Difference between revisions of "M3P:Editorial policy"

Latest revision as of 12:17, 29 March 2013

Scope

The editorial policy outlines how content is managed on M3P, a collaborative database of Maltese music. It describes best practice, clarifies principles and hopefully resolves conflicts. There is no need to read this policy or guideline pages before starting to edit pages on M3P.

Our intention is to model M3P policies on common sense and best practices, particularly those proposed and or adopted by project from the Wikimedia Foundation.

Guiding Principles

Stylistically M3P has three fundamental guiding principles, which are the cornerstones of our content policy.

Neutral point of view (NPOV). Except for submissions from authorized observers, all articles and other content must be written from a neutral point of view, representing fairly, proportionately, and as far as possible without bias, all significant views that have been published by reliable sources. This is expected of all articles and all editors.
Verifiability. Any material challenged or likely to be challenged, and all quotations, must be attributed to a reliable, published source using an inline citation.
It's all relevant. M3P welcomes obscure and hard to find materials, as long as they can be attributable to a reliable source and copyright matters are respected.

Jointly, these policies determine the type and quality of material that is acceptable in M3P submissions. They should not be interpreted in isolation from one another, and contributors should therefore respect the spirit of these guiding principles.

Content Development

When developing content on M3P pages, please remember the following simple content guidelines:

Avoid platitudes, superlatives and generalities. Don't theorise, and omit needless words, especially adjectives.
Be clear and concise. Avoid verbose and dumbed-down language. Be as plain, direct and concise in your writing as possible. Consider using footnotes for further clarification.
Avoid content forks. That's the creation of multiple separate pages all treating the same subject. Articles should not be split into multiple articles just so each can advocate a different stance on the subject. Always check if there is an existing page before you create a new one. Be careful with spelling, capitalisation and prefixes.
Give credit where it's due. Plagiarising and duplicating the work of others without proper attribution is unethical and can bring this project into disrepute.
Place external links in their appropriate section towards the bottom of a page. External links should be used only when clarification or context is needed, and when directly relevant to the article.
Use reliable sources. Citations improve the overall credibility of M3P. The inclusion of references means that the content of articles can be checked by any reader or editor, showing that the edit is not original research, and therefore reducing editorial disputes or claims of plagiarism and copying. References also help users find additional information on a topic and validates material about living persons.
Do not submit copyrighted material without permission. Unless you own the copyright to the text, image/s and/or media file/s you're submitting, please ensure that you have cleared the permission for this with the owner. If in doubt, please consult one of the M3P | administrators.
Avoid fads. Resist the temptation to write about the new, great thing you, your friends, or some website just thought up. M3P content needs to be reliable and verifiable.
Avoid disclaimers in articles, unless absolutely necessary. All articles are covered by the general disclaimer below.

Administration

Central editing and streamlining of content

M3P has a team of system administrators who regularly monitor recent page changes, and edit content for issues such as syntax, house style and completeness. If you have some spare time and wish to contribute to M3P by becoming a system administrator, email us at info@mp3.com.mt and we'll get back to you.

Vandalism

It's not our intention to impose draconian rules. Just be sensible, and respect your work, and the work of others.

The one thing we do need to prevent is vandalism - particularly wilful or random, malicious destruction or spoilage of M3P pages. Vandalism may also include the creation of pages with inappropriate content (such as porn and content of a violent or racist nature); and the editing of pages with the intention of destroying valid content. In the case of pure vandalism, particularly where a user's contributions are all malicious and likely to result in the destruction and spoilage of M3P pages, the relevant content will be flagged for speedy deletion.

A systems administrator will alert users in case of acts of vandalism.

First Offense

An automated warning will be sent through the user through his/her user talk page. The message will be sent from any one of the Mp3 system operators.

Second Offense

A second offense will result in the temporary block of username. Unless the user will sent an email or write to the admins user page for reconsideration, his account will be blocked indefinitely.

