Wikipedia:Keep it concise

Why day is day, night night, and time is time,
Were nothing but to waste night, day and time.
Therefore, since brevity is the soul of wit,
And tediousness the limbs and outward flourishes ...

- Hamlet, Wm. Shakespeare

There are over a hundred entries a day at Articles for Deletion, and similar workloads all over Wikipedia. Beyond a certain length - however much it differs per reader - a long, rambling response on any issue just falls flat. Most discussions here are surprisingly simple: does a certain article subject, or a particular editing action, meet Wikipedia policy and guideline or not? Explaining why (or why not) shouldn't require an essay, let alone multiple essays rebutting every post any editor makes on the subject.

Example:

  • Keep Well, let me address every word and phrase you used in your deletion nomination and everything every other Delete !voter has said ... [ seven hundred words later ] ... User:SirTalksALot 8:15, 6 November 2008 (UTC)

Assume good faith is a double-edged sword. In the legal field, there is the concept of "equity," part of which boils down to the Golden Rule: in order to receive equity, you must give equity. Swamping a debate with verbiage can be a display of poor faith and incivility, and bogs down far more debates than such rambling essays illuminate. Equity involves keeping one's arguments to a manageable size. This helps to ensure that other editors will read, rather than skim or skip, your comments, and that all editors - not just the ones who feel like writing the most words - have equal time to express their own views.

See also

Content Disclaimer

Informasi ini disarikan dari Wikipedia dan disajikan kembali untuk tujuan edukasi. Konten tersedia di bawah lisensi CC BY-SA 3.0. Kami tidak bertanggung jawab atas ketidakakuratan data yang bersumber dari kontribusi publik tersebut.

  1. The information displayed on this website is sourced in part or in whole from Wikipedia and has been adapted for the purpose of restating it. We strive to provide accurate and relevant information, however:
  2. There is no guarantee of absolute accuracy. Wikipedia is an open, collaborative project that can be edited by anyone, so information is subject to change.
  3. It is not intended to constitute professional advice. The content displayed is for informational and educational purposes only. For important decisions (e.g., medical, legal, or financial), please consult a professional.
  4. Content copyright. Wikipedia is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License (CC BY-SA). This means that content may be reused with appropriate attribution and shared under a similar license.
  5. Responsible use. Any risk arising from the use of information from this website is entirely the responsibility of the user.