View source for Template:Self reference/doc

{{distinguish|Template:Self reference cleanup}}
{{Documentation subpage}}
{{High-use|2060}}
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The {{tlf|Self reference}} template generates a hatnote that will ''not'' appear in any article content. The template's intended purpose is to display information that is relevant only to a reader. 

Unlike many hatnote templates, {{tlf|Self reference}} has no preset text, link generation, or formatting other than italics. <code><nowiki>{{Self reference|Foo}}</nowiki></code> simply returns ''Foo''. Many hatnote templates that ''do'' contain helpful preset text and linking, such as {{t|for}} and {{t|about}}, support a {{para|selfref}} parameter that gives them the same functionality as {{tlf|Self reference}}, making them better options in most circumstances.


== Usage ==
In most cases, {{tlf|Selfref}} is used to create a disambiguation link to a page in the "Wikipedia:" namespace from article-space; for instance, the page [[Objectivity (disambiguation)]] could have a self-referential "[[WP:HATNOTE|hatnote]]" link at the top: <code><nowiki>{{Selfref|For Wikipedia's policy on avoiding bias, see [[Wikipedia:Neutral point of view]].}}</nowiki></code>. 

When using {{tlf|Selfref}} in this way, use the following format:
<pre>
{{Selfref|The self-referential notice to display, including [[MOS:LINK|links]].}}
</pre>
which produces:
{{Selfref|The self-referential notice to display, including [[MOS:LINK|links]].}}
italicized (Wikipedia house style for self-referential notes), and both preceded and followed by a linebreak.

For inline use (in body text, mid-sentence, and {{em|not}} in hatnotes), without the indentation and line breaking, use {{tlx|Selfref inline}}:
<pre>
{{Selfref inline|the self-referential text to display, including [[MOS:LINKS|links]]}}
</pre>
which produces: {{Selfref inline|the self-referential text to display, including [[MOS:LINKS|links]]}} (illustrated here on the same line as other content).

Template {{tnull|Selfref}} also has the parameter {{para||inline}}:
<pre>
{{Selfref|the self-referential text to display, including [[MOS:LINKS|links]]|inline}}
</pre>
However, {{as of |alt=as of early 2019|2019|01|post=,}} it does not always function properly, and may cause a line break under some circumstances.

=== Unprintworthy content ===
Rarely, there is other, non-self-referential content which shouldn't appear in mirrors, print editions, or other off-Wikipedia reuses of Wikipedia content, and which shouldn't be italicized as a self-reference.

It is preferable to mark such unprintworthy content with the {{tl|Unprintworthy inline}} template (which includes the <code>noprint</code> CSS class, but not the <code>plainlinks</code> class, since links in such content will not be internal self-references). Although not all [[WP:Mirrors and forks|mirror sites]] do so, the content in question can be removed by reusers of WP content, without any reformatting, by ignoring or removing content marked up by this template, or more accurately by the <code>selfreference</code> CSS class that it (and some other templates) use.

== Example ==
{|border=1 class="wikitable"
! Code !! Page on Wikipedia !! Page on [some] mirrors
|-
| <code><nowiki>{{Selfref|For the Wikipedia Sandbox, see [[WP:SAND]]}}</nowiki></code>

<code><nowiki>The Wikipedia Sandbox is a page on Wikipedia. {{Selfref|(You can edit it by clicking "edit" on the page.)|inline}} It has been edited many times.</nowiki></code>
| {{Selfref|For the Wikipedia Sandbox, see [[WP:SAND]]}}

The Wikipedia Sandbox is a page on Wikipedia. {{Selfref|(You can edit it by clicking "edit" on the page.)|inline}} It has been edited many times.
| The Wikipedia Sandbox is a page on Wikipedia. It has been edited many times.
|}

== See also ==
*{{tlx|srlink}}, for the opposite case when you want a link to the Wikipedia: namespace that ''does'' show in mirrors without breaking (for instance when writing an article about Wikipedia or something connected to it).
*{{tlx|Unprintworthy inline}} – for unprintworthy inline material that isn't technically a self-reference

[[Category:Cross-reference templates]]
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