Help:FAQ

Greetings, fellow Smashwikidian! I trust you're new, and need some help on how it all works. Here are some commonly asked questions to get you started with this wiki, SmashWiki, or wikis in general. We can't think of every question people will have so feel free to ask any questions on this article's talk page by clicking on the talk button at the top of this article or by clicking here.

What's a wiki?

A wiki is a unique system in which any user can contribute information to a growing website, designed to give people up-to-date information created by the people, for the people. The best-known example of a wiki is Wikipedia.

How do I edit or contribute?

Easily. All you need to do is start editing! But, you can (and if you plan to stick around, should) register an account! Your information is confidential. You can create a new page by searching for it on the left side of the screen, and clicking the option to make a new page. When editing or creating a page, you can also use formatting, above the text box, to make the article look just the way you want it. You can even preview the page before you add your edit, to see how it looks.

For further help editing, see editing help, the help pages, or if you still need help, leave a message at the help desk.

Um. Isn't this just like Wikipedia?

Not at all. Wikipedia provides general information for virtually everything, but does not focus specifically on the Super Smash Bros. series series. Lots of in-depth information about the SSB series has been rejected there. Only here will you find instant help for your games, and how to improve and learn more about this game series. You can add anything related to the Super Smash Bros. series here, subject to our guidelines to inclusion. See SmashWiki:About.

What's a "sysop"?

Sysops are essentially the moderators of SmashWiki, appointed to keep everything in order. They can make advanced edits to the structure of SmashWiki and block users who endanger or vandalize its safety. To meet these ends, sysops are entrusted with powers beyond those of a normal user. For a list of sysops, see Special:Listadmins.

Sweet. Can I be one?

Only a handful of sysops are chosen for SmashWiki. If you really want to be a sysop, make yourself known as a dedicated and active contributor, and make noticable improvements to the wiki to be considered.

Currently, sysop nominations are taking place; they can be found here.

eh.. I probably don't have anything to add anyway..

Nonsense! There's always something that needs improving at the SmashWiki, and it could be you who does it. You could add character information that hasn't been added, improve on pages that haven't been worked on, or even make pages you believe should exist at our wiki. Even if you don't know much about the game, every positive submission is a step in the right direction, no matter how little it is. Here are some lists of pages that may need your help: Category:Stubs, Category:Articles in need of cleanup, Special:Shortpages, and Special:Wantedpages.

Nice, thanks!

You're welcome!

Remember, if you still have any problems, chat with us at the community portal, or feel free to message one of our friendly admins at their talk page.

Hope to see you there!

What's with the different coloured links?

There are four different coloured links.

• Blue links are internal links. They link to other pages on the wiki.
• Purple links are visited links. If you've visited an internal link, then it will become purple, showing you've visited it before.
• Red links are pages that have not been created.
• Light blue links are external links. They link to sites outside the wiki.

What do the numbers mean in the recent changes?

You'll see some numbers in the recent changes after the time an edit was made. This number indicates how many characters were added or removed from the article. If the number is red, then characters were removed. If the number is green, then characters were added. For example,

(diff)(hist) . . Super Smash Bros. Wiki:FAQ; 00:00 . . (+1,000) . . User (talk | contribs)

would indicate 1,000 words were added to this article by a user named User, whereas

(diff)(hist) . . Super Smash Bros. Wiki:FAQ; 00:00 . . (-1,000) . . User (talk | contribs)

would indicate 1,000 characters were removed from this article by a user named User. These coloured numbers help indicate if users are vandalizing articles or helping contribute to them.

This does not look like a wiki!

If you are having problems with the appearance of the wiki, here are some possible solutions:

• View the Super Smash Bros. Wiki in Firefox. Some things on this wiki may best be viewed in Firefox.

• Change the skin of the wiki. This can be done by going to your preferences and then clicking on the "Skin" tab. If you want to make this wiki look like Wikipedia, then select the "MonoBook" skin.

What is Wikia?

Wikia are wiki communities creating free content with the MediaWiki software. These are hosted for free by Wikia, Inc., the company which runs the project. Anyone is free to start a new Wikia in accordance with the creation policy and terms of use.

Wikia was founded by Angela Beesley and Jimmy Wales, originally under the name "Wikicities", in October 2004. It celebrated its first birthday on November 2, 2005. Wikicities relaunched as "Wikia" in March 2006.

Any other helpful pages?

• Contributing to SmashWiki
• Learn what user pages, talk pages, and other types of pages are