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'''Linking''' (making [[hyperlink]]s) is an key aspect of [[Saintapedia]], especially links other Saintapedia pages. Those internal links bind the project together into an interconnected whole. Appropriate links provide instant pathways to locations within and outside the project that are likely to increase readers' understanding of the topic at hand. When writing or editing an article, it is important to consider not only what to put in the article, but what links to include to help the reader find related information, as well as which other pages should carry links ''to'' the article. Care should be taken to avoid both [[#Underlinking|underlinking]] and [[#Overlinking|overlinking]].  {{Comment|{{#lst:Help:Link|linking}}}}<section begin="linking" /><section end="linking" />This page provides guidelines as to when links should and should not be used, and how to format links, as well as detailed information about the syntax used to create links.  When adding links, there are differents methods depending on the [[Saintapedia editor]] that you use.
* See [[#New editor]] for information about using [[VisualEditor]]
* The [[enhanced editor]] makes adding a link even easier.  See the [[#Insert link feature|insert link feature]] section below for more details.
The rules on linking applicable to [[disambiguation]] pages are set out in the {{W|Manual of Style (disambiguation pages)|disambiguation style guide}}.  This article is an overview, but for a complete description, please see {{W|Help:Link|Wikipedia's extensive help page on links}}.

==Types of links==
* [[Help:Link#Internal links|Internal links]] lead to other Saintapedia pages.
* [[Help:Link#External links|External links]] can lead to any website or other web resource with a URL.
* [[Help:Link#File links|File links]] allow you to link to files uploaded to [[file pages]].
* [[Help:Link#Email links|Email links]] open a new email message to the email address.
* [[Help:Link#Links to categories|Category links]] lead to Saintapedia [[Help:Category|categories]], which group related pages and files together.
* [[Help:Link#Template links|Template links]] are used to display a template name as a link surrounded by braces.
* [[Help:Link#Reference links|Reference links]] cite the [[Help:Reference|sources]] of information (like footnotes in a book).
* [[Help:Link#Subpage links|Subpage links]] are ways to link to [[subpages]] such as an editor's [[sandbox]].
* [[Help:Permanent link|Permanent link]] is a link to a specific version of a page that will not change as a page is developed

== Principles ==
Saintapedia is based on hypertext, and aims to "build the web" to enable readers to easily access relevant information on other pages. The page from which the hyperlink is activated is called the anchor; the page the link points to is called the target.

In adding or removing links, consider an article's place in the {{W|tree structure|knowledge tree}}. Internal links can add to the cohesion and utility of Saintapedia, allowing readers to deepen their understanding of a topic by conveniently accessing other articles. Ask yourself, ''"How likely is it that the reader will also want to read that other article?"'' Consider including links where readers might want to use them; for example, in article leads, the openings of new sections, [[Help:table|table]] cells, and [[image caption]]s. As a rule of thumb, only the first occurrence of a term should be linked.

=== General points on linking style ===
* Linking can be "direct" ({{code|[<nowiki/>[California]]}}, which results in {{xt|[[California]]}}), or "piped" ({{code|<nowiki>[[California|CA]]</nowiki>}}, which results in {{xt|[[California|CA]]}} in the text, but still links to the same article). 
* Section headings should not themselves contain links; instead, a {{tlx|main}} or {{tlx|see also}} template should be placed immediately after the heading.
* When the article title is mentioned in the opening sentence of a lead, it should be bolded rather than linked.<ref>Many articles repeat the article title in bold face in the first line of the article. Linking the article to itself produces '''boldface text'''; this practice is discouraged as page moves will result in a useless circular link through a redirect. Linking ''part'' of the bolded text is also discouraged because it changes the visual effect of bolding; some readers will miss the visual cue which is the purpose of using bold face in the first place.</ref>
* Items within quotations should not generally be linked; instead, consider placing the relevant links in the surrounding text or in the "See also" section of the article.
* {{anchor|Sea of blue}}When possible, avoid adjacent links, which will look like a single link, as in {{code|<nowiki/>[[United States]]&nbsp;<nowiki/>[[Saints]]}}, which gives {{xt|[[United States]]&nbsp;[[Saints]]}}. Consider rephrasing the sentence, omitting one of the links, or using a more specific single link instead.
* Articles on technical subjects might need a higher density of links than in general-interest articles, due to their larger number of technical terms that the article may not explain in context.
* Do not unnecessarily make a reader chase links: if a highly technical term can be simply explained with a very few words, do so. Also use a link, but do not make a reader be forced to use that link to understand the sentence, especially if this requires going into nested links (a link that goes to a page with another technical term needed to be linked, which goes to a page with a link to another technical term, and so on).  Don't assume that readers will be able to access a link at all, as, for example, they might have printed an article and be reading the hard copy on paper.

