Wikipedia talk:About the sandbox

Draft articles

There are many users creating draft articles on the sandbox and there needs to be a warning not to because it is very visible on Wikipedia and is very likely to be vandalised or tested with. 184.19.98.82 (talk) 21:59, 9 January 2022 (UTC)

agreed 2603:7080:C53B:6D00:50BF:3886:7C58:D010 (talk) 22:10, 11 April 2022 (UTC)

at what interval is the sandbox reset?

Is it every 10 minutes? 30? It should be stated in the template box thing. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2603:7080:c53b:6d00:50bf:3886:7c58:d010 (talk) 22:09, 11 April 2022 (UTC)

The main one is cleared out every hour, per the user page of the current sandbox-clearing bot. However, these bots come and go, so I think it would be unwise to add this information in any template because it would quickly become out-of-date. Graham87 04:28, 12 April 2022 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 18 May 2022

remove Module:Sandbox as it is not a sandbox and is template-protected. 67.21.154.193 (talk) 13:26, 18 May 2022 (UTC)

I've changed the wording of this entry. As you've pointed out, Module:Sandbox is not a sandbox, but sub-pages of that page are. -- John of Reading (talk) 14:20, 18 May 2022 (UTC)

Editing other people's sandboxes

If given permission by a person, are you allowed to edit that person's sandbox? I am helping somebody who is making a football season article in their sandbox and I think it would make it a lot easier.Crystalpalace6810 (talk) 18:38, 3 August 2022 (UTC)

Sure, as long as, if/when the text is re-added to the article, it is properly attributed, either by using the page move function or otherwise (see Wikipedia:Copying within Wikipedia). Graham87 03:23, 4 August 2022 (UTC)

Draft:Sandbox

Why exactly is "Draft:Sandbox" in draftspace? It just leads to confusion as it makes people think "oh this is the place for me to write my draft" and hten when they go back to work on it more, they find that either the sandbox has been cleared or someone else has added junk to it (yes, junk, as that is what's usually added to the sandbox page). ― Blaze Wolf^Talk_{Blaze Wolf#6545} 12:57, 3 November 2022 (UTC)

As it says on the see also link, it was created for testing with VisualEditor. I don't know if that reasoning applies as much now though. Graham87 14:42, 3 November 2022 (UTC)

See also link? Where would I find that? ― Blaze Wolf^Talk_{Blaze Wolf#6545} 15:18, 3 November 2022 (UTC)

Oops, I mean the see also section of this page. Graham87 12:31, 4 November 2022 (UTC)

Template-protected edit request on 21 March 2023

Please implement the starter code I put in Module:Sandbox/sandbox. I believe having some starter code would be really helpful for new users who need to get started with testing.

Thanks. Aasim - Herrscher of Wikis ❄️ 18:08, 21 March 2023 (UTC)

 Completed. P.I. Ellsworth , ed. ^{put'er there} 01:50, 22 March 2023 (UTC)

Obsolete info? (or what?)

Sentence that seems kinda out-of-date

The penultimate (second to last) sentence of the lead ['lede'] section of "Wikipedia:About the sandbox" says:

For easy access, there is a link labeled "sandbox" at the top right of every page between the Talk and Preferences links.

I think what we might have here, is ... a sentence that used to be true, but now ... things have changed, and it may not be [exactly] true any more.

After reading that sentence, (the one "blockquote"d above) I recalled that some time recently (well ... less than a year ago, iirc) there was some kind of "overhaul" of how pages are displayed, on the English Wikipedia. (At least, for some users ... such as me.) (I usually use a laptop or desktop PC for Wikipedia.)

I took a look at some example Wikipedia pages, (including e.g. my own "User:" page), and I found that:

• [F1] In most cases, the "custom" of having a link to a "Talk:" page (usually displayed as an ['underlined'] hyperlink, and without any colon [":"] being appended) up at the top, is still being followed.
  • (but if we are talking about the hyperlink to a "Talk:" page that is below the title, which in turn is below some other stuff, then ... the part about "at the top" is not 100% right; plus, that one -- the one that is below the title, -- seems to be much closer to the left than it is to the right).
  • ...and, if we are talking about the hyperlink to a "Talk:" page that can be accessed via a pull-down menu that has entries 'such as'

1. User page
2. Talk page
3. Sandbox
4. Preferences
5. Beta
6. etc.

then ... well ... that one is (sorta) "accessible" via a method that is closely "involved with" [QUOTE:] << "the top right of every page" >>, but it requires the reader to know what s/he is doing, and first click on that little "head and shoulders" icon (with a little "letter Vee" [or "down arrow"] next to it) at the top right ... and, my guess is that ... some users are more familiar than others, with the recent changes. (and -- perhaps -- more familiar with the recent changes than I am.)

