Basic Instructions

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For now, this wiki is public. Anyone can edit pages although only logged-in "members" can upload files or create new pages. Public access will change if the privilege is abused.

Please do not undo the work of others (although feel free to correct spelling mistakes and obvious formatting problems). Make comments or discussion posts if you think more drastic changes are needed.

Please do not put copyrighted material on this wikispace unless you have the rights to it. If you see something here that you believe is in violation of copyright, please inform the "owner", sofya at heraldshill dot org

Original sources should be linked and citations should be dated (working on adding dates)

Common Codes[edit | edit source]

  • Headers use =Text= . Multiple = indicate lower ranks of subheader.
  • Bullet points use * . Multiple * will indent the point further.
  • Italics is ''text'' (double single-quotes)
  • Bold is '''text''' (triple single-quotes)
  • Underline is <u>text</u>
  • Links:
    • Inserting the URL "naked" will make the URL text a clickable link, example: http://heraldry.sca.org/laurel/precedents.html
    • Putting the URL in single brackets followed by text, will make that text a clickable link, example: The Ordinary
    • Internal links are the name of the page surrounded by double brackets, example: Main Page
    • Internal links to category pages need an extra colon [[:Category:Toys]], to get the link Category:Toys

Getting an account:[edit | edit source]

If you would like to have an account, email sofya @ heraldshill dot org to request one.

Creating a new page:[edit | edit source]

Basic Steps[edit | edit source]

  • Put the new page name in the search bar. (Really!)
  • Click on the name in the search results where it prompts to Create the page "_____" on this wiki!
  • Insert Template, if appropriate (see below).
  • Type in text as desired.
  • Insert images (see below).
  • Add relevant categories - Category:People, Category:Vatavian, Category:Scribe, etc.
    • Put double-square brackets [[ around the Category:Name command, then closed-double-square brackets.
    • More information on Categories below
  • Save the new page.
  • Click on any new categories you created and make sure they're not orphans, i.e. their parent categories are correct.

Uploading images:[edit | edit source]

You have to be logged into your account to upload images


  • Open the "Upload File" button in the left toolbar in a separate tab
  • Follow the instructions in the window to upload the desired image
    • Permitted file types: png, gif, jpg, jpeg, webp.
  • Cut and Paste the image file name (Image.gif, etc. ) into the appropriate area of the page being edited
    • [[File:Sample.gif]]
    • Recommend align to the right: [[File:Sample.gif|right]]
    • If need to change the image size and add a caption: [[File:Sample.gif|right|150px|Sample Image]]

Templates:[edit | edit source]


To use a template:

  • Open a new page like you normally would.
    • (Search for "Jane Doe" and click on the name in the "Create the page "Jane Doe" on this wiki!" link.)
  • In the edit box, put the code {{subst:Name}}, or other Template name as appropriate.
  • Save the page without any other coding
  • This will substitute in the Template text.
  • Re-open the article for editing to fill in the blanks.

Categories/Subcategories:[edit | edit source]

  • Categories and subcategories are used in MediaWiki to organize pages together much like tags were used on wikispaces.
  • Categories are case-sensitive.

Major categories are:[edit | edit source]

  • Names - information on documenting and submitting names in the SCA. Subcategories for:
    • Culture (English, French, etc.),
    • Meaning (flower, water, battle, etc.),
    • Lingual Mixes (?)
    • Others?
  • Armory - information related to arms, devices, badges. Subcategories include:
    • Tinctures - colors, metals, furs and their combinations
    • Fields - field divisions, field treatments
    • Charges - ordinaries, animate charges, inanimate charges
  • References - tools and standard SCA heraldry references. Subcategories:
    • Consulting Tools - information on conflict checking, searches, etc. (Category:Tools)
    • Administrative Handbook
    • Standards for Evaluation of Names and Armory (SENA)
    • Heraldic Primers/Articles (Primers)
    • Rules Articles (Articles)
    • Kingdom - information about SCA Kingdoms: contacts, principal heralds, heraldry
    • Awards - cross-reference under relevant Kingdom
    • History - ?

A few subcategories may fall under more than one category/subcategory. For example, Golden Calon Swan is a subcategory of Awards, but also a subcategory of Calontir.

MediaWiki automatically makes a Category page for any category assigned to a page.

Categories are assigned by putting the relevant code at the bottom of the page:

  • Using the text editor, [[Category:Name]]

Many pages will belong to multiple categories, and each category needs it's own bracketed command.

  • For example, Golden Calon Swan is Category:Awards, Category:Calontir

The same code is use to create category trees.

  • So the page Category:Awards would have the code for Category:References at the bottom.