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Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum:Citation

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Grotwrench.jpg Attention Adept of the LEXICANUM!

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Citations and footnotes (often also referred to simply as sources or sourcing) are essential elements of well-sourced Lexicanum articles. This page covers the formats used to reference sources on the Lexicanum.

On the importance of sourcing

The correct use of the sources and the possibility for readers and editors to verify what was used as the basis for an article is what distinguishes the Lexicanum from many other wiki-based encyclopaedia projects. Only proper sourcing allows to weed out false or fan-made information and to maintain a high level of reliability and quality of content. Therefore the correct use of sources is vital. From a practical point of view citations help anyone editing the article after you, and prevent unnecessary reverts or long discussions about the authenticity of sources. In addition detailed referencing assists other users in their research for these or other related articles. Also generally referring to official sources only means details won't be misremembered or entered vaguely or false information based on hearsay or "urban legends" finds its way into the Lexicanum.

The Lexicanum applies a very strict policy in this regard: Any article created without proper sourcing will be deleted. Any changes to existing articles without proper sourcing will be reverted. This includes not only the addition of text but also of images or other media. Repeat offenders will be banned. So source your articles properly, and help add references to articles without proper citations!

What are acceptable sources?

All sources used must be part of the Warhammer 40,000 canon. While it is impossible to cover all eventualities this includes all official print or online material. If you are unsure if a source can be legitimately used, ask your fellow users, a Lexicanum Sysop or a Bureaucrat.

We are aware that canon sources might contradict each other, but there is no "hierarchy of sources" - i.e. no official source is considered more valid than another official source. More recent sources do however take precedence over older sources. This does however not mean that the old information is considered "wrong" and has to be deleted altogether. It is an explicit goal of the Lexicanum to also reflect outdated information - with appropriate disclaimers and explanations.

Citation format

General requirements

In general sources must contains the exact title of the publication as it appears on the Lexicanum and the exact location of the information within the source. For print publications the latter means pagenumber(s), for e-book formats pagenumbers are not "fixed", therefore in this case chapter numbers are acceptable. In the case of websites the precise sub-link for the source is required. For details and practical considerations see below.

How often and where do I need to add citations?

Citations must at least be added at the end of each paragraph - even if there is only one source to an article. In other words: It is is compulsory to include a citation in any and all paragraphs. This also explicitly applies to the introductory sentence or paragraph at the beginning of an article. The reason behind this is that when information from another source is edited or added at a later date it will still be clear where which information is from.

If multiple sources are used within the same paragraph the correct footnotes must be added at the end of the corresponding sentence - not in a "collective" citation at the end of the paragraph. If a specific information is found in different sources, multiple footnotes are to be inserted accordingly at the end of the sentence or paragraph. It does however not make a lot of sense to add an huge number of different sources saying exactly the same - common sense and a policy of "not overdoing it" should be applied in these cases. If one sentence contains information from different sources it is best to place the citation directly behind the information it is the source for.

How to add citations

In the Lexicanum the footnote template is used to link the in-line citation number with the matching footnote (click the number to see this in action).[0] We use {{Fn|#}} for the in-line citation number, and {{Endn|#}} to link to the footnote at the bottom of the page (# is replaced with the footnote number, starting at 1 and running 'til you run out of references). For example:

Paragraph of new text, or statement.[1]

Code:

Paragraph of new text, or statement.{{Fn|1}}

This footnote is then referenced as an internal (most cases) or external link (for web sites) under the level two "Sources" heading (i.e. ==Sources==) at the end of the article:

Code:

*{{Endn|1}}: [[Codex: Blood Angels (3rd Edition)]], pg. 71

In practice, it should look like this:

This new text has something to prove. It was founded on the ice-world of Hubbleron in late M29[2] and will have citations at the end of each and every paragraph.[3]
Sources

Sources

  • 0: This footnote hasn't been researched at all. Click the footnote number to see the in-line citation (it works both ways!).