Third Offense

A third offense will trigger the indefinite blocking of the user's account.

Speedy Deletion

If you find a page meeting the following criteria, please mark the page for speedy deletion by adding {{speedyDeletion|reason}} at the top of the page.

Test pages.
Pure vandalism.
Advertisements.
Spam.
Recreation of deleted material.
Pages created by banned users while they were banned.
Housekeeping.
Attack pages.
Copyright infringement.

General disclaimer

M3P is an open-content music site. This site is a wiki, which allows anyone with an Internet connection and browser to alter its content. The online community working here is a voluntary association of individuals and groups who are developing a common resource of music information.

Validity

M3P makes no guarantee of the validity or accuracy for the content found in this site. None of the authors, contributors, administrators, or anyone else connected with M3P can be responsible for any libelous information or for your use of the information contained in site.

M3P is a work in progress, and articles may contain errors, bias, duplication, or simply need tender loving care. We encourage readers to help us fix these problems. The great majority of articles are written primarily or solely by individuals who are not subject matter experts, and may lack academic or professional credentials in the area.

No contract

Information provided here is being provided freely, and that no kind of agreement or contract is created between you and the owners or users of this site. There is no agreement or understanding between you and M3P regarding your use or modification of this information.

Trademarks

Any of the trademarks, service marks, or similar rights that are mentioned, used or cited in the articles of M3P are the property of their respective owners. Their use here does not imply that you may use them for any other purpose other than for the same or a similar informational use as contemplated by the original authors of these articles. Jurisdiction

