Help:Naming conventions - Revision history

NiraD: Reverted edits by 109.73.78.99 (talk) to last revision by NiraD

2012-06-29T01:45:09Z

Reverted edits by 109.73.78.99 (talk) to last revision by NiraD

109.73.78.99: 22xqts phenwebs.txt;3;6

2012-06-29T00:34:00Z

22xqts phenwebs.txt;3;6

NiraD: Reverted edits by 109.73.70.114 (talk) to last revision by NiraD

2012-02-25T15:02:40Z

Reverted edits by 109.73.70.114 (talk) to last revision by NiraD

109.73.70.114: This article presents clear idea in support of the new people of blogging, that in fact how to do running a blog.,

2012-02-25T09:39:44Z

This article presents clear idea in support of the new people of blogging, that in fact how to do running a blog.,

NiraD: Reverted edits by 109.73.70.114 (talk) to last revision by NiraD

2012-02-24T23:09:19Z

Reverted edits by 109.73.70.114 (talk) to last revision by NiraD

109.73.70.114: It is in WMV format... sorry for the MAC users...,

2012-02-24T20:38:29Z

It is in WMV format... sorry for the MAC users...,

NiraD: Reverted edits by 109.73.78.98 (Talk); changed back to last version by Lunaverse

2011-11-11T19:57:35Z

Reverted edits by 109.73.78.98 (Talk); changed back to last version by Lunaverse

109.73.78.98: UMecV0 iectnfxdegwo, [url=http://xxpxmbwrwjvz.com/]xxpxmbwrwjvz[/url], [link=http://ozxvpwbgollr.com/]ozxvpwbgollr[/link], http://epwsjlowufci.com/

2011-11-11T05:12:05Z

UMecV0 <a href="http://iectnfxdegwo.com/">iectnfxdegwo</a>, [url=http://xxpxmbwrwjvz.com/]xxpxmbwrwjvz[/url], [link=http://ozxvpwbgollr.com/]ozxvpwbgollr[/link], http://epwsjlowufci.com/

Lunaverse at 20:17, 25 May 2005

2005-05-25T20:17:36Z

New page

'''Naming conventions''' is a list of guidelines on how to appropriately create and name pages.

It is important to note that these are ''conventions'', not rules written in stone. As Cacheopedia grows and changes, some conventions that once made sense may become outdated, and there may be cases where a particular convention is "obviously" inappropriate. But when in doubt, follow convention.

Generally, [[Help:Page name|article naming]] should give priority to what the majority of English speakers would most easily recognize, with a reasonable minimum of ambiguity, while at the same time making linking to those articles easy and second nature.

In addition to following the naming conventions it is also important to follow the [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (links)|linking conventions]]. Following consistent conventions in both naming and linking makes it more likely that links will lead to the right place.

== General conventions ==

=== Lowercase second and subsequent words ===
''Convention:'' Do not capitalize second and subsequent words unless the title is a [[Wikipedia:proper noun|proper noun]] (such as a name) or is otherwise almost always capitalized (for example: [[Wikipedia:John Wayne|John Wayne]], but [[Wikipedia:Computer game|Computer game]]).

Due to [[Help:Naming conventions (technical restrictions)|technical limitations]] inherent to the [[Wikipedia:MediaWiki|MediaWiki]] software, the first letter in an article title always needs to be a capital letter. Ordinarily this isn't a problem, but it poses an issue when a proper noun's first letter is lowercase (for example, [[Wikipedia:eBay|eBay]]). The first letter of an internal wikilink need not be capitalized and will direct the reader to the same page (for example, [[Wikipedia:computer game|computer game]] or [[Wikipedia:Computer game|Computer game]] can be used interchangeably as needed).

''Rationale and specifics'': See [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (capitalization)]] and [[Wikipedia:Canonicalization]].

=== Prefer singular nouns ===
''Convention:'' In general only create page titles that are in the singular, unless that noun is ''always'' in a plural form in English (such as [[scissors]] or [[trousers]]). 
''Rationale and specifics'': See [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (pluralization)]]

Note that for the purpose of Cacheopedia, this is currently an ambiguous rule, and we haven't yet decided to use it. It's best to lean towards using the singular, and then creating a [[Help:Redirects|redirect]] for the plural form.

===Use gerund of verbs===
''Convention:'' Use the [[gerund]] of verbs (the ''-ing'' form in [[English language|English]]) unless there is a more common form for a certain verb. Or create a [[Help:Redirects|redirect]] from one form of the article title to the other. 

=== Use common names of persons and things ===
''Convention:'' Use the most common name of a person or thing that does not conflict with the names of other people or things. 

[[Help:Redirects|Redirect]] alternate article names as you think of them.

''Rationale and specifics'': [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (common names)]]

=== Be precise when necessary ===
''Convention:'' Please, do not write or put an article on a page with an ambiguously-named title as though that title had no other meanings. 
''Rationale and specifics:'' See: [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (precision)]] and [[Help:Disambiguation]]

=== Prefer spelled-out phrases to acronyms ===
''Convention:'' Avoid the use of acronyms in page naming unless the term you are naming is almost exclusively known only by its acronym ''and'' is widely known and used in that form ([[Wikipedia:laser|laser]], [[Wikipedia:radar|radar]], and [[scuba]] are good examples). 

