Guide: Items

a

General info

OpiWiki items database is a database of persons and things. Every item has its own page, can be rated in multiple areas and listed in multiple rankings.

Let's say you want to ask people how do they rate George Clooney as an actor. Instead of creating a topic titled How do you rate George Clooney as an actor?, you can just add George to the database. Then, after his profile is created, simply add him to the adequate rankings; you add George to the drama actors ranking, comedy actors ranking, and directors ranking. This way the adequate rating areas have been created and now users can easily rate George not only as an actor, but also as a drama actor, comedy actor, and as a director. Moreover, each rating has its own discussion, and as an actor and director, George has been automatically added to the artists ranking. It's a pretty cool and complex system, about which you can learn more at Guide: Rankings.

Summing up, items database is our solution to answer questions asking to rate (and rank) items. An item is a person or a thing. Not necessarily a physical thing – it can be abstract – basically anything that can be rated. For example, an item can be titled George Clooney's performance in Solaris.

b

Rating area

An item's rating area, as described in the general info, is a topic (both voting and discussion), which is automatically created when the item is added to a ranking (main ranking).

c

Creating

To add a new item to the database, go to the items section (the top bar link "Items") and click the Add new item button.

d

Element: Name

As we accept any item that can be rated, it's not easy to establish all the rules of how to name items, especially for things.

Persons. You should use the name the person is known by (usually it's not the full name). If there are a few persons with the same name, the most popular person's name should stay as it is, and for the rest of the persons a profession information should be put in the name info field. The name info may be "politician", "musician", "tennis player", etc. If it's not easy to ascertain which person is the most popular, the additional info should be added to every name.

Things. Use the thing's official name. If the name is unique or well-known and original (invented first), that should be enough. Otherwise, you should put additional info in the name info field. For example, there are many things named "Orange". It's pointless to say the fruit or the color is the "original", so it can be Orange (fruit), Orange (color), Orange (band), etc.

There are exceptions to this rule. The best way to make sure the format you're using is correct, is searching the database for similar items.

Don't use the Every-Word-Capitalized style, unless such is the official name.

e

Element: Image

Persons. The optimal ratio is 3:4 and dimensions-wise it should be at least 150x200 pixels. We don't like Wikipedia-like photos - we like official photos or photos presenting persons at their best. If a person is still active in their profession, a relatively acutal photo is required. For portrait photos, the top line of a photo should be a (tiny) bit above the person's head, and the bottom line should be around the chest, or a bit lower. It's important to know that on some pages the image will be cropped (the bottom part) to a square format (1:1), and then the entire face should still be visible.

Things. As usual, it's best to search for similar OpiWiki items to learn how to choose a good image. For things like games or movies we like official covers or posters (not logos).

Don't take the first image you find. Try not to search for images on Wikipedia, as they are usually low-quality (for non-vector; non-scalable images). Give some time to find a perfect image and then, if needed, crop it properly in your favorite graphics editor. Make the item's OpiWiki page beautiful and appealing, but not too much "artistic", non-encyclopedic at the same time.

f

Element: Description

No opinions, just pure facts. We usually use the same format as Wikipedia does. The description should begin with "item_name is a..." Important keywords (such as the item's names) should be emphasized (bold). For persons, a birth date info should be added to the description as well. If you copy the first few sentences of the description from Wikipedia, be sure to fill in the "Wikipedia link" input. Avoid copying opinion-based info such as "he is widely considered...", critical reception info, etc. Don't copy the pronunciation info.

Adding a non-encyclopedic part to the description is allowed if it's an official description (e.g. a book's commercial description). In such cases it should be clearly stated which part is non-encyclopedic, e.g:

"Official description:

The text goes here."

g

Element: Linked items

Linked items of an item are divided into higher items and lower items.

For person-thing relations; if an item is created by some person, this person is the higher item. For example, for a movie item, a higher item is anyone from the crew and the cast. In other words, if a person has been or was involved in creation of an item, the person should be set as the higher item. A person item can only be the higher item in a relation. A person item cannot have higher items.

For thing-thing relations; if item A is a part of item B, item B is the higher item. For example, item A is a song and item B is a music album having that song. Another rule of linking items together is when items are from the same series. In such case, the higher item is the older item, for example: Windows XP > Windows 10.

Person's role: For person-thing relations, sometimes it is necessary to define the person's role. For example, Clint Eastwood is both director and actor, so when you link Clint with a movie, it's impossible for OpiWiki system to automatically define whether Clint is a director, actor, or both. Defining the relation is intuitive, however, there are a few rules for special cases:

Musicians: For musicians, usually there are many choices (for a single musician item), for example: musician (as an artist), singer, songwriter, guitarist, etc. The general rule is that the musician (artist) is dedicated only for the "key" artist(s) of an item. In other words, it's not for guest artists, such as guest singers or guitarists. It's also not for songwriters or lyricists, if they're not the key artists. In case of music bands, all members are considered key artists, therefore all should have the musician (artist) choice selected. Key artists may also have other choices selected, depending on what they do in the relation.

Linking a musician with a music video, the only choice should be the musician (artist). Linking a musician with a live performance, the musician (artist) should not be selected.

h

Other elements

Other item elements are described on the Add new item page.

i

Editing

To edit an item, go to its profile and click the "Edit" button. There may be multiple reasons to edit an item, e.g. to improve the description, correct misspelled word, update the data, upload a better picture, etc.

j

Flagging

You should flag an item when it should be deleted - when there's no point of editing it.

