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It has been requested that this article be rewritten to be comprehensible to the human race.

A user most known for file management. Founder of the TMWA and Qix Wiki. See also: The talk page, The sandbox, Project Clean-Up, TMWA Discord.

Terminology

  • Caps = Capitalization
  • FNC = File Name Change - I usually use this on any changed talk pages
  • RFC = Renamed for Consistency - Like files, such as character icons, should be similarly named. These are usually minor fixes.
  • TR = Technical Rename - removing or changing things like punctuation, unnecessary numbers, or files with weird issues in them. Files should have no punctuation other than a sparingly used hyphen.
  • RFA = Renamed for Accuracy - Spelling errors, wrong names, poor formatting, or lack of specified game. More-specific-to-the-image naming. This is about 85% of when the main file name is changed. These are usually major fixes.
  • NCR = Naming Conflict Rename - Files that are almost identically named that are renamed to avoid confusing the two. Hypothetical examples: Kirby.png vs. Kirby.PNG, or Dedede1.png vs. Dedede 1.png
  • RIF = Removed Image:/File: - Replacing uses of the linking phrase Image: to File: for images.
  • UPI = Unused Personal Image
  • ECE = Edit Conflict Error

Additionally, because autofill is an evil tool from evil town, I add a symbol in each edit summary so it doesn't save forever.

Notes

If a note below has sufficiently been addressed, it can be removed. See also: My sandbox

General/Miscellaneous

  • Total amount of edits (in thousands): 31.2 - 23:00, 23 February 2024 (UTC)
  • Excellent headway on adding Template:File to existing and new files, but still many left to go. Try to encourage active users to go back through their own upload lists to make changes (although some like Namcorules and Tedium appear to have already been awesome about that) - 17:56, 9 July 2022 (UTC)
  • Many written pages contain numerous instances of outdated terms or grammar, such as "Image:", <b>, double spaces, a lack of the oxford comma, or even using raw code instead of templates. Yuck! Lots of updates need to be made. - 22:32, 12 September 2021 (UTC)
  • StrategyWiki:Guide completion pages are over a decade out of date in many instances, and probably just need completely re-organized. The Ouya needs removed. - 02:39, 17 September 2021 (UTC)
  • A large number of guides have well written pages but lack a Gameplay page. These should be minimized when possible. - 22:20, 25 September 2021 (UTC)
  • Work to rewrite StrategyWiki:Guide/File uploads and Help:Images to be up to date, and focus primarily on File and file sourcing. - 18:50, 5 October 2021 (UTC)
  • Scan Category:Series and cross reference navs to pages actually in the category to make sure all written pages are in the game's respective category. - 15:33, 7 October 2021 (UTC)
  • Pretty much any box art from Najzere is low quality and/or from either dead or illegal ROM sources. Replacing these uploads should be made a priority when possible. - 00:48, 11 October 2021 (UTC)
  • Test community opinion of needing backslash redirects for forward slash games (Example: F\A for F/A - 05:33, 3 January 2022 (UTC)
  • Continue to wear down JPEG use (move to JPG) and otherwise improve file naming. - 05:33, 3 January 2022 (UTC)
  • People don't use oxford commas enough. That needs to be fixed. - 17:56, 9 July 2022 (UTC)
  • There is a weird crippling addiction for the use of parentheses when writing, which is not always a bad thing, but it is definitely done at an overly high capacity when it doesn't need to be. Especially when people do it wrong, such as putting an entire independent sentence as a parenthesied statement, or putting the period on the inside of right parentheses when it should be placed on the outside (like so). - 17:56, 9 July 2022 (UTC)
  • Check all pages to see if they even have footer navs, and if they point to the right place. - 17:56, 9 July 2022 (UTC)
  • So many center tags everywhere. If I had a nickel for each maybe I could retire and spend that time removing them all. Center spans across multiple lines, and single images can now use |center for alignment. - 17:56, 9 July 2022 (UTC)
  • Arcade games with Trophies pages tend to not have filled out footer navs. - 16:10, 13 July 2022 (UTC)
  • Zelda games have abysmal file names, get a universal standard in order. top priority. - 04:13, 22 August 2022 (UTC)
  • Menace Beach is bad writing. - 23:15, 28 August 2022 (UTC)

Killing Floor

  • Killing Floor/Controls is a very poorly written page with a lot of red links. Is there a way to link the articles to somewhere else in the guide before removing them? - 03:00, 17 September 2021 (UTC)

Smuggler's Run 2: Hostile Territory

  • Many files link to the redirect Smuggler's Run 2 as opposed to the full game. This should be remedied. - 15:35, 25 September 2021 (UTC)

