RetroTechCollection

RetroTechCollection:Tools

Editing Tools
Tools to speed up article creation and editing on the RetroTechCollection Wiki

These tools are available to all registered editors. They help automate repetitive tasks like creating infoboxes, importing specifications, and managing categories. For general editing help, see Help:Editing.

🧰 Available Tools

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Infobox Generator

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Access Open Infobox Generator — also available via the toolbar button when editing an article
Purpose Generate properly formatted infobox wikitext for computers and peripherals/accessories

Features:

  • Switch between Computer and Peripheral infobox types
  • Form fields for all infobox parameters — only filled fields appear in the output
  • Auto-links predecessor and successor fields (e.g. type "Macintosh IIcx" → outputs [[Macintosh IIcx]])
  • Formats image filenames correctly (adds [[File:...|250px]] wrapper)
  • Live preview shows how the infobox will render
  • One-click copy to clipboard
  • "Insert into Editor" button when used from the article editor

How to use:

  1. Open the Infobox Generator
  2. Select the infobox type (Computer or Peripheral)
  3. Fill in the fields you need — leave unwanted fields blank
  4. Click "Generate Infobox"
  5. Copy the wikitext and paste it as the first line of your article

Spec Sheet Importer

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Access Open Spec Importer
Purpose Import technical specifications from EveryMac.com and auto-generate infobox wikitext
Data source EveryMac.com — comprehensive Macintosh specifications database

Features:

  • Search EveryMac by model name
  • Quick-select dropdown for common Macintosh models
  • Fetches full specs and maps them to RTC Wiki infobox fields:
    • CPU (processor type + speed)
    • Memory (standard + maximum)
    • Storage (HDD, floppy, optical)
    • Display (built-in + resolution)
    • Dimensions and weight
    • OS support range
    • Pricing and model numbers
  • All mapped fields are editable before generating wikitext
  • Side-by-side view: mapped infobox fields + full EveryMac spec sheet for reference
  • Results are cached for 24 hours (fast repeat lookups)

How to use:

  1. Open the Spec Importer
  2. Search for a model or use the quick-select dropdown
  3. Review the auto-mapped infobox fields on the left
  4. Reference the full EveryMac data on the right for anything the auto-mapper missed
  5. Edit any fields that need adjustment
  6. Click "Generate Infobox Wikitext" to get the finished wikitext

Twinkle

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Access Toolbar buttons appear automatically on every page (TW menu)
Purpose Maintenance tagging, page protection, speedy deletion, and batch operations

25 maintenance templates available, including 5 RTC-specific:

Enable in Preferences → Gadgets → Twinkle. Documentation: RetroTechCollection:TW.

HotCat

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Access Category links at the bottom of any page get (+) (−) (±) buttons
Purpose Click-based category management — add, remove, or change categories without editing the source

Enable in Preferences → Gadgets → HotCat.

Pywikibot

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Access Server-side only (command line)
Purpose Batch operations — bulk edits, category moves, template substitutions

Available for admin use. Contact an administrator if you need batch operations performed.

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Creating a new computer article:

  1. Import specs — Open the Spec Importer, find your model, review the data
  2. Generate infobox — Click "Generate Infobox Wikitext", copy to clipboard
  3. Create article — Paste the infobox as the first line
  4. Write content — Follow the editing guide and style guides
  5. Add categories — Use HotCat for quick category assignment
  6. Tag if incomplete — Use Twinkle to add maintenance tags for missing sections
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