Talk:Main Page

Main Page error reports

To report an error in content currently or imminently on the Main Page, use the appropriate section below.

• Where is the error? An exact quotation of the text in question helps.
• Offer a correction if possible.
• References are helpful, especially when reporting an obscure factual or grammatical error.
• Time zones. The Main Page runs on Coordinated Universal Time (UTC, currently 14:17 on 30 June 2024) and is not adjusted to your local time zone.
• Can you resolve the problem yourself? If the error lies primarily in the content of an article linked from the Main Page, fix the problem there before reporting it here. Text on the Main Page generally defers to the articles with bolded links. Upcoming content on the Main Page is usually only protected from editing beginning 24 hours before its scheduled appearance. Before that period, you can be bold and fix any issues yourself.
• Do not use {{edit fully-protected}} on this page, which will not get a faster response. It is unnecessary, because this page is not protected, and causes display problems. (See the bottom of this revision for an example.)
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Administrators: Clear all reports

Errors in the summary of the featured article

Please do not remove this invisible timestamp. See WT:ERRORS and WP:SUBSCRIBE. - Dank (push to talk) 01:24, 29 September 2022 (UTC)

Errors in "Did you know ..."

Next-but-one DYK

In the second hook, why not put the appropriate quotes around "Lunch"? It would have the added benefit of making the hook funny. Primergrey (talk) 02:17, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

@PSA, Launchballer, Sohom Datta, and Ganesha811: thoughts on this hook suggestion? Firefangledfeathers (talk / contribs) 02:28, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

I have no objection if the nominator approves. —Ganesha811 (talk) 02:55, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

Same here :) Sohom (talk) 03:01, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

Fine by me.--Launchballer 03:36, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

Errors in "On this day"

Today's OTD

• 1985 – Ryan White, a poster child for HIV/AIDS in the U.S., was denied re-admission to his school, having developed the disease due to treatment for hemophilia.
  This seem doubly badly worded to me. I have no idea what "poster child for HIV/AIDS in the U.S." means and "due to" sounds like the wrong word choice as well. "Through"? Srnec (talk) 04:03, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

  "Ryan White, a famous HIV/AIDS patient in the U.S., was denied re-admission to his school as he had contracted the disease from hemophilia treatments"? Does that work? Bremps... 05:03, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

  I'd replaced "as he had" with "after he", but yes, it works. Srnec (talk) 05:10, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

   Done – Schwede66 05:27, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

  Famous is POV, removed that. Stephen 11:08, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

• 1934 – Adolf – German chancellor Adolf Hitler began a purge ... — As a formal title preceding the name without intervening punct., "Chancellor" should be capped. – Sca (talk) 12:55, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

  "German chancellor Adolf Hitler" is correct, see "US president Richard Nixon" at MOS:JOBTITLE. TSventon (talk) 13:14, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

Errors in the summary of the featured list

Friday's FL

(July 5)

Monday's FL

(July 1, tomorrow)

Errors in the summary of the featured picture

Notice to administrators: When fixing POTD errors, please update the corresponding regular version (i.e. without "protected" in the page title) in addition to the Main Page version linked below.

General discussion

Question

The 'general discussion' section has been blank for 2-3 days - either the MP has not managed to catch people's attention or the archive bot has been too zealous. Which? Jackiespeel (talk) 14:08, 9 December 2015 (UTC)

The bot is supposed to leave a minimum of two threads on this page, but it doesn't appear to be happening ([1]). The main page error report probably counts as one thread (even if empty), but I would still expect to see one thread remaining. Pinging @Σ:, the bot's owner, to see if he can explain this. Optimist on the run (talk) 15:58, 9 December 2015 (UTC)

Why do we need threads here at all? If there is nothing to discuss, why do we need to keep viewing stale discussions? --Jayron32 16:01, 9 December 2015 (UTC)

One reason is that it shows newbies where to post questions. When faced with a blank page they may feel they are in the wrong place. Optimist on the run (talk) 16:10, 9 December 2015 (UTC)

Could have added 'or some glitch' to my question.

