Wikipedia:Main Page/Errors

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Errors in the summary of today's or tomorrow's featured article

Lad: A Dog

We have an article on a publisher mentioned in the extract, Grosset and Dunlap: I have added the link to the lead, it would be beneficial to readers to have it here as well. On a very minor stylistic point, is it necessary to characterise a film version of a novel as "theatrical"? Kevin McE (talk) 13:30, 21 January 2011 (UTC)

See Movie theater. –HTD (ITN: Where no updates but is stickied happens.) 08:32, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

I did, and the phrase theatrical film was absent. So I went to the article Theatrical film, and discovered that it redirected to Film, an article that does not use the phrase. It is not used in UK English, so ENGVAR would suggest that it should be avoided: it occurs in a very small proportion of the articles on films/movies, and is a qualification that is not very helpful. Meanwhile, thanks to Alt La P for doing the link to the publisher. Kevin McE (talk) 10:43, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

Template:David Yates uses "Theatrical Films". The guy's British. What do you suggest, instead? –HTD (ITN: Where no updates but is stickied happens.) 11:53, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

As I've said twice, it is the characterisation/qualification of "film" as "theatrical" that is redundant: what the hell does it mean anyway? Kevin McE (talk) 12:14, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

I haven't heard it before but does it perhaps distinguish films that are released at cinemas from others (ie straight to video release)? - Dumelow (talk) 12:55, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

If we are left wondering what it means, or reduced to guessing, and there is no link to explain it, what encyclopaedic service does it offer? Kevin McE (talk) 13:46, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

Removed; "theatrical" is purely redundant in this (or indeed any) context, I feel, considering "straight-to-video" was rare or even non-existent in the 60s.  狐 FOX  14:13, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

Hold your horses. Shouldn't this have been discussed at the article's talk page first? It still appears on the article. Or just meh, whatever. –HTD (ITN: Where no updates but is stickied happens.) 14:21, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

Just take it out. It's one word. Nothing to have a baby over.  狐 FOX  14:23, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

Last time I did that an FA a mob chased me. –HTD (ITN: Where no updates but is stickied happens.) 14:31, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

Let them. They'll learn.  狐 FOX  14:33, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

Lightning Bar

I am frankly amazed at the literary standard of this which is due to appear on the Main Page tomorrow, and bewildered as to how it got past FA.

• Quarter Horse race horse, especially when all blue linked, is not comfortable reading.
• Bred and owned his entire life by Art Pollard, Lightning Bar's sire, or father, was... This tells us that the sire was owned and bred by Mr Pollard, which I suspect was not the intention. But it doesn't tell us who Art Pollard is or was, or where he was based: if he is not notable, and we know no more about him, why name him? And semantically, the suggestion is that Art's whole life was spent as owner of the horse.
• Having been told what breed his sire was, the equivalent information for his dam seems a strange omission.
• from Louisiana, noted for breeding race horses that ran short distances: Curious bit of info about a state to put in the lead, but is it still noted for that? If not, it should say, "then noted for..."; if so, "that run short distances".
• he managed to achieve high speeds on the track: I thought the aim of racing was to get results, not high speeds. I could acheive a high speed during a 1500m race, but still finish last because I didn't sustain it.
• was trained as a team roping horse Did he appear in rodeos as a team roping horse, or merely train? It seems odd that the reader is assumed to have so little knowledge of equine matters that they need sire and dam to be explained, but this discipline is named with no explanation.
• To declare that his most famous son is among his more influential offspring seems to be a truism.
• Lightning Bar died in 1960 at the age of nine, the result of a viral infection: Lightning Bar was not the result of a viral infection. His death may have been, in which case Lightning Bar would have been the victim of such an infection.
• the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame Did that really seem to anyone the best literary style?

I've just posted all that on the talk page of the article. I can only suggest a total re-write of the lead/Main Page extract before it is drawn to the attention of a wider public. Wikipedia would make itself a laughing stock if it were to promote that as an example of our best output. I'll put a re-draft on the article's talk page shortly. Kevin McE (talk) 18:05, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

I see this is being addressed on the article's talk page. The best way to have concerns about the prose of an FA addressed in a short time frame is to work collaboratively with the article's regular contributors. To that end, I don't think comments like "embarrassment to the project" and "laughing stock" are particularly productive. --Mkativerata (talk) 18:53, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

For what it's worth, I agree with him. A lot of redundancies in there, not particularly weel-written and seems very lacking on content.  狐 FOX  19:15, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

(ec)My counter-proposal is at the talk page, with some discussion ensuing. I would have been embarrassed for the project to have had it on the front page, and I do consider the proposition that this is typical of our best product laughable. I'd be worried if others do not. Kevin McE (talk) 19:20, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

With three hours left to go, would it be horrible to swap this out with something else for the time being so that these issues can be addressed? howcheng {chat} 21:08, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

No need, greatly improved lead now agreed at the talk page. That is what needs to be swapped with the current content of Wikipedia:Today's featured article/Tomorrow Kevin McE (talk) 22:20, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

 Done. howcheng {chat} 23:03, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

Thanks, but is it done? Is the Main Page updated from Wikipedia:Today's featured article/January 23, 2011 or from Wikipedia:Today's featured article/Tomorrow? Also, I have never really got into licensing of images issues: is File:Lightningbar.jpg allowable on the Main Page? Kevin McE (talk) 23:17, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

The former, the latter is just a template that links to the other page (it will update itself, or if someone purges it). Unfortunately there is a long standing opposition to fair use (copyrighted) images appearing on the main page so the TFA will have to go imageless tomorrow. Cheers - Dumelow (talk) 23:27, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

In the lead sentence, "raced and..." is a restrictive clause and so should (at least probably; even as a descriptivist I am bothered by the use of "which" with restrictive clauses, but I recognize that the distinction between that and which has been blurred in recent years—for the debate generally, see, e.g., English relative clauses#That or which) be preceded by "that" (that is, "Lightning Bar was an American Quarter Horse that raced..."; an animal(-)rights enthusiast, I'd prefer "who", lest a distinction should be made between humans and non-human animals, but I don't know that any major manual of style joins in that sentiment). 68.248.235.183 (talk) 06:39, 23 January 2011 (UTC)

Errors in In the news

Template:ITN-Update

Korean rescue

• In Operation Dawn of Gulf of Aden, the South Korean Navy rescues the crew of the hijacked Samho Jewelry, killing eight Somali pirates.

Can the obvious grammatical hiccups be avoided? Such as The South Korean Navy rescues the crew of the hijacked Samho Jewelry, killing eight Somali pirates. ?  狐 FOX  14:32, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

Would you prefer "rescued"? If so, Wikipedia:In the news/Administrator instructions#Blurb says "The blurb should be in the present tense". Art LaPella (talk) 16:55, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

...No, re-read. :) It's to avoid the awkward phrasing since the operation name seems transliterated.  狐 FOX  19:12, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

Errors in today's or tomorrow's On this day

According the the article on James Stewart 1st Earl of Moray, he died 12 days ago, on the 11th, not the 23rd. 174.112.18.193 (talk) 07:07, 23 January 2011 (UTC)

Errors in today's or tomorrow's featured picture

Reporters: please first correct today's or tomorrow's regular version.

Any other problems

Please report any other problems on Talk:Main Page.