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**Keep in mind that raw text may be ambiguous and often seems ruder than the same words coming from a person standing in front of you. Irony is not always obvious when written – text comes without facial expressions, vocal inflection or body language. Be careful with the words you write. What you mean may not be what others understand. Be careful how you interpret what you read: what you understand may not be what the writer is trying to say. | **Keep in mind that raw text may be ambiguous and often seems ruder than the same words coming from a person standing in front of you. Irony is not always obvious when written – text comes without facial expressions, vocal inflection or body language. Be careful with the words you write. What you mean may not be what others understand. Be careful how you interpret what you read: what you understand may not be what the writer is trying to say. | ||
*[[FamilySearch Wiki:Sign your posts on talk pages|Sign and date]] your posts to [[FamilySearch Wiki:Talk page|talk pages]] only, (not to articles), unless you have some excellent reasons not to do so. | *[[FamilySearch Wiki:Sign your posts on talk pages|Sign and date]] your posts to [[FamilySearch Wiki:Talk page|talk pages]] only, (not to articles), unless you have some excellent reasons not to do so. | ||
*Always work toward agreements and consensus. | *Always work toward agreements and consensus. Dispute facts if need be, never personalities. | ||
*Do not ignore questions. | *Do not ignore questions. | ||
**If another disagrees with your edit, provide good reasons why you think that it is appropriate. | **If another disagrees with your edit, provide good reasons why you think that it is appropriate. | ||
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=== Avoid indirect criticism === | === Avoid indirect criticism === | ||
Avoid use of unexplained {{wpd|scare quotes}} and other means of implying criticism or making indirect criticism when you are writing in edit comments and talk pages. Out of respect for other editors, criticism of another's edit, of phrasing and choice of terminology, or any criticism of or critical response to talk page commentary and participation ought to be made clearly, directly, and explicitly in a manner that may be easily understood and replied to. Use words like: | Avoid use of unexplained {{wpd|scare quotes}} and other means of implying criticism or making indirect criticism when you are writing in edit comments and talk pages. Out of respect for other editors, criticism of another's edit, of phrasing and choice of terminology, or any criticism of or critical response to talk page commentary and participation ought to be made clearly, directly, and explicitly in a manner that may be easily understood and replied to. Use words like: "Clarified wording" instead of "Fixed this mess." | ||
Insinuation, {{wpd|double entendre}}, or oblique criticism of writing should be avoided when expressing criticism – particularly negative criticism. In the summary, use words like: | Insinuation, {{wpd|double entendre}}, or oblique criticism of writing should be avoided when expressing criticism – particularly negative criticism. In the summary, use words like: "clarified", "re-worded", and "shortened" as these words are neutral in nature while still being clear in intent. This point of etiquette also helps the editor receiving criticism to correctly understand you and respond to your concerns in a neutral manner and may particularly aid editors {{wpd|English as a Foreign or Second Language|English is a second language}} who may have difficulty understanding written English. | ||
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*People take pride in their work and in their point of view. Egos can easily get hurt in editing, but talk pages are not a place for striking back. They are a good place to ''comfort'' or undo damage to egos, but most of all they are for forging agreements and consensus that are best for the articles to which they are attached. If someone disagrees with you, try to understand why, and in your talk pages take the time to provide good reasons why you think that your way is better. | *People take pride in their work and in their point of view. Egos can easily get hurt in editing, but talk pages are not a place for striking back. They are a good place to ''comfort'' or undo damage to egos, but most of all they are for forging agreements and consensus that are best for the articles to which they are attached. If someone disagrees with you, try to understand why, and in your talk pages take the time to provide good reasons why you think that your way is better. | ||
*Like science, the improvement process employed by FamilySearch Wiki is somewhat repetitive and the critical analysis of prior work is a necessary part of that process. If you are not prepared to have your work thoroughly scrutinized, analyzed and criticized, or if your ego is easily damaged, then FamilySearch Wiki may not be the best place for you to write. Try to adopt the philosophy that once you have placed the words on the page, you can relinquish control over those words. This is how published authors actually function. | *Like science, the improvement process employed by FamilySearch Wiki is somewhat repetitive and the critical analysis of prior work is a necessary part of that process. If you are not prepared to have your work thoroughly scrutinized, analyzed and criticized, or if your ego is easily damaged, then FamilySearch Wiki may not be the best place for you to write. Try to adopt the philosophy that once you have placed the words on the page, you can relinquish control over those words. This is how published authors actually function. They are the creators of the ideas, the organization and the content, but their editors are responsible for the perfection of the work. Writers create and editors polish. | ||
*Do not ''label'' or ''[[FamilySearch Wiki:No personal attacks|personally attack]]'' people or their edits. | *Do not ''label'' or ''[[FamilySearch Wiki:No personal attacks|personally attack]]'' people or their edits. | ||
**Terms like "racist", "sexist" or "poorly written" make people defensive. This makes it hard to discuss articles productively. If you must criticize, do it politely and constructively. Use terms like: "Re-worded", "Changed to neutral viewpoint", or "Reorganized structure". | **Terms like "racist", "sexist" or "poorly written" make people defensive. This makes it hard to discuss articles productively. If you must criticize, do it politely and constructively. Use terms like: "Re-worded", "Changed to neutral viewpoint", or "Reorganized structure". Always make clear what specific point you are addressing, especially in replies. | ||
***In responding, quoting a post is acceptable, but paraphrasing it or stating how you interpreted it is often better. Qualify your interpretation by writing, "As you seem to be saying" or "as I understand you" to acknowledge that you made an interpretation. Before going on to say that someone is wrong, concede you may have misinterpreted the intent of the writer. | ***In responding, quoting a post is acceptable, but paraphrasing it or stating how you interpreted it is often better. Qualify your interpretation by writing, "As you seem to be saying" or "as I understand you" to acknowledge that you made an interpretation. Before going on to say that someone is wrong, concede you may have misinterpreted the intent of the writer. | ||
***Interweaving rebuttals into the middle of another person's comments disrupts the flow of the discussion and breaks the attribution of comments. It may be intelligible to some, but it is virtually impossible for the rest of the community to follow. | ***Interweaving rebuttals into the middle of another person's comments disrupts the flow of the discussion and breaks the attribution of comments. It may be intelligible to some, but it is virtually impossible for the rest of the community to follow. | ||
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=== A few things to bear in mind === | === A few things to bear in mind === | ||
*FamilySearch Wiki articles are supposed to represent all views instead of supporting one viewpoint over another, even if you believe something strongly. Talk pages are not a place to debate value judgments about which of those views are right or wrong or better. If you want to do that, there are venues such as {{wpd|Usenet}}, public {{wpd|weblog}}s and other {{wpd|wiki}}s. Use article talk pages to discuss the accuracy/inaccuracy, POV bias, or other problems in the article, not as a | *FamilySearch Wiki articles are supposed to represent all views instead of supporting one viewpoint over another, even if you believe something strongly. Talk pages are not a place to debate value judgments about which of those views are right or wrong or better. If you want to do that, there are venues such as {{wpd|Usenet}}, public {{wpd|weblog}}s and other {{wpd|wiki}}s. Use article talk pages to discuss the accuracy/inaccuracy, POV bias, or other problems in the article, not as a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:NOTSOAPBOX#Wikipedia_is_not_a_soapbox soapbox] for {{wpd|advocacy}}. | ||
*If someone disagrees with you, this does not necessarily mean that the person hates you, that the person thinks that you are stupid, that the person is stupid, or that the person is mean. When people post opinions without practical implications for the article, it is best to just leave them alone. What you think is not necessarily right or necessarily wrong – a common example of this is {{wpd|religion}}. Before you think about insulting someone's views, think about what would happen if they insulted yours. Remember that anything written on FamilySearch Wiki is kept permanently, even if it is not visible. Be cautious and thoughtful about what you write. | *If someone disagrees with you, this does not necessarily mean that the person hates you, that the person thinks that you are stupid, that the person is stupid, or that the person is mean. When people post opinions without practical implications for the article, it is best to just leave them alone. What you think is not necessarily right or necessarily wrong – a common example of this is {{wpd|religion}}. Before you think about insulting someone's views, think about what would happen if they insulted yours. Remember that anything written on FamilySearch Wiki is kept permanently, even if it is not visible. Be cautious and thoughtful about what you write. It lasts forever. <br> | ||
*FamilySearch Wiki invites you to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Be_bold be bold,] though it is wise to remember that it is possible to be ''too'' bold. Boldness can often venture into controlling. Before initiating discussion, ask yourself: is this necessary to discuss? Could I provide a [[Help:Edit summary|summary]] with my edit and wait for others to express opinions if they like? Might my actions have consequences that I have not considered? | *FamilySearch Wiki invites you to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Be_bold be bold,] though it is wise to remember that it is possible to be ''too'' bold. Boldness can often venture into controlling. Before initiating discussion, ask yourself: is this necessary to discuss? Could I provide a [[Help:Edit summary|summary]] with my edit and wait for others to express opinions if they like? Might my actions have consequences that I have not considered? | ||
*You can always take a discussion to {{wpd|e-mail}} or to your user page if it is not essential to the article. | *You can always take a discussion to {{wpd|e-mail}} or to your user page if it is not essential to the article. | ||
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