I came to thinking about this when I encountered this edit. Then, I read through the template messages, and noticed that there were not a set that specifically addressed hate speech and/or improper use of epithets. While, I guess, it could be covered by the disruptive editing, personal attack, and defamation warnings, I feel that the warning system could be improved by having templates for this behavior. Examples:
Please refrain from using racial epithets while editing Wikipedia. Your edits appear to be disruptive and have been or will be reverted. Please ensure you are familiar with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines, and please do not continue to make edits that appear disruptive. Continual disruptive editing may result in loss of editing privileges. Thank you.
Please stop using Wikipedia to spread racial epithets and hate speech. If you continue to disrupt Wikipedia, you may be blocked from editing.
You may be blocked from editing without further warning the next time you make personal attacks on other people. Wikipedia needs to stay neutral and must not be used to spread racist doctrines.
I think you would run into an issue crafting templates specific enough to be practical. Just in the examples above, we have several potential kinds of violations, including vandalism, bias, giving gratuitous weight to offensive content, and personal attacks on other editors. It will be challenging to make a single template that is effective when probably only one of these violations is at issue. --Bsherr (talk) 16:23, 31 August 2018 (UTC)
Uw-nonfree wording
I'm wondering whether the wording of Template:uw-nonfree should be slightly tweaked from "We always appreciate when users upload files" to something along lines of "We always appreciate when users upload files or add them to articles". There are not really anyother uw template related to non-free content, so this one is used pretty much in all cases.
The most common problem related to non-free content use seems to be people inappropriately adding already uploaded non-free files to articles; most of the time this is done in good faith by editors simply unaware that not all files are licensed the same and that each non-free use needs to comply with WP:NFCCP. Anyway, I occasionally use this template in some of those cases, but more than a couple of times the response has been along the lines of "I didn't upload the file, so it's not my problem". Most people never really seem to read beyond the first sentence and get to the part where it says or "or added to a page may fail our non-free policy" or they simply read through it because they overly focus on the first sentence which only mentions uploading. There are no multiple level warning templates for non-free use, so I can understand trying to keep the template's wording as friendly as possible, but it might be best to tweaked that first sentence a bit to mention not only uploading, but also the adding of files. -- Marchjuly (talk) 07:45, 24 August 2018 (UTC)
My new single-level advisory for users like me who are assuming good faith, but have a history of making noticeable mistakes. This should go on my talk page... :(
Thank you protecting the encyclopedia from vandalism and assuming good faith in your contributions. We really appreciate it! However, it seems you are not having your best editing day. Don’t worry; not one Wikipedian has never made a mistake in all their time. This could be because edits have low accuracy sometimes or, in your opinion, that Wikipedia is just a very fast-paced encyclopedia.
Aside from our Five Pillars, we also have remedies that can help you avoid further mistakes you might cause in the future. We hope your insights continue to improve our encyclopedia, and remember that even if you tend to avoid making mistakes, it doesn’t mean they won’t occur again. Thank you.
When issuing a vandalism or other multi-level warning, can one arbitrarily start at level 2 template or whatever level seems appropriate? (Or skip levels on subsequent warnings?) For example, if an editor's first, or only, edit appears to be egregious enough that a {{uw-vandalism1}} seems not bitey enough to warn them off, or too polite for the infraction. This question was spurred by a case of first/only edit by an IP-6 anon that seems to deserve a {{uw-vandalism4im}} for hate speech but has just enough (intentional) ambiguity to it that an "immediate" level may be too strong.
But actually I'm more interested in the general case of whether one can start/continue at any appropriate numerical level. (Previous discussions in archives 8 and 14 were not sufficiently helpful to resolve this.)
Currently, the terms skip and any level do not appear anywhere on the project page. If there is general consensus about this, I'd like to see something added to the project page about whether one can, or cannot, skip levels and under what circumstances. Mathglot (talk) 22:07, 3 September 2018 (UTC)
Many users start with level 2 for many templates as a lot of the level 1 templates include an invite to "comment on my talk page" (with link), and some editors are not interested in inviting disruptive users back to the user space. The level 1 vandalism template recently had that bit removed for just these reasons. But people still avoid it with other templates by starting on level 2.
The talk page invites aside, generally you should start at level 1 and work your way up as some people make just honest mistakes. But, sometimes level 2 or more is called for, as others are deliberately vandalizing, may have made multiple edits to a page, or disrupted multiple pages, posted particularly heinous content (perhaps needing revdel) or used language and/or markup that indicates a proficiency with Wikipedia and are likely block/ban evaders. Just use your judgement. If some admin comes along and says, "you should've used a lower level", just explain your reasoning. But as long as your not abusing the notices, I wouldn't worry about it.
I feel an immediate lvl 2 warning for vandalism (if I'm not confident it's deliberate, I'd place a lvl 1 editing test - so no "accidental vandalism" exists for me) can certainly be justified. I have occasionally used it for massive disruptive editing. I don't really use immediate lvl 2s for other things. I do occasionally post even higher immediate lvl warnings for particularly bad attacks either on other editors or defamatory BLP warnings. Nosebagbear (talk) 22:40, 3 September 2018 (UTC)
In response to your policy change questions. It should be made clear skipping levels is permitted early on in the project page, however de-lineating cases too much becomes it's own problem as I think setting it out will be impossible to do well enough (certainly without being nauseatingly long). Nosebagbear (talk)
Agreed. Leave it on a case-by-case basis, with editors using their own judgement, but prepared to justify their choices if called upon to do so. - wolf22:47, 3 September 2018 (UTC)
It should be noted that these warning templates are not required when warning someone at all. You just have to warn them. They are provided as a optional convenience if you don't want to bother typing out a warning. At no point is there any mandated process that requires you to assign them to someone in a certain order, or go through each level, or anything like that. If someone is vandalizing Wikipedia or edit warring, or something like that, tell them to stop and refer them to the relevant policy. Tell them they can be blocked if they don't stop. If they continue, refer them to the appropriate noticeboard. It's that simple. If you're engaging in debates over what "level" of template you have to use, you're doing it wrong. It really doesn't matter much if you use them all in order, if you skip one in the order, or if you don't use them at all and instead just write them a note. Best practice says you have to warn someone before you block them to give them a chance to self-correct. Templates may be useful to do so, but are not required. Wikipedia:Vandalism has more information about this, and is clear that the templates are NOT a requirement. --Jayron3214:28, 4 September 2018 (UTC)
If I come across an change from | birth_name = Michael Joseph Jackson to | birth_name = Dickhead, to me that is nothing but intentional and I would have no problem giving the editor a final or only warning straight out. - FlightTime (open channel)14:37, 4 September 2018 (UTC)
Regarding the general question, I'm fine with editors starting at something other than level I and not mindlessly insisting that all four levels be delivered before a block. I've seen situations that I felt were rather egregious, and deserved skipping a few steps.
