Article guidance/Test feature guide

This page explains how to try Article guidance in a test wiki and give feedback. You will need to create a test account on Patch demo first.

Step-by-step guide

1

Create a test account

This wiki is separate from other Wikimedia sites. Sign up with a new account if needed before you start.

2

Start a new article in Test Wiki and follow the workflow.

Use the Article Guidance workflow to create a new article. Pick a topic you know, or use one from the example list below.

3

Review the article outline

Before writing, read the outline, it shows suggested sections and tips for your article type. Think of it as advice from an experienced editor sitting next to you with a sample requirement for that type of article.

4

Write the article

Write your article using the outline as a guide. You do not need to make it perfect, focus on a good first version.

5

Review the outlines in this category

You can also edit and improve existing outlines if something is missing or not represented well.

6

Share your thoughts on the project talk page

After testing and reviewing the outlines, tell us what you noticed, what you changed or improved in an outline in the project talk page.

Example articles to try
Type one of these article names in the patch demo to start a new article if you don't have a topic.

Back in black Caracas Paris Dog Museo del Prado Michael Jordan Mercury Influenza

Feedback we are looking for

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Compare old vs new

How does the new experience creating new articles compare to your normal experience?

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Was the guidance helpful?

Was the outline useful for the type of article you wrote? What worked, and what did not?

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Improvements you made or suggested

Did you change or propose changes to an outline? Tell us what you changed and why

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After the test: Outlines you create or improve will be reviewed, then moved to community Wikipedias where each community can translate and adjust them further.

Markups in outlines

An outline is a community-curated page that provides tips, highlights discouraged and recommended sources, and suggests article sections for a particular article type. The Article guidance feature uses these outlines at different stages of new article creation. Outlines can be adapted from existing ones, such as those found on this page. It can also be created from scratch using the required markups as seen in an existing one. Below are quick guides to the markups that must be included in an outline:

Quick guide to markups used in outlines
Article type	Links the outline to a Wikidata topic. The outline appears when creating articles of that type (or any sub-type). <article-guidance article-type="Q23397">
Label	Indicates the name to be used when displaying the outline. By default, outlines are named like the Wikidata item they are associated with. The "label" property allows communities to define a different name that is more aligned with their practices. For example, an outline for the Wikidata item Q5 ("Human") can use the "label" property to be displayed as "Biography" instead. <article-guidance article-type="Q5" label="Biography">
Category	Indicates which Wikipedia category the new articles should be part of when they are created using this outline. <article-guidance article-type="Q23397" category="Lakes">
Notability risk	Sets rules for which topics can be created. For example, only topics on Wikidata, or only topics available in more than 5 other languages, only sources not discouraged by community. Restrictions are expressed combining the following values, and they can be combined to make them work together: wikidata - Only topics that exist on Wikidata can be created. crosswiki - Only topics that are available in 5 other languages can be created. sources - Only topics for which the user provided sources not discouraged by the community can be created. junior - Restrictions apply to junior editors only (those without previous experience having published a surviving article). draft - Publication allowed only under the draft namespace (where it exists) or the user namespace (as a sub-page of the user page). <article-guidance article-type="Q5" notability-risk="wikidata crosswiki junior"> In this case, wikidata + crosswiki + junior indicates that this article can be created only if it exists in Wikidata, if it exists in 5 other language wikis and that these two restrictions only apply to junior editors, not experienced editors.
Instructions	It summarises the guidance shown to the editor before they start. Keeping it simple and practical is key. Think of it like an advice you would give a new editor sitting close to you in an editathon. You won't just send the person to documentation pages. <instructions> Articles about lakes are appropriate when the lake appears in reliable geographic sources. The article should accurately represent the lake based on those sources. Quick considerations: *State the lake's location, country or region, and surface area or size clearly in the lead. *Use official geographic databases for measurements such as area, depth, and elevation. </instructions>
Recommended-sources	They are a list of community-recommended resources. The info tag is used to provide information, and the source tag is used to include specific URLs representing these recommended sources. The system shows these to the user and checks if their sources match. <recommended-sources> <info>Official national geographic institutes and surveying agencies</info> <source>britannica.com</source> <source>geonames.org</source> </recommended-sources>
Discouraged-sources	Same structure as recommended-sources, but for sources the community wants to flag as problematic. The system shows a warning if the user's sources match. <discouraged-sources> <info>Tourism and travel websites used as a primary geographic source</info> <source>tripadvisor.com</source> <source>lonelyplanet.com</source> </discouraged-sources>
The rest of the page	This captures starting content for the new article. It illustrates suggested sections and example paragraphs. Keep it minimal; do not try to write the full "featured" article. '''[Lake name]''' is a lake located in [region/country]. {{Citation needed}} == Geography == [Lake name] covers an area of approximately [surface area]. {{Citation needed}} == References == <references> $1 </references>