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This page provides guidelines on Tekwiki content. | This page provides '''guidelines on Tekwiki content'''. | ||
These are things to consider, not rigid rules. | These are things to consider, '''not rigid rules'''. | ||
Something is usually better than nothing. | *Something is usually better than nothing. | ||
Perfectionism is harmful. | *Perfectionism is harmful. | ||
It's ok to click "Save changes" when things aren't perfect. | *It's ok to click "Save changes" when things aren't perfect. | ||
We can improve things later. | *We can improve things later. | ||
==Text== | ==Text== | ||
Text should be in the style of an encyclopedia. | '''Text should be in the style of an encyclopedia. ''' | ||
Avoid unattributed text in the first person. | Avoid unattributed text in the first person. | ||
We have some [[article templates]] that generate headlines, infoboxes and the like. Using these makes it easy to have consistently styled articles, but they are optional to use. | |||
In general, don't worry about style or formatting issues too much. We really appreciate good technical input in any form, and will help with formatting if needed. | |||
==Scans== | ==Scans== | ||
Favor any scan over no scan. | '''Favor any scan over no scan. ''' | ||
The presence of free scans of manuals and other documentation is hugely important. | The presence of free scans of manuals and other documentation is hugely important. | ||
In many cases the availability of a free scan makes the difference between an instrument being put in the trash versus being restored. | In many cases the availability of a free scan makes the difference between an instrument being put in the trash versus being restored. | ||
Favor high quality over small file size. | '''Favor high quality over small file size. ''' | ||
What seems like a big file today will not seem so big in ten years. | What seems like a big file today will not seem so big in ten years. | ||
Favor one-up (one document page per PDF page). | |||
When scanning a document, best quality is obtained by removing the binding | |||
and scanning the pages flat. | |||
Beware of software that claims to provide automatic image enhancement for scans. | Beware of software that claims to provide automatic image enhancement for scans. | ||
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Recommendation: Turn off all processing except for OCR. | Recommendation: Turn off all processing except for OCR. | ||
Always keep the raw scan in case it needs to be reprocessed for whatever reason. | Always keep the raw scan in case it needs to be reprocessed for whatever reason. | ||
Maybe in twenty years, the automatic enhancement software will be reliable. | Maybe in twenty years, the automatic enhancement software will be reliable. | ||
The eventual goal is for all PDFs on Tekwiki to be text-searchable. | |||
If a PDF isn't already text-searchable, add the "Needs OCR" category tag to the file page. | |||
It is fine to upload scans that other people made for free distribution. | It is fine to upload scans that other people made for free distribution. | ||
Don't upload scans from companies like Artek, where the scan was done to make money. | Don't upload scans from companies like Artek, where the scan was done to make money. | ||
It is helpful if files are named <document_part_number>.pdf. For example, 070-8123-45.pdf. | |||
This allows us to create links to manuals we don't have yet, and the link starts working | |||
when somebody uploads the file, named in the recommended way. The document part number is | |||
usually found on the title page and/or the page footer of Tek manuals. | |||
When uploading a PDF document with a 070-1234-00 style document number, please add it to the [[manuals]] list whether you also reference it elsewhere or not. | |||
Rather than linking to a document on a remote site, prefer to upload of copy of the document to Tekwiki. | |||
Too often, the remote site disappears and we end up with broken links and no way to access the document. | |||
Strongly prefer PDF files with password protection completely turned off. [http://qpdf.sourceforge.net QPDF] is useful for removing encryption and thereby also clearing the various print/copy permission flags. | |||
==ROM Images== | |||
Tekwiki hosts a collection of [[ROM images]]. | |||
ROM images should be uploaded in plain binary format. S-record files can be converted beforehand using GNU binutils: | |||
< | <tt> | ||
objcopy -I srec -O binary rom.hex rom.bin | |||
</tt> | |||
</ | |||
The file naming scheme we use is <tek part number>.bin. Example: 156-0660-01.bin | |||
< | |||
==Quotes== | ==Quotes== | ||
If you quote a person or a document, make that clear by saying who/what is being quoted, and using blockquote tags. | If you quote a person or a document, make that clear by saying who/what is being quoted, and using <code><nowiki><blockquote>...</blockquote></nowiki></code> tags. | ||
