Forum:Infoboxes

So I've been thinking writing up a policy/explanation page about the infobox subpages because I am fairly sure most people don't know why we do it e.g. People who create them for their user pages. Basically for anyone who doesn't know; they were originally an anti-vandalism measure as the infoboxes were a common target for vandalism. This is why when I first implemented it I only did it to "high-profile" character pages. But since then it has sunk down to lower profile pages that are basically never vandalised and the only reason they have them is due to users following what they see on other pages.

Anyhow, incidentally the infoboxes have also provided two other advantages: 1) They cut down on the amount of code on a page so if you edit an entire page you don't have to worry about all the code on it and 2) Keep the histories separate so it is easier to review what changes have been made, especially when vandalism is occurring.

But enough blabbering: The reason I am mentioning all this is because if I am to write up a page explaining them I want to know what should be considered in the policy. While I have my own ideas which I feel cover everything, there could be disagreements or I could be overlooking something so just going to open the floor to discussion before I write anything up.

Basic criteria (simplified)
 * 1) Use on popular pages but avoid on less popular ones, e.g. popular = John Egbert, less popular = Rambunctious Crow
 * 2) * Notes: Have to define what is "popular" and what is not, probably go off a general feel as opposed to strict policy.
 * 3) Use on large infoboxes, avoid on smaller ones. More likely than not "popular" pages will have larger infoboxes, one again the size difference between John's and RC's infoboxes.
 * 4) The current protection status of a page. While the status of a page is in constant flux in some cases there may be a need for long term protection (or semi-protection), case-in-point, Eridan and Cronus. I've just recently added an infinite semi-protect to both their pages. While both their pages would count as "popular" they have fairly small infoboxes and if their main pages are indefinitely semi-protected there remains little to no reason to keep their infoboxes separate from their main page.

So that is everything. If there is no input I will probably write it up in a week or two, if there is mostly positive input I might do it sooner. - The Light6 (talk) 07:31, October 23, 2012 (UTC)