=== Overlinking and underlinking ===

{{anchor|Underlinking}}An article is said to be ''underlinked'' if words are not linked that are needed to aid understanding of the article. In general, links should be created to:

* relevant connections to the subject of another article that will help readers understand the article more fully (see the example below). This can include people, events, and topics that already have an article or that clearly deserve one, so long as the link is relevant to the article in question.
* articles with relevant information
* articles explaining technical terms, jargon or slang expressions—but you could also provide a concise definition instead of or in addition to a link.
* proper names that are likely to be unfamiliar to readers.
Do not be afraid to create links to potential articles that do not yet exist (see [[#Red links|red links]] below).

If you feel that a link does not belong in the body of an article, consider moving it to a "See also" section.

{{anchor|Overlinking}}An article is said to be ''overlinked'' if it contains an excessive number of links. Overlinking should be avoided, because it makes it difficult for the reader to identify and follow links that are likely to be of value. Unless they are particularly relevant to the topic of the article,

* Avoid linking plain English words.
* Avoid linking the names of ''major'' geographic features and locations, languages, religions, and common professions.
* Avoid linking units of measurement that aren't obscure.
* Do not link to a page that [[redirect]]s back to the page the link is on.

Generally, a link should appear only '''once''' in an article,  but if helpful for readers, links may be repeated in [[infoboxes]], tables, image captions, [[footnotes]], and at the first occurrence after the lead.

== Adding links ==

=== New editor ===
''The information below is shown from [[Help:Visual editor#Links]], where it can be edited.''

{{#lsth:Help:Visual editor|Links}}

===Insert link feature===
The [[Editing Toolbar|editing toolbar]] makes inserting links easy:

[[File:Toolbar - Insert link.jpg|550 px]]

<gallery heights="160px" widths="260px">
File:Insert link.jpg|Insert link dialog box
File:Insert link - Searching for an article.jpg|Begin typing in the ''Target page or URL'' to do a live search of existing articles
File:Insert link - Page exists.jpg|What you see when an article exists with the text you put in the ''Target page or URL''
File:Insert link Page does not exist.jpg|What you see when an article does not exists with the text you put in the ''Target page or URL''
</gallery>

==Internal links==
'''Internal links''' create links to other Saintapedia pages. Internal links are an essential means to connect related information in Saintapedia together (see [[Wikify]]). 

The easiest way to learn when to link is to look at Saintapedia articles for examples. If you're trying to decide whether to make a link or not, think: ''"If someone unfamiliar with the subject was reading the article, would a link to more information on a noun help them better understand the article?"''

[[Lead section]]s often have more links than other sections of articles.

To make an internal link, type 2 square brackets ({{code|[<nowiki/>[}} and {{code|]<nowiki />]}}) around the page name: <big>'''EXAMPLE NEEDED'''</big>.

If you want the link to show different text than the page name, after the page name, type a vertical bar ({{code|{{!}}}}) followed by the text you want to see instead of the page name: <big>'''EXAMPLE NEEDED'''</big> gives you <big>'''EXAMPLE NEEDED'''</big>. (This is known as a [[#piped links|piped link]].)

You can also link to a specific heading within a page. If the heading doesn't exist exactly as it is typed in the link, the link will take you to the top of the page. To link to a heading, type {{code|#}} after the page name and then type the heading name: <big>'''EXAMPLE NEEDED'''</big> will show <big>'''EXAMPLE NEEDED'''</big>.

If you want to link to a heading on the same page as the link, you can omit the page name: {{code|<nowiki>[[#Reference links | reference links]]</nowiki>}} gives you {{xt|[[#Reference links | reference links]]}}, which takes you to another heading in this article.

