Help talk:Links

Too much focus on RTE
As it is, this page only gives information about how to use the Rich Text Editor way of making links. That is not very helpful for teaching the simpler method of using brackets. I have known many new users who have no idea how to make links in the correct format simply because there is no help page to teach it. I suggest that at least some instructions for linking without RTE be re-added to this page. Gardimuer { ʈalk } 19:19, July 17, 2010 (UTC)
 * I suggest adding a sub-section under each section for source mode. Duskey ( talk ) 10:55, August 26, 2010 (UTC)

I agree with the guys above. It's especially important as some wikis have disables RTE so users will need to know how to make a link in source. Also just way easier. Imamadmad (talk) 04:20, February 16, 2013 (UTC)

What is the best practice for linking to email address?
What is the best practice or best style for making a link to an email address? There are many ways to do it. Can they be shared? I don't want to put too many email contact info onto wiki pages as spam bots might troll for them as well. My address is Mark -at- Rauterkus dot com. But I could be [mailto:Mark@Rauterkus.com Mark's email adress]. Rauterkus 17:46, October 9, 2010 (UTC)
 * I suggest using Special:EmailUser/Rauterkus. Mark  ( talk ) 18:35, October 9, 2010 (UTC)


 * I now understand. I'll test below. Sweet. Thanks.
 * Special:EmailUser/Rauterkus.

Linking to sections
Is there any way to link to "sections" on pages? I can't find it anywhere on Wikia Help. Could someone please tell me how to do it? I think there is a way...


 * Thanks!


 * --Anr0328 (talk &bull; contribs) 23:43, November 16, 2010 (UTC)

Yes. Link a page as you normally would but put a number symbol (#) after the page name and type in the name of the section. For example, in the Links page, if you want to add a link to the Adding an Internal Link section, write "Links#Adding an Internal Link". --NejiHyuga900 (talk | contributions) "I am the Thunder Dragon!" 04:03, December 19, 2010 (UTC)


 * A semi-related question, but is it possible to create anchors within pages on Wikia? Normally you can just use the  template, however this does not appear to work on Wikia -- Haravikk 21:01, June 28, 2011 (UTC)


 * @Haravikk (and everyone else who lands here from Google) | here is the tip from Wikimedia.


 * "The &lt;a&gt; tag is not allowed in MediaWiki, so one cannot use &lt;a name&#61;&quot;link here&quot;&gt;; however, one can use the &quot;id&quot; HTML attribute with almost any existing tag. For example, &lt;div id&#61;&quot;what_to_link_to&quot;&gt;text&lt;/div&gt;, &lt;div id&#61;&quot;what_to_link_to&quot; /&gt;text or alternatively, for inline use in bulleted lists, &lt;span id&#61;&quot;what_to_link_to&quot;&gt;text&lt;/span&gt;."


 * Hunter789 (talk) 01:27, September 27, 2015 (UTC)

Wikilinks
I am sure there is a specific format for internal links pointing to Wikipedia. Please state it. RHaworth 12:04, January 25, 2011 (UTC)

- here is where I found it. ~Dark Zestal 16:54, August 17, 2012 (UTC)

Changing color
I think it should also be explained how to change the color of the link, besides the basic blue.  *Bereisgreat  ( shout! ) 15:34, June 30, 2011 (UTC)


 * To change the color of a specific link, without changing the default colors for all links in the MediaWiki:Wikia.Css file, you would use the span tags like you do on text but this time you would use it on the right side of a pipe in a link for the alternate text:


 * Normal link: Contents would produce this: Contents


 * Colored link: Contents  would can be used to produce this:  Contents


 * Colored link with a background color: Contents  would can be used to produce this:  Contents


 * -- 14:02, May 7, 2012 (UTC)

Image linking
Is there a way to link images as well as text? WarriorLoverInc 12:29, May 7, 2012 (UTC)


 * I am guessing that you are refering to links to a image without actual'y diplaying the image! All you do is add a color : to just before the word File: just like you do with Categories to link to them.


 * Normal image Admin - Delete Image.png produces this Admin - Delete Image.png


 * Link to the image File:Admin - Delete Image.png produces this File:Admin - Delete Image.png


 * Adding alternate text to the image link Click here produces this Click here.


 * If you are referring to making an image link to a page then you would add the parameter link=pagename to the image.


 * Image linking to Help:Contents Admin - Delete Image.png produces this Admin - Delete Image.png ↞ ↞ ↞ Click on the image.


 * -- 14:12, May 7, 2012 (UTC)

Whitespace in external link
For example, I have a template that creates a link to an external site based on the current page name. When the parameter returns something with spaces, the URL is parsed only to the first space and the rest is used in the display text for the link. Statueofmike (talk) 04:42, September 21, 2012 (UTC)
 * Courtesy of this page, I found a solution: Use instead of  . Note the extra E at the end. This returns a URL-encoded string! Statueofmike (talk) 04:49, September 21, 2012 (UTC)

Can some of this info be put onto the page?
I have just been looking through this talk page after not finding what I needed on the main page (i.e. getting an image to link somewhere) and I found all the information I needed plus more here! Can someone please move some, if not all of this information over to the help page itself so people can learn about how to do more than basic RTE linking between pages (especially as said above that not all wikis have RTE enables on them so only display source)? Thanks, Imamadmad (talk) 04:29, February 16, 2013 (UTC)

Updating the info
I've just added a bunch of extra info about source mode linking as well as some of the more advanced linking ways mentioned on this talk page. Hopefully this page is now a better resource for both new and more experienced users. Imamadmad (Contact me) 13:25, June 30, 2013 (UTC)

How do I make an external link open the webpage in a new tab/window instead of leaving the page it is on?Metacom (talk) 21:21, October 28, 2013 (UTC)

Right click it and hit "open link in new tab". 08:54, May 11, 2014 (UTC)

Disappearing External Links
On the wiki I admin (Thrilling Adventure Hour), whenever you click to edit a page all of the URLs for external links within that page disappear. This means that every time someone edits a page with an external link, they have to re-enter all of that information, or else a link ends up dead if they forget to do it. Is this a known bug? Is there a way to fix it so that the external links don't disappear every time a page is edited? I couldn't find a topic on this already elsewhere here, but if I missed it please let me know.