Publication of information found on M3P may be in violation of the laws of the country or jurisdiction from where you are viewing this information. The M3P database is stored on a server in the United Kingdom, and is maintained under the protection of UK law. M3P cannot be responsible for violations of any laws, should you link to this domain or use, reproduce, or republish the information contained herein.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 =='''Scope'''==
-The submissions policy outlines how data is collected for insertion into M3P, a collaborative database of Maltese music.
+The editorial policy outlines how content is managed on M3P, a collaborative database of Maltese music.  It describes best practice, clarifies principles and hopefully resolves conflicts. There is no need to read this policy or guideline pages before starting to edit pages on M3P.
-== Registering ==
+Our intention is to model M3P policies on common sense and best practices, particularly those proposed and or adopted by project from the Wikimedia Foundation.
-Before you can submit or edit content on M3P, you need to create an account.  Click on 'log in/create account' in the top right hand corner of the main page, choose your username and password, and submit a valid email.  Within a few minutes, you will receive an automated email, asking you to confirm your email and activate e-mail features on M3P by clicking on a link inside the message.  That's it.  You're now ready to contribute to M3P.
+=='''Guiding Principles'''==
+Stylistically M3P has '''three fundamental guiding principles''', which are the cornerstones of our content policy.
-== Submitting Content ==
+#'''Neutral point of view (NPOV).''' Except for submissions from [[M3P:Authorized Observers|authorized observers]], all articles and other content must be written from a neutral point of view, representing fairly, proportionately, and as far as possible without bias, all significant views that have been published by reliable sources. This is expected of all articles and all editors.
+#'''Verifiability.'''  Any material challenged or likely to be challenged, and all quotations, must be attributed to a reliable, published source using an inline citation.
+#'''It's all relevant.''' M3P welcomes obscure and hard to find materials, as long as they can be attributable to a reliable source and copyright matters are respected.
-===Creating a new page===
+Jointly, these policies determine the type and quality of material that is acceptable in M3P submissions. They should not be interpreted in isolation from one another, and contributors should therefore respect the spirit of these guiding principles.
+=='''Content Development'''==
+When developing content on M3P pages, please remember the following simple content guidelines:
-'''Creating a new page through internal linking'''
+*'''Avoid platitudes, superlatives and generalities.'''  Don't theorise, and omit needless words, especially adjectives.
+* '''Be clear and concise.''' Avoid verbose and dumbed-down language. Be as plain, direct and concise in your writing as possible. Consider using footnotes for further clarification.
-. To create a page for a particular keyword you must edit an existing page.
+*'''Avoid content forks.''' That's the creation of multiple separate pages all treating the same subject. Articles should not be split into multiple articles just so each can advocate a different stance on the subject.  Always check if there is an existing page before you create a new one.  Be careful with spelling, capitalisation and prefixes.
+*'''Give credit where it's due.'''  Plagiarising and duplicating the work of others without proper attribution is unethical and can bring this project into disrepute.
-. To edit the whole page, click on the edit button on the wiki menu bar.  To edit a portion of a page, click on the edit link just beside the section.
+* '''Place external links in their appropriate section towards the bottom of a page.''' External links should be used only when clarification or context is needed, and when directly relevant to the article.
+*'''Use reliable sources.'''  Citations improve the overall credibility of M3P.  The inclusion of references means that the content of articles can be checked by any reader or editor, showing that the edit is not original research, and therefore reducing editorial disputes or claims of plagiarism and copying.  References also help users find additional information on a topic and validates material about living persons.
-. Higlight the keyword that you want to create a page.
+*'''Do not submit copyrighted material without permission.''' Unless you own the copyright to the text, image/s and/or media file/s you're submitting, please ensure that you have cleared the permission for this with the owner. If in doubt, please consult one of the M3P [http://www.m3p.com.mt/wiki/index.php?title=Special:ListUsers&group=sysop | administrators].
+*'''Avoid fads.'''  Resist the temptation to write about the new, great thing you, your friends, or some website just thought up.  M3P content needs to be reliable and verifiable.
-. Click on the internal link button, the third icon after bold and italicize icon. Represented by an underlined Ab symbol.
+*'''Avoid disclaimers in articles, unless absolutely necessary.'''  All articles are covered by the general disclaimer below.
-. Click save. The higlighted word becomes red (note: red means the page doesn't exist).
-. Click on that word in red, then do the necessary edits and save. Hence, a page is created through internal linking.
-Creating a new page through word search
-. In the search box on the left side of the wiki, there is a search box.
-. In the search box, type in the word you want your page to be named.
-. Click search.
-. If the page doesn't exist, this comes out.
-. Click on the "create this page" (in red).
-. Do the necessary edits and insert the necessary data.
-. Click the save button.
-===Editing an existing page===
-Another way of contributing to M3P is to edit an existing page.  Just click on the edit button on the top of the relevant page and insert your content.
-Wikis are all about editing, so dive in and make some changes. Don't worry about making mistakes.  Other people can correct mistakes later, so have confidence, and give it a try! There can be all kinds of editing conventions, rules, and philosophy governing the editing of wiki pages, but the "be bold" rule overrides these!
