Editing Encyclopedia:Signatures (section)

== Customizing your signature ==
{{See also|Wikipedia:Signature tutorial}}
{{Shortcut|WP:CUSTOMSIG}}

Every editor's default signature (as defined by [[MediaWiki:Signature]]) will display when <code><nowiki>~~~~</nowiki></code> is typed. This looks like:

<blockquote>
[[User:Example|Example]] ([[User talk:Example|talk]]) {{CURRENTTIME}}, {{CURRENTDAY}} {{CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{CURRENTYEAR}} (UTC)
</blockquote>

Unregistered users, or users not logged in, may choose to manually sign with a pseudonym or tag (e.g. ''anon.''), as their IP address will be stored in the page history. If you choose to sign your posts in such a way, you must still finish your signature with four tildes (such as <code><nowiki>Anonymous editing as ~~~~</nowiki></code>) to help aid others with reading the thread easily, and with communicating back with you.

=== Customizing how everyone sees your signature ===
{{Shortcut|WP:FANCYSIG}}{{Anchor|CustomSig}}
<!-- obsolete image [[File:Raw signature.png|250px|thumb|Screenshot of the [[Special:Preferences]] page, containing the section '''''Raw Signature'''''.]]-->

Registered users can customize their signatures by going to [[Special:Preferences#mw-prefsection-personal-signature|Special:Preferences]] and changing the field "Signature". This changes the signature that is left when you enter <code><nowiki>~~~~</nowiki></code> into discussions. It can be used to sign your posts with a nickname, or with custom formatting, or both.

This technique only applies where you have left your signature onto a page while logged into your account. It also doesn't affect how your username appears in your watchlist, in any logs or page histories, or where someone else has added a link to your user page in a discussion. Modifying your signature in [[Special:Preferences#mw-prefsection-personal-signature|your user preferences]] will only apply to the ''future'' signatures that you leave ''moving forward''. Since adding <code><nowiki>~~~~</nowiki></code> to discussions simply results in those characters being ''replaced'' by your signature before the edit is saved, any existing signatures that you've left on previous or existing discussions will not be automatically updated or changed.

==== Treat as wiki markup ====
If you do not check the "Treat the above as wiki markup" box, the exact content you enter will be used as your signature. For example, if [[User:Example]] had set their signature to read <code><nowiki><span style="color:orange;">'''EXAMPLE'''</span></nowiki></code>, thereafter the signature (generated when they mark a post with <code><nowiki>~~~~</nowiki></code>) would be:

<blockquote>
[[User:Example|<nowiki><span style="color:orange;">'''EXAMPLE'''</span></nowiki>]] ([[User talk:Example|talk]]) {{CURRENTTIME}}, {{CURRENTDAY}} {{CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{CURRENTYEAR}} (UTC)
</blockquote>

If you do check the "Treat the above as wiki markup" box, you can describe your signature using "raw" wikitext (such as <nowiki><span> and wiki-markup</nowiki>) which will be substituted unchanged when you sign your posts. If [[User:Example]] had set their signature to read <code><nowiki>[[User:Example|<span style="color:orange;">'''EXAMPLE'''</span>]] ([[User talk:Example|talk]])</nowiki></code>, the signature generated by <code><nowiki>~~~~</nowiki></code> would be:

<blockquote>
[[User:Example|<span style="color:orange;">'''EXAMPLE'''</span>]] ([[User talk:Example|talk]]) {{CURRENTTIME}}, {{CURRENTDAY}} {{CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{CURRENTYEAR}} (UTC)
</blockquote>
In this case, you are responsible yourself for linking to your user page (e.g. [[User:Example]]).

To visibly include the pipe (<code>|</code>) or equals (<code>=</code>) characters in your signature, you must [[Escape character|escape]] them, or they will break templates unexpectedly when your signature is present. To escape the <code>|</code> symbol, use the following special code: <code>&amp;#124;</code> (including everything from the ampersand to the semi-colon). To escape the <code>=</code> character, use <code>&amp;#61;</code>.

Putting two or more exclamation points (<code>!!</code>) in a row in your signature can break tables in which your signature appears. Use <code>&amp;#33;&amp;#33;</code> as a substitute in order to avoid having two exclamation points in a row.

