Wikiafripedia:Essay directory

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This is a descriptive directory of Wikiafripedia essays and related information pages located in the Wikiafripedia namespace. There are currently around 40 essays, with over two dozen categories to separate them for searching.
You can also search essays by:

• A Special:Search, just include the words "Wikiafripedia essays" (with your other search-words) to hunt a topic inside an essay (note search may result with many non-essays).

• Essays in a nutshell for a quick summary of some essays, as sorted by topic.
• Browse Category:Wikiafripedia essays.
• You can view the list of essays sorted by impact – a weighted score system that took into account the number of page watchers, pageviews for a month, and incoming links. (list generated in January 2012)
• There is also the essay navigation template located at the bottom of many essays.
• For other usefully directories and indexes, see Wikiafripedia:Directory.

Note: Essays and information pages represent the opinion(s) or summaries of an individual or group of editors and are intended to supplement or clarify a process while sometimes offering advice. Essays and information pages are not one of Wikiafripedia's policies or guidelines, thus have no official status within the community. Following the instructions or guidance given in an essay or information page is optional, as they may be written and edited by anyone without overall community oversight.

List of Wikiafripedia essays

About essays

• About essays – what essays are, the types of essays and status within the community.
• Avoid writing redundant essays – how it is a good idea to check if similar essays already exist before creating new ones.
• Difference between policies, guidelines and essays – what the community chooses to call a "policy" or a "guideline" or an "essay".
• Don't cite essays as if they were policy – we don’t use essays or proposals as if they were guidelines or policy.
• Essay writing guide – how to create and edit essays.
• Quote your own essay – how editors may refer to essays provided that they do not hold them out as general consensus or policy.
• Value of essays – how essays are not policies or guidelines, however many are worthy of consideration.

About Wikiafripedia

• About Wikiafripedia – a general introduction for visitors to Wikiafripedia.
• Administration – discuses both the non-human administrative structure of Wikiafripedia, as well as its human components.
• Academic use – how citation of Wikiafripedia in research papers may be considered unacceptable, because Wikiafripedia is not considered a credible or authoritative source.
• Editing environment – how Wikiafripedia is governed? What happens when content disputes 'boil over' into accusations of bad conduct?
• Editorial oversight and control – the various processes and structures by which Wikiafripedia articles and their editing are editorially controlled, and the processes which are built into that model to ensure quality of article content.
• Evaluating Wikiafripedia as an encyclopedia – Wikiafripedia's success or failure as an encyclopedia, using the standard accepted criteria for all encyclopedias.
• Five pillars – the fundamental principles of Wikiafripedia
• Formal organization – Who does what on Wikiafripedia? What does Wikiafripedia say itself about its own formal organizational structure?
• Gender bias and editing on Wikiafripedia – the gender gap that exists on Wikiafripedia in terms of editors and editing practice.
• Processes – the technical, methodical, and semi-formal means of accomplishing goals and resolving disputes.
• Product, process, policy – how process and policy are generated in order to improve Wikiafripedia.
• Purpose – Wikiafripedia's motive for being.
• Quality control – how the very wiki-nature of Wikiafripedia enables instant and continuous quality control, by allowing anyone and everyone to participate in improving articles and the encyclopedia as a whole.
• Replies to common objections – answers a number of common criticisms of the Wikiafripedia project as outlined in publications (see WAP:Criticisms for a list of quotations from critics).
• Researching with Wikiafripedia – Wikiafripedia can be a great tool for learning and researching information. However, as with all reference works, not everything in Wikiafripedia is accurate, comprehensive, or unbiased.
• Role of Jimmy Wales – Jimmy Wales holds a special role in the governance of the English Wikiafripedia, because of the central and vital stake he had in its founding.
• Sexual content – Wikiafripedia contains sexual content.
• The essence of Wikiafripedia – how Wikiafripedia is the harnessing of the collective intelligence and collaborative efforts of editors who hold opposing points of view, in an attempt to preserve all serious contributions which are reliably sourced. The aim is the progressive building of more and better NPOV content.
• The role of policies in collaborative anarchy – how policies produce a quality encyclopaedia.
• The rules are principles – how policies and guidelines exist only as rough approximations of their underlying principles.
• Trifecta – the foundation principles of our policies and guidelines.
• Why Wikiafripedia is so great – what accounts for Wikiafripedia's enormous growth and success.
• Why Wikiafripedia is not so great – drawbacks of Wikiafripedia
• Who writes Wikiafripedia? – anyone (EVEN YOU!) can edit existing articles or create new ones, and that volunteers do not need to have any formal training to contribute.
• Wikiafripedia may or may not be failing – What is going on? And why should we care?
• Wikiafripedia in brief – the very basics principles of contributing.
• Wikiafripedia is a mainstream encyclopedia – how what is considered "mainstream" for Wikiafripedia may be the minority view in society.
• Wikiafripedia is an encyclopedia – some norms of the Wikiafripedia community.
• Wikiafripedia is a community – how there is nothing wrong with occasionally doing other things than writing the encyclopedia, and that community spirit is a positive thing.
• Wikiafripedia is failing – ways in which Wikiafripedia is not fulfilling its aims.
• Wikiafripedia is a tertiary source – how Wikiafripedia is an encyclopedia and as such Wikiafripedia is a tertiary source.
• Wikiafripedia is a work in progress – Wikiafripedia is constantly being improved and expanded, and it will never be finished.
• Wikiafripedia is succeeding – presents arguments to show that the Wikiafripedia is succeeding in the goal of becoming a reputable and reliable encyclopedia.
• You don't own Wikiafripedia – the Wikimedia Foundation outranks the community.
  • User:Jimbo Wales/Statement of principles – statement of principles! by the co-founder of Wikiafripedia, Jimmy Wales, as updated by the community since then.

Privacy and security

• Advice for parents – offers a brief introduction to Wikiafripedia for parents and legal guardians.
• Guidance for younger editors – advice for young editors about what they should be aware of.
• How to not get outed on Wikiafripedia – some editors of Wikiafripedia, having their "real life" identity discovered can be a major problem, threatening their well-being, careers, or even personal safety. There are a variety of steps you can take to help protect yourself from this happening.
• IP edits are not anonymous – editing Wikiafripedia with an IP address as your identifier is often less anonymous than editing with a normal account.
• On privacy, confidentiality and discretion – all should be careful about revealing and handling personal and/or private information, as your rights to privacy may not extend as far as you believe.
• Personal security practices – intended as a guideline for user security concerns and practices on Wikiafripedia. It adapts some information from the Wikimedia foundation's privacy policy to address some personal security concerns that may arise in the course of editing Wikiafripedia.
• Protecting children's privacy – all users, including children, are permitted to edit anonymously without submitting identifying information. Reasonable efforts to discourage children from disclosing identifying personal information are appropriate.
• Responding to threats of harm – anyone who observes potentially suicidal or violent behavior should notify Wikiafripedia administrators quickly. (Editors may not provide counselling services or professional referrals).
• Strong passwords – a strong password is a password used that is hard for a vandal, or anyone, to crack.
• User account security – editors should use a strong password to avoid being blocked for bad edits by someone who guesses or "cracks" other editors' passwords.
• Why create an account – you don't need to be registered to edit, however it does provide additional features and privacy.
• Wikiafripedia is a volunteer service – editors on Wikiafripedia are mainly volunteers. Editors can contribute as much as they want, and however long they desire.
• Wikiafripedia is anonymous – Wikiafripedia can be anonymous. But there are various ways your identity can be revealed.
• Wikiafripedia is in the real world – your activity here has real consequences, because Wikiafripedia is in the real world.

