Editing Help 2

You can format your text by using wiki markup. This consists of normal characters like asterisks, apostrophes or equal signs which have a special function in the wiki, sometimes depending on their position. For example, to format a word in italic, you include it in two pairs of apostrophes like ''this''.

Text formatting markup

''italic''

'''bold'''

'''''bold & italic'''''

<nowiki> no ''markup''</nowiki>

== Level 2 == 

=== Level 3 === 

==== Level 4 ==== 

===== Level 5 ===== 

====== Level 6 ====== 

Text before
----
Text after

* Start each line
* with an [[Wikipedia:asterisk|asterisk]] (*).
** More asterisks give deeper
*** and deeper levels.
* Line breaks <br />don't break levels.
*** But jumping levels creates empty space.
Any other start ends the list.

* combine bullet list
** with definition 
::- definition
** creates empty space

* combine bullet list
** with definition 
*:- definition
** without empty spaces

*bullet list
:- definition
:* sublist that doesn't create empty
:* spaces after definition

# Start each line
# with a [[Wikipedia:Number_sign|number sign]] (#).
## More number signs give deeper
### and deeper
### levels.
# Line breaks <br />don't break levels.
### But jumping levels creates empty space.
# Blank lines

# end the list and start another.
Any other start also
ends the list.

;item 1
: definition 1
;item 2
: definition 2-1
: definition 2-2

: Single indent
:: Double indent
::::: Multiple indent

# one
# two
#* two point one
#* two point two
# three
#; three item one
#: three def one
# four
#: four def one
#: this looks like a continuation
#: and is often used
#: instead <br />of <nowiki><br /></nowiki>
# five
## five sub 1
### five sub 1 sub 1
## five sub 2

Start each line with a space.
 Text is '''preformatted''' and
 ''markups'' '''''can''''' be done.

Text is preformatted and
markups can be done.

 
<nowiki>Start with a space in the first column,
(before the <nowiki>).

Then your block format will be
    maintained.
 
This is good for copying in code blocks:

def function():
    """documentation string"""

if True:
        print True
    else:
        print False</nowiki>

Paragraphs

MediaWiki ignores single line breaks. To start a new paragraph, leave an empty line. You can force a line break within a paragraph with the HTML tag <br />.

HTML tags

Some HTML tags are allowed in MediaWiki, for example <code>, <div>, and <span>. These apply anywhere you insert them.

<ins>Inserted</ins>

or

<u> Underline</u>

<s>Struck out</s>

or

<del> Deleted</del>

<code> Source code</code>

or

<code> Fixed width text</code>

Text before
<blockquote> Blockquote</blockquote>
Text after

<!-- This is a comment -->
Comments are visible only 
in the edit zone.

<pre>
Text is '''preformatted''' and 
''markups'' '''''cannot''''' be done</pre>

Text is '''preformatted''' and 
''markups'' '''''cannot''''' be done

<pre style="color: red">
Text is '''preformatted''' 
with a style and 
''markups'' '''''cannot''''' be done
</pre>

Text is '''preformatted''' 
with a style and 
''markups'' '''''cannot''''' be done

continued:

<pre>
This long sentence is used to demonstrate text wrapping. This additional sentence makes the text even longer. This additional sentence makes the text even longer.
</pre>

This long sentence is used to demonstrate text wrapping. This additional sentence makes the text even longer. This additional sentence makes the text even longer.

<pre style="white-space: pre;">
This long sentence is used to demonstrate text wrapping. This additional sentence makes the text even longer. This additional sentence makes the text even longer.
</pre>

This long sentence is used to demonstrate text wrapping. This additional sentence makes the text even longer. This additional sentence makes the text even longer.

Inserting symbols

Symbols and other special characters not available on your keyboard can be inserted in a multitude of ways. Many Operating Systems and browsers allow you to insert special characters through a menu option or Operating System panel. Additionally, you can use the WikiEditor to insert them into the edit screen.

As a last resort, you can use a special sequence of characters. Those sequences are called HTML entities. For example, the following sequence (entity) → when inserted will be shown as right arrow HTML symbol → and — when inserted will be shown as an em dash HTML symbol —.