It's fine to have text in the first person inside of an attributed quote. | It's fine to have text in the first person inside of an attributed quote. | ||
For example, see the quote toward the top of the [[524]] page. | For example, see the quote toward the top of the [[524]] page. | ||
==Tables== | |||
The Mediawiki software is limited in its ability to size pages and tables especially to fit different browsers. | |||
A useful way to ensure that tables you create look reasonable for most viewers is to first resize your browser window so that it just barely shows the following 7 column wide list, widely used on the [[Main Page|main page]], on a single line without reflowing: | |||
<div style="column-count:7;-moz-column-count:7;-webkit-column-count:7"> | |||
* 067-1234-01 | |||
* 067-1234-02 | |||
* 067-1234-03 | |||
* 067-1234-04 | |||
* 067-1234-05 | |||
* 067-1234-06 | |||
* 067-1234-07 | |||
</div> | |||
This will tend to give you a window that is slightly narrower than desired by popular web sites. If your table looks good at this window size, it will work for most people. | |||
==Units== | ==Units== | ||
On Tekwiki, we use a space between the number and the unit. | On Tekwiki, we use a space between the number and the unit. It's best to use a non-breaking space. | ||
The predefined unit buttons shown under the text editor make it easy to insert units beginning with a non-breaking space character, and many of the special characters like "Ω". | |||
We aren't rigid about imperial units versus metric, e.g., kg versus lb. | We aren't rigid about imperial units versus metric, e.g., kg versus lb. | ||
Use one, or the other, or both. | Use one, or the other, or both. | ||
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==Links== | ==Links== | ||
Internal links are helpful. | '''Internal links are helpful. ''' | ||
When another instrument is mentioned in a page, make that a link in case readers want to explore that connection. | When another instrument is mentioned in a page, make that a link in case readers want to explore that connection. | ||
==Caveats and Quirks== | |||
Beware of the "edit" links next to section headings.<br> | |||
[[File:Template section heading edit link.png]]<br> | |||
These edit links sometimes take you to a page where you are editing the template, not the Tekwiki article. | |||
If you end up in an edit window titled something like "Editing Template:MissingSpecs (section)", hit the back button or cancel. | |||
The most reliable and least confusing thing is to use the edit link at the top of the page, not the edit links next to the section headings. | |||
==Categories== | ==Categories== | ||
We have defined a number of categories. | We have defined a number of categories. | ||
Pages are added to a category by putting a Category: tag in the page, typically at the bottom. | Pages are added to a category by putting a <code><nowiki>[[Category:...]]</nowiki></code> tag in the page, typically at the bottom. | ||
See, for example, the bottom of the [[82|Type 82]] page. | See, for example, the bottom of the [[82|Type 82]] page. | ||
This allows us to have an | |||
This allows us to have an auto-generated page that lists all items in a category. | |||
If it seems appropriate to add a certain category tag to a page, do so. | If it seems appropriate to add a certain category tag to a page, do so. | ||
Also, if it seems appropriate to make a new category, do so. | Also, if it seems appropriate to make a new category, do so. | ||
Categories are usually categorized themselves, thereby creating a hierarchy of categories, or taxonomy. | |||
For example, the category "TM500 multimeter plugins" is categorized as both "Digital multimeters" and "TM500 series plugins". | |||
==Talk/Discussion Pages== | ==Talk/Discussion Pages== | ||
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Tekwiki administrators monitor those pages and will respond to questions. For example, if you want to | Tekwiki administrators monitor those pages and will respond to questions. For example, if you want to | ||
start a new category but aren't sure, feel free to edit the Talk/Discussion page. | start a new category but aren't sure, feel free to edit the Talk/Discussion page. | ||
Please sign your contributions on discussion pages at the end of your text - you can simply type four tildes (<code><nowiki>~~~~</nowiki></code>) to do so. | |||
Using colons (<code><nowiki>: your reply</nowiki></code>, <code><nowiki>:: reply to your reply</nowiki></code>) helps making the discussions more readable. | |||
==Repair Reports - "/Repairs" Pages== | |||
Reports of individual repairs should go on a "/Repairs" sub-page under the main article for that instrument, e.g. [[585/Repairs]]. | |||