=== Customizing how you see your signature ===
To change how your signature appears to you, e.g. to make it easier to spot, without affecting how it appears to other users, you can create a personal [[Cascading Style Sheets|CSS style sheet]]. For example, to display your username in bold white text on an orange background (like <span style="font-weight: bold; background-color: #ffa500; color: #ffffff;">Your username</span>), add the following to [[Special:MyPage/common.css]], replacing ''Your username'' with your actual username:

:<code><nowiki>#bodyContent a[title="User:</nowiki>''Your username''<nowiki>"] { background-color: #ffa500; color: #ffffff; font-weight: bold; }</nowiki></code>

When you use this technique, bright colors can help you to more quickly scan long pages that contain <code><nowiki>[[User:</nowiki>''Your&nbsp;username''<nowiki>]]</nowiki></code>, including [[Help:Talk pages|Talk pages]], [[Help:Page history|page histories]], your [[Help:Watching pages|watchlist]], and if anyone links to you in a discussion. Colors to use for this can be researched via the [[Web colors]] article, and you can update your common.css file at any time to modify the display style.

==== Guidelines and policies ====
{{shortcut|WP:CUSTOMSIG/P}}
Because these signatures are seen by everyone, be aware of the guidelines and policies summarized below:
* A customised signature should make it easy to identify your username, but this is not required.<ref group="Note">A [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia_talk:Signatures&oldid=1029971563#RfC:_usernames_in_signatures 2021 RfC] was closed with consensus against signatures being required to correspond exactly to usernames and no consensus to require that signatures be easily recognizable to a new user as referring to the username they link to.</ref>
* Do not impersonate other users.
* Do not use [[Wikipedia:Image use policy|images]], [[Help:Transclusion|transcluded]] [[Wikipedia:Template namespace|templates]], [[Wikipedia:Lua|Lua modules]], [[Wikipedia:Parser Functions|parser functions]], [[Wikipedia:TemplateStyles|TemplateStyles]] or [[Wikipedia:External links|external links]] in your signature.
* A distracting, confusing, or otherwise unsuitable signature may adversely affect other users. For example, some editors find that long formatting disrupts discourse on talk pages, or makes working in the edit window more difficult.
* Complicated signatures contain a lot of code ("[[WP:MARKUP|markup]]") that is revealed in the edit window, and can take up unnecessary amounts of narrative space, which can make both reading and editing harder.
* Always keep the time/date-stamp: these are used by bots to determine when a discussion is eligible to be archived.

====Syntax guidance====
If you attempt to save a signature with certain types of errors, you will see an error message. These errors can be a little tricky to diagnose, but here are some tips:
* Each opening tag must have a corresponding closing tag. Example: each {{tag|b|o}} needs a matching {{tag|b|c}}. This applies to <code><nowiki>''</nowiki></code> and <code><nowiki>'''</nowiki></code> markup as well.
* Tags must be "nested" correctly. Example: <code><nowiki><b>User:<i>Example</i></b></nowiki></code>, not <code><nowiki><b>User:<i>Example</b></i></nowiki></code>. 
* If an opening tag appears within a wikilink, it must be closed within a wikilink. Example: <code><nowiki>[[User:'''Example''']]</nowiki></code>, not <code><nowiki>[[User:'''Example]]'''</nowiki></code>.
* Your signature must include a link to your user page, talk page, or contributions. At least one of the three must be on the same Wikimedia project as the page where the signature is used.<ref group="Note">[[mw:New requirements for user signatures#Require a link to user page, talk page or contributions]]</ref> (This is a technical requirement enforced by the MediaWiki software.)

=== Signature forgery ===
{{policy section|WP:SIGFORGE}}
{{strong|Never use another editor's signature.}} Impersonating another editor by using their username or signature is forbidden. Altering the markup code of your signature to make it look substantially like another user's signature may also be considered a form of impersonation. Editing the code of your signature to link it to another editor's user page is not permitted. It is also ineffective, as the change log of the page records the IP address and (if applicable) username of all editors; as such, any impersonators can easily be caught if the signature in the ''diff'' view differs from the editor's default signature. While not an absolute requirement, it is common practice for a signature to resemble to some degree the username it represents.

If you encounter a user whose signature is disruptive or appears to be impersonating another account, it is appropriate to ask that user to consider changing their signature to meet the requirements of this policy. When making such a request, always be polite, and [[WP:Good faith|assume good faith]]; do not immediately assume that the user has intentionally selected a disruptive or inappropriate signature. If {{em|you}} are asked to change your signature, please avoid interpreting a polite request as an attack. Since the success of Wikipedia is based on effective teamwork, both parties should work together to find a mutually acceptable solution.