Geist

  • A lot of pages have broken or weird footer nav links. Most pages just link back to the main game instead of a page. This should be fixed. - 14:22, 4 October 2021 (UTC)

Solomon's Key

  • Levels really have a thing for using two-word sentences and first person. This guide could use some rewriting to read a little smoother in that regard. - 22:22, 28 January 2022 (UTC)

Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door

  • Writing for chapters is relatively sloppy and unprofessional. Most of the work doesn't even need much knowledge about the game, just ensuring grammar is enforced. Largest issue left is likely the consistent capitalization of proper terms (Star Piece, Shine Sprite, Koopa Troopa etc.) - 17:56, 9 July 2022 (UTC)

Solar Jetman: Hunt for the Golden Warpship

Princess Tomato in the Salad Kingdom

Those levels have crazy map alignments. It might be better to just combine them into one single image. - 18:46, 9 July 2022 (UTC)

Dominions 3: The Awakening

  • The entire thing is riddled with first person. That needs to be not that. - 15:20, 27 July 2022 (UTC)
  • Many pages lack footer navs - 15:20, 27 July 2022 (UTC)
  • This guide is riddled with double spaces and smart punctuation. Gross! These need replaced immediately. - 15:20, 27 July 2022 (UTC)

UNDERTALE

  • The game needs to focus a lot more on gameplay and not characters and lore. I know that's like, 80% of the reason people play it, but it is still well outside guidelines. Also, checking for any remaining copyvio. - 04:13, 22 August 2022 (UTC)

Super Mario Kart

These pages are weird. I don't think all the course types should be bundled together like they are, as it makes navigation (especially footer navs) borderline impossible. This should be changed in some way. - 15:34, 22 August 2022 (UTC)

Trig How to Rename Files

While I have done the best I can to justify my reasoning, this section is almost entirely unofficial, so take it with a pillar of salt.

Please read this and this first. It is a much broader, official guide and is more likely to answer questions before I do. I will use the file File:Trig Demonstration Example File.png as an example in this demonstration.


Giving a file a name

When naming a file, it is most important to keep three "C"s in mind: Consistency, clarity, and capitalization. Additionally, a well named file can answer the questions "What game is this" and "What is the file about" WITHOUT the need to see the file.

I personally try to have all files be named in the following format: (Game Name/Abbreviation) (Object or Action) (Specifics).extension, but it is more important to remain consistent amongst the files being dealt with over this format. For a specific example, if all the other files being dealt with are in the format "Game Abbreviation Character Icon.extension", your file should properly reflect this. In terms of what 'Specifics' means, it means what the type of image is. There are about five types of images, being Artwork, Icon, Screenshot, Sprite, and Model/Render (varies). The specific is what sets that image apart from the rest.

In regards to the extension, the most important part about the extension is that it needs to be lowercase. Additionally, jpeg files should be written as jpg, and ogg should be formatted as oga or ogv, depending on the file type. This is not a me thing , rather it is the creater of the ogg container's request. The reason for the former is because jpg and jpeg will display as two different files which can lead to confusion and sometimes ruin automatic linking in templates or Cargo queries.

Clarity is fairly simple: The name should make sense. Avoid using more words than necessary to convey what the image is about, and if conjecture needs to be used, try and use wording that is directly used for the intended caption or surrounding context.

Capitalization once again is about making sure all files have lowercase extensions, and proper uppercase letters for any abbreviations (use GAME over game). Don't use all uppercase, either. It also is to make sure that files don't have differentiating capitalization, as MediaWiki will treat them as different files.


What to avoid


  • Capitalized extensions. Pretty good reason as to why I'd bring it up this many times if it wasn't a big deal.
  • Inconsistency. Files named 'THE cool Song of doom.oga' have weird, inconsistent capitalization; similar multiple files that change capitalization should be renamed to prevent it.
  • Overabbreviating. Shortening game names can be nice, but shortening things such as area names or characters may lead to some confusion or NCRs later down the road. Whispy Woods is not that long of a name, and does not need to be written as WW, for example.
  • Using the gif format for static images: These can be uploaded as png files, and it is better to do so.
  • Having funny file names. While files about yoshi being named "ugly green frog" is a good chuckle, it also makes it very difficult to identify what the file is actually about.
  • Unnecessary numbers. Sometimes it makes sense to name files numerically, such as Intro 1/Intro 2/Intro 3, but if it could be reasonably avoided, it should be.
  • Punctuation. While you can use some punctuation, it should only be used if said punctuation appears in what the file is describing. Personally, if it is not a hyphen, I do not like to keep punctuation, such as exclaimation points or tildes. Most importantly, do NOT (ever) use periods or pound signs (#) in file names because that can affect the coding. Furthermore, do not use parentheses, quotation marks, unicode, funky letters like À; Æ; Ö, emojis (yes people have tried), or unnecessary hyphens (ex: KRD-Cool-Door-Sprite.gif).
  • Too broad a name. Don't name a file after only the page you are referring to, as most of the time it may come back in a later game or in another form. 'Gordo.png' or 'Kirby right back at ya.jpg' are hypothetical examples of broad naming.

