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Wikipedia:Policies an guidelines

Frae Wikipedia, the free beuk o knawledge

Wikipedia is a jynt projeck an its foonders an contreibutors hae a commoun aim:

Oor aim wi Wikipedia is ti mak a trustie an free encyclopaedia—atweill, the greatest encyclopaedia in history, in baith breadth an depth.

Wikipedia haes some policies an guidelines that help us ti wirk for that commoun aim. Some o thir policies are aye chyngin, whiles ithers are lang settled an maistly uncontroversial.

While oor policies continue tae evolve, monie Wikipedians jalouse that written rules canna cover ilka possible kin o disruptive or malevolent behaviour. For exemplar, a uiser that acks agin the speirit o oor written policies micht be caaed ower een gin the letter o the rules haesna been violated. Them that edit in guid faith, shaw civeility, leuk for consensus, an wirk for the aim o makin an impartial encyclopaedia, shuid find a walcoming environment.

Key policies

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Ye dinna hae ti read ilka Wikipedia policy afore ye contreibute! Houaniver, the follaeing policies are key til a productive Wikipedia experience, an the suiner ye get ti grips wi them, the better.

  1. Wikipedia is an encyclopaedia. Its aims gang nae further. See Whit Wikipedia isna for mair wittins.
  2. Evyte bias. Airticles shuid be screivan frae a neutral pynt o view, explainin differin views on a subjeck fairly an sympathetically.
  3. Dinna infringe copyrichts. Wikipedia is a free encyclopaedia licensed unner the terms o the GNU Free Documentation Licence. Submittin wirk that infringes copyrichts threatens oor objective ti big a richt free encyclopaedia that oniebodie can redistribute, an micht lead ti legal trouble. See Wikipedia copyrichts for mair information.
  4. Respeck ither contreibutors. Wikipedia contreibutors come frae monie deifferent kintras an culturs, an hae gey deifferent views. Traitin ithers wi respeck is key ti workin thegither weel in biggin an encyclopaedia. For some guidelines, see Wikipedia Mainers, Wikipedia:Makars rules o engagement, Wikipedia:Civeility, Dispute resolution.

Ither policies an guidelines

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Airtins ti various policies can be foond in the follaeing categories:

Conventions

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Bi follaeing thir we can mak a mair consistent an mair uisable encyclopaedia:

Procedural questions

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Whit wey are policies decided?

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Maist Wikipedia policy wis set in the early days o the projeck, maistly afore the end o 2002. Chynges an addeitions are made bi consensus, altho in practice consensus on policy chynges is unco deifficult tae win. In monie cases policy haes grown informally; written policies uisually codify the tradeetion o langsyne.

Proponed an rejeckit policies are in thir categories:

See forbye Wikipedia:Whit wey ti mak policy.

Whit wey are policies enforced?

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You are a Wikipedia editor. Wikipedia disnae hae a heid editor or a central, top-doon seistem whaurby the dailiday wirk on the encyclopaedia is watchit an appruivit. Instead, workin contreibutors mak copyedits an corrections ti the content an leyoot problems thay see. Sae the contreibutors are baith writers an editors.

Maist policies an guidelines are thus enforced bi individual users editin pages, an discussin maiters wi ane anither. Forbye some policies are enforced bi temporary blocks (abuin aa as a wey o dealin wi vandalism) bi admeinistrators. In the waur cases the Arbitration Committee micht mak a rulin ti deal wi disruptive situations, as pairt o the general dispute resolution procedure.

Restrickit features

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Some features o the saftware that micht be turned til ill, sic as deletin pages an lockin pages frae editin, are restrickit til Admeinistrators, that are experienced, trustie members o the community. Policies gey relevant tae admeinistrators include:

Types of guidelines

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Ower an abuin the accepit policies leeted abuin, the follaein guidelines hae bin suggestit bi ae chiel or anither:

General guidelines

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For ither uisefu tips, see evyting commoun mistaks.

Behaviour guidelines

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Content guidelines

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Style guidelines

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Guideines regardin groupin techniques for airticles

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Ither essays an discussions aboot Wikipedia

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