Editor's information
This page is intended to serve as a reference for VCC Wiki editors, and provide information useful for both newbies and veterans alike.
Getting Started
Welcome to the VCC Wiki! Before you begin, there's a few different things we need to go through.
Subject of the Wiki
Valve Cut Content focuses on primarily what its name is. Cut content of valve games, such as Half-Life, Portal, Left 4 Dead. It also focuses on the more documentable aspects of the Cut Content community, such as mods and patches.
What sets it apart from the Combine Overwiki is that it specializes in leaks, and doumenting the advanced details of cut content. Where the Overwiki focuses on the various aspects of the final version of the Combine Soldier, leave a brief section about how it changed "Behind the Scenes", VCC Wiki exclusively focuses on how it evolved with "Combine Soldier (Evolution).
Neutral Point of View
Neutral point of view is essential for a writer of Wiki articles to understand.
On the Valve Cut Content, one of the main goals is to provide useful, complete, and accurate information. To provide the highest quality of information, one must be neutral and without any bias or opinion. This is what is called Neutral Point of View, or NPOV.
What is it?
NPOV is when an editor writes or edits articles with a completely neutral point of view. This means that there is no bias or opinion from one author. This also includes to not use the word "I", or other weasel words.
How do I do it?
To follow NPOV, simply write or edit articles without the use of opinionated words such as I, think, like, believe, hate," etc. Using weasel words, such as some argue, many people thought, and experts say are also against the NPOV.
Advertising is also strictly against the NPOV. Advertising is defined as the promoting (or slander) of specific mods or users. Advertising is strongly advised against, as it severely degrades the quality of the article and makes the author seem biased. Source
Formatting Conventions
- When referring to a specific directory, put it within <code></code tags. Example:
/materials/brick/ - When creating a texture gallery, have the caption of each refer to the original VTF's, TGA's, etc.'s name in quotations. For example:
"reciever.vtf"
"scope.vtf"
- The Leak is in reference to the The 2003 Leak, and should be capitalized.
- When referring to Half-Life, make sure to specify which to help avoid confusion.
- Also: It is Half-Life, not "Half Life".
- When using level 4 headers (====Header====), either italicize or bold them to make sure that they are not overlooked as regular text.
Editing Philosophy
VCC Wiki is a wiki that values innovative approaches to page structure above most (if not all) else. We're not going to comply with a set of one-fits-all standards for articles, since there aren't any for the diverse and difficult array of topics that are documented. Try out what you think would work best for your article.
Header Structures
This is a quick outline of various pre-existing header structures. You might find one of them useful for you.
"Evolution" Structure
Overview:
- Second-level headers are used to divide into "sections" of the particular thing's evolution.
- Third-level headers are used after, to show what we have of that particular revision.
- Including final versions is optional, but usually beneficial.
Works best with:
Articles with a long and notable history. Otherwise, an early version might fit better as a "notable aspect" header.
Examples:
"Timeline" Structure
Headers:
- Major events (or years) serve as level 1 headers, dividing events.
- Individual days where events occur serve as level 2 headers.
- Individual events are laid out below the days with bullet points.
- At the very end, a header for references is included.
Works best with:
Large, multi-month events, with smaller bits scattered over multiple days.
Examples:
"Weapon" Structure
Headers:
- First, a brief description of what the weapon is, with the weapon name in bold. I.E.:
The XM29 OICW is the effective predecessor to the OSPIR. It is still in use in the leak, and thus fully present.
- Two level two headers:
- Overview
- Tactics
- Further case-by-case headers, documenting notable aspects of the weapon. I.E.:
- Older Texture
- Cut Grenade Launching Function
- Facepunch Leaks
- Another level-two header gallery, with dividing subheaders something like this:
- Screenshots
- Renders
- Textures
- A header for references. (If used!)
Works best with:
- Articles documenting weapons. The general idea of it can be applied elsewhere, though.
Examples:
Image Standards
- Don't reuse images from other wikis. Grab your own renders and/or pictures, where possible.
- When capturing images, try to maximise the resolution possible.
- When capturing renders using hlmv, take the time to remove the background.
- Also, setting the background to an obnoxious, clearly distinct color, like hot pink or lime, can make removing said background much easier, and prone to less accidents.
References
These are intended to be used by veteran editors as a reference.
Infoboxes
- The current custom "Infobox" panels are:
| Purpose (For documenting) | Template name |
|---|---|
| Cut enemies | Template:Cut Enemies |
| Cut Maps | Template:MapInfoBox |
| Cut weapons | Template:Weapon_infobox |
| Mods | Template:Mod_InfoBox |
| Shitposts/memes | Template:Game_Infobox |
| Vehicles | Template:Vehicle_Template |
Please consider if the current ones are a good fit for your article before creating another.
Linking
There are several different sorts of linking that may be needed in certain situations.
- If the text you are linking is the same as the page title, use two sets of brackets.
- Example:[[Metropolice (Evolution)]]
- If the text you are linking to is different from the page title, use two sets of brackets, and put down the exact page title, with "|" at the end. Then, put down the text from which the link will be displayed.
- Example:[[Metropolice (Evolution)|Police]]
- If the text you are linking is outside the wiki, first put down the link of it. Then, put down (with no separating characters) the text you wish to display.
Tagging
This is a list of the currently-used tags. If you feel another should be added, feel free to - this system isn't perfect by a long shot.
Games
- Half-Life (General series tag)
- Left 4 Dead(General series tag)
- Counter Strike(General series tag)
Leaks
General tag, used for leak documentation articles, does not involve articles relating to specific parts of leaks.
Use tags below when tagging articles about a specific part of them.
- Category:2016 Leaks (Depending on the date of the leak)
- Category:2017 Leaks
Type specifiers
- Category:Items (Including weapons)
- Category:Maps (Used for maps.)
- Category:Locations (Used for locations. Should not overlap with maps.)
Article Types
Miscellaneous
Useful Files
Various files and tools helpful for the investigative editor.
Generally Useful
VTFEdit, a powerful texture editor
GCFScape, a good tool for browsing GCFs and VPKs
VTF Shell Extensions, a tool that allows you to see thumbnails for .vtf files
Beta Stuff
ValveArchive folder for the 2003 leak
Pack of beta model viewers and decompilers
Pack of decompiled models from ScarT's infamous decompiler
Blackfox's reference docs. CSVs of sounds used in the maps, textures, versions, etc.
Useful Wiki Stuff
Two tips for removing the unnecesary stuff wikia likes adding:
- For galleries: Include "hideaddbutton=true" to remove the add buttons
- For headers: Include "__NOEDITSECTION__" anywhere in the article to remove header edit buttons.
Useful Templates
- To have a ToC box that aligns to the right of the page, use {{toc-right}}.
- To format text to go past photos, use "{{clear}}".
Example:
Woo! This is below the picture!
