History Administrivia / WelcomeToTVTropes

* There is a standard way to format examples. Titles of films, shows, and albums are ''italicized''. Use two separate apostrophes around the title: [=''ThePriceIsRight''=] for ''ThePriceIsRight''. Titles of episodes and songs are in quotes: "Brittle Bullet." See HowToWriteAnExample for details. Really, take a look at it.

* "Discuss" links to this page's discussion. This is where you go if you have a question, a suggestion, or a problem with an example or the entry itself. ''Don't'' put your objections into the page itself, as that's ConversationInTheMainPage which ''will'' be axed.

Unlike most sites, we don't ask you for a real name, an email address, or anything else personally identifiable. All we store is your profile information and your IP address(es). See our [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/privacypolicy.php Privacy Policy]] for more information.

Edit your troper page and save; have fun! To index it on TheContributors, set the [[WhatPageTypesMean page type]] (under the "tools" menu) to "a contributor" and it'll work automatically. Please be aware that it is very impolite to edit another troper's page without permission. Do not make a troper page in Main; it'll get deleted or moved.

If your handle contains any non-alphanumeric characters (punctuation, accented characters, even an underscore), you can't make a troper page this way. You'll have to make an article with a WikiWord URL, and your handle won't link to it. You can give the article a custom title, however (see above).

* "[[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/custom_title_request.php Customize Title]]" lets you request a custom title for any wiki page. See ThePtitleReplacementSystem for more information on this.

* Keep it FamilyFriendly as much as possible. TVTropes maintains a policy of Administrivia/NoLewdnessNoPrudishness with regards to page content. In addition, the wiki is not interested in articles on pornography or pedophile-pandering works. For more information, see Administrivia/TheContentPolicyAndThe5PCircuit.

* Check out SpoilerPolicy for how to use spoilers.

* '''{{Trope}}s''': The meat and bread of the wiki. A {{trope}} is a convention or device used in storytelling. It is not "[[Administrivia/PeopleSitOnChairs any thing that happens]]."

* "Edit page" lets you modify the current page's content. You must be logged in to do this. If a page displays a padlock icon, it is locked and can't be edited except by [[Administrivia/KnowTheStaff the wiki staff]]; clicking the icon will take you to LockedPages so you can see why.

Edit your troper page and save; have fun! It indexes automatically; you don't have to do it yourself. Please be aware that it is very impolite to edit another troper's page without permission. Do not make a troper page in Main; it'll get deleted or moved.

* Before adding your first suggestion, take a look at '''YKTTWGuidelines'''. Follow those guidelines and the experience will go a lot smoother for everyone.

* '''{{Trope}}s''': The meat and bread of the wiki. A {{trope}} is a convention or device used in storytelling. It is not "[[PeopleSitOnChairs any thing that happens]]."

* Our [[TVTropesFora Forums]] are a good place to shoot the breeze. If you're told to TakeItToTheForums, try it out. There are some interesting topics there. [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/topics.php Here's the link.]] Don't forget to read [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13287249110A49840100&page=1#1 What Goes Where On The Forums]] so that stuff doesn't end up in the wrong place.

* LostAndFound is where you go to ask about what trope an example might fit into.
* YouKnowThatShow is where you go to find that series, book, film, or obscure comic book that you can't remember the title of.
* The WikiSandbox is your place to test the markup and practice formatting. Feel free to obliterate, modify, add, or scramble the code on the page. Just don't expect your contibution to the page to endure. You can also make new test articles in the Sandbox namespace.

* TropesOfLegend will give you an idea of the tropes that keep popping up all over the site.

To make your own contributor page, you create a new page like any other, but you do it in the Tropers namespace. There are three ways to do this:

If your troper handle contains any non-alphanumeric characters; e.g., punctuation or accented characters, you can't make a troper page this way (nor can you edit, but that's a different issue). You'll have to make a plaintext page instead, and your handle won't link to it. You can give your WikiWord troper page a custom title, however (see above).

