Help talk:Introduction to referencing with Wiki Markup/4

This page is not for seeking help or making test edits.
It is solely for discussing the Introduction to referencing with Wiki Markup/4 page.

Get help at the Teahouse for using and editing Wikipedia.

For common questions about Wikipedia, see Help:Contents. To make test edits, please use the Sandbox.

Wikipedia Help NA‑class Mid‑importance

	This page is within the scope of the Wikipedia Help Project, a collaborative effort to improve Wikipedia's help documentation for readers and contributors. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks. To browse help related resources see the Help Menu or Help Directory. Or ask for help on your talk page and a volunteer will visit you there.Wikipedia HelpWikipedia:Help ProjectTemplate:Wikipedia Help ProjectHelp
NA	This page does not require a rating on the project's quality scale.
Mid	This page has been rated as Mid-importance on the project's importance scale.

Comments

I would like to assert that the Wikipedia policy on reliable sources is not viable for certain types of content. One example of many is the field of open-source software.

In many cases, the source of authority for an open-source project will be the author/creator of the software. That author, and also avid supporters, will not have any published work that falls into the categories of " ...university textbooks, books published by respected publishing houses, magazines, journals, and mainstream newspapers..." Many examples abound, one that just popped into my mind after I decided to post this, is the Classic Shell project. [[1]].

I just reviewed the Classic Shell Wikipedia page, and it has not a single reference to " ...university textbooks, books published by respected publishing houses, magazines, journals, and mainstream newspapers..." Yet, it is a very accurate and complete Wikipedia page. Must we wait for some university-Prof to write a scholarly paper on Classic Shell (a paper that will be outdated the moment it is published) to satisfy Wikipedia?

Wikipedia needs to wake up and realize that as we move toward the middle of the 21st century, a 20th century definition of "Reliable Source" is not going to serve us well for all fields of study. $tephen T. Crye (talk) 22:45, 21 June 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Then what would you suggest? From my point of view, any definition will have flaws and areas where it doesn't work perfectly. Ironholds (talk) 13:56, 22 June 2013 (UTC)[reply]

I would stress that a reliable source does not have to be university texts, books from respected publishers, and so forth; those are merely examples of the types of sources that are usually the best. As long as you've got a source that fair, generally-educated readers would largely consider authoritative, you are usually okay. Scholarly essays, highly-established newspapers and such are again just examples of the sources that usually best fit these criteria. NTox · talk 18:52, 22 June 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Semi-protected edit request on 14 December 2017

It is requested that an edit be made to the semi-protected help page at Help:Introduction to referencing with Wiki Markup/4. (edit · history · last · links · protection log)

This template must be followed by a complete and specific description of the request, that is, specify what text should be removed and a verbatim copy of the text that should replace it. "Please change X" is not acceptable and will be rejected; the request must be of the form "please change X to Y".

The edit may be made by any autoconfirmed user. Remember to change the |answered=no parameter to "yes" when the request has been accepted, rejected or on hold awaiting user input. This is so that inactive or completed requests don't needlessly fill up the edit requests category. You may also wish to use the {{ESp}} template in the response. To request that a page be protected or unprotected, make a protection request.

Americo "Rico" Alviti is the real founder, he never got paid, the business was never paid for, Alviti is still alive in Revere Mass 2600:8805:B000:3890:BD20:99B4:A264:FB06 (talk) 04:28, 14 December 2017 (UTC)[reply]