=== Redirects ===
{{main|Help:Redirect}} 
Let's assume for example you needed a link "poodle", and there was no article for poodles yet. You might want to create a redirect from "poodle" to "dog" as follows: Write the link in the text as if the "poodle" article existed: {{code|She owned a [<nowiki/>[poodle]]}}. When you save or preview this, you will see: {{xt|She owned a {{red link|poodle}}}}. You would then click on the red link to create the redirect page, enter the target article name (in our case, {{xt|Dog}}), select that text, and click the [[File:Saintapedia advanced toolbar redirect icon.png|25x25px]] button. This would create the following text: {{code|#redirect [<nowiki/>[Dog]]}}. 

The advantage of redirects over [[#Piped links|piped links]] is that they allow us to determine which pages link to the given topic using [[Special:Whatlinkshere]], which in turn allows us to
* create a new article when a significant number of links to that topic exist (see {{W|don't fix links to redirects that are not broken}} and {{w|redirects with possibilities}})
* maintain links, e.g., by filtering incoming links and identifying related articles. 

To link to a redirect page without following the underlying redirect, use {{tlx|no redirect|PageName}}, replacing PageName with the name of the redirect page to link.

=== Piped links ===
You may want to display a text for a link that is different from the linked article title. This can be achieved with what is called a {{w|Piped link}}. Example: <big>'''EXAMPLE NEEDED'''</big> displays as <big>'''EXAMPLE NEEDED'''</big>. 

* '''Plurals and other derived names.''' When a link is plural but the article name is singular, rather than a piped link, you can put the final "s" outside the {{code|<nowiki>]]</nowiki>}}: {{code|<nowiki>[[conference room]]s</nowiki>}} results in {{xt|[[conference room]]s}}, which is easier to type and clearer to read in the source text than {{code|<nowiki>[[conference room|conference rooms]]</nowiki>}}. This works not just for "s", but for any words that consist of an article name and some additional letters. 
* '''Case sensitivity.''' The capitalization of the first letter in a link doesn't matter, so there is no need to use piping where the only difference between the text and the target is the case of the initial letter (Saintapedia article titles almost always begin with a capital, whereas the linked words in context often do not). However, links are case-sensitive for all but the initial character.
* {{anchor|Egg}}'''Intuitiveness.''' Keep piped links as intuitive as possible. Per the {{w|principle of least astonishment}}, make sure that the reader knows what to expect when clicking on a link. Example: if you use a link such as {{code|<nowiki>[[Archery at the 2008 Summer Olympics|archery]]</nowiki>}} (which displays as {{xt|[[Archery at the 2008 Summer Olympics|Archery]]}}), a reader would expect the link to go to a general article on archery, rather than {{xt|[[Archery at the 2008 Summer Olympics]]}}. You should plan your page structure and links so that everything appears reasonable and makes sense. If a link takes readers to somewhere other than where they thought it would, it should at least take them somewhere that makes sense. 

==== Linking to sections of articles ====
Linking to particular sections of articles can be useful, to take the reader immediately to the information that is most focused on the original topic. If you decide not to use a [[#Redirects|redirect]], you have to use a piped link, because the format "Article name#Section name", is not good enough for display in an article. The format for a subsection link is {{xt|{{code|[<nowiki/>[Article#Section{{!}}name of link]]}}}}. The section name is case sensitive. For example, to link to the "General Information" subsection of the <big>'''EXAMPLE NEEDED'''</big> article, type <big>'''EXAMPLE NEEDED'''</big> (which displays as <big>'''EXAMPLE NEEDED'''</big>).

===Links to categories===
Saintapedia has categories of articles like {{code|[<nowiki/>[Category:Portraits]]}}; adding this to an article puts it into that category. You can link to a category without putting the article into the category by putting a colon in front.

For example {{code|[<nowiki/>[:Category:Portraits]]}} links to [[:Category:Portraits]], and piping can be used: {{code|<nowiki>[[:Category:Portraits|portraits]]</nowiki>}} results in [[:Category:Portraits|portraits]].

