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guidance on standard headings and references
In general, you should start a page with a short introductory paragraph, and only after that place a section - this is because the page title itself is displayed at the top already, so you would display two titles in a row! Additionally, the wiki will automatically generate a Table of Contents, listing each section, just before the first section - this is designed to go after the introductory paragraph. See the top of this page for an example!
The page should end with the following sections, where appropriate:
'''<nowiki>=== See also ===</nowiki>''' (with lower case "a")<br>
Links to other relevant pages within the Wiki
'''<nowiki>=== References===</nowiki>'''<br>
'''<nowiki><references /></nowiki>'''<br>
Sources of information (see Pictures, Sources, and Copyright below)
'''<nowiki>=== Links ===</nowiki>'''<br>
Links to external internet pages
The Table of Contents is automatically generated once a page has enough length and sections to warrant it.
=== Bold and Italic Text ===
Text between two apostrophes will be displayed in italics, e.g. "<nowiki>''Italic''</nowiki>", and text between three apostropes apostrophes will be bold, e.g. "<nowiki>'''Bold'''</nowiki>". These will display as ''Italic'' and '''Bold'''.
== Style Tips ==
You should avoid copying text from a source such as a website, book, magazine, or so on, and definitely shouldn't do so without acknowledging where you got it from. If you do need to copy a section, you should make it very clear that it is a quote (e.g. by italicising it), and by crediting the source. Otherwise, you should attempt to rewrite the information in your own words - this often makes for a better quality page anyway - and mention your source. This also means that anyone wishing to research a subject in more detail then knows where to start looking, and often a source of information for one page can be used as a source for another.
To add a citation or reference, enter the source between a '''<nowiki><ref></nowiki>''' and '''<nowiki></ref></nowiki>''' tag; by convention the reference follows any punctuation. Thus '''...follows any punctuation.<nowiki><ref></nowiki>Editing Tips page<nowiki></ref></nowiki>''' would appear as ...follows any punctuation.<ref>Editing Tips page</ref>
Of course, not everything can be sourced, as not everything about the SVR was written down, especially in early days (both original and preserved). Whilst memory isn't always perfect, and stories change with each telling, we do still accept un-sourced material - it's preferable to have an ''almost'' correct record of an event than no record at all!
When discussing the current situation regarding an engine, project, or similar, you should mention the date at which you're writing the comment, e.g. "as of January 2014, locomotive 12345 was being overhauled...". Preferably, you should use the format <nowiki>{{As of|2016|11}}</nowiki> which will be displayed as "{{As of|2016|11}}" and will automatically create a link to [http://www.svrwiki.com/Category:All_articles_containing_potentially_dated_statements the list of all articles containing potentially dated statements], which makes it easier for editors to keep the wiki up to date. If you use phrases such as "currently" or "at the moment", it can be hard for a reader to work out whether the information is still correct. A date may also encourage someone to add more up-to-date information at a later point in time, as they will be made aware that the page hasn't been updated for a while.
==References==
<references/>