That said, I'm going to push back a little bit on this specific example. I fully understand, and agree that it's hard to think up an AGF rationale; in other words there's no scenario I can think of in which this might be considered an improvement to the encyclopedia. (Maybe if it was someone other than Michael Jackson but no, let's not get distracted). However, I can easily imagine a first-time editor reading something that says that yes they can edit the article and thinking to themselves that this cannot possibly be true. Such an edit may be a simple test of the proposition, and they are likely to be surprised that it actually worked. That doesn't mean the edit should stand, and obviously, they could've tested the proposition with a different edit, but I can tell you that I've seen a number of instances where someone makes ahead scratching edit and shortly thereafter reverts it. My general assumption is that they are testing to see if it's really true they can edit, and when they find that they can, in many cases, they undo it. However, our new page patrollers are so vigilant that they might see the edit before that happens. I think a warning and not necessarily a final warning, giving the impression they've done something horrendous, is always warranted. I tend to feel differently if instead of a one-word edit, it's a full page of nonsense.--S Philbrick(Talk)21:33, 4 September 2018 (UTC)
Yes, but the point is you don't have to use a template. You can (and probably should, if you believe you want to engage the user and correct their behavior) just write them a note and explain why what they did was bad. Templates are not required ever. You can deal with the nuance between "hey, I think you made a mistake, can we talk about it" vs. "hey, it's really obvious you're just here to screw around, cut it out or you'll get blocked!" And the difference between those two statements can be expressed by actually just typing them out to the user in question. --Jayron3217:43, 12 September 2018 (UTC)
I'm proposing to merge the AfD, CfD, FfD and MfD cascades into one XfD cascade to stop users from deleting Deletion Discussion templates and comments-- All four of these cascades just clog up the chart and I think merging would definitely improve readability and usability. StormContent03:00, 14 September 2018 (UTC)
Please add parameter to Uw-test1 to remove "recent". Sometimes I see tests that are not recent and the user hasn't been notified about their tests. Thinker78 (talk) 06:30, 17 September 2018 (UTC)
From the introduction to WP:UW: " If a user stopped vandalizing some time ago, and their edit histories don't suggest a pattern of chronic vandalism, there's no need to warn or block them at all; a welcome template for new users might help future visits." To me this implies that templates should only be used in cases of relatively recent activity. I think for less recent activity a personalized message, or none at all, may be more appropriate. DonIago (talk) 13:22, 18 September 2018 (UTC)
If the bad edit came from an IP address, then a message should only be sent if the edit was quite recent (last few hours), as IP addresses often change frequently. An exception to this is if the editing pattern shows clear evidence that it's the same person making the edits. If the bad edit is from a registered account, then the risk of sending a message to the wrong person is eliminated. However, I still would limit messages to relatively recent activity. Sending a note about an old edit is more likely to cause confusion than anything else.--Mojo Hand(talk)18:34, 18 September 2018 (UTC)
Change {{unblock-un|user=your new username here|reason=your reason here}} with {{unblock-un|your new username here|your reason here}}
as having user= doesn't auto populate new username while renaming. ‐‐1997kB (talk) 02:30, 1 October 2018 (UTC)
I'd like to see if there is consensus for this edit [1] to Template:Uw-copyrightblock. It was previously made as a bold edit then reverted, but it doesn't seem there was any subsequent discussion.
It deletes from the template meesage the content,
You have been previously warned that this is against [[Wikipedia:Copyright status of Wikipedia|policy]], but have persisted
Two reasons. Firstly, the sentence before, "You have been blocked temporarily from editing for violating copyright policy by copying text or images into Wikipedia from another source without evidence of permission," already includes a link to Wikipedia:Copyright violations, which is the more relevant policy, and having the second link only confuses the matter, I think. Secondly, "You have been previously warned that this is against policy, but have persisted" is really applicable to all blocks, and not just for copyright violations. It's probably obvious without saying it, but if it does need to be said, it should probably be incorporated into the meta block template instead of just here. --Bsherr (talk) 19:22, 17 October 2018 (UTC)
I think it would be better for them to ask for help on "my talk page" instead of the help desk. Since I would be the one who sees, and deals with the mistake A 10 fireplane (talk) 15:41, 6 November 2018 (UTC)
Ah, yes... there was a discussion about that awhile back and the consensus was that it was preferred that these users be directed to the help desk instead of the notifying editors talk page. Individual editors have the option of mentioning their talk page in the optional comment box, the notice includes the notifying editor's signature, which links directly to their user/user talk pages anyway (any users with even basic wiki-know-how will know to go there), but for pure fly-by IP vandals, the preference was to not include an express invite to the notifying editor's talk page, so as to avoid vandalism to those pages out of spite. These vandals, and first time users with no idea what they're doing (but with no I'll intent) are better served by the help desk anyway. This all came about after it was discovered that many users were going straight to the level 2 warning, just to avoid the talk page invite at level 1. So the notice was changed. Hope this helps - wolf17:29, 6 November 2018 (UTC)
Should we remove mention of templates from {{Uw-delete4}}, per WP:BEANS? So far the miscreant has blanked four articles, and may be keen to hear of a way to remove content more efficiently… Certes (talk) 11:57, 8 November 2018 (UTC)
I think it's more important that the template properly describes the reason for the warning. If the disruptive behavior is that the user is removing templates in bad faith, a user warning that talks only about page blanking won't fit the situation anymore. But I personally cannot imagine a situation in which I would give all four levels of the user warning to a user for this behavior. It is often underappreciated that, per Wikipedia:WikiProject User warnings/Usage and layout#Multi-level templates for vandalism, one should apply the level that corresponds to the intent in each instance. --Bsherr (talk) 13:53, 16 November 2018 (UTC)
Can someone add a message to contact trustandsafetywikimedia.org if the account is locked? (Maybe we need a new parameter? I am not familiar with enwiki procedures so just posting here.) — regards, Revi10:30, 6 December 2018 (UTC)
1. The link for the "too similar" wording goes to the "Real names" section of the username policy; in this context, it should actually go to the "Similar usernames" section.
