Template:Rp
This template may soon be obsolete and deprecated: m:WMDE Technical Wishes/Book referencing would make it unnecessary. This expansion of MediaWiki's built-in <ref /> syntax is already working at some wikis, but has not yet been implemented at English Wikipedia, as of August 2020.[update] |
"Rp" stands for "reference page(s)". This is a relatively uncommon method of citing page numbers, usually used when other methods produce undesirable results. It is used in about one out of every 300 articles at the English Wikipedia. One of its benefits, is that unlike {{sfn}}, etc., which are unsupported in the VE (at least as of July 2020[update]), {{rp}} is supported in the VE.
Function
Use this template when you are referring to specific pages within a source which is cited many times in the same article. The following example sentence shows the formatting produced by:
<ref name="aardvark">
... details of cited source ...</ref>{{rp|23}}
which would be used to refer to a fact on page 23 of reference [1]:
- Apples should be eaten when they are ripe.[1]: 23
This second example sentence shows the formatting produced by:
<ref name="aardvark" />{{rp|56}}
which would be used as citation for a statement supported by a fact on page 56 of the same reference [1], which will appear only once in the list of references:
- Porridge, usually eaten for breakfast, can also serve as a dessert.[1]: 56
This template is for appending page numbers to notes. It is an alternative that can be used in articles with one or several sources that are cited multiple times, at numerous different pages. It is an alternative to the more common method of using shortened footnotes; it does not require the reader to follow two links to see the source.
Notice
This template should not be used unless necessary. In the vast majority of cases, citing page numbers in the <ref>...</ref>
code is just fine. This template is only intended for sources that are used many times in the same article, to such an extent that normal citation would produce a useless line in <references />
or too many individual ones.
Overuse of this template is seen by some editors as making prose harder to read. Used judiciously, however, other editors say that it is less interruptive to the visual flow than complete implementation of the reference citation styles that inspired it, particularly full Harvard referencing and AMA style.
If an article has an established citation style that uses an alternative to this template (e.g. Harvard style or another style using {{sfn}}
shortened footnote templates), then do not unilaterally start using this template in the article. Instead, you should discuss options for citation styles with other editors and try to reach a consensus, per WP:CITEVAR.
How to use
With colon
{{rp|page number(s)}}
The page number(s)
can be a single page number (287), several (xii, 287, 292, 418) or a range (287–288) or any combination thereof. Do not add "Page", "pp.", etc.—just the numbers. It can also be used for non-numeric pages, for example: "f. 29", "A7", and "back cover", etc., and can also be used for non-paginated sources, e.g., "0:35:12" for a video source.
This template is for appending page numbers to inline reference citations generated by Cite.php. It is a solution for the problem of a source that is cited many times, at numerous different pinpoint page numbers, in the same Wikipedia article. Cite.php's limitations pose two citation problems in such a case:
- Regular use of
<ref ...>...</ref>
to provide a separate citation for each fact/statement sourced from a different page or page range (as in this example) will result in numerous individual lines, each repeating the entire bibliographic citation of a source, generated by<references />
in the "Notes" or "References" section. - Using a single
<ref ...>...</ref>
and followup<ref ... />
's with the samename=
and simply listing all of the pages cited, would result in the single, very long<references />
entry for this source giving no way for readers to tell which facts were sourced from which pages in the work.
This template works around both of these problems. Doing so is important, because Featured Article as well as Good Article reviews generally insist upon specific facts being cited with specific page numbers.
{{Rp}}
is an alternative to the more common method of using shortened footnotes, that does not require the reader to follow two links to see the source. In cases of numerous citations to the same source, the Cite.php <ref ...>
footnoting system is less tedious to use and more difficult to break with incorrect formatting than the {{ref label}} and {{note label}} system (although, in other situations, those templates are not particularly difficult and may be quite useful).
{{Rp}}
may end up being a temporary solution to these problems, as Cite.php may be upgraded to resolve these issues, in which case a bot would be able to convert {{Rp}}
to the new code.
Example
The example below shows {{Rp}}
in use both at a first occurrence [<ref ...>...</ref>
], with other references and inline superscript templates present so one can see how it looks when used in series, and at a later [<ref ... />
] occurrence.
Code | An asserted fact.{{Clarifyme|date=August 2014}}<ref name="Jackson 1999">{{cite book |author-last=Jackson |author-first=Jennifer |title=The Unlightable Being of Bareness |publisher=Funky Publications |location=[[San Francisco]] |date=1999 |isbn=1-2345-6789-0}}</ref>{{rp|233–237}}<ref name="Smith 2000">{{cite book |author-last=Smith |author-first=Bob |title=Another Source |publisher=Another Publisher |location=[[Chicago, IL]] |date=2000 |isbn=0-0986-5432-1 |page=27}}</ref><ref name="NYT20060120">{{cite news |url=http://url.goes.here.tld/ |title=Some Article |author-last=Jones |author-first=Bill |work=The New York Times |page=S4, "Style" section |date=2006-01-20 |access-date=2007-03-17}}</ref> [...] Another asserted fact.<ref name="Jackson 1999" />{{rp|27, 422}} |
Result |
An asserted fact.[clarification needed][2]: 233–237 [3][4] [...] Another asserted fact.[2]: 27, 422 |
- Example page
With parentheses
AMA style puts superscripted page numbers inside parentheses instead of after a colon. For editors who prefer this style, this template has parameters page, pages, and at.
