User talk:Smbreau

Mhhutchins 02:58, 22 November 2013 (UTC)

Linking uploaded cover images to the publication records
Thanks for uploading cover images to the ISFDB wiki. The next step is to link those images to the records of the books for which these are the covers. As the instructions (step 6) explain:


 * Once the file has been uploaded, the image's wiki page will appear. In order to get the URL (address) for the image you just uploaded, left click anywhere on the image and copy the URL from your browser's address window. (Or right click on the image and choose "Copy Image Location".) If you're adding a cover image to a pub record, this is the URL which you would enter into the pub record's "Image URL" field.

So once you have the image's URL, go back to the pub record (it's linked on the image's wiki page) and then click the "Edit This Pub" link under the Editing Tools menu. This opens up an edit page. Under the Publication Metadata section, there's a field labeled "Image URL:" Enter the URL of the image you uploaded into this field, and then click on the "Submit Data" button at the bottom of the page. Once the submission has been moderated the cover image will be linked to the publication record. Thanks for contributing. Mhhutchins 03:00, 22 November 2013 (UTC)

To respond to this message (or any ISFDB wiki message), click on the "[edit]" link to the right. Enter your response in the dialogue box which opens. Start your message with a colon which separates and indents it from the previous message making it easier to follow the discussion. In successive messages, add another colon to the number in the previous message. End your entry with four tildes ( ~ ), which will automatically "sign" and date your message. Then click the "Save page" button. When someone has left a message on your talk page, you will be notified by a highlighted "My Messages" link when you log into the ISFDB. I have placed a "Watch" on this page so that I will be notified when you respond. Keep all discussions on the same talk page on which it begins. Do not respond on the other person's talk page. Thanks again. Mhhutchins 03:03, 22 November 2013 (UTC)

The Power Ball
Do you have a copy of this publication? If so, please consider doing a Primary Verification of the record. (There are links to the help pages in the Welcome section above.) Also, if you have it, could you add the price (if one is stated.) Thanks for contributing. Mhhutchins 00:33, 23 November 2013 (UTC)

The Apes
Thanks for adding a publication record for this title. I've made some changes based on ISFDB standards, the help pages to which are linked in the Welcome section above:


 * Price field was changed from "6s" to "6/-", the standard for entering six shillings in pre-decimalization British currency.
 * Changed the publisher to "Faber and Faber" to conform with the current standard name for this publisher.
 * Added a colon after "OCLC" in the Note field.

One last problem is one that you probably would have no idea about until you actually made the mistake. You uploaded before the publication was created. It is an ISFDB requirement that cover images be uploaded solely from the link on the publication record page. Since there was no record at the time you made it, the only other way was a direct upload which bypassed the semi-automated procedure which creates 1) the required license tag (which protects us against charges of copyright violation), 2) a direct link back to the database record, 3) a link to the artist's Wiki page, 4) a unique filename which matches the tag of the publication record. (You would not have had to create a name for the file.) Compare the Wiki page for this mistakenly uploaded file with that you uploaded earlier today, and you can see why you should only upload cover image files from the link on the publication record page.

This requires a relatively easy fix: If you still have the image file on your hard drive, go back to the publication record and click the "Upload New Cover Scan" link, and follow the same steps that you'd used earlier for other uploads. Then you'll edit the publication record to give the URL of the newly uploaded file. I will have to delete the original uploaded file. If you don't have the file on your hard drive, you can copy it from the first one you uploaded, but make sure that you accept the system's automatic naming of the file to match the tag of the publication record.

Or if you prefer, I can do it. Let me now by responding here. Thanks. Mhhutchins 02:46, 24 November 2013 (UTC)

To respond to this message, click on the "[edit]" link to the right. Enter your response in the dialogue box which opens. Start your message with a colon which separates and indents it from the previous message making it easier to follow the discussion. In successive messages, add another colon to the number in the previous message. End your entry with four tildes ( ~ ), which will automatically "sign" and date your message. Then click the "Save page" button. When someone has left a message on your talk page, you will be notified by a highlighted "My Messages" link when you log into the ISFDB. I have placed a "Watch" on this page so that I will be notified when you respond. Keep all discussions on the same talk page on which it begins. Do not respond on the other person's talk page. Mhhutchins 02:50, 24 November 2013 (UTC)