=== Appearance and color ===
{{Policy section|WP:SIGAPP}}
{{nutshell|title=This section|Ensure that your signature is clear, easily readable, and does not disrupt other editors.}}
'''Your signature must not blink, scroll, or otherwise cause inconvenience to or annoy other editors.'''
* Avoid markup such as {{Tag|big|o}} and {{Tag|span|params=style="font-size: 200%;"|o}}<sup>(or more)</sup> tags (which {{Big|enlarge}} text); this is likely to disrupt the way that surrounding text displays.
* Do not add line breaks ({{Tag|br|s}}), which can also negatively affect nearby text display. The use of [[non-breaking space]]s or <code><sp<nowiki />an&nbsp;class="[[WP:NOWRAP|nowrap]]"></code> to ensure that the signature displays on one line is recommended.
* Be sparing with [[subscript and superscript]]. In some cases, this type of script can also affect the way that surrounding text is displayed.
* Do not make your signature so small that it is difficult to read.
* As some users have vision problems, be conscious of color and contrast issues. If you use different colors in your signature, please ensure that the result will be readable by people with [[color blindness]], defective color vision, and other visual disabilities.<ref group="Note">The [[Web Content Accessibility Guidelines]] specify a [[contrast ratio]] of {{em|at least}} 4.5:1 for text, and {{section link|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Accessibility|Color}} requires 7:1 "where feasible". To use named CSS colors on a white background, refer to [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Accessibility/CSS colors for text on white]] for recommended colors. For other usage, use this [https://webaim.org/resources/linkcontrastchecker/?fcolor=202122&bcolor=FFFFFF&lcolor=3333FF Link contrast checker] to help determine if the colors will be visible to everyone. Signatures do not always appear on white or black backgrounds. Other colors for calculations range from the [[Wikipedia:Skin|Monobook skin's]] very pale blue ({{Color box|#F8FCFF|#F8FCFF}}) to the closed discussion [[Template:hat|Hidden archive]] tan ({{Color box|#F2DFCE|#F2DFCE}}) title bar. Other tools for checking contrast are described at {{section link|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Accessibility|Color}}.</ref>
* Do not include horizontal rules (<code><nowiki>----</nowiki></code> or {{Tag|hr|s}}).
* Do not include {{tag|div}}s because those cause the surrounding text to make a new line.
For guidance on how to use color and other effects to customize the appearance of your signature, see [[Wikipedia:Signature tutorial|this tutorial]].

Signature formatting has been the subject of numerous [[WP:RFC|Requests for Comment]], and has also resulted in some very heated debates. When dealing with potentially problematic signatures, simply being [[WP:POLITE|polite]] is often sufficient and can prevent the situation from escalating into a [[WP:DISPUTE|dispute]]. You can use [[Template:Uw-sigapp]] to warn users who have potentially problematic signatures.

=== Borrowing designs ===
Editors do not [[WP:OWN|own]] the design of their signature and cannot prohibit others from borrowing it. However, because signature customization is intended in part to make it easier to tell editors apart, it is considered good practice when borrowing a signature design to change the color or another design element.

=== Font tags ===
{{shortcut|WP:SIGFONT}}
{{tag|font}} tags were deprecated in [[HTML4]] and are entirely obsolete in [[HTML5]]. This means that the popular browsers may drop support for them at some point. Wikipedia is already preparing for this by [[lint (software)|delinting]] code project-wide through [[Wikipedia:Linter|Linter]], and by [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Village_pump_(proposals)&oldid=1192094205#RfC:_disallowing_new_signatures_obsolete_tags disallowing obsolete tags in new signatures]. When support is finally dropped, the tags will be ignored in all existing signatures; any properties such as color and font family will revert to their default values. For this reason, it is recommended that you use {{tag|span}} tags and CSS properties instead. For usage examples, see {{section link|Wikipedia:Signature tutorial|Real-life examples}}. You may request additional coding assistance at [[Wikipedia:Help desk]].

When you change your signature, it does not affect signatures that you used on pages in the past. Therefore, if you currently use {{tag|font}} tags in your signature, switching to {{tag|span}} tags now will reduce the number of your signatures (including those in the archives of talk spaces) that will render incorrectly after the browsers drop support for {{tag|font}}. Moreover, [[Wikipedia:Refactoring talk pages|refactoring]] old signatures from you and other users (including in archive pages) by changing {{tag|font|o}} tags to {{tag|span|o}} tags can help prepare the project for this eventual loss of support.

