Difference between revisions of "User:Wookipan/External links policy"

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(Some changes based on feedback; much obliged!)
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Articles on the Team Fortress Wiki may include '''external links''', or links to websites outside the Wiki. External links are often placed at the very bottom of an article, either as their own section or in the list of references. However, external links are also used in the body of some articles, most notably linking to Wikipedia, Steam, and other independent sources.
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{{nutshell|
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External links '''must not'''...
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* ... mislead the reader by use of factually inaccurate material (or unverifiable sources).
 +
* ... require the visitor to register an account in order to view the contents of a website or platform.
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* ... contain malware, malicious scripts or trojan exploits.
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* ... intend to self-promote or promote a website and/or product that has no relevance to the ''Team Fortress'' franchise, with the sole purpose of commercial advertising; this is considered [[w:Wikipedia:Spam#External link spamming|spam]].
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}}
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Articles on the Team Fortress Wiki may include '''external links''', links to websites outside the Wiki. External links are often placed at the very bottom of an article, either as their own section or in the list of references. However, external links are also used in the body of some articles, most notably linking to Wikipedia, Steam, and other independent sources.
  
 
External links '''must always''' lead to trustworthy websites; links that lead to suspicious websites of any kind will be removed without warning. If you find a link to a malicious site, you should remove it immediately and report it to the [[Help:Group rights|staff]] for further investigation.
 
External links '''must always''' lead to trustworthy websites; links that lead to suspicious websites of any kind will be removed without warning. If you find a link to a malicious site, you should remove it immediately and report it to the [[Help:Group rights|staff]] for further investigation.
 
   
 
   
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Aside from a website being trustworthy, links also '''must not''' be "closed", where the source is locked behind account registration. For example, websites or platforms that require the visitor to register an account in order to view their contents<ref>darkid: You also said links should not require registration "for participating in a community" here, and I don't know if I agree. For example, we might link to a developer post on twitter; that's visible but you can't participate without a twitter account.</ref>. In short, sources ''must'' be available at all times to all users, with no additional effort.
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Aside from a website being trustworthy, links also '''must not''' be "closed", where the source is locked behind account registration. For example, websites or platforms that require the visitor to register an account in order to view their contents. In short, sources ''must'' be available at all times to all users, with no additional effort.
  
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<references />
 
 
There are a couple of exceptions:
 
There are a couple of exceptions:
 
* Links on user pages are generally exempt from the "closed" rule, but still '''must''' be trustworthy.
 
* Links on user pages are generally exempt from the "closed" rule, but still '''must''' be trustworthy.
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* Community event organizers that use Discord (or similar closed platforms) are instead advised<sup>darkid: encouraged? Is this a hard requirement?</sup> to create a Steam Community group, and moderate through that.
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* Community event organizers that use Discord (or similar closed platforms) are instead encouraged to create a Steam Community group, and moderate through that.
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<sup>Is this summary necessary? I feel like this would be better as a {{tl|nutshell}}, and only if this page gets too long.</sup>
 
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''To sum it up, do '''not''' provide links to sites that:''
 
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# Mislead the reader by use of factually inaccurate material (or unverifiable sources)<sup>.
 
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# Require the visitor to register an account in order to view the contents or participate in a community.
 
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# Contain malware, malicious scripts or trojan exploits.
 
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# Intend to self-promote or promote a website<ref>This seems like two things, and I don't know if either of them are really accurate. Self-promotion is hard to judge, e.g. is it OK for the creator of a community update to link to their website? What about one of the contributors linking ther deviantart?</ref> and/or product that has no relevance to the ''Team Fortress'' franchise whatsoever.<ref> This one seems easier to explain, and should probably be in the lead; external links are only allowed when relevant. (For example, we talk about portal 2 -- a link to wikipedia.com/portal_2 would be fine but is wholly unrelated to tf2.)</ref>
 
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<references />
 
  
  
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| style="background-color: #9EFF9E;" | Yes
 
| style="background-color: #9EFF9E;" | Yes
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
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| Steam store pages are provided by developers and are a good primary source of information. However, steam comments are user-submitted and may not be factual.
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| Steam store pages are provided by developers and are a good primary source of information. However, Steam comments are user-submitted and may not be factual, except when stated by a developer or moderator.
 
|-
 
|-
 
| Reddit
 
| Reddit
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
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| darkid: I don't know that I would list reddit here. Some reddit communities are 18+ and reddit content is not always thoroughly moderated.
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| Some Reddit communities are 18+, and Reddit content is not always thoroughly moderated. As comments are also user-submitted, they may not be factual, except when stated by an officially speaking moderator.
 
|-
 
|-
 
| TF2Maps.net
 
| TF2Maps.net
 
| style="background-color: #9EFF9E;" | Yes
 
| style="background-color: #9EFF9E;" | Yes
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
−
| Similarly to steam, TF2Maps is a good primary source for mapping development. However, some of the threads contain user comments and may not be factual.
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| Similarly to Steam, TF2Maps is a good primary source for mapping development. However, some of the threads contain user comments and may not be factual, except when stated by the map creator.
−
|-
 
