IT frameworks:How to merge articles

From IT frameworks

A merger is a non-automated process by which two similar or redundant pages are united on one page.

Performing the merger

There are three basic types of merge; which to use depends on how much content of the source page you want to keep, and how much time and skill you have to do the merge:

• Full-content paste merger - most content, clean and fast
• Selective paste merger - some content, clean but slow
• Text dump merger - *ALL* content, crude but fast and easy

Also remember that almost all article pages have a talk page. To avoid losing quick access to that historical discussion, a link to the source page's talk-page should be placed at the top of the destination's talk-page, such as:
Article merged: See old talk-page [[talk:PAGENAME|here]]

Full-content paste merger

1. Open the source and destination pages in two separate edit windows/tabs.
2. Cut/paste the entire content from the source page into the destination page.
3. Save the destination page, with an edit summary noting "merge content from [[article name]]"
4. Delete all the text from the source page and replace it with #REDIRECT [[PAGENAME]] {{R from merge}}, note the merger (including the page name) in the edit summary, and save the page.
5. Edit the destination page again and delete the redundant content, editing until it looks good and consistent.
6. Save the destination page. (Edit summary of "cleanup after paste/merge" is appropriate.)
7. Check "What links here" on the source page for double-redirects.
   • Double-redirects will fail to link, and must be renamed to redirect to the current page name.

Performing a merger in this manner is beneficial when you want to include all the content from both articles in the article history of the final article.

Selective paste merger

1. Open the source and destination pages in two separate edit windows/tabs.
2. Cut/paste the non-redundant content from the source page into the destination page.
3. Preview and edit the destination page until it looks good and consistent.
4. Delete all the text from the source page and replace it with #REDIRECT [[PAGENAME]] {{R from merge}}.
5. Save both, and note the merger (including the page names) in the edit summaries.
6. Check "What links here" on the source page for double-redirects.
   • Double-redirects will fail to link, and must be renamed to redirect to the current page name.

Performing a merger in this manner is beneficial when the source document includes a great deal of material that is not needed in the final article.

Text dump merger

Simply dumping the text from one page onto another is progress, because it puts all of the information on the same topic on the same page. This, however, seldom results in a smooth-flowing article. Fixing that may require a great deal of time and rewriting. If you can do that, terrific! Future readers will greatly benefit from your contribution. If you do not have the time or expertise to do so, please tag the article for attention.