=== Red links ===
An internal link that displays {{red link|Like this one|in red}} points to a page that does not exist by that name. Some red links come about due to errors (misspelling, or failure to check the exact name of the target article); these should be fixed by correcting the spelling, using a piped link or, if appropriate, creating a redirect. However, many red links are perfectly legitimate, serving to point to an article which may exist in the future, and indeed encouraging editors to create such an article.<ref>Academic research has suggested that red links may be a driving force in Wikipedia growth; see {{cite journal
 |last1=Spinellis |first1=D.
 |author1-link=Diomidis Spinellis
 |last2=Louridas |first2=P.
 |author2-link=Panagiotis Louridas
 |year=2008
 |title=The collaborative organization of knowledge
 |journal=Communications of the ACM
 |volume=51 |issue=8 |pages=68–73
 |doi=10.1145/1378704.1378720
 |quote=Most new articles are created shortly after a corresponding reference to them is entered into the system
}} See also ''[[Wikipedia:Inflationary hypothesis of Wikipedia growth]]''.</ref>

Legitimate red links should not be resolved simply by delinking (by removing the brackets). If a red link is within the context of the article, and it is a topic with the potential to eventually be a {{W|Wikipedia:Neutral point of view|neutral}}, {{W|Wikipedia:Verifiability|verifiable}}, and {{W|Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not|encyclopedic}} article, then the link should be kept. Such links do not have an expiration date, beyond which they must be "fixed". Red links should be removed only if they point to articles that are unlikely ever to be created, such as the names of book chapters, or if they would have little significance in the context of the present article even if they were created.

Red is the default color for these links; logged-in users can change their preferences to select another color.  
 
To make a link more useful to readers when no article currently exists, it may be useful to create a redirect to a relevant existing article or section, or to create a [[Wikipedia:Stub|stub]] for the new article (check similar articles for conventions on [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions|naming]] and [[Wikipedia:Categorization|categorization]]).

=== Checking links as they are created ===
One of the most common errors in linking occurs when editors do not check to see whether a link they have created goes to the intended location. The text of links needs to be exact. To avoid such problems, it is a good practice to test links in the preview window prior to saving changes.

By following [[Saintapedia:Naming conventions|naming conventions]], an internal link will be much more likely to lead to an existing article. When there is not yet an article about the subject, a good link will make the creation of a correctly named article much easier for subsequent writers.

==Interwiki links==
By adding a prefix to another project, the internal link style can be used to link to a page of another project. A system of short-handed link labels is used to refer to different projects, in the context of interproject linking, as seen within the actual source text. For example: <code><nowiki>[[wikipedia:Mediawiki]]</nowiki></code> or, on this wiki, the shorter <code><nowiki>[[w:Mediawiki]]</nowiki></code>. Both will result in a link [[wikipedia:Mediawiki]].

Adding a vertical bar ( | ) at the end hides the interwiki name: {{code|[<nowiki/>[wiktionary:nonplus{{!}}]]}} gives you {{xt|[[wiktionary:nonplus|nonplus]]}}.

For certain links, such as to [[Wikipedia]], you can also use templates such as the {{tlx|W}} template, which adds an icon to be more clear where this link is taking you.

==External links==
'''External links''' are links to websites outside of Saintapedia, and can take several forms: 
* Raw link - {{code|http<nowiki/>://www.google.com}} results in {{xt|http://www.google.com}}.
* Numbered links - {{code|[http<nowiki/>://www.bing.com]}} gives you {{xt|[http://www.bing.com]}}
* Labeled link - {{code|[http<nowiki/>://www.yahoo.com Yahoo]}} produces {{xt|[http://www.yahoo.com Yahoo]}} - '''Best for [[Usability]] and [[Accessibility]]'''

Note that the last example is akin to a piped internal link, where you can provide alternate text for the link, but you just use a space rather than a vertical bar ( | ) to separate the link from the replacement text.

==Email links==
Email address links are treated like other external links, with the exception that you need to add {{code|mailto:}} in front of the email address. {{code|[<nowiki/>mailto:JohnDoe@email.com JohnDoe@email.com]}} results in {{xt|[mailto:JohnDoe@email.com JohnDoe@email.com]}}. You can also change the text of the link as well: {{code|[<nowiki/>mailto:JohnDoe@email.com John Doe]}} gives you {{xt|[mailto:JohnDoe@email.com John Doe]}}.