About editors

• Competence is required – not every person belongs at Wikiafripedia, because some people are not sufficiently competent.
• Disruptive user – examples of what would make someone a disruptive user.
• Editorial discretion – common sense and Wikiafripedia policy dictate that editors must practice discretion regarding the proper inclusion of relevant and well-sourced content.
• Editor integrity – editors have a responsibility to uphold the integrity of Wikiafripedia and respect intellectual property rights of the sources they draw upon when they create and improve encyclopedia pages.
• Editors matter – Wikiafripedia's most important resource is its contributors.
• Editors will sometimes be wrong – individual editors, and even groups of editors, are sometimes wrong.
• Expert editors – expert editors are important to Wikiafripedia.
• Ghostwriting – organizations and individuals bypassing the conflict-of-interest guideline by supplying approved drafts of articles about themselves.
• Here to build an encyclopedia – the distinguish constructive and non-constructive behaviour of editors.
• Honor system – how editors are trusted to obey all the rules and do the right thing. There is no central authority and no police force, just the assumption of good faith.
• IP users – guest users or unregistered users are users who edit Wikiafripedia without registering for an account
• IP addresses are not people – with some exceptions, unregistered users can edit articles and participate on talk pages in the same way as registered users.
• Levels of competence – all editors go through a series of levels in their understanding of Wikiafripedia.
• New account – a new account is a registered user which has too few contributions to obtain a definite reputation, or is registered too recently for it.
• Newbies aren't always clueless – just because someone is new, does not mean they have no idea what they are doing.
• Paid editing (essay) – some editors (usually for money) creating or editing a Wikiafripedia article for an individual or entity.
• Retiring – sometimes active users decide to retire from, or leave, Wikiafripedia and may return at any point.
• Single-purpose account – many single-purpose accounts turn out to be well-intentioned editors with a niche interest, a significant number appear to edit for the purposes of promotion or showcasing their favoured point of view.
• User rights are not a golden ticket – user rights, as they appear in the log, do not denote a hierarchy of Wikiafripedians. Rollback, sysop, checkuser, oversight etc. are not special groups. While we call these privileges, they are not a measure of status.
• What administrators do – administrators are regular unpaid editors who have access to tools which give them the ability to protect pages, delete pages, and block users.
• Wikiafripedians – the volunteers who write and edit Wikiafripedia's articles, unlike readers who simply read them.
• You are not irreplaceable – how every good-faith editor is important to the overall success of Wikiafripedia.

Contributing to Wikiafripedia

• Contributing to Wikiafripedia – the main "How-to" page that provides information, links, videos and other resources on the basics needed to comprehend, comment on, and edit Wikiafripedia.
• Eight simple rules for editing our encyclopedia – some basics about contributing and interactions with others.
• Everything you need to know – a quick overview of some of Wikiafripedia's most important policies.
• Frequent mistakes – a few common mistakes everyone should try to avoid.
• Plain and simple overview – the policies and customs that have developed over the years which reflect the experience of thousands of editors who are constantly learning and refining how to create balanced.
• Plain and simple conflict of interest guide – editors who want to engage with the Wikiafripedia community about a subject with which they are affiliated.
• Plain and simple guide for medical editors – medical content is extremely important and gives advice on editing medical content on Wikiafripedia.
• Primer for newcomers – a blunt introduction intended to help newcomers that covers the basic mechanics of Wikiafripedia.
• Simplified Manual of Style – the basics about commonly used style guidelines.
• Simplified rule-set – some basic aspects of Wikiafripedia norms and practices.
• Ten Simple Rules for Editing Wikiafripedia – some basics about contributing and interactions with others.

Philosophy

• Articles must be written – how articles should be created before linked in articles.
• Avoid vague introductions – how the lead of articles should summarize the contents of the article.
• Be a reliable source – the best way you can be a good source is by strictly adhering to the guidelines pertaining to them.
• Best practices for editors with close associations – suggestions for how to edit successfully, if you have a close association or involvement with the topic you are editing.
• Cohesion – how text and other information is organized and structured within an articles.
• Concede lost arguments – how making explicit concessions when an argument is lost is good.
• Don't lie – how editors should refrain from lying at all times.
• Editing Wikiafripedia is like visiting a foreign country — editing in Wikiafripedia-land is going into a different world, from which you return, usually, a better person
• Explanationism – the concept of Wikiafripedia's purpose as being to some degree based in explanations.
• Every edit must stand on its own feet – how small changes are good, but each change must improve the article and preserve its integrity.
• Honesty – how honesty is expected in all processes of Wikiafripedia, including content discussion, the dispute process and all other functions of the community.
• Gender-neutral language – how gender-neutral language should be used where this can be done with clarity and precision
• Introduction to structurism – an editing philosophy emphasizing interconnection, organization, and uniformity as the best way to improve the usefulness of content across all Wikimedia projects.
• Most ideas are bad – how most proposals are bad and how to handle that point.
• News policy abuse – breaking news should not be covered by a new Wikiafripedia article.
• Not editing because of Wikiafripedia restriction – how some articles should not be written although we'd like to write it.
• Oversimplification – how not to oversimplify material in the effort to make it more understandable.
• Paradoxes – the major conceptual contradictions within our project
• Paraphrasing – how editors should generally summarize source material in their own words.
• Readers first – how whenever we write something, we should always put our readers first.
• Responsible tagging – the best care should be taken to add only the most relevant and specific tags, and leave an explanation on the talk page so that others can understand what the problem was/is.
• Student assignments – students that edit Wikiafripedia as part of an assignment should improve Wikiafripedia – without any serious violations of content norms.
• Snowball clause – you should use common sense and don't follow a process for the sake of it; But, if in doubt, then allow discussions to take place.
• Tagging pages for problems – "Tags" (Template messages) should be used to clearly identify problems with Wikiafripedia pages to indicate to other editors that improvements are needed.
• Tendentious editing – how to recognize bad editing, how to avoid it, and how not to be accused of it.
• Time management – your time reading and editing Wikiafripedia may be limited, thus you should focus your editing toward the most enjoyable and productive goals.
• Too long; didn't read – the cause of excessive length, suggestions on how to reduce it, and a reminder to always exercise civility with other editors when paring.
• What "Ignore all rules" means – how most rules are ultimately descriptive, not prescriptive; they describe existing current practice.
• Words of wisdom – editors should remember that the goal is encyclopedic information and should attempt to set aside their egos while they are here at Wikiafripedia.
• Writing about women – the subtle and more obvious ways in which titles, language, images and linking practices on the English Wikiafripedia can discriminate against women.

