Help:Templates


 * See also: Help:Templates on MediaWiki

Templates are just that: templates that can be used on any page to standardize some element. There are many kinds of templates, each serving a different goal.

Essentially, a template is a separate page in the "Template" namespace. By including the name of that page enclosed in  { {two curly brackets}} and placing it on another page, the entire contents of that template page will be displayed on the page you've posted it on - this is called transclusion. Many templates have parameters, or fields, that modify its appearance and content.

Navigation Templates

 * See all navigation templates

Navigation templates are used to link together pages with related subjects, for the benefit of readers. As the name suggests, they facilitate navigation between these pages. They are typically placed at the bottom of pages. Navigation templates contain little or no s to modify.

Examples of navigation templates include or. Image maps are useful for making navigation templates such as.

Infoboxes

 * See all infobox templates

Infobox templates - typically placed near the top of pages, beneath notice templates - provide a summary of the article's subject. Each infobox template will have several specific fields which cover topics relating to the subject. For example, has fields for the game's release date, the publisher, the ESRB rating, etc.

Notice Templates

 * See all notice templates

These templates inform users about specific conditions of a given article. They are placed at the top of pages. Most notice templates temporarily mark articles needing attention, calling for editors to fix them. For example, marks articles lacking sources,  marks articles proposed for merging, and so on. When used, these templates automatically add pages to so editors can find them. The templates are removed once the corresponding issues are addressed. Some notice templates have a date parameter to show how long an article has been flagged.

Some notice templates are placed permanently on pages. These are for the benefit of readers rather than editors. For example, is permanently placed on articles or sections that treat non-canon topics.

Formatting Templates

 * See all formatting templates

Formatting templates help standardize of formatting across the Wiki - they essentially mold what you've written to appear a certain way. An excellent example would be the template; it ensures that all in-game citations in references appear the same throughout the entire site. These templates also make formatting quicker and simpler - take the game shortcuts, for example.

Formatting templates may contain extra parameters to modify.

Inline Templates
Inline templates display messages within an article's text. They are essentially miniature notice templates: instead of marking entire articles, they mark specific sentences in articles. Like a notice template, an inline template identifies a problem with a sentence and is removed once an editor addresses the problem. ,, and are examples of such templates. is a permanent inline template used to mark fan-made names.

Making a Template
The easiest way is to add  { {your template name}} to the Sandbox, and click on the red link that appears. From there you can create your template, which is most easily done by copying and pasting the code from a similar template; then you can just modify it.

Make sure that at the end of the last line of the ACTUAL TEMPLATE you add to begin any section detailing how to use the template, and also the add the necessary category for that template. Do not finish the template, create a new line, and then add the tag.

Testing a Template
When editing a template, a "preview page with this template" option will appear on the edit form. In the "page title" box, enter the name of a page that currently uses the template and pressing the adjacent "show preview" button. This allows you to preview the template as it would appear on that page if you saved the edit.

Sandboxed templates can also be tested on pages using Special:TemplateSandbox.

Please refer to MediaWiki for more information on this feature.

Examples
The following is a list of popular notice and inline templates. A list of formatting templates can be found here.

Categories
Many templates automatically pages when used. For example, an article tagged with will automatically be added to Category:Articles lacking sources.

Category Suppression
Templates with this feature will usually have an option to disable automatic categorization. This is known as. Category suppression is useful when using a template for something other than its intended purpose - for instance, a template gallery or list, such as the one above.

Some templates automatically suppress categories when used in the "User" namespace. This prevents these articles from appearing in categories intended for the only.