Help:Wiki University FamilySearch Centers





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Add details about your center
To add details about your center, you must first be granted editing rights. To request, editing rights, fill out this form. Within 48 hours, you will receive an email notifying your editing status.

Once you are able to edit, use the following instructions to edit your center page:
 * 1) Open the Wiki in your browser.
 * 2) Log into the FamilySearch website.
 * 3) Navigate to your center wiki page.
 * 4) Click on the Edit tab in the top right corner of your Family History Center page to edit in VisualEditor.
 * 5) Replace any instructions that are in parenthesis and italics with information about your family history center you find on the wiki page.
 * 6) Remove the headings you will not be using from on the page. You can always add the headings back in the future. To see what was there before, you can click on the "History" tab at the top and click on a date to view what the page looked like at that point in time.

Bullets, numbered lists and indents
These pages were created with the idea of having "section headings" with information about each topic under each section heading. Most of the sections already include bullets underneath, but some do not. To add information below a heading, put your cursor on the end of the row and hit enter. To add bullets, numbered lists, or indented paragraphs, you can use the number,bullet, and indent icons in the VisualEditor toolbar at the top of the page.

If you prefer to edit in Wikitext, click on the Edit Source tab in the top right corner of the wiki page and use the following instructions:


 * 1) Bullets. Type a * at the beginning of a line.
 * 2) Numbered lists. Type a # at the beginning of a line.
 * 3) Indented paragraphs. Type a : at the beginning of a line. if you want to indent two times, type::. You can also type: in front of * or # to indent bullets or numbered lists.
 * 4) Useful Wiki Code. For other useful wiki codes to spice up your FHC page see Help:Formatting

Uploading Images
You are welcome to take a photograph of your building or the inside of your center to add to your page. (Do not include living people in the photograph.)


 * 1) All images must be previewed and uploaded by missionaries in behalf of the community to make sure they are appropriate for all viewers.
 * 2) To submit a photograph of your center to FamilySearch Wiki for approval, use the Submitting images for approval wiki article. It includes the process of submitting the images and photographs.
 * 3) You should receive an email from Wiki Support letting you know your image was approved. If you do not get an email, check the Wiki after 48 hours to see if your image has been uploaded.

Placing Images
Once the image has been uploaded to the page, you will need to place it on the page. There are two ways to do this:

USING VISUALEDITOR: To add your image in VisualEditor, place the cursor under the introduction statement on the wiki page and then click on the Insert button on the toolbar. Then, choose, Media. Type in the name of the image which is the name of the file you gave it. The picture should appear. If it does, click on the image and it will automatically appear on the page. Please remember that the image must be first submitted and upload by Wiki Support before you can add it to your center wiki page. If it does not appear, contact us at: [mailto:Wikisupport@familysearch.org Wikisupport@familysearch.org]. More instructions: Wiki University USING EDIT SOURCE TAB. You can also add the image using Wikitext code. Do this by clicking on "Edit source" tab and add the following under the introduction statement on the wiki page:.
 * This should place the image to the right of the Table of Contents box. The "300px" restricts the size of the image so as to not push other things out of the way. You can change the number if you think the image needs to be enlarged or decreased in size. More instructions: Wiki University

Linking to PDF Handouts
If you have class handouts that have been uploaded to the wiki, you can link directly to the handout so the PDF automatically opens. To do this you need to use the wikitext code of "Media" instead of "Image" or "File." For example, the following wikitext code links to the pdf on the wiki: but only goes to the wiki page -  example of live link:. However, if you would like the PDF to open automatically, use this wikitext code: [[Media:Beginning Research Techniques.pdf|handout]] - example of live link: [[Media:Beginning Research Techniques.pdf|handout]].

Examples of Family History Center pages

 * Alton Illinois Family History Center - basic Family History Center page

Purpose of a Family History Center/Library wiki page
The purpose of the family history center/library wiki page is to disseminate information about the center including it's operational hours, contact information, classes and services they offer.

Training for Temple and Family History Consultants
The family history center/library wiki page is first and foremost for the patron trying to obtain information about the center and what it offers. Adding extensive information about training for Temple and Family History consultants is not appropriate, especially when links to this information includes LDS doctrinal phrases. We suggest just one or two links be included on the family history center wiki page. Information for priesthood leaders should never be listed on a FHC wiki page as all direction is given from priesthood authorities in the area and not by family history centers/libraries. The page should also not be used to communicate ward and stake goals or be used by the ward to give announcements or local leadership responsibilities.

A good example of what is allowed is the following:



'NOTE: Inappropriate information as described above will be taken off the FHC wiki page by FamilySearch management. '

LDS doctrinal information in the Research Wiki

 * LDS doctrinal information does not belong on the pages of this Wiki. The wiki audience is world-wide, to individuals of many faiths, who love genealogy for the sake of genealogy work and is not a place to put information about LDS doctrine. This includes PowerPoint presentations and other documents that may include doctrinal information in them. See the Wiki Purpose and Appropriate Topics for more information.

Page sections are optional

 * Your wiki page was created with a number of sections already there. These are not required to include on every page, and there may be other sections that you feel are important for your center to have. You can delete the ones that aren't needed and add those you do need. Do a search for "Family History Center" to see examples of what other centers are doing on their FHC Wiki pages.

Link to your FHC from other pages

 * Add links to your center page from other pages that might relate to your center such as the city and county locality pages in the Wiki.

Long page? Create sub-pages

 * If you have a lot of information about your center to add to this page, you may want to break yours out into multiple pages. When you do so, you will want to create additional pages as "sub-pages." These pages begin with the same name of the main page, then include a "/", then the name of the sub-page. Go to the Help:Subpages for more instructions.
 * Example:
 * For example, to create a sub-page for "Center Contacts and Hours" you would create a new page in the Wiki titled "Blue Springs Missouri Family History Center/Center Contacts and Hours". Although that is a long title, it gives the benefit of grouping the different pages together in the search results, and if you ever need to change the name of the main page, the sub-pages would also change.

Linking many pages together
If you are creating subpages for your FHC, you may want to create a menu such as the one seen at the top of the Riverton FamilySearch Library page seen here.

In order to create this menu, you will create a template and then place it on each of your pages. You create a template in the same way you create any other wiki page, only you will use the "Template:" prefix in front of the title. If you were at the Smith County FHC, you would title your page Template:Smith County FHC menu (making sure to place the colon between the word Template and the title).

Once you have created your template page, copy the following code onto the page:

1. Replace the word Riverton with the name of your FHC. (the words Family History Center are coded into the template, so you would just need to put the first part of the name here 2. Replace the address with the address of your facility. 3.  Edit the Open Hours to reflect those of your facility.  You can delete any lines you don't need. 4.  Replace the page links with the names/links to the subpages you have created.  The information to the left of the "/" is the actual name of the wiki page you have created, the information to the right of the "/" is the title you want to show on your menu box.  You can delete or add lines depending on the number of subpages you have created.

Need more help?
For more help, visit the wiki page, How to Edit the Wiki Or, email: [mailto:wikisupport@familysearch.org wikisupport@familysearch.org]

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