View source for Template:Contentious topics/alert/common doc

Alerts ensure a user knows what is expected of them. Alerts are a neutral courtesy; never use them to intimidate, coerce, or shame another editor.

To alert a user, open a new section on their user talk page. Paste the following code into it, replacing <code>''topic code here – select from list''</code> with the corresponding code from [[#Codes|the table]] below. Type an appropriate subject line, then save the page.

{{pre|1={{[[Wikipedia:Substitution|subst]]:{{{template-short-hand|alert}}}|<u>''topic code here'' – select from [[#Codes|list]]</u>}} <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki>}}

You also should not issue alerts to editors who have posted a {{t|Contentious topics/aware}} notice on their talk page for a particular topic area, thus declaring they are already aware of the topic sanctions. If that is the case, the filter will remind you that leaving an alert for this user is not necessary.

The template is flexible through the parameters {{para|2}}, which adds text to the box, and {{para|sig}}, which adds your signature.

{{pre|1={{(}}{<nowiki>subst:</nowiki>{{{template-short-hand|alert}}}{{!}}<u>''topic code here'' – select from [[#Codes|list]]</u>{{!}}2{{=}}If you have questions, please contact me or ask at the &#91;&#91;WP:AC/CN{{!}}Arbitration Committee Clerks Noticeboard&#93;&#93;.{{!}}sig{{=}}yes}{{)}}}}
{{{templatedata|}}}
===Logging===

Using this template will trigger [[Special:AbuseFilter/602|EditFilter 602]]. As a result, your edit containing the alert will be [[Wikipedia:Tags|tagged]] with "contentious topics alert". Edits with this tag can be searched for in user contributions, user talk page histories, [[Special:RecentChanges]], and the [[Special:AbuseLog|log of EditFilter 602]].

Therefore, an automatic system log of all alerts is maintained. You need not do anything except leave the alert.

To see whether a user has been Alerted for a contentious topic, load the history of their user talk page and search for <code>contentious topics alert</code> under the 'tag filter' field. You can use the {{tl|Contentious topics/log}} template (usually alongside {{tl|user}} in noticeboard reports) to quickly generate links for conducting searches of issued alerts.

If your alert does not log, please seek assistance at [[Template talk:Contentious topics]].

===Codes===

When leaving a user an Alert, you must replace <code>{{!}}''topic code – select from list''</code> with the relevant topic code:

{{Contentious topics/table}}

===Advanced users' notes===

* Edits containing a substituted instance of this template will trigger AbuseFilter 602. The exact text which triggers the AbuseFilter are declared in the publicly viewable [[Special:AbuseFilter/602|filter conditions]].
* If the parameter {{para|1}} fails to display, {{para|topic}} or {{para|t}} can be used instead.
* This template will return an error if:
**{{para|1}} or an equivalent is not declared;
**the template is not substituted; or
**the template is used outside the user talk or user namespaces.
* [[Template:Alert]] is a [[WP:Redirect|redirect]] to [[Template:Contentious topics/alert]]. Instructions for this template, ''Contentious topics/alert'', are often given with reference to the template name ''Alert''. This is for brevity's sake; the two template names refer to the same actual template.
* Information on adding {{em|new}} topic areas to the index above is given at the bottom of [[Template:Contentious topics/list/single notice]], which is displayed {{#ifeq:{{PAGENAME}}|Template:Contentious topics/alert|below|at the bottom of the [[Template:Contentious topics/alert|main template page]]}}.
* This template is included in [[:Category:Wikipedia templates to be automatically substituted]], so AnomieBOT will automatically substitute it. (As the template returns an error if used unsubstituted, AnomieBOT will not have to frequently, if ever, do this.)

{{Contentious topics/list/single notice}}
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