 * Thanks for the update, I did notice that the process for uploading the cover image before the edition had been approved looked sketchy, but couldn't think of a way around it. I don't still have the cover image for The Apes. In the future I will stick to adding cover images and misc information *after* the edition has been approved. Thanks again! Smbreau 15:21, 26 November 2013 (UTC)


 * I will download the image, and then reload it from the publication record. Thanks. Mhhutchins 17:53, 26 November 2013 (UTC)

Breaking lines in the publication record Note field
If you want to start a new line in the Note field of a publication record, a simple keyboard "return" won't work. It will be displayed on the same line with the previous one. You have to use a hard break using HTML. At the end of the previous line (or beginning of the new one) enter these four characters:    which will not be displayed, but will start a new line in the Note field. Thanks. Mhhutchins 17:57, 26 November 2013 (UTC)

Replacing ISFDB images with new improved ones
If you're replacing a cover image file, it would be easier to use the tag of the current image. Just click on the "Upload new cover scan" link of the publication with the poor ISFDB image (make sure it is captioned "Cover art hosted by ISFDB"). After you click the "Upload File" button, you'll get a warning that a file with that name already exists. Just click the "Save File" button, and the old image will be replaced with the new (better) image. This way you will not have to do an update of the publication record to give a new URL, because the URL remains the same when you replace the file instead of creating a new file, as you have been doing by adding "b" to the file name. After you bypass the warning, it will seem that the new image didn't upload. That's because the old image will remain in your browser's cache until you refresh it (hitting your keyboard's "F5" key in most browsers). Then you will see your newly uploaded and better image. Let me know if you have any questions. Thanks. Mhhutchins 20:20, 26 November 2013 (UTC)


 * Thanks for the protocol. I have uploaded a file (images/5/56/FLLDRSSDND1935.jpg) which I do not wish to use because it is the printed hardcover, not the dustjacket. Can you tell me how to delete it? Smbreau 23:27, 26 November 2013 (UTC)


 * Editors can't delete wiki files, but they can overwrite them. (Only moderators are able to delete files from the wiki.) I'll do this for you if you wish, but in this case, if you don't have an image of the dustjacket, this image will do fine until someone comes up with one. Just go ahead and link it to the record. Once the actual dustjacket image is found, use the link on the publication record page to upload the new file which will overwrite the old file. Thanks. Mhhutchins 23:56, 26 November 2013 (UTC)


 * BTW, look at the raw edit of this message (click the "[edit]" link) and you can see how I created a link of the image file wiki page to this talk page. That way a user of this page doesn't have to search for it.
 * Enter a opening square bracket "[".
 * Paste the URL of the wiki page or database record you want to link to.
 * After a single space, enter a description of the link.
 * End the link with a closing bracket "]".
 * This is how it's done on all wikis, including the most famous one: Wikipedia. If you need further assistance on how to link in the wiki, just ask. Mhhutchins 00:06, 27 November 2013 (UTC)

Changing a Primary Verified record
If you're adding data (other than notes or cover image links), or removing or changing data to a publication record which has been primary verified (such as this one), you should first discuss it with the editor who verified it. This is standard etiquette for ISFDB editors.

Here are the steps:
 * 1) Click on the verifier’s name under the Status column which leads to the editor’s user page.
 * 2) Click on the "Discussion" tab which leads to the editor’s talk page.
 * 3) Click the "+" sign which opens a new message box. Explain the differences between your copy and the ISFDB record, and ask the editor to re-check their copy. (Giving a link to the publication record helps greatly.)  If the editor is active, he/she should respond within a couple of days. If not, leave a message on the Moderator’s Noticeboard.
 * 4) If after the discussion, it’s been determined that an edit to the record is necessary, either you or the verifying editor can submit an edit.

I will do this for you in this case to see what the verifier has to say. Sometimes a cover designer isn't the same as the cover artist, but this appears to be the work of the designer. I'll see if he agrees, and if so, I'll accept the edit. Thanks. Mhhutchins 22:24, 26 November 2013 (UTC)

I've left a message on the verifying editor's talk page. Use this as a guide for future messages concerning changes to primary verified records. Thanks. Mhhutchins 22:37, 26 November 2013 (UTC)