Wiki Help Simplified - Revision history

DErik at 22:27, 21 May 2023

2023-05-21T22:27:32Z

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 First: A link to my test page: [[DErik's Test Page]] (which is redirected to [[DErik's Test Page Renamed]]). Then a TOC of what's here:
 <center>__TOC__</center>
 =Links to various Help and Admin type pages.=
 These are links that may be of particular value or frequently used.

DErik at 02:14, 21 May 2023

2023-05-21T02:14:03Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:14, 20 May 2023
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	*[[mediawikiwiki:API:Tutorial\|API:Tutorial]] is where you can learn to use the Action API.		*[[mediawikiwiki:API:Tutorial\|API:Tutorial]] is where you can learn to use the Action API.
	*[[mediawikiwiki:Special:ApiSandbox\|Special:ApiSandbox]] provides an area where you can experiment with the MediaWiki APIs.		*[[mediawikiwiki:Special:ApiSandbox\|Special:ApiSandbox]] provides an area where you can experiment with the MediaWiki APIs.
	~~[[Category:RCGRS Wiki Help]]~~
	==See Also==		==See Also==
	#[[Wiki Usage and Editing]]		#[[Wiki Usage and Editing]]
	#[[Link Reference in the Wiki]]		#[[Link Reference in the Wiki]]
	#[[DErik's TOC Xprmnts]]		#[[DErik's TOC Xprmnts]]
	#Other articles in the [[:Category:~~RCGRS~~ Wiki ~~Help~~]]		#Other articles in the [[:Category:Wiki Article Development]]
	----		----
	*[[User:DErik\|Don Erikstrup]] - Please use the [[Talk:Wiki_Usage_and_Editing\|discussion]] tab above to leave me a note or comment. Or leave a coment at DErik's [[User_talk:DErik\|talk]] page.		*[[User:DErik\|Don Erikstrup]] - Please use the [[Talk:Wiki_Usage_and_Editing\|discussion]] tab above to leave me a note or comment. Or leave a coment at DErik's [[User_talk:DErik\|talk]] page.
	[[Category:Wiki Article Development]]		[[Category:Wiki Article Development]]

DErik at 02:10, 21 May 2023

2023-05-21T02:10:09Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:10, 20 May 2023
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	----		----
	*[[User:DErik\|Don Erikstrup]] - Please use the [[Talk:Wiki_Usage_and_Editing\|discussion]] tab above to leave me a note or comment. Or leave a coment at DErik's [[User_talk:DErik\|talk]] page.		*[[User:DErik\|Don Erikstrup]] - Please use the [[Talk:Wiki_Usage_and_Editing\|discussion]] tab above to leave me a note or comment. Or leave a coment at DErik's [[User_talk:DErik\|talk]] page.
	[[Category:~~RCGRS~~ Wiki ~~Help~~]]		[[Category:Wiki Article Development]]

DErik at 18:01, 7 May 2023

2023-05-07T18:01:11Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 11:01, 7 May 2023
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	This page is to help me keep track of various Wiki related attributes and capabilities while I learn how this thing works. I am attempting to organize and simplify the wiki help pages.<span style="color:red;"><br>Constant changes by [[User:DErik\|DErik]] ([[User talk:DErik\|talk]]) <br></span>		This page is to help me keep track of various Wiki related attributes and capabilities while I learn how this thing works. I am attempting to organize and simplify the wiki help pages.<span style="color:red;"><br>Constant changes by [[User:DErik\|DErik]] ([[User talk:DErik\|talk]]) <br></span>
	First: A link to my test page: [[DErik's Test Page]] (which is redirected to [[DErik's Test Page Renamed]]. Then a TOC of what's here:		First: A link to my test page: [[DErik's Test Page]] (which is redirected to [[DErik's Test Page Renamed]]). Then a TOC of what's here:
	<center>__TOC__</center>		<center>__TOC__</center>
	=Links to various Help and Admin type pages.=		=Links to various Help and Admin type pages.=

DErik at 18:00, 7 May 2023

2023-05-07T18:00:32Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 11:00, 7 May 2023
Line 1:		Line 1:
	This page is to help me keep track of various Wiki related attributes and capabilities while I learn how this thing works. I am attempting to organize and simplify the wiki help pages.<br>		This page is to help me keep track of various Wiki related attributes and capabilities while I learn how this thing works. I am attempting to organize and simplify the wiki help pages.<span style="color:red;"><br>Constant changes by [[User:DErik\|DErik]] ([[User talk:DErik\|talk]]) <br></span>
	First: A link to my test page: [[DErik's Test Page]] (which is redirected to [[DErik's Test Page Renamed]]. Then a TOC of what's here:		First: A link to my test page: [[DErik's Test Page]] (which is redirected to [[DErik's Test Page Renamed]]. Then a TOC of what's here:
	<center>__TOC__</center>		<center>__TOC__</center>