Discussions and consensus

• Adjectives in your recommendations – editors choose to put adjectives in their recommendations (sometimes described as votes or !votes); there is disagreement on if this is a good practice or not
• Avoiding talk-page disruption – how best to use clear, expository, and even-handed responses in clashes over a new contribution.
• Arguments to avoid on discussion pages – while involved in a discussion, there are arguments that can make or break a case.
• Arguments to avoid in edit wars – when an edit war takes place, arguments should be productive and should be aimed at reaching an agreement, and not about acting superior, having it one's way, or otherwise discounting the other(s) involved.
• BOLD, revert, discuss cycle – making bold edits is encouraged, as it will result in either improving an article, or stimulating discussion. If your edit gets reverted, do not revert again. Instead, begin a discussion with the person who reverted your change to establish consensus.
• BRD misuse – two types of editors exhibiting behaviors that misuse the BOLD, revert, discuss cycle.
• Confusing arguments mean nothing – a confusing argument has little to no meaning and can be ignored in Wikiafripedia discussions.
• Closing discussions – and when discussions should be closed.
• Discussing cruft – many Wikiafripedians use cruft as a shorthand term to describe content that is inappropriate for Wikiafripedia.
• Don't bludgeon the process – it is not necessary or desirable to reply to every comment in a discussion.
• Don't restore removed comments – users may remove comments from their own talk page. There is no need for others to replace those comments.
• Don't revert due solely to "no consensus" – how if the only thing you have to say about a contribution to the encyclopedia is that it lacks consensus, it's best not to revert it.
• Don't drink the consensus Kool-Aid – speaking out against consensus and policy is not disruptive if it is done with civility.
• Editors can change their minds – how if an editor changes position during Wikiafripedia discussions, all it means is the discussion process is working.
• Follow the leader – it is not necessary to agree with the nominator or the first editor to comment. Do not be ashamed to be in the minority.
• Do not use edit history to escalate the conflict – if the user has already removed one's uncivil comment, pulling it from edit history "for open discussion" may just escalate the conflict.
• I just don't like it – expressing a like or dislike for the issue in question is not a helpful or useful argument in a discussion.
• IPs are human too – unregistered users can edit articles and participate on talk pages in the same way as registered users. Their input is just as important in building consensus.
• Method for consensus building – the basic recommended consensus decision-making process.
• Nothing – editors who use the "everything" argument are urged to provide more detail of their argument.
• Notification – if you begin a discussion of another user on a common notice board, it is expected that you will notify the subject user by posting a message on their talk page.
• Polling is not a substitute for discussion – how some decisions on Wikiafripedia are not made by popular vote, but rather through discussions to achieve consensus. Polling is only meant to facilitate discussion, and should be used with care.
• Provide diffs – editors making claims about the conduct of other editors, should make sure to provide diffs as evidence during discussions.
• Wikiafripedia:Reducing consensus to an algorithm – a tongue-in-cheek "formula" for predicting the strength of an argument in a content dispute based on how well sourced it is.
• Shadowless Fists of Death! – its best not to mindlessly quote policy or guideline titles at other editors in arguments. It's obnoxious and counter productive. Explain thyself.
• Sham consensus – a consensus may not be relied on, because it violates a policy, a guideline, or an ArbCom decision.
• Silence and consensus – how consensus is assumed when there's no evidence of disagreement.
• Supervote – several varieties of supervote, most of them are problematic.
• Tag team – using meatpuppetry to coordinate the actions of multiple editors to circumvent the normal process of consensus is inappropriate.
• What is consensus? – disputes on Wikiafripedia are settled by editing and discussion, not voting.
• What "no consensus" means – a "no consensus" result means differs depending on the nature of the discussion.
• Wikiafripedia is not Whack-A-Mole – editors should not rush in to a discussion pointing at lots of policies without expanding on why you're doing so.

Development of Wikiafripedia

• 100K featured articles – the challenge of accomplishing the goal of 100,000 more Feature-quality articles.
• A navbox on every page – navigaton box templates can be useful as a tool for navigation.
• Acronym Overkill – articles should reflect acronym use in the 3rd party sources.
• Adding images improves the encyclopedia – adding images to articles and essays is an easy way to improve the encyclopedia.
• Alternatives to the "Expand" template – better ways to say "this article needs more information" than using a template.
• Amnesia test – you should forget everything you know about the subject before editing.
• An unfinished house is a real problem – unfinished articles are not harmfully, however they should be made accurate and readable before saving.
• Articles have a half-life – the time it takes for a substance to degrade to half its former quantity and what to do about it.
• Avoid mission statements – organizational statements generally should not be included in articles.
• Avoid template creep – its best not to overuse templates.
• Beef up that first revision – hew page patrollers judge the articles by their first mainspace revisions; they prefer these to already contain basic context, assertion of notability, and sources.
• Categories are different from articles – categories and articles serve different purposes in Wikiafripedia.
• Categories versus lists – the category system causes more problems than it solves.
• Categorising fiction – categorising fictional constructs on Wikiafripedia can be problematic.
• Specialized-style fallacy – Wikiafripedia has its own Manual of Style; facts on a subject are drawn from reliable sources, but no subset of them dictates how Wikiafripedia must write – we do not not mimic any particular genre or trademark.
• Concept cloud – how brainstorming can help editors to overcome editorial struggles, and conceptualize, in a material way, the way an article is formed.
• Complete bollocks – articles that are obviously false should be treated differently from similar articles.
• Creating controversial content – how new articles or facts that are especially controversial can survive severe dispute.
• Don't demolish the house while it's still being built – how a short article should be marked as a stub and edited, and expanded, rather than simply deleted.
• Don't hope the house will build itself – how a little planning and a little effort is all that is needed to prevent an article from being deleted.
• Don't include every update – newly released information is good, but can end up as clutter if everything goes into an article.
• Don't panic – you should always keep an eye on yourself when you are involved in a dispute.
• Don't overuse quotes – many articles use quotations to represent opinions of significant people. This is a mistake.
• Editing on mobile devices – the challenges of editing with smartphones.
• Editors are not mindreaders – someone can distinguish the incomplete, unreferenced article you've just created but plan to improve from one that will never be improved?
• Featured articles may have problems – featured articles are not necessarily to be emulated; focus on our policies and guidelines.
• Give an article a chance – its best not to nominate newly created articles for deletion.
• How to contribute to Wikiafripedia guidance – the creation of new guidance and to the improvement or updating of existing guidance.
• Run an edit-a-thon – an "edit-a-thons" improves the encyclopedia and can be a great way to help new Wikiafripedians learn to edit.
• Ignore STRONGNAT for date formats – provides a rational argument for refusing editors who insist on using a date format that matches the most common style in a particular country
• Keep it short and simple – rules and procedure pages should be simple and short, or else people will not read them.
• Let the dust settle – its best to wait till things have calmed down before creating an article about current topics to Wikiafripedia. For breaking news, use Wikinews or current events.
• Merge Test – If a merge will result in an article too large to comfortably read or the deletion of encyclopedic content, it should not occur.
• "Murder of" articles – articles titled "Murder of [victim]" are a possible solution to the notability guidelines that would bar articles on the perpetrator or victim.
• Not everything needs a navbox – navigation-box templates can be useful as a tool for navigation, but use them sparingly.
• Nothing is in stone – easy is it for Wikiafripedia to change and that all should pay attention to the changes.
• Permastub – some stub articles have no reasonable prospect for expansion.
• Potential, not just current state – its best to keep articles based on their potential notability and verification, not just how they look now.
• Printability – editors decide whether or not any given type of article-namespace redirect is suitable for an offline, CD/DVD or print version of Wikiafripedia.
• Proseline – articles being comprehensive and up-to-date is perfectly reasonable and okay to a point, but "proseline" (timelines) tends to degrade the quality of the articles
• Pruning article revisions – publicists may want tips on legitimately reporting clients' achievements and have their articles stay in Wikiafripedia, not deleted.
• Put a little effort into it – when creating a new article, even if it is a stub, try to put in at least a little bit more than just the absolute minimum.
• Redirects are cheap – redirects take up minimal system resources, so it doesn't really hurt things if there are a few of them scattered around.
• Restoring part of a reverted edit – it is sometimes better to remove the content that is objectionable, instead of entirely reverting an edit.
• Robotic editing – the manual performance of the same or similar edit to multiple, perhaps numerous pages.
• Specialized-style fallacy – Wikiafripedia has its own Manual of Style; facts on a subject are drawn from reliable sources, but how content is styled is a matter for the Wikiafripedia community.
• Temporary versions of articles – reasons for and against temporary versions.
• There is a deadline – the preservation or survivability of the knowledge is at stake. Contribute it to Wikiafripedia before it's too late.
• There is no deadline – Wikiafripedia is a work in progress. Don't rush to edit: it's not a competition.
• The deadline is now – when an article contains unverifiable content, it needs to be corrected now before someone reads it and is misled by it.
• The world will not end tomorrow – an encyclopedia should not begin to move at lightning speed to keep up with the rat race of the outside world.
• Walled garden – articles should have outgoing and incoming links to the wider encyclopedia.
• What an article should not include – some things rarely, if ever, should appear in the saved version of an article.
• Wikiafripedia is not being written in an organized fashion – Wikiafripedia grows organically, thus the quality of pages is varied.
• Writing better articles – advice on how to write an effective article, including information on layout, style, and how to make an article clear, precise and relevant to the reader.
• Wikiafripedia is not about YOU – Wikiafripedia is not the place to promote a topic with which you have personal involvement.
• Wikiafripedia is not a fan website – Wikiafripedia is a user-edited website, it is an encyclopedia, not a fan website.
• Wikiafripedia is not a newspaper – Wikiafripedia is not a journal of current news.