Renaming existing files

The way I approach renaming a file is by first having the File page open.

I then open all the pages it is both used on and pages I can edit in a new tab, but you may opt into windows or your own method instead.

Move the file to the appropriate name.

Generally speaking, all pages can be edited for correcting file names, with the exception of archives or policy pages. In these circumstances, reach out to an Administrator for help.

Most importantly to change is the regular pages and galleries. Locate the image and where it is used (sometimes it may be used more than once) and replace it. I generally find it helpful to use copy and pasting here. If you have the find tool, it can help minimize time spent searching. I am not an all computer wizard, but it tends to be command-F for macs and control-F for not-macs.

If you decide to preserve the user/user talk pages as well, open them up and do the same replacement if possible. Some user talk pages are protected, meaning the images are unable to be replaced. This is okay. This stuff happens. Not all images last forever, and that is why it is okay User pages don't need attention. If you can replace any images, edit ONLY the file name and nothing else. Indicate in the summary very clearly why a talk page or archive was edited. I use the term FNC, file name change, but as long as people understand why, it is acceptable.

Once all pages have been addressed, go to the created redirect and mark it with the {{delete}} tag. Indicate a reason for deletion (FNC would likely be understood here too). After this, check the page "What Links Here" on the left side under "Tools". On some devices, control+option+J can be pressed to get there automatically. This is helpful for two reasons: The first is to make sure you didn't miss anything! The second is to see if any linked but undisplayed files are used.

Trig Demonstration Example File.png

Files can be listed with a colon before File is written File:Trig Demonstration Example File.png or also with alternate text. If this usage can be replaced, it should be as well.

The file File:Trig Demonstration Example File.png itself links to a variety of pages to demonstrate what has been listed above.

At this point, you are done. Should you have any questions, comments, concerns, quantums, or theorems, please ask away on my talk page. Happy editing.


Why does this matter?

Having a consistent naming structure(s) leads to easier use of the wiki! Without funky file names, people won't be confused about how to type them in, be able to search for files easier, and be able to know what each file is on a large page like a gallery without being able to see it when editing. Some people when writing could even be able to just write a filename without even having to look it up. While making file names better, it also can reach to a large amount of pages to help fix problems on those pages as well. Some less popular pages can be scanned for errors.

What Does That Mean? (FAQ)

This section is a semi-dedicated FAQ to both questions related to files and general wiki editing. Have a question? I would be happy to answer it on my talk page instead.

Why do we have different types of files?

JPG/JPEG is a lossy type of image. While compressing, the file may lose quality in order to have a better file size. They are less preferred than other file types, but that is not to say they are bad. Usually, JPGs are used for artworks or Wii U/Switch screenshots. JPG files cannot and should not be converted into other file types.

GIF is a lossless types of image, revolutionary for supporting animation and transparency. It can only display 256 colors per frame, however. These files are most recommended to be used for animated images only, as the successor file type is much more effective at displaying images. Additionally, gameplay GIFs should be avoided because too many colors at once causes dithering, a process where color values exceeding GIF's 256 are replaced with a "best guess", usually, reducing the overall quality or accuracy.

PNG is essentially GIF 2 electric boogaloo. It was designed to improve on the lossless format to be both more compressed but also have more color options available to the viewer. A majority of wiki files are in this format. PNG is also transparency supportive, and is usually the smallest file type available. The main distinction between PNG and GIF is that PNG does not necessarily have animation support. There were several attempts to add it on later down the line, such as MNG (creator:png group) or APNG (mozilla), but they do not hold universal value. While the wiki supports APNG uploads, it is not heavily suggested as it is not quite available to all users and are usually large in size.

SVGs are interesting lossless files. They are universally supported, and essentially run images off text files. The two reasons that these files may be used over PNG is because they are much much smaller, and because that they can be displayed at any size without a change in quality. You want a 9000 by 9000 pixel SVG? It'll go there and look just as good as 152x152. They are only effective when it comes to line art or very simple artworks, however.

Is there a difference between JPG and JPEG?

Short answer: No. Long answer: Noooooo.