2. I'm not sure where the problem with this lies exactly, but I've noticed at least two cases of administrators blocking accounts with impersonator usernames and this template was used in the block reason even when it was a "hard block" so the template should have been uw-uhblock-double (and it was - on the talk page of the blocked account). Diamond Blizzardtalk04:02, 12 December 2018 (UTC)
Wording of uw-subtle1
Template uw-subtle1 currently welcomes the user and thanks them for their contributions. I'm not sure we should be thanking or welcoming vandals even if it's the lowest warning possible. I recently used the template to warn someone who was changing numbers around in an article and immediately felt a bit sick in my stomach that the template actually welcomes and thanks them for their contributions. I immediately switched it for uw-error1 (they were adding false information after-all so I believe it still fits). Should the wording of uw-subtle1 be changed? -=Troop=- (talk) 21:25, 21 December 2018 (UTC)
The way this template is currently worded ("We always appreciate when users upload files. However, it appears that one or more of the files you have uploaded or added to a page may fail our non-free policy.") seems to place more emphasis on uploaders rather than editors adding non-free files to articles, even though this template can be used in both cases. A couple of times when I've used this for the latter case, I received a response along the lines of "I'm not the uploader, so don't warn me". In many cases, the original uploader of a non-free file has nothing to do with the subsequent uses of the file and it's often these additional uses which turn out to be a problem. So, I'm wondering if there's a way to tweak the "We appreciate..." sentence a bit to take the emphasis off uploading. Maybe "We always appreciate it when users try to improve Wikipedia." would work? -- Marchjuly (talk) 02:51, 24 December 2018 (UTC)
I know these are not technically user talk warnings, but they are user warnings, so I think the people here would be interested in this discussion about making the edit filter warnings more friendly. Galobtter (pingó mió) 09:08, 19 January 2019 (UTC)
Uw-subtle3
I've redirected Template:Uw-subtle3 to Template:Uw-vandalism3 as it was before. Here's my reasoning: The uw-subtle series is for edits involving unexplained small changes that may be vandalism. However, level 3 is for assuming bad faith, and once one is assuming bad faith of a subtle change, it is vandalism, and the vandalism series can be used. I believe that was the original reasoning for this setup too. --Bsherr (talk) 18:55, 27 January 2019 (UTC)
I don't have a problem with your logic, however I reverted your change before I saw this discussion. If the redirect is restored, the template documentation and the max parameter should be updated, as well as the parameters of Uw-subtle1 and Uw-subtle2. It would probably be better in that case just to delete this template. Mojoworker (talk) 19:54, 27 January 2019 (UTC)
In the warning it directs users to the warning editors talkpage, if I'm warning them I would prefer to send them to say the help desk as to avoid vandalism on my talk page. And any vandal with decent knowledge of Wikipedia would know where to leave me a message. A 10 fireplaneImform me15:54, 6 February 2019 (UTC)
Vandals don't have questions generally. This has come up before, I suggested the same thing about removing it as I remember. Don't think it matters much. —DIYeditor (talk) 06:10, 7 February 2019 (UTC)
Agree with A 10 fireplane 100%. Template:Uw-vandalism1 used to invite would-be vandals back to the vandal-fighter's user-talkpage. After some effort (and aggravation), I was able to get that changed about a year ago. It's come up before, more than once, that numerous editors will just start with a level 2 warning to avoid "the invite". But a look at all these notices shows that some have an invite to the poster's user-talkpage, while others just simply direct the recipient of the notice to the Help Desk. I think they should all go to the help desk. Thoughts? - wolf01:30, 9 February 2019 (UTC)
A 10 fireplane - Warning message templates and notices should always provide a link to your user talk page so that recipients can easily see who its from and reach out to you if necessary. This is important, not because we care about vandals and trolls having the ability to find you and wreck your user talk page, but (much more importantly) in the event that you accidentally warn, notify, or revert the edits by a legitimate good faith user. They need to be able to reach out to you and straighten things out and as soon as possible. The risk of having your user talk page messed up once in awhile is nothing in priority compared to the benefit and necessity to make sure that good faith editors of all skill levels can easily find and reach you.
From my 11+ years of experience recent changes patrolling on Wikipedia, I can absolutely tell you this: No matter what you do, how hard you try, and what ideas or thoughts you come up with - vandals and trolls will still be able to easily find, edit, and trash up your user talk page if they want to. Even if we were to modify this and the 60+ other templates to remove the link to your user talk page from each message, it wouldn't stop anything. The vandal could still easily find you with the article's edit history, their user talk page edit history, and... haha... in the signature that you leave with each warning message. If your goal is to become a long-term and highly experienced editor in the "recent changes patrolling world" who everyone in the community knows by name because of how involved and reliable you are, you're going to need to get used to the idea that vandals are going to vandalize and trash your talk page, and leave troll messages, threats, insults, and other nasty things there and in an attempt to get a response and a reaction from you. Just do what I do: Ignore them completely. Don't touch, edit, respond to, undo, remove, or do anything else to your user talk page when they vandalize, troll, or leave degrading or insulting messages at you. Treat is as if it didn't exist there at all. Someone else will revert it for you while they're conducting their patrols, and the vandal will quickly get bored and tired of it and move on. Easy peasy. ;-) ~Oshwah~(talk)(contribs)21:16, 11 February 2019 (UTC)
@Oshwah:Alright, I understand. While I would like to avoid vandalism on my user pages I can completely understand how in the grand scheme removing the link wouldn't really affect anything. Also I never even thought about the fact that in the event of a false warning I would hate for the user to be unable (or not know how) to get in contact with me. As just happened today actually I had a user (who I warned for a Unexplained removal of content) apologize and ask me what they could to to remedy the situation.
