GetWiki:Custom Messages

Message Functions

In GetWiki, to create a new custom message, simply create a page in the GetWiki namespace (as we do not use “MediaWiki”), named “GetWiki:Message” which contains the text of the message. Each message needs a unique name with no special characters. As on this page, we can list custom messages so that readers can find them, or create new ones. There are also system messages available (see below), for day and time messages.

There are three ways to include custom messages in your article: subst and msg and msgnw. Now, subst doesn’t make a copy of the message text and place it where you put the {{subst:message}} tag after you save an article (substitution), but it does what msg does. subst and msg each load the message and put it on the given page every time you load it (transclusion). msgnw does as well, except that the message is displayed in “nowiki” form.

When the message is updated, you do not need to update a page using it. As a guideline, messages are simply includes by another name, and are great for including content on multiple pages, such as the many Philosophy pages here on GetWiki.

Custom Examples

{{msg:GetWiki:Protected}}	For GetWiki, this article has been protected on behalf of its author. See GetMeta:Policy for details...
{{msg:GetWiki:Controversial}}	Controversial! might include drama This article may be considered controversial, but it should not be offensive. It might include topics or viewpoints to challenge your assumptions or views. The article is provided on GetWiki because sometimes it is important for us to read challenging material.

System Examples

{{CURRENTMONTH}}	10
{{CURRENTMONTHNAMEGEN}}	10
{{CURRENTMONTHNAME}}	Oct
{{CURRENTDAY}}	13
{{CURRENTDAYNAME}}	0
{{CURRENTYEAR}}	2024
{{CURRENTTIME}}	6:17 pm, EDT
{{NUMBEROFARTICLES}}	189
{{NAMESPACE}}	GetWiki
{{PAGENAME}}	GetWiki:Custom_Messages

No “Templates”

Some years back, Pseudopedia, using MediaWiki software, moved all of their custom messages, which they called “templates”, to the Template: namespace. They progressively changed all of their {{msg:Foo}} styled messages to {{Foo}} in articles, even as some realized the problem. Their changes required extra processing to render the new message code, and so it has been avoided in GetWiki.

1. First, always evaluate pages when importing. We want cleanly coded articles on GetWiki, rather than broken, ugly pages.
2. If an article you import needs a template used on Pseudopedia, and some might, then look to see if it is already available here.
3. If not, copy the wikitext of the template message and save it here in the GetWiki namespace (please don’t create redirects, and there is no MediaWiki namespace here), so that Template:Foo page on Pseudopedia becomes GetWiki:Foo here.
4. Change any {{Foo}} usage to {{msg:Foo}} (which may in future be automated), or use “msgnw” or “subst”, as explained above.
5. Otherwise, GetWiki will ignore their new code, and no message will be displayed here, if all goes well.

---

Some content adapted from the Wikinfo article “Wikinfo:Editing/Custom Messages” under the GNU Free Documentation License.