.wikipedia.org/wiki/MediaWiki_User%27s_Guide MediaWiki User's Guide].
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====Double Checking====
;Do make a habit of finding related articles : See additional help with [[Help:Search for Duplicates and Related Articles | searching for duplicates and related articles]].

;Do visit find answers to your editing questions : See the [[How to Edit Wiki pages]] for information about additional conventions for your articles.

;Do proofread your articles : Ensure your work has proper spelling and grammar.

;Do follow the site's article naming convention : page names should be full titles, so instead of "IntroToBlogs" use "Introduction to Blogs". They should also follow the Dr. Grammar rules regarding capitalization thus:
:'''"In titles, capitalize the first word, the last word, and all words in between except articles (a, an, and the), prepositions under five letters (in, of, to), and coordinating conjunctions (and, but). These rules apply to titles of long, short, and partial works as well as your own papers"''' ''(Anson, Schwegler, and Muth. The Longman Writer's Companion 240)''

;Do discuss articles! : Do you see something that is perhaps incorrect, or needs clarification? The best way to make mention of any issues is to use the DISCUSSION function. Please refrain from adding your comments directly onto the ARTICLE page. Every page has a '''''DISCUSSION tab''''' on it.  This is the place to make your comments, suggestions, and to engage authors in discourse.  
: Please do create a horizontal rule between comments on the discussion page by using four dashes <nowiki>----</nowiki> between entries.
: Please do add four ~s to add your "signature" with a time-stamp -- useful for discussion pages OR just click on the signature icon at the top of the edit window...it's the second one from the right. 

;''' Do have fun. :)'''
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===Things to Look out For===
;Do avoid creating empty pages : Please do NOT create blank pages simply as placeholders. Once the pages are created, they are live, and any links to them will then work. When a user clicks their way to an empty page, they have just wasted some of their time. PLEASE - only create pages when you have some content to put into them. You need not have a complete page, but there should be something of value there for users. '''''Thank you!'''''

;'''Do avoid sub-pages''' : Our standard is to '''NOT''' create any sub-pages, EXCEPT for personal pages of Wiki Users and for the Template Tags.  These are pages with a "/" in the title.  If there is a "User:GoodRollin" page, then a sub-page is "User:GoodRollin/My Sub Page". You can use these pages for your sandbox when you create subpages from your User but they are not appropriate for the rest of the site at this time.  '''''Thank you!'''''

;Do avoid CamelCase for page titles: : For example, if you want to create a page named "About Emakina", you can type <code><nowiki>http://research.emakina.net/About_Emakina</nowiki></code> into your address bar, and the new page will automatically be created. When you wish to link to a created page, create the link with the Wiki format of: <code><nowiki>[[About Emakina]]</nowiki></code> and not the CamelCase <code><nowiki>[[AboutUs]]</nowiki></code>.  '''''Thank you!'''''

;Do help mark Incomplete pages : If you think a page is incomplete, mark the page as such by using the Stub template. You do this by inserting the following tag: <code><nowiki>{{Stub}}</nowiki></code>. '''(NOTE: The Stub tag is case-sensitive!)'''  '''''Thank you!'''''

;Do help mark Duplicate pages : If you think that Page A is a copy of Page B, or even close, then please use <nowiki>{{merge}}</nowiki> to tag the pages as requiring merging. '''''Thank you!'''''

;Do help delete Pages : If you find a page that should not, or need not be there, or is inappropriate, edit the page to have the <nowiki>{{rfd}}</nowiki> tag. This will alert Brice to look into it for deletion. '''''Thank you!'''''
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===What Not To Do ===
Wikis are really great for working collaboratively with a large group of people.  Many wikis, like [http://wikipedia.org Wikipedia] have millions of editors.  This is not Wikipedia.  We have only a few administrators, perhaps a hundred editors, and a lot of visitors looking for what would often be considered very specific information.  Because of this it is very important that we are clear that spamming is not tolerated, and that your account will be blocked if you are caught in the act of any of the following activities.

;Do not post malicious code : It's not nice; you and your IP will be blocked.

;Do not link to commercial products : Commercial links have no place on this wiki.  You will be warned and your articles will be deleted.  A second offense and you and your IP will be blocked.
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===Following Up===
If you have any questions that you can't find the answers to you can visit the [[Help talk:Contents | discussion tab above]] and leave a note.  Be sure to sign your note with four dashes '~' which will put your name in and a link to your User page.  You can also use the button that has a squiggle of cursive writing on it to sign your note.
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[[Category:Wiki Help]]