A 10 fireplane - Trust me, trolling and vandalism on user talk pages is an inevitable event. I've had vandals and trolls leave me some nasty messages over 5 times today... you'll get used to it. Just remember that these people are just doing what they're doing simply to be trolls and to try and get a negative response or reaction from you. No matter what happens, always remember that the best thing you can do is to never give them what they want. These are kids at school, trolls who have nothing else to do, and people who feel that they have the "mask of anonymity" because they're behind a computer screen (even though they really don't if it really came down to it); they're going to be insulting, they're going to be nasty, they're going to vandalize your talk page, they're going to call you names, and if you have the right mindset and a high level of self-esteem and self-confidence - you'll just laugh at the messages and edits, ignore them, and go about your duties. ;-) ~Oshwah~(talk)(contribs)21:46, 11 February 2019 (UTC)
@A 10 fireplane and Oshwah: To br fair, all notices and warnings already have a link to the poster's talk page; the poster's signature. That's why I don't see a need for a second, redundant utp link, when a more helpful link, such as the help desk, seems to make more sense. As I said, several others have previously spoken up saying that they skip right to level 2 to avoid the "here is my talk page" bit, (which isn't the best use of the tiered warning system). Myself, I just manually removed the invite to my tp and added a link to the help desk until the uw-vandalism1 template was changed last year. There is something off-putting about posting a warning the talk page of some obnoxious vandal that starts off with "You just vandalized that article, don't do it again, or else" and ends with "oh, and by the way... HERE is my talk page" (you know, in case you feel like continuing your vandalism spree, why not use this handy-dandy link to the page of the guy that just warned you). Anyway... JMHO. Cheers fellas. - wolf01:14, 12 February 2019 (UTC)
Thewolfchild - Correct; I indicated this in my response above (regarding the signature) - they'll find you regardless... lol. However, new users aren't all familiar with signatures and might require a sentence that explicitly says to "message me on my user talk page here" for them to understand and navigate there. As you indicated, this is in a level 1 warning that assumes good faith. And typically when you assume good faith and are talking to the user about a potentially concerning edit, you'll typically tell them to not hesitate to message you if they have questions. I also will sometimes skip to a level 2 warning if the vandalism is blatant enough to warrant skipping past the "good faith notice" bit. Some levels of disruption just don't call for it. ;-) ~Oshwah~(talk)(contribs)01:28, 12 February 2019 (UTC)
@Thewolfchild and Oshwah:I can see both sides. While you don't want vandalism on you user pages you also want GF editors to be able to contact you. I'll take y'alls advice and if its blatant enough vandalism skip to a level 2 warning A 10 fireplaneImform me04:47, 12 February 2019 (UTC)
@A 10 fireplane: - just remember that with the actual level-1 vandalism notice, that "invite" to your talk page in no longer there. It was changed to an invite to the help desk last year, so you don't need to "skip" that one and use level-2. Most level-1 notices still have the talk page invite, but that one a couple others don't. FYI - wolf06:51, 12 February 2019 (UTC)
This is to warn users who add pages to no-existent categories (see WP:REDNOT), causing them to be listed at Special:WantedCategories. On average, 50–100 such redlinks appear every day, and it is nearly a full-time job to keep the list clear.
So far, there has been no standardised warning for this. I hope that the wording I have used makes sense.
I don't think this is something editors need to be warned about. Some authors are more concerned about the articles they write not the categories in which they are or should be placed. Plus it's very easy to add a category for any drive by editor who notices it. If not sure, better to tag the article with {{uncategorized}} or {{category improve}}. Thanks. StarcheerspeaksnewslostwarsTalk to me22:21, 15 January 2019 (UTC)
Below point aside, I happen to agree with Starcheerspeaksnewslostwars. It's a matter of judgment, but I think adding {{uncategorized}} delivers the point better than a UW message on the user's talk page. I'm curious if others agree. --Bsherr (talk) 22:33, 15 January 2019 (UTC)
Starcheerspeaksnewslostwars, I noticed your reversion. I've been at WP:UTM a long time, and I am not seeing how Jax 0677 acted inappropriately. Per Wikipedia:BOLD, revert, discuss cycle, he can propose a new template on the talk page, or he can create and add it himself. Likewise, if anyone disagrees, he or she can start a talk page discussion, or revert it or nominate it for deletion. But the choice of whether to be bold first or discuss first is each user's. --Bsherr (talk) 22:26, 15 January 2019 (UTC)
It says when creating a new template to notify on this talk page "so that it can be fully integrated as a warning template if there are no major objections.". I assumed "no major objections" meant it wouldn't be integrated immediately because you wouldn't want to do so if there were objections. If TfD is the proper venue for a brand new warning template, I will take it there. Thanks. StarcheerspeaksnewslostwarsTalk to me22:32, 15 January 2019 (UTC)
I see what you're getting at. If Gracenotes, the author of that, were around, we'd sure be talking about it, as it very clearly needs to be revised. WP:BOLD is a guideline, and WP:UTM is...well...nothing, though really it's an unlabeled information page. While we should and do encourage users to discuss first, nothing at WP:UTM should be construed against WP:BOLD. Indeed, I'm going to set out a proposed revision to that paragraph unless there are any other comments here. But yes, far as I know, there are only two ways to get rid of a template, WP:CSD G7 or WP:TfD, so it'll be one or the other. --Bsherr (talk) 22:51, 15 January 2019 (UTC)
The TfD closed as no consensus and I would like to invite those who recommended to keep but rewrite (User:cymru.lass and User:Bsherr), and anyone else, to offer their input or make changes. I asked the template author to hold off warning any users until the language is acceptable, but he not surprisingly refused. StarcheerspeaksnewslostwarsTalk to me21:16, 25 January 2019 (UTC)
I've made some changes, consistent with limiting use to the creator of an uncategorized article, which I think is advisable, as it seems overactive to notify those who merely edit an uncategorized article. As always, reversions and input welcome. --Bsherr (talk) 22:15, 25 January 2019 (UTC)
I think it is inappropriate use of this template to notify an editor of an uncategorized template 3 1/2 years after it was created, especially prolific editors, as Jax 0677 did in this edit. It took me mere seconds to categorize Template:Miriam Makeba myself. StarcheerspeaksnewslostwarsTalk to me20:58, 20 February 2019 (UTC)
Why should the creator of the article be responsible for adding a navigation box you created, especially for an article created over 6 months ago and that you even edited a couple of times? This is not something that editors need to be warned about. This is a collaborative effort, stop wanting to warn others and try helping them. StarcheerspeaksnewslostwarsTalk to me05:18, 8 March 2019 (UTC)
If you believe this block was made in error, you may appeal this block by adding the text {{unblock|Your reason here}} at the bottom of your talk page, but you should read the guide to appealing blocks first.