See the list of all HTML entities on the Wikipedia article List of HTML entities. Additionally, MediaWiki supports two non-standard entity reference sequences: &רלמ; and &رلم; which are both considered equivalent to ‏ which is a right-to-left mark. (Used when combining right to left languages with left to right languages in the same page.)

HTML tags and symbol entities displayed themselves (with and without interpreting them)

€
 → €

<span style="color: red; text-decoration: line-through;"> Typo to be corrected</span>
 → Typo to be corrected

Nowiki for HTML

<nowiki /> can prohibit (HTML) tags:

• <<nowiki />pre>  → <pre>

But not & symbol escapes:

• &<nowiki />amp;  → &

To print & symbol escapes as text, use "&" to replace the "&" character (eg. type " ", which results in " ").

<languages/> Template:TNT

For MediaWiki's database table structure, see <tvar|1>Template:Ll

Tables may be created in wiki pages.

As a general rule, it is best to avoid using a table unless you need one.

Table markup often complicates page editing.^[1]

Wiki table markup summary

• The above marks must start on a new line except the double || and !! for optionally adding consecutive cells to a line. However, blank spaces at the beginning of a line are ignored.
• HTML attributes. Each mark, except table end, optionally accepts one or more HTML attributes. Attributes must be on the same line as the mark. Separate attributes from each other with a single space.

• • Cells and caption (| or ||, ! or !!, and |+) hold content. So separate any attributes from content with a single pipe (|). Cell content may follow on same line or on following lines.

• • Table and row marks ({| and |-) do not directly hold content. Do not add pipe (|) after their optional attributes. If you erroneously add a pipe after attributes for the table mark or row mark the parser will delete it and your final attribute if it was touching the erroneous pipe!

• Content may (a) follow its cell mark on the same line after any optional HTML attributes or (b) on lines below the cell mark. Content that uses wiki markup that itself needs to start on a new line, such as lists, headings, or nested tables, must be on its own new line.

• • Pipe character as content.

To insert a pipe (|) character into a table, use the <nowiki>|</nowiki> escaping markup.

Basics

The following table lacks borders and good spacing but shows the simplest wiki markup table structure.

{|
| Orange
| Apple
|-
| Bread
| Pie
|-
| Butter
| Ice cream 
|}

The cells in the same row can be listed on one line separated by || (two pipe symbols).

If the text in the cell should contain a line break, use <tvar|br><br/> instead.

{|
| Orange||Apple||more
|-
| Bread||Pie||more
|-
| Butter||Ice<br/>cream||and<br/>more
|}

Extra spaces within cells in the wiki markup, as in the wiki markup below, do not affect the actual table rendering.

{|
|   Orange || Apple || more
|-
|    Bread || Pie || more
|-
|    Butter || Ice cream || and more
|}

You can have longer text or more complex wiki syntax inside table cells, too:

{|
|Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, 
consetetur sadipscing elitr, 
sed diam nonumy eirmod tempor invidunt
ut labore et dolore magna aliquyam erat, 
sed diam voluptua. 

At vero eos et accusam et justo duo dolores
et ea rebum. Stet clita kasd gubergren,
no sea takimata sanctus est Lorem ipsum
dolor sit amet. 
|
* Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet
* consetetur sadipscing elitr
* sed diam nonumy eirmod tempor invidunt
|}

Table headers

Table headers can be created by using "!" (exclamation mark) instead of "|" (pipe symbol).

Headers usually show up bold and centered by default.

{|
! style="text-align:left;"|  Item
!  Amount
!  Cost
|-
| Orange
|10
|7.00
|-
| Bread
|4
|3.00
|-
| Butter
|1
|5.00
|-
! Total
|
|15.00
|}

Note: When using attributes as in the heading 'Item' a vertical bar '|' is used for separation.

Not an exclamation character '!'.

Caption

A table caption can be added to the top of any table as follows.

{|
|+ Food complements
|-
| Orange
| Apple
|-
| Bread
| Pie
|-
| Butter
| Ice cream 
|}

class="wikitable"

Basic styling (light gray background, borders, padding and align left) can be achieved by adding class="wikitable".

