Help:Contents

This page provides help with the most common questions about using and editing Landrace.Wiki.

If you're not sure where to start, read Landrace.Wiki:About and Landrace.Wiki:Contributing, then use the sections below as needed.

Read and find pages

If you just want to read or explore:

• Use the search box at the top of every page. Type what you are looking for and hit Enter to see search results.
• Browse by region using the main navigation and growing-region cards on the home page.
• Follow links inside accession, field, and region pages to move up and down the geographic hierarchy.
• Use Special:AllPages or Special:Random if you want to wander.

For more detail on browsing:

• Help:Navigation – how to search, follow links, and use special pages.
• Landrace.Wiki:About – what the project is and how pages fit together.

Edit pages and contribute

Anyone with an account can help improve the wiki.

• See Landrace.Wiki:Contributing for the main ways to help (accessions, regions, copyediting, photos, technical work).
• To edit a page, click the Edit tab at the top (or an edit link next to a section).
• Make your change, then write a short edit summary explaining what you did and click Save.
• You can practice safely in Help:Sandbox or in your own personal sandbox at Special:MyPage/sandbox.

Editing basics:

• Help:Editing basics – how wikitext works (headings, links, lists, bold/italic, etc.).
• Help:Links and references – internal links, external links, and basic references.
• Help:Formatting and layout – headings, sections, and simple page structure.

Document accessions and regions

Landrace.Wiki is built around accessions, fields, and growing regions.

If you have real field data, seeds, or long-term observations:

• Start with Document accessions and fields.
• Use the accession form linked from relevant field or region pages when it is available.
• Fill out all Tier 1 fields: collection date, location, basic context, and plant/seed info.
• Link each accession to its field, appellation, and growing region.

Helpful references:

• Landrace.Wiki:MediaWiki – how the software stack and data model work.
• Zomia Collective - Hierarchical Organization System (or the equivalent wiki page) – overview of the Gene Pool → Region → Field → Accession hierarchy.
• Help:Accessions – how to fill out accession forms (Tier 1 and beyond). (Stub – to be expanded.)
• Help:Regions and fields – how to create and maintain region, area, appellation, and field pages. (Stub – to be expanded.)

Fix a problem with a page

If you see something wrong, you can usually fix it yourself.

Typical issues you can just fix:

• Typos, broken formatting, or obviously outdated details.
• Missing links between accessions, fields, and regions.
• Overblown marketing language that needs to be made factual and neutral.

If you are not comfortable editing:

• Go to the page’s Talk tab and describe the problem on the talk page.
• Sign your message with ~~~~ so others know who wrote it and when.

If there is a serious issue (for example, content that clearly puts someone at risk, or legal problems):

• Remove the sensitive detail if it is obviously dangerous, and leave a clear edit summary.
• Note the issue on the talk page.
• Contact the Zomia Collective through their usual channels with a link to the page.

Questions, help, and discussion

There is no separate “help desk” yet, but you can still get help.

• Use talk pages:
  • Every content page has a talk page (click the Talk tab).
  • Ask questions, propose changes, or flag uncertainties there.
• Use your own user talk page (Special:MyTalk) to ask for help; other editors can reply there.
• For project-wide questions or structural changes, use:
  • Landrace.Wiki:Contributing – for contribution-related questions and suggestions.
  • Landrace.Wiki:MediaWiki – for technical and data-model discussion.

If you are working directly with the Zomia Collective on field projects, you can also:

• Raise questions through the internal project channels and then reflect agreed decisions on the wiki.
• Coordinate accession IDs and naming with project leads before creating new pages.

Style, sourcing, and norms

Landrace.Wiki is meant to be descriptive and grounded, not promotional.

Key expectations:

• Use a clear, factual tone. Describe what you saw, what farmers said, and what sources report.
• Distinguish between:
  • your own observations
  • farmer or community oral history
  • published sources (books, papers, reports)
• Add references where you make concrete claims about history, law, or science.
• Avoid detailed personal identifiers and exact locations that could put growers at risk.

Useful pages:

• Landrace.Wiki:Mission-Statement – what the project is trying to do.
• Norms and expectations – scope, respect and safety, tone and evidence.
• Help:Sourcing – how to cite books, articles, and other references. (Stub – to be expanded.)

Technical and advanced topics

If you want to understand or work on the underlying structure:

• Landrace.Wiki:MediaWiki – overview of the software stack (MediaWiki, Semantic MediaWiki, PageForms, TemplateStyles).
• Help:Templates and properties – how templates, semantic properties, and queries fit together. (Stub – to be expanded.)
• Help:Query examples – examples of semantic queries used for lists, maps, and statistics. (Stub – to be expanded.)

Tools you may find useful:

• Special:RecentChanges – see what has changed recently.
• What links here – see which pages link to a given page.
• Special:SpecialPages – list of all built-in special pages.

If you are completely new

If you just arrived and feel lost:

1. Read Landrace.Wiki:About for a high-level overview.
2. Skim Landrace.Wiki:Contributing and pick one contribution path that fits you.
3. Make one small edit (fix a typo, add a missing detail) to get used to the interface.
4. If you hit a wall, ask a question on a relevant talk page and sign with ~~~~.

You cannot “break” the wiki by making a good-faith edit. Everything has a history and can be reverted. The real risk is not making use of the knowledge you already have.