−
| ETF2L
 
−
| style="background-color: #9EFF9E;" | Yes
 
−
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
−
| darkid: ETF2L is similar to steam/tf2maps. I would only list one or two of these.
 
 
|-
 
|-
 
| The Wayback Machine
 
| The Wayback Machine
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
| style="background-color: #9EFF9E;" | Yes
 
| style="background-color: #9EFF9E;" | Yes
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| The internet archive hosts a service which makes persistent copies of pages. This is a good way to keep content open, even when the original site disappears or is privatised. However, its safety depends on the safety of the original contents.
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| The Internet Archive hosts a service which makes persistent copies of pages. This is a good way to keep content open, even when the original site disappears or is privatised. However, its safety depends on the safety of the original contents.
 
|-
 
|-
 
| Discord
 
| Discord
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
| No
 
| No
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| Discord channels can be 18+, and are inaccessible without an invitation. Note that a picture of a discord message is not acceptable because it cannot be verified.
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| Discord channels can be 18+, and are inaccessible without an invitation. Note that a picture of a Discord message is not acceptable because it cannot be verified.
 
|-
 
|-
 
| Facebook
 
| Facebook
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| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
 
| style="background-color: #CCCCCC;" | Mostly
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| Twitter does host some 18+ content, and some of its contents may be closed, for example direct messages or private profiles. A copy of a private twitter profile via the wayback machine would be considered open.
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| Twitter does host some 18+ content, and some of its contents may be closed, for example direct messages or private profiles. A copy of a private Twitter profile via the Wayback Machine would be considered open.
 
|-
 
|-
 
| t3amf0rtress.com
 
| t3amf0rtress.com

Revision as of 22:25, 8 March 2022

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Nutshell.pngThis page in a nutshell: External links must not...
  • ... mislead the reader by use of factually inaccurate material (or unverifiable sources).
  • ... require the visitor to register an account in order to view the contents of a website or platform.
  • ... contain malware, malicious scripts or trojan exploits.
  • ... intend to self-promote or promote a website and/or product that has no relevance to the Team Fortress franchise, with the sole purpose of commercial advertising; this is considered spam.


Articles on the Team Fortress Wiki may include external links, links to websites outside the Wiki. External links are often placed at the very bottom of an article, either as their own section or in the list of references. However, external links are also used in the body of some articles, most notably linking to Wikipedia, Steam, and other independent sources.

External links must always lead to trustworthy websites; links that lead to suspicious websites of any kind will be removed without warning. If you find a link to a malicious site, you should remove it immediately and report it to the staff for further investigation.

Aside from a website being trustworthy, links also must not be "closed", where the source is locked behind account registration. For example, websites or platforms that require the visitor to register an account in order to view their contents. In short, sources must be available at all times to all users, with no additional effort.

There are a couple of exceptions:

  • Links on user pages are generally exempt from the "closed" rule, but still must be trustworthy.
  • Community event organizers that use Discord (or similar closed platforms) are instead encouraged to create a Steam Community group, and moderate through that.


Examples

Here are a few examples of sites which are acceptable/unacceptable external links

Website Safe Open Notes
Wikipedia Yes Yes Wikipedia's content is vetted by moderators, so it is a trustworthy, independent source.
Steam Yes Mostly Steam store pages are provided by developers and are a good primary source of information. However, Steam comments are user-submitted and may not be factual, except when stated by a developer or moderator.
Reddit Mostly Mostly Some Reddit communities are 18+, and Reddit content is not always thoroughly moderated. As comments are also user-submitted, they may not be factual, except when stated by an officially speaking moderator.
TF2Maps.net Yes Mostly Similarly to Steam, TF2Maps is a good primary source for mapping development. However, some of the threads contain user comments and may not be factual, except when stated by the map creator.
The Wayback Machine Mostly Yes The Internet Archive hosts a service which makes persistent copies of pages. This is a good way to keep content open, even when the original site disappears or is privatised. However, its safety depends on the safety of the original contents.
Discord Mostly No Discord channels can be 18+, and are inaccessible without an invitation. Note that a picture of a Discord message is not acceptable because it cannot be verified.
Facebook Yes No Facebook has a fairly stringent terms of use, so its contents are safe. However, content requires an account to view, and is thus not open.
Twitter Mostly Mostly Twitter does host some 18+ content, and some of its contents may be closed, for example direct messages or private profiles. A copy of a private Twitter profile via the Wayback Machine would be considered open.
t3amf0rtress.com No N/A Phishing websites which masquerade as real websites are unsafe, and should not be linked under any circumstances.
spam-promotion.com Mostly not N/A Sites which are blatant advertisements are not acceptable links since they do not provide value and are often malicious.
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