Deletion of content

• AfD is not a war zone – how articles for deletion (AfD) discussions should remain calm and civil, avoid adhering too strongly to either deletionism or inclusionism.
• Arguments to avoid in deletion discussions – arguments that should generally be avoided – or at the least supplemented with a better-grounded rationale for the position.
• Arguments to avoid in deletion reviews – all should try to make clear, solid arguments in deletion reviews, avoiding short one-liners or simple links.
• Arguments to avoid in image deletion discussions – the strongest arguments are those that explain clearly how they are based upon that policy.
• Arguments to make in deletion discussions – some arguments that have successfully saved articles from deletion in the past, or otherwise supported one's cause, and therefore, may support yours.
• Avoid repeated arguments – avoid repeating statements previously made in AfD discussions.
• Baby and bathwater – good-faith editors can mistakenly delete content that is actually properly sourced, and citations which are valid, by misunderstanding our sourcing-related policies and guidelines.
• Before commenting in a deletion discussion – there are several things you should be aware of before you comment in a deletion debate in order to best make your case.
• Content removal – when removing content from a page, it is important to be sure there is consensus to do so.
• Delete the junk – we don't need to keep an article with no merit in itself just because it might, theoretically, be possible to make a good article on the subject.
• Deletion and deletionism – the processes used on Wikiafripedia for removing articles, images, miscellaneous pages, user pages, stubs, and categories.
• Deletion by redirection – redirecting an article is often an appropriate course of action to be taken when an article clearly fails to meet the general notability guidelines for inclusion.
• Deletion is not cleanup – if an article on a notable subject can be improved through normal editing, do not put it through a deletion discussion.
• Does deletion help – whether or not articles add to a reader's knowledge without misleading or biasing them in any way.
• Don't overuse shortcuts to policy and guidelines to win your argument – editors in the midst of a dispute should not offer links to policy, guideline, or essay pages in place of reasoned rebuttals.
• Do not write articles using categories – an example of how not to use categories to mention every aspect of the topic covered.
• Field guide to proper speedy deletion – a quick guide to understanding the speedy deletion criteria, and how to apply it properly.
• Help, my article got nominated for deletion! – new editors who decide to be bold sometimes encounter the deletion process because the new article may be at odds with a Wikiafripedia policy.
• How to save an article proposed for deletion – the best ways to save an article that has been proposed for deletion.
• How to delete a page – to ask for an article to be deleted because only administrators can delete them. Note that removing all text from a page does not delete it, it just leaves a blank page, which is discouraged.
• Identifying blatant advertising – to locate, identify, and respond to articles, pages, and content that are blatantly created as an advertisement or promotion.
• Immunity – the idea that an article cannot possibly be deleted, either because no one will dispute the fact it belongs, or it meets inclusion criteria so well, that no one will dare think to have it deleted.
• Introduction to deletion process – overview of the guidelines and policies relevant to deletion, and the overall process.
• Liar Liar Pants on Fire – calling an editor a liar is not a valid argument in AfD discussions (or anywhere else, for that matter).
• Overzealous deletion – overzealous deletion goes against Wikiafripedia's assume good faith principle.
• Relisting can be abusive – editors should not relisting a deletion discussion if a consensus has been firmly and recently established.
• Revert only when necessary – editors should revert vandalism upon sight but revert an edit made in good faith only after careful consideration.
• So your article has been nominated for deletion – a tutorial for users whose articles have been nominated for deletion, with an eye toward users new to Wikiafripedia in general.
• Viewing deleted content – normally only administrators have the right to view deleted material.
• Why was the page I created deleted? – to find out why a particular page or file was removed, and what you can do about a deletion you disagree with.
• What to do if your article gets tagged for speedy deletion – why an article was tagged for deletion, and what your recourse is
• When in doubt, hide it in the woodwork – when an event article of borderline notability that could potentially become notable in the future is nominated for deletion, the best solution is to transfer it out of article space without deleting it so it can potentially be re-added at a later date.

Wikiafripedia's code of conduct

• Expectations and norms of the Wikiafripedia community – the general social norms that Wikiafripedia editors are expected to follow.
• Good editing practices – overview of behavioral policies such as Consensus and Civility, and their relation to other core policies.
• Reasonability Rule – if an action cannot be considered "reasonable" or "acceptable" by an objective third person, that action should not be performed.

Civility

• Wikiafripedia:A weak personal attack is still wrong – advises that mild severity of a personal attack does not make the personal attack okay
• Wikiafripedia:Advice for hotheads – argumentative, cantankerous and curmudgeonly personalities can avoid getting themselves into trouble
• Accepting other users – working cooperatively with other users and assume good faith. Wikiafripedia is a collaborative project.
• Apologizing – we should not be afraid to apologize, and reminds us to apologize with sincerity.
• Civil POV pushing – the dispute resolution process has a difficult time dealing with civil POV pushers.
• Compromise – negotiation skills often assist editors in delicate situations.
• Divisiveness – content on your user page might be seen by some as "divisive" it is recommended that you may choose to expand the content in question.
• Encouraging newcomers – the more guidance you offer novice editors, the better they will get at using Wikiafripedia.
• Keep it concise - AfD discussions are best served by keeping your comments short. The closing admin isn't grading you by volume.
• Keep it down to earth – workable solutions that have a realistic chance at succeeding.
• Thank you – we all like to be respected, and we all deserve respect.
• Truce – when in a dispute, attempt to reach a compromise or declare a truce.
• High-functioning autism and Asperger's editors – Autistic and Asperger's editors may have different wiring patterns in their brains, but that does not mean they can't contribute.
• How to be civil – editors should offer constructive comments, forgive editors, be polite, and walk away if you have to.
• How to improve civility – you should treat your fellow editor as a respected and admired colleague, who is working in collaboration with you on an important project.
• Imagine others complexly – civility issues, misunderstandings, and discomfort on Wikiafripedia can sometimes arise from a failure to imagine others complexly.
• Maintaining a friendly space – Wikiafripedia should strive to provide a respectful, transparent, and positive experience for everyone.
• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder editors – editors with OCD may have different wiring patterns in their brains, and you may have to learn how to interact well with them, but they can still make a valuable contribution to Wikiafripedia.

Behavioural philosophy

• Admitting you're wrong – you can make friends and influence enemies on Wikiafripedia by learning when to admit you're wrong.
• An uncivil environment is a poor environment – how being civil encourages others to be civil. Work towards building a collaborative workspace.
• Avoid instruction creep – guidance that is too wordy and tries to cover all the bases and every conceivable outlying case tends to become counterproductive.
• Avoiding difficult users – only a few users are difficult, so they should be avoided.
• Be the glue – how following WAP:AGF can be a tactic that will let you either discover common ground when you're really facing good faith, or empirically establish that you aren't.
• Civility warnings – the best practice in leaving those notifications and warnings.
• Drama – creating and spreading drama disrupts and harms Wikiafripedia – and it may get you blocked.
• Don't be high-maintenance – editors should not threaten to quit, or otherwise make trouble, if you don't get your way.
• Enjoy yourself – editing should be fun.
• Expert retention – the issue of how to attract and retain expert specialists, given the anarchic and often frustrating nature of Wikiafripedia, is one that many Wikiafripedians feel needs to be addressed.
• Expect no thanks – we should edit Wikiafripedia for the love of the project, not primarily with the hope of being thanked, however a little more thanks would go a long way.
• Expressing thanks – common methods for communicating your thanks to other users.
• Failure – how failure is a good thing because people are prone to mistakes, and they learn as a result of them.
• Ignore personal attacks – if someone attacks you personally, you should ignore it, rise above it, and continue to comment solely on relevant content.
• Forgive and forget – how editors should stop fighting. Forgive others, apologize, and move on.
• It's not the end of the world – how If people disagree with you or revert your edits, it probably doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things.
• Nobody cares – how lack of action by others can mean lack of interest.
• Policy shopping – how it is best to present all justifications for a change at one time (not incrementally).
• Reasonableness – reasonable people with good intentions can still disagree over matters of substance.
• Relationships with academic editors – Wikiafripedia is not a place to make an academic reputation, nor to post still-unpublished theories, and attempting academic defence of material is an emotional danger to one's self.
• Staying cool when the editing gets hot – how editors should remain calm when in an editing dispute. Respond politely and assume good faith.
• There is no seniority – The number of edits (or if the editor is a Wikiafripedia Administrator) does not mean that they are always right. Seniority does not add weight to arguments.
• Taking the road less traveled – doing things differently from others can often yield better results.
• The grey zone – how editors should not fall between the cracks.
• The last word – the importance that you always ensure that you get "The Last Word".
• The rules of polite discourse – how editors may need to take a "time out" and try to discuss the issue calmly.
• There is no Divine Right Of Editors no editor, administrator or otherwise, is superior or above the law.
• Wikiafripedia is not about winning – how all should work together to build a reliable encyclopedia, not try to prove themselves to be "better" than others
• Writing for the opponent – how editors should represent all point of views neutrally and with due weight, even if you disagree with the view.
• You can search, too – search engines exist for a reason, and it is not other editors' job to use one for you.

