STOWiki:Talk page guidelines

The pages on STOWiki are for discussing the editing process of a given page; they are not a soapbox for personal opinions on the matter. Long discussions on personal point of view get in the way of the editing process.

Basic rules for all talk pages

 * Sign your comments - You can use four tildes (like this ~ ), which are automatically converted to your username.
 * Use coherent formatting.
 * Copy formatting from others.
 * Indent with colons, not with tabs.
 * Break up very large paragraphs.
 * Be civil at all times.
 * Don't make personal attacks
 * Don't SHOUT

Using different talk pages

 * Article talk pages are used to discuss changes to the particular article.
 * User talk pages are used to leave messages for particular users. A message box stating "You have new messages" is automatically displayed to a user at the top of any STOWiki page, until they view their user talk page.
 * STOWiki talk pages are used to discuss existing and developing policies, guidelines, and proposals.

Talk page header info box
On many popular talk pages it may be useful to place the Talkheader tag at the top of the original talk page. It results in the following banner:

More info can be found on Template:Talkheader/doc.

Analysis of the topic on separate pages
We do grant some leeway; if you want to discuss the topic in-depth rather than how to edit the page, you can create a sub page of the talk page, e.g. Project talk:Talk page guidelines/Analysis and discuss there. To point out that this page exists, place the tag at the top of the original talk page. It results in the following banner:

Formatting
Because the wiki software platform provides for a wide range of formatting styles, proper or at least consistent formatting is essential to maintaining readable talk pages.

The depth of a message is determined by the number of colons (':') in front of the message:

For very long conversations, it is appropriate to "reset" indenting because it is too deep. In some situtations, you may wish to emphasize a new point by posting without indenting. However, if the post is a tangent or something completely new, you should probably start a new topic with the  style.

Archiving old talk page content
Talk page contents are never deleted outright (unless they violate a policy, obviously). Old discussions are archived to sub pages of the talk page. See the talk page archival guidelines.

Can I do whatever I want to my own user talk page?
Most users treat their user talk pages like regular talk pages and archive the contents periodically to a personal subpage — either when the page gets too large, on a regular schedule, or when they take a “wiki-vacation”. Others delete comments after they have responded to them.

Actively erasing personal messages without replying (if a reply would be appropriate or polite) will probably be interpreted as hostile. In the past, this kind of behavior has been viewed as uncivil, and this can become an issue in arbitration or other formal proceedings. Redirecting your user talk page to another page (whether meant as a joke or intended to be offensive or to send a "go away" message) can also be considered a hostile act.

Feel free to decorate your personal pages as you see fit, but keep in mind that your user talk page has the important function of allowing other editors to communicate with you. People will get upset if they cannot use it for that purpose.

Note: New additions to your own talk page will alert you with a "You have new messages" banner at the top of any STOWiki page you visit.

What can I say?
As long as you stay on-topic, pretty much anything, within reason :)

However, STOWiki is a wiki for everyone. Unjustified ad hominem (personal) attacks are not tolerated, nor do we tolerate discrimination based upon social status, age, sex, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, etc. Insinuating or stating that a user may be racist, homophobic, etc. without good reason is also classed as ad hominem.

How to keep a two-way conversation readable
If you are writing messages back and forth between user talk pages, the resulting text can be hard to follow. Here are two systems for making what would otherwise be disjointed comments easier to follow:


 * Copy the text you are replying to from your user talk page to the other person's user talk page. Put your reply right underneath it, but indent the reply section so it stands out. (Just like a regular talk page.)
 * Or: Put a notice on your user talk page that you will reply there unless they ask otherwise. Do this for conversations that other people start.
 * Watchlist the other person's user talk page and tell them they can reply there. Do this for conversations you start.

Other points

 * When discussing the name of the page or discussing merging it with another page, always mention the current page name: after renaming (moving) a page with its talk page, references to "this page name" would not make sense.
 * The practice of "spamming" — posting similar messages to more than a few users' talk pages, often for the purpose of soliciting a certain action — is discouraged. (Negated in the case of welcoming new users and the like).