Different formats

The above example covers most print materials permitted as sources on Lexicanum. Some formats, however, have varying page numbers (for example digital publications depending on the font size used on e-readers or for paper versions different print runs, or different editions like hardback or softback issues) or irregular formats. Therefore we cannot rely on using pagenumbers for sourcing in these cases. Instead information should be cited as detailed below:

In the case of novels, chapter numbers are compulsory. If the chapters are not numbered chapter names or other divisions (e.g. "Part III") are to be used. Page numbers can be given for print sources (but since they may vary between print runs or format they should be accompanied by additonal information, for example "printed in the US 2010" or "2011 Special Collector's edition" etc.).

So for a typical novel the footnote should look like this:

Short stories are to be referenced with their full title (as used in the corresponding Lexicanum article), the anthology in which it was published (if applicable). Like novels, page numbers differ between print runs. Unlike novels, short stories often don't have chapters to quote.

Audiobooks are referenced in a similar manner to novels, but using track numbers instead of chapter numbers.

Citing multiple references from the same source

If the article you are editing or creating requires sourcing from more than one page of the source (e.g. different pages of the same book), then the main source must be listed under the main footnote number as a normal (i.e. non-footnote template) number (e.g. "16"), and the individual pages or chapters listed under the same number with consecutive letters added with the proper footnote template (e.g. {{Endn|16a}}, {{Endn|16b}}, {{Endn|16c}}...).

Example:

Statement sourced from one section of source material [16a] ... end of paragraph with citation for a different section of the same source material.[16b]

The footnotes for these citations are placed below the main source as an indented column by adding two asterisks (**) at the start of each footnote line. The source material is listed at the top, with a single asterisk (and without usinf the footnote template) (*).

Sources

Web site sourcing

Only official Games Workshop (and subsidiaries or license holders) websites can be used as a source. Do not link to third party websites illegally hosting copyrighted material.

PDF files

You cannot link directly to a pdf-document. Games Workshop policy state you must link to the Terms of Use that leads to the .pdf file.

Active sites

When citing a active web site, use the same process as citing any other allowed publication. This means that you must include an extenal link containing the name of the webpage and of the specific sub-page used as a source. You must also include a notation of when you viewed the site:

Code:

*{{Endn|12}}: [http://www.armageddon3.com/ Armageddon 3] ''(last accessed 17 February 2007)''

Inactive, non-archived sites

A website that has been removed from the internet should if possible not be used as a source. Sometimes it is however impossible to avoid it, specifically when the removed website was the only source in existence. In this case the citation has to be changed as follows:

  1. Remove the link brackets [ ]
  2. Place <nowiki></nowiki> tags around the URL. This will keep it from becoming a link.
  3. Add notation that the site is no longer active and not archived, including the last access date.

Example:

  • 14: http://www.badabwar.com (site no longer online, no archived version found, last accessed 12 July 2006)

Code:

*{{Endn|14}}: <nowiki>http://www.badabwar.com</nowiki> ''(site no longer online, no archived version found, last accessed 12 July 2006)''

Inactive, archived sites

If a website has been removed from the internet there is a chance that an archived version of the site still exists, for example in the Internet Archive (also known simply as the Wayback Machine). In this case the formatting of the footnote should look look like this:

Example:

Code:

:*{{Endn|11}}: [http://web.archive.org/web/20110211195348/http://www.games-workshop.com/MEDIA_CustomProductCatalog/m70041a_Strategy_cards_4 Games Workshop: Strategy Cards] for [[Planetary Empires]] expansion game, card ''"Hatred - Minor Stratagem"'', ''(saved archive page, dated February 2011, last accessed 6 October 2015)''


Tagging missing citations

If you stumble upon an article or a sentence that needs a verifiable source, you should use one of the following templates. Place the template at the bottom of the page, directly above the citations section.

{{Cite}}

For articles that do not have sources at all, or have very few.

{{Add'l cite}}

For articles that already have some sources, but need further work.

{{Cite section}}

For article sections that are not explicitly linked to a source, and whose canonicity is disputed.

{{Cite This}}

For sentences that are not explicitly linked to a source, and whose canonicity is disputed. This template is also used on footnotes that lack page numbers (or novel chapters).

Old styles of citation

Older forms of citation included the manual use of superscript (<sup> </sup>) and comment tags. When encountered these outdated and outlawed citation styles should be replaced by the current citation method.

Examples of good sourcing

  • to be found