Again, use [[Help:Redirects|redirects]] on acronyms.

''Rationale and specifics:'' See: [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (acronyms)]]

===Avoid the definite article ("the") and the indefinite article ("a"/"an") at the beginning of the page name===
''Convention:'' Except in titles of works (''[[Wikipedia:The Old Man and the Sea|The Old Man and the Sea]]'', ''[[Wikipedia:A Clockwork Orange|A Clockwork Orange]]'') or in official names ([[Wikipedia:The Hague|The Hague]]), avoid the definite ("the") and indefinite ("a"/"an") articles at the beginning of a page name. This applies even if the subject of the page is usually preceded by the definite article "the" in speech or writing: Thus, for example, [[Wikipedia:White House|White House]] is preferred over [[Wikipedia:The White House|The White House]]. 

''Rationale and specifics:'' See: [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (definite and indefinite articles at beginning of name)]]

===Do not use an article name that suggests a hierarchy of articles===
Since [[Wikipedia:Transportation in Azerbaijan|Transportation in Azerbaijan]] could just as well be considered a subdivision of [[Wikipedia:Transport|Transport]] as of [[Wikipedia:Azerbaijan|Azerbaijan]], do not use a name like [[Wikipedia:Azerbaijan/Transportation|Azerbaijan/Transportation]].

===Be careful with special characters===
Some special characters either cannot be used or can but cause problems. For example you should not use a piping character (|), an asterisk (*), an ampersand (&), a plus sign (+), curly braces ({}), or square braces ([]) in a name.

Also, for naming pages the restriction to [[ISO-8859-1]] is strict, no characters that are not ISO-8859-1 may be used. See [[Wikipedia:Special characters]] for a list of non-ASCII characters that are allowed.

==Other specific conventions==

===Animals, plants, and other organisms===
The capitalization on the common names of species has been hotly debated in the past and has remained unresolved. As a matter of truce both capitalized and non-capitalized (except for proper names) are acceptable, but a redirect should be created from the alternative form. Scientific names are always written in ''italics''. The first name (genus) is capitalized, the second (species) is not. Examples: ''Homo sapiens'', ''Tyrannosaurus rex'', ''Velociraptor''. 
''See:'' [[Wikipedia:Capitalization|Capitalization]]''

===City names===
''Convention:'' In general, there are no special naming conventions for cities, unless multiple cities with the same name exist.
''Discussion, rationale, and specifics:'' See: [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (city names)|Naming conventions]]

===Historical names and titles===
''Convention:'' In general, use the most common form of the name ''used'' in English (not necessarily the name ''translated'' into English) and [[Help:disambiguation|disambiguate]] the names of monarchs of modern countries in the format <nowiki> [[{Monarch's first name and ordinal} of {Country}]]</nowiki> (example: [[Edward I of England]]). 
''Rationale and specifics:'' See: [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (names and titles)]] and [[Wikipedia:History standards]]

===Lists===
''Convention:'' Put a list of Xs as [[list of Xs]], rather than [[Xs]], [[famous Xs]], [[listing of important Xs]], [[list of noted Xs]], [[list of all Xs]], etc. See [[wikipedia:list]]. Consider making a [[Help:Category|category]] instead of a list: categories are easier to maintain.

===Numbers===
Articles about numbers and related meanings are at [[N (number)]], for example [[142 (number)]], not [[One hundred forty-two]] nor [[One hundred and forty-two]] nor [[Number 142]]. [[142]] is for the year (see above). See [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (dates and numbers)]].

===External links===
Should external links of non-html type files (such as doc, pdf, and xls) be in the following format?
* [http://www.aapa-ports.org/pdf/WORLD_PORT_RANKINGS_2002.xls World Port Rankings 2002, by metric tons and by TEUs], American Association of Port Authorities ('''xls''' format, 26.5kb)

===Initials===
Initials in people's names, or companies named after them, should be written with [[full stop]]s (periods) after them, with a space between the initials and the name, and between initials. Thus, [[W. E. B. Du Bois]], [[I. F. Stone]], [[T. E. Lawrence]], and [[F. W. de Klerk]]. (See ''Oxford Style Manual'' 3.2, ''Chicago Manual of Style'' 8.6). (This convention is under discussion; see [[Wikipedia talk:Naming conventions]].) An exception is a reference to someone using ''only'' initials, such as is occasionally done in informal discourse in reference certain U.S. presidents: ''FDR'', ''LBJ'', or ''JFK''.

Acronyms and initialisms such as ''IBM'', ''NATO'', and ''WYSIWYG'' are likewise written without periods (see: [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (acronyms)|Naming conventions (acronyms)]]).

