Template:Sock vote/doc

Purpose

Comments made by a sock with no replies may simply be removed with an appropriate edit summary. If comments are part of an active discussion, they should be struck instead of removed. To use this template, first strike the sockpuppet's vote or comment and signature using <s>...</s>, then add this template to inform editors about the sockpuppet. You may optionally add your signature after the template.

Usage

The template takes up to three unnamed parameters, plus two named ones, and it changes both its wording and its icon depending on what you give it.

• |1= is the sockpuppet investigation case name, normally the suspected master's username. It's used to build the "of X" wording and to link to the relevant SPI page. If no SPI page exists for that name, the "see investigation" bit just doesn't appear, so you don't need to check first.
• |2= sets the confidence level, and this is what changes the icon:
  • Leave it blank, or use anything unrecognised, for blocked (the default). Shows a red padlock icon (File:Sock block.svg).
  • Use sus for suspected. Shows a grey people icon if it's a lone sockpuppet, or a different icon if parameter 3 marks it as a sockpuppeteer.
  • Use con for confirmed. Uses the same red padlock icon as blocked, just with different wording.
  • Use ban for banned. Shows File:Banned user.JPG instead, and links the word "banned" to WP:BAN.
• |3= switches between "sockpuppet" and "sockpuppeteer" wording. Leave it blank and the template describes a sockpuppet, adding "of [parameter 1]" at the end. Fill in anything at all (traditionally master or eer, though the actual value doesn't matter) and it describes a sockpuppeteer instead, dropping the "of X" part, since here the account being tagged is itself the alleged mastermind, not a sock of someone else.
• |sock= is optional and names the actual sock account being tagged. Without it, the template just states the status as a bare phrase (relying on the struck comment above to make clear whose comment it was). With it, the sentence spells this out in full, for example "User123 is a blocked sockpuppet of Example, see investigation." It goes right after the icon, before the status word.
• |noinvest=yes hides the "see investigation" link even when the SPI page for parameter 1 exists.
• |4= is for signing the comment using ~~~~.

Examples

Some examples covering the different combinations:

• {{Sock vote}} → —  Blocked sockpuppet.
• {{Sock vote|Example}} → —  Blocked sockpuppet of Example, see investigation.
• {{Sock vote|Example|sus}} → —  Suspected sockpuppet of Example, see investigation.
• {{Sock vote|Example||master}} → —  Blocked sockpuppeteer, see investigation.
• {{Sock vote|Example|sus|master}} → —  Suspected sockpuppeteer, see investigation.
• {{Sock vote|Example|con}} → —  Confirmed sockpuppet of Example, see investigation.
• {{Sock vote|Example|con|eer}} → —  Confirmed sockpuppeteer, see investigation.
• {{Sock vote|Example|ban}} → —  Banned sockpuppet of Example, see investigation.
• {{Sock vote|Example|ban|master}} → —  Banned sockpuppeteer, see investigation.
• {{Sock vote|Example|sock=User123}} → —  User123 is a blocked sockpuppet of Example, see investigation.
• {{Sock vote|Example|con|eer|sock=User123}} → —  User123 is a confirmed sockpuppeteer, see investigation.
• {{Sock vote|Example4}} → —  Blocked sockpuppet of Example4. (the SPI page for User:Example4 doesn't exist, so the investigation link doesn't show up)
• {{Sock vote|Example|noinvest=yes}} → —  Blocked sockpuppet of Example. (forced to hide the SPI link for User:Example, despite one existing)

If you find yourself typing out the same combination of parameters 2 and 3 often, it may be worth using a wrapper template instead, such as {{Blocked sockpuppet}}, {{Confirmed sockpuppet}}, or {{Banned sockpuppet}}, which hard code those two parameters and just ask for the username (and, if needed, the sock's own name).

See also

• {{Disrupted discussion}}
• Wikipedia:Sockpuppetry
• Wikipedia:Dealing with sockpuppets § Cleaning up after a sockpuppet is blocked
• Wikipedia:Talk page guidelines § Comments by sock puppets

Template Data

No description.

Template parameters

This template prefers inline formatting of parameters.

Parameter		Description	Type	Status
Sockpuppeteer name	1	The name of the sockpuppeteer (sock master) on whose name a SPI page is/will be opened. If themself the sockpuppeteer, put their username.	User	required
Status	2	Status of sockpuppet; suspected, confirmed, blocked Suggested values sus suspected con confirmed blocked Default blocked	String	suggested
Sockpuppeteer	3	Hides "sockpuppet of User:XYZ" part if the user is themself the sockpuppeteer (sock master) Suggested values master eer sockpuppeteer Default N/A	String	suggested
No investigation	4 noinvest	Hides investigation page even if one exists	Boolean	optional