Ahab99 (talk) 21:16, January 18, 2014 (UTC)

I am so confused. Can someone tell me how to make the level 3 thing on the navigation editor actually go somewhere?
I'm sorry if you don't understand what I'm saying. Basically, I've made a level 2 on my wiki, but I don't know how to make the level 3's go somewhere. What's happening is I click it and nothing happens. Can someone please tell me how to work this? I'm new, just to let you know. LilacoftheRainWings (talk) 22:27, March 18, 2015 (UTC)


 * I've edited to fix this issue - putting the | at the start of the line is a way to prevent the link from happening. (The format is " "). There's more info about this aspect of Wikia on Help:Navigation.  14:42, March 19, 2015 (UTC)

Problem with link
Can someone help me? I am trying to make the link on a page work on my personal fan wikia ... but it constantly shows up red whatever I try. And I typed it right. It just has two - ' - ... is that the problem? - Haou1987

Can you provide a link to the wiki and tell me what you're trying to link? Also, questions like these are better to ask in the Forums as it gets more noticed that way.--

Linking Members
I am trying to find out how to link members on my respective wikia, how do you do that?CNBA3 (talk) 16:24, November 21, 2017 (UTC)
 * What do you mean by "link members"? If you mean link to their userpages, you can create links like  and they will appear as links to their userpages. For example, using   in wikitext will result with: User:CNBA3
 * -- Cube - shaped   garbage can  16:28, November 21, 2017 (UTC)
 * Thanks, that's all I needed too know, sorry, I did not see your reply.--CNBA3 (talk) 17:00, November 21, 2017 (UTC)

Linking to Userpage
Is there a way to get a link to a user page of the creator of a Box?

I have a box with the option:.
 * Description

If the user adds the following in the box:

| profile = yes The link to the author should be displayed in the box. Is this possible without further ado?

Maldohr (talk) 12:37, October 2, 2018 (UTC)
 * Can you link to the template where you're trying to implement that parameter? Where exactly in it would you want the link to be placed? -- Cube - shaped   garbage can  00:01, October 3, 2018 (UTC)

Help linking quotes. (If such a thing is possible.)
Wiki page I've been helping out

Okay, so, using the Template:Quote, I put in the quote, and the speaker, and now all that's left is the source. So I put it in, and... things get a bit messy.

The source is an external link, so maybe that's the problem, or that maybe linking quotes is just not a thing possible~? Maybe, I dunno. But I really don't know what the heck is happening. I tried using reference, so that the reader could just scroll down to where the external link is, but that too becomes messy, and cluttered.

Like, how do I properly use it? I got the quote down, and typing who the speaker is, both of which are obviously easy, but what the heck is up with the source? And what do the rest mean? There are numbers as well, are they supposed to be references?

Please help me, because I fucking swear I will turn that template into a living breathing being just so I can beat it to death for being so god damn annoying.

Sorry for swearing, vulgarity, and idea of violence, but you must understand just how irriting this thing has been to me.

I just... I just need clarification. Everything else has been relatively easy enough to understand, and so is the template itself, but this "source" thing has been taunting me for so long.

Like, ''how. Do. I. Use. The. Fucking. Thing? ''

I swear, if it was an anthropomoprhic being, it would be insulting me for not being able to understand it.

Again, sorry for the vulgarity.

Like, I said it already, maybe I just don't get it. Like, the problem may either lie with me, or the template, or maybe even both. Like, maybe it's not even possible.

I just need to understand it.

Help me, please.

This is the external link: https://youtu.be/RMyuXiflNvI?t=1968

~JoSo (talk) 11:31, February 17, 2019 (UTC)
 * External links have a different format than regular links. A regular link would be, but an external link would be  . --Sharkie 12:14, February 17, 2019 (UTC)

Thank you, for answering. I've scrapped sourcing it, and just made a simple reference. This time done properly.

~JoSo (talk) 12:29, March 25, 2019 (UTC)

Inconsistent instruction or definition
The help page includes this:
 * "Internal links are pages within the wiki (or to another Fandom wiki). .....
 * "Enter the target of the link. For an internal link, enter the name of the page."

That last instruction won't do if your link is " to another Fandom wiki". For that, you need the w:c: construction set out on a separate page (under "See also"). The page should refer to that other page, perhaps like: "For an internal link to the same wiki, enter the name of the page. For another Fandom site, see ... for the little extra coding it needs."

--- Robin Patterson (Talk) 12:06, 25 February 2021 (UTC)

External links in the same tab ?
How to make all links open in the same Browser's tab on LMB ? As they should be, while opening in a new tab is with MMB.

Irvnriir (talk) 11:10, 27 May 2021 (UTC)

Linking in comments doesn’t work…
when I’m don’t the url and I finish the comment or reply, when I press the link I just made, it says this: not a valid community. is there something wrong? or am I not doing the link right? 72.92.80.128 22:23, 21 September 2021 (UTC)
 * My guess is that you added a comma or a period right after pasting the link and it was being added to the URL, breaking it. 02:16, 22 September 2021 (UTC)