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Food complements
|-
| Orange
| Apple
|-
| Bread
| Pie
|-
| Butter
| Ice cream 
|}

HTML colspan and rowspan

You can use HTML colspan and rowspan attributes on cells for advanced layout.

{| class="wikitable"
!colspan="6"| Shopping List
|-
|rowspan="2"| Bread & Butter
| Pie
| Buns
| Danish
|colspan="2"| Croissant
|-
| Cheese
|colspan="2"| Ice cream
| Butter
| Yogurt
|}

HTML attributes

You can add HTML attributes to tables.

For the authoritative source on these, see [<tvar|url>https://www.w3.org/TR/html401/struct/tables.html the W3C's HTML Specification page on tables].

Attributes on tables

Placing attributes after the table start tag ({|) applies attributes to the entire table.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center; color: green;"
| Orange
| Apple
|12,333.00
|-
| Bread
| Pie
|500.00
|-
| Butter
| Ice cream
|1.00
|}

Attributes on cells

You can put attributes on individual cells.

For example, numbers may look better aligned right.

{| class="wikitable"
|  Orange
|  Apple
| style="text-align:right;" | 12,333.00
|-
|  Bread
|  Pie
| style="text-align:right;" | 500.00
|-
|  Butter
|  Ice cream
| style="text-align:right;" | 1.00
|}

You can also use cell attributes when you are listing multiple cells on a single line.

Note that the cells are separated by ||, and within each cell the attribute(s) and value are separated by |.

{| class="wikitable"
|  Orange ||  Apple     || style="text-align:right;" | 12,333.00
|-
|  Bread ||  Pie       || style="text-align:right;" | 500.00
|-
|  Butter ||  Ice cream || style="text-align:right;" | 1.00
|}

Attributes on rows

You can put attributes on individual rows, too.

{| class="wikitable"
|  Orange
|  Apple
| style="text-align:right;"| 12,333.00
|-
|  Bread
|  Pie
| style="text-align:right;"| 500.00
|- style="font-style: italic; color: green;"
|  Butter
|  Ice cream
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.00
|}

Simple one-pixel table border

An example of a one-pixel table border:

{| border="1" style="border-collapse:collapse"
|  Orange
|  Apple
|-
|  Bread
|  Pie
|}

Border width

If "border-width:" has only one number, it is for all four border sides:

{|style="border-style: solid; border-width: 20px"
|
 Hello
|}

Hello

If "border-width:" has more than one number, the four numbers are for top, right, bottom, left (REMEMBER this order):

{|style="border-style: solid; border-width: 10px 20px 100px 0"
|
 Hello
|}

Hello

When there are fewer than 4 values, the value for left takes its default from the value for right, the value for bottom takes its default from the value for top, and the value for right takes its default from the value for top.

Another method to define the widths of the four sides of a cell is to use "border-left", "border-right", "border-top" and "border-bottom":

{|style="border-left:solid 10px black;border-right:solid 20px black;border-top:solid 30px black;border-bottom:solid 40px black;" align="center" 
|
 Hello
|}

Hello

Template:Note

With HTML attributes and CSS styles

CSS style attributes can be added with or without other HTML attributes.

{| class="wikitable" style="color:green; background-color:#ffffcc;" cellpadding="10"
| Orange
| Apple
|-
| Bread
| Pie
|-
| Butter
| Ice cream 
|}

Attributes

Attributes can be added to the caption and headers as follows.

{| class="wikitable"
|+ style="caption-side:bottom; color:#e76700;"| ''Food complements''
|-
| Orange
| Apple
|-
| Bread
| Pie
|-
| Butter
| Ice cream 
|}

Column width

Column width can be added as follows.

You type:

{| style="color: black; background-color: #ffffcc; width: 85%;"
| colspan="2" |  This column width is 85% of the screen width (and has a background color)
|-
| style="width: 30%; background-color: white;"|
 '''This column is 30% counted from 85% of the screen width'''
| style="width: 70%; background-color: orange;"|
 '''This column is 70% counted from 85% of the screen width (and has a background color)'''
|}

You get:

Accessibility of table header cells

Table header cells do not explicitly specify which table data cells they apply to (those on their right on the same row, or those below them on the same column).

