Wikipedia_talk:AutoWikiBrowser

Wikipedia talk:AutoWikiBrowser

This is the discussion page for the AWB project. It is also the place to discuss using the AWB program itself (if you need help, or have a question about AWB, etc.). Where to make specific types of reports or requests is explained in the Before you post section below. Before asking questions, please read the Frequently asked questions below.

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Frequently asked questions

More information Frequently asked questions ...

Frequently asked questions

When I start it up I get one of the following errors:
"The application failed to initialize properly (0xc0000135). Click on OK to terminate the application.", or

"To run this application, you must first install one of the following versions of the .NET Framework..."

This error means your computer does not have the .NET framework version 2 installed properly. You can choose from various versions for download here, or you can run Windows Update and select version 2 of the .Net framework from the "Optional Updates" section, if you want the choice made for you.
Does AWB run on Linux or Mac?
- AWB runs reasonably under Wine. See details here
  AWB might also run under Mono.
- AWB (Windows) with Unix scripts can be done with Cygwin or Virtualbox
- On the Mac, AWB is not natively available, but an option is to use virtualisation with Parallels Desktop for Mac (subject to meeting supported operating systems requirements) and then run Microsoft Windows virtually with AWB as the Windows instructions above. Note this option is not free, as a license is required for both Parallels Desktop for Mac and Microsoft Windows. An alternative visualization method is to use the free VirtualBox, see also Comparison of platform virtual machines.
- You can use the JavaScript Wiki Browser instead.
Does AWB work on other projects and languages?
Many Wikimedia projects and languages are supported, see the "User and project preferences" option in the general menu. Other languages will be added on request, though at the moment the interface is always in English. You are also able to use AWB with third-party wikis: Options > Preferences > Site, you can change the wiki there. The wiki must support the Bot API required by AWB. This means that it should have latest HEAD version of MediaWiki or something close to that. The wmf-deployment branch is also recommended, as this is what is currently live on WMF sites.
Under Windows Vista (and newer), AWB is using wrong font size, which results in clipped text and lost buttons and options, (see example here). How to fix it?
Tracked in Phabricator
Task T103506
- Solution #1: Go to "Control Panel\All Control Panel Items\Display" and switch resizing of the fonts to 100%.
- Solution #2: Right click on AutoWikiBrowser.exe --> Properties -> Compatibility (tab) --> enable the "Disable display scaling on high DPI settings" option or for Windows 10, if available, select System (Enhanced).
AWB puts stubs after categories, though categories are always rendered the last by MediaWiki?
According to WP:STUB#Categorizing stubs, by convention they are placed at the end of the article, after the External links section, any navigation templates, and the category tags, so that the stub category will appear last. If your wiki uses another order, please let us know here.
I don't like or use Internet Explorer; please use Firefox instead.
AWB does not use Internet Explorer per se. It does, however, use the same web browser control (MSHTML) as Internet Explorer; the equivalent Firefox component does not provide the needed functionality.
How do I open the page in another browser if I can't use the one in AWB?
Right click on the edit box in the bottom right side of your screen. Select "Open page in browser".
How do I edit a page that doesn't exist?
Uncheck "Ignore non existing pages" in the "Skip articles" box.
How do I skip certain articles?
Use the "Skip if contains" and "Skip if doesn't contain" on the "Skip" tab
Can't you leave up a "stable" version, so I don't have to download new versions?
It is important to keep people up to date with the latest versions, because their use of the software doesn't just affect them, but the whole of Wikipedia. As any bugs that remain will be trivial, hopefully releases won't be too frequent.
How can I stop AWB clicking when it changes pages?
This is a Windows sound theme setting. This page explains how to turn off the clicking sound.

