Help:Editing basics

This Editing Overview does not have a lot of wikitext examples. You may want to keep help:wikitext open in a separate browser window for reference while you edit. Each of the topics covered here is covered somewhere else in more detail. See box at right for that.

Editing basics

 * Start editing
 * To start editing a MediaWiki page, click the Edit this page (or just edit) link at one of its edges. This brings you to the edit page: a page with a text box containing the wikitext: the editable source code from which the server produces the webpage. If you just want to experiment, please do so in the sandbox, not here.


 * Type your changes
 * You can just type your text. However, also using basic wiki markup (described in the next section) to make links and do simple formatting adds to the value of your contribution.


 * Summarize your changes
 * Write a short edit summary in the small field below the edit-box. You may use shorthand to describe your changes, as described in the legend.


 * Preview before saving
 * When you have finished, click Show preview to see how your changes will look -- before you make them permanent. Repeat the edit/preview process until you are satisfied, then click Save page and your changes will be immediately applied to the article.

Wiki markup -- making the page look the way you want
Take a look at the help:wikitext page for a more complete reference. You can always look at (and barow) source code for something that you like.

In general, the more times you repeat a character, the more pronounced the feature.


 * Headers
 * ==header name==


 * Bold and italics
 * what you want italic what you want bolded
 * or bolded or italic
 * To link


 * Page name Page name
 * short name short name

See also: Help:Wikitext Help:Wikitext quick reference

Help:Editing tips and tricks

Minor edits
A logged-in user can mark an edit as "minor". Minor edits are generally spelling corrections, formatting, and minor rearrangement of text. Users may choose to hide minor edits when viewing Recent Changes.

Marking a significant change as a minor edit is considered bad Wikiquette. If you have accidentally marked an edit as minor, make a dummy edit, verify that the " [ ] This is a minor edit " check-box is unchecked, and explain in the edit summary that the previous edit was not minor.