Starting a new page
A new page is distinguished from a blank page: the latter has a page history. However, creating a new page is just like editing a blank page, except that the message that is in New article text appears, which can be different per project.
New pages can be created by following a link to a nonexistent page ("red link") or by editing the last part of the URL of another page in the same project. It is useful to create a page by following a link, or create links to the new page right after creating the page, to avoid the new page being isolated.
(For general editing matters, see How to edit a page.)
General principles
- Search to see whether someone has written a similar page before you start one yourself.
- Review conventions of the project you are working in regarding e.g.:
- the naming; see also Page name.
- whether a separate page is justified; perhaps it is better to add the text to a related page (especially if the text is not very long); that page can always be split later, after it has grown.
Starting a page from an existing link, after creating one, or after a search
To start a new page, you can start from a link to the title of the new page. Another way is to perform a search (as you should have done before) with the Go button and coming up with nothing, pressing "create the article".
Internal links to non-existing pages are typically created in preparation of creating the page, and/or to encourage other people to do so. Typically they look different from links to existing pages: a different color (they are called "red links").
Such a link is to the edit mode of the non-existing page, which allows creating it, just like editing a blank page.
Before following the edit link, decide whether you want to give the new page the suggested name. If not, first edit the link on the referring page.
Of course you can also create the link yourself, in a related page or index page. However, it may be better to wait with creating links until after creating the new page, especially if the link would replace one to an existing page. In that case you can create the link but just press Preview, not Save (a previewed link also works) or create the link first only on your user page.
Note that links on related pages are not only convenient for navigation, but also make people aware of the new page (those who happen to read a related page, but also those who watch such a page).
Starting a page through the URL
The URL corresponding to a non-existing page gives a webpage ready to edit nad showing a short introduction text.
Thus a "broken link" from within or outside the project is, in a way, not really broken, as long as the first part of it is correct.
An easy way to produce the URL is editing the last part of the URL of another page in the same project.