Alternatively, delete the following key from the Windows registry:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\AppEvents\Schemes\Apps\Explorer\Navigating\.Current
AWB randomly crashes upon page load on my system, and I always use a browser other than Internet Explorer when using Wikipedia.
You may have installed custom scripts incompatible with IE. Wrap the contents of your monobook.js into conditional:

               //Detect IE5.5+
               if (navigator.appVersion.indexOf("MSIE")==-1)
               {
                   // Previous contents go here
                   ....
               }

I get Just In Time Debugger Messages when loading AWB/loading pages.
In Internet Explorer, go to Tools → Options → Advanced. Make sure 'Disable Script Debugging (Internet Explorer)' and 'Disable Script Debugging (Other)' Are both checked. Press apply and close.
Why does AWB run very, very slowly if I try to make changes in the edit window on larger pages, especially pages with long lists or tables?
If running on Windows, exit the Speech Recognition software that is built into some versions of Windows; don't just turn it 'Off', you must 'Exit' the software if you have started up Speech Recognition.
When I do a clean install of AutoWikiBrowser the application seems to find old setting data somewhere. I'd like to do a really clean install. Any ideas?
Clean up your registry and remove the folder "C:\Documents and Settings\user name\Local Settings\Application Data\AutoWikiBrowser" (Windows XP) or "C:\Users\user name\AppData\Local\AutoWikiBrowser\" (Windows 7). Note that the application data folder may be hidden.
AWB prompts that there is a newer version but won't update
Check the version number of your AWBUpdater.exe. The current version is 2.4.0.0. If you have an older version, you have to download the latest AWB version and make a clean install.
Which .NET Framework version do I have?
You can find your .NET Framework version in Help → About box.
Where are the default settings stored?
- Windows XP: C:\Documents and Settings\[username]\Local Settings\Application Data\AutoWikiBrowser
- Windows Vista onwards: C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Local\AutoWikiBrowser\Default.xml
I cannot copy text from the diff window using the Control+C keyboard shortcut.
You must have Microsoft.msdoc.dll available for AWB to use for this functionality to work. You can try downloading the file (there are a number of third-party websites offering DLL file downloads) and putting it in the same folder as AutoWikiBrowser.exe. This is reported not to work for all users, presumably due to .NET Framework problems.
Is there any way to set AWB to not use https? (GFW blocks 443 port)
In preferences, set project to "custom". Set the left box to http. In the webpage box, type en.wikipedia.org/w/ (English Wikipedia) or zh.wikipedia.org/w/ (Chinese Wikipedia). Note that leaving off the /w/ will result in a "root element missing" error.
How do I login to AWB with accounts enabled with two-factor authentication?
You should use a bot password. Despite the name, they aren't just for bots. See Wikipedia:Using AWB with 2FA.

Discussion

Two questions

1) How do I append the template {{Use New Zealand English|date={{CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{CURRENTYEAR}}}}? (in a place that satisfies MOS:ORDER) I've seen several people doing this with {{Use mdy dates}} before so I know it's possible.

2) I've seen people debating whether these templates are cosmetic or not. I use the engvar templates to find and replace American spellings with New Zealand/British/Australian ones, so it may indirectly be considered not cosmetic. Am I right in thinking this way? Because I have to manually review the English variation in each article I am not considering a bot request. —Panamitsu (talk) 09:37, 24 March 2024 (UTC)

@Panamitsu:

1) Here's what I suggest:

On the More... tab (see Wikipedia:AutoWikiBrowser/User manual#More... for a screen shot):

Check the Enable box
Select the Prepend radio button (prepend adds to the beginning, whereas append adds to the end)
Add {{Use New Zealand English|date={{subst:CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{subst:CURRENTYEAR}}}} in the text box
Set the box to Use 1 newlines
Check the Sort meta data after box

On the Options tab:

Check Auto tag, Apply general fixes, Unicodify whole page, and Regex typo fixing (The more AWB can do, the less likely someone will consider this a cosmetic edit.)
Add find and replace rules to change American English to New Zealand English, and check the box to Add replacements to edit summary

Under Options > Default Edit Summaries...

