Wikinews:Water cooler/technical
Page last updated: Friday 10 at 0742 UTC.
Writer new release v5
[edit]Please test new version, it is kind of article drafter for saving work offline
https://gryllida.neocities.org/news/writer/V4/
- now it copies wiki markup to clipboard and opens directly where to paste.
- It is possible to "install" it to android home screen.
- Draft is saved immediately without annoying prompts "saved to local storage"
- main purpose is comfort for android users with unstable internet
WfW = writer for Wikinews
( Previous version was here https://gryllida.neocities.org/news/writer/v3/index-3.html had progress bar and check list )
Thanks. Gryllida (talk) 11:59, 6 March 2026 (UTC)
writer for wikinews screenshot v5 - Screenshot... Gryllida (talk) 12:02, 6 March 2026 (UTC)
- Related; mw:Extension:PWA. -- Gryllida (talk) 00:18, 13 March 2026 (UTC)
- Side note, this app is a lot more responsive than the wiki, if that is the correct word. It loads instantly (compare with 2 seconds for edit mode to open on a 1GBps link, and after saving the page 2 seconds to go to read mode and another 2 seconds to edit mode. There are gadget to 'save and keep editing' but if internet died or browser crashed then the work may be lost, and the page may lag when typing or when scrolling the text, both on laptop and on mobile). It helped me succeed in writing 5-6 stories this week. I think it works on Android as well as iOS. I am not sure what to do with it next... currently it is just an interactive notepad, it is completely disconnected from the wiki... I am hoping you have some ideas, I would be happy to add them. Gryllida (talk) 10:32, 13 March 2026 (UTC)
Bug report for ezpr2 pre review: missing user comms
[edit]The pre review, I tested it out on one page, it does not notify the page contributors like a full review does. Perhaps it should somehow, at least in Echo, if not the users' talk pages? Gryllida (talk) 12:36, 7 March 2026 (UTC)
- The pre-review is not part of EzPR25; it comes under the SubmitWizard. At the time when pre-review was added to the SubmitWizard, the practice of pre-reviewing was quite limited. But yes, I will add an option to automatically ping users on pre review interface. -- Asked42 (talk) 13:03, 7 March 2026 (UTC)
- Also, related, it would be great if I could comment on a draft on its talk page and @mention all the contributors (with tick boxes nexr to nicks). In enwp draft review their software has a button to comment on the draft without doing a review, though theirs is more primitive and useless. Gryllida (talk) 10:35, 13 March 2026 (UTC)
- And thank you. :-) Gryllida (talk) 10:36, 13 March 2026 (UTC)
Improper 'circle'
[edit]Well -- darn. I just published the Pres. Trump article, putting it in at Lead 1. I thought the Randwick City council article would then 'drop' to Lead 2 -- but it vanished. I wish one of our code ninjas could set things up so the 'flow' simply causes the oldest article to drop off, and the 'newest' article lands at the top. Bddpaux (talk) 21:42, 7 March 2026 (UTC)
- There is a tool for that at User:Asked42/LeadManager, you have to install it in your common.js (instructions are provided). It does exactly that. Gryllida (talk) 06:56, 8 March 2026 (UTC)
- @Bddpaux: Let me know if you need help understanding how it works. Here is a simple guide:
- After installing, go to the "Lead Manager Form" section.
- Select an article in the "Title" field.
- Choose the number of sentences to include in the new lead.
- Click "Fetch Automatically" and review the lead content.
- Finally, Click "Start Update!" button and confirm the update.
