User:The Amazing Matt/Standardized layouts

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Standardized layouts are layouts I have created to create all pages of a certain type in the same way. This standardization insures all relevant information is quickly available for researchers, experts, children, and the average user.

Layouts[edit]

What do I do if I disagree with your layout?[edit]

It is possible that you may disagree with my standard layout. You might also be correct. Do not directly edit the standard layout. Instead, post a comment on the talk page of the standardized layout so a more informed and diplomatic discussion can occur.

General rules[edit]

Titles[edit]

All words in the title that are not proper must begin with a lower case letter, unless they are the first word in the title. All proper nouns must be capitalized.

Incorrect: Baseball Hall Of Fame Balloting, 1971
Correct: Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 1971

If the page is of a living thing, and the thing has an obvious accepted common name, that should be the title, not the scientific name. The rational is that the average person is much more likely to identify and search for a living thing based upon the common name, and the accepted scientific name of a thing may change in the future. Redirect the scientific name and lesser used common names to the main page.

If the page has no obvious accepted common name, use the current accepted scientific name to name the article. The title must be in italics.

Overviews[edit]

Overviews are the short descriptions found directly under the article heading. Remember that this is where the most relevant information should be provided to the user, in a brief, organized fashion.

Here are some examples

The common name of fish (Accepted scientific name of fish), [also known as the another common name,] is a category of fish found primarily from westernmost part of range to easternmost part of range. It is one of x members of the genus genus. It is notable for its unique characteristic. It is also known for its habit of unique habit.

Use of the layouts[edit]

The layouts include most necessary sections. Because reliable information may not be found for all sections, any section displayed in the layout may be excluded.