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User:SpringSummerAutumn

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Am new to Wikipedia so am slowly sorting through all the regulations to make things as accurate as possible with aim for NPOV, converting direct copy from books into enclyopedic format (using correct wording and rephrasing what is not dry and enclyopedic enough + making sure things do not violate copywright and don't sound like an advertisment). Am bound to make mistakes although i consider that vital to learning how to become a better editor and contributor. I'm finding one of my major challenges is having to reword things although written in reputable 3rd party sources the language doesn’t always fit guidelines probably. Although have adopted the idea "how would an academic journal present this?"

Please do not bite the newcomers

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Wikipedia:Please do not bite the newcomers: "Wikipedia articles are improved through the hard work of regular editors, but also through numerous anonymous contributions made by newcomers. Remember: all of us were new editors at Wikipedia once, and in some ways (such as when editing an article on a topic outside our usual scope) even the most experienced among us are still newcomers.

New members are prospective contributors and are therefore Wikipedia's most valuable resource. We must treat newcomers with kindness and patience — nothing scares potentially valuable contributors away faster than hostility. It is difficult for a newcomer to be completely familiar with all of the policies, guidelines, and community standards of Wikipedia before they start editing. Even the most experienced editors may need a gentle reminder from time to time.

  • Understand that newcomers are both necessary for and valuable to the community. By empowering newcomers, we can improve the diversity of knowledge, perspectives, and ideals on Wikipedia, thereby preserving its neutrality and integrity as a resource and ultimately increasing its value. In fact, it has been found that newcomers are responsible for adding the majority of lasting content to Wikipedia (i.e., substantive edits): while insiders and administrators are responsible for a large bulk of total edits, these often involve tweaking, reverting, and rearranging content.[1]
  • Remember, our motto and our invitation to the newcomer is be bold. We have a set of rules, standards, and traditions, but they must not be applied in such a way as to thwart the efforts of newcomers who take that invitation at face value. A newcomer brings a wealth of ideas, creative energy, and experience from other areas that, current rules and standards aside, have the potential to better our community and Wikipedia as a whole. It may be that the rules and standards need revising or expanding; perhaps what the newcomer is doing "wrong" may ultimately improve Wikipedia. Observe for a while and, if necessary, ask what the newcomer is trying to achieve before concluding that their efforts are substandard or that they are simply "wrong."
  • If a newcomer seems to have made a small mistake (e.g., forgetting to put book titles in italics), try to correct it yourself: do not slam the newcomer. Remember, this is a place where anyone may edit and therefore it is in every sense each person's responsibility to edit, rather than to criticize or supervise others."

'Raw Thought: Who Writes Wikipedia?': http://www.aaronsw.com/weblog/whowriteswikipedia

Making more wikipedian's

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"Many people create a new article, only to see it get deleted after an AfD discussion where random Wikipedians try to think up negative things to say about it. For someone who thought they were donating their time to help the project, neither response is particularly encouraging. I’m not saying that we should change our policies or automatically keep everything a newcomer decides to add so we don’t hurt their feelings. But we do need to think more about how to enforce policies without turning valuable newcomers away, how we can educate them instead of alienating them." - http://www.aaronsw.com/weblog/morewikipedians


Interested in improving information available for:

/Sandbox /Sandbox2 /Sandbox3 /Sandbox4 /Sandbox5 /Sandbox6 /Sandbox7