Help:How to Create an Article

How to Create, Edit or Add to an Article in FamilySearch WIKI
All registered users of FamilySearch Wiki are invited to create, edit, or add to WIKI articles.

Follow these steps to create an article
'''BEFORE you create, edit, or add to your first article. 'Note: ''You will only have to do the fillowing one time:


 * 1) Print these instructions. We recommend that you print these instructions for quick reference as you work.
 * 2) Register with FamilySearch WIKI. You must first register with FamilySearch Wiki. Registering helps the WIKI know who you are and keep track of the articles you create and edit. During registration you will be asked to provide a username and password and other information. You can register by clicking on the word "Register" in the blue bar in the upper right corner of the page.  Or, you can register by clicking here.
 * 3) Verify your e-mail settings. At times, FamilySearch WIKI will need to send you e-mails. You must verify that the WIKI has your most current e-mail address and indicate how and when you want the WIKI to send you emails.  To verify your settings, go to the Personal Tools section of the panel on the left of the page and click on "My preferences".    Or, verify your settings by clicking here.  At the Preference page, go to the Email heading and choose the options you want.  Click the "Save" button.
 * 4) Understand WIKI Publishing Policies. The articles your create or add to will be viewed by millions of people around the world and you will be held responsible for your work. Therefore, it is important that you understand the WIKI's policies on copyrights, privacy, etc. Click on the following links and become familar with these policies BEFORE you create, edit, or add to any WIKI article.


 * Copyright Policies
 * Purpose and Appropriate  Topics
 * Conditions of use

EACH TIME you create, edit or add to an article.

'''   1. Sign in to FamilySearch WIKI. '''Enter your user name and password in the fields in the blue bar in the upper right corner of the page. Or, sign in by clicking here.

2. '''Check to see if there is an article similar to one you want to create. '''Someone may have already created an article similar to the one you want to create. It may be easier for you to edit or add to their article instead of creating a new article. To check to see if there is a similar article, type your proposed title in the the Search box and press the Search button. A list of WIKI articles will appear. If there are similar articles, click on their titles are read them. Find one you can add to or edit and got to Step 7. If there are no similar articles go on to Step 8.

7. '''To Edit or Add to an Existing Article. '''While viewing an aritcle you want to add to or edit, click on the "Edit" tab at the top of the article. An editing window and editing tool bar will appear. Begin typing new text or edting existing text. When completed, scroll to the bottom of the browser window and click on the "Save page" button. Note: You can use the edit tool bar for basic formatting. To learn how to do more complex editing and formatting, click here.

8. To '''Create a New Article. '''


 * Add text in the body. Using the formatting box in the main editor toolbox, titles and headings may be added.
 * Add formatting, if desired:


 * 1) Create an internal link An internal link is designed to link to a page within the Wiki.
 * 2) Create an external link An external link is designed to link to a Web site.
 * 3) Add anchors. An anchor is designed to take to you a different section of the current page.
 * 4) Add one or more categories to the article. See How to categorize an article.
 * 5) Add other page elements as desired.


 * Click "Show Preview" to see if the screen contains all of the desired elements. The page will need to be saved before the changes take effect.
 * Click Save at any point in the process to save the changes made to the article. If you want to change an article after it is saved, click Edit.

Tips

 * The guidelines for naming a new article will help you determine the best possible article name.
 * How to Create a page linked from an existing page
 * How to Create a page not linked from an existing page
 * Read instructions on how to copy and paste in the Wiki.
 * Copyrighted material should not be posted without permission.

FAQs

 * Why does my login session go away when I edit?

You need to save your edited content every few minutes to keep your edit session alive. However, if you've logged in, navigated to your User page and immediately lose the edit links on the left, most likely you're looking at a version of the page that the Web browser has cached on your machine. Just click the "refresh" icon in your browser while holding down your shift key and chances are, you'll see the edit links appear.


 * Why aren't the changes I made showing up?

There are a couple possibilities. Perhaps you only "previewed" your changes and did not actually save them. Another reason could be that your page was cached by your browser, so you are seeing an old version. If you want to be sure that you're seeing the most recent version of a wiki page, go to "preferences", select "miscellaneous", select "disable page caching" and hit "Save preferences".


 * Can you set the session timeout longer? I lost my edits.

The session timeout is set for the PHP server, not for MediaWiki specifically. Session timeout is intended to help prevent other people from walking up to your computer and editing things with your Username when you've stepped away. As near as I can tell, PHP session lengths are 24 minutes by default. Therefore, it's a good idea to save your edits, say, every 10 minutes.