Create an edit summary such as "Added Template:Use New Zealand English and general fixes"

On the Start tab:

Select the Default Summary you added
Check the Minor edit box

See my edit to 1936 in New Zealand as an example (except I forgot to check the Minor edit box)

2) I can see why some people think that adding the template would be cosmetic because it doesn't change the visual rendering of the page. However WP:COSMETICEDIT reminds us that the maintenance of hidden categories is a substantive edit.

Happy editing! GoingBatty (talk) 16:03, 24 March 2024 (UTC)

@GoingBatty: Except, shouldn't you have used subst: in the CURRENT... templates on line 1? I'll let you fix if necessary in case I misunderstood. @Panamitsu: hold off on that template addition, but I think I'm right. David Brooks (talk) 22:08, 24 March 2024 (UTC)

Thanks! I'll try this.

Yup, it should be {{subst:CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{subst:CURRENTYEAR}}, my bad. As GoingBatty's edit didn't substitute the template it just inserted the template instead of the current month/year. I've checked the visual editor and it uses subst: for dated templates. —Panamitsu (talk) 22:18, 24 March 2024 (UTC)

@DavidBrooks: You are correct. I just copied the template from the question without reviewing it for accuracy.

@Panamitsu: Thank you for fixing the 1936 in New Zealand article I edited. Hopefully the rest of my recommendation meets your needs. GoingBatty (talk) 22:30, 24 March 2024 (UTC)

This worked! Thanks!

There are a few pages with incorrect engvar templates, such as Use British English or EngvarB. I found them using a regex and removed them, such as here. —Panamitsu (talk) 05:04, 25 March 2024 (UTC)

adding connected contributor template

Hello, I'm learning how to use AWB to add a connected contributor template to a bunch of pages I've edited. The how-to in "two questions" was really helpful! Talk:Lloyd_Alexander shows my first test edit. Is it okay to have the connected contributor template prepended, or is there a way to add it after the talk page banners and before general talk page discussion (this is how I normally see it added)? Rachel Helps (BYU) (talk) 15:58, 1 April 2024 (UTC)

Yes; on the More... tab, make sure the Sort meta data after option is checked. You will then prepend the template, and AWB will place it in the correct place. Primefac (talk) 12:14, 2 April 2024 (UTC)

Thank you Primefac. I have "sort meta data after" checked. Can I assume that before the talkpage banners is the correct place? Rachel Helps (BYU) (talk) 16:14, 2 April 2024 (UTC)

If you have it sorting after you place the banner, it *should* put them after the {{talk header}} and {{WPBS}} (pretty sure it's the last thing before discussions). Primefac (talk) 16:19, 2 April 2024 (UTC)

Well, that's not what it's doing when "sort meta data after" is checked. I wish I knew more about how AWB works so I could troubleshoot. I tried Appending, and that just put the banner at the bottom of the talk page. I could just leave it at the top, or manually insert the edit at the desired point on the talk page below the wikiproject banners. Rachel Helps (BYU) (talk) 18:36, 2 April 2024 (UTC)

Weird. Just checked on a few pages; if the template is already on the page, AWB will move it to the right place. If it's not already on the page, with or without the "sort after" checked it just leaves it prepended...

At the end of the day, I don't think it really matters as long as it's on the page, so just keep prepending (especially if you have a lot of them) at the top of the page and let someone who cares about banner order sort out the rest (unless someone who hasn't noticed this conversation in the last 28 hours actually comments on the "proper" way to sort this out). Primefac (talk) 18:41, 2 April 2024 (UTC)

Per Wikipedia:AutoWikiBrowser/User_manual#More... user manual use the option to "sort metadata after", then you should get the outcome needed. Rjwilmsi 09:35, 3 April 2024 (UTC)

Rjwilmsi, I tested this with my own account and it doesn't work. Steps to reproduce:

Open a Talk page in AWB
Prepend {{connected contributor}} or {{connected contributor (paid)}} with 1 new line, sorting metadata after. For realism I copied the basic example from the /doc.
Template is placed above other banners

On the other hand, loading up Talk:Lloyd Alexander into AWB with genfixes moves Rachel's disclosure to the proper place (but leaves mine in the "wrong" place). Primefac (talk) 11:25, 3 April 2024 (UTC)

OK, I see. That "sort meta data" must be the mainpage one then, not for talk pages. In which case the simple option is to load the edit then use the right click option in the edit box to reparse. Rjwilmsi 13:18, 3 April 2024 (UTC)

Removing whitespace from wikilinks causes problems

The general fixes (FixLinkWhitespace to be exact) seems to remove necessary whitespace from wikilinks. Can anyone confirm that this happens? I don't have access to AWB on en-wiki.

Panch Kedar (more articles)

Current situation: [[India|Indian ]][[Indian epic poetry|epic]] Indian epic

What AWB does: [[India|Indian]][[Indian epic poetry|epic]] Indian epic

Maya Higa (more articles)

Current situation: presented by[[Ally Financial| Ally]] presented by Ally

What AWB does: presented by[[Ally Financial|Ally]] presented byAlly

2001:14BA:9C94:9A00:11CF:7E9F:8A27:4B39 (talk) 02:43, 4 April 2024 (UTC)

Leading/trailing spaces shouldn't be inside the links in the first place. Also, for the first case, you would want to avoid a WP:SEAOFBLUE.

In the first case, since India is less useful for linking, I'd do: [[Indian epic poetry|Indian epic]].

In the second case, I'd do: presented by [[Ally Financial|Ally]]

What AWB did is actually correct as far as how it's supposed to work (it assumes text and/or links next to each other stay that way, and leading/trailing spaces within links don't belong). But since we're also supposed to review any changes before saving, this is where manual edits come into play. Remember - this is a semi-automated helper, rather than a fully automated doer. Stefen Tower_{s among the rest!} ^{Gab • Gruntwerk} 03:10, 4 April 2024 (UTC)

Hi there!

For Panch Kedar, AWB's general fixes want to change [[India|Indian ]][[Indian epic poetry|epic]] to [[India]]n[[Indian epic poetry|epic]], which is still displayed as Indian epic.
For Maya Higa, AWB's general fixes don't change ''Nerve Center presented by[[Ally Financial| Ally]]'' because of the italics. However, without the italics, AWB's general fixes would make the change as you described above.

@StefenTower: AWB is used both by humans as a semi-automated helper and by bots as a fully automated doer, sometimes with general fixes checked. GoingBatty (talk) 03:23, 4 April 2024 (UTC)

I was referring to how it's used by us meatbots. :) Stefen Tower_{s among the rest!} ^{Gab • Gruntwerk} 05:00, 4 April 2024 (UTC)

I have added an item regarding leading/trailing spaces here. Neils51 (talk) 09:08, 4 April 2024 (UTC)

This is a GIGO issue; I would suggest AWB genfixes check to make sure ]][[ gets fixed, but on the flip side I can see valid uses in cat links etc so maybe a WP:WCW error could be created. Primefac (talk) 11:37, 4 April 2024 (UTC)

Is there any harm in moving the space outside of the wikilink? If two adjacent spaces are created, the renderer will shrink them to one. – Jonesey95 (talk) 17:33, 5 April 2024 (UTC)

We could even move the space outside if and only if there is no space there already. I suspect that this plan would produce the text the author intended more often than the current behaviour. However, it depends on context and either way the machine is guessing and a human eye is required: [[India ]]n poetry needs to be treated differently from [[India ]]is big. Certes (talk) 20:07, 6 April 2024 (UTC)

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Frequently asked questions

Discussion

Two questions

adding connected contributor template

Removing whitespace from wikilinks causes problems

Removal of AWB Perms

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How to scrape from grep.toolforge.org results and compare.

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