JPG and JPEG are entirely interchangeable and have absolutely no meaning over the other. That said, files should use jpg, just to have a sense of uniformity and to avoid issues when auto-filling parameters.

Why isn't this gif moving?

Chances are, it is a single frame gif. If possible, try and convert to a PNG before uploading, as they are more optimal to utilize and it generally does not affect visual quality.

I thought PNGs were supposed to be transparent

PNGs can be transparent, but they might not be. Sometimes the source uses a white background and that is ok. Transparency should not be artificially created just because an image is a PNG. Images should never be made transparent in systems like GIMP. Only official transparency should be used.

What's the deal with "inter-file periods"?

Interfile periods, periods that are in a file name that aren't for the extension, are not really great to have. While other punctuation found in a subject is usually okay, sometimes systems freak out as to when the extension starts when it comes to periods. For example, it may read a file named "Mr. T Artwork.jpg" as it should be, Mr. T Artwork, with an extension of jpg, OR it might read the file as Mr T with the extension of Artwork.jpg

There doesn't appear to be a rhyme or reason as to when one happens over another, but typically it messes up in galleries over anything else. It's better to be safe and avoid them entirely. If anything, it is simply easier to read.

What's the deal with hyphens?

Hyphens are a difficult middle ground when it comes to naming files. While they should be used for anything with a hyphen specifically in the name, they should NOT be used in place of spaces. The reason for this is generally because it's easier to type without a space, and the use of hyphens simply creates more opportunities for files to be almost identically named. KSSU-Moon.png and KSSU Moon.png could be two different files, and it is not the most effective to name them so similarly.

A hyphen (-), found on most keyboards, is not to be confused with a dash (—) or a minus sign (−).

For example, the following could all be be different files:

  • Kirby-Sword.png
  • Kirby - Sword.png
  • Kirby- Sword.png
  • Kirby -Sword.png

What's an NCR?

An NCR is a term I use to describe files that are almost identically named. Some examples would be:

  • Capitalization. (EX: File:KEY Dream Land.png and File:KEY dream land.png)
  • Extension difference. (EX: File:Marx being cool.jpg and File:Marx being cool.png)
  • Hyphens (EX: File:Meta Knight.png vs File:Meta-Knight.png vs File:Meta - Knight.png vs File:Meta- Knight.png vs File:Meta -Knight.png)

Why do you have symbols all over your sandbox?

I usually use them to be able to reference different types of images. Often, I will use the at sign @, dollar sign $, percent %, ampersand &, and dead key grave ` (and rarely asterism, usually for lists ⁂) to self categorize groups of images. For example, if I am going to need to fix the aboutfiles on a set of images, I might add % to them and do all of those images at the same time. Generally, they don't mean the same thing for the same section. Relatedly, symbols are added to edit summaries to avoid autofill taking up my screen space.

What are Smart Quotes? What are Smart Apostrophes?

Smart quotes and apostrophes are a type of quote that is not on a universal keyboard. They appear like this: (“|”|‘|’). They were essentially created to add style to the regular straight quotes (sometimes jokingly called dumb quotes) as seen here: ("|'). Since Smart Quotes do not appear on most keyboards as a standard, we try to avoid them the best we can. Some browsers/OS have automatic correction to smart quotes, especially apple products. These settings can be turned off in various settings pages. Notably, smart punctuation does not allow MediaWiki functions like italicize and bold to work.

Since some people may only be using smart quotes, pages that utilize quotations and apostrophes should have extra redirects made that utilize them.

Why do I keep seeing "Optimized" on files?

Image optimization is a LOSSLESS process in which an image has its metadata removed. Metadata is more text based, hidden information attached to files. Generally some metadata could include the date of capture, the file's dimensions, or type of camera used. While maybe useful for personal use, it's not necessary to have on the wiki. Hence, the emphasis on optimizing files.

There are a number of programs available to optimize files. The most popular are PNG Monstrous (formerly PNG Monster), which is universal in download and is extremely effective. Running command line optimizations, Zopfli and PNGOUT are very useful as well. The other is ImageOptim, which is generally a mashup of a bunch of optimizers. The pro to using ImageOptim is that it has support for four file types to be optimized: PNG, JPG, GIF, and SVG, with a con of being MacOS exclusive.

Before uploading a new image or revision, images are encouraged to be optimized as it helps the user load the image more effectively and saves server space. Extremely frequently used icons and images, such as ones on high use templates, may also benefit from optimization to save on load time--though this is primarily for images that do not generate thumbnails.

