Help:VisualEditor/User guide

 If you would like to try VisualEditor without editing an article, [ here is a page] where you can freely test it. You don't need an account to use VisualEditor on that page.

== Opening VisualEditor ==

== Getting started: the VisualEditor toolbar ==

center|1200px|alt= Screenshot of the VisualEditor toolbar

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== Saving changes ==

== Editing links ==

== Editing references ==

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Determining which system is in place
=== Editing an existing reference === File:VisualEditor - Editing references 1.png |frameless|border|400px|center]] To edit an existing reference, click on it where it appears in the text (usually as a bracketed number). You will see either a "" icon (bookmark) or an icon (and name) for the template that was used to create this reference. In either case, clicking on the "Edit" button will open a dialog where you can edit the reference. File:VisualEditor - Editing references 6.png |frameless|border|center|500px]] For the "" icon, clicking "Edit" opens the Reference dialog. To start changing the reference information, click on it.
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 * Your wiki may use one of three footnote systems. The one shown on the right is the simplest system, where the "" menu does not include any citation templates.  If your wiki uses this system, then everything you need to know about footnotes is on this page.
 * VisualEditor cite menu default.png
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 * The second system has the same type of "" menu, but with several popular citation templates set up for quick access. If your wiki uses this system, then you will find more details at Help:VisualEditor/User guide/Citations-Templates
 * VisualEditor references more.png
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 * VisualEditor citoid Cite button.png
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 * In the third system, you again start by clicking the Cite button. Then a dialog box opens, which includes an automatic citation process using the citoid service. If your wiki uses this system, you will find more details at Help:VisualEditor/User guide/Citations-Full
 * VisualEditor Citoid Automatic tab.png
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 * VisualEditor citoid Cite button.png
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 * In the third system, you again start by clicking the Cite button. Then a dialog box opens, which includes an automatic citation process using the citoid service. If your wiki uses this system, you will find more details at Help:VisualEditor/User guide/Citations-Full
 * VisualEditor Citoid Automatic tab.png
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 * In the third system, you again start by clicking the Cite button. Then a dialog box opens, which includes an automatic citation process using the citoid service. If your wiki uses this system, you will find more details at Help:VisualEditor/User guide/Citations-Full
 * VisualEditor Citoid Automatic tab.png
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Many wikis use templates to format references. If a template is used in your reference, then when you move your pointer over the reference information, all the information in that field will be highlighted.

If a template was used and you click on the reference information, then the  icon (puzzle piece) will appear with some information. Click on the "edit" button to edit the content of the template in the template mini-editor dialog. File:VisualEditor - Editing References - Cite Web.png |frameless|border|center|400px]] If what appears when you click on a reference is an icon for a standard template for citations (an example is at left), then clicking "Edit" will open the template mini-editor dialog. File:VisualEditor - Editing references 5.png |frameless|border|center|500px]] Inside the template mini-editor, you can add or remove types of information or change current content. Only fields (template parameters) that have content will show, initially. To add fields, click on "" at the bottom of the mini-editor. Click on "</>" when you're done. === Re-using an existing reference === File:VisualEditor Cite menu re-use.png |frameless|border|200px|center]] If the page already contains a citation that applies to the text you want to source, then you can choose to re-use that existing citation.
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To re-use an existing reference, place your cursor in the body of the text where you want to add a new reference (number) for that citation. Then click on the "<tvar|re-using-reference></>" item from the "<tvar|cite></>" menu.

(Note: If your wiki has the third footnote system described above, you'll see a "Re-use" tab, in a dialog, instead of a "Re-use" item on the "<tvar|cite></>" menu.) File:VisualEditor - Editing references 18.png |frameless|border|500px|center]] In the <tvar|reference-title></> dialog, look at the list for the reference you want to reuse, and select it. If there are many references, you can use the search box (labeled "<tvar|input></>") to list only those references that include certain text.
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=== Adding a new reference === File:VisualEditor references more.png |frameless|border|150px|center]] To add a citation using the "<tvar|cite></>" menu, place your cursor where you want to add it in the text. Then select the appropriate citation type in the menu.
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==== Using the "Basic" citation ==== File:VisualEditor - Editing references 20.png |frameless|border|500px|center]] Shown here is what you will see if you select the "<tvar|basic></>" item. In the Reference editor, you can add your citation, including formatting.
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You can make the reference belong to a given group, although normally this is left blank. (This option is used to display groups of references with the "<tvar|referencelist></>" tool.) In the Reference dialog, if you want to include a citation template, or any other template, in your new reference, click the <tvar|template></> icon (puzzle piece) in the "<tvar|insert></>" toolbar menu within the Reference editor. File:VisualEditor - Editing references 9.png |frameless|border|center|400px]] Then, look for the template you want to use, add it and edit it as you would any other template. (See the Editing templates section, below, if you need more information about templates.)
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After you're done editing your new template, click on "<tvar|apply></>" to return to the Reference editor, and "<tvar|apply></>" again to return to the page you're editing. If there isn't already a list of references on the page (for example, if you're adding the first reference for the page), you need to specify where the list of references, and their text, will be displayed to the reader.
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Place the cursor where you want to display the references list (usually at the bottom of the page), open the "<tvar|insert></>" menu and click the "<tvar|referencelist></>" icon (three books). If you are using several groups of references, which is relatively rare, you can specify the group in this dialog. Only the references that belong to that group will be displayed on the page at the location where you are placing the group.
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The final step in the References list dialog is to click "<tvar|insert-button></>".
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====

Using standard cite templates ====
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File:VisualEditor - Editing References - Cite Pulldown.png |frameless|border|170px|center]] Your local wiki may have added extra citation templates to the "<tvar|cite></>" menu. If so, you have quick access to the most-used citation templates for your wiki. (Instructions for adding extra citation templates to your local wiki are available at VisualEditor/Citation tool.) File:VisualEditor - Editing references - Cite book required fields.png |frameless|border|430px|center]] Clicking on a template icon such as "Cite book" will take you into the template mini-editor for that template. Important information fields may be marked with an asterisk. While the most common fields will be shown, not all of them are required. File:VisualEditor - Editing references - Add parameter.png |frameless|border|230px|center]] To add more parameters, scroll down in the template mini-editor and click on the "<tvar|add-param></>" option.
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Click on "<tvar|insert-citation></>" when you're done.
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== Editing images and other media files ==

=== Editing images ===

=== Editing media galleries ===

== Editing templates ==

=== Starting ===

Editing lists
== Editing tables ==

== Editing categories ==

== Editing page settings ==

== Editing mathematical formulae ==

== Editing poems and other special items ==

== Keyboard shortcuts ==

Many editors are used to entering wikitext directly, especially bold, italics and wikilinks. Keyboard>mw:VisualEditor/Portal/Keyboard shortcuts</>|Keyboard shortcuts allow to quickly insert similar formatting without having to use toolbar items. Here are the common general shortcuts in VisualEditor: