Help:Getting started

Welcome to Wikipedia!

We're glad you wish to help develop Wikipedia, and we hope you enjoy participating in this virtual community. Linked below are some brief introductions containing all the basics you need to use, comment on, and edit Wikipedia.

As a new editor, also known as a contributor, you may feel a little overwhelmed by the sheer size and scope of Wikipedia. Don't worry if you don't understand everything at first, as it is acceptable to use common sense as you go about editing. We encourage you to be bold in a fair and accurate manner, with a straightforward, just-the-facts style.

The contributing to Wikipedia page provides information, links, videos and other resources on the basics needed to edit Wikipedia. The five pillars is a popular summary of the most pertinent Wikipedia principles. The community portal is a central location to find collaborations, tasks, and news about Wikipedia. If you somehow do get stuck, there are volunteers available to answer your questions; see asking for help for more information.

Introductory editing tutorials

These tutorials explain how to edit
with wiki markup (Wikipedia's source code)
and with VisualEditor (a user-friendly interface).

Starting introduction
Policies and Guidelines

Editing
Referencing
Images
Tables

Editing
Referencing
Images
Tables
Talk pages

Navigating Wikipedia
Manual of Style
Conclusion

A video that articulates the diversity and enthusiasm of the Wikipedia Community. (4:10 min)

Note: You can use the sandbox to experiment with page editing.

Overview tutorials

Introduction: our main tutorial to the core principles of how to edit contained in thirteen short modules (as listed below).
The Wikipedia Adventure: a module guided tour with fun, interactive learning, and practice.
Your first article: an article that discusses some of the dos and don'ts, then shows you how to create an article. Note: The ability to create articles directly in mainspace is restricted to autoconfirmed users, though non-confirmed users and non-registered users can submit a proposed article through the Articles for Creation process, where it will be reviewed and considered for publication.

Topic-specific introductions

Introduction to navigating Wikipedia: a seven-part guide to navigating Wikipedia: Introduction; Namespaces; Searching pages; Page histories; Redirects and shortcuts; Useful links; and Summary.

Protocols and conventions

Introduction to policies and guidelines: a four-part guide to the rules: Policies and guidelines; Content; Conduct; and Summary.
Introduction to the Manual of Style: a six-part introduction to the Manual of Style: The Manual of Style; Article sections; Images and refs; Linking; Consistency; and Summary.
Introduction to the deletion process: discusses the guidelines and policies relevant to deletion, as well as the overall process.

Editing with Source editor

Introduction to editing: a six-part guide to editing: Editing pages; Formatting; Links and wikilinks; Saving your changes; Creating new articles; and Summary.
Introduction to referencing: a five-part introduction to referencing: Verifiability; Inline citations; RefToolbar; Reliable sources; and Summary.
Introduction to uploading images: a four-part guide on uploading images: Introduction; Uploading images; Using an image; and Summary.
Introduction to tables: a four-part guide to putting tables in pages: Introduction to tables; Editing tables; Expanding tables; and Summary.
Introduction to talk pages: a six-part guide to using talk pages: Talk pages; User talk pages; Layout; Examples; Drawing attention; and Summary.

Editing with VisualEditor

Introduction to editing with VisualEditor: a six-part introduction to editing with VisualEditor: Opening the editor; Toolbar basics; Links and wikilinks; Publishing changes; Creating new articles; and Summary.
Introduction to referencing with VisualEditor: a six-part introduction to referencing: Verifiability; Adding references; Editing existing ones; Reusing references; Reliable sources; and Summary.
Introduction to uploading images with VisualEditor: a six-part guide on uploading images: Introduction; Uploading images; Inserting images; Editing the details; Galleries; and Summary.
Introduction to tables with VisualEditor: a five-part guide to putting tables in pages: Introduction to tables; Editing tables; Adding new tables; Expanding tables; and Summary.

Training for student assignments

These self-guided trainings help users involved with student assignments to learn the basics of Wikipedia.

Training for students: students start here! A four-part, 57-page training intended for students doing assignments on Wikipedia, with more detailed introductions to core Wikipedia policies, editing basics, and more specific editing advice for students. Chapters: Welcome (4 pages); The Core (14 pages); Editing (24 pages); and Advanced and background (15 pages).
Training for educators: educators start here! A five-part, 97-page training for professors and other educators who want to run Wikipedia assignments for class, with introductions to core Wikipedia policies, editing basics, and an overview of best practices for designing and implementing Wikipedia assignments.

Guides

VisualEditor user guide: a full manual for Wikipedia:VisualEditor.
Plain and simple: the basic mechanics of Wikipedia. There are similar guides for:
- Plain and simple conflict of interest guide: for editors with a conflict of interests.
- Plain and simple guide for medical editors: for editing medical subjects.
- Plain and simple non-free content guide: discusses how Wikipedia's copyright guidelines are probably the most complicated part of the whole site, and breaks down what the rules are and what they mean.
Smartphone editing (Personal User essay): a Wikipedia administrator's personal experiences and advice about phone editing.

Quick guides

Edit toolbar: how to use the edit toolbar while editing.
Media help: how to get media to work on your computer.
Citations quick reference: a quick guide to using citations.
Wikitext cheatsheet: a quick guide to wikitext.

Overview articles

8 simple rules for editing our encyclopedia: describes some basics about contributing and interactions with others.
10 Simple Rules for Editing Wikipedia: discusses some basic aspects of Wikipedia norms and practices.
A primer for newcomers: an overview intended for new contributors.
Avoiding common mistakes: discusses a few common mistakes everyone should try to avoid.
Expectations and norms of the community: discusses the general social norms that Wikipedia editors are expected to follow.
Everything you need to know: a quick overview of some of Wikipedia's most important policies.
Learning the ropes: discusses how to learn about Wikipedia.

Books and videos

The Missing Manual: a comprehensive how-to book that explains everything about contributing for novice to expert editors.
Wikipedia instructional material : a listing of screencasts, videos, and books.
The Bookshelf: (external link) a vast collection of high-quality, freely licensed, user-generated informational material about Wikipedia.

Specialised tutorials

Pictures tutorial: how to insert pictures in pages. A long tutorial, but the basics are simple.
Wikipedia:Graphics tutorials: lots of links to graphics software tutorials.
IRC tutorial: how to use Internet Relay Chat on Wikipedia.

Help resources and assistance

Help desk

There is the Help Menu and Help Directory for a listing of help related pages.
Wikipedia:Directory: a descriptive list of Wikipedia's directories and indexes.
Wikipedia:FAQ: a list of Frequently Asked Questions.
Wikipedia:Questions: discusses how to ask questions on Wikipedia.
Wikipedia:Tips: how to use Wikipedia in bite-sized morsels.
Wikipedia:Dos and don'ts: summarizes some of Wikipedia's protocols in a bullet-point format.