DErik at 16:43, 5 May 2023

2023-05-05T16:43:09Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:43, 5 May 2023
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	This page is to help me keep track of various Wiki related attributes and capabilities while I learn how this thing works.<br>		This page is to help me keep track of various Wiki related attributes and capabilities while I learn how this thing works. I am attempting to organize and simplify the wiki help pages.<br>
	First: A link to my test page: [[DErik's Test Page]] (which is redirected to [[DErik's Test Page Renamed]]. Then a TOC of what's here:		First: A link to my test page: [[DErik's Test Page]] (which is redirected to [[DErik's Test Page Renamed]]. Then a TOC of what's here:
	<center>__TOC__</center>		<center>__TOC__</center>

DErik: Created page with "This page is to help me keep track of various Wiki related attributes and capabilities while I learn how this thing works.
First: A link to my test page: DErik's Test Page (which is redirected to DErik's Test Page Renamed. Then a TOC of what's here: TOC =Links to various Help and Admin type pages.= These are links that may be of particular value or frequently used. Special:AllPages: To get a list of all the pages in this wiki. Spe..."

2023-05-05T16:38:13Z

Created page with "This page is to help me keep track of various Wiki related attributes and capabilities while I learn how this thing works. First: A link to my test page: DErik's Test Page (which is redirected to DErik's Test Page Renamed. Then a TOC of what's here: <center>__TOC__</center> =Links to various Help and Admin type pages.= These are links that may be of particular value or frequently used. *Special:AllPages: To get a list of all the pages in this wiki. *Spe..."

New page

This page is to help me keep track of various Wiki related attributes and capabilities while I learn how this thing works. 
First: A link to my test page: [[DErik's Test Page]] (which is redirected to [[DErik's Test Page Renamed]]. Then a TOC of what's here:
<center>__TOC__</center>
=Links to various Help and Admin type pages.=
These are links that may be of particular value or frequently used.
*[[Special:AllPages]]: To get a list of all the pages in this wiki.
*[[Special:Upload]]: Help page for uploading files.
*[[Special:ListFiles]]: To see what's been uploaded.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Formatting|Help:Formatting]]: For basic explanation of the editing icons at the top of the "edit" or "edit source" page.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Images|Help:Images]] Describes how to put images, full-size or thumbnails, in the page. Includes sizing and positioning. Also captions, but for thumbnails only.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Manual:Configuration_settings|Manual:Configuration_settings]] Provide a one-line description of all the configuration parameters. These parameters are typically placed in the <code>LocalSettings.php</code> file.
See also:
*[[MediaWiki:Sidebar]], and help for it at [[mediawikiwiki:Manual:Interface/Sidebar|Manual:Interface/Sidebar]]
*[[MediaWiki:Monobook.js]] The Javascript file to put extra Javascript for the Monobook skin
*[[User:DErik/common.js]] A place to put Javascript that applies only to a user (DErik in this case). I have put <code>'''''function ModifySidebar( action, section, name, link )'''''</code> in there now in an attempt to modify what is placed in the sidebar; but it doesn't seem to have any affect.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Category:Extensions|Category:Extensions]] Help on finding and creating extensions
*[[Special:MyPage]] goes to my Bio
Questions I still have:
*What are "messages" in a page reference?
*References to "interface message" in the Manual:Interface/Sidebar. -- Need to research this.
=MediaWiki Installation=
The first thing you need to be aware of when searching for answers and help here is that this is an "instance" of a MediaWiki site. That is it may have some pages that appear to be MediaWiki pages, but are in fact pages created during the installation of the MediaWiki application that are referenced like MediaWiki pages to support some of the MediaWiki functions and capabilities. Many of these are the "Special" pages, and some of those are generated "on demand", that is you get a brand new version of it every time you ask for it. 
 
Next you need to be aware that each installation of MediaWiki can be configured differently. And that pages in one instance of MediaWiki (which is what this is by the way) can be freely referenced from anywhere, but that the way those pages are displayed, and the information on them, is dependent on the instance of MediaWiki they are associated with. Hence, the display, and content, of some pages may be very different. 
 
This becomes very important in one very important aspect: referencing "help" pages. Wikipedia is another instance of a MediaWiki site. So they are free to configure their site and pages as they see fit, and to create their own pages; and they obviously have done so. Some of those pages are "help" pages. This is fine, but it becomes very annoying and confusing, because MediaWiki itself has taken to referencing some of them. As an example, look at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Contents and https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Help:Contents. Both are "Help:Contents" pages, but have very different stuff in them. This becomes important in that the information provided by the "wiki help" pages often applies to a specific "instance" of the MediaWiki installation, rather than to any installation. So when accessing a page, be very certain that you are accessing the correct version of it. 
 
