The Mailer Review/Volunteer/Remediating Articles: Difference between revisions

{{Large|A Guide for Volunteer Digital Editors}}

{{TOC right}}

We use the word “[[w:Mediation (Marxist theory and media studies)#Remediation|remediating]]” here to emphasize that reading on paper is a different activity than reading on the screen. In fact, we might say that we don’t really ''read'' articles on the screen at all: we ''use'' them. So, how do we ''remediate'' a document from a medium that emphasizes a sit-back, passive activity to one that promotes a lean-forward, active one? Documents meant to be used on the screen should have different qualities than paper documents. This guide breaks down the qualities we should consider when creating a digital document on this site. We try to cover most items, but being a digital editor often requires us to make it up as we go along.

When we remediate, we should always keep this question in mind: '''what is the most logical way to make this document fit the expectations of those who will be using it?''' Let’s try to detail our current approach.{{efn|Like with any other digital document, there are no strict rules for what makes the best digital document. We are still in an incunabular stage when it comes to the digital. So think of these as guidelines on how we might approach our work here. There may be a better way. If so, we may change our approach. But for now, this is how we do it.}}

== Get Started ==

=== Get Your Account ===

=== Get Your Article ===

== Before Editing ==

The rest of this document breaks down each of the common elements that every article will use. You should keep your example article open in a tab so you can refer to it, if necessary.

=== Subpages ===

=== Preview and Save ===

== Title ==

<blockquote>

</blockquote>

== Header ==

Anything surrounded with double brackets calls a [[w:Help:A quick guide to templates|template]] to be [[w:Wikipedia:Transclusion|transcluded]]. Basically, templates are bits of code or boilerplate that can be used on multiple pages. This saves us from having to repeat the same information on multiple pages.

== Byline ==

The byline template <code>{{tl|byline}}</code> should come next. It will include the writer’s or editor’s name, an abstract (if applicable), a note(s) (if applicable), and a short url. Here’s an example of the <code>byline</code> code:

</blockquote>  

Once you’ve entered the code, check it by previewing. The author’s name should be in blue, showing that the link leads to his or her biography. If it’s red, check your spelling. I have entered all authors and editors, so this should be working correctly. Next, scroll to the bottom of the document. You should see the correct category listed (see '''Fig 2'''); we’ll discuss more categories below. This will either be “Written by First Last” or “Edited by First Last.” This link, too, should be blue.

=== Author Bio ===

== Body ==

Once the paragraph is finished, hit return twice (skip a line between paragraphs) and start the next one. Repeat this process until the end of the document.

=== Block Quotations ===

</blockquote>

=== Images ===

== Endnotes ==

<blockquote>

<nowiki>{{notelist}}</nowiki></code>

</blockquote>

See [[The Mailer Review/Volume 9, 2015/“Up to the Nostrils in Anguish”: Mailer and Bellow on Masculine Anxiety and Violent Catharsis|this article]] for another, more complex example. For a more thorough discussion of this function, see [[w:Template:Efn|Template:Efn]] on Wikipedia.

== Sourcing ==

=== Works Cited ===

A list of works cited should be the last section in the document. It is sorted alphabetically by author’s last name and uses [[w:Wikipedia:Citation templates|citation templates]]. This is easier for two reasons: (1) you only need to list the reference '''once''' in the article, and (2) it cleans up your body text of much of the confusing code. This section is created like this:

<blockquote>

<code><nowiki>{{Refbegin}}</nowiki></code><br />

<code><nowiki>* {{cite journal |last= |first= |title= |url= |journal= |volume= |issue= |date= |pages= |access-date= |ref=harv }}</nowiki></code><br />

<code><nowiki>* {{cite magazine |last= |first= |date= |title= |url= |magazine= |pages= |access-date= |ref=harv }}</nowiki></code><br />

These codes are for the main types of references you will likely need (these links go to expanded instructions on Wikipedia): [[w:Template:Cite book|book]], [[w:Template:Cite journal|journal]], [[w:Template:Cite magazine|magazine]], [[w:Template:Cite news|news]], and [[w:Template:Cite web|web]].{{efn|All citation codes and explanation for the variables may be found on “[[w:Wikipedia:Citation templates|Citation Templates]].”}} Notice many of the codes contain similar elements, but one in particular '''must be used''' for our shortened footnotes technique to work: <code><nowiki>ref=harv</nowiki></code> — I usually put this at the end. This code for the [[w:Template:Harvard citation|Harvard citation]] and points a shortened footnote to the detailed bibliographic entry.

=== In-text Citations ===

<blockquote>

<code><nowiki>{{Reflist}}</nowiki></code><br />

</blockquote>

<blockquote>

</blockquote>

See the [[w:Template:Sfn|Template:Sfn]] on Wikipedia for more options and explanation.

== Categories ==

* [[:Category:Articles (MR)]]

Most of the time, you will only select '''one''' category for your article. The indented categories are subcategories of the those above them. For more information on categories, see [[w:Help:Category|Help:Category]] and [[w:Wikipedia:Categorization|Wikipedia:Categorization]] on Wikipedia.

== Notes ==

{{notelist}}

[[Category:For Editors]]