To flag an item, go to its profile and click the "Edit" button. Then click the "Flag" button. Possible reasons:

  • obvious reasons - vandalism, etc.
  • incorrect - there is no way to rate the item, or it isn't on-topic
  • duplicate - an identical item already exists

k

Adding to rankings

To add an item to the rankings, go to the item's profile and click the "Add rankings" button. Find the ranking using the search field, click the ranking, and optionally use the scheme menu (just appeared below) to navigate and add other rankings. Click the proceed button when you're ready.

l

Removing from rankings

To remove an item from a ranking, go to the item's profile and click the "Edit" button.

m

Naming specific types of items

Some types of items require specific naming rules;

Items that require name info always: Some item types require the name info to be set, even if the name is distinctive;

  • songs, format: [artist_name] song
    e.g. Eminem song
  • music albums, [artist_name] album

Soundtracks: We can divide soundtracks – such as film or video game soundtracks – into two groups: soundtracks that have and don't have their official title set. The official title of a soundtrack is often not the first thing that comes to mind of a person who is thinking of/searching for the soundtrack. That's why we standardize the soundtrack titles. Every OpiWiki soundtrack item must have the following name format: [the_original_title_of_the_work_the_soundtrack_is_for]: Original Soundtrack e.g. Toy Story: Original Soundtrack Now, if there's a colon (":") in the work's name, then the part: : Original Soundtrack
     should be replaced with
, Original Soundtrack e.g. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Original Soundtrack,
not  The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt: Original Soundtrack Now, if the "after-hypen" (subtitle) part could be removed from the_work's name, without hurting the name's clarity, it should be done. For example, it's clear that The Witcher 3 is equal to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, and therefore and finally: The Witcher 3: Original Soundtrack is the correct name. The description. Before we continue, let's assume that The Witcher's 3 soundtrack is officially titled The Witcher 3: Musical Adventure. Now, generally the description is acceptable in 2 formats:

  • [the_work's_full_name] OST is the (original) soundtrack...
  • [the_soundtrack's_official_title] is the (original) soundtrack...
So, in our example, the correct variations are:
  • The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt OST is the (original) soundtrack...
  • The Witcher 3: Musical Adventure is the (original) soundtrack...
That's it. The rest should be done according to our general guidelines.

Series: The specific rules applies only to series that are not series "by default". For example, Breaking Bad is a series by default, so in this case it's clear. Here are the rules for film, book, or video game series consisting of separate works: [series_official_name_if_exists] The official name might be also the name the series is known by. For example, Isaac Asimov's Foundation novel series is known simply as Foundation series. But, if the series type name is more than 1 word, for example more than just "series", it must be put after a colon (":") and capitalized: Harry Potter: Movie Series (correct)
Harry Potter movie series (incorrect) If a series doesn't have the official title, the correct format is: [series_key_name]: [series_type/name] Now, the more specific the [series_type/name] is, the better; Some_movie_series: Movie Trilogy (better)
Some_movie_series: Movie Series (worse) Some_novel_series: Complete Novel Saga (better, in some cases)
Some_novel_series: Complete Novel Series (slightly worse in some cases) The "saga" term is more specific, therefore in narrow cases it might look better. Example: Baldur's Gate: The Original Saga. Note that "The" is not needed usually, this is a very specific example. Also, the less redundant the [series_type/name] is, the better; Some_game_series: Original Trilogy (better, if undoubtedly descriptive)
Some_game_series: Original Game Trilogy (worse) However, if there are 4+ works in a series, and the works are connected not unequivocally, the word(s) describing the series 100% clearly, leaving no room for multiple interpretations, should be added. Usually the word full should be enough, but in some cases even a more specific term might be better: Star Wars: Full 9-Movie Saga (best)
Star Wars: Full Series (slightly worse)
Star Wars: Movie Series (incorrect)

Franchises: The correct format is: [franchise_key_name] franchise For example: Star Wars franchise.

Fictional characters: General format for naming any fictional character is: Name: [character_name], name info: [title_of_the_work_the_character_is_from] character OR Name: [character_name], name info: [name_of_the_universe_the_character_is_from] character For example: Name: Darth Vader, name info: Star Wars character
Name: Drizzt Do'Urden, name info: Forgotten Realms character The [title_of_the_work_the_character_is_from] must not include a part/volume number. For example: name info: Final Fantasy character,
not Final Fantasy VIII character If the [title_of_the_work_the_character_is_from] is long enough, it's all right to shorten the title (if possible), or to shorten the name info to simply fictional character. If a fictional character's name is similar or the same as the work's title, the name info should be simplified also to fictional character. For example: Name: Dexter Morgan, name info: fictional character,
not Dexter Morgan, Dexter character Name: Harry Potter, name info: fictional character,
not Harry Potter, Harry Potter character If following the foregoing rules would make the character's identity unclear, subjective, or simply unappealing, it's okay to set the name info to fictional character.

n

Special rules

Some types of items require special rules;

Software: On OpiWiki we divide software info 4 branches: websites, web services, programs, and apps. Websites and web services. An item should be treated as a web service when it's a website dedicated to a certain service (such as email, mapping, searching, etc.). In other words, when it's a program accessible directly via a website, with no need to install an external program or app. When a website is broader than that, it should be treated as a website. Programs and apps. The difference between programs and apps should be intuitive. A program is a software that works directly under a desktop operating system. An app is a mobile operating system program, or a "program" working inside a program (a program as described in the previous sentence).

These 4 branches of software cannot be mixed on a single item page. For example, if there's a web service and an app with the same name (and of the same series), named let's say "Let's go", to rate it in both areas, 2 separate items need to be created – usually the names would be Let's go and Let's go app. If the app is the main/original software, and the web service comes secondary, it should be Let's go (web version) and Let's go for the app.

Three of the branches – web services, programs, and apps – can be rated in multiple categories. For example, a program can be rated as a video editing program and as an audio editing program.