PhiloWiki:How to contribute

From PhiloWiki

Welcome to PhiloWiki!

We encourage you to add resources that represent and reinforce your points of view on a range of topics. PhiloWiki collects resources that represent multiple points of view. As this site is still new, if you would like to begin a new classification, we ask that you contact us. These guidelines, like everything else on this site, are evolving. If you have any comments or suggestions, feel free to leave comments on the contributions discussion page.

The basics

You may edit any debate guide on PhiloWiki. You will need to create an account. Essentially, each debate guide is a collection of questions and references (plus other, more advanced, elements). When viewing a debate guide, simply click on the 'edit' link at the top of the page to add your own questions or references.

To add a question - this is pretty straightforward. All debate guides have questions, just follow along with your own! Basically, a question is preceded by an asterisk - that's it!

It is a little more advanced to add a reference from another site, but references are a great way to back up your point of view. Again, the easiest way to add a reference is to find another reference in a debate guide, and just copy how it is done.

But, here are explicit directions. From a credible online site, find an article that reinforces your view in any area of debate. Select a one- or two-paragraph excerpt that represents the main point of the article. Add the excerpt to the appropriate debate page, preceded by a link to the article that lists the title, author, and source. Simply follow the example of the other excerpts on the debate page. The exact format is:

{{ Reference | 
| title = the title 
| excerpt = 
: first paragraph here
: second paragraph here
| author = name of author
| pub = name of publication }}

For advanced users

To add a quotation, enter the following:

{{ Quotation | 
| quote = 
: first paragraph here
: second paragraph here
| speaker = who said it }}

In philosophical discussions, case studies (real or hypothetical) can be a great intellectual aid! Enter the following:

{{ Case study | 
| title = title of the case study
| description = 
: first paragraph here
: second paragraph here }}

If you know of a book that is a valuable philosophical resource, we would love to hear about it! Enter the following:

{{ Book citation | 
| title = the book title
| summary = 
: first paragraph here
: second paragraph here
| author = the author's name
| publisher = the publisher's name }}

Personal member views are being allowed on an experimental basis - please submit only a well-written, concise argument for any Debate Guide. This feature is still being evaluated, and all views are subject to review for politeness, scholarship, and appropriateness. You must be a member to add a view. Enter the following:

{{ Member view | 
| description = 
: first paragraph here
: second paragraph here
| member = your user name }}