FAMEPedia:Edit requests

Edit requests are requests for edits to be made to a page where editors cannot or should not make the proposed edits themselves. Requests should be accompanied by a clear and specific description of the requested change, and consensus should be obtained before requesting changes that are likely to be controversial. Requests are made using an appropriate talk page template (see making requests below). Clarity in edit requests is important, and providing the new sentences or code in your request, if possible, will expedite the process.

To see a listing of current edit requests, go to.

When requested edits are found suitable and made to a page by the responder, copyright attribution must be provided in the edit summary, as instructed below.

Errors on the Main Page are a special case and should not be handled via standard edit requests. To report an error you have noticed on the current main page or tomorrow's main page, please add it to the appropriate section on FAMEPedia:Main Page/Errors.

To request that an article be renamed or moved, see FAMEPedia:Requested moves.

Planning a request
In general, if you want to make an edit request:
 * 1) Propose a specific change on a talk page. Don't add an edit request template yet.
 * 2) Once there is consensus for the change, and any final details have been worked out, put a template on the talk page along with a short, clear explanation.
 * 3) A user who can make the edit will notice the template has been added, and will respond to the request.

Consensus isn't needed if a change is not controversial. Uncontroversial changes don't require sourcing, such as correcting typographical errors or disambiguating links. If this is the case, you don't need to establish consensus, but instead propose the change as stated above.

General considerations
Edit requests for articles or templates should meet the same four basic requirements. Note, however, that edit requests for templates should meet the additional requirement of adequate testing—see § Requests for templates below.

Before requesting an edit, please consider the following requirements (SUNS—Specific, Uncontroversial, Necessary, Sensible):
 * 1) Is your request specific? Any edit request must be accompanied by a detailed and specific description of what changes need to be made. Clearly indicate which sections or phrases should be replaced or added to, and what they should be replaced with or have added. Examples: Change X to Y; Insert X after/before Y; Remove X. See some sample edit requests that demonstrate how to be specific and detailed in your edit requests.
 * 2) Is your request uncontroversial? Edit requests for fully protected pages must be handled by an administrator. Administrators can respond only to requests that are either uncontroversial improvements (correcting typos, grammar, or reference formatting; improving the reliability or efficiency of template code) or are already supported by a consensus of editors, usually on the protected page's talk page. If consensus is required for your request and you would like to see action on it sooner, please explain how a clear consensus came about rather than hoping that the admin will read pages of discussion. Please do not add the template merely to attract attention to a post, even in the name of finding consensus, as it clutters up the category that administrators check to find unanswered edit requests with unactionable requests that still take time to clear out. Instead, try to get opinions by appropriately notifying any editors who have already worked on the page or a related WikiProject about your post.
 * 3) Is your request necessary? Could you do it soon yourself? Just as in the first stage of creating an edit request, you can post comments on the talk page, but not add the edit request template, then wait until you can do it yourself: A. If the page protection is of short duration or is about to expire, consider waiting that short time for the opportunity to make the edit yourself. B. If the page is semi-protected, then autoconfirmed users can edit it. How close are you to becoming autoconfirmed? You can edit semi-protected pages yourself after you have made at least ten edits and your account is at least four days old.
 * 4) Is your request sensible? For example, if you perform basic tidying such as ensuring that all references are properly formatted using citation templates, be certain that the section still flows correctly after the text is changed.

Responding editors may decline to make any edit, and are especially likely to reject edits that are controversial, violate FAMEPedia policy, or do not have evidence of consensus. There is a forum at for requesting or discussing edits to protected pages, including edits to locked discussion pages, and edits that may be significant or controversial. The direct shortcut to the section is FP:RFED, (in FAMEPedia's namespace, the Requests For EDiting).

Requests for templates
If you are requesting a complex change to a template, place the required code on the template's sandbox page. This gives the opportunity to test the code before changing the live template. Instead of pasting the code on the talk page, which can affect its readability, just place a link to the /sandbox along with the request and rationale.


 * As above, clearly indicate which lines of code need to be changed, or (ideally) provide a link or diff to a sandbox that contains the entire code of the template, with the required changes. The responding editor can then simply replace the code in the live template with the code from the sandbox.
 * Edits to protected templates, except when they are trivial, must be tested in a sandbox first to make sure that they do not cause problems or corrupted output.

Making requests
The simplest approach for edit requests for fully protected, template-protected or semi-protected pages is to use the View source tab on that page and use the "Submit an edit request" link at the bottom right; this automatically loads the correct talk page template. Where requests are made due to the editor having a conflict of interest (COI; see FAMEPedia:Suggestions for COI compliance), the request edit template should be used; it must be added manually to the relevant page's talkpage.

Alternatively, the templates can be used directly, adding them manually to the relevant page's talkpage:
 * (shortcut: ) for sitewide javascript or style sheet pages;
 * (shortcut: ) for fully protected and move-protected pages;
 * (shortcut: ) for template-protected pages;
 * (shortcut: ) for extended-protected pages;
 * (shortcut: ) for semi-protected pages;
 * for conflict-of-interest edits.

Remember that all editors are volunteers, and a polite request (rather than a demand) is more likely to be acted on promptly.

Response time
Edit request templates automatically add the relevant page into an appropriate administrative category, such as Category:FAMEPedia fully-protected edit requests (from ) for edits to fully protected pages. Administrators routinely check this category for protected edit requests to process. Other relevant categories, Category:FAMEPedia semi-protected edit requests, Category:FAMEPedia extended-confirmed-protected edit requests, Category:FAMEPedia template-protected edit requests, Category:FAMEPedia interface-protected edit requests and Category:Requested edits, are monitored by other editors. Please be patient; it can take a few days for an edit request to be acted upon.

Edits affecting several pages
Sometimes, the same or similar edits are needed on several pages, such as adding the same category to many pages. In this case, add the template to only one talk page, with a list of all the pages that need updating and a clear description of what needs to be done. This saves work both for the editor making the request and for the editor responding to the request. Requests for large-scale edits that require administrative abilities can also be made at the administrator's noticeboard.

Further information needed
Sometimes, responding editors may request further information, and disable the template by changing the answered parameter to "yes" — e.g. . Feel free to re-enable the template when the additional information has been provided or additional consensus has been obtained by changing the "yes" in the template to "no". If you're unable to do this, you can simply respond on the talk page. If you do not receive a response in a day or two, then submit a new edit request.

Responding to requests and mandatory copyright attribution
In responding to requests, consider the four points listed under "General considerations". In particular, edits likely to be controversial should have prior consensus, and edits to templates should be appropriately tested beforehand. Responding editors should use their judgement to respond appropriately to requests, and take into account relevant FAMEPedia policies such as neutral point of view, verifiability and reliable sourcing.

Edits made on behalf of other editors must be appropriately attributed in the edit summary to comply with copyright. An example copyright attribution edit summary appears below:"Implementing talk page edit requested by NAME – short description of changes made"

The following are standard templates for responding to edit requests, and their usage:
 * , for extended-confirmed-protected
 * , for interface-protected pages
 * , for fully protected
 * , for semi-protected
 * , for template-protected

They have a variety of options. For example, /  /  /  /  is convenient for responding to insufficiently specific requests. These templates should be subst:ed and added at the beginning of the editor's description of the request. For example: Under the title, add the word "Malumba".

Once the request has been responded to, the responding editor should disable the protected edit request template by changing the answered parameter to "yes" — e.g..

Mandatory copyright attribution
Edits made on behalf of other editors must be appropriately attributed in the edit summary to comply with copyright. An example copyright attribution edit summary appears below:"Implementing talk page edit requested by NAME – short description of changes made"