Help:How can I correct an error I've spotted?

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CPDL is a wiki, which means that any user can edit it. If you notice a mistake on a CPDL page (wrong voicing, wrong composer, whatever), it's easy to correct it.

Above the title of each page is a row of tabs marked 'Article', 'Discussion', 'Edit this page' and so on. Clicking the 'Edit this page' tab displays the source code for the page in question.

If you want to make changes, you should:

  1. Enter the changes you wish in the source code.
  2. Click on 'Show preview' to review your changes and check how they look on the original page.
  3. Add a short note in the 'Summary' box explaining your changes (also, if you are not logged in as a registered user, please identify yourself in the 'Summary' box). If you are not satisfied with your changes, you can go back to (1) to make more changes, (2) to 'Show preview', and (3) add a summary (if you haven't already).
  4. Once you are satisfied with your edit and how it will appear, click on 'Save page' to make your changes permanent (at least until someone makes a subsequent edit).

Your changes will be visible immediately to everyone who visits CPDL. Users will also be able to view the history of changes made to the page and will themselves be able to make edits to your edits. That way, over time, the site becomes gradually more accurate and more comprehensive.

Quick guide to source code

When you edit a page, what you're actually editing is the source code that generates the page. Most of the time, the source code looks pretty similar to the content of the page itself, and you can modify, delete or add to it simply by typing in the normal way. However, there are a few extra elements which you can use to improve the page.

  • Wiki links: These are words that appear blue and underlined, and which link to other CPDL pages when you click on them. When you edit the source code for a page, you can make any word into a wiki link simply by putting two square brackets on either side: for instance, if you type [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart]] in the source code, the page will display Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart as a wiki link.
By default the text that is displayed is the same as the link: if you wanted to link to the page given above, but didn't want Mozart's full name to appear on screen, then in the source code, after you type the opening square brackets and the page title you wish to link, e.g. [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – you should then type the pipe character (which appears as a vertical bar, " | " ), followed by the text you wish to appear on screen, and then typing the closing square brackets ]]. For example, [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart|Mozart]] links to the same page as above, but only displays the linking text Mozart.
  • Internet links ('real' links): These are ordinary links that point to websites elsewhere on the internet (as opposed to just within CPDL). CPDL displays these in blue and with a little jumping arrow sign like this. To create these links, simply enclose the web address in single square brackets, like this: [http://www.sheetmusicplus.com]. If you think the bare address looks a bit ugly, you can add a description to display instead. For instance, if you type [http://www.sheetmusicplus.com Sheetmusic Plus website] in the source code, the page will display Sheetmusic Plus website.
  • Inter-wiki links: Some websites affiliated with CPDL can be linked by a shorthand method: for example, rather than specifying the full URL for Abel di Marco's Cantoral website (http://www.pucpr.edu/diocesis/14cantoral.html), the site can be referred to succinctly as [[cantoral:|Cantoral web site]], which produces Cantoral web site. Likewise, specific pages on some of these affiliated websites may also be specified, e.g. [[icking:ByComposer/Lasso.php|Orlando di Lasso work page]]. This technique is described as "inter-wiki" linking: a full list of sites that are interlinked from CPDL will be made available shortly.
  • Italic text: To make a word or phrase italic, type two single quotes '' at the beginning and again at the end. For instance, if you type ''Ave verum'', the page will display Ave verum. (Note that typing two single quotes '' is quite different from typing a double-quote or speech mark " !)
  • Bold text: To make a word or phrase bold, type three single quotes ''' at the beginning and again at the end. For instance, if you type '''Ave verum''', the page will display Ave verum.
  • Headings: To make a word or phrase into a section heading, type two or more equals signs == at the beginning and end of the phrase.

There are many, many more advanced elements of wiki source code which you can use if you like. These are catalogued fairly exhaustively in the help pages for Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia that, like CPDL, is also a wiki.

If you don't have time

If you find an error but don't have time to fix it, it would be helpful if you could mark the page for someone else to fix later. To do this, simply add the following line at the very bottom of the page: {{Cleanup|add here a short description of the error}}. The page will then be listed at ChoralWiki:Pages awaiting cleanup, an area where contributors can go to while away the hours improving pages on CPDL.

This page is part of the CPDL Help system.
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