Welcome to the computing section
of the Wikipedia reference desk.

Select a section:

WP:RD/CWP:RD/C

Want a faster answer?

Main page: Help searching Wikipedia

How can I get my question answered?

Select the section of the desk that best fits the general topic of your question (see the navigation column to the right).
Post your question to only one section, providing a short header that gives the topic of your question.
Type '~~~~' (that is, four tilde characters) at the end – this signs and dates your contribution so we know who wrote what and when.
Don't post personal contact information – it will be removed. Any answers will be provided here.
Please be as specific as possible, and include all relevant context – the usefulness of answers may depend on the context.
Note:
- We don't answer (and may remove) questions that require medical diagnosis or legal advice.
- We don't answer requests for opinions, predictions or debate.
- We don't do your homework for you, though we'll help you past the stuck point.
- We don't conduct original research or provide a free source of ideas, but we'll help you find information you need.

Ready? Ask a new question!

How do I answer a question?

Main page: Wikipedia:Reference desk/Guidelines

The best answers address the question directly, and back up facts with wikilinks and links to sources. Do not edit others' comments and do not give any medical or legal advice.

November 26

Template question

{{Infobox protected area}} and {{Infobox UNESCO World Heritage Site}} appear to make use of Wikidata. I want to display the kind of protected UNESCO map seen at the bottom of the infobox over at Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, but I am trying to place it in another article, Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument (referred to as Monument here). When I try to do this, the interactive map comes up blank when someone browses the page. When you click on it, it appears to be over the wrong landform, but if you scroll around it does indeed show the protected Monument complete with the red bordered polygon. It's just that I can't get it to display this on loading the page like one sees with Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. This problem has something to do with the way the map displays the area of the North Pacific Ocean, and I'm sure there's a simple fix for it, but I don't know what it is. I just want to display the red bordered polygon of the Monument like the Vocanoes National Park does. Viriditas (talk) 01:32, 26 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Having just dived into a bit of a hole to learn how those maps are generated to begin with, it appears this has something to do with the relationship between Wikipedia, WikiData and OpenStreetMaps. The entry on WikiData for Papahānaumokuākea (wikidata:Q787425) was missing the value that linked it to the relevant entry on OpenStreetMaps, which I've added. However it appears the OpenStreetMaps entry itsn't quite right and may need to also be fixed before the map will display correctly here on Wikipedia. I'd attempt fixing that also but I'm editing from work at the moment so can't set up an account to do so. If no one else gets to it (or finds a solution that I'm missing) I'll make an attempt later. Amstrad00 (talk) 15:01, 26 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Okay, so on further review it appears this is an issue with the boundaries of Papahānaumokuākea extending over the 180th meridian and how OpenStreetMaps handles drawing those boundaries. The long and short is that the portion extending over the meridian has to be split off into a separate area that makes the map seem to span the entire width of the globe. I don't know that there actually is an easy way to fix the issue. Amstrad00 (talk) 22:09, 26 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Right. Is that kind of what we see happening here? Viriditas (talk) 22:10, 26 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, that link very clearly displays the issue. Amstrad00 (talk) 22:13, 26 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you for the time you put into this! Viriditas (talk) 22:14, 26 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Help to identify font

Hello! I have a very simple question. Please, is there someone that can kindly help me to identify the font used for the "Stan & Ollie" 2018 movie and the reviews in the top part of the image OIP.M0so98NGYnfZ7QgqI6DbGAHaK9 (474×701). Many, many and many thanks in advance for all you can do!!! Gatto bianco (talk) 14:51, 26 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not finding a good match. WhatTheFont suggests that it may be "Pinkhoff Caps" or "Lumier" - and those do have the distinctive E, but Pinkhoff's B and R are quite different, as is Lumier's N. You can try your luck here, but automatic font identifiers are notoriously poor; you may have to wait for someone to identify it for you by eye. Matt Deres (talk) 15:09, 26 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

It's not uncommon for well-funded enterprises like films to have their own novel typeface created for publicity materials, If it's just used in titles, it may even be hand-drawn, which is also common for book covers. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} ~2025-31359-08 (talk) 21:56, 30 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

November 27

Tech club name and Logo concept

Hi everyone! I’m working on a name and logo concept for our Tech Club, which focuses on the securities market. I’d love to hear your thoughts or inspiration if you’re interested in sharing. What name do you think would suit a tech-and-finance club? And why do you think it would be a good fit for the club?

Thanks in advance :) Grotesquetruth (talk) 15:30, 27 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

From the header text: "We don't answer requests for opinions, predictions or debate." You'll have to come up with something without our help. Matt Deres (talk) 15:38, 27 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

This is in the range of things current LLMs are relatively good at, although you may need to tweak the characterization of your club and of your notion of suitability of a name for a few iterations before you get a good fit (if at all). ‑‑Lambiam 23:52, 27 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

November 30

Web 2.0 and Web3

Is Web 2.0 a 2000s thing, while the Web3 is 2010s thing?

Could Web 1.0 be also defining period of 1990s? ~2025-37397-24 (talk) 18:07, 30 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

According to the very articles you linked, no. Shantavira|^{feed me} 08:35, 2 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

December 3

Bluetooth mouse turns itself off

I have a Dell Inspiron 3910 desktop computer, running the latest version of Windows 11. (That is, I receive and install the updates.) I have a USB optical mouse, but had two problems from time to time with it. The first is that sometimes the USB connector came loose from the back of the computer, so that I had to diddle around with the cable and reseat it. The second was that I would occasionally catch the cable with my foot and bring the mouse onto the floor, and occasionally bring the keyboard onto the floor. (If the cat was asleep on her chair, this had the undesired side effect of scaring her.) So I bought a Bluetooth Insignia BT3.0 mouse. It worked fine for a while, but a few days ago, it would sometimes turn off while I was using it. I would have to turn the power switch on the underside of the mouse off and then turn it on again to restore mouse functionality. For now, I am using the USB mouse, and am asking whether this is a known problem with bottom-of-the-line Bluetooth mice, and whether there is a way to deal with it. If I have to buy a $20 or $30 Bluetooth or wireless USB mouse because the $7 Bluetooth mouse is not worth $7, that is what one gets for buying a bottom-of-the-line peripheral.

