Help:Citations
Whenever possible, please cite references when including information which may not be common knowledge. There are several ways to approach providing citations. Citation links or information can be added immediately following the information in question, or can be listed at the end of an article as part of a Reference List or Works Cited List.
Contents
Citing sources
Suggested methods of citing sources:
Links to on-line references
When referencing some form of on-line communication or documentation, please follow a standard style, or provide a link after the information back to the website where the information was found. (Example citation to the PoliceWiki.[1])
- ONLINE! Citation Styles provides more information on citing on-line sources.
People citations
Put information in parentheses after the information to let people know the source. (User:Sockii, for example, if citing a user of PoliceWiki or using your own personal experience and knowledge.)
Book, magazine, other external references
Please follow standard style guidelines as best suited to referencing books, magazines, newspapers, and other sources.
- Citation Machine is a useful tool that can generate citation code for various types of reference materials
- OttoBib will generate formatted citations from ISBN numbers.
Example book citation:
- Summers, Andy. One Train Later: A Memoir. First edition. New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2006.
Using the cite extension
PoliceWiki has installed the cite.php extension which makes generation of citations and footnotes easy. For more information on how to use cite.php, please visit Cite.php Useage at MediaWiki.
Citation disputes
At times, there may be a dispute regarding a citation or lack of citation. The following templates can be inserted into the text to inform readers and fellow editors of this problem:
This is put after text that you think might not be a fact, or want to see cited. Add it by using the tag: {{Fact}}
This is put after a citation to a dead website link. It is better to use this than to remove the citation, although ideally another citation should be found instead. Add it by using the tag: {{Citation to dead link}}
This is put after a citation where the citation links to locked content that not everyone can view (example:a messageboard where one must be a member to view the content. Ideally, a non-locked citation should be found. Add it by using: {{Citation to locked content}}
This is put after text that you think is not neutral or where you think it provides a biased point of view. Add it by using: {{POV-statement}}
