Help:DiscussionTools

This will be the help page for Wikipedia editors and other end users who are using DiscussionTools .

Replying

Links are added after each comment for posting quick replies to existing discussions.

Getting started

Screenshot of the visual mode

1. At the end of each signed message, there will be a [ reply ] link. Click that link to reply to the message.
2. A box will open. Your message will be placed where the box is located.
3. Type your reply in the box. Your signature and the date will be added to your reply automatically.
4. When you are ready to post your reply, click the Reply button.

Features

• You can switch between visual and wikitext source editing modes.
• In the wikitext source mode, a live preview shows what your message will look like while you are typing it.
• In the visual mode, you can use keyboard shortcuts to make links, to @-mention the person you're replying to, and to add character formatting.

Limitations

• As of 2020, this tool does not work with multi-line templates or wikitext codes that must be placed at the start of a line (e.g., wikitext table syntax). You will not be able to switch to visual mode if you comment contains this syntax. See Reply tool visual mode limitations.
• The tool will only show on:
  • Pages in talk namespaces
  • Pages in namespaces which have been configured to show the 'add signature' tool ($wgExtraSignatureNamespaces). For most Wikimedia wikis this is the project and help namespaces.
  • Pages which have manually added the Add topic button using __NEWSECTIONLINK__
• The Reply tool is visible when it detects a link to a user account and a timestamp on the same line. Some custom signatures will not be detected. See Why can't I reply to this comment?.

New discussions

Starting a new discussion

Screenshot of New Discussion tool

1. At the top of the page, click the "Add topic" tab.
2. A box will open at the end of the page. Your message will be placed where the box is located.
3. Type a subject heading in the box, where it says "Title". A subject heading is required.
4. Type your message in the big box. Your signature and the date will be added to the end of your message automatically.
5. When you are ready to post your message, click the Add topic button.

Features and limitations

The features and limitations are very similar to the features and limitations of the Reply tool. Complex formatting, such as tables, is allowed.

• You can switch between visual and wikitext source editing modes.
• In the wikitext source mode, a live preview shows what your message will look like while you are typing it.
• In the visual mode, you can use keyboard shortcuts to make links, to @-mention other people, and to add character formatting.