Wiki 24:The Situation Room

One sidebar to bind them all
It's template madness at Casa de Bacchus! You know every table we use on the site? I've made them all into pleasant, easy-to-edit templates. I'm going to work on switching everything over to them over the next week or so. Most important is the sidebar template. It works for all the sidebars we use. Characters, episodes, books, everything.

Why templates? I'm glad you asked.
 * They save space
 * They are easier to edit
 * They look nicer on the edit screen than tables
 * They can all be edited from a single page (to change colors, wording, etc.)
 * Total consistency

Take a looky-loo at the Sandbox for a character and episode example. I'll write better documentation soon, but I'm excited to unroll this as soon as possible. --StBacchus 14:04, 15 August 2006 (UTC)

Appearance tables, again
I made two little changes to the appearance tables. First is that I made the text size smaller. It should appear at 75% of whatever the default browser size is. Hopefully, that will prevent the tables from bleeding out of the article text box, 'cause damn does that look terrible. However, if the smaller text is a problem for anyone, I can experiment with it.

Second is that I added the ability to make a note about an appearance. For instance, Marshall Goren appears as both a living person and a severed head. The head appearance is uncredited. So, instead of marking the head appearance as "yes," mark it as "note."

That will add a * next to the episode. Then you can add the star and the note right after the template, like we've been doing.

I also made it so the tables will never float over the sidebar. However, since you have to put in the headers separately anyway, remember that you can move the whole shebang under the sidebar by adding   before the  ==Appearances==  header.

If you forget any of this stuff and want to look it up again, I also added documentation with examples to the template pages: Template:Appearances1, Template:Appearances2, Template:Appearances3, Template:Appearances4, Template:Appearances5.

Whew! Happy editing, everyone! --StBacchus 10:44, 14 August 2006 (UTC)


 * Were people having problems with it bleeding out? My screen resolution is 1280x1024 and the episode names are tiny inside this huge box!  Is there any sort of comprimise? --Proudhug 12:05, 14 August 2006 (UTC)

One problem that's come of this is that the 4-5 and 5-6, AM and PM, are not above each other... not a big deal, but it makes the tables look off.


 * Huh? Do you mean I got the episodes in the wrong order? --StBacchus 15:14, 14 August 2006 (UTC)


 * No, but like you know how all the episodes are above each other? Like 1:00 is above 2:00, then 2:00 is above 3:00? Well now, 4:00 is not above 5:00, it is next to 5, and same with 5-6, AM and PM. Let's say it's in a grid. Each section has an hour. In the first section, the 1:00 is above the 2:00. Move over one space, and its 2:00 above 3:00. But 4:00-5:00 is not vertical, it is read exactly as 4:00-5:00. BauerJ24 23:21, 15 August 2006 (UTC)


 * I have to say, I have absolutely NO IDEA what BauerJ24 is talking about. I'm looking at the templates and everything looks fine to me. What am I missing? -Kapoli 23:35, 15 August 2006 (UTC)

CTU Layout
I know that this may be difficult and unprofessional, but what do you think on changing the layout? I would think about making it like a CTU Terminal, with the red bubble things on the top and bottom? The top could be the my talk/preferences/watchlist stuff, then the bottom would be situation room/c.events/bullpen. On the side bar, it would say the tree layout of where you were:
 * Latest Intel
 * Counter Terrorist Unit
 * Special Agent in Charge

And on the screen would be the Special Agent page. The side bar would be the links back in case you wanted to go back three levels, but not go all the way to the start page. More CTU looking, but much revamping needed. Opinions? BauerJ24 19:35, 13 August 2006 (UTC)


 * Yeah, we started discussing this Wiki 24:The Situation Room. I've been trying to secure some clear screenshots of the "purple parallelogram" display. --Proudhug 21:51, 13 August 2006 (UTC)

Other Languages?
I am not fluent in German, but I am in my fifth year of learning German, and I would like to begin working on the German 24Wikia. However, I would also like to ask others for help. I will set up a page for a chart of languages that 24 has been translated into and about how many pages have been translated. I'll get the page tonight. BauerJ24 22:17, 12 August 2006 (UTC)


 * My high school German's too rusty to do any translating, but if you want help setting up the site, I'd be happy to help with anything visual. --StBacchus 04:22, 14 August 2006 (UTC)