When the table is rendered in a visual 2D environment, this is usually easy to infer.

However when tables are rendered on non-visual media, you can help the browser to determine which table header cell applies to the description of any selected cell (in order to repeat its content in some accessibility helper) using a scope="row" or scope="col" attribute on table header cells.

In most cases with simple tables, you'll use scope="col" on all header cells of the first row, and scope="row" on the first cell of the following rows:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! scope="col"|  Item
! scope="col"|  Quantity
! scope="col"|  Price
|-
! scope="row"|  Bread
| 0.3 kg
| $0.65
|-
! scope="row"|  Butter
| 0.125 kg
| $1.25
|-
! scope="row" colspan="2"|  Total
| $1.90
|}

Alignment

Table alignment

Table alignment is achieved by using CSS.

The table alignment is controlled by margins.

A fixed margin on one side will make the table to be aligned to that side, if on the opposite side the margin is defined as auto.

To have a table center aligned, you should set both margins to auto

For example, a right-aligned table:

{| class="wikitable" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: 0px;"
|  Orange
|  Apple
|-
|  Bread
|  Pie
|-
|  Butter
|  Ice cream 
|}

And a center-aligned table:

{| class="wikitable" style="margin: auto;"
|  Orange
|  Apple
|-
|  Bread
|  Pie
|-
|  Butter
|  Ice cream 
|}

Table floating around text

If you align a table to the right or the left side of the page, the text that comes after the table starts at the end of it, leaving an empty space around the table.

You can make the text to be wrapped around the table by making the table to float around the text instead of just aligning it.

This can be achieved using the float CSS attribute, which can specify where the table floats to the right side or to the left.

When using float, margins doesn't control table alignment and can be used to specify the margin between the table and the surrounding text.

{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; margin-left: 10px;"
|  Orange
|  Apple
|-
|  Bread
|  Pie
|-
|  Butter
|  Ice cream 
|}

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing 
elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut 
laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi 
enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation 
ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea 
commodo consequat. Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor 
in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, 
vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis at vero 
eros et accumsan et iusto odio dignissim qui blandit 
praesent luptatum zzril delenit augue duis dolore te 
feugait nulla facilisi.

Cell contents alignment

The alignment of cell contents can be controlled with 2 different CSS properties: text-align and vertical-align.

text-align can be specified at the table, row or individual cells, while vertical-align only can be specified at individual rows or cells.

{| class="wikitable"
|- style="vertical-align:top;"
| style="height:100px; width:100px; text-align:left;" | A
| style="height:100px; width:100px; text-align:center;" | B
| style="height:100px; width:100px; text-align:right;" | C
|- style="vertical-align:middle;"
| style="height:100px; width:100px; text-align:left;" | D
| style="height:100px; width:100px; text-align:center;" | E
| style="height:100px; width:100px; text-align:right;" | F
|- style="vertical-align:bottom;"
| style="height:100px; width:100px; text-align:left;" | G
| style="height:100px; width:100px; text-align:center;" | H
| style="height:100px; width:100px; text-align:right;" | I
|}

Caveats

Negative numbers

If you start a cell on a new line with a negative number with a minus sign (or a parameter that evaluates to a negative number), your table can get broken, because the characters |- will be parsed as the wiki markup for table row, not table cell.

To avoid this, insert a space before the value (| -6) or use in-line cell markup (|| -6).

CSS vs attributes

Table borders specified through CSS rather than the border attribute will render incorrectly in a small subset of text browsers.

Common attributes for columns, column groups and row groups

The MediaWiki syntax for tables currently offers no support for specifying common attributes for columns (with the HTML element <tvar|col><col />), column groups (HTML element <tvar|colgroup><colgroup></colgroup>) and row groups (HTML elements <tvar|thead><thead></thead>, <tvar|tbody><tbody></tbody> and <tvar|tfoot><tfoot></tfoot>).

Those standard HTML elements are not accepted even in their HTML or XHTML syntax.

All the rows and cells (header or data) of the table are rendered within a single implicit row group (HTML element <tbody></tbody>) without any attributes or styles.

See also

• Sorting rows of a table
• Easy tool that helps generating tables