With:
If you believe this block was made in error, you may appeal this block. To do so, please read the guide to appealing blocks, then add the text {{unblock|Your reason here}} at the bottom of your talk page, and save the page.
Because:
Instructions are better when the steps to be taken are mentioned in the same order as they are to be performed. Iceblock (talk) 20:48, 8 March 2019 (UTC)
I have now found out that various templates in Template:Uw-block/doc/Block templates/Username also mention the steps in the same order this template did. I got an idea of creating a "unblock-instructions" template for these two sentences, and then the template can be added to Template:Uw-ublock and the others by means of {{{|safesubst:}}}unblock-instructions. Would that be sensible? Iceblock (talk) 18:32, 16 March 2019 (UTC)
I have created {{uw-brd}} as a user advisory template to make sure that an editor's edits and reversions conform to BRD. -- /Alex/2105:08, 18 March 2019 (UTC)
Template:Uw-talkinarticle
Was going to be WP:BOLD, but would rather discuss first. There is a link to Help:Talk pages, but later in the template there could be a link to Wikipedia:Talk page guidelines. Probably linked in one or more of the words in this sentence: "However, keep in mind that even on the talk page of an article, you should limit your discussion to improving the article" Gatemansgc (TɅ̊LK) 21:35, 20 March 2019 (UTC)
I just made some minor edits to this template, but wanted to discuss any more significant changes before implementing them. The template currently has "...If you create such an article, it may be deleted. If what you have done in life is genuinely notable and can be verified according to our policy for articles about living people, someone else will probably create an article about you sooner or later (see Wikipedians with articles)." First, telling editors that their article may be deleted— is this helpful or is it just meant to make them feel threatened? Second, the "probably sooner or later" bit also seems unhelpful: lots of genuinely notable people never get Wikipedia articles written about them, and the reassurance of "sooner or later" feels pointless: instead, we could point out the Requested articles page. Lastly, why are we mentioning "Wikipedians with articles" at all? To the extent that this template is meant to be placed on the talk pages of editors who have come to Wikipedia specifically to write an autobiography, the "Wikipedians with articles" mention serves no purpose. So how about, ""...Autobiographies usually have problems with conflict-of-interest, and are likely to be deleted as promotional. If what you have done in life is genuinely notable and can be verified according to our policy for articles about living people, you are welcome to add your name to our list of Requested articles." ? A loose necktie (talk) 03:52, 29 March 2019 (UTC)
mention paid editing disclosure in spam username block templates?
The first two are probably the two most commonly used templates for username blocks, for use in the case of WP:ORGNAME violations. The third is specifically for those representing non-profit organizations. None of them mention paid editing disclosure. Since people creating such accounts are the most likely to be paid editors, it seems like it should be in there somewhere. Any thoughts on how to do so? Beeblebrox (talk) 19:06, 18 March 2019 (UTC)
This edit request has been answered. Set the |answered= parameter to no to reactivate your request.