Request for adminship
I have already been nominated for admin status, but I don't know what the actual process is (if there is one), so I'm making my official request here. There are a number of improvements that I could make as an admin:


 * Make the tables and sidebars easier to use and edit
 * Fix the external link graphic, which doesn't work in Firefox
 * Fix the white boxes on pages such as Special:Preferences
 * Apply any other style/interface fixes as soon as problems come up
 * Implement any other style/interface concepts people think of

Right now, I can make all the fixes I want in my own stylesheet, so everything looks great when I'm logged in. But I'd really rather the site look as good to everyone as it does to me. --StBacchus 11:53, 8 August 2006 (UTC)


 * I have absoloutly no problem with it. I'd have been lost many times if it weren't for you. :D Welcome to the Adminship. ;) --24 Administration 13:32, 8 August 2006 (UTC)


 * Wow, man! Thanks very much, I'll get straight to work. =) Is there anything not on the list above that anyone wants me to work on? --StBacchus 12:54, 9 August 2006 (UTC)

I was also wondering if I would be able to become an administrator? I have been working a lot, and I just completed a JavaScript/HTML course, so I could get new tables and charts or at least make them more compatible, like the Firefox problem mentioned above ^^... Also, I checked awhile back and reached 250 edits, I probably have 300 or 350 by now? So think about it, I'm not trying to rush in, but I really would like to be an administrator. BauerJ24 22:17, 12 August 2006 (UTC)


 * StBacchus was nominated and received support for her bid for adminship before requesting that she finally be made one. I think anyone else interested in being an admin also needs to be nominated and receive support on the nomination page. -Kapoli 22:24, 12 August 2006 (UTC)


 * The external link problem wasn't a browser compatability issue, it was a copy/paste issue with the site's default stylesheet (MediaWiki:Monobook.css). But anyway, I'm curious to know why you want to be an administrator. You can already make new tables, charts, templates, or what have you. What is it that you can't do now that you would like to be able to do? --StBacchus 10:49, 13 August 2006 (UTC)

Category bar
Hi everybody. All the cool kids were doing it, so I made a graphic to use as the background of the category bar (you know, where it lists the categories at the bottom of the page). I like how it looks, and I think having an image there adds a little professional gloss to the site. --StBacchus 09:07, 26 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Well, it's not really noticable (at least *I* wouldn't have noticed it), but when you see it it does look cool. I was thinking a couple months ago that it would be cool if we had an image above the Search Bar like Wookieepedia does.  Any thoughts on what we could use?  It's too bad we can't totally revamp the entire site interface and make it look like the CTU interface with the purple/red parallelograms.  That would look flippin' amazing!  --Proudhug 14:34, 26 July 2006 (UTC)


 * I was scrolling through Michelle's page and noticed it before I read this. When I saw it, I was like, "WHOA! Has that always been there?"  I really like it alot and I say we keep it and use it on all the articles. Nice job, as always, StBacchus. -Kapoli 17:51, 26 July 2006 (UTC)


 * A CTU interface would be amazing! We could proberbly do it somehow but it'd take a hell of a lot of know-how. --24 Administration 17:58, 26 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Got a screenshot? =P You can do any damn thing with CSS. I'm a little surprised Memory Alpha doesn't look like LCARS.


 * I deleted the instructional thing, since it's no longer relevant. Proudhug implemented it globally, and it was well-received. Thanks, Kapoli! Glad you all like it. --StBacchus 10:35, 27 July 2006 (UTC)

White out
Hmm, now it seems we've got the same white block issue with the top tabs that Wiki 24 NL has. I don't see the problem on any other sites, so perhaps it's something in our Monobook.css. The site also has a Navigation Bar spacing problem when viewed in IE. --Proudhug 02:08, 26 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Well, here's what I can tell you. If you look at  http://24.wikia.com/skins3/monobook/main.css  and search for #p-cactions li.selected you'll find that the color is set to white. Meaning that unless our Monobook.css specifically says otherwise, the tabs will be white. Theoretically, you can fix the tabs by adding the following to MediaWiki:Monobook.css:
 * #p-cactions li.selected a {
 * z-index: 3;
 * background-color: #333333;
 * color: #FFFFFF;
 * border-color: #CCCCCC;
 * padding: 0 1em .2em!important;
 * }


