Editing Help

=Getting Started=
==Adding a Page==
To add a new page to the Wiki, click on the [[Template:Character|Add Character]] or [[Template:Cabal|Add Cabal]] button on the left-hand navigation.  You will be presented with a brief description of how adding a character (or a cabal) works, with an explanation of the fields you'll need to eventually fill out.  Just follow the instructions!.

At some point you'll need to type in the name of your character/cabal in a box and hit a "Create" button.  One of two things will happen.  If the page doesn't exist yet, you'll be taken a page with a pre-existing template in the white box.  There are whole pages devoted exclusively to how to use a template to make a quick and easy basic character page, so please check them out:

* [[Template:Character]]
* [[Template:Cabal]]

If you '''don't''' get the 'Edit' page, and instead come to the page of an existing character, group, ''etc.'', it means that someone else has already used the name!  You'll have to change yours slightly, since every page must have a unique name.


==Sections==

The default templates come with some sections pre-defined, like 'Early Life' and 'Known Associates/Affiliations'.  You can keep these sections and fill in text for them, or you remove them and create your own.

Section titles are set apart by equal signs.  A top-level (very important) section has one equal sign.  For instance, the section title 'Getting Started' at the top of this page is created by typing <span style="color:#26FFBA">=Getting Started=</span> on a line all by itself.

Sub-sections are created the same way, but by adding more equal signs.  A second-level section title would have two equal signs (the title 'Sections' for example, would be <span style="color:#26FFBA">==Sections==</span> on a line by itself.

So, if you wanted a top-level section called 'History', you would start with <span style="color:#26FFBA">=History=</span> on a blank line, and then for a sub-section 'Early Life', you would add <span style="color:#26FFBA">==Early Life==</span> underneath on a blank line as well.  You could make a third-level section by using three equal signs (<span style="color:#26FFBA">===That Fateful Day===</span>) as well.

Remember that these markers must be in a line by themselves, and must be ordered the way you want them to appear.  If you place at least two section titles on a page, the Wiki software will create a Table Of Contents at the top of the page automatically.  On 'Character' and 'Cabal' pages, this appears as nifty little tabs.


==Text Formatting==

The basics of text formatting is done with apostrophes.  If you add two apostrophes around a word, it shows up in italics.  For example:  <nowiki>''italics''</nowiki> becomes ''italics''.  Three apostrophes shows up as bold.  <nowiki>'''bold'''</nowiki> becomes '''bold'''.  

You can learn much more on how to add underline, horizontal lines, lists of items, and links to other pages by reviewing the pages below:

* [http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Help:Formatting How to Format Text]
* [http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Help:Links How to Make Links]


==Images==

To add a picture to your page, click on the link on the left side of the page labeled "[http://www.tcdale.com/swlrp/index.php?title=Special:Upload Upload Media]". You can upload any image which is currently on your computer.  

Please keep pictures to a reasonable size; as a rule of thumb, please trim down any pictures which are larger than approximately 150KB, and do not upload anything larger than 300KB.  Large pictures slow down the site for everyone.

Once a picture is uploaded, you can access it with the same name that you uploaded it with.  For example, if you upload an image named '''MyCharacter1.jpg''', the file's name will be '''MyCharacter1.jpg'''.


<span style="color:red; font-weight:bold;">Warning!</span>  Make sure to give your image file a unique name related to your character or cabal.  If you upload a picture that has the same name as another picture that already exists, you will overwrite the existing image.  Which means someone else's page will have <u>your</u> picture on it!  So instead of something generic like ''logo.jpg'', name your file ''CerberusLogoV1.jpg'' or something more unique.


To add your picture to your page, you can either type the name of the image in the appropriate spot on the template (in the ''image = '' line), or (if you want the image to show up somewhere else on the page), add the command <nowiki>[[image:MyCharacter1.jpg]]</nowiki> anywhere on the page.  This will place your picture aligned with the paragraph where you place the Image link.


