Wikipedia:Centralized discussion

This is aninformation page.

It is not anencyclopedic article,nor one ofWikipedia's policies or guidelines;rather, its purpose is to explain certain aspects of Wikipedia's norms, customs, technicalities, or practices. It may reflect differing levels ofconsensusandvetting.

Shortcuts

This page in a nutshell:The{{Centralized discussion}}template is a widely-transcluded listing of ongoing discussions, specifically those which have potentially wide-ranging impacts and therefore require input from the community at large.

The{{centralized discussion}}template(shortcut:T:CENT) is generally used to draw attention to discussions regarding policies, guidelines or other matters that have a wide impact and on which a broad consensus is needed. It expands to the box listing with heading "Centralized Discusssion" at the top of this page, listing such discussions.

There are many alternative methods of publicizing discussions. Announcements, such as forArbCom elections,etc., are generally done via theWatchlist noticeor theSitenotice.Discussions related to content, including use of infoboxes and templates within a specific topic area, are usually best advertised within the appropriate WikiProjects.

Background

Wikipediansfrequently discuss proposed changes to aWikipedia policy or guideline;these may take the form of new proposals, amendments to existing policies or guidelines, orrequests for comments.These discussions generally take place on relevanttalk pages.They may also occur atMeta-Wiki.

Wikipedia:Village pump (policy)andWikipedia:Village pump (proposals)provide central areas both for giving notice of discussions elsewhere and for debate itself. Despite regular archiving, these pages tend to grow rather lengthy. It's not always easy to know what issues are active.

Listing examples

Shortcut

WP:CENTNOT

Discussions listed on Cent are about matters that are significant enough to require a broad consensus. SeeWikipedia:Canvassingfor guidance on the appropriate way to gain attention.

Some discussions may also be listed onWikipedia:Requests for comment.

Appropriate

Discussions on existing policies, guidelines and procedures
Discussions on proposed policies, guidelines and procedures
Discussions on matters that have a wide impact

Inappropriate

Announcements – seeWikipedia:Community portal,MediaWiki:Watchlist-messages,orMediaWiki:Sitenotice
Content disputes – seeWikipedia:Dispute resolution requests
Topic-specific discussions – seeWikipedia:WikiProject
Minor matters, housekeeping, article content discussions, or maintenance – seeWikipedia:Be boldorWikipedia:Talk page guidelines.
General ideas or proposals, reviving dead projects, technical issues, or any other matters that would be better suited toWikipedia:Village pump

How to list

To add a new item, editTemplate:Centralized discussion,and place the item at the top of the list.
Link directly to the discussion. Single, unambiguous and concise links are preferred.
Describe the matter or proposal in neutral terms. It is not necessary to label the type of discussion, e.g. "RFC".
Add date of listing betweenhide brackets:.
At the discussion itself, add{{subst:Notified|WP:CENT{{subst:!}}centralized discussion}}or similar.

When and how to archive

Entries for inactive discussions, closed or not, should be moved toWikipedia:Centralized discussion/Archive.

Cautions

Like any tool, this may bemisused.Kindly exercise restraint,assume good faith,and allow process to take its course. Please don't add new policy ideas indiscriminately; trial balloons are better floated atWikipedia:Village pump (proposals).This template should be reserved for ongoing discussions. Remember, its usefulness is in inverse proportion to its size.

Before joining a debate, it might be wise to gather some background, especially on complex or long-standing issues. Please be courteous to your fellow editors andreadexisting discussion before adding your own comment. It's hoped that{{centralized discussion}}will contribute to the opening of policy debate and the broadening ofconsensus;but of course no good purpose is served by uninformed comment.Stay cool.

Documentation

This page is for explanation of how{{centralized discussion}}is used.
Wikipedia talk:Centralized discussionis for any discussion about this process.
Template:Centralized discussioncontains the actual box content of ongoing policy issues. It should be edited to stay current at all times.
Template:Centralized discussion/doccontains technical documentation of the template.
Template talk:Centralized discussionredirects toWikipedia talk:Centralized discussion.
You may create any page of the formWikipedia talk:Centralized discussion/''Some topic''if it does not appear that any particular existing talk page is the correct place for a policy-related discussion. Please note that there are a great many talk pages; a very large number of discussions are ongoing. Before creating yet another debate page, check to see that the topic is not already under discussion elsewhere. Search the project for keywords related to the topic in question.
Links are stored atWikipedia:Centralized discussion/Archive.

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