* Keep it FamilyFriendly as much as possible. TVTropes maintains a policy of Administrivia/NoLewdnessNoPrudishness with regards to page content. In addition, the wiki is not interested in pages on porn or pedophile-pandering works. For more information, see Administrivia/TheContentPolicyAndThe5PCircuit.

To edit articles, you must be [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/knowerForm.php logged in]] -- see Getting Known, below, for details. See TipsForEditing for help with editing. To chat with tropers, visit our [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/topics.php forums]].

* Keep it FamilyFriendly as much as possible. TVTropes maintains a policy of NoLewdnessNoPrudishness with regards to page content. In addition, the wiki is not interested in pages on porn or pedophile-pandering works. For more information, see Administrivia/TheContentPolicyAndThe5PCircuit.

Depending on the type of article you're viewing, there may be one or more {{namespace}} icons/tabs below the toolbar. These allow you to navigate to an article's subpages, including articles with the same title but in a different medium ({{Film}}, {{Literature}}, etc.).

* All new work, creator, actor, useful notes, etc. articles must go in a {{Namespace}}, rather than in "Main". Failure to follow this rule may get your article cut, or at least moved.

* Add the title to the relevant index(es); the full list is at {{Namespace}}.

Similarly, current events, countries, and so forth are only subjects for this wiki when they have a significant impact in media. They could then get a UsefulNotes article, which should never be a copy-paste from Wikipedia. Keep it original and to the point. If you can't find something to say about them that's relevant to this wiki's mission, then follow the RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement and don't bother.

See CreatingNewRedirects for complete instructions. Before you begin, stop and think. Most of the pages that end up being cut are unnecessary redirects. These redirect pages get cut most often:
* Misspelling redirects. "TheBeetles" redirecting to "TheBeatles" isn't needed. If one of these sticks around and someone misspells it on another page, the link won't show up as being misspelled. We're pretty casual around here but we ''do'' want the pages to look professional, so this is problematic.
* Pluralized redirects. "FruitCarts" redirecting to "FruitCart" is generally frowned upon. Using curly brackets duplicates the functionality and saves space. ([={{Fruit Cart}}s=] will give you a link to FruitCart with the "s": {{Fruit Cart}}s.) The only time a pluralized redirect is acceptable is if the noun is in the middle of the trope's name, and simply adding an "s" to the end makes it grammatically incorrect, i.e. BookOfShadows, or if the spelling changes in the pluralization, as in nouns ending in "y."
* Acronym and initialism redirects. "{{ATLA}}" redirecting to ''AvatarTheLastAirbender'' would be cut. Acronyms will never be used in isolation. The full title of the work always gets used first before switching to an acronym; don't assume that everyone else draws the same meaning from an acronym as you.
* These redirects ''are'' needed:
** International English to American English and vice versa. "ColorCodedForYourConvenience" goes to "ColourCodedForYourConvenience." For the record, the wiki is completely neutral on International English versus American English - we don't have a default; it's first-come, first-serve. Leave the variations alone when you see them, but feel free to write your own additions in whichever version you use.
** Adaptation title changes. ''SuzumiyaHaruhiNoYuutsu'' goes to ''HaruhiSuzumiya''.
** Confusing trope titles. We like clever titles, but to make searching easier, we have a simpler name as a redirect.

* Keep it FamilyFriendly as much as possible. TVTropes maintains a policy of NoLewdnessNoPrudishness with regards to page content. In addition, the wiki is not interested in pages on porn or pedophile-pandering works. For more information, see Administrivia/FiveP.

* "[[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/content_violation_reports.php Content Violation Reports]]" is a tally of how the P5 has voted on pages which have been reported for possible violations of the wiki's content policy.

