Toaru Majutsu no Index Wiki:Manual of Style

Like in many wikis, there exists a manual of style used as a template for users to maintain properly edited articles. This article lists down certain guidelines required for articles of a certain category to follow. For further guidance in writing or revising articles, it is recommended to read over this article and consider the rules listed.

Perspective
Articles in the Toaru Majutsu no Index Wiki should be in-universe, meaning that fictional characters, locations, and events are treated as if they exist in real life. Thus, any mention of bases for those events (chapters or volumes in Light Novels, chapters in manga and episodes in anime series) should be avoided completely.

This perspective is to be implemented in a majority of articles like character articles, location articles and event articles. The exact scope of this perspective will be further discussed.

Pictures and Video
Pictures are integral parts of this wiki, especially light novels' illustrations, which gives the mostly textual aspect of the light novels color and form. Other important images are profile images, which gives us an idea of how a certain character looks like, and event pictures, which are mostly screencaps from the anime series. Videos are of a lower priority because of copyright issues, but can be a nice addition to articles.

For a complete set of rules regarding pictures and video usage, formatting and uploading in general, see the Uploading Guide.

Content
It has been mentioned that pictures and videos are important additions to the Toaru Majutsu no Index, but the content still remains supreme in this wiki, like in any wiki for that matter. The guidelines explained in this section talk about how content should be managed and revised.

Official Language
The primary language for this wiki is English, and English shall be used in all articles. Users who speak English as a secondary language and/or those who need help in editing in English can contact the admins or fellow users to note them of incoming edits so that any spelling or grammatical mistakes can be remedied.

Trivia
Information which might not be of any importance to the plot and/or information which cannot be found in canon can be listed down in the Trivia section of an article. We do not believe that "junk trivia" exists; we consider any piece of related information as trivia and is always welcome to be added in this section. However, information must be at least proven to be deemed worthy to be added.

Another location for information less important to the plot can be placed in the article's corresponding Talk Page as an Appendix Article, like in Talk:Index, which lists down the different kinds of food Index has consumed throughout the light novel series.

Talk Pages
Talk pages in the meantime are used for discussion for the article, like Talk:Kanzaki Kaori used for discussions about Kanzaki Kaori. This is due to preference by the users before the creation of this Manual of Style. It is a viable method for communication at first, but it tends to clutter up when many topics gather in one page. As a result, discussions would be moved from talk pages across the wiki to the forums, with appropriate links provided in the main page for easier access.

Quotes
Characters like Kamijou Touma tend to be expressive towards his enemies, using dialogue to interact with enemies and friends alike. Quotes like these, in overall, can give us a textual image of that character's personality.

When posting quotes from certain characters, make sure to add the episode/chapter/volume that quote was spoken and, if needed for clarification, the person whom the character is talking to and a gist of the scene where the quote was taken from.

Translations
Because the world of Toaru Majutsu no Index can extend further than the walls of Academy City, editors are to face terms which are more than just Japanese naming and translation per se. As mentioned in the Official Language subsection, we are also facing European terminologies and naming, like Italian, Scandinavian and Russian.

The wiki is entirely dependent on translation projects which allow many users to understand the plot in English and would be asking help from translators within that project for information. Meanwhile, we can also receive help from users who have read the official guidebook for Index entitled Toaru Majutsu no Index no Subete to clear up Romanization of some names like Orsola Aquinas from Ursula Aquinas.

Page Integrity
To ensure the quality in all articles, it is highly advised to provide references to information added to an article.

Fanon
As of this moment, fanon articles (articles featuring original characters and concepts) are not allowed in this wiki.

If there is a sizable amount of users who request the creation of a fanon section for this part, please contact the Administrators.

Appearances in Other Media
There are certain media in the Toaru Majutsu no Index franchise which does not follow canon; because of this, the Appearances in Other Media section is made available for selected characters.

Editors' Conduct
As editors of this wiki, we must ensure maximum credibility in every piece of information provided into every article. Regarding this, here are some guidelines on how an editor must act in contributing to an article.
 * As much as possible, provide a summary on what you edited . this is a useful tool in determining the extent of your revision in the article and will aid bureaucrats in watching over revisions. Not providing summaries will not be grounds for any punishment.
 * Avoid reverting information added by other users, especially by those who have contributed a sizable amount into the article. It is a rude gesture, and would be punished according to the circumstance.

