Template:Selfref/doc

Usage

{{Selfref}} is a template that is used to mark pieces of text and links that wouldn't make sense in reuses of Wikipedia article content elsewhere: see Wikipedia:Self-references to avoid. This template should not be substituted.

In most cases, {{Selfref}} is used to create a disambiguation link to a page in the "Wikipedia:" namespace from article-space; for instance, the page Objectivity (disambiguation) could have a selfref link {{Selfref|For Wikipedia's policy on avoiding bias, see [[Wikipedia:Neutral point of view]].}}.

When using {{Selfref}} in this way, use the following format:

{{Selfref|the self-referential notice to display, including links}}

which produces:

When using {{Selfref}} in this way, the text will be indented slightly, italicized (Wikipedia house style for self-referential notes), and both preceded and followed by a linebreak.

To use it inline without the indentation and line break, add the parameter |inline:

{{Selfref|the self-referential text to display, including links|inline}}

or use the shortcut template {{Selfref-inline}}:

{{Selfref-inline|the self-referential text to display, including links}}

both of which produce:
Template:Selfref-inline

Unprintworthy content

Rarely, there is other, non-self-referential content which shouldn't appear in mirrors, print editions, or other off-Wikipedia reuses of Wikipedia content, and which shouldn't be italicized as a self-reference. It is preferable to mark such unprintworthy content with the {{Unprintworthy-inline}} template (which includes the noprint CSS class, but not the plainlinks class, since links in such content will not be internal self-references). Although not all mirror sites do so, the content in question can be removed by reusers of WP content, without any reformatting, by ignoring or removing content marked up by this template, or more accurately by the selfreference CSS class that it (and some other templates) use.

A "brittle", legacy usage of {{Selfref}} has technically also been used for such unprintworthy cases, and pre-dates the {{Unprintworthy-inline}} template. This is to simply end the template with a pipe character – |:

{{Selfref|the unprintworthy text to display without self-ref styling|}}

This method cannot be depended upon (for one thing, many editors will interpret the pipe as an error and remove it, turning the template into a indented self-ref hatnote!). This syntax has been obsolete since 2008, and any remaining uses of it should be replaced with {{Selfref-inline}} (if real self-references) or {{Unprintworthy-inline}} (if simply unprintworthy).

Example

Code	Page on Wikipedia	Page on some mirrors
{{Selfref|For the Wikipedia Sandbox, see [[WP:SAND]]}} The Wikipedia Sandbox is a page on Wikipedia. {{Selfref|You can edit it by clicking "edit" on the page.|}} It has been edited many times.	The Wikipedia Sandbox is a page on Wikipedia. It has been edited many times.	The Wikipedia Sandbox is a page on Wikipedia. It has been edited many times.

See also

• Wikipedia:Self-references to avoid
• {{srlink}}, for the opposite case when you want a link to the Wikipedia: namespace that does show in mirrors without breaking (for instance when writing an article about Wikipedia or something connected to it).
• Wikipedia:Hatnote