 * #p-cactions li a:hover {
 * z-index: 3;
 * text-decoration: none;
 * background-color: #333333;
 * color: #FFFFFF;
 * border-color: #CCCCCC;
 * }


 * If you and the other admins weren't screwing around with the main.css file, possibly someone from the Central Wikia was. That would also explain why the NavBar is screwed up in IE6 and not IE7 or FireFox (there is a layer of bug fixes that loads depending on the browser). Here is the fix for the NavBar:


 * #p-navigation a {
 * display: inline;
 * }


 * I notice that Special:Preferences is also fuxx0red. I could fix it, but it might be worth your time to ask Central Bureaucracy Wikia what's going on.


 * Oh, yeah. I'm also pretty sure I know how to fix the external links. I tested all this stuff in my own monobook.css and everything works; however, I can only speculate that it will still work if applied to the main Monobook.css. --StBacchus 08:08, 26 July 2006 (UTC)

Main Page Layout Vote
Myself and StBacchus have designed a new main page layout for the wiki. The main differences are the opening paragraph and links at the top and the organisation of the contents section at the bottom. Take a look here. We now need a vote on it so can you please vote either SUPPORT, AGAINST or NEUTRAL giving your reasons for your choice. --24 Administration 17:02, 23 July 2006 (UTC)


 * SUPPORT: I think it looks really great! Let's use it. :D --24 Administration 17:02, 23 July 2006 (UTC)


 * SUPPORT: That is fantastic! You two did a wonderful job! -Kapoli 18:15, 23 July 2006 (UTC)


 * SUPPORT: That page drops it like it's hot. - Xtreme680 20:00, 23 July 2006 (UTC)


 * SUPPORT: That looks good. Always good to get a new look--CWY2190 03:18, 24 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Well we've gone almost 5 days without any rejects. We haven't even had a new vote for the past 2 and a half days so I think we can count this as a successful thing. --24 Administration 20:47, 27 July 2006 (UTC)

Vandals
Looks like I missed another party. Good job Kapoli for getting everything fixed, but whats up with the Pelican Shit stuff. GET NEW MATERIAL!!!--CWY2190 09:40, 23 July 2006 (UTC)


 * It's a historical vandal motif. So you see, they aren't unoriginal or lacking brains as you might expect, they're paying homage. --StBacchus 15:10, 23 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Looking through Wikipedia's archives, it seems we had the Communism Vandal a while ago as well. --24 Administration 16:54, 23 July 2006 (UTC)


 * That was the first time I had to deal with a vandal! How exciting!  Really though, I tried to go through all his edits and revert them, and about halfway through I remembered the "rollback" function.  Duh.  I also had to protect that IP's user talk page, because he wouldn't stop posting those penguin photos.  I hope I did everything right! -Kapoli 18:14, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

Nice work, Proudhug! -Kapoli 20:14, 23 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Fuck! I make a quick edit, go back to working on a paper, check back here, and a vandal had struck and been vanquished all in a few minutes. I hate missing vandal battles. - Xtreme680 20:32, 23 July 2006 (UTC)


 * I know! I was in here minutes before, then I left to email someone, came back and didn't notice any differences.  It was only when I checked the recent changes that I saw that a vandal came through and Proudhug had already put out the fire.  -Kapoli 20:36, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

A wikia version of Poodude. Nice. T_____T Why exactly is it hard to IP ban this guy? He have access to a computer lab or something? And I'm no computer expert but couldn't we just block anything containing the word "pelican" to the main pages? -WarthogDemon 20:40, 23 July 2006 (UTC)


 * I have no idea. I say we protect a couple of these pages from moving at the very least. There's no reason anyone should have to move the main page, and moving pages is some of the most common vandalism. Also, I wanted to point out this other user who has vandalized before. They're either looking for easier targets than Wikipedia, or they are imposters. Who knows? - Xtreme680 20:46, 23 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Ooh, yeah. I hate to protect the main page from edits, because I don't want to turn people off when they first come to the Wiki, but I would support a decision to protect it from moving.  Like Xtreme said, there's no reason that anyone should have to move the Main Page, the help page, or some of those other pages.  Even if an editor wanted to move one of those pages, there should be some discussion about it on the talk page first, right?  -Kapoli 20:49, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