If your troper handle contains any non-alphanumeric characters; e.g., punctuation or accented characters, you can't make a troper page this way (nor can you edit, but that's a different issue). You'll have to make a plaintext page instead, and your handle won't link to it. You can give your WikiWord troper page a custom title, however (see above). Your handle must also start with an uppercase character.

* Before beginning, visit WhatGoesWhereOnTheWiki to make sure that what you're adding is going where it belongs. Also see the Administrivia/MediaCategoriesFAQ.

* Don't forget to review WhatGoesWhereOnTheWiki, or the content you add may get deleted or moved.

* The top of the edit page has a button for handy markup reminders. The full markup is explained in TextFormattingRules.

* Before beginning, visit WhatGoesWhereOnTheWiki to make sure that what you're adding is going where it belongs. Also see the MediaCategoriesFAQ.

* Create a WikiWord link to the new article. You can do this in the WikiSandbox or on the relevant index. See TextFormattingRules for how to create links.

* There are very few concrete rules here. We like to use democratic ways of solving problems. AdministrativePolicy sums the rules up.

* The first character of your handle should be an uppercase letter (A-Z). If it's not, there could be problems linking to your contributor page. You can customize the display of your handle later.

* There is a standard way to format examples. Titles of films, shows, and albums are ''italicized''. Use two separate apostrophes around the title: [=''ThePriceIsRight''=] for ''ThePriceIsRight''. Titles of episodes and songs are in quotes: "Brittle Bullet." See HowToWriteAnExample for details on examples. Really, take a look at it.
* Links to other pages are easy. If it is two or more words, use {{Wiki Word}}s. If it is one word, use double curly brackets: [={{Jeopardy}}=]

* Don't use HotLinked images. Go ahead and use the [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/uploadform.php Media Uploader]].
* Clicking the Edit button "checks out" the page to you (specifically, your handle and IP address) for 20 minutes. If you haven't saved an edit by then, someone else could make another one and then your work or theirs may be lost to the DataVampires. We highly recommend making major edits in chunks so you don't lose your lock. You can only have one page checked out at a time; clicking Edit Page on a new article releases any locks you have open on others.
* If you come back later to find that an edit you made is changed or gone, it may be that another {{troper}} disagreed. Check the Edit History for the page to see if a reason was left. Do not simply add your example back; doing so is called {{Edit War}}ring and is very impolite. If you can't work it out in the article's discussion page, take it to AskTheTropers or the forums.

In other words, series, books, games, actors, producers -- anything that isn't a new index or {{trope}}. All new entries are welcome, as ThereIsNoSuchThingAsNotability. However, don't just paste in the {{Wikipedia}} entry. We encourage looking up verifiable sources to find more information to add to the page, but write something original.

* All new work articles must go in a {{Namespace}}, rather than in "Main". Failure to follow this rule will get your article cut.
* Create a WikiWord link to the new article. You can do this in the WikiSandbox. See TextFormattingRules for how to create links.

* {{Public Domain Character}}s: The use of a particular person (Dracula, Hitler) as a stock character.

Similarly, current events, countries, and so forth are only subjects for this wiki when they have an impact in media. They would then get a UsefulNotes article, which should never be a copy-paste from Wikipedia. Keep it original and to the point. If you can't find something to say about them that's relevant to this wiki's mission, then follow the RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement and don't bother.

* "[[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/content_violation_reports.php Content Violation Reports]]" is a tally of how the P5 has voted on pages which have been reported for possible violating the wiki's content policy.

* [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/wiki_pm.php "PM"]] lets you send a private message to another {{troper}}. The {{troper}} must be Known; you can't PM someone who hasn't created a handle. If you have a new PM, you'll see a big green notification bar on most pages you visit. To see your [=PMs=], go to your [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pm.php mailbox]].

* Keep it FamilyFriendly as much as possible.

* There is a standard way to format examples. Titles of films, shows, and albums are ''italicized''. Use two separate apostrophes around the title: [=''=]ThePriceIsRight[=''=] for ''ThePriceIsRight''. Titles of episodes and songs are in quotes: "Brittle Bullet." See HowToWriteAnExample for details on examples. Really, take a look at it.

