Help:Editing pages
| Shortcut H:EDIT |
It's very easy to edit the contents of Bulbapedia:
- Click the "Edit" page tab at the top of the page.
- Make changes to the text.
- Click the "Save" button.
Simple as that!
Editing rules, editing conventions, and formatting
The number one rule of wiki editing is to be bold. Go ahead—make changes. Other people can correct any mistakes you make, so have confidence, and give it a try! There are all kinds of editing conventions, rules, and philosophies for the editing of wiki pages, but the be bold rule is the most important of these!
An edit can contribute whole new paragraphs or pages of information, or it can be as simple as fixing a typo or a spelling mistake. In general, try to add or edit text so that it is clear and concise. Most importantly, make sure you are always aiming to do something which improves the contents of the wiki.
When you need to use some type of formatting, such as for new headings or bolding of text, you do this using wikicode or the buttons in the edit toolbar above the editing zone. See Help:Cheatsheet for some of the common types of formatting used, or Help:Wikicode for a more in-depth guide.
The depth and variety of content covered on Bulbapedia means that content needs to be displayed consistently and in an ordered way. To help with this, we have a manual of style that lays these conventions out. You are highly encouraged to read it, and refer to it when making edits.
Edit summary
Before you save a change, you should enter a short note (must be shorter than 500 characters) in the "Summary:" box describing your changes. Don't worry too much about this, just put in a short description of what you just changed. For example, you might say "fixed typo" or "added more information about Bulbasaur".
This summary gets stored alongside your edit, and allows people to track changes in the wiki more effectively.
Preview
It's always a good idea to use the "Show preview" button to see what your change will look like, before you save it. This is also related to tracking changes because every time you save, this is displayed to others as a separate change. By using a preview before saving, rather than saving, then having to do another edit just to make one or more minor corrections, means that the Special:RecentChanges page remains nice and tidy.
Show changes
Another option is the "Show changes" button which allows you to see the differences between the current version and the edited version.
Protected pages
Pages that are protected cannot be edited by anyone except users of a specific group. Protected pages will instead display "View source" instead of edit. In that case, to edit a protected page, contact a user who has permission to edit the page. The default protection levels are as follows:
- None (allow all users)
- Autoconfirmed (prevent edits by new users who are not yet autoconfirmed)
- Sysop (prevent edits by all users except staff)
Other types of editing
With wiki edits you can start a new page, move (or rename) a page, or even delete a page:
Remember you should always aim to improve the overall contents of the wiki with your edits.
Discussion
Every article has its own "talk page" where you can ask questions, make suggestions, or discuss corrections. See Help:Talk pages.
See also
| Navigation | Navigation • Search • Tracking changes • Logging in • Watchlist |
|---|---|
| Editing | Editing pages • VisualEditor • Wikicode (Images • Tables) • Talk pages • Categories • Subpages • Cheatsheet |
| Advanced | Starting a new page • Moving (renaming) a page • Merging pages • Splitting pages • Deleting pages • References • Special pages |
| Templates | Using templates (Link templates • Color templates) • Creating templates (Parser functions • TemplateData) • Lua (Crash course) |
| Customization | Preferences • Skins • Custom CSS • User page • Signatures |
| Archives | FAQ • Uploading images • Tagging images • Manual of style |
| Introduction • FAQ • Editor's Hub | |
