Wikipedia:User page design guide/Metadata
"Metadata" as used here means information about your user page, and/or statistics about Wikipedia. I've also thrown time in here for lack of a better place to put it.
Status changer
- Further information: Wikipedia:User Page Design Center/About you#WikiStatus
Topaz's status changer lets you show Wikipedians whether you are available, busy or offline. Go to here, edit the page and copy the text to your .js page - if you are using the default Monobook skin, this will be at User:Yournamehere/monobook.js. Save the page and purge the cache (instructions for this will be at the top of your .js page), and you should see three new buttons to the right of the 'log out' button. Clicking these will change User:Yournamehere/Status to say 'online', 'offline' or 'busy'.
Now you need to display User:Yournamehere/Status somewhere on your main userpage. To do this, copy the text {{User:Yournamehere/Status}} wherever you want it (it's a good idea to add it to your talk page as well). A good place to position it is at the top of the page, just below the title bar: to do this, use the code
<div style="position: absolute; z-index: 100; right: 14px; top: 38px; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 99%;" class="metadata">Activity level: {{User:Yournamehere/Status}}</div>
Note the additional text 'Activity level'. You can replace this with 'Status', 'Currently:' or something more creative.
The state of the 'pedia
Sometimes for a serious purpose, sometimes for fun or general interest, Wikipedians display various data about Wikipedia on their user pages...
WikiDefCon
Wikipedia vandalism information
(abuse log)
Low to moderate level of vandalism
[view • purge • update]
3.55 RPM according to EnterpriseyBot 22:10, 18 April 2025 (UTC)
It's war out there. This is part of Wikipedia's defense network. This is a warning system set up by Wikipedia's anti-vandalism teams. It is centrally maintained and regularly updated and displays the level of vandalism activity on Wikipedia, and indicates how urgently Wikipedia needs help in that area. Essential for anyone dedicated to fighting vandalism on Wikipedia. There are various ways to display WikiDefCon status, see the example to the right, and the following:
To align the standard template, use {{wdefcon|align=<left or center, right is default>}}
Hexagon1's version, very similar to Misza13's but without the comment, and appears more like a real userbox:
| 4 | WikiDefcon 4
Low to moderate level of vandalism |
Hexagon1's second version, a plain-text level number:
4
Here's one (by Bugs5382) based on the United States Department of Homeland Security Terrorist Meter:
| VANDALISM THREAT | ||||||
|
Misza13's userbox version:
| 4 |
WikiDefcon 4 |
| 3.55 RPM according to EnterpriseyBot —22:10, 18 April 2025 (UTC) | |
Similar to Misza13's, but black:
| 4 |
Low to moderate level of vandalism |
| 3.55 RPM according to EnterpriseyBot | |
Herostratus's version, similar size to Misza13's but different look:
|
3.55 RPM according to EnterpriseyBot 22:10, 18 April 2025 (UTC) change |
LovePlankton's version, similar to Herostratus's but wider:
|
|
3.55 RPM according to EnterpriseyBot 22:10, 18 April 2025 (UTC)change |
By Herostratus, based on maritime weather warning flags:
|
Small craft advisory. (Low to moderate level of vandalism) 3.55 RPM according to EnterpriseyBot22:10, 18 April 2025 (UTC) change |
Davidpk212's version, styled after a PH meter:
Timrem's userbox version:
| 4 | WikiDefcon 4: 3.55 RPM according to EnterpriseyBot |
AAA's verion:
| WikiDefcon |
 WikiDefcon 4: Low to moderate level of vandalism |
| [] |
"Black Box" User:Resident Mario/TemplateContent
Article count
Watch Wikipedia grow from your user page.
(display wikicode here)
(display formatting examples here)
Other statistics
User page metadata
Best viewed with
Some user pages are formatted with browser-specific features. One example is round corners, which are supported by Firefox (and Mozilla). A little notice at the top of the page is usually provided, usually at the top of the page, which specifies which browser the page looks best in, like this:
- This user page is best viewed with Firefox
Some user pages were designed for a particular screen size. Here's a notice which points this out:
- This user page is best viewed at 1280x 1024 resolution
Page identification
User pages can be accessed through web searches. Sometimes a person unfamiliar with Wikipedia may find your user page. Wikipedia is copied all over the place (in "mirrors"), including its user pages, and the usual identification header is stripped. To prevent the general public from being confused, and to help inform the public about Wikipedia, it is customary to provide a notice somewhere on your user page identifying it as a Wikipedia user page (including an explanation of what that means), with a link (in case it's mirrored). Here are some examples:
 |
This is a Wikipedia user pageIf you find this page on any site other than Wikipedia, you are viewing a mirror site. Be aware that the page may be outdated, and that the user this page belongs to may have no personal affiliation with any site other than Wikipedia itself. The original page is located at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:The_Transhumanist |
 |
|
This is a Wikipedia user page: | |
| If you find this page on any site other than Wikipedia, you are viewing a mirror site. Be aware that the page may be outdated, and that the user this page belongs to may have no personal affiliation with any site other than Wikipedia itself. The original page is located at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:The_Transhumanist |
Note: of course you would change the link to point to your user page instead of mine, and you could change the colors and formatting to match your user page style.
Licenses
Vandalism counter
Impersonators
Time
- Date
- Time
- Both
Example:
On this beautiful day of