User blog:TenebrousTorrent/What's an Admin Do?

I was an admin for 6+ months (sounds a bit like the start of a harrowing, melodramatic memoir) and I thought of making this page just to lay out some basics for anyone that might have questions about the day to day tasks of being an administrator. It's sorta lame stuff really, but it's not that much to absorb, and it might save some user's time or add a groove for the staff to coalesce. If you'd like to try some of these things, then create your own wiki by clicking the "start a wiki" button in the top-right corner of the screen. One thing everyone should know: (CTRL+F to locate specific words on a page).

Infractions (also known as "violations" or "site rules violations") and block expiry times:


 * Vandalizing the wiki (two weeks, then one month, then two months, then six months, then indefinite).


 * Creating an inappropriate username (indefinite).


 * Creating a spam page (three days, then one week, then two weeks).


 * Plagiarism (one month and alert staff).


 * Re-uploading deleted stories (warning, then one day, double the expiry time for each infraction thereafter).

Warning infractions:


 * Minor issues like adding a nonexistent category (after warning is one day, then doubling the expiry time for each infraction thereafter.)


 * Wikidrama/harassing behavior could be issued a two hour block or one day block if needed, then doubling the expiry time for each infraction thereafter.

"Vandalizing" (an umbrella term for misguided edits) the wiki is not always a block for two weeks. There's different types of misguided edits ranging from unintentional good faith edits to spam/blanking articles.


 * Comment spamming is less severe and the blocks are one day or three days on the first offense with or without a warning, depending on whether a warning seems proper.


 * Repeating a warning is often all that's needed for repeated unintentional good faith edits that change the wording of sentences without the author's permission. Or a block could be issued on the second infraction also. One day, three days, one week, two weeks, depending on the severity/number of pages vandalized.


 * Spamming articles/replacing lines with junk could be blocked with or without a warning for two weeks, one month, or indefinitely, depending on the severity.


 * Changing articles to another story entirely could be resolved with a message, this has happened and the user told an admin they didn't know how to create a page, so no block was issued. Then there's blanking of articles, which is a warning then a block for two weeks typically. Then a month, then two months, then six months, then indefinite.

Less severe/more severe infractions than typical:


 * Admins change the block durations as they see fit depending on the situation, explicit guidelines don't exist. The logs will record everything, which are accessible by going to the user's contributions page, and clicking the link that says "logs" underneath the contributions tab or (Special:WikiActivity [on the navbar at the top of the screen] → Special:RecentChanges [the link says "See all activity" underneath the header "Recent wiki activity"] → Special:Log/block [next to the header "logs" at the top of the page]).

Unblocking/changing a block duration:


 * There's always unblocking and changing block settings for accidental blocks and whatnot. And then there's the option of typing Special:Logs or Special:Logs/block on any page and clicking "Preview" to the right of the editing window underneath the editing summary window.


 * Changing a block setting is done on the user's contribution page, underneath the contributions tab, there is a link that says "Change block settings" or maybe "Change block setting for this user", I'm really sorry, I don't remember what it says exactly.


 * Unblocking is done by clicking on the user's contribution page and clicking "block user" underneath the contributions tab (your username will appear as an example, if this ever happened, the username of the user being unblocked would appear). Then scroll to the bottom of the blocking page, and to the left there's an option that says "unblock ".

There's also the option of typing Special:Unblock/  on any page, then clicking "Preview" to the right of the editing window underneath the editing summary window. It's not a hassle at all. * Moth magically uncrumples spontaneously *

This tool will allows an admin to quickly delete or revert all the contributions by a user, or select the contributions to delete on the user's contributions page: Link to the WHAM tool on the developer's wiki.

Undeleting a page is pretty simple as well:


 * Visit the deletion log (Special:RecentChanges → Special:Log/delete), and then click "view/restore" and then click "restore" after inputting a reason if necessary, or select a previous contribution to restore if the last or any subsequent revisions before the last revision needn't be restored (there's a checkbox next to each contribution under the header "page history" at the bottom of the page).


 * To view the revision and see what the deleted page actually looked like before it was deleted, click the date and time of the revision you'd like to view. Copy and paste to pastebin.com, to send the deleted version of that revision to the author/uploader.


 * Visit the user's contributions page, then click the link that says "deleted user contributions" underneath the contributions tab. If this doesn't appear, then that is a javascript feature from the developer's wiki, and you can search for it there and installation is described on the page of that javascript feature. I'm really sorry, I can't remember if that's part of one of the tools I installed on my Special:MyPage/global.

Global JavaScript Features (sometimes called "magic" around wikia). For this, please enable javascript in your the "under-the-hood" tab of your preferences. It's a checkbox towards the bottom of the page that says "enable personal javascript". You'll be able to use javascript after clicking the "save" button at the bottom of the screen.


 * If you don't have one, you'll save time and revert vandalism that spans more than one edit much simpler and quicker than going through each edit on the activity feed. Please create a page titled "User:/global.js" and visit the developer's wiki, then visit this page: the tool on this page is titled WHAM, and the installation instructions are about halfway down the page.


 * After installing the javascript feature on your global.js page, click refresh, and then visit a user's contribution page and you'll see another link that says "Quick Tools" underneath the contributions tab. Every time you click this and use the WHAM tool or cancel the tool, the contributions page will refresh automatically. Select which revisions you'd like to delete or revert using the checkboxes next to each contribution. Create your own wiki to see the tool in action, by clicking "start a wiki" in the top-right corner of the screen, as only an admin has the ability.

View my special page:


 * Special:MyPage/global. It's pretty basic, and the tools would be something you could search for on the developer's wiki, then visit the page and read the installation instructions. One of the names is "ThreadInspection" for example. Use CTRL+F to locate this on the page, and you'll notice the names of all the tools is similarly structured.


 * The middle area with the different structured features are fast delete buttons, they only work with FastDelete installed.


 * The bottom of my global.js has a tool (BotoneraPopups) that allows a user to skip to certain pages that are associated with a page, like the revision history, for example. After installation, hovering over links while pressing CTRL will bring up some links to pages for faster navigation. There's no way to see these links with the wiki's color scheme unfortunately. Dragging the cursor across the box highlights the links and they become visible.

Please note: if the user that uploaded the content didn't create the page, cite the author from the website that you found the second source on. It's part of organizing the wiki. That brings me to my next advice page: Creepypasta Wiki:Writing Advice/Useful Tools for New Users. It's shorter and more basic, it describes templates, the developer's wiki, and how to access other realms of reality through invisible freeform portals the creation of everlasting rationalistic freedom forevermore.

The bottom of the general rules has a disclaimer. It says that an administrator is not required any recourse after deleting pages, and other liability waivers that are helpful to have iterated on the wiki. Admins can delete whichever pages are not fit for the wiki because they are clichéd, or don't meet the wiki's quality standards, violate wikia's terms of use, creepypasta's site rules, or don't fit the criteria of a creepypasta (there's two links about the criteria of creepypasta [horror literature]).

Lastly, there's a style guide, my personal evaluative criteria guide and the information detailing each rating. The handy links on the top of my profile, and a titling mechanics website. And a search of the Chicago Manual of Style Then there's the giant clarifying marvel: A list of problematic words. If you stay dedicated, this page might only take four days to read. If you can avoid shutting your eyes the whole time.