Template:VE documentation
 | The instructions on this page mainly apply to editing wikitext using the source editor, and may not work with the VisualEditor. For guidance, see the VisualEditor user guide. Please remove this notice if VisualEditor users are addressed in a way that makes it unnecessary. |
 | Aim to deprecate: to remove and address all the likely protagonists that would get a reader using Visual Editor to end up at the tagged page. Meaning, what was missing or incorrect or unhelpful that the VE-using reader intentionally is reading on a help, how-to or other page relating to wikitext editing, whereby they would be confused enough to need this message in order to continue 'successfully'. See § Deprecate this template. (Template updated August 2025 to reflect recent perspective) |
Deprecate this template
Remove this notice on all pages it links to, if satisfactorily addressing VE editors in its body, or has a separate page/section for VE-only editors, or if that would be futile as the feature discussed is only offered in source editor modes but still mention it in the body text to clarify
Purpose
This template was created in 2013, and last edited in 2020. Please keep in mind that the wording is set more for the new editor, with no experience or exposure to wikitext but at the same time no to little VE support in the help documents. More than ten years later, as of 2025, this has improved dramatically.
From January 15, 2001 until July 2013 editing on the English Wikipedia was done using wikimarkup (wikitext). On July 1, 2013 the Visual Editor was added to the interface as a second editing environment, but made the default editor over wikitext, under the idea that it was easier for new editors. The two choices for editing now coexist.
However, numerous project pages exist that provide instruction and explanation about editing, many of them honed after years of consensus discussion and debate to get their wording just so, that are geared entirely toward wikitext editing as it was all that existed when the pages were created and developed. The material on such pages, when read by a user editing with VE, will be incorrect, confusing and cause minor and major errors if followed.
Until such time as the encyclopedia's project pages addressed here are split into VE and wikitext versions, VE is integrated into existing pages, or some mix of the two is completed, this template serves to inform users that a particular page is geared toward wikitext editing so that we do not lead them down the garden path of an inapplicable explanation/instruction page if they are using VE.
Usage
- Place
{{VE documentation}}at the top of a subject page and save. - Additional, optional text can be placed at the end of the template using:
{{VE documentation|Additional text}}
- This template should not be substituted.
- style apply CSS styling
Example:
| Markup | Renders as | ||
|---|---|---|---|
{{VE documentation|small=yes}} |
|
See also
No description.
| Parameter | Description | Type | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | no description | Unknown | optional |
| style | style | no description | Unknown | optional |
| small | small | no description | Unknown | optional |