And the beat goes on..... WarthogDemon fought another vandal tonight and did a fantastic job. I came in and blocked him, then proceeded to help revert and delete the redirects, etc. I accidentally deleted a couple of the wrong pages! But all is well now, I've restored them. I'd just woken up from a nap when that happened! Sorry! Anyway, excellent work WD! Thanks very much for the help! If any of the other administrators want to go back and make sure I didn't miss anything, please do. Thanks again, WD! -Kapoli 01:16, 25 July 2006 (UTC)


 * I'm at work right now, but when I get home I can check it all over if I'm bored. It's so funny how these people amuse themselves.  Cut'n'pasted or not, it still takes him a lot more time to change everything than it does for us to change it back, haha. --Proudhug 01:38, 25 July 2006 (UTC)


 * That's why WD's comments were so funny to read.... "I can do this all day." Ha!  Rollback, rollback, rollback.  -Kapoli 01:43, 25 July 2006 (UTC)


 * I'm digging the new administrator thing, we usually shut these things down pretty quickly. - Xtreme680 02:02, 25 July 2006 (UTC)


 * good work, guys. "...as peace and justice returns."

Cymra37 03:03, 15 August 2006 (UTC)

Problems Viewing Page
When I open any page the google ads cover part of the article where u can't see the words. Is anyone else having this problem? I can only scroll over to see the rest of the article wne I'm not in a edit page.--CWY2190 04:01, 21 July 2006 (UTC)


 * I'm having the same problems. The article and edit box are both hidden underneath the Google ads.  I don't know what to do about it. -Kapoli 04:42, 21 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Don't worry everyone, I fixed everything using hacking skills. I just had to chloe mediawiki and it was cleaned up in a jiffy.


 * Actually, Angela posted something about it on the main page talk page, apparentally it was a problem with the central wikia, but it looks like It's all been cleared up. - Xtreme680 06:50, 21 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Also, what I meant to say was, it's mostly cleaned up. She said it would be taken care of tomorrow. Most of the editing pages look pretty good though. - Xtreme680 06:53, 21 July 2006 (UTC)

Main Page
I've been fiddling around on the sandbox with a possible new style for the top of the main page. It's based on Wikipedia's version but changed to suit our needs. I think that our main page kinda puts people off because it is really two paragraphs of writing at the top. The new version summaries everything into a neat box. Take a look and tell me what you think! Have a look --24 Administration 21:52, 17 July 2006 (UTC)


 * What exactly is off-putting about the main page? Are you saying it's too long?  I was always worried that there wasn't enough of an introduction on the front.  For the longest time, I found wiki main pages for things like Wikipedia off-putting because you're just kinda thrust into the action, so to speak.  I always found Memory Alpha a lot more friendly because it has a nice little introductory paragraph at the top.  Maybe I'm alone on this. --Proudhug 02:37, 18 July 2006 (UTC)


 * No, I agree with you. But there's plenty of room in 24 Administration's design for an intro paragraph. --StBacchus 07:19, 18 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Well the question is then, what essentially needs to be in the opening paragraph? --24 Administration 13:54, 19 July 2006 (UTC)

Lockdown?
I've been recently updating the episode guides for Season 2, but I've gotten to some of the pages that look to be a little more incomplete than usual. When I wrote the page for Day_2_2:00pm-3:00pm, I took down the lockdown notice, only to notice it was back up. I assumed this was because I forgot to write a summary, so I included that and took down the lockdown notice again. As of today, the lockdown notice is back up.

I don't mean to argue, but I just want to know-what elements need to be present for an episode page to be considered in compliance with Wiki 24 standards? Hypnometal 07:29 16 July 2006 (EDT)


 * You're the only person who has edited that page in the past month. I don't see any revision from you where that notice was gone. I suggest using the "Show Preview" button to make sure everything's the way you want it before you save (and also make sure, if you are previewing, that you do hit "Save changes" afterwards). I went ahead and took the notice off, because the page looks done to me.


 * To address your other question, I think having the Summary, Episode Guide, and Dramatis Personae should be enough. There may not be Trivia/Notes/Background Information or Memorable Quotes, but there will always be a plot and a cast. I mean, I hope so. O_o --StBacchus 21:31, 16 July 2006 (UTC)