Code | An asserted fact.<ref name="Jackson 1999">{{cite book |author-last=Jackson |author-first=Jennifer |title=The Unlightable Being of Bareness |publisher=Funky Publications |location=[[San Francisco]] |date=1999 |isbn=1-2345-6789-0}} </ref>{{rp|page=148}} [...] Another asserted fact.<ref name="Jackson 1999" />{{rp|pages=233–237}} [...] A third asserted fact.<ref name="Jackson 1999" />{{rp|at=dust jacket}} |
Result |
An asserted fact.[2]: 148 [...] Another asserted fact.[2]: 233–237 [...] A third asserted fact.[2]: dust jacket |
Missing page numbers
If a reference needs a page number but it is missing, use
or {{rp|needed=y|{{subst:DATE}}}}
. This will automatically use the {{rp|needed=y|date=October 2024}}
{{page needed}}
template to add the article to the appropriate category. For example, <ref name="Jackson 1999" />{{rp|needed=y|date=November 2012}}
results in: [2][page needed]
This is preferable to something like
or {{rp|page number?}}
, since the cleanup categorization takes place. It is preferable to simply using {{rp|?}}
{{page needed}}
in articles that make use of {{rp}}
, since it preserves the use of the {{rp}}
syntax.
Do not nest the {{page needed}}
template inside the {{rp}}
template; doing so introduces a stray colon and the displayed results are too small to be legible to many readers. For instance, <ref name="Jackson 1999" />{{rp|{{page needed|date=November 2012}}}}
results in the undesirable: [2]: [page needed]
With a quote
The template can use the |quote=
or |q=
parameter to show a quote from the source when the mouse hovers over the location identifier. Use of these parameters provides some context for the reference, especially if the reference is to an offline source. This is especially important when using the off-line source to support a fact that might be controversial or is likely to be challenged.
Quotation marks are automatically inserted around the quote, and location identifiers with a quote will display with a dashed underline.
Code | An asserted fact.<ref name="Jackson 1999" />{{rp|27, 422|quote=This is a fact.}} [...] Another asserted fact.<ref name="Jackson 1999" />{{rp|pages=233–237|q=This is also a fact.}} [...] A third asserted fact.<ref name="Jackson 1999" />{{rp|at=dust jacket|q=This too is a fact.}} |
Result |
An asserted fact.[2]: 422 [...] Another asserted fact.[2]: 233–237 [...] A third asserted fact.[2]: dust jacket |
A note on spacing
Where multiple citations occur in series, {{rp}} prevents line breaks between the citations. The "zero-width non-joiner" (U+200C, code ‌
or {{zwnj}}
) can be used to allow a line break, although this is discouraged by MOS:REFPUNCT.
Hyphens
Per MOS:DASH, page ranges should normally be declared with an ndash ({{rp|27–29}}
→[ref]: 27–29 ) rather than a hyphen. Tools like WP:AWB will automatically convert hyphens to dashes in such instances. If the hyphen is desired for whatever reason, use {{hyphen}} ({{rp|27{{hyphen}}29}}
→[ref]: 27–29 ) rather than the -
of your keyboard.
TemplateData
TemplateData for Rp
This template is used to refer to specific page numbers when citing a source multiple times within the same article. It should be placed immediately after a reference.
Parameter | Description | Type | Status | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Page number(s) | 1 | Write the page number(s) referred to in this reference. Do not add 'Page', 'p.', 'pp.', etc.; just the number(s).
| String | required |
Request page number | needed | no description | Unknown | optional |
Page request date | date | no description | Unknown | optional |
AMA page number | page | no description | Unknown | optional |
Hide "pp" for AMA? | nopp | no description | Unknown | optional |
AMA pages | pages | no description | Unknown | optional |
AMA custom text | at | no description | Unknown | optional |
Quote from source | quote q | no description | String | optional |
See also
{{sfn}}
, a more common way of citing multiple pages of the same source (described in detail in the "Shortened footnotes" section of Wikipedia:Citing sources){{p.}}
and {{pp.}}, which emit "p." (or "pp."), and non-breaking space, then the page number(s): p. 2 producesp. 2
; pp. 2–4 givespp. 2–4
{{r}}
, which allows both the reference name and page number to be specified.{{r|aardvark|p=56}}
expands to<ref name="aardvark"/>{{Rp|56}}
.- Help:References and page numbers
- Wikipedia:Citing sources § Citing multiple pages of the same source
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Aardvark, A. A. (1999). The Best Moments for Eating. Green Press.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 Jackson, Jennifer (1999). The Unlightable Being of Bareness. San Francisco: Funky Publications. ISBN 1-2345-6789-0.
{{cite book}}
: Check|isbn=
value: checksum (help); Unknown parameter|ignore-isbn-error=
ignored (help) - ↑ Smith, Bob (2000). Another Source. Chicago, IL: Another Publisher. p. 27. ISBN 0-0986-5432-1.
{{cite book}}
: Check|isbn=
value: checksum (help); Unknown parameter|ignore-isbn-error=
ignored (help) - ↑ Jones, Bill (2006-01-20). "Some Article". The New York Times. p. S4, "Style" section. Retrieved 2007-03-17.