- There is also a screen recording video that you may find helpful. File:Lead Manager Usage en wn version April 2025.webm. --Asked42 (talk) 08:29, 8 March 2026 (UTC)
Fixed by reverting lead 1 to two versions ago, then using lead manager. Gryllida (talk) 21:31, 8 March 2026 (UTC)
- OK, I will try to get that all set up soon and use it.--Bddpaux (talk) 14:43, 9 March 2026 (UTC)
- So, this is weird: The Lead Manager form showed up for a hot minute -- and has now vanished!--Bddpaux (talk) 18:10, 9 March 2026 (UTC)
- That's weird. Is it still happening? If so, could you try purging the page and then check whether the form appears? If not, you could also check out this page and see whether the form shows up there. @Bddpaux. -- Asked42 (talk) 17:04, 10 March 2026 (UTC)
- So, this is weird: The Lead Manager form showed up for a hot minute -- and has now vanished!--Bddpaux (talk) 18:10, 9 March 2026 (UTC)
- OK, I will try to get that all set up soon and use it.--Bddpaux (talk) 14:43, 9 March 2026 (UTC)
- The problem occurred again with Monta publishes its 2025 EV charger ranking, including hardware performance getting posted but in the Lead 2 position, and Randwick City Council opens public consultation about parking near beaches: ''To pay or not to pay?'' dropping from Lead 2 out of the top 5 altogether. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 20:21, 9 March 2026 (UTC)
- I think now this has to be manually fixed using the "ML" link on each lead. This does not require reviewer permissions, but requires edit approval before it shows on Main Page. I can sight the edit. Gryllida (talk) 20:26, 9 March 2026 (UTC)
- The 5 leads have been updated to reflect the five most-recently published articles. Lead 1 is the most-recently published article and lead 5 is the oldest.Michael.C.Wright (Talk/Reviewer) 02:14, 10 March 2026 (UTC)
- I am just not following this -- sorry. Maybe I'll take a look at the video. I managed to 'double' 2 headlines on the main page. We have code ninjas here (I'm certainly not one of them) -- I wish we simply had a mechanism that would just "roll" the oldest article off the list, and "roll" the newest article up to the top.--Bddpaux (talk) 16:46, 10 March 2026 (UTC)
- Lead Manager does exactly what you mentioned. It was built specifically for that. --Asked42 (talk) 17:00, 10 March 2026 (UTC)
- I added a note on the Make Lead page with a notice that users should use Lead Manager unless they are willing to manually update all five leads. Gryllida (talk) 19:54, 10 March 2026 (UTC)
- With the new LeadManager, if you are just publishing a single, new article, once you import the two sentences and button-down the text if necessary, all you need to do is then 'update' and LeadManager will shuffle through all five automagically and self-sight all of the changes.
- Lead Manager does exactly what you mentioned. It was built specifically for that. --Asked42 (talk) 17:00, 10 March 2026 (UTC)
- I am just not following this -- sorry. Maybe I'll take a look at the video. I managed to 'double' 2 headlines on the main page. We have code ninjas here (I'm certainly not one of them) -- I wish we simply had a mechanism that would just "roll" the oldest article off the list, and "roll" the newest article up to the top.--Bddpaux (talk) 16:46, 10 March 2026 (UTC)
- The only time we'd need to manually mess with leads 2-5 would be to correct issues or handle some odd exception, such as keeping Lead 1 as Lead 1 for an extended duration for some emergency or something.Michael.C.Wright (Talk/Reviewer) 17:17, 10 March 2026 (UTC)
- Now an article is listed twice on the main page. Sorry, I cannot manually fix it, requires too much focus (which I don't have). Gryllida (talk) 22:49, 10 March 2026 (UTC)
- I was assuming fixing this requires using some tool (either Make Lead, or Lead Manager) for all five leads. Is this correct? Think I should ask this here in case there is an easier fix. Gryllida (talk) 23:04, 10 March 2026 (UTC)
This problem is actually getting worse. The last four articles published have not yet been featured on the front page. If there is a tool that solves this problem, it needs to be required and any tools that don't solve this problem should be deleted. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 01:29, 12 March 2026 (UTC)
Request for multi-URL support for 'Source' tool
[edit]Hi @Asked42
I'm writing with https://gryllida.neocities.org/news/writer/V4/ and often I have multiple URL to insert, average 2-4 sources. Could the source tool which fetches the metadata, handle multiple URLs? This could be multiline input and then it could ask me to cross check its output for each source.
