https://wiki.tachyony.co.uk/w/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Wikipedia%3AMerge_TestWikipedia:Merge Test - Revision history2026-05-16T05:47:02ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.35.5https://wiki.tachyony.co.uk/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Merge_Test&diff=5873&oldid=prevTachyony: Imported page2022-01-18T00:36:17Z<p>Imported page</p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{essay|WP:MERGETEST}}<br />
{{Nutshell|If a [[Wikipedia:Merging|merge]] will result in an article too large to comfortably read or the deletion of encyclopedic content, it should not occur.}}<br />
[[File:1 5 1 52 (Swedish road sign).svg|thumb|right|200px|Should a merge be done?]]<br />
When deciding whether to [[Wikipedia:Merging|merge]] an article or not, answer the following questions:<br />
* '''1. Will a merge result in an article that violates [[WP:SIZERULE|article size guidelines]]?'''<br />
* '''2. Will a merge require the removal of encyclopedic content?'''<br />
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If you answered no to both questions, then a merge is acceptable.<br />
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If you answered yes to question 1 and/or 2, then a merge is not desirable.<br />
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==Justification==<br />
Articles are frequently nominated for merging, and this test is designed to determine whether such a merge is desirable. According to Wikipedia's size guidelines, articles above 60,000 bytes should probably be divided into smaller articles. Obviously, a merge that exceeds this limit is generally undesirable.<br />
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During many merges, some content is not carried over to avoid the creation of overly large articles. The non-carried over content is in effect deleted. Often, the lost content is [[Wikipedia:Fancruft|cruft]]- content that is so trivial that it is only of interest to a very small niche audience. Deleting cruft during a merge does not violate question number 2 as cruft is inherently non-encyclopedic. However, many pages contain information that is encyclopedic and is of actual use to a general audience. Carrying over all of this information during a merge will result in an article so large that it is unreadable. In this case, the article should be kept as is to [[wp:preserve|preserve]] the encyclopedic content. <br />
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Even if deleting the encyclopedic content is permissible by policy, it is still a disservice to anyone who would have found the content useful. Merges that violate question 2 lower the quality of Wikipedia as a result.</div>Tachyony