-In general try and write as clearly and concisely as possible.  Make sure you are always trying to do something which improves the M3P's contents. An edit might be to contribute whole paragraphs or pages full of information, or it could be as simple as fixing a typo or spelling mistake.
-When you need to use some type of formatting e.g. new headings or bold text, you do this using wiki syntax.  The bold and index characters are in the box at the top of the section you are editing.
-Before you save a change, you can enter a short note in the Summary box describing your changes. Don't worry too much about this, or spend too much time thinking about it, but try to give a little description of what you just changed e.g. "fixed typo" or "added more information about sunflowers".  The summary gets stored alongside your edit, and allows people to track changes in the wiki more effectively.
-It's a good idea to use the "Show preview" button to see what your changes will look like, before you save the page. This is also related to tracking changes because every time you save, this is displayed to others as a separate change. This isn't something to worry about too much, but it's good to get into the habit of eliminating mistakes in your own work, by using a preview before saving, rather than saving several minor corrections afterwards.
-===Uploading media files===
-As the wiki is still in beta test mode, uploading of media files is disabled until further notice.
-=='''Editorial policy'''==
+=='''Administration'''==
 ===Central editing and streamlining of content===
 M3P has a team of system administrators who regularly monitor recent page changes, and edit content for issues such as syntax, house style and completeness. If you have some spare time and wish to contribute to M3P by becoming a system administrator, email us at info@mp3.com.mt and we'll get back to you.
+===Vandalism===
+It's not our intention to impose draconian rules.  Just be sensible, and respect your work, and the work of others.
-===Vandalism===
+The one thing we do need to prevent is vandalism - particularly wilful or random, malicious destruction or spoilage of M3P pages. Vandalism may also include the creation of pages with inappropriate content (such as porn and content of a violent or racist nature); and the editing of pages with the intention of destroying valid content. In the case of pure vandalism, particularly where a user's contributions are all malicious and likely to result in the destruction and spoilage of M3P pages, the relevant content will be flagged for speedy deletion.
-It's not our intention to impose draconian rules.  Just be sensible, and respect your work, and the work of others.  The one thing we need to prevent is vandalism - willful or random malicious destruction or spoilage of M3P pages. This is normally a result of creating inappropriate pages and editing pages that is meant to destruct (e.g. pages containing the likes of inappropriate words such as sexual intercourse, etc.).  Pure Vandalism is defined to as a user whose contributions are all malicious and may result in the destruction and spoilage of M3P pages. Pure Vandalism will be automatically deleted as per speedy deletiion policy.
+A systems administrator will alert users in case of acts of vandalism.
 *First Offense
-An automated warning will be sent through the user through his/her user talk page. The said message will be sent from any one of the Sysops.
+An automated warning will be sent through the user through his/her user talk page. The message will be sent from any one of the Mp3 system operators.
 *Second Offense
@@ Line 90: / Line 49: @@
 ===Speedy Deletion===
+If you find a page meeting the following criteria, please mark the page for speedy deletion by adding <nowiki>{{speedyDeletion|reason}}</nowiki> at the top of the page.
-If you find a page meeting the following criteria, please mark the page for speedy deletion by adding {{speedyDeletion|reason}} at the top of the page.
 *Test pages.
 *Pure vandalism.
@@ Line 103: / Line 61: @@
 =='''General disclaimer'''==
-M3P is an open-content music site. This site is a Wiki, which allows anyone with an Internet connection and browser to alter its content. The online community working here is a voluntary association of individuals and groups who are developing a common resource of music information.
+M3P is an open-content music site. This site is a wiki, which allows anyone with an Internet connection and browser to alter its content. The online community working here is a voluntary association of individuals and groups who are developing a common resource of music information.
 ===Validity===
 M3P makes no guarantee of the validity or accuracy for the content found in this site. None of the authors, contributors, administrators, or anyone else connected with M3P  can be responsible for any libelous information or for your use of the information contained in site.
+M3P is a work in progress, and articles may contain errors, bias, duplication, or simply need tender loving care. We encourage readers to help us fix these problems. The great majority of articles are written primarily or solely by individuals who are not subject matter experts, and may lack academic or professional credentials in the area.
 ===No contract===
@@ Line 118: / Line 78: @@
 Jurisdiction
-Publication of information found on M3P may be in violation of the laws of the country or jurisdiction from where you are viewing this information. The WikiMusicGuide database is stored on a server in the United States of America, and is maintained under the ptotections of local and federal law. WikiMusicGuide cannot be responsible for violations of any laws, should you link to this domain or use, reproduce, or republish the information contained herein.
+Publication of information found on M3P may be in violation of the laws of the country or jurisdiction from where you are viewing this information. The M3P database is stored on a server in the United Kingdom, and is maintained under the protection of UK law. M3P cannot be responsible for violations of any laws, should you link to this domain or use, reproduce, or republish the information contained herein.
-===About creative commons===
+[[Category:M3P Policies]]