Template talk:Welcome

How to use the template
Just type or copy the text YourUsername onto a user's Talk page then add your signature. As soon as you Save, the entry will lose its link to the template and become ordinary text, which you can edit to personalise it.

Use of "subst:" prefix
Using the prefix before any template name copies the template then cuts the connexion. If you omit the "subst:" the result copies just the same but will not be editable and will always show the current version of the template - probably not a good idea for a one-off welcoming message, although it is useful for many other templates.

Edit it to make it more specific to this wiki
For example, it could say "Welcome to the  XYZWV Wiki ". You could add a link to a page you particularly want new users to look at. You could use the "upload file" link to add a new picture that is meaningful (or funny!) to your visitors, and change the code to the name of your new picture.

Make another one just for you to use
On your user page you could create a link to something like template:welcJG then make the resulting page a copy of template:welcome and modify it any way you like. Then you can type or paste on a newcomer's page and not need further personalising.

Auto sign
You can get the template to automatically include the user's signature, but it will only work when it's substituted. If it's transcluded the four tildes will show. I guess you have to weigh up the advantages and disadvantages; you can easily include the subst: code in MediaWiki:Newarticletext, but you run the risk of experienced users just transcluding it.

PAGENAME
A good idea is to include the pagename magic word, that way the user feels like it's more of a personal welcome. This can be either directly transcluded, or substituted. There are problems with both options. For direct transclusion, the welcome will show the full pagename (e.g. User talk:Name/Archive2), if it's ever archived. For substitution, the whole template needs to be substituted for it to work. Otherwise, the pagename magic word will show. The same problem is faced as with auto signing; more experienced users are likely to just transclude it.

I added it.-- Triskelle3  ɹǝsol ɐ ɹnoʎ uǝɥʇ sıɥʇ pɐǝɹ uɐɔ noʎ ɟı  |undefined 22:48, 22 February 2009 (UTC)

Testing
-- Triskelle3  ɹǝsol ɐ ɹnoʎ uǝɥʇ sıɥʇ pɐǝɹ uɐɔ noʎ ɟı  |undefined 22:51, 22 February 2009 (UTC)

ey just an idea
i know we're not gonna have that many new users since the game shut down but do you guys wanna consider updating the image with characters of people that haven't actually quit (T • C • Y) 13:34, 20 May 2018 (UTC)


 * Here's a link to the file. --QP.png QUACKERPINGU WITH BIG LETTERS!   (talk).   Contributions   A link  Quackerpingu2.png 13:36, 20 May 2018 (UTC)


 * Super late, but that's a good idea - it's been ages since they've quit, and, apart from Flywish (and Explorer, a while back (as SnoopingGil for those interested)), they show no signs of having a look-in or coming back. Though, we should keep Explorer and the one that's possibly Turtleshroom, because they've made an integral part of the community with the popular legends like Fred, MobileShroom, and others. If we get enough support, then maybe we can have a council topic (since it's pretty major)?  Penguinpuffdude Hiking.png  It's time for a chat, no?    09:13, 15 December 2018 (UTC)
 * I feel like I've brought this up so many times and every time nothing gets done because we all just kinda forget about it. ulsk avatar.png Current Status: childhood is hECKING dead (T • C • Y) 10:12, 15 December 2018 (UTC)