I came from Template:Uw-3block, but in my experience this applies to many blocking templates. I don't think the phrase "as you did on" necessarily is the best turn of phrase, particularly when it comes to the quoted template. I believe it would be better if it read something like "you have been blocked for violating the 3-revert rule on X", or "on among other articles X".--Launchballer16:51, 4 April 2019 (UTC)
Concerning the use of as you did on X vs on X to me just on X seems to say that the reason the user was blocked was only for their edit to X. The current wording seems to convey that X isn't necessarily the only page that the person may have been damaging, but just one example of the page. Sakura CarteletTalk21:42, 4 April 2019 (UTC)
That's a tough one, especially for new editors when you don't want to bite them, but you do want to warn them about 3RR as they are probably not aware of it. There is an alternative to Template:Uw-3rr, unsurprisingly called Template:Uw-3rr-alt that's a bit more chatty and yet shorter. Maybe it needs to be better advertised? --RexxS (talk) 23:19, 1 April 2019 (UTC)
I think that {{uw-ew}} not mentioning 3rr is intentional; this allows it to be used in cases where somebody who was blocked for repeated reversion has returned from the block and immediately made a single revert to one of the disputed articles, as here. Used in this sense, it doesn't imply that the user had the right to make a fresh set of three reverts with impunity - indeed, it states, in boldfaced text, "Edit warring is disruptive regardless of how many reverts you have made". --Redrose64 🌹 (talk) 06:19, 2 April 2019 (UTC)
{{uw-ewsoft}} is wonderful. It starts with the main point, and has a paragraph break between the problem explanation and the consequences warning. The latter part directly starts with the most important information. The template does not use a big red stop sign in a heated situation; instead, it calmly explains something that is unlikely to be intuitive to new users. It explains Wikipedia's discussion process without drowning the user in details. I rarely ever use any other template to warn edit warriors. The only alternative I use, for experienced users, is a very short, neutral, manual message like "Hi, regarding Article, please keep WP:3RR in mind. Thanks ~~~~" ~ ToBeFree (talk) 11:08, 2 April 2019 (UTC)
Whatever standard template you transclude, even if you use an automated tool, it's you and you alone that's responsible for your edits. No-one's stopping you from writing a personalised message to the user, using the more obscure alternative templates or making your own template. I'm agreed with Ritchie333 that this is a real civility problem that is very normalised among the community, and causes crippling long-term damage to the site, but I still believe the other kind of civility problem does the same thing, just to experienced editors rather than new ones. — Bilorv (he/him) (talk)00:34, 8 April 2019 (UTC)
Hello, I was sudden saw Template:Uw-Violence says in serious case report to law enforcement. Is that real? are they call the cops is this threat get serious? I don’t think they know editors home address and police won’t investigate. Scout MLG (talk) 17:50, 19 April 2019 (UTC)
I have a problem with the wording of Template:Uw-disruptive2 and Template:Uw-disruptive3. Instead of focusing on disruptive editing, it seems to focus on edit warring; it has two bullet-point paragraphs about how to handle content disputes. I propose removing those two items so that the template just warns against disruption. (About related templates: Template:Uw-disruptive1 is very mild and general, like most level 1 warnings. Template:Uw-disruptive4 redirects to Template:uw-generic4 which warns about disruptive editing. And for those who want to warn against edit warring, we already have multiple templates for that, as pointed out in the “Too bitey?” discussion above.) Anyone agree with removing the content-dispute language from templates 2 and 3? -- MelanieN (talk) 22:00, 3 May 2019 (UTC)
@MelanieN: I see what you mean; although edit warring is a type of disruptive editing, the Uw-disruptive templates should focus on disruptive editing in general. It might make more sense if one was to compare {{Uw-disruptive3}} with {{Uw-vandalism3}}: both begin with Please stop your disruptive editing., but disruptive3 then goes on about content disputes/edit warring, which is a specific type of disruption, like how vandalism3 goes on about vandalism (another type, but here it's to be expected of course). Also worth noting in my opinion is the similarity between {{Uw-disruptive1}} and {{Uw-vandalism1}}; the disruptive template is like a milder version of the vandalism one with only slightly different wording. Adam9007 (talk) 22:32, 3 May 2019 (UTC)
I do think there is value in having separate templates for vandalism and disruptive editing, at least at the advanced levels. They are somewhat different animals, in part having to do with the motivation. Vandalism is DELIBERATE bad editing to harm the encyclopedia, by somebody who knows they are doing it; disruption may have many causes including persistent incompetence, promotion, a desire to RIGHTGREATWRONGS, a combative attitude, etc. But it is not the same as edit warring, and when I use one of those templates, I post it and then immediately delete the irrelevant EW stuff. -- MelanieN (talk) 23:19, 3 May 2019 (UTC)
MelanieN, disruptive1 is almost a subset of vandalism1 assuming good faith, but even vandalism1 seems to assume good faith to an extent (which contradicts our definition of vandalism...). As for the other uw-disruptive templates, should the edit warring text be replaced with anything? Or should we simply use the wording from their vandalism counterparts (but with the word 'disrupt(ive/ion)' instead of 'vandalism/vandalise' of course)? Adam9007 (talk) 23:29, 3 May 2019 (UTC)
I would simply remove the stuff about edit warring. For Uw-disruptive2 that would leave
Please refrain from making unconstructive edits to Wikipedia. Your edits appear to be disruptive and have been or will be reverted. Please ensure you are familiar with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines, and please do not continue to make edits that appear disruptive. Continual disruptive editing may result in loss of editing privileges. Thank you.
For Uw-disruptive3 it would leave
Please stop your disruptive editing. If you continue to disrupt Wikipedia, you may be blocked from editing.
Similar to the vandalism pages except doesn't call it vandalism. (And in looking at it more carefully, it should say continued, not continual. I'm tempted to just go change that, it's the wrong word.) -- MelanieN (talk) 23:43, 3 May 2019 (UTC)
MelanieN, Well, that pretty much is using the same wording as the vandalism templates :). And yes, I think that given the context of the warning, 'continual' is the wrong word there (of course continual disruption will result in a block, but the warning is trying to say that you could be blocked if you continue to disrupt despite the warning). Adam9007 (talk) 00:11, 4 May 2019 (UTC)
The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.
– There already are. That is, the standard installation of WP:TWINKLE allows one to do this, (and I assume it could be done manually if one knows the right way to code the template) see [2], it's a specific usecase of {{tpv1}}-{{tpv4}}, so a full suite of four escalating warnings. Beeblebrox (talk) 18:40, 15 May 2019 (UTC)
InvalidOS, per Beeble's comment I suggest withdrawing or clarifying the RFC. I'd also like to note that this is especially the kind of issue where hand-written messages generally work better. I'd really suggest addressing the details of the specific case. Just be sure to include a link to WP:Talk page guidelines#EDIT aka WP:TPO. Alsee (talk) 17:04, 16 May 2019 (UTC)
The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.
@Geolodus: my apologies, I meant to come back later and supply a more real answer. I strongly suspect it is related to the metatamplate {{imbox}}, which is an image box. Beeblebrox (talk) 18:46, 15 May 2019 (UTC)
@Geolodus: From my research, it seems likely this was never documented, and thus Jtdirl is probably the only one who knows.
Here's my research, some of which zzuuzz beat me to:
However, I didn't go so far as to do a filtered grep for "im"; I simply searched a few of the talk archives around the time {{test4im}} was created for " im", so I might have missed something.
