Community Wishlist Survey 2019/Miscellaneous/Every special page that accepts wikitext should have normal editor toolbar

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Every special page that accepts wikitext should have normal editor toolbar

  • Problem: None of the Mediawiki editing extensions currently in use (like search and replace and CharInsert) are available for use with ExpandTemplates. Another missed opportunity, when previewing templates and template code is the inability to review the "Parser profiling data" to monitor and manage the work being done with respect to technical limitations.
  • Who would benefit: Any editor who uses the ExpandTemplates special page will benefit by having these editing extensions available when using that page for its intended purpose.
  • Proposed solution: I propose that the "input pane" be modified to mimic the "editing pane" used across our Wikimedia projects. And when input is rendered for preview, along with a visualization of the template/syntax after expansion, provide the "Parser profiling data", as well, to show the efficiency of said expansion when rendering said preview. I can hardly imagine another time when the information would be more empowering than when expanding/previewing templates and syntax on the ExpandTemplates special page.
  • More comments: If a Special NavBar is created — tailored to the unique purpose and needs of this special page — that would certainly be great! But, that is not what I am proposing at this time. I will be happy with the same "add-on array", currently in use, without modification. In my opinion it will be an immediate improvement to the ExpandTemplates page the moment these features become available. Thank you for considering this proposal.
  • Phabricator tickets: I am not aware of any.

Discussion

@John Cline: So you want to make the Special:ExpandTemplate debug page, a full fledged Template editor or something, if I understand correctly ? —TheDJ (talk • contribs) 14:29, 2 November 2018 (UTC)[reply]

I would like the page to mimic the full editing experience by making the header bar available (particularly for its "advanced" and "help" features) and a footer array of "Insertable wiki markup" (which could be customized to insert the most common "variables" and "conditional expressions" used in template code) without, of course, the footer bar (which allows the edit summary, marking change as minor, and publishing changes). I hope this has answered your question; please follow-on if it has not. Thank you.John Cline (talk) 15:26, 2 November 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Voting

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