Positive actions

• Assume the assumption of good faith – when involved in a discussion, it is best to think very carefully before citing WAP:AGF.
• Assume no clue – you should assume that people don't know what they're doing before you assume bad faith.
• Avoid personal remarks – all should focus on editing, stay civil, don't make it personal.
• Call a spade a spade – it's okay to call a spade a spade – to speak plainly – but remember to remain civil, and to stay focused on improving the encyclopedia.
• Candor – being honest and frank can be beneficial before an editing disagreement gets worse.
• Deny recognition – recognition is a motivation for vandalism. Trolls require food. Don't feed the trolls.
• Don't link to WAP:AGF – it can occasionally be useful to link to Wikiafripedia:Assume good faith, but there are many reasons not to.
• Don't overlook legal threats – when editors blank articles or make legal threats, they may have good cause. Stop and look carefully before assuming they're disruptive or wielding a banhammer.
• Drop the stick and back slowly away from the horse carcass – if the debate has died, don't revive it.
• Encourage full discussions – editors are encouraged to fully discuss all arguments in AfD discussions. If you bring up a point in the discussion, it is okay if someone else responds to it.
• Get over it – editors should not get frustrated over a dispute. Get over it and move on.
• How to lose – knowing how to "lose" a debate, with civility and grace, is sometimes as important as winning it.
• Ignore all dramas – if the dramas prevent you from improving or maintaining Wikiafripedia, ignore them.
• Just drop it – if you want an argument to stop, best you stop arguing.
• Keep it down to earth – editors should aim for workable solutions that have a realistic chance at succeeding.
• Mind your own business – if editors are in a dispute that has nothing to do with you, then stay away.
• Thank not criticize – editors should focus on the positives of a user more than the negatives. Try earning them carrots rather than sticks.

Negative actions

• Don't accuse someone of a personal attack for accusing of a personal attack – you should not retaliate if accused of a personal attack. Return to the discussion of the issue at hand.
• Don't be a WikiBigot – intolerance on the basis of people's ethnicity, race or other characteristic is not acceptable.
• Don't be an ostrich – you should help other editors when they need help. Don't ignore them.
• Don't be ashamed – sometimes, an edit made in good faith does not comply to policy or consensus. Don't be ashamed of making mistakes.
• Don't be a fanatic – editors need to recognize that all Wikiafripedia editors are ultimately colleagues working together, listen with civility, and try to find ways to respect and incorporate others' viewpoints and material as well as your own
• Don't be inconsiderate – if people were considerate, we wouldn't need any other policies about behaviour. If people are telling you that you're inconsiderate, chances are that you need to change your behaviour.
• Don't be obnoxious – its best to avoid behaving in away that is unpleasant and offends or annoys other editors.
• Don't be prejudiced – all should give every user a fair chance.
• Don't be rude – it is crucial that everyone be considerate to others in all situations.
• Don't call editors trolls – calling an editor a troll can be viewed in itself as disruptive.
• Don't call a spade a spade – editors are unlikely to listen to anything further that you say once the dispute escalates to name calling.
• Don't call the kettle black – someone will call other people names while at the same time reminding them to not make personal attacks.
• Don't come down like a ton of bricks – editors should not create rancor amongst good faith contributors. People are not obliged to memorize policies and guidelines before editing.
• Don't cry COI – its best not to attack editors because they are paid editors or have a conflict of interest.
• Don't cry wolf – you should not make accusations of harassment or personal attacks lightly.
• Don't edit for power – you should not edit Wikiafripedia just for power and to become an admin. Edit Wikiafripedia to build an encyclopedia!
• Don't enlist the masses – calling uninformed fellow editors in simply for the safety in numbers does not make you a winner.
• Don't give a fuck – the idea that attachment to things (articles, policies, AfDs, etc.) which are essentially beyond your control is a stumbling block to being a good Wikiafripedian.
• Don't ignore all rules if your decision is biased – its best not to ignore a rule solely because you like (or dislike) the subject.
• Don't take the bait – goading others into making uncivil comments is a common tactic. Don't be fooled.
• Don't template the regulars – when dealing with experienced users, it is generally more effective to write them a short personal message than to apply a standardized template.
• Don't fight fire with fire – all should stay civil, even under the most intense flames.
• Don't remind others of past misdeeds – you should not criticize a repentant editor in good standing for past mistakes or behavior that have stopped reoccurring.
• Don't throw your toys out of the pram – temper tantrums and expressions of anger are counter-productive.
• Don't help too much – you should help newcomers when they need it, however don't spoon feed them.
• Don't overwhelm the newbies – you should not ask newcomers to read all the policies and guidelines.
• Don't shoot the messenger – you should research thoroughly what is ultimately the cause of a conflict before you mouth off about it.
• Don't shoot yourself in the foot – you should consider your own actions before bringing attention to the actions of others.
• Don't spite your face – when faced with enforcing a solution that will predictably escalate the evident problem beyond present levels, back off and seek other, less inflammatory, actions to go about solving it.
• Don't stuff beans up your nose – if you tell people not to do something, your advice may backfire and instead tempt them to do it.
• Don't teach the controversy (which doesn't mean what you think it does); neutrally document the conflict.
• Don't tear others' heads off – all should be careful with taking preventative action against newcomers.
• Griefing – griefers are similar to trolls, with the main difference being that griefers will sometimes act in groups, in the form of tag team editing.
• No angry mastodons – there are several ways to de-escalate conflicts over flipping-out.
• No, you can't have a pony – when discussion doesn't go your way, stamping your feet and becoming an impediment to further discussion won't help.
• Passive Aggressive – being passive aggressive to other editors, especially newcomers, makes you look unprofessional and mean.
• Tag bombing – adding multiple tags without explaining the reason is disruptive.
• Witchhunt – accusations against other editors should not be made in the absence of any value in doing so.
• You can't squeeze blood from a turnip – some troublesome users do not want to change and the community's energies are limited.

Vandalism

• Avoid the word "vandal" – the differences between vandals and those who make adverse edits.
• Dealing with coordinated vandalism – to handle coordinated vandalism situations.
• Do not insult the vandals – it may be better to revert and ignore vandals.
• Don't be trigger happy – care, courtesy, and professionalism when performing recent changes and new pages patrols.
• Identifying test edits – the difference between vandalism and editing tests, and how to identify them and how to properly respond.
• Make protection requests sparingly – its best not to overuse page protection.
• Most people who disagree with you on content are not vandals – how if someone is in a legitimate content dispute with you, don't call them a vandal.
• The motivation of a vandal – Why would anyone wish to vandalize a source of information that benefits people?"
• Vandalism-only account – most vandalism on Wikiafripedia is done by anonymous users who do not log in. However ...
• Vandalism types – on Wikiafripedia, there are many types of vandalism that occur. Each act of vandalism may fit into one or more categories.
• Not every IP is a vandal – you should check before you revert an IP's edit, as what may seem like being bold and clever may just be shoving a new user out of Wikiafripedia editing forever.
• Vandals versus Trolls – the distinction between vandals and trolls.
• Why you should be nice to people who vandalize – presents an alternative to hostile reactions, and a rationale for it.

