Help:Advanced editing

This Help section on Advanced Editing explains the codes used to format text in various ways. Text format codes for centering, strikethroughs, superscripts, subscripts, hidden comments (only visible to other editors), headlines, tabs, fonts (including font size and colours), links (including internal links and "piped links"), references, and underlining.

Text formatting

Here are some tips on how to format your text:

Centre align

• To centre text, use the following code:
  • Enter <div style="text-align: center;">
  • Then enter your text
  • Finally, enter </div>

• Overall, your code should look like this:

<div style="text-align: center;"> Centered text </div>

• Once you have entered that code, your text will look like this:

Centered text

Strikethrough

• To strikethrough text, use the following code:
  • Enter <s> before the text.
  • Enter the text
  • Enter </s> after the text.

• Overall, your code should look like this:

<s>blah blah blah</s>

• Once you have entered that code, your text will look like this:

blah blah blah

Strikethrough can be used as a transparent way of retracting a comment that you made on a Discussion page. For example, if an editor made an earlier comment that "User XYZ is completely incorrect, and she/he does not know the issues", and upon subsequent reflection, she/he wishes to retract that comment, the strikethrough feature could be used. It is more "transparent" in that the comment is seen to be withdrawn, and yet it is not erased, so the record of the dialogue is preserved. Strikethrough is not normally used in articles.

Superscript

• To insert a superscript, use the following code:
  • Enter ^{before the text.
  • Enter the text
  • Enter} after the text.

• Overall, your code should look like this:

^{blah blah blah}

• Once you have entered that code, your text will look like this:

blah blah blah ^{blah blah blah}

Subscript

• To insert, use the following code:
  • Enter _{before the text.
  • Enter the text
  • Enter} after the text.

• Overall, your code should look like this:

_{blah blah blah}

• Once you have entered that code, your text will look like this:

blah blah blah _{blah blah blah}

Hidden comment

• To insert a hidden comment, use the following code:
  • Enter <!-- before the text.
  • Enter the text
  • Enter --> after the text.

• Overall, your code should look like this:

<!-- blah blah blah-->

• You will not be able to see the text on this page, but it will be seen when you try to edit this page. Hidden text is mostly used for works in process or notes to other editors (e.g., a note to see an ongoing discussion on the Talk page about the article). Hidden texts are said to be "commented out".

Secondary headline

• To insert a secondary headline, use the following code:
  • Enter == before the text.
  • Enter the text
  • Enter == after the text.

• Overall, your code should look like this:

==blah blah blah==

• Once you have entered that code, the text should look like the underlined headlines on this page.

Tab

• To insert a tab, use the following code:
  • Enter :: before the text.

• Overall, your code should look like this:

:blah blah blah

• Once you have entered that code, your text will look like this:

blah blah blah

Font colour

• To change the colour of text, use the following code:
  • Enter <span style="color: ColorName"> before the text. (Note American spelling of the word “color”)
  • Choose the colour
  • Enter the text
  • Enter </span> after the text.

• Overall, your code should look like this:

<span style="color: green">blah blah blah</span>

• Once you have entered that code, your text will look like this:

blah blah blah

• Another way to do it is:

• • Enter <font color="ColorName"> before the text.
  • Choose the colour
  • Enter the text
  • Enter </font> after the text.

• Overall, your code should look like this:

<font color="green">blah blah blah</font>

• Once you have entered that code, your text will look like this:

blah blah blah

• A third way is to use the colour template:
  • {{colour|red|Hello, world!}} produces Hello, world!

Tip For colour names, look at the HTML colour chart

Links

• To make external links look internal, use the following code:
  • Enter <span class="plainlinks"><font color="002bb8"> before the text.
  • Enter the external link
  • Enter </font></span> after the text.

• Overall, your code should look like this:

<span class="plainlinks"><font color="002bb8">[http://example.com external link]</font></span>

• Once you have entered that code, the external link should look like this:

external link

• Note that if someone is using a custom skin that specifies different link colors, for example green for internal links, and purple for "redlinks," a link formatted with this code will still look blue, and not match other links in appearance, to that user.

Link to another Wiki article

To link to another Wiki article, put double square brackets around the term [[Word or phrase you want to link]].

Piped link

To link to another Wiki article, but have the reader see a different word or phrase in the text, use the following wiki-text: [[Title of article | Word or phrase you want to link]].

The need to create a "piped link" occurs when you want to create a link to an article, but you do not want the entire title of the article to appear in the text. Here is example B with real text:

[[Spam |unwanted junk e-mails]].

The reader will only see the phrase "unwanted junk e-mails". However, when the reader clicks on the link, it will take him/her to the Wiki article on Spam. The name of the actual Wiki article is typed first. Then there is a vertical line. Then you type the word or phrase that you want the reader to see in the article.

Here is example B as it would look in a Wiki article:

• Many public servants are finding that they have to spend too much time reading through unwanted junk e-mails.

In the above example, the piped link was used because "spam" is a jargon term that not all readers might be familiar with.

Acceptable and unacceptable types

Piped links should always take the reader to an article page that would be expected. Creating links to unexpected pages (this is called creating an "easter egg") is confusing for readers.

Acceptable types Creating a piped link like this is acceptable:

• Equivalent terms or phrase:

[[Broadcasting Act| The legislation governing television and radio]]

[[Department of Solar Affairs |The Department that deals with solar issues]]

• Acronyms or abbreviation:

[[Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Policy Branch for Asia |OECD-PBA]]

[[Canadian Heritage| PCH]]

Unacceptable types Creating an "easter egg" piped link like this is not considered to be acceptable:

• Adding a negative or biased "Point of View":

[[Department of Solar Affairs | Problem-plagued organizations]]

• Attempts to be humorous should be limited to one's own private webspace, and not done in Wiki:

[[Annual leave in the public service| key safeguards for mental stability]]

Underlining

• To underline text, use the following code:
  • Enter <u> before the text.
  • Enter the text
  • Enter </u> after the text.

• Overall, your code should look like this:

<u>text</u>

• Once you have entered that code, the text should look like this:

text

Font size

• To make text a certain size, use the following code:
  • Enter <font size="4"> before the text.
  • Choose the size
  • Enter the text
  • Enter </font> after the text.

• Overall, your code should look like this:

<font size="4">blah blah blah</font>

• Once you have entered that code, your text will look like this:

blah blah blah

More symbols

Some of the symbols that you may wish to use are as follows:

:– — ‘’ “” ° ″ ′ ≈ ≠ ≤ ≥ ± − × ÷ √ ← → · § {{}} {{{}}} | [] [[]] [[Category:]] #REDIRECT [[]] <s></s>   <code></code> <pre></pre> <blockquote></blockquote> {{Reflist}} <references/> <includeonly></includeonly> <noinclude></noinclude>