Talk:Main Page

Main Page error reports

To report an error in content currently or imminently on the Main Page, use the appropriate section below.

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Administrators: Clear all reports

Errors in the summary of the featured article

Please do not remove this invisible timestamp. See WT:ERRORS and WP:SUBSCRIBE. - Dank (push to talk) 01:24, 29 September 2022 (UTC)

Errors in the summary of the featured list

Friday's FL

(February 23)

Monday's FL

(February 19, tomorrow)

Errors in the summary of the featured picture

Notice to administrators: When fixing POTD errors, please update the corresponding regular version (i.e. without "protected" in the page title) in addition to the Main Page version linked below.

General discussion

Order of Brothelyngham

This is the only article proposed so far (it's at it was at WP:TFAP) for April Fool's Day. From its Featured Article nomination page: "A bunch of men pretending to be actors? Check. A bunch of men actually indulging in "games, madness [and] obscene debauchery"? Check. Men beaten, goods stolen, a town terrorised? Check. A hapless bishop writing letters but achieving little else? Check. Welcome to 14th-century England". It's been less than a year since it was promoted to WP:FA, and it seems fine to me. Any objections? Other ideas? @Serial Number 54129. - Dank (push to talk) 02:29, 9 February 2024 (UTC)

@Sheila1988. - Dank (push to talk) 02:37, 9 February 2024 (UTC)

Weird side question: How does one pretend to be an actor? Acting is pretending. By pretending to be an actor, you are an actor. --User:Khajidha (talk) (contributions) 13:27, 13 February 2024 (UTC)

Schroedinger's actors?  ;) to be fair, that's just my tic-tac speel to lure in the punters; it don't necessarily have to be accurate, just interesting  :) ——Serial 14:02, 13 February 2024 (UTC)

Any objections? Only the usual bellyaching and moaning from me as to whether or not this is something we want our schoolchildren - you know, the ones who do nothing at school all day except stare at the Wikipedia Main Page and then report back to their outraged parents - to be seeing. But I think we should be okay given that there isn't any actual explicit imagery/content on the hook itself. _{Duly signed,} ⛵ WaltClipper -(talk) 15:52, 15 February 2024 (UTC)

Is it time for a new design for the main page?

Hi, Wikipedians,

I believe it's time to consider updating the design of the main page. I'm not certain when the current style was implemented, but it seems to date back to 2006 or even earlier. Nowadays, there are numerous modern and colorful box templates available that could give the page a more contemporary look. What are your thoughts on starting this initiative? After all, the main page represents our entire community. I understand that changing a familiar style can be challenging for many users, but it's part of the natural cycle of updates.

Best regards, Riad Salih (talk) 02:50, 14 February 2024 (UTC)

Why do you think these colorful boxes would be a good thing? Sounds hideous and childish to me. Not at all the sort of look for an encyclopedia.--User:Khajidha (talk) (contributions) 11:13, 14 February 2024 (UTC)

Hi @Khajidha,

I haven't provided any details about their appearance, and we haven't discussed the style yet, so it's unclear how you determined that they might sound hideous and childish. I'm just starting the initiative, and it's worth noting that the existing boxes are also colorful too. Riad Salih (talk) 12:15, 14 February 2024 (UTC)

This sort of discussion is best done at the Village Pump where you already started one. You can certainly provide a link here to there. 331dot (talk) 12:26, 14 February 2024 (UTC)

Because I find most modern, colorful web designs hideous and childish. That's why my personal Main Page looks like this. --User:Khajidha (talk) (contributions) 12:41, 14 February 2024 (UTC)

With the continuing battle between the ever dwindling number of editors and the fight between various shades of Wikipedia purity, the last thing we need is a battle of the Main Page. It'd make the "...on wheels!" battle look like a nursery rhyme. doktorb _words^deeds 12:09, 14 February 2024 (UTC)

I think the simplicity of it makes it easy to navigate. A bunch of colors would (at least for me) make it too difficult to focus on the text. It also depends on the colors, a partially transparent light blue would look great, but neon pink would be hideous. 𝔐𝔢𝔪𝔢𝔊𝔬𝔡27 (talk) 12:58, 14 February 2024 (UTC)

I'm not suggesting adding a bunch of colors, but a quick redesign to give it a fresh look would be nice to see. The current design already uses a lot of colors! Riad Salih (talk) 10:41, 15 February 2024 (UTC)

@Riad Salih: My thought is that a more contemporary look (whatever that means) is not needed. Bazza (talk) 13:20, 14 February 2024 (UTC)

I would recommend that you read Wikipedia:Main Page design as you will find that your concern regarding the Main Page's dated design is not a lonely one -- but as with all design aspects of Wikipedia, if it works, it works. And since we're not a commercial website subject to the whims and pressures of stockholders purchasing publicly-traded shares, it's highly unlikely there will be any substantive changes to the Main Page, let alone superficial purely cosmetic changes. Personally, I'd also argue that part of the natural cycle of updates is a thought-terminating cliche. _{Duly signed,} ⛵ WaltClipper -(talk) 13:20, 15 February 2024 (UTC)

Wikipedia is the trend-setter. There is no need for us to follow the trend of redesigning webpages all the time. Twenty-three years into our project, we define what people expect from an informational website - which is why so many other wikis specifically run on MediaWiki, explicitly to look more like Wikipedia itself. It is what our readers expect to see. Changing the style would mean us dictating what our readers should adapt to, not the other way round. If the "dated" look is really so bothersome, one could always go to Special:Preferences and switch to Timeless. Wilhelm Tell DCCXLVI (^{talk to me!}/_{my edits}) 07:03, 18 February 2024 (UTC)