Sanctions

• Block on demand – self-requested block will be done by some, but not all, Wikiafripedia administrators
• Don't lower the boom just yet – administering sanctions with a light hand, combined with ongoing monitoring and coaching, can be more effective than coming down hard, like a ton of bricks.
• Disruptive sanctions – restricting an editor's ability to contribute to the encyclopedia is inherently a measure of last resort.
• Give 'em enough rope – it may be better to just unblock them and make it clear that this is their last chance ... and see what happens.
• Guide to appealing blocks – understand in full the reasons of your block before requesting an unblock is your best bet.
• I have been blocked – a block is a measure used to protect Wikiafripedia from possible improper activity in breach of editorial policies.
• Sanctions – sanctions act to limit or remove user privileges and may lead to blocks and bans.
• Sanctions against editors should not be punitive – administrative sanctions against editors are not punitive, and imposed solely to prevent harm to the encyclopedia
• Standard offer – discuses a process an editor that gets hit with a siteban or an indefinite block can do.
• Suicide by admin – refers to a set of actions by Wikiafripedia editors that lead to an editor being blocked indefinitely.

Multiple accounts

• Anything to declare? – if you have alternate accounts, declare them now.
• Clean start – a user who is not under current restrictions or blocks may stop using their current account and start using a new one.
• Consequences of sock puppetry – the use of a second account, unless explicitly permitted by the rules, is a violation known to many as sock puppetry.
• Dealing with sock puppets – sock puppetry is a problem at Wikiafripedia and you can help make a difference by reporting them to the proper admin board and by your conduct when dealing with them.
• Lurkers – one should never assume a user is a sockpuppet – it can create bad feeling and violates our "Assume good faith" policy.
• Obvious sock is obvious – if it looks like a duck, swims like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck.
• Signs of sock puppetry – there are many possible signs of sock puppetry or other multiple account usage. But none of them are absolute proof sock puppetry is occurring.
• Sleeper account – a sleeper account is still enabled and it is still possible to use it. However, any such use of an account must conform to Wikiafripedia guidelines, particularly those of sock puppetry.

Copyright

• Basic copyright issues – the basic requirements for uploading images to the English language Wikiafripedia.
• Close paraphrasing – closely paraphrased material that infringes on the copyright of its source material should be rewritten or deleted to avoid infringement, and to ensure that it complies with Wikiafripedia policy.
• Copying text from other sources – with the exceptions of short quotations and text copied from a free source, text from other sources may not be copied into Wikiafripedia. Doing so is a copyright violation and may constitute plagiarism.
• Copyright on emblems – the status of flags, coats of arms, seals, and similar official symbols, as well as drawings of such emblems, under United States copyright law.
• Declaration of consent for all enquiries – discuses the process of uploading media which protects both the uploader and Wikiafripedia users by making clear to both how shared content can be used.
• Donating copyrighted materials – the process of how editors who would like to grant permission to Wikiafripedia to use their own previously published work,
• Quotations – the guidelines of how brief excerpt from an original source can be used in Wikiafripedia articles.
• Mirrors and forks – publications that copy Wikiafripedia content should follow the licensing terms; however, many others fail – accidentally or intentionally – to place the notice required by these terms.
• Multi-licensing – it is best to use multiple licensing for one's contributions made to Wikiafripedia so that they are in the public domain or licensed under alternative licenses in addition to the CC-BY-SA license (and GFDL, often).
• News agencies and fair use – Wikiafripedia's non-free content criteria requires that fair use images
• Plain and simple non-free content guide – Wikiafripedia's copyright guidelines are probably the most complicated part of the whole site and breakdown of what the rules are and what they mean.
• Restricted materials – free images may still have restrictions independent of their copyright status, but they are still considered free.
• Spotting possible copyright violations – a guide to spotting violations of the Wikiafripedia copyright policy that are simple copy-and-pastes from other websites.

Wikiafripedia's content protocols

• Core content policies – the origins of Wikiafripedia's content policies.
• Content policy in a nutshell – the main Wikiafripedia content policies.
• Verifiability and notability – they are distinct, both in principle and practice.

Neutral point of view

• Advocacy – Wikiafripedia is not a venue for raising the visibility of an issue or agenda.
• Academic bias – if an Wikiafripedia article has an academic (scholarly) bias, it does not mean taking sides and it is not a violation of WAP:NPOV.
• Activist – advice for determining if an article is being unduly influenced by activists, as well as advice on how to deal with the various problems caused by violations of Wikiafripedia's policies.
• An interest is not a conflict of interest – a conflict of interest can be cited as a cause for some other violation, but the existence of a conflict of interest by itself is not a policy violation.
• Be neutral in form – being neutral in both content and in form is an asset.
• Coatrack – articles about one thing shouldn't mostly focus on another thing.
• Controversial articles – controversial articles, by their very nature, require far greater care to achieve a neutral point of view.
• Criticism – articles should include both positive and negative viewpoints from reliable sources, without giving undue weight to particular viewpoints, either negative or positive.
• Describing points of view – article should represent the POVs of the main scholars and specialists who have produced reliable sources on the issue.
• Let the reader decide – you should not consider a statement neutral just because you agree with it.
• Endorsements (commercial) – how commercial endorsements of goods, services, businesses, companies, nonprofits, and famous persons present special editorial challenges that require particular care.
• External criticism of Wikiafripedia – how criticism of Wikiafripedia from professors and journalists may be biased.
• Neutral and proportionate point of view – Wikiafripedia does not aim for the midpoint between them. Rather, it gives weight to each view in proportion to its prevalence in reliable sources.
• Neutrality of Sources – how to deal with sources that are reliable but non-neutral.
• NPOV dispute – when adding {{Citation needed}} and {{Dubious}} templates to articles editors should address the issues on the talk page, pointing to specific issues that are actionable within the content policies, namely NPOV, Verify, OR and BLP .
• Partisanship – how Wikiafripedia's coverage of political issues needs to adhere to NPOV in the face of partisanship.
• Systemic bias – how systemic bias created by the shared social and cultural characteristics of most editors, and it results in an imbalanced coverage of subjects and perspectives on the encyclopedia.
• What is fringe? – how fringe theories range from theories that almost qualify as alternative mainstream theories to things that have just barely too many scientific chops to be called pseudoscience.
• Why Wikiafripedia cannot claim the Earth is not flat – ten types of arguments commonly used by advocates of fringe concepts and advise the neutrally-minded editor or administrator on how to defuse them.