Is there a way that I can avoid having the mouse turn itself off, or do I need a slightly better mouse? Robert McClenon (talk) 19:50, 3 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

You may need to replace the battery. Ruslik_Zero 20:20, 3 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

I bought the mouse about two weeks ago, User:Ruslik0. If I need to replace the battery, would that mean that the battery was weak from the start, or that the mouse is a power hog, or what would it mean? I don't think that I should have to replace an almost new battery, but we shall see. Robert McClenon (talk) 20:30, 3 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Never trust a battery that comes with an item. You have no idea how longs it has been in the manufacturer's stock - possibly since long before that item was actually assembled. A new battery is a quick, comparatively cheap fix. If it makes no difference, reuse the battery elsewhere, and try a different fix.

I use a Logitech (no connection &c.) wireless keyboard+mouse combination with Windows 11 (and Linux), and do not experience any untoward powering off by either item. -- Verbarson ^talk_edits 16:38, 4 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

I second that. A similar thing happened to me when I bought a second-hand car last year that basically died on my driveway the same day. The garage were indignant when I suggested they'd sold me a car with a dud battery, but after they'd spent 24 hours trying and failing to fully recharge it, they replaced it with a new one for nothing. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} ~2025-31359-08 (talk) 07:47, 6 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

December 4

BCP 47 for biological names

Template:Btname is used to mark biological names, like Vombatus ursinus. It currently begins

<span style="font-style: italic;" lang="la">…

I think this is wrong, because biological names aren't in Latin: they're language-independent. The whole point is that they're the same, whatever language you're writing in. (Besides, they're fairly often drawn from other languages-- see for example Chrysoclista, which is Greek for "gold-washed".)

Now, it seems to me that BCP 47 should have something to say about how to write lang attributes for biological names, but I can't find anything. This must be a solved problem! How would you do it? Marnanel (talk) 08:56, 4 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

According to Binomial nomenclature the names use 'Latin grammatical forms', whatever their linguistic roots. They therefore behave the same as any other words adopted into Latin from other languages. There is an extended dsicussion at Binomial nomenclature § Derivation of binomial names. What seems to be missing from the article (except by implication) is any indication of which alphabets or scripts may or may not be used. I guess that the 'Latin' alphabet (ie 26 English letters) is the only set of letters allowed? -- Verbarson ^talk_edits 16:47, 4 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

The International Code of Zoological Nomenclature states:^[1]

"11.2. Mandatory use of Latin alphabet
A scientific name must, when first published, have been spelled only in the 26 letters of the Latin alphabet (taken to include the letters j, k, w and y); the presence in a name when first published of diacritic and other marks, apostrophes or ligatures, or a hyphen, or a numeral in a compound species-group name, does not render the name unavailable (for corrections, see Articles 27 and 32.5.2)."

The International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants has the same requirement:^[2]

"32.1. To be validly published, a name of a taxon (autonyms excepted) must:
...
(b) be composed only of letters of the Latin alphabet, except as provided in Art. 23.3, 60.4, 60.7, and 60.12–15; and ..."

‑‑Lambiam 21:39, 4 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

My issue here is that just as it's called "the common wombat" in English, it's called simply "vombatus" in Late Latin. If you were actually writing in Latin, you would only use the phrase "Vombatus ursinus" in exactly the same contexts you would use it in English. So I don't see that *Vombatus ursinus* is in Latin. Marnanel (talk) 16:13, 5 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Since there is no ISO 639 language code for binomial nomenclaturese, the only permitted alternative, within the HTML standard, is to omit the lang attribute altogether. I don't see much value in having it – or for that matter the template, used in only 23 articles – but I also do not see the harm. ‑‑Lambiam 23:42, 5 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

It's colloquially called a 'Latin name' for ease of reference: that doesn't mean it's what any classical (or vernacular) Latin speaker/writer would have called the entity in question (I'm pretty sure they never saw a wombat), but Neo-Latin remained the international language of scientists until relatively recently (I've read of one mathematician who still insists on submitting his new papers using it) and its specialised use in Taxonomy has persisted, because it works.

(I studied classical Latin at school and failed the exam, but it's still one of the more valuable subjects I took because of its prevalence underlying so much scientific vocabulary, as well as its relevance in linguistics.) {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} ~2025-31359-08 (talk) 08:06, 6 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

December 7

no sound on windows 10

Moved from Wikipedia:Village pump (technical) § no sound on windows 10

– — DVRTed (Talk) 05:39, 7 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Have our Lords and Master at Microsoft decreed that we can no longer audio?

My windows 10 machine suddenly has no sound. When I try to turn up the volume, a window opens that says "We're here to help."

Does any rational person not suspect fraud? Are they trying to take me captive to sell me on an auction block to a plantation owner? Is it possible to run the Windows operating system without assenting to that? ~2025-37205-52 (talk) 05:24, 7 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

@~2025-37205-52 This is nothing to do with Microsoft. The sound on Wikipedia works fine for me. I suggest you check your connections and then try restarting your computer. Have you tried plugging in an external speaker? Failing that, take it to a repair shop. Shantavira|^{feed me} 11:42, 7 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

December 8