Help:Tutorial/Keep in mind
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There are some things to keep in mind when editing the TMS Wiki.
Editorial policies
Subject matter
The TMS Wiki is an editable encyclopedia about TMS and other medically unexplained symptoms. Hence, articles should consist of encyclopedic information about chronic pain symptoms, recovery techniques, treatment approaches, TMS practitioners and authors, and TMS materials such as books, recovery programs, and DVDs or CDs. TMS Wiki articles also include descriptions of and resources for projects sponsored by the PPD/TMS Peer Network, the nonprofit organization hosting the TMS Wiki.
Neutral point of view
The wiki's editorial policy is that articles must be written in "neutral point of view," often abbreviated "NPOV." This policy says that we accept all the significant viewpoints on an issue. Instead of simply stating one perspective, we try to present all relevant viewpoints without judging them. Our aim is to be informative, not persuasive. Our policy does NOT mean that our articles are expected to be 100% "objective," since in any dispute all sides believe their view to be "true."
It is okay to state opinions in articles, but they must be presented as opinions, not as fact. Also, it is a good idea to attribute these opinions, for example "Supporters of this say that..." or "Notable commentator X believes that..."
This said, an article cannot be entirely opinion, even if it is presented as opinion and not as a NPOV. Wikipedians sometimes refer to an article as having a "POV" problem. This is Wikipedia slang for a biased article, or one obviously written from a single perspective. Advertising copy would fall in this category, as would a political diatribe. In a less extreme case, an article might have "POV" problems if it spends significantly more time discussing one view than another view of equivalent significance, even if each view is presented neutrally, or if the article gives excessive coverage to a minor viewpoint.
If you are going to spend time editing articles you have strong opinions about, it is important that you read the neutral point of view policy page. You should probably also read the essay Staying cool when the editing gets hot. If you are going to spend your time on less emotional topics, you should still read the policies, but it is a less pressing concern. Keep in mind the advice here, and read the full policy if an NPOV issue comes up. See also the NPOV tutorial.
Citing sources
Wikipedia requires that you cite sources for the information you contribute, preferably by adding a footnote, as discussed in the "Citing Sources" page of this tutorial. Citations help our readers verify what you have written and find more information.
If any websites would be of particular interest to a reader of an article, they should be listed and linked to in an "External links" section. Books of particular interest should be listed in a "Further reading" section, but only if they were not used as sources for the article.
Copyrights
Do not add copyrighted materials to the TMS Wiki without permission from the copyright owner. When adding information to articles, make sure it is written in your own words. Remember that all information found on the Internet is copyrighted unless the website specifically states otherwise.
English dialects
All common forms of words are welcome on Wikipedia. An abridged version of the policy here could be stated as:
- 1. Do not edit a page simply to "correct" a spelling that is correct in another language.
- 2. If the subject of an article is related to the United States, then United States English is preferred.
- 3. If the subject is related to an organization using British English (United Kingdom, Commonwealth, Ireland, UN, etc.) then British English is preferred.
- For example: The Online SIRPA Recovery Programme webpage keeps the UK spelling "programme" rather than the US spelling "program" because SIRPA is based in the UK.
- 4. If the subject is not a regional one (i.e. a topical subject rather than an organization or practitioner with a location attached), the original contributor's usage should be followed. See Wikipedia:American and British English differences if you have difficulty with this.
- 5. The usage should be consistent throughout an article, unless it mentions both US- and Britain/Commonwealth-related topics. In that case, Policies 2 and 3 prevail.
- 6. When you create a new article, generally the most commonly used title is preferred. A simple way of testing this is to search for the subject either on Google or using our TMS search engine, and see what generates more results.
Creating articles
When creating articles on Wikipedia, try to take the advice given in the tutorial and to follow the policies mentioned here, such as neutrality. It is important to cite sources to establish the notability of the topic and make the article verifiable. You need to be registered to directly create an article in the encyclopedia, but if you are not, you can still use the articles for creation process.
Renaming articles
If you find an article that you believe is mis-named, please do not copy and paste the contents of the old article into a new article — among other things, it separates the previous contributions from their edit history (which we need to keep track of for copyright reasons). The preferred method is to move the page to the new name, you need to be registered for that. If it is your first move, please read the warnings on the move page carefully, as there are a number of issues to consider before moving a page. If a "disambiguation" page is involved, it is best to review Wikipedia:Disambiguation.
