Wikipedia:Make technical articles understandable: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 10:17, 19 August 2025

Latest revision as of 19:25, 19 August 2025

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Making articles more understandable does not necessarily mean that detailed technical content should be removed. For instance, an encyclopedia article about a chemical compound is expected to include properties of the compound, even if some of those properties are obscure to a general reader. Often, summarizing highly technical details can improve the readability of the text for general readers and experts alike. For example, a long-winded mathematical proof is unlikely to be read by either a general reader or an expert, but a short summary of the proof can inform a general reader without reducing the usefulness to an expert reader. When trying to decide how much technical detail to include, it may be helpful to compare with a standard reference work in the particular technical field.

=== "Introduction to..." articles ===

For topics which are unavoidably technical but, at the same time, of significant interest to non-technical readers, one solution may be a separate introductory article. An example is [[Introduction to viruses]]. A complete list of current "Introduction to..." articles can be found in [[:Category:Introductory articles]], while a list of main articles thus supplemented is [[:Category:Articles with separate introductions]].

In keeping with the spirit of Wikipedia's [[WP:NOT]] policy, [[WP:LEAD]] guideline, and guideline on [[Wikipedia:Content forking|content forking]], the number of separate introductory articles should be kept to a minimum. Before you start one, ask yourself

*Following the advice given in the preceding sections, can the article be made sufficiently understandable as a whole, without the need for a separate introduction?

*Given the degree of general interest in the topic at hand, might a well-written lead be sufficient?

You may start an "Introduction to..." article if the answer to these questions is "no".

== Avoid overly technical language ==

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* {{tlx|Location map}}: to overlay a marker + label onto a map/image;

* {{tlx|Superimpose}}: to overlay onto an unbordered image, such as open diagrams.

=== "Introduction to..." articles ===

For topics which are unavoidably technical but, at the same time, of significant interest to non-technical readers, one solution may be a separate introductory article. An example is [[Introduction to viruses]]. A complete list of current "Introduction to..." articles can be found in [[:Category:Introductory articles]], while a list of main articles thus supplemented is [[:Category:Articles with separate introductions]].

In keeping with the spirit of Wikipedia's [[WP:NOT]] policy, [[WP:LEAD]] guideline, and guideline on [[Wikipedia:Content forking|content forking]], the number of separate introductory articles should be kept to a minimum. Before you start one, ask yourself

*Following the advice given in the preceding sections, can the article be made sufficiently understandable as a whole, without the need for a separate introduction?

*Given the degree of general interest in the topic at hand, might a well-written lead be sufficient?

You may start an "Introduction to..." article if the answer to these questions is "no".

==See also==