Regards, -- Gryllida (talk) 07:51, 8 March 2026 (UTC)
- It currently can only handle one URL at a time, but I can set up some APIs that you can use to process multiple requests at once. Does WfW use SourceHelper? --Asked42 (talk) 08:15, 8 March 2026 (UTC)
- One more thing: the Source tool is not 100% guaranteed to fetch all metadata. For some lesser known news sites or more complicated cases, it may struggle. This is the same tool that is used on Wikipedia. --Asked42 (talk) 08:18, 8 March 2026 (UTC)
- I was thinking like "present the user with multiline box. When user clicked ok, then: click Source button, paste url 1, click fetch, wait for user to check metadata and click ok. Repeat this for each url." Gryllida (talk) 10:26, 8 March 2026 (UTC)
- No, WfW does not fill source templates, that is left for on-wiki tools. Gryllida (talk) 10:27, 8 March 2026 (UTC)
- One more thing: the Source tool is not 100% guaranteed to fetch all metadata. For some lesser known news sites or more complicated cases, it may struggle. This is the same tool that is used on Wikipedia. --Asked42 (talk) 08:18, 8 March 2026 (UTC)
Inline comment tool status check
[edit]Hi @Asked42
Please confirm whether you are working on an inline comments gadget. If not, I can write a basic version. Gryllida (talk) 10:29, 9 March 2026 (UTC)
- I was working on that. It can be used independently by a reviewer or together with EzPR2025. But then, I felt there was not much interest in it so I stopped. I will resume work and complete the script. -- Asked42 (talk) 11:26, 9 March 2026 (UTC)
- 👍 Gryllida (talk) 15:51, 9 March 2026 (UTC)
- Hi @Asked42, please let me know if the work on this is ongoing, and if I can be involved in coding or testing. If there is some other JS task that you would like me to do I would be happy to get started on it. Thanks Gryllida (talk) 00:19, 13 March 2026 (UTC)
- I was a bit busy IRL for the past three days, so there hasn't been much progress since my last comment, although a little work has been done. Thank you for your interest in collaboratively developing/coding the scripts. But, I honestly don't have a very structured plan for developing them. I usually have a rough plan in my mind and in my notes, and then start developing. So I am not sure if there is any specific place where I can point to collaborate right now. I know that's not an ideal practice, but I am working on organizing my development process a bit more. -- Asked42 (talk) 13:11, 13 March 2026 (UTC)
- Hello, the inline comment gadget (named DynamicMarking) is now available. Please try it out and test it. Detailed documentation is available at WN:EzPR2025/Dynamic Marking.
- Here is a quick explanation of how to activate it and attach comments:
- Go to any article that is not published.
- If you are using Windows, press
Alt+Shift+Mtogether. (On macOS, presscmd+Shift+M.) - Dynamic Marking mode will be activated. Select any text in the article, and an icon (
) will appear next to the selected text. Click the icon. - A popover box will open. Enter your comment and click Save. That's all.
- Don't forget to deactivate Dynamic Marking mode by pressing
Alt+Shift+Magain. (On macOS,cmd+Shift+M.)
- -- Asked42 (talk) 07:37, 14 March 2026 (UTC)
The lead articles need to be changed
[edit]The last four articles published are not featured on the front page:
- US president Donald Trump demands the unconditional surrender of Iran
- NSW government proposes rezoning to create residences midway between Sydney and Parramatta
- PM of Australia sends E-7A Wedgetail and air-to-air missiles to UAE
- Former Major League Baseball pitcher Julio Teherán retires
This problem is getting worse than it was a few days ago. If there is a tool such as Lead Manager that solves this problem, it needs to be required. Any tools for changing the front page headlines that don't deal with this problem correctly should be deleted so that whoever does this sort of thing will have to use the correct tool. ----Metropolitan90 (talk) 13:11, 12 March 2026 (UTC)
- Thank you for keeping an eye on it. I’ve updated the five leads.
- This likely reflects the current mix of reviewers rather than a tooling issue. We have one brand-new reviewer and another returning after a long break, during which a few tools—such as Lead Manager—were added. It’s easy to overlook the final publish step after reviewing, and once the five leads fall out of order it takes a little work to sort them again.
- For now it probably just means keeping an eye on it and helping everyone get comfortable with the newer tools and processes.Michael.C.Wright (Talk/Reviewer) 13:29, 12 March 2026 (UTC)
The problem happened again with Two students die when boats capsize in Japan not being featured. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 13:58, 17 March 2026 (UTC)
- Does @Lofi Gurl know how to do the changes? @Metropolitan90 Don Don 14:28, 17 March 2026 (UTC)
- I tried to do it but I f***ed something up and the f***up was on the Main Page, so I had to self-revert. Lofi Gurl (talk) 16:21, 17 March 2026 (UTC)
What tool are you using to update the leads? Or are you updating them manually?- I see you're using MakeLead, which is the old version and not as intuitive as the new one; User:Asked42/LeadManager.js. I recommend you install LeadManager, it is much easier to use and automatically performs the full shuffle of lead 1→2, 2→3, 3→4, etc.Michael.C.Wright (Talk/Reviewer) 17:43, 17 March 2026 (UTC)
- @Asked42 has offered to install it for you if you'd prefer.Michael.C.Wright (Talk/Reviewer) 17:49, 17 March 2026 (UTC)
- yes I would like that. Lofi Gurl (talk) 18:18, 17 March 2026 (UTC)
- @Lofi Gurl: Done. To use it, visit User:Asked42/LeadManager#Lead Manager Form and follow these steps:
- You will see a form. In the Title field, select the article that you just published.
- Click the Fetch automatically button.
- After the summary and images are added, click Start Update.
- Confirm the update and wait a few seconds for it to complete. Done.
