View source for Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting

{{short description|Wikimedia internal-maintenance collaboration}}
{{WikiProject status|active|sc1=WP:WSS|sc2=WP:STUBSORT}}
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Some [[Wikipedia:Wikipedians|Wikipedians]] have formed a [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/Stub types|project]] to better organize and categorize '''[[Wikipedia:stub|stubs]] and [[:Category:Stub categories|stub categories]]'''. This page and its subpages contain their suggestions; it is hoped that this project will help to focus the efforts of other Wikipedians. Everyone is welcome to help; for more information please inquire on the [[{{NAMESPACE}} talk:{{PAGENAME}}|talk page]] or see the [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/To do|"To do" list]].

==Project goals==
This [[WikiPedia:WikiProject|WikiProject]] aims primarily to sort stubs in [[Wikipedia]]. To do this the project has the following aims:
# Ensure better categorization of stubs
# Ensure that stubs are sorted as uniformly as possible
# Aim to keep categories at moderate sizes
# Maintain stub categories and templates
# Ensure that any new stub categories and templates are reasonable, usable, and useful

==Why is stub sorting important?==
Stub articles are generally short, or below the high Wikipedia standard, or both. If they are not sorted, then it means they are less likely to be edited to higher quality as nobody necessarily knows the page is in need of attention. Even if a page is sorted into a category indicating it is in need of attention, such as the articles needing a [[Wikipedia:Cleanup resources|cleanup]], it is still not as good as putting it in a stub category. This is because stub categories attract experts in specific areas (chemists can see chemistry stubs for example), whereas generic cleanup and [[Wikipedia:Dead-end pages|dead-end]] categories do not.

===Helpful hints===
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/Proposals#Proposing new stub types - procedure|RTFM]] (read the friendly manual)
* [[User:Pegship/The nature of stub sorters|A field guide to stub sorters]]
* [[User:Grutness/Croughton-London rule of stubs|When is a stub not a stub?]]

==Parentage==
* One parent of this WikiProject is [[Wikipedia:Maintenance]].
* Another parent of this WikiProject is [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Templates]].
* The third parent of this WikiProject is [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Categories]].

==Structure==
:See [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/Stub types]] for more information on existing stub types.
:See [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/List of stubs]] for a compact list of all stub types.

===Guidelines and criteria===
* To see the current guidelines and other information on stub sorting and stubs in general, see: [[Wikipedia:Stub]].
* To propose new stub categories/templates, see [[/Proposals]].
* If you feel that a stub type should be deleted, nominate its template at [[WP:CFD|Categories for discussion]].

==Important page links==
* [[Wikipedia:Stub]] ([[WP:STUB]]) - official definition and instruction on stubs.
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/Stub types]] ([[WP:WSS/ST]]) - lists all stub categories.
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/Stub type sizes]] - gives numbers of members of all stub categories.
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/Proposals]] ([[WP:WSS/P]]) - for proposals on new stub types and other stub-related discussion.
* [[User:DataflowBot/output/Popular low quality articles (id-2)]] - list of popular yet low-quality articles, replacing the long-deprecated [[Wikipedia:Most wanted stubs]]
* [[Special:Shortpages]]
* [[:Category:Stub categories]] - the main list of stub categories and of articles contained within them''
* [[:Category:Stubs]] ([[CAT:STUB]]) - Articles tagged with generic {{tl|stub}}. Frequently overpopulated and needs constant maintenance.
* [[Wikipedia:Database reports/Stubs included directly in stub categories]]
* [[Wikipedia:Database reports/Unused stub templates]]
{{See also2|[[:Category:WikiProject Stub sorting]]|{{subpages}}}}

===Archives===
The following pages are not longer actively used:
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/Discoveries]] ([[WP:WSS/D]]) - past discoveries of newly discovered stub types.
* [[Wikipedia:Stub types for deletion]] ([[WP:SFD]]) - archive of old discussions for deletion, merging or renaming of stub templates and categories; now handled at [[WP:CFD]].
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/Criteria/Archive]] - for archives of old proposals and discussions.

==Participants==
The full list became too long for this page. It has been moved to '''[[:Category:WikiProject Stub sorting participants]]'''.  An older list is at [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/Participants]].

The current number of participants is '''{{PAGESINCATEGORY:WikiProject Stub sorting participants}}'''.

==Stub sorting methods==
===General rules===
* To put an article into a stub category, change the existing stub tag (if it exists) from {{tl|stub}} to, for example, {{tl|chem-stub}} if it is a chemistry stub. If it has no stub template but is clearly a stub, then add an appropriate stub template at the bottom of the article (below any categories).
* '''Never ''[[Wikipedia:Substitution|subst]]''''' stub templates.
* The guideline [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Layout#Standard appendices and footers|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Layout §&nbsp;Standard appendices and footers]] states that any stub tags should be placed at the very bottom of the article, after all other templates and categories. Two blank lines should be left between the first stub tag and whatever precedes it.
* When sorted, you may leave an edit summary like this to encourage others to help: '''<nowiki> Stub-sorting. [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting|You can help!]]</nowiki>'''
* You may wish to inform the creator of the stub that the use of {{tl|stub}} is no longer recommended by putting [[template:stubsort|<nowiki>{{subst:stubsort}}</nowiki>]] on their talk page. Alternatively, you may use [[Template:Stub sort|<nowiki>{{subst:Stub sort}}</nowiki>]].
* No stub article should sit in only a stub category as this association is meant to be temporary. If no other category is listed, please add the standard article category that is the parent of the stub category.
* '''Please remember to use the [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/Stub types|list of stub categories]]''' to make sure you are putting stubs in the correct category.
* If the article is no longer a stub, remove the stub template. Refer to [[Wikipedia:Stub]] for more information on this matter.
* If it interests you, consider checking talk pages of stub articles to see whether they've been tagged by some appropriate [[Wikipedia:WikiProjects|WikiProject]]. Adding a suitable project banner to a stub's talk page can help bring it to the attention of the right editors more quickly.

