Help:Automated lists

Many templates on this wiki generate lists of unit information automatically. They include but are not necessarily limited to:


 * Unit table


 * Others should be listed in Category:Unit semantics.

They do so using a wiki extension called Semantic MediaWiki. In short, card information is set to properties on the pages using Unit infobox, which usually pulls the information from a data page, but can accept information directly as well. Then templates such as the above generate their lists by pulling the information for appropriate units from the properties.

Editing the lists
The lists cannot be edited directly. Instead, you need to either edit the page that uses Unit infobox or the "data page" linked in the infobox. This will update the properties that the lists are drawing information from at the same time the page information is updated.

Troubleshooting
Unfortunately, Semantic MediaWiki isn't always very good about updating the cached versions, so information may not always update immediately on its own.

Make sure the cache is updated
If you have just edited a unit page and changes are not showing up in a list, performing a null edit (where you open the page for editing and save it with no changes) on the page with the list is usually all that is necessary.

If a particular unit's information is not showing up correctly, it's often due to caching issues. These two steps will usually resolve the problem:
 * 1) Go to the relevant unit page and perform a null edit. For example, if Asajj Ventress' information is showing up incorrectly despite the page having the correct values, open Asajj Ventress for editing and save it without changes.
 * 2) Do the same for the page with the list that is showing incorrect information and see if it updates.

When many pages are affected
If a large number of units are showing incorrect information or other issues, which might occur after certain template or property changes, you can request a bot resave on the Admin noticeboard. This will perform a null edit on all unit pages.

Unit information from a page no longer using Unit infobox
This can happen when a unit page is changed into a redirect. Due to a Semantic MediaWiki bug, property values do not get cleared on the same save that changes a page to a redirect, so they remain in the system for lists to pull up.

To check for this and resolve the issue:
 * 1) Navigate to the redirect. You can do this by clicking the link that appears in the lists, and then clicking the link after the "redirected from" message that appears under the title.
 * 2) Open the redirect for editing. Blank the page entirely and save. This will properly clear the properties.
 * 3) Now that the property values are clear, the page can be turned back into a redirect. It doesn't matter whether this is done by undoing the previous edit or by manually retyping the redirect and saving.

Note that a unit page should be turned to a redirect only when a unit is renamed. Unit infobox has ingame and available parameters for dealing with units that are removed from the game or unavailable to players. As a rule of thumb, wikis don't delete or remove outdated information; they mark it as old and often move it somewhere less prominent.

When all else fails
If none of the above works, this usually means it's not just a caching issue. Instead, there is a real error somewhere. Please request assistance on the Admin noticeboard.