The nature of the main page is that it generates an intermittent discussion on one component or another - so if there is 'persistent blankness' something is off-kilter. Jackiespeel (talk) 17:36, 9 December 2015 (UTC)

I don't agree that persistent blankness indicates that something is wrong. Often there is nothing about the main page that needs comment. Many new user postings here are spam (quickly removed), or in the wrong place anyway (there's a big box that tells you where you want to go for most things that is often apparently invisible). Nevertheless I've upped the minimum threads from 2 to 3 on the basis that the "main page error reports" and "general discussion" level-1 headings both probably count as threads for the bot's purpose. Bencherlite^Talk 17:40, 9 December 2015 (UTC)

Jayron likes to remove threads he personally dislikes. Doesn't seem to care about discussion at all. Correctron (talk) 00:50, 11 December 2015 (UTC)

Subjectively one accepts that 'the bots' will occasionally 'get ahead of themselves' with the discussions, and that most entries on the MP will excite no particular comment (but are likely to elicit traffic to the various pages in question) - but if the talk page is empty for longer than a day one wonders if there is a glitch or something. Jackiespeel (talk) 10:22, 11 December 2015 (UTC)

Banner

That donation pop-up is really, really, really annoying. - 72.182.60.18 (talk) 17:09, 9 December 2015 (UTC)

If you create an account you can shut it off permanently when you are logged in. --Jayron32 17:10, 9 December 2015 (UTC)

One doesn't always wish to sign in (the usual quick check of something) - and eg the IP of one of the library systems I use is blocked from creating new accounts. Jackiespeel (talk) 17:36, 9 December 2015 (UTC)

You can often create an account on a different computer and use it all over the world on most IP addresses (even if account creation is blocked). Also, if account creation is blocked, you can still get an account created for you, and log in and start editing right away. Instructions are at Wikipedia:Request an account Also, in the very rare cases where an IP address has been blocked to disallow logged in editing, even with an established account, you can request an IP Block Exemption. Instructions are at WP:IPBE. Ultimately, there is no real barrier, beyond the effort to create an account and remember a password, to editing while logged in. If there are technical issues, every single one of them can be overcome with a onetime request in the correct place. --Jayron32 17:45, 9 December 2015 (UTC)

The discussion about the banner happens a few days in to every such appeal

There are various reasons why one might not be signed in - and the banner is 'a great big thing which keeps on coming back' (and WP seems to assume that only those not signed in will contribute to its running costs). Jackiespeel (talk) 18:26, 9 December 2015 (UTC)

One issue we should consider is the trade-off between "getting the message out" that we need money and pissing off the people who would be giving us that money. The way the donation banner is currently implemented is presumably trying to do the former at the expense of doing the latter. - 72.182.60.18 (talk) 18:30, 9 December 2015 (UTC)

There seems to be a slight contradiction with 'sign in to avoid seeing this appeal for your money.' (I am not against such appeals - but those of us who do sign in are more likely to support Wikipedia/the Wikiverse in general.) Jackiespeel (talk) 22:01, 10 December 2015 (UTC)

You got that right. Wikipedia is always asking for money.

Servers do not pay for themselves. 331dot (talk) 12:10, 12 December 2015 (UTC)

Frank Sinatra

A rather Frank Sinatra day for DYK?, isn't it? GamerPro64 04:34, 12 December 2015 (UTC)

See apophenia. Come back if you don't understand that article. --Jayron32 04:44, 12 December 2015 (UTC)

• I guess he's having it his way. — Chris Woodrich (talk) 04:55, 12 December 2015 (UTC)
  • It's the 100th anniversary of his birth. Obviously a group of editors have got together to find a way to celebrate that. Well done to them, I say. Mjroots (talk) 06:35, 12 December 2015 (UTC)
    • All day! Sinatrapedia if you will. ;) I think this might be the first time it's happened although it has always been out there in theory for DYK at least. Miyagawa (talk) 10:41, 12 December 2015 (UTC)

Any chance somebody could take a screenshot of the main page and upload it? The folks at WMUK will likely use it.♦ Dr. Blofeld 12:39, 12 December 2015 (UTC)

Like this? --Gerda Arendt (talk) 12:52, 12 December 2015 (UTC)

ITSuus

amerikanumskulz!!