===Things to do===
* See the project's [[WP:WSS/T|"To do" list]] for those categories which are very large and those categories for which new sub categories have recently been added and thus need to be resorted.
* [[:Category:Stubs]] frequently reaches staggeringly large numbers; help is always needed sorting articles into more specific sub-stub categories.
* All other stub categories need watching as well, to sort out mislabeled stubs and subsort them further, if applicable.
* Stubs without any stub tags can be found on [[Special:Shortpages]], [[Special:Newpages]] or [[Special:Randompage]].
* If a large (> 800 stubs) stub subcategory interests you and there are not yet any subcategories in it, propose some subcategories at [[WP:WSS/P]].
* A longer list of oversized stub categories to be split, in order of size, is here: [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Stub sorting/To do]]. This might also be used as a holding area for proposals not yet created, and for sub-categories in need of being sorted-down into.

==Tools==
To shop for more tools, see [[Wikipedia:Tools]], [[Wikipedia:Tools/Browser tools]] and [[Wikipedia:Tools/Optimum tool set|Task-oriented tool list]].
* [[User:SD0001/StubSorter]]: provides a HotCat-style search field for searching for stub templates and adding them.
* [[User:Danski454/stubsearch]]: provides a hierarchical interface for searching for and adding a stub tag. 
* [[Wikipedia:Tools/Navigation popups|Navigation popups]]: This script causes a small box to pop up when your mouse hovers over a wikilink. The box can show you the first paragraph of an article, whether it's tagged as a stub, how many categories it has, etc. Can be useful for finding stubs and for categorizing an article according to the text in the first paragraph. 
: {{As of|2016|November}}, a different version called Hovercards is in a fairly stable beta. You can activate it in your Preferences under the Beta features tab. See also [[Wikipedia:Hovercards]] (or avoid the [[Wikipedia:Soft redirect|soft redirect]] and go directly to [[:mw:Beta Features/Hovercards]]).
* [[Wikipedia:PetScan|PetScan]]: Essentially a Boolean search tool. Enter a category or template and find items that use a different category or template, find all items under a certain size, find images, etc. 
* [[Wikipedia:AutoWikiBrowser|AutoWikiBrowser]]: A semi-automated Wikipedia editor for Microsoft Windows, designed to make tedious repetitive tasks quicker and easier. It is essentially a browser that automatically opens up a new page when the last is saved. When set to do so, it suggests some changes (typically formatting) that are generally meant to be incidental to the main change. AutoWikiBrowser can create a list of articles from single or multiple categories, "what links here", the wiki links on an article, a text file, a Google search, a user's watchlist, or a user's contributions. 
* <nowiki>{{DEFAULTSORT:}}</nowiki>: Used to set the default sort key for an article for all categories on a page. For instance, on George Washington, <nowiki>{{DEFAULTSORT:Washington, George}}</nowiki> would cause a subsequent <nowiki>[[Category:United States presidents]]</nowiki> to be equivalent to <nowiki>[[Category:United States presidents|Washington, George]]</nowiki>, not <nowiki>[[Category:United States presidents|George Washington]]</nowiki>. This is especially useful when the article belongs in many categories.

{{Wikipedia programs}}

==Project templates==
These are the project's templates. They are not the same as the stub templates used by the project.
* Template {{tl|WPSS-cat}} is used at the top of stub categories. It appears like this:
{{WPSS-cat}}
* Template {{tl|Stub category}} is also used at the top of stub categories. It appears like this:
{{Stub category|article=[[foo]]|newstub=Foo-stub}}
* Template {{tl|Parent-only stub category}} is similar to {{tl|Stub category}}, and is for parent-only categories It appears like this:
{{Parent-only stub category|article=[[foo]]}}
* Template {{tl|Upmerged stub category}} is used on category pages where there are upmerged templates feeding into that category. It appears like this:
{{Upmerged stub category}}
* Template {{tl|Very large stub}} is used at the top of stub categories which are oversized. It appears like this:
{{Very large stub}}
* Template {{tl|WPSS-new}} is used on some of the project's discussion pages, and on other pages related to stubs. It appears like this:
{{WPSS-new}}
* Template {{tl|WikiProject Stub sorting}} is used on the talk pages of some more editwar-prone stub templates. It appears like this:
{{WikiProject Stub sorting|category=no}}
* Template {{tl|WPSS-talk}} is used on the talk pages of some stub categories and templates. It appears like this:
{{WPSS-talk}}

==See also==
* [[Wikipedia:Stub Makers]]
* [[WP:EIW#Stub|"Stub" section of the Editor's Index to Wikipedia]]

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