Speculations
Speculations cannot be avoided in this wiki, especially since the source medium for Toaru Majutsu no Index, the light novels, is still under translation and, to add, is still an ongoing series. For speculations regarding future events, or statuses of characters in yet-to-be-released volumes of the light novels, proceed to the Watercooler and open a topic with the [Speculation] tag on it.

How to cite references and sources
To cite sources simply use the tag incombination with the template, which is required for it to work.

For example the text below displays on how to apply a reference tag in an edit window:

Would be displayed as: And will be displayed in the template, as seen below: Inside the opening and closing ref tags feature the source of that information, which is of course in the first volume in the first part of the first chapter. Making a link to the source is optional, though it does make it easier for users to quickly access the article without the need to search for it.

The name parameter in the ref tag is optional, though it makes it easier to group references, and lessen the clutter of references that come from the same source.

After citing references, articles should have a References section at the very end of the page (before the Category links if one is using)

In-universe articles
In Toaru Majutsu no Index in-universe articles, such as Character Profiles, Technology and Magic Item Articles, Faction Articles, Story Arcs, Timelines, and Location articles, references are required and should be taken from first and foremost, the Light Novels.

The Light Novels should be the first source of information in any in-universe articles. The reason being is that the novels are of course the exact words of the author himself/herself. If the Light Novels are unavailable for citation, the 2nd source for citation should be the anime adaptation adaptation, as it is a direct adaptation of the Light Novels, finally, the manga is the final stop for citation. This is for the Toaru Majutsu no Index main series.

For the Toaru Kagaku no Railgun sidestory, the source with the main priority is the manga as it is the original source, then the anime adaptation and finally the side story Railgun novels.

Outside references
Of course, sometimes outside references are required to give special insight to the article, such as author or artist comments, or special information books such as Toaru Majutsu no Index no Subete, or the Blu-ray booklets.

In which case, simply provide the source for the information such as the booklet number. For sources taken from websites, make sure that the website is a reliable, such as the Project-Index or the ASCII-Media Works websites. One should know that information in websites change, as such when referencing websites append the date when the information from that website was retrieved at the end of the link. Although optional adding it would notify people that the information may have been deleted and a new link should be created.

General information articles
As with the case with referencing outside information, one is required to use a reliable website for citing information. The Wikipedia should be the first stop, though, if one can find a more exact source then by all means, one should it instead. Along with any other external citations, add the date when the information from the website was retrieved. Also, one should also add a reminder on which language the website is in if it is another language other than English.

Dealing with articles with lacking references
If an article lacks any references and citations, then a user should add references and sources on their own, which would be verified later. However, if the user is unable to add any references, then a user can add the template.

Check the Template:Unreferenced page for how the template is displayed.

Use the template as a last resort to pages desperately needing references. It notifies the users that the article maybe unreliable and would coerce users to add references to them.

If all of the article has no reference then add the template at the top of the page. However, if a certain section lacks any references and citations then simply modify the template by editing the parameter.

Such as:

Sentences and phrases with lacking citations
If a sentence or phrase has a dubious or an unreferenced statement, though the user is unwilling to remove it, simply use the template, and tack it at the end of the sentence or phrase.

For example:

Which would display as:

Article Creation Guidelines
When creating an article, here are a few reminders to consider:

Character Articles
Characters in Toaru Majutsu no Index (including all sidestories and related media) can have their respective articles. They are only required to be part of the story itself, meaning that they must have appeared at least once in any media, or is notably mentioned within the story, like The Queen of Tokiwadai, which is yet to appear in the Light Novels.

Abilities and Spells
Articles pertaining to certain abilities and spells can only be created if the said ability is not unique to a certain character; otherwise, please expand on the ability on the Powers and Abilities section of the respective character. For cases in which the ability has no noted users, it is permitted for the ability to have its own article.

Groups and Organizations
All mentioned groups and organizations may have its own page. It is advised, however, to note characters affiliated with the organization.

Article Migrations
***Much work is to be done. Please help with building up the Manual of Style here.***