You can also use the {{tlx|Email}} or {{tlx|E-mail}} template: {{Tlx|Email|JohnDoe@email.com}} results in {{xt|{{Email|JohnDoe@email.com}}}}

==File links==
Once a file has been [[Help:Files#Uploading files|uploaded to the wiki]], most people will want to add the file to a page.  This is done by adding a file link.  This could be as simple as linking adding an [[internal link]] to the [[file page]].  For images and PDFs, this format of linking will have a small thumbnail of the file on the page.

To link certain file types we recommend using certain templates to allow the file to be opened with one click and display a small icon next to the file telling the reader the file type.
* {{tlx|PDFLink}} for [[PDF]] files

=== Images ===
To link to the [[file page]], rather than have the [[Help:Images|image]] appear on the page, you need to add a : in front of the "File:". For example {{code|[<nowiki/>[:File:Saint icon.jpg]]}} produces {{xt|[[:File:Saint icon.jpg]]}}. There are a few built in [[Section links]]:
* #file - File
* #filehistory - File history
* #filelinks - File usage

For more information about displaying images on Saintapedia articles see [[Help:Images]].  See the [[Help:Images#Link]] section if you wish to link an image.

== Template links ==

Template links are used to display a template name as a link surrounded by braces, thus showing how the template name would be used in wiki text. Its primary use is in instruction and documentation. {{tlp|tlp}} links to a template in the normal font, and {{tlx|tlx}} works the same except changing the font to show it is wiki code. Other varients are described in the documentation for these two templates.

==Reference links==
{{Learn|Help:Reference}}
{{#lst:Help:Reference|Introduction}}

== Telephone links ==
It is possible to add links that, when clicked on a mobile device, will prompt the phone load the app to call the number.
* Example - [Tel:+202-541-3000 (202) 541-300]
To add this, please use [[Help:Enhanced editor|enhanced editor]] to add a special form of an [[external link]]:
: <code><nowiki>[Tel:+202-541-3000 (202) 541-300]</nowiki></code>

==Subpage links==
{{Learn|Help:Subpages}}
Subpages are pages separated with a "/" from their 'parent' page.

Inside a subpage hierarchy the following relative links can be used:
* {{code|[<nowiki/>[../]]}} links to the parent of the current subpage, e.g., on {{xt|A/b}} it links to {{xt|A}}, on {{xt|A/b/c}} it links to {{xt|A/b}}.
* {{code|[<nowiki/>[../../]]}} links to the grandparent of the current subpage, e.g., on {{xt|A/b/c}} it links to {{xt|A}}.
* {{code|[<nowiki/>[../s]]}} links to a sibling of the current subpage, e.g., on {{xt|A/b}}, it links to {{xt|A/s}}.
* {{code|[<nowiki/>[/s]]}} links to a subpage, e.g., on A it is the same as {{Code|[<nowiki/>[A/s]]}}.

== Section link ==
See [[Help:Section#Section linking]].

== Other tips ==
=== Hiding the namespace in a link ===
If you want a link to a page like {{xt|[[Help:search]]}} to hide the [[namespace]] (the "Help:" part, in this instance), rather than using a piped link like {{code|[<nowiki/>[Help:search {{!}} search]]}}, a shortcut is to just add a vertical bar ( | ) to the end of the link: {{code|[<nowiki/>[Help:search{{!}}]]}} results in {{xt|[[Help:search|search]]}}.  MediaWiki will automatically make this change.

=== Linking to file history on file page ===
{{Main|Section link}}
To link to the File history section use <nowiki>#filehistory</nowiki>.  Remember to add ":" in front of files, especially images, so the wiki knows to link to the file page and not display the image instead.

For example [[:File:Saintapedia test.pdf#filehistory]] will be entered as <nowiki>[[:File:Saintapedia test.pdf#filehistory]]</nowiki>.

The same apples to the File links section (<nowiki>#filelinks</nowiki>) and Meta data (<nowiki>#metadata</nowiki>).

==See also==
* [[Cheat sheet]]
* [[Transclusion]] ({{W|Wikipedia:Transclusion}})
* {{tlx|W}} - Add Wikipedia link easily
* {{tlx|Breadcrumb}} - Add right aligned box of links

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Saintapedia}}
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[[Category:Help]]
[[Category:Saintapedia]]