See a typo? Want to add an example? Click on the "edit page" button. An edit page will load. The large text box shows the page's current markup. Make your changes there. When you're done, double-check your work for spelling and grammar, markup errors, and organization. If you want, type in an "Edit Reason." It's helpful for other people looking at the page history. The "preview" button shows you what the page should look like, without saving those changes. Click save.

* Links to other pages are easy. If it is two or more words, use [[WikiWord WikiWords]]. If it is one word, use double curly brackets: [={{Jeopardy}}=]

* [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/topics.php "Forum"]] takes you to [[TVTropesFora our forums]]. This is where a lot of the behind-the-scenes activity takes place as well as all kinds of conversations on a variety of topics. Stop by and chat!

Please don't just add a {{trope}} to the index, as these tend to be duplicates. If you have a good {{trope}} idea, go to [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/ykttw.php?interval=1 You Know That Thing Where...]] and pitch it to the community.

* If you want, add your details to WhereAreYouFrom, TroperDemographics [[hottip:(Note):This page was closed due to excessive size breaking the wiki parser.]] and WhatAreTheContributorsRealNames. This is purely optional, so if you're uncomfortable giving out personal information about yourself, don't sweat it.

* "Add watch" lets you add the current page to your [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/awl.php watchlist]]. Any edits to those pages or their discussion pages will appear on your watchlist. Note: If the article you're viewing has multiple subpages, like {{YMMV}}, {{Headscratchers}}, etc., you have to watch each separately.

* '''{{YMMV}}''' and '''AudienceReactions''': We broadly categorize these under tropes, but really they're opinions about a work rather than stuff that's factually present in a work. They get their own subpages to keep the main articles about the tropes.
* '''[[{{Media}} Works]]''': The stuff that produces tropes. ThereIsNoSuchThingAsNotability, but keep in mind that if it doesn't have a story -- that is, a narrative or plot of some kind -- it's not really tropable in the sense we use. Works have various subpages that help to organize all the material related to them, such as [[QuotesWiki Quotes]], {{Trivia}}, {{YMMV}}, {{Headscratchers}}, [[FridgeLogic Fridge]], [[WildMassGuessing WMG]], AwesomeMoments, CharacterSheets, [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/review_activity.php Reviews]], etc.

* Add the title to the relevant index(es):
## '''AnimatedSeries''' for American or European cartoons.
## '''{{Anime}}''' for {{anime}} (Japanese cartoons) .
## '''ComicBookTropes''' for comic book series, characters, or teams.
## '''{{Fanfic}}''' for {{fan fiction}} -- note, '''all''' {{fanfic}} entries go in the {{Fanfic}} {{namespace}}. If you add them to Main, they'll be cut or moved.
## '''{{Film}}''' for movies, including feature-length animated movies.
## '''{{Manga}}''' for {{manga}}.
## '''{{Series}}''' for live action television.
## '''{{Theatre}}''' for theatrical productions.
## '''VideoGames''' for {{videogames}}.
## '''{{Webcomics}}''' for {{webcomics}}.
## '''WebOriginal''' for Internet-published media that does not fall into any of the other categories.
## '''UnpublishedWorks''' for stuff you're writing that isn't published yet -- note, '''all''' unpublished works go in the DarthWiki {{namespace}}. If you add them to Main, they'll be cut or moved.
## Same for {{Authors}}, {{Actors}}, {{Producers}}, {{Mangaka}}, and {{Networks}}, and many others. You can find the full list under {{Media}} and {{Creators}}.

* "Edit page" lets you modify the current page's content. You must be logged in to do this. If a page displays a padlock icon, it is locked and can't be edited except by [[KnowTheStaff the wiki staff]]; clicking the icon will take you to LockedPages so you can see why.