GoArch:Policies

Overview

This document provides a specific set of policies for creating and editing articles in the Archive. Policies for Standards and Conventions are decided upon by the Guild of Archivists, though feedback and input on policies is accepted from anyone who wishes to participate in the discussion. Guild members are expected to ensure that the Archive is kept in-line with these policies at all times.

Please note that this page is a summary overview of our policies. If a specific sub-set of standards becomes too lengthy to quickly and easily summarize on this page, it will be split off into a new article.

Guild oversight

Policies are decided upon by the members of the Guild of Archivists. While visitors and community members are welcome and encouraged to participate in the development process for new policies, the Guild makes the final determination on what will be adopted.

Summary of policies

General policies

• Canon policy - what we consider "canon". This informs what we do and do not accept in the Archive.
• Citation guidelines
• Point of view - using the proper voice and perspective in your articles.
• Spoiler policy

General guidelines

• Be bold when updating articles
• Editing guidelines - how to edit and style articles
• Maintain the lattice - always link new articles from existing ones. Orphaned articles are less likely to be found and read.

Content guidelines

• Avoid blanket statements. Be specific!
• Check your facts. Always go back to the source material if you are unsure about something.
• [GoArch:Linking conventions|Know when to link to other articles]]
• Use [[GoArch:External links|external links] appropriately.
• Remember, perfection is not required. Some content is always better than no content.

Style guidelines

• Disambiguation - when and how to resolve article title conflicts.
• Follow highlighting conventions
• Manual of Style
• Naming conventions - how to name new articles.

Attribution

The major thrust of this and many other "GoArch:" policy pages are based on material created by Memory Alpha.