@@ Line 7: / Line 7: @@
 In addition to following the naming conventions it is also important to follow the [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (links)|linking conventions]]. Following consistent conventions in both naming and linking makes it more likely that links will lead to the right place.
-xqts phenwebs.txt;3;6
+==  General conventions ==
 ==Other specific conventions==

@@ Line 7: / Line 7: @@
 In addition to following the naming conventions it is also important to follow the [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (links)|linking conventions]]. Following consistent conventions in both naming and linking makes it more likely that links will lead to the right place.
-==  General conventions ==
+xqts phenwebs.txt;3;6
-−
-=== Lowercase second and subsequent words ===
-''Convention:'' Do not capitalize second and subsequent words unless the title is a [[Wikipedia:proper noun|proper noun]] (such as a name) or is otherwise almost always capitalized (for example: [[Wikipedia:John Wayne|John Wayne]], but [[Wikipedia:Computer game|Computer game]]).
-−
-Due to [[Help:Naming conventions (technical restrictions)|technical limitations]] inherent to the [[Wikipedia:MediaWiki|MediaWiki]] software, the first letter in an article title always needs to be a capital letter. Ordinarily this isn't a problem, but it poses an issue when a proper noun's first letter is lowercase (for example, [[Wikipedia:eBay|eBay]]).  The first letter of an internal wikilink need not be capitalized and will direct the reader to the same page (for example, [[Wikipedia:computer game|computer game]] or [[Wikipedia:Computer game|Computer game]] can be used interchangeably as needed).
-−
-''Rationale and specifics'': See [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (capitalization)]] and [[Wikipedia:Canonicalization]].
-−
-=== Prefer singular nouns ===
-''Convention:'' In general only create page titles that are in the singular, unless that noun is ''always'' in a plural form in English (such as [[scissors]] or [[trousers]]).<br/>
-''Rationale and specifics'': See [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (pluralization)]]
-−
-Note that for the purpose of Cacheopedia, this is currently an ambiguous rule, and we haven't yet decided to use it.  It's best to lean towards using the singular, and then creating a [[Help:Redirects|redirect]] for the plural form.
-−
-===Use gerund of verbs===
-''Convention:'' Use the [[gerund]] of verbs (the ''-ing'' form in [[English language|English]]) unless there is a more common form for a certain verb. Or create a [[Help:Redirects|redirect]] from one form of the article title to the other.<br/>
-−
-=== Use common names of persons and things ===
-''Convention:'' Use the most common name of a person or thing that does not conflict with the names of other people or things. <br/>
-−
-[[Help:Redirects|Redirect]] alternate article names as you think of them.
-−
-''Rationale and specifics'': [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (common names)]]
-−
-=== Be precise when necessary ===
-''Convention:'' Please, do not write or put an article on a page with an ambiguously-named title as though that title had no other meanings.<br/>
-''Rationale and specifics:'' See: [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (precision)]] and [[Help:Disambiguation]]
-−
-=== Prefer spelled-out phrases to acronyms ===
-''Convention:'' Avoid the use of acronyms in page naming unless the term you are naming is almost exclusively known only by its acronym ''and'' is widely known and used in that form ([[Wikipedia:laser|laser]], [[Wikipedia:radar|radar]], and [[scuba]] are good examples).<br/>
-−
-Again, use [[Help:Redirects|redirects]] on acronyms.
-−
-''Rationale and specifics:'' See: [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (acronyms)]]
-−
-===Avoid the definite article ("the") and the indefinite article ("a"/"an") at the beginning of the page name===
-''Convention:'' Except in titles of works (''[[Wikipedia:The Old Man and the Sea|The Old Man and the Sea]]'', ''[[Wikipedia:A Clockwork Orange|A Clockwork Orange]]'') or in official names ([[Wikipedia:The Hague|The Hague]]), avoid the definite ("the") and indefinite ("a"/"an") articles at the beginning of a page name. This applies even if the subject of the page is usually preceded by the definite article "the" in speech or writing: Thus, for example, [[Wikipedia:White House|White House]] is preferred over [[Wikipedia:The White House|The White House]].<br/>
-−
-''Rationale and specifics:'' See: [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (definite and indefinite articles at beginning of name)]]
-−
-===Do not use an article name that suggests a hierarchy of articles===
-Since [[Wikipedia:Transportation in Azerbaijan|Transportation in Azerbaijan]] could just as well be considered a subdivision of [[Wikipedia:Transport|Transport]] as of [[Wikipedia:Azerbaijan|Azerbaijan]], do not use a name like [[Wikipedia:Azerbaijan/Transportation|Azerbaijan/Transportation]].
-−
-===Be careful with special characters===
-Some special characters either cannot be used or can but cause problems. For example you should not use a piping character (|), an asterisk (*), an ampersand (&), a plus sign (+), curly braces ({}), or square braces ([]) in a name.
-−
-Also, for naming pages the restriction to [[ISO-8859-1]] is strict, no characters that are not ISO-8859-1 may be used. See [[Wikipedia:Special characters]] for a list of non-ASCII characters that are allowed.
 ==Other specific conventions==