StrategyWiki:Guide/External links

 '''This is a proposed policy. It is not yet binding.''' Please discuss this guideline on this page's talk page, the forums or the staff lounge.

External linking consists of content pointing to websites outside of StrategyWiki.org. This could be in the form of links, images or videos. When using external links, keep in mind that we aim to host all game-related content, so use external sites sparingly. In most cases, it would be better to add the content directly to StrategyWiki, either by writing your own content, uploading your own images or otherwise explaining concepts in a way that keeps readers on our site. Sometimes, however, it may make more sense to use externally hosted content as in cases where duplication of effort can be avoided, the content is dynamic, or there is no easy way to get complex concepts across using our own resources.

Partnerships
We have mutually beneficial relationships with our partner sites, where we host strategy guide content and they host game minutiae and trivia. For information in more detail than we care to go or which spans multiple games, use links to our partners.

Guide main pages
There are two places where external links should go on guide main pages. For links to a game's official site, use the  parameter in the infobox template. If there is more than one link to various sites, or to add a link to Wikipedia through use of the wikipedia template, start an "External links" section below the Table of Contents and Series Nav, where applicable. Links should not be to fansites, but rather to sites hosting content outside our scope, such as official forums, patch download pages, highly specific strategy sites, friend code pages, etc.

Use of the wikipedia template should be limited to situations where Wikipedia has information well beyond what is in the guide. In most cases, since our licenses are compatible with attribution, any good information on Wikipedia should just be copied to our site. This is especially true of the introductory information that we can use on the main page, as well as "game guide" information, which has a high probability of being removed from the Wikipedia page in the future. We do not want a Wikipedia link added to every page by rote – we provide information outside Wikipedia's scope and are not trying to use them as a crutch.

Guide pages
External links don't belong on guide pages. References are unnecessary and discouraged; this is not Wikipedia. To properly attribute any content you are adding, put the link and licensing information in the edit summary when you add it. Like always, if there is information elsewhere that you would link to, just add it to the page, keeping in mind copyright issues. If you find yourself wanting to add links to one site in particular on multiple pages, consider adding it under the "External links" section of the main page.

User pages
Feel free to link to your personal blog, other wikis you belong to, etc. on your userpage. Note that spamming or linking to ad, revenue or click-thru sites won't be tolerated. Your userpage is for other users to get to know you a little better, so keep any links you add working toward that end.

Hotlinked images
99.99% of the time, you need to just upload the image to the site and use proper image links on the page. The only time you should hotlink to an externally hosted image on a guide page, is when it is constantly with up-to-date information. An example is the World of Pirates/Maps page. This is simply to avoid having to upload new versions of the image all the time and still not be as up-to-date as the site its hosted on. The only other time you can feel free to use hotlinked images is on talk pages and user pages. Sometimes it may be necessary to prove certain information, such as certain glitches or pre-release information. In that regard, it isn't necessary to upload an image that becomes useless shortly after the parties involved have seen it. You can also use hotlinked images on your user page if you don't want to upload it, but be aware that the userspace is not meant to be a gallery or image hosting service.