As mentioned before, optimizing is a lossless process. Compression, which is sadly used interchangeably with optimizing, could mean either regular optimizing or the use of LOSSY compression. Lossy compression is where the image quality is reduced (by any varying amount) to make the file size smaller. LOSSY compression should not be used.

What's Gamma Brightening?

Gamma (Brightening) is a type of metadata stored on image files that change the way certain colors are displayed. Usually, it reduces the contrast amongst colors and is typically found on PNGs. While generally unwritten, the policy on gamma brightened photos is to optimize the file only if the original source does not use gamma brightening. If the source image contains gamma brightening metadata, it should not be optimized.

Why use OGA and OGV instead of OGG?

Xiph OGG Naming Standard.png

Way back yonder when the OGG format was introduced by Xiph.org, the only extension was .ogg; Since it became wildly much more popular in the later 2000s, they realized that the ability to have almost any type of file use OGG, they formally headlined the creation of different extensions such as OGA (Lossy Audio), OGV (Video), OGX (applications), and XFPF (weird code stuff that I don't understand). Per the creators suggestion, we should use the distinguished naming scheme.

Why can't I play this OGA/OGV file?

Unfortunately, while popular in the days of 2010, the global standard has dropped universal OGG support for reasons that have yet to really be explained. Some theorize it was because apple was trying to replace it with .mov and .m4a files, but this is conjecture. Generally, google chrome is a good browser to try and view this type of file on. If possible, it may be acceptable to re-rip as MP3 files.

How come some files have the name parts in a different order than here?

Matter of preference to the user.

I prefer distinguishing by game first, the subject of the image second, and the type of image third so that it is simple to tell on pages with multiple games involved (galleries especially), as it makes the most sense to compare files of one game to another first before comparing them to each other. Namewise, how does my Kirby Super Star Gordo Sprite stand out amongst other games? Because it's Kirby Super Star. How does it stand out to other Kirby Super Star files? Because it's a Gordo. How does it stand out to other Kirby Super Star Gordos? Because it is a sprite.

Other people prefer to use the format Subject-Game-Type because it is generally easier to search for in categories.

How do I use Template:File?

{{File}} is a very important template to help improve file organization. It is most important for ensuring the following properties are found on each file we use:

  • Copyright status--usually indicating the file is fair use
  • Game categorization and linkage (This file is used for this specific game, and you can get there with this link)
  • Type of file categorization (IE Sprites are all together, while audio files are in a different category)
  • Sourcing--Usually necessary for fair use in images.

This process has been carefully made to be as easy as possible. The skeleton of the template is the following, and can be directly copypasted into existing files--new uploads should automatically have template there:

{{File
|game     =
|summary  =
|type     =
|source   =
|license  =
}}
  • Game: The easiest to fill in is the game category. It's what game the image is for! Not from a game? Use game=series for images that cover a whole series, like logos. You do not need to add linking brackets in this section, just the name of the game. This will automatically categorize this file for the respective game.
  • Summary: This should give a brief description of what the file is. Not sure what to write? Try describing the image as if you were telling someone what the file contains without them being able to see/hear it. It may be appropriate to copy over pre-existing captions.
  • Type is the type of file it is. This will automatically categorize the file for you. Not sure what to use? Ask on the file talk page (or ask on my talk page) and someone will help you decide. All entires must be all lowercase to work. The list of types can be found below:
    • achievement
    • arcade
    • artwork
    • audio
    • boxart
    • card
    • control
    • diagram
    • die
    • icon
    • logo
    • systemlogo
    • companylogo
    • map
    • model
    • panorama
    • photo
    • rating
    • screenshot
    • sprite
    • system
    • trophy
    • user
    • video
    • wiki
  • Source: is a link to where you obtained the image, should you have found it elsewhere. These links should be linked using one bracket [link] on each side. If you got this image yourself, whether it be through a capture card or sprite ripping or other means, use source=self instead. All files need sourcing! Please try to obtain one if at all possible.
  • Licensing: will generally autofill using the above use of type=, but this can be manually changed by filling in this section. This should only be used for files released under a creative commons license or is public domain--both of these are rarities. Generally, do not add this parameter unless necessary to do so. See Template:License for more information.
  • User: Is an optional parameter that is used in two situations. The first is for |type=user, which lists the user that the image belongs to. The second is for |source=user, and to list the user who is responsible for the source. This is pretty uncommon, but every so often the user uploading and the user who captured the media are not the same.

Gallery of example images

Important to note: when using the <gallery> tag, the "File:" part does not need to be added.

Example of a video file


Other

Additionally, please don't ask me about my personal life, I'd greatly appreciate it. I do make cool music for fun though

last seen doing:

17 March 2024

Today's fortune: Your refrigerator will start running soon