A description of symptoms, causes identified and solutions implemented is most welcome, whether in bullet-list or narrative style. | |||
Photos of the specific problem or solution will help others in their work! | |||
The link to the repair page will be displayed in a tab on top of each article, next to the "Discussion" tab. | |||
Information about general known repair issues such as components that are prone to failure can go into a section (e.g. "Common Problems") in the main article. | |||
It is quite OK to have both a Common Problems section and a Repairs article [[7CT1N|for the same instrument]]. | |||
Please categorize individual repair pages using <code><nowiki>[[Category:Instrument repair reports]]</nowiki></code>. | |||
==Collaboration== | ==Collaboration== | ||
Feel free to improve text added by other people. | '''Feel free to improve text added by other people.''' | ||
If something is confusing, make it clear. | If something is confusing, make it clear. | ||
If you're unsure, raise the question on the Talk/Discussion page. | If you're unsure, raise the question on the Talk/Discussion page. | ||
==Photos== | |||
'''Any photo is better than no photo.''' | |||
Prefer high-resolution, in-focus photos. | |||
Don't use photos from other websites if you think it will upset the owner of the photo. | |||
Prefer diffused lighting (no hard shadows), natural color balance, and good color rendition. | |||
Good color rendition often comes from having minimal glare, which often comes from diffused lighting. | |||
Prefer photos with low noise (without artificial denoising). | |||
Low noise often comes from having adequate light. | |||
Prefer photos without the in-camera flash. | |||
In-camera flashes usually result in high glare, hard shadows, and poor color rendition. | |||
Avoid geometric distortion (like taking a front panel shot from above, | |||
or a close-up taken with a wide-angle lens), and trim excessive unrelated background. | |||
When photographing an instrument, it's good to also get internal photos. | |||
Using a high f stop and indirect flash (e.g. via a white ceiling) helps put a large part of the image in focus. | |||
File names should be relate to the subject of the photo. Cameras generate semi-arbitrary filenames. | |||
Those should be replaced with more meaningful names before the files are uploaded. | |||
The filename extension should be lowercase. | |||
For example. rename "IMG_143721.JPG" to "tek_647a_hv_transformer.jpg". | |||
When uploading a file, the name may get changed slightly by the wiki system. | |||
The text after the "File:" on the upload page (not the URL bar in the browser) | |||
is the name you should use when referring to the files. | |||
Mostly, Tekwiki refers to images inside of gallery blocks. | |||
When in doubt, look at how the markup is done on other pages. | |||
===Commented examples=== | |||
<gallery> | |||
Tek_524_trace.jpg|Hard shadows are distracting | |||
Tek_524ad_front.jpg|Same subject, but without hard shadows | |||
6r1a_front.JPG|Good photo, taken outside on a cloudy day | |||
Tek_rm547.jpg|Hard shadows, but still a useful photo | |||
Tek 511a 4.JPG|Low resolution image | |||
Tek_1L60_from_fiche.jpg|Low quality image taken from documentation, much better than nothing | |||
Timkoeth_519_TWK_1379.jpg|Beautiful CRT trace photo of a [[519]]. | |||
Tek_945_front7c.jpg|Good straight-on scope photo using two flashes: one bouncing off the ceiling, one passing through a white umbrella. | |||
Tek_7a42_fr4.jpg|Good photo of traces and readout on 7000-series scope | |||
Tek_11a33_rearleft.jpg|Good photo of the inside of an [[11A33]]. Plenty of light, but not too much glare. Colors and textures are realistic. | |||
Tek-7623A.jpg|Good CRT traces and a good picture of the front panel in one photo. Rare. | |||
Tek_11a33_inputrelay.jpg|Macro closeups can be interesting, particularly when they illustrate something important. | |||
Tek_1l5_front.JPG|This image suffers from nonuniform illumination. | |||
Type_m_front.jpg|Hard shadows from light coming from below. It seems unnatural. | |||
Tek_1a7_front.jpg|Good color rendition. Red looks red. | |||
Tek_type_s.jpg|Low resolution and bad color balance. The plug-in looks green. | |||
Tek_3a74_front.jpg|Bad color balance. The plug-in looks pink. | |||
Tek_type_mc_left.jpg|Photo using a flashlight as a light source. Nonuniform illumination and hard shadows, but decent color rendition, decent focus, and not too noisy. Much better than nothing. | |||
</gallery> | |||
It is difficult to get a good photo of an oscilloscope showing its trace. | |||
<gallery> | |||
Tek 547 trace two sine.jpg|It is common for photos of scope traces to show artifacts that are normally not seen. | |||
</gallery> | |||
==See Also== | |||
* [[Tasks]] | |||
[[Category:TekWiki]] |