=Making Links to MediaWiki Pages=
See [[Link Reference in the Wiki]].
=The MediaWiki=
'''[[mediawikiwiki:MediaWiki|MediaWiki]]''': This is really the starting point for setting up a MediaWiki. It has links for downloading and installing MediaWiki, initial "Learn how to" pages, and developer help links. These are good links, but not nearly sufficient. They include the following:
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Navigation|Help:Navigation]]: Learn how to navigate
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Editing_pages|Help:Editing_pages]]: Learn how to edit a page
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Contents|Help:Contents]]: Learn more about reading, editing, and personal customization
*[[mediawikiwiki:Developer_hub|Developer hub]]: From the page itself: "'''This is a high-level overview of MediaWiki development''', including links to the key documents, resources and tools available to MediaWiki developers. It is written '''for skilled [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LAMP_(software_bundle) LAMP] developers who have experience using MediaWiki'''."
*[https://developer.wikimedia.org/ Wikimedia Developer Portal]: Not really sure if this is useful.
=Help Pages Hierarchy=
[http://MediaWiki.org/wiki/Help:Contents Help:Contents] The main help page. From here you can get to:
==Reading==
I have to say that I did not find any of these very useful.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Navigation|Navigation]]: Describes the sidebar (a little bit), some of the tabs at the top, and some of the user links at the top right of the browser page. Does NOT get into putting links in your document.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Searching|Searching]]: Mentions the Search box.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Tracking_changes|Tracking changes]]: Just that you can use some pages to get info on other pages.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Watchlist|Watchlist]]: Reasons for watching things. Click the "watch" button to add it to a list.
==Editing==
Some of these are a bit more useful.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Editing_pages|Help:Editing pages]]: Rules, conventions, formatting tips. Not much else.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Starting_a_new_page|Help:Starting a new page]]: See the "Getting Started" section of our '''[[Wiki Usage and Editing]]''' page. It will be more useful.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Formatting|Help:Formatting]]: Some fairly useful stuff here. But you can use the editor's toolbar to do most of what's described here.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Links|Help:Links]]: Some useful info here. But also look at [[Link Reference in the Wiki]].
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:User_page|Help:User page]]: To quote them: "A '''{{lcfirst:{{ns:2}}}} page''' is a page about a wiki user with an account on the wiki". Mentions the "talk" page as well.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Talk_pages|Help:Talk pages]]: Just conventions and examples.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Signatures|Help:Signatures]]: Useful info on adding your signature (uses your account username) to anything - pages you write or entries you make in a "discussion" or "talk" page. We suggest you do sign you work and comments.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:VisualEditor/User_guide|Help:VisualEditor/User_guide]]: Fairly extensive description of the editor's toolbar options. Worth a perusal.
==Advanced Editing==
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Images|https|Help:Images]]: Fairly good descriiption of how to insert images. Includes examples.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Lists|Help:Lists]]: Gives some useful info on how to create and manipulate lists. They are done similar to just including HTML, and in some cases, HTML would be better. But there are options that MediaWiki provides that are not standard in HTML.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Tables|Help:Tables]]: Tables are done quite differently in Wiki than in HTML. Better check it out. But using the editor toolbar might be all you need.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Help:Categories|Help:Categories]]: Categories are going to be the main way we organize our articles. So making sure you place yours in at least one category is very important. But read the
'''''<center>====== More to come ======</center>'''''
=Sandbox=
*[[mediawikiwiki:API:Main_page|API:Main_page]] provides an overview of the MediaWiki '''Action API''', represented by the <code>api.php</code> endpoint.
*[[mediawikiwiki:API:Tutorial|API:Tutorial]] is where you can learn to use the Action API.
*[[mediawikiwiki:Special:ApiSandbox|Special:ApiSandbox]] provides an area where you can experiment with the MediaWiki APIs.
[[Category:RCGRS Wiki Help]]
==See Also==
#[[Wiki Usage and Editing]]
#[[Link Reference in the Wiki]]
#[[DErik's TOC Xprmnts]]
#Other articles in the [[:Category:RCGRS Wiki Help]]
----
*[[User:DErik|Don Erikstrup]] - Please use the [[Talk:Wiki_Usage_and_Editing|discussion]] tab above to leave me a note or comment. Or leave a coment at DErik's [[User_talk:DErik|talk]] page.
[[Category:RCGRS Wiki Help]]