Wikiversity:FAQ/Template

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A template is a wiki-page, containing a section of wikitext to be inserted into other pages (via either "transclusion" or "substitution").

Templates at Wikiversity have a variety of purposes:

1. Messaging: Everyone needs little signs along the way - see especially "page flags" and "ratings" templates below.
2. Navigation and classification: Things that need to appear the same on many pages while linking them together often contain compact navigational aids or infoboxes
3. Learning: Templates may add functionality, content or formatting to a page which assists its educational purpose.
4. Fun: Userboxes have long been a tradition with Wikimedians, Wikipedians, Wiktionarians and such. Wikiversitans should be no different.
5. Iterative computation: See meta:help:recursive conversion of wikitext.

The following is a user-friendly guide to the most important kinds of template. There is an exhaustive list of categorised templates which does not include uncategorised templates. See also: list of templates, including uncategorised ones.

• Templates which assist with making content
  • Category:TOC templates, Category:Navigational templates
  • Citation templates - for citing external resources such as books and articles.
  • Template:Participants - creates an attractive box for lists of participants.
  • Template:To do - creates an attractive box with a list of things to do.
  • Page creation templates
  • Educational templates (there need to be more of these)
    • Template:activity
    • Template:Assessment checklist
    • Template:Boxed Activity Start

• Messaging templates
  • Page flagging templates - some of the most useful administrative templates for quickly marking pages for merges, deletion, or for putting requests, information or warnings at the top.
  • Ratings templates - ratings displays, for rating the maturity/activity of learning projects, or other ratings purposes. (NB: the size of the images in the percentage boxes needs increasing for proper display).
  • Welcome templates

• Useful shortcuts
  • Polling templates - for voting.

• Administrative templates
  • Administrative templates, Wikiversity maintenance
  • User warning templates - see vandalism.
  • Copyright templates - mostly used for uploaded files.

• Templates for fun
  • User templates - typically used on user pages to provide information about a user. Mostly for fun. See Wikiversity:Userboxes.
    • Language user templates - provides information about a user's linguistic abilities.
    • Knowledge user templates - provides information about a user's other abilities.
  • Award templates - awards. For fun. See Wikiversity:Barnstars.

Please [[Help:]] the Template task force develop this Help page and participate in Template Policy discussions.

Learn by doing!

Note: See Wikiversity:Naming conventions for more information. You may also want to look over Introduction to Wiki and Wiki 101 if you are uncomfortable creating and editing pages.

To see what's in the Help: namespace, click Special pages to your left. Scroll down to Prefix index and click that. Then, where it says Namespace:, click the drop-down box, select Help then hit Go.

You will then see a page – All pages (Help namespace) which gives you an alphabetized list something like Category through [[Help: WordToWiki|]]. These are your basic Help: pages at Wikiversity.

• Wikiversity:Template messages