<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">Important!</span>  Do not upload images which are pornographic, involve graphic violence, bodily functions inappropriate for a general audience, etc.  Keep it tasteful.  While suggestive pictures or tasteful semi-nudity may be tolerated, as a general rule: if it's not work-safe, it probably shouldn't be here.  The ultimate judge of what is 'appropriate' and what is not, is the Wiki administrator, [[User:Spellsmith|Spellsmith]].  Inappropriate material will be removed, and repeat offenders may be banned.


For more image options, see [http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Help:Images How to Add Images].


==Collapsible Text==

You can 'hide' text so that paragraphs or sections are only visible once you click the 'Expand' link off to the right-hand side.  This is very similar to how the 'Spoilers' and 'Player Spoilers' work (see below).

In order to collapse text, put the tag '''<nowiki>{{Collapse}}</nowiki>''' above the text you wish to 'hide'. It is case-sensitive, and must be on a separate line of its own.  After the text you wish to hide, put the tag '''<nowiki>{{CollapseEnd}}</nowiki>''', also on a separate line of its own.  The result looks like this:

{{Collapse}}
This is some collapsed text.
{{CollapseEnd}}


=Spoiler Warnings=

If you include information about your character that hasn't yet been revealed in game, information about an upcoming or ongoing storyline, or information about story arcs in game, you might want to mark it with a spoiler warning.  Spoiler warnings let people know they should reading, unless they want to spoil the surprise.

To start a spoiler warning, put the tag '''<nowiki>{{Spoiler}}</nowiki>''' above the spoiler content. It will show this:

{{spoiler}}
This is a spoiler about player/character information.
{{SpoilerEnd}}


On a line after the spoiler content, you '''must''' place the tag '''<nowiki>{{SpoilerEnd}}</nowiki>''' to let people know where the spoilers end.



==Categories==

Categories are used to help people find your page.  Every page can belong to multiple categories.  The Wiki will add your page to several categories automatically.  


The default, automatic categories for Cabals are:

* Cabals
* Whether it is a cabal (PC-run) or NPC organization
* What faction, if any, the organization is associated with.


The default, automatic categories for Characters are:

* Characters
* What faction, if any, the person is associated with.
* What cabal, if any, the person is associated with.
* Whether the character in question is a PC or NPC.


If you want to add further categories to your page, you can do so by placing category links anywhere in your page.  They will '''not''' be displayed in the main text.  Instead, they will appear in the category list.  

A list of all available categories can be found [http://www.tcdale.com/swlrp/index.php?title=Special:Categories here].


==Finishing Touches==

Everything is typed out, and it looks like a garbled mess of brackets and equal signs - not to mention the template thing up top. You probably have no idea if it's going to look right or not!  To find out, push the '''Preview''' button at the bottom on the page. This will bring up your page exactly as you programmed it to look. The only thing missing will be the Categories (Categories do not appear in the Preview, only on the completed page). Once on the preview page, look it over. Does everything look right? Is something a bit off? This is also a good time to make any alterations or corrections to your page and fix any typos.  Once you are happy with your work, press the '''Save''' button.

Once saved, you can view your cpage at any time by simply typing in the page title in the search box at the upper right. When you view a page that you created, you will also see a tab at the top of the page labeled '''Edit'''  Clicking on this will allow you to view your blueprint once more and make additions or corrections as you see fit.

Once you're done, feel free to add other pages or do some experimenting.  Most of the coding listed here is pretty basic, but will be all you need to make an informative and interesting page.



=Works In Progress=
If you wish to mark a page as a creative work in progress simply insert '''<nowiki>{{WIP}}</nowiki>''' before all other text, templates, etc. on the page. The following text box will appear:
 
{{WIP}}


Note that 'works in progress' are supposed to be temporary!  Don't forget to come back and update your page later, and remove the work-in-progress tag once the page is complete.