 | This page describes one of Memory Beta's policies and guidelines Please read through the policy below to familiarize yourself with our common practices and rules. If you have any questions, suggestions, or complaints, please post them on the talk page. |
The wiki format can often be demanding or unfamiliar – and downright confusing! It's easy to commit faux pas – anyone might make one, either a newcomer or a veteran. This list of mistakes is compiled, not to embarrass anyone, but to provide some guidelines to help everyone avoid making these mistakes in the future.
- Copying from the Encyclopedia. Memory Beta's goal is to create an independent resource on licensed information for Star Trek fans. Duplicating Encyclopedia entries constitutes a copyright violation. That means that we have to build our reference library from scratch. It's difficult, but with many people working on it, it'll go a whole lot faster.
- Breaking out of character. Memory Beta's point of view (POV) is that of a person living 'inside' the Star Trek universe. Restrict production and background information to the correct places (see manual of style).
- Adding non-licensed content to articles. Memory Beta is a website about licensed Trek, which means that "in-POV" can't accept any information about your favorite fan fiction. This information can be added to a Star Trek wiki dedicated to unlicensed and fan material at, the Star Trek Expanded Universe wiki.
- Blanking page content. If you discover a page with "fan fiction" or other false content, don't delete it! See accuracy disputes for details about what to do when you find these kinds of mistakes. A blank page will leave readers who visit later on very confused.
- Leaving the edit summary empty. Always fill the summary field!
- Making duplicate articles. Always do a quick search to see if anyone else has already created an article on your subject. Be sure to consider alternate possible names – there's a chance that the article simply has a different name than you were expecting.
- Misnaming articles. It's always helpful to check the naming conventions first before you create a new page. If you're uncertain about what to name a page, that page should make your decision easier.
- Treating talk pages like a chat room. The talk pages are intended to be used exclusively for the discussion of issues related to the writing of Memory Beta articles. If you're interested in general discussion about Star Trek, we recommend that you check out the TrekBBS message boards.