AtheistWiki:Newcomer's guide
From AtheistWiki
These are responses to questions frequently asked by very new users. If you can't find what you are looking for here you should just ask somebody.
Contents |
AtheistWiki
Info about AthieseWiki.
Who writes the articles?
They are written by the community. No single author "owns" any AtheistWiki article although some may have (or have had) primary authors. A primary author has no more say in an article once it is in the community than any other member of the community. As member of this community you have as much right to edit an article as anybody else.
Can you explain your logo?
We have an explanation here.
Editing AthiestWiki
Editing the wiki
Can I insert a religious point of view?
Atheistwiki, not surprisingly, has an Atheist Point of View. This includes, though is not limited to the following:
- Either God does not exist or there is no evidence god exists.
- Religion is at worst toxic and at best unnecessary.
- The Principle of NOMA is invalid and provides no cover for religious ideas.
Edits which include theist points of view are unlikely to stand in article pages although you are welcome to debate issues on talk pages.
I have read one of your articles and I totally disagree with it. What should I do?
If you have objections then you should first raise them on the article talk page. It is better to point out specific errors in the article than it is to post something like, "This is all wrong!!!!" Please remember that if you are trying to change a controversial article, then your objective is to persuade people using reason and logic. If you adopt a condescending or aggressive tone then you are significantly reducing your chances of persuading others.
Under no circumstances simply write a new article on top of an existing article or delete the article. This will probably be reversed as vandalism and you will have reduced your opportunities to make a reasoned case.
What standards of behaviour are expected?
Please read our Community Standards.
Using different pages
More general information and instructions about how to use pages. Some of this applies to most wikis and some is more specific to us.
What are Article Pages and Talk Pages?
Every article has an "Article Page" and a "Talk Page". The content of the article goes on the Article page and debate and comment on the article should go on the Talk Page. Please do not put commentaries on the the Article Page. They will simply be deleted and (probably) moved to the talk page.
What can I do with my user page?
You can put whatever you like on your user page. (With some obvious restrictions like obscenity, slander or racism.) Only you can edit your user page.
Your talk:user page, however, can be edited by anyone and you may not delete items from this page. (Although you may archive them periodically.) The reason for this rule is to prevent the retrospective re-writing of history which has been known to happen at other Wiki projects.
Why does my name always come up in red?
Your name will continue to come up in red until you put something on your user page. Writing anything on that page will stop your name being shown in red.
How do I sign my posts to talk pages?
To sign normally, enter ~~~~.
How do I indent talk pages?
You will notice that, on talk pages, each comment is indented to the right from the previous comment. This is not an automatic function but users make it happen by inserting colons before their comments. The first replier inserts one colon, the second two colons etc etc. It makes things a lot easier to read.
General wiki info
Even more general info.
Is there some way I can see what's going on at the moment?
Clicking on Special:Recentchanges in the Navigation box in the top left will take you there.
How can I keep an eye on articles that interest me?
Select them by clicking the "watch" tab at the top of the page. Changes to these pages will show up in bold in " Recent Changes". Alternatively, you can see what changes have been made to only those articles by clicking on "My Watchlist". You can also edit your Preferences to automatically add any article/talk page you edit to your Watchlist.
Is there a "Talk about Anything/Everything" page?
If you wish to raise a subject of general interest to the Wiki then Talk:AtheistWiki would be the best place. If you want to talk about something which mainly affects you, then putting something on your own talk page may generate interest.