Verifiability and sources

• Allowing forensic crime data – under certain circumstances, forensic crime data may be used as primary sources on crime articles.
• Applying Reliability Guidelines – which policies and guidelines are the most relevant to evaluating a particular source.
• Assessing reliability – there are a number of ways in which you, as a reader, can assess the reliability of a given article
• Bare URLs – it is preferable to use proper citation templates when citing sources.
• Blind men and an elephant – reliable sources may be considered credible ... until newer reliable sources contradict them.
• But there must be sources! – you don't just insist there must be sources out there somewhere, prove it by providing them.
• Cherrypicking – when selecting information from a source, include contradictory and significant qualifying information from the same source.
• Children's lit, adult new readers, & large-print books – children's sources, adult new reader sources, and abridged large-print media are questionable and need checking for reliability before being cited.
• Citation overkill – when citing material in an article, it is better to cite a couple of great sources than a stack of decent or sub-par sources.
• Cite tendentious texts directly – any text which takes a side on a difficult or controversial question – especially in cases where the text represents an extreme viewpoint – should be cited directly.
• Citing textbooks – there are several situations in which textbooks should be completely avoided as your primary source of information about a subject.
• Clones – websites that contain information that is directly copied from Wikiafripedia cannot be used to establish notability or verify the accuracy of any information on Wikiafripedia.
• Combining sources – articles should be based on reliable sources without implying any conclusions derived from improper synthesis.
• Conflicting sources – if two reliable sources offer contradicting information on a subject and none of them can be demonstrated unreliable, then an article should cite both.
• Dictionaries as sources – dictionaries and glossaries present a special challenge in determining whether one is primary, secondary, or tertiary.
• Evaluating sources – when using primary sources, editors should stick to describing what the sources say. Any interpretive claims, analyses, or synthetic claims require a secondary source.
• Fruit of the poisonous tree – an otherwise reliable source attributes information to an unreliable source then that information is likewise unreliable.
• Handling original research – material for which no reliable, published source exists is called "original research." There are various ways to deal it with.
• Identifying and using primary and secondary sources – the best way in identifying and correctly using primary and non-primary sources.
• Identifying and using self-published works – identifying and correctly using self-published sources.
• Independent sources – independent sources are not necessarily "neutral" in the sense of being even-handed. An independent source may hold a strongly positive or negative view of a topic or an idea.
• Inaccuracy – addresses what editors should do with concerns about potentially inaccurate source material.
• Interviews – interviews generally count as primary sources, but commentary added to interviews by a publication can sometimes count as secondary-source material.
• Law sources – some law sources may not be reliable. Others may be very complicated to use.
• Link rot – there are steps to be taken to reduce or repair its effect., and the fact its not good to delete cited information solely because the URL to the source does not work any longer.
• Mine a source – articles with "citation needed" tags often already have sufficient sources that simply have been under-utilized.
• Objective sources – you should be mindful that a reliable source to you may not be so for others; try to obtain objectively reliable sourcing.
• Offline sources – even though Wikiafripedia is an online encyclopedia, there is no distinction between using online versus offline sources.
• Party and person – the commonly misunderstood distinctions is between "secondary source" and "third party".
• Perennial sources – sources that editors frequently discuss on Wikiafripedia. Some of these are currently deemed reliable, some are currently deemed unreliable, and some may be reliable is some circumstances.
• Perennial websites – websites that editors frequently inquire about and how some are accepted, some are currently opposed for inclusion, and some depend on the circumstances.
• Potentially unreliable sources – analyses specific examples of sources that might initially appear to be reliable, yet may not be.
• POV and OR from editors, sources, and fields – how editors, sources, and fields can have a point of view and original research, and even some edits can have a POV, as long as the article in Wikiafripedia does not.
• Reliable sources and undue weight – how an article should not give undue weight to any aspects of the subject, but should strive to treat each aspect with a weight appropriate to its significance to the subject.
• References dos and don'ts – how good and bad things about sources.
• Significant coverage – if a topic has received significant coverage in reliable sources that are independent of the subject, it is presumed to be suitable for a stand-alone article or list.
• Sourcing content about newer phenomena – some subcultures have been around for a long time and there is significant published material from which to describe these long-term subcultures on Wikiafripedia.
• Templates do not excuse citations – "citation needed" templates are not an excuse to make as many claims as you can without verification.
• The answer to life, the universe, and everything – articles generally require significant coverage in reliable sources that are independent of the topic.
• Third-party sources – every article on Wikiafripedia must be based upon verifiable statements from multiple third-party reliable sources with a reputation for fact-checking and accuracy.
• Trivial mentions – notability requires significant coverage by reliable sources. Trivial mentions are not enough.
• Use of tertiary sources – tertiary sources differ from secondary ones by not themselves providing significant analysis, commentary, or synthesis.
• Using sources – references must be reliable sources, used in accordance with the three core content policies.
• Verifiability, and truth – It is not enough for encyclopedic content to be verifiable via reliable sources, but it must also conform to known, objective facts.
• Verifiability, not truth – editors may not add content solely because they believe it is true, nor delete.
• Verifiable but not false – limiting false information in Wikiafripedia.
• Verification methods – common methods that Wikiafripedia editors use to make their articles verifiable.
• Verifying different types of statement – what is required to verify different types of statement in Wikiafripedia.
• Videos as references – it's okay to cite movies, documentaries, TV programs and other video as references.
• Video links – videos on user-submitted sites can sometimes be used as references or external links, but copyright infringement and unreliability will rule out the use of many of these videos.
• Wikiafripedia:Tertiary-source fallacy – dictionaries, encyclopedias, and style guides do not magically trump other sources, policy, and reasoning.
• When to cite – when a source may or may not be needed.
• You don't need to cite that the sky is blue – although citing sources is an important part of editing Wikiafripedia, do not cite already obvious information.

Notability

• Alternative outlets – there are other places for potentially useful or valuable content which is not appropriate for Wikiafripedia.
• Articles with a single source – if an article is based on only one source, there may be copyright, original research, and notability concerns.
• Bare notability – editors should be cautious with creating articles that are borderline notable. A subject that seems to be barely notable may really not be notable at all.
• Bombardment – editors should not indiscriminately add excessive references to an article in the hope that weight of numbers will prevent it from being deleted.
• Businesses with a single location – a subject that meets all inclusion guidelines is likely to merit an article, even if one is yet to be created. This includes many businesses with one address.
• But it's true! – just because its out there, is not a sufficient reason to keep information on Wikiafripedia.
• Common sourcing mistakes (notability) – three commons mistakes to avoid when trying to demonstrate notability through citations to sources.
• Don't assume negative notability – all should assume good faith, take a look to see if the article's subject could be notable after all, and give a new article a little time before playing at Cybermen and shouting "DELETE!"
• Discriminate vs indiscriminate information – discuses a response to WAP:IINFO and the terms "discriminate" and "indiscriminate" as they apply to collections of information.
• Every snowflake is unique – many similar items can have encyclopedic articles of their own; article's content should describe which peculiarities distinguish one item from the others, based on critical commentary found in reliable sources.
• Existence ≠ Notability – truth alone is not a valid criteria for inclusion.
• Fart – just because a piece of trivial information was printed in a newspaper or gossip magazine, or on a website, there is no requirement for it to be included on Wikiafripedia.
• Handling trivia – trivia is information that is not important to the subject it is being presented in relation to.
• Google searches and numbers – the fallacies in determining the notability of a subject, is the view that the results of a Google search can be used to assess notability.
• High Schools – high schools/secondary schools are generally considered to be notable, but they must be able to meet the relevant guidelines for notability.
• Inclusion is not an indicator of notability – non-inclusion is not an indication of non-notability.
• Inherent notability – ultimately, the community decides if a subject is intrinsically notable.
• Insignificant – what is insignificant to some may be extremely significant to others.
• IT'S A CASTLE – castles, museums, tourist attractions, and other public attractions usually do have significant coverage.
• Lipstick on a pig – articles whose subject does not meet notability guidelines, but have nonetheless been written with considerable care and effort, and may be embellished with sources, citations, images
• Masking the lack of notability – excellent prose and the sheer number of citations or external links has no effect on a subject's notability.
• Make stubs – Why make a red link, when you can make a stub?
• News coverage does not decrease notability – articles that are subject to news coverage should not be nominated for deletion if they meet Wikiafripedia’s general notability requirements and notability requirements for events.
• No amount of editing can overcome a lack of notability – when notability is legitimately invoked as an issue in a deletion nomination, the problem usually cannot be solved by more editing.
• No big loss – deletion of any good article is a loss for the wider community and the encyclopedia in the long term, as that is knowledge lost.
• No one cares about your garage band – its best not to start an article on your band if you don't have much of an audience yet.
• No one really cares – its best not to make an article on a subject so trivial or arbitrary that no one could ever conceivably care about it.
• Notability cannot be purchased – notability is not something which can be purchased through a third party.
• Notability is not a level playing field – notability is not administered equally. In some areas, notability requirements are lower than others.
• Notability is not a matter of opinion – during a deletion discussion, arguments for keeping the article should be based on reliable sources, not opinions.
• Notability means impact – the concept of notability can also be described as a measure of the topic's impact, particularly with biographic articles.
• Notability points – everything has a certain amount of notability, this can be put on a (rough) scale.
• Notability sub-pages – notability guideline sub-pages should be created only if there is a specific need to do so.
• Notability vs. prominence – the differences and the similarities between these two concepts.
• Obscurity ≠ Lack of notability – just because a topic is of little interest to the general public does not mean Wikiafripedia should not include it.
• One hundred words – the general notability guideline provides inadequate guidance as to what level of coverage is significant.
• One sentence does not an article make – one sentence "articles" and "essays" should be deleted as not worthy of inclusion in an encyclopedia.
• Overreliance upon Google – Google search limitations; provides examples for custom searches
• Pokémon test – a test that involves the comparison of the article nominated for deletion with an article for a character from Pokémon, to decide whether it is more notable.
• Run-of-the-mill – there are some items that are very commonplace for which sources verifying their existence do exist. But there are so many of these that can be verified given the same sources, there shouldn't be an article on each one, and only those with additional sources deserve articles.
• Significant coverage not required – the requirement of significant coverage as a criterion for notability is completely unjustifiable and absurd.
• Solutions are mixtures and nothing else – public relations slang, like "we offer solutions", is a good indication that an article is promotional and likely not notable.
• Subjective importance – some subjects may seem notable because they are perceived as being important. By without meeting Wikiafripedia's inclusion criteria, they are not notable.
• What notability is not – argues that notability is not objective. Notability is not permanent–it can change. Notability is not judged in isolation. Notability is not a meritocracy.
• Writing about breeds – A crash course (mostly for new editors) in how to write encyclopedically about animal breeds and related topics.
• Wikiafripedia is not here to tell the world about your noble cause – it is secondary coverage in reliable sources which determines if a topic should be covered by Wikiafripedia, not how well-intentioned it is.