- If you need any help or face any issues, please let me know. -- Asked42 (talk) 13:58, 18 March 2026 (UTC)
- @Lofi Gurl: Done. To use it, visit User:Asked42/LeadManager#Lead Manager Form and follow these steps:
- yes I would like that. Lofi Gurl (talk) 18:18, 17 March 2026 (UTC)
- I tried to do it but I f***ed something up and the f***up was on the Main Page, so I had to self-revert. Lofi Gurl (talk) 16:21, 17 March 2026 (UTC)
Ezpr2 bug with empty custom message
[edit]Issue: .... then, i clicked submit, and the story published. I left weird looking messages to users: they included template, one user was addressed by name and others were addressed as "User".
Proposed fix: I think if i specified custom message but did not fill it in, i should get asked to fill it in before submitting my review. (Also, in edit summary to user talk page, the section name should be included so i can click it in edit history page, and go directly to that section.)
Hope it makes sense...
Thanks a lot. Gryllida (talk) 12:43, 22 March 2026 (UTC)
- @Gryllida: The issue with the {{{user}}} parameter showing as resolved has been fixed. I recently made some modifications to the notification system, and I guess I introduced that bug during the process. Sorry about that.
- Regarding the template being used when the custom comment is empty: that was intentional, as otherwise an empty section would be created on the user's talk page. I will also add a check so that if the custom comment is empty, the reviewer cannot submit the review. -- Asked42 (talk) 13:17, 22 March 2026 (UTC)
- Thanks Asked42, such a check would be helpful I think. :) Gryllida (talk) 13:22, 22 March 2026 (UTC)
"Incorrectly flagged articles"
[edit]At Wikinews:Newsroom, there is a section labeled "Incorrectly flagged articles". This section appears to be a mess. There are four retracted older articles in there, which are supposedly "incorrectly" flagged, but it is unknown what was incorrect about the flagging of those articles. Two of those articles are from 2013, one from 2021, and the other from 2025, so if anything is supposed to be done about them, it should be done already.
However, the fifth article is Two Cuba-bound aid boats located by Mexican Navy after going missing, an article which is currently {{under review}}. It hasn't been "flagged" either correctly or incorrectly but is being reviewed. It ought to be listed in the "Submitted for peer review" section (where it does not currently appear) and omitted from "Incorrectly flagged articles".
I asked a somewhat similar question at Wikinews:Water cooler/miscellaneous/archives/2025/October but the problem doesn't appear to have been resolved. -- Metropolitan90 (talk) 03:05, 30 March 2026 (UTC)
- In the case of the article Two Cuba-bound aid boats located by Mexican Navy after going missing, it has been marked stable ("flagged" in FlaggedRevs) in error, before being published. This can happen if a reviewer "sights" or approves changes before the article is published, which is relatively easy to accidentally do. User:Bawolff/sandbox/powerFlag no longer seems to work to de-flag articles in FlaggedRevs. But that article should disappear from the list once it's published or deleted as abandoned.
- The other issue is a lack of consensus or documentation on exactly how to retract an article.Michael.C.Wright (Talk/Reviewer) 07:02, 30 March 2026 (UTC)
- I started Wikinews:Retraction policy in January in an attempt to get the process documented. I haven't officially proposed it yet. Input is welcome at the talk page.Michael.C.Wright (Talk/Reviewer) 07:32, 30 March 2026 (UTC)
- Thanks, Michael, but if Wikinews is now scheduled to be closed, I don't know if we need to deal with this any more. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 13:24, 30 March 2026 (UTC)
Action Required: Update templates/modules for electoral maps (Migrating from P1846 to P14226)
[edit]Hello everyone,
This is a notice regarding an ongoing data migration on Wikidata that may affect your election-related templates and Lua modules (such as Module:Itemgroup/list).
The Change:
Currently, many templates pull electoral maps from Wikidata using the property P1846, combined with the qualifier P180: Q19571328.
We are migrating this data (across roughly 4,000 items) to a newly created, dedicated property: P14226.
What You Need To Do:
To ensure your templates and infoboxes do not break or lose their maps, please update your local code to fetch data from P14226 instead of the old P1846 + P180 structure. A list of pages was generated using Wikimedia Global Search.
Deadline:
We are temporarily retaining the old data on P1846 to allow for a smooth transition. However, to complete the data cleanup on Wikidata, the old P1846 statements will be removed after May 1, 2026. Please update your modules and templates before this date to prevent any disruption to your wiki's election articles.
Let us know if you have any questions or need assistance with the query logic. Thank you for your help! ZI Jony using MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 17:09, 3 April 2026 (UTC)