Help:Editing

Editing a wiki article can be a simple matter of keying in text, or can be a complex process. To begin editing an article, click the "Edit" page tab at the top of the page to the left of the search box. Make changes to the text, and click the "Save page" button at the bottom of the page. Use the "Show preview" button (at the bottom of the page) at any point in the editing process to see what the current version would look like if you saved it.

The Additional information section provides resources for exploring both beginning and advanced editing features.

Edit buttons

These are the standard buttons that appear on the Theosophy Wiki toolbar above the edit box:


To use these buttons, highlight a block of text and then press the relevant button, or press the button and then fill in the desired text or link.

renders the highlighted text in boldface. Another way to make text bold is by preceding and following it with three apostrophes, like '''some boldface text'''.
renders the highlighted text in italics. Another way to italicize text is by preceding and following it with two apostrophes, like ''text in italics''.
creates an internal link to another article. It is equivalent to enclosing an article name in double square brackets like [[Articlename]].
creates a link to an external file. It is equivalent to enclosing a URL in single square brackets like [http://www.theosophical.org].
creates a second-level section heading. It is equivalent to keying in == Example of section heading ==.
allows you to add an image file in the format [[File:Example.jpg]] or [[File:Example.png]]. Alternatively, you can just key in double square brackets around the name of the image file.
allows you to add a media file in the format [[Media:Example.ogg]]. Alternatively, you can just key in double square brackets around the name of the media file.
, called "nowiki", suppresses special wiki characters <nowiki>Insert non-formatted text here</nowiki>. This is handy if you want to use characters like <>[]{} that have special significance to the Mediawiki software.
inserts symbols that will be translated into your signature in a discussion page. The same thing can be accomplished by keying in two dashes and four tildes: --~~~~.
inserts a horizontal line across the wiki article.

Double underline

In many of the Mahatma Letters, the writer has drawn a double underscore for emphasis. Special coding is necessary to add similar emphasis to transcriptions of letters:

<u><span style="border-bottom: 1px double #000;">This phrase will have a double underscore.</span></u>

This result will be:

This phrase will have a double underscore.

(The result varies somewhat with the dimensions of the screen and size of the font).

As a contrast, this is the same phrase with a single underscore, achieved by using the common <u> and </u> tags.

This phrase will have a single underscore.

If three lines are needed, you can replace the 1px in the code for the following:

2px for two thin lines beneath the thicker one: text

3px similar to the previous one, but different spacing: text

Strikethrough

One can draw a line through the text by using the <s> and </s> tags in this way:

<s>This phrase will be crossed out.</s>

The result will be:

This phrase will be crossed out.

Three dots after a name

Theosophical literature sometimes shows three dots in a triangle formation following a name. This can be accomplished using this sequence of commands: _*^*_*

A example is in the James Ralston Skinner article, where

Bro. J. Ralston Skinner _*^*_*

gives this result:

Bro. J. Ralston Skinner _*^*_*

Additional information

• Mediawiki article Help:Editing pages has few useful links.
• Mediawiki article Help:Formatting has very useful detail on the Mediawiki markup language.
• Wikimedia article Help:Editing has links to very good information.
• Wikipedia article Help:Editing] links to numerous sources of exhaustive detail, from a Wikipedia perspective.
• Wikipedia article Wikipedia:FAQ/Editing should answer most questions, from a Wikipedia perspective.
• YouTube video How to Edit a Wiki: Part 1 covers headings, bulleted lists, bold and italic text, internal and external links, saving page.
• YouTube video How to Edit a Wiki: Part 2 covers creating new pages, using History to revert to previous page versions, creating categories to organize pages on a Wiki, and monitoring Wiki spam and repair spam damage.