• [F2] However, the hyperlink to the ["Special"] "Preferences" page, is WAY less omnipresent than [iirc] it used to be. When I tried to find it today, I first found a ("Tools") pull-down menu that started out with stuff like (under "Actions") entries for "Read", "Edit", "View History", "Watch", and "Move". It actually has 3 sections, and I eventually found an entry for "Special pages" down in the second section (the third [blue] link, under "General"). Eventually (later) I found out that one could go [more] directly to "Special:Preferences", without having to go there via the "Special pages" page ... if one clicks on that little "head and shoulders" icon at the top right. However, (as I may have mentioned already), I am still getting used to the "page layout" changes ... and there may even be some stuff that I need to re-learn, ... because it has been forgotten, after being learned.

Bottom Line

In my opinion, that sentence that says

For easy access, there is a link labeled "sandbox" at the top right of every page between the Talk and Preferences links.

was WAY more helpful (not to mention "correct") in the past, than it is now.

I am not suggesting "rolling back" the recent "page layout" changes, but IMHO if we are keeping them, then that sentence that is now kinda out-of-date (less "up to date" than I would prefer) should be looked at, and some changes should probably be made to it.

THANKS for listening. Mike Schwartz (talk) 05:18, 27 March 2023 (UTC)

@Mike Schwartz: Wikipedia's new skin, Vector 2022, was indeed recently implemented and has made several changes to the site's layout. As it says on user page, I'm blind and use a screen reader and am therefore not in any position to update the text. I've commented out the offending sentence for now but I'll post a question at the help desk about this matter. Graham87 14:54, 27 March 2023 (UTC)

I have added "on a user icon menu or ...".[1] Many registered users have chosen to keep the Vector legacy skin at Special:Preferences#mw-prefsection-rendering so both possibilities are now mentioned. PrimeHunter (talk) 15:31, 27 March 2023 (UTC)

Thank you. I probably did not realize that the old wording could still be correct "for some users". I think this solution -- (see the DIFF at https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:About_the_sandbox&diff=next&oldid=1146886169 e.g.) -- is a good one. It is better than before, and it still "takes care of" those users for whom the old wording is still applicable, and ... even if (even though) some readers might "stumble" a little, in [initially] trying to figure out how to interpret the new part about << "on a user icon menu" >>, ... at least they will be on the right track, and they will probably be able to either

• figure it out on their own, or
• figure out what to do ... 'with some help'.

(*** Good! ***) Mike Schwartz (talk) 00:55, 28 March 2023 (UTC)

Resolved

 – case closed

--Mike Schwartz (talk) 01:06, 28 March 2023 (UTC)

@Mike Schwartz: I have tweaked it a little to make it easier to find.[2] Our mobile version [3] also has a user icon menu. PrimeHunter (talk) 02:22, 28 March 2023 (UTC)

excellent! Mike Schwartz (talk) 03:16, 28 March 2023 (UTC)

The original poster also started a technical village pump thread about this issue; as I said there, doing so without informing people at this page is not really on. Graham87 05:05, 28 March 2023 (UTC)

Sandbox header is too big

Especially in the 2022 Vector skin, the sandbox header is far too big. Barely four lines of text can be visible upon loading the page, compared with 15 lines of boilerplate. Is it any wonder that new users will want to remove the header? This issue of having to scroll the page up and down to save text and see what you have written makes editing Wikipedia seem much more difficult than it needs to be. Kk.urban (talk) 19:15, 9 August 2023 (UTC)

I agree, that header is a mess. Ca ^{talk to me!} 13:46, 12 November 2023 (UTC)

Header should be converted to an editnotice IMO. Mach61 (talk) 15:58, 13 November 2023 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 14 January 2024

{{X71}} → {{X20}} (Wikipedia:Templates for discussion/Log/2023 December 14#Template:X21) 79.185.125.100 (talk) 19:25, 14 January 2024 (UTC)

 Done Mach61 (talk) 19:31, 14 January 2024 (UTC)

You may be interested in a discussion at Wikipedia:Village_pump_(proposals)#The_sandbox_header_should_be_removed

Note that merely shortening the header has also been proposed. Mach61 (talk) 14:31, 28 January 2024 (UTC)

What do I do in a sandbox

? 72.193.153.70 (talk) 19:28, 17 February 2024 (UTC)