The above seems to disprove Beeblebrox's theory, since {{Imbox}} has only existed since 24 April 2008 and the "-im" warnings aren't image message boxes in any special way that the other warnings aren't anyway. I would also guess "immediate", but it's just a guess. eπi (talk | contribs) 20:37, 18 May 2019 (UTC)
That's actually a pretty good question now that I think of it, my first thought is that it stands for "immediate" too. I created it upon suggestion, to mirror {{test4im}}. -- Luktalk10:43, 19 May 2019 (UTC)
So I just came across this monstrosity and I have to say, it's doing an awful job at serving its purpose as a navigational aide. Snarky remark aside, {{single notice links}} is anything but navigable in its current state. Never mind that it's a horizontal list: there's also the {{tl}} brackets, asymmetrical left-right split, wasted whitespace, and arbitrarily color-coded headers. It also doesn't collapse, which probably can't be all that much desired. Anyways, instead of complaining I think I'll do some tinkering when time permits. Curious to hear your opinions. jdeazy (t • c) 02:15, 5 May 2019 (UTC)
jdeazy, you have my Support to tinker. I don't think I've ever seen that template before, but I concur with your comments. The spam of brackets are redundant. Making it collapsible sounds like a plus. The unbalanced left-right split would probably work better as a top/bottom split. I suggest the shorter list go on top. When people quit visually-scanning long content it can cause short content at the bottom to perceptually disappear. Alsee (talk) 16:51, 16 May 2019 (UTC)
jdeazy Hmmmm. It looks good but I was taken aback a bit by the unexpected size. The aligned bullets makes things well organized, but big. I just removed the columns and packed it smaller, assuming no one objects. I'd say it's looking much improved over the original version. Alsee (talk) 22:50, 16 May 2019 (UTC)
@Alsee: that just looks horrible. You left a left-aligned asterisk-separated horizontal monstrosity. Why not substitute div col for flatlist, and remove list2- and list3style? That would leave you with this:
But I believe using a horizontal list is the root of the issue. So I reverted your changes, added an additional column and collapsed the lists. Jay D. Easy (t • c) 23:23, 16 May 2019 (UTC)
@Alsee: I'll admit that I personally think the version shown above is more pleasing to eye than the current rendition with columns. However, my primary concern is the template's legibility and the ease with which one can find an accurate template message, which, I think, is best attained through columns instead of the sardines-in-can effect. Recognizing that this may be entirely subjective, of course, I won't oppose if you decide to apply the aforementioned horizontal styling. Jay D. Easy (t • c) 18:37, 19 May 2019 (UTC)
Requested move 18 May 2019
The following is a closed discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review after discussing it on the closer's talk page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.
– These pages only contain warnings, not general templates; the terms "multi-level" and "single-level" don't even seem relevant outside the context of warnings. Warnings aren't the only type of user talk namespace template messages. eπi (talk | contribs) 18:14, 18 May 2019 (UTC)(edited 18:18, 18 May 2019 (UTC))
@Beeblebrox: I would like to restructure the headings in the Wikipedia:Template messages/User talk namespace, and I'm listing this as a first step to understand how this community considered warnings and user talk namespace template messages to be related. It wouldn't make sense to change the headings to be inconsistent with the subpages; thus I'm listing the subpages first to gauge if there are any objections. eπi (talk | contribs) 01:36, 19 May 2019 (UTC)
"These pages only contain warnings". But that isn't true and the single issue page even contains separate headers for "warnings" and "notices". Unless you consider every notice to be a warning, and I don't think that a very good idea. You say, "Warnings aren't the only type of user talk namespace template messages", so I don't see how this proposal is even self-consistent. What happens to the notices which aren't warnings? -- zzuuzz(talk)11:08, 19 May 2019 (UTC)
I will however note that it appears the multi-level page contains levels of warnings, though it could probably be argued that the lower-level warnings are more like notices. Additionally, every page on the single-level page is prefixed with uw-, even those that are purpotedly "notices", though your point is taken.
I have some further thoughts about reorganizing, but I will withdraw this request for now, and contemplate the exact details further. I am unsatisfied with the current status quo of these pages, but it seems this suggestion is not quite the correct way forward. Retro (talk | contribs) 18:50, 22 May 2019 (UTC)
The above discussion is preserved as an archive of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page or in a move review. No further edits should be made to this section.
Uw-biog2 edit request
This edit request to Template:Uw-biog2 has been answered. Set the |answered= parameter to no to reactivate your request.
Doniago, What do you mean this needs consensus? Both templates are listed at TfD. Surely the tag is uncontroversial? It's no different to putting an AfD tag on a protected article. Perhaps I should have been clearer; by 'Merge tag', I meant the TfD merge discussion tag. Adam9007 (talk) 16:30, 26 May 2019 (UTC)
I guess I'm not sure why you're posting here. Is this just an advisory to ask editors to look at the other discussion? You worded this as an edit request, which suggests you want people to take an action, but with an open discussion at TfD no action should be taken until that discussion has been closed. If you wanted this handled as an uncontroversial merge, then a request here without opening a discussion at TfD would, I think, have gotten the job done, but right now conversation really needs to occur there because TfD is a formal process. You could withdraw the TfD nomination and make it more clear what you're looking for, though? DonIago (talk) 18:01, 26 May 2019 (UTC)
Doniago, The edit request was to put the TfD tag on the page. Twinkle tried to do it automatically, but couldn't as the page is protected. It did manage to put the tag on the other template, and it makes no sense for the tag to be on one page but not the other. Adam9007 (talk) 18:10, 26 May 2019 (UTC)
There is a template {{Uw-ublock-famous}} which is leading users to scanning their government IDs and send them by email to Wikipedia:Volunteer Response Team. I want to organize a policy discussion around this practice.
I am posting here to ask if there is any precedent of discussing this practice at this talk page. The template talk page redirects to here, but so far as I can see, this is a talk page mostly for template management and not for social issues like checking ID cards. The issue that I want to discuss is Wikipedia's WP:Identity verification process, so I started building out documentation on that page and want to host the discussion there.