Biographies

• An article about yourself isn't necessarily a good thing – how you may face problems if there is an article about you on Wikiafripedia. So think about it before you really go out of your way to try to get one.
• Anonymous dirt accretion method of biography writing – how WAP:Eventualism does not apply to Wikiafripedia biographies. Wikiafripedia biographies need to be well rounded, and fair to their subjects, at all times.
• Articles on suicides – an article about a notable suicide is not a biography, nor is it a memorial. Care must be taken both in articles and discussions not to cause further distress to the bereaved, and to stay neutral and neither to record nor synthesise original research.
• Avoiding harm – contains a number of other ideas that were considered during the formation of the biographies of living persons policy. Many of them continue to resonate strongly with our current policy.
• Borderline biographies – when low-notability biographies of living people are considered for deletion, closing administrators may wish to consider requiring a positive consensus to retain the article.
• Current Events Editing – editors should refrain from making substantive changes to or creating new articles that are biographies of a living person where current events are the driving factor for edits.
• Deletion of articles on living persons – a summary of policies relating to the deletion of articles on living persons.
• Help with a biography of a living person – contains advice for people affected by being referred to in a Wikiafripedia article or on a talk page.
• I wouldn't know him from a hole in the ground – biographies must be on subjects that are notable. Wikiafripedia is not an indiscriminate collection of information.
• Not every story/event/disaster needs a biography – not everything in Wikiafripedia requires presentation in the form of a biographical article.
• Minors and persons judged incompetent – in light of WAP:BLP, editing about minors and persons legally judged incompetent should be especially protective of their rights.
• Primer for women's biographies – to appropriately write about women's biographies.
• Signatures of living persons – how there is no consensus to reproduce signatures in Wikiafripedia articles, and there is some concern regarding reproducing the signatures of living persons.
• Smokers – smoking, or the use of other legal tobacco products, is not inherently important enough to mention and should not be included in biographical articles by default.
• Victim lists – lists of victims of an event are inappropriate unless the majority of listed victims have Wikiafripedia articles or sections of their own
• Who is a low-profile individual – a low-profile individual is a person, usually notable for only one event, who has not sought or desired the attention.
• Your alma mater is not your ticket to Wikiafripedia – its best not add a name to the "notable alumni" section of that person's alma mater unless that person is actually notable.

Wiki-culture

• Wikibreak – refers to a period when even an editor must be parted from Wikiafripedia—though, presumably only temporarily.
• WikiBullying – refers to using Wikiafripedia to threaten and/or intimidate other people, whether they are Wikiafripedia editors or not.
• WikiCrime – refers to an act that deliberately and seriously hurts the object of creating quality articles.
• Wikiderata – a prose poem of advice, support, and philosophy about Wikiafripedia.
• WikiFauna – a listing of characterizations related to the culture of Wikiafripedia and its users about themselves that other editors may find helpful to understand.
• WikiHate – refers to counterproductive attitude and behavior pattern that takes away time from many Wikiafripedians.
• WikiLawyering – refers to a pejorative term which describes various questionable ways of judging other Wikiafripedians' actions.
• WikiHarassment – refers to a pattern of repeated offensive behavior that appears to a reasonable observer to intentionally target a specific person or persons.
• Wiki-Hell – refers to the many negative situations editors will deal with daily.
• WikiLove – refers to a general spirit of collegiality and mutual understanding among wiki users.
• WikiPeace – refers to an idea dedicated to making Wikiafripedia a more peaceful place for everyone.
• Wikipediholic – refers to someone who suffers from Wikipediholism, or obsession (addiction in some cases) with Wikiafripedia or other wikis (see Wikipediholism test).
• Wiki-POV-railroading – refers to the use of bullying tactics to discredit an editor with an opposing viewpoint or eliminate them from a discussion.
• WikiRose – refers to an editor who will stop whatever they're doing, and give their time for other editor's benefit.
• Wikiville – refers to Wikiafripedia as a town, and all the users as the citizens that have positions within the community.

Essays in a nutshell

• Article writing – a small listings of essays about editing, formatting, short articles and the use of templates.
• Civility – a small listings of essays about Eeiquette, positive and negative interactions.
• Consensus and discussion – a small listings of essays about interaction procedures during tlaks.
• Deletion – a small listings of essays about the removal of Wikiafripedia content.
• Notability – a small listings of essays about the criteria of content inclusion and removal.
• Verifiability and reliable sources – a small listings of essays about the merit of references and other resources.

How-to pages

• For a listing of "help" and "instructional" pages, see the Help directory

Humorous material

Assume bad faith Assume good wraith Assume stupidity Assume that everyone's assuming good faith, assuming that you are assuming good faith Avoid using preview button Avoid using wikilinks BOLD, revert, revert, revert Boston Tea Party Barnstaritis Don't-give-a-fuckism Edits Per Day Editsummarisis Go ahead, vandalize Ignore every single rule

Imminent death of Wikiafripedia predicted Lamest edit wars Newcomers are delicious, so go ahead and bite them No climbing the Reichstag dressed as Spider-Man Please be a giant dick, so we can ban you Please bite the newbies Reducing consensus to an algorithm R-e-s-p-e-c-t Seven Ages of Wikiafripedians Talk page stalker The first rule of Wikiafripedia The Five Pillars of Untruth Things that should not be surprising Watchlistitis Why not create an Account? The WikiBible Writing an article that will probably get deleted

Wikiafripedia and User essays by category

The following is a list of Wikiafripedia and User essays categories.

Note: User essays are similar to essays placed in the Wikiafripedia namespace; however, they are often authored/edited by only one person, and may represent a strictly personal viewpoint about Wikiafripedia or its processes. The author of a personal essay located in his or her user space has the right to revert any changes made to it by any other user.'

Historical essays

The Wikimedia Foundation's Meta-wiki was envisioned as the original place for editors to comment on and discuss Wikiafripedia, although the "Wikiafripedia" project space has since taken over most of that role. Many historical essays can still be found within Meta:Category:Essays.

See also

• Advice pages – about guidance pages written by WikiProjects.
• Community standards and advice – a descriptive directory of community norms and advice for editors.
• Editor's Index to Wikiafripedia – lists hundreds of essays, as well as guidelines, policies, help pages, and more.
• List of guidelines – a comprehensive descriptive directory of guidelines.
• List of policies – a comprehensive descriptive directory of policies.
• Manual of Style contents – a comprehensive descriptive directory of the pages which make up the Manual of Style.