=== Images ===
{{See also|Phabricator:T68006}}
{{policy section|WP:SIGIMAGE}}
{{strong|Images of any kind must not be used in signatures}} for the following reasons.
* Excessive or large images can cause issues for users on low-performance devices.
* A new image can be uploaded in place of the one you chose, making your signature a target for possible vandalism.
* They make pages more difficult to read and scan.
* They make it more difficult to copy text from a page.
* They are potentially distracting from the actual content.
* Images do not scale with the text, making the lines with images higher than those without them.
* They clutter up the "file links" list on the respective image's page every time one signs on a different talk page.
* Images in signatures give undue prominence to a given user's contribution.

[[Unicode symbols]] (including [[emoji]]) may be used in your signature, as long as the signature complies with the other guidelines on this page.

=== <span id="LENGTH"></span> Length ===
{{Shortcut|WP:SIGLEN|WP:SIGLENGTH}}
{{strong|Keep signatures short, both in display and in markup.}}

The limit is '''255 characters'''.

Extremely long signatures with a lot of HTML/wiki markup make page editing and discussion more difficult for the following reasons:
* Signatures that take up more than two or three lines in the edit window clutter the page and make it harder to distinguish posts from signatures.
* Long signatures give undue prominence to a given user's contribution.
* Signatures that occupy more space than necessary in the edit box displace meaningful comments, thus forcing editors to scroll when writing their replies.
* The presence of such long signatures in the discussion also disrupts the reading of comments when editors are formulating their replies.

The software will automatically truncate both plain and raw signatures to 255 characters of {{em|code}} in the Signature field. If [[#NT|substitution]] of templates or another page is used, please be careful to verify that your signature does not violate the 255-character length limit when the templates are expanded, as the software will not do this automatically.

=== Overriding custom signatures ===
==== <span id="Signature minimisation"></span>Unclutter signature minimiser ====
[[File:Keφr's Unclutter signature minimiser.png|thumb|right|Custom-styled Unclutter and [[Wikipedia:Comments in Local Time|Comments in Local Time]] reformatting signatures and timestamps in a Wikipedia discussion.]]
If you prefer not to see other users' custom signatures, you can use the custom [[JavaScript]] module ''Unclutter''. By default, Unclutter scans non-special non-article pages for timestamped signatures, wraps them up and replaces with a text of the form:

: <span class="plainlinks" style="background: rgba(0,0,0,.05); color: inherit">— [[User:Example|Example]] (annotation) <small>([[User talk:Example|talk]] • [[Special:Contributions/Example|ctb]] • [[Special:Log/Example|act]] • [{{fullurl:Special:Log|page=User:Example}} log] • [[#Signature minimisation|sig]])</small></span>

This technique displays the actual username to you and is extensively configurable. It doesn't affect how anyone else sees the signatures. See [[User:Kephir/gadgets/unclutter]] for more details.

While this script works in practice for most signatures found on the English Wikipedia, there are [[User:Kephir/gadgets/unclutter#Limitations|several unavoidable limitations]] which make Unclutter fail to recognise every possible signature. Signatures which violate policies laid out on this page may not be recognised. Unclutter is not an excuse to violate or decline to enforce the signature policy.

==== Using custom CSS ====
[[File:manage enwiki signatures with css - thumbnail.png|thumb|right|Overriding custom signature formatting ([[:File:manage enwiki signatures with css.png|→more examples]])]]
It's also possible to use your personal [[Special:MyPage/common.css|common.css]] style sheet to override the formatting of other users' signatures.

This allows you to decide how links to user pages should be displayed to you when you are logged-in. For example, you could highlight <span style="font-weight: bold; background-color: #6633ff; color: #ffffff;">Your username</span> in bold reversed mauve and <span style="font-weight: normal; color: #6633ff; ">Other signatures</span> in normal mauve. This approach works by reversing a variety of commonly used signature formatting techniques, but it doesn't attempt to replace the text content of the signature. For example, if <code>[[User:Example]]</code> has customized their signature to read <span style="background-color: #804; color: #fa0;">Ex</span><span style="font-weight: normal; background-color: inherit; color: #5b2;">@</span><span style="font-style: italic; background-color: #804; color: #fa0;">mple</span>, changing the formatting would display <span style="font-weight: normal; color: #6633ff; ">Ex@mple</span> rather than their actual name <span style="font-weight: normal; color: #6633ff; ">Example</span>.

No other users will see your custom effects. You can remove or modify them at any time by changing the instructions in your style sheet. The change will apply to all pages regardless of how old they may be. For an example stylesheet, see [[User:Pointillist/reformat-signatures.css]].