Here are my questions for this board -
Can anyone show prior conversation about this template either here or elsewhere?
This page is probably the best place to discuss "template management" as you describe it, including any changes to the wording, consistent with other uw- templates. The actual username policy should probably be discussed at WT:U, which is the governing policy pre-dating the template and where you might find some discussion. Some discussion about the current verification process may belong at OTRS. Any proposals or discussions may also belong at the village pump. I think it would be appropriate to advertise any proposed changes in any of these places, but not to change the redirect on the template talk page (or link to a proposal from the template). -- zzuuzz(talk)12:52, 4 June 2019 (UTC)
Cleaning up CSD notification list and adding CSD post-deletion notices
There are two parts of this, but they're birds of a feather. The first are the subset of notices found under CSD nominations in the Deletion notifications column of Wikipedia:Template messages/User talk namespace#Other. The full list is at Template:Speedy deletion notices, but I don't think what is currently listed is representative of the whole. Listing to all four levels of redirects to {{Uw-test1}}, etc., two redirects to {{Db-notability-notice }}, and leading with R2 all seem unhelpful.
Relatedly, I have recently created a suite of post-deletion notices, listed at Template:Speedy deletion deleted. These will soon be added to Twinkle for sysops, so I think it'd be good to list them here as well. Some older ones exist in the CSD deletions area; this would replace those. ~ Amory(u • t • c)00:32, 28 May 2019 (UTC)
There's current a draft here, it's quite confusing as I'm not if its' a normal template that can be used in general, and its only an IP user that has created it.--Mjs1991 (talk) 04:31, 20 June 2019 (UTC)
Requested move 13 June 2019
The following is a closed discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review after discussing it on the closer's talk page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.
Note: I don't see "cia" templates listed on this page (we have "chat") and unlike "chat", "cia" is not template protected. Since these appear less official and redundant, and that they should have been substituted (it would be easy to check for non-substituted instances), an option could also be to delete them as redundant... —PaleoNeonate – 08:17, 13 June 2019 (UTC)
The above discussion is preserved as an archive of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page or in a move review. No further edits should be made to this section.
June, 2019: "It is strongly recommended that you use this before saving."
Since the "Save" button became "Publish changes", this template's use of the term "save" may confuse some users. Is there an unambiguous way to reword the above sentence and thus avoid any confusion?--Quisqualis (talk) 06:56, 24 June 2019 (UTC)
Uw-multipleIPs
How is Template:Uw-multipleIPs helpful? Is it intended for dynamic IPs or static IPs? Dynamic IPs didn't change IPs to evade a block – changing IPs is automatic for them, and they might not even know what an IP is. Static IPs changed IPs to evade a block. So telling them it won't succeed and threatening another block, is just giving them a laugh. All that does is postpone the time when they will get tired of messing with us. Is there some technical issue I'm missing? Art LaPella (talk) 18:39, 1 July 2019 (UTC)
Dynamic IP addresses often change when the PPP(oE)/DHCP sessions are reset (i.e. power cycling the modem/router or telling it to reconnect). In the case of IPv6 on mobile, the addresses often change within a /64 prefix. On the other hand I can't say that I've used this particular message yet. Using multiple addresses is usually considered like creating sockpuppet accounts and when a page is disrupted by multiple addresses/users, page protection is usually increased... —PaleoNeonate – 05:08, 2 July 2019 (UTC)
I've nearly nominated this template for deletion many times. I think the only chance it has is if the wording were somehow switched around. There is nothing wrong with using multiple IP addresses. In the large majority of cases where this template is used it's not a deliberate choice. However, there is something wrong with doing vandalism (while using multiple addresses). Being warned for using the addresses ("Do not use multiple IP addresses") is completely missing the point. The previous wording, although not perfect, got across the real meaning of the message: "You have repeatedly been warned to stop your vandalism of articles on Wikipedia when you came here using other IPs. Please stop." -- zzuuzz(talk)08:37, 2 July 2019 (UTC)
Yes, my Using multiple addresses is usually considered like creating sockpuppet accounts should have been: Using multiple addresses for block evasion or attempting to evade scrutiny is usually considered like creating sockpuppet accounts indeed. This template is really in the context of vandalism, so I agree that it's strange. One thing that I can think of is when a patroller uses rollback but that it's not sufficient because another similar address also edited just before the new one (and this may even be missed). I would support its deletion, I think. On the other hand, its text used to be different and it seems to have been used at east 10,738 times (substituted, so deletion would not affect existing instances). There still are many links to the template itself though... —PaleoNeonate – 09:02, 2 July 2019 (UTC)
Please refrain from using racial epithets while editing Wikipedia. Your edits appear to be disruptive and have been or will be reverted. Please ensure you are familiar with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines, and please do not continue to make edits that appear disruptive. Continual disruptive editing may result in loss of editing privileges. Thank you.
Please stop using Wikipedia to spread racial epithets and hate speech. If you continue to disrupt Wikipedia, you may be blocked from editing.
You may be blocked from editing without further warning the next time you make personal attacks on other people. Wikipedia needs to stay neutral and must not be used to spread racist doctrines.
Template:Uw-patrolled has been nominated for deletion. You are invited to comment on the discussion at the template's entry on the Templates for discussion page. Bsherr (talk) 19:08, 1 September 2018 (UTC)
Done I've made the change Galobtter (pingó mió) 07:51, 14 September 2018 (UTC)
Not done I've fixed the rename link instead. — JJMC89 (T·C) 02:59, 1 October 2018 (UTC)
A 10 fireplane (talk) 17:49, 6 November 2018 (UTC)
wikimedia.org if the account is locked? (Maybe we need a new parameter? I am not familiar with enwiki procedures so just posting here.) — regards, Revi 10:30, 6 December 2018 (UTC)
You are invited to join the discussion at WT:TM#Uw-nonfree wording (repost). -- Marchjuly (talk) 14:04, 19 May 2019 (UTC)Template:Z48
Not done: please establish a consensus for this alteration before using the