Below are Logopedia's rules. We've outlined 8 basic rules that all contributors must follow. If you witness another user violating any of these rules, please submit a report or warn the user (see more at the very bottom of this page).
Rule #1: Follow editing guidelines
Follow the correct process and formats for editing
For more information, see Logopedia's editing guidelines.
Here at Logopedia, it is important to format pages correctly. If you do not adhere to these it may result in a warning or block.
Page structure:
- Headers: Sections should be topped with a level 2 heading (use == == around the heading in source editor). They should show the years when the logo was introduced and/or discontinued. If we can confirm that a logo was introduced in 1982 and replaced in 1997, the headline will read "1982–1997". If a logo is still in use, the header would read "1982–present". If you can't confirm these dates, you should replace unsure dates with question marks. For example, if you know that a logo was introduced sometime between the 1960s and 1980s, and was replaced sometime between 1995 and 1999, the headline should read "19??–199?". If the company/brand has had more than one name in its history and has changed its logo to reflect it, you should put the name used in the specified era as a level 2 heading and then the dates below as level 3 heading (use === === around the heading in source editor). Also, an en dash (–) is much preferred compared to a hyphen (-) in headers.
- Images: Below the header, the company/brand should have its primary logo from the specified era (alternative logos may go in a subpage with the primary logos template at the top of the main page). The logo should always be centered and generally at between 200 and 300 pixels wide, depending on the proportions of the logo. You can do this in source editor where the correct code should look something like this: [[File:Filename.png|center|250px]]. Make sure the logo is of high-quality. Low-quality images should only be used when a high-quality version is not available. The filetype hierarchy goes something like this: SVG being the best, then PNG, JPG, and finally GIFs being generally the least preferred. Be cautious with logo recreations - they're are only acceptable if they are carefully recreated from high-resolution originals.
- Text: The next part of the section is a text which describes the brand's development during the era. It should be placed underneath the logo. Examples of basic information that should be included (if available), including specific dates for the introduction and the designer(s) behind the logo. This section may also include other aspects of brand communication, such as advertising, liveries for vehicles, merchandising, packaging etcetera.
- Templates: Logopedia uses templates so pages are easier to navigate and flow nicely. Common examples include:
- ImageTOCs - gives a brief logo history at the top of the page (only pages with 3 or more logos may use the template).
- Navboxes - placed at the bottom of the page and shows a company's assets.
- Primary Logos - placed at the top of the page (above the ImageTOC if one is there) and automatically shows a page's subpages which may include alternate logos, etc.
- Chronology - Shows predecessors and/or successors of a company at the bottom of the page, just above the Navbox.
- Links: Links to pages that provide further information about the logos and branding are usually placed straight after the relevant text. If you have a link that can't be put in a particular era, it should be placed at the bottom. However, try not to make too many external links about the same topic.
Edit positively
Editors are expected to make positive contributions. This means that your edits should add content, not remove it (if positive).
Positive contributions include:
- Adding relevant logos to articles.
- Adding more about a logo or brand's background.
- Fixing spelling and grammar mistakes.
- Adding relevant templates and categories.
Negative contributions include:
- Vandalism - publishing gibberish, expletives, or generally unrelated information.
- Removing content without explanation.
- Writing with biased or opinionized points of view.
- Spamming.
- Plagiarizing.
- Adding false information.
- Posting irrelevant, adding inappropriate or harmful external links.
- Adding curse words or adult content.
Users who make purposefully negative contributions and are solely here to vandalize Logopedia will have their accounts suspended indefinitely. However, this may vary as it is at the discretion of the blocking administrator.
Only publish relevant content
Logopedia is an encyclopedia of logos, nothing else and users are welcome to contribute as long as they are publishing relevant content.
- Duplicate logos: Logopedia does not tolerate duplicate logos either, such as distorted variants of on-screen logos and files that are the same as they will be deleted, and if the user who uploaded them persists, it'll lead to a block.
- Print logos: These are only permitted if they are (or have previously been) officially used by the company/brand in question. Main logos that have been unofficially recolored to black are not allowed. You must have a source to where they were found, otherwise, they'll get removed and the user who uploaded them will be blocked.
- IP mark symbols: Please take note that IP mark symbols (e.g. ®, ™, ℗, etcetera) should be omitted where possible. They're only present to signify that the brand is a protected trademark; they're not part of the logo itself. Adding these will result in a warning, any further violations will result in a short block. The only exception to this rule is that if the logo has a custom IP mark - these can stay.
- In-credit notices: These must have a logo on them otherwise they are disallowed on Logopedia.
- Watermarked content: Images of logos with watermarks are not to be uploaded on Logopedia. An exception to this rule is a TV channel's screen bug (its watermark in a corner of the screen). You are completely free to remove watermarks from images using artificial intelligence or manually, but only if the watermark is placed on a solid color that won't reveal any further edits to the image from the naked eye. In case a watermark is placed on top of a logo to the point where nothing can be done to remove it, you are able to place the Better logo needed template below it. However, if it is small enough to be easily removed, then you should upload a version of the logo free of watermarks.
- CAM captures: Most photos taken from a capture via a camera distort the image itself and can have hard-to-see details hidden. If print logos are to be uploaded via CAM captures then the Better logo needed template can be added next to it as long as a high quality capture is found eventually. However, if the CAM is taken from a television set, please refrain from uploading the file until a non-CAM capture is found. Telesync-esque captures (such as pictures from a TV that are straight enough to look like native images, or photos edited out well enough to the point where the image is straightened) are allowed, as long as they follow the rest of the guidelines mentioned on the page.
- On-screen mockups: Logopedia does not allow mockups, stick to PNG or JPG versions instead. However, they can be shown on the Logopedia Community Discord server on the #onscreen-mockups channel.
- Advertisements or promotional content: This is not allowed on Logopedia. Users who are publishing advertisements or promotional content will have their contributions reverted and will be blocked. This includes posting irrelevant, inappropriate, or harmful external links.
- Adult content: Pornography and other adult content is not tolerated whatsoever, whether they are in text, image, or link form. Users posting this type of content will have their accounts suspended immediately and reported to Fandom.
Content must be notable (no fake logos!)
We understand that users may be tempted to upload fictional or fan logos. We also understand that users may want to upload logos of their YouTube channels, websites, or other creations. However, Logopedia is not the place for this type of material. Content must be notable. This means that it must be at least somewhat well-known. Examples of this are large companies or corporations, chain restaurants or brands, high-traffic websites, and other popular brands.
Local restaurants/stores, your YouTube channel (unless it has 1,000,000+ subscribers), small websites, and fictional logos from movies or TV are examples of content that is generally not considered to be notable. For more details on what exactly counts as "notable," see Logopedia's notability guidelines.
Rule #2: Be civil
Logopedia is open to all users. It is a place for logo-lovers to collaborate and help others. You are required to be in line with this vision while you edit and communicate to other users.
It is very easy to be nasty or rude online when you are frustrated. However, even if you are, do your best to be civil and fair. Rather than edit warring (when you and another editor revert each other's edits repeatedly), take matters to the talk page and politely address the issue at hand. If you are reporting a user, state the facts. Do not exaggerate or resort to insults and don't make false reports against someone.
Users who continuously adopt a rude, belligerent, or harassing attitude will receive a block.
Rule #3: Follow Fandom's account creation guidelines
Fandom has specific guidelines in place for creating accounts. These are not to be abused in any way. As a part of these guidelines, you must be at least 13 years old to edit on all Fandom wikis, including Logopedia. In addition, your username must not contain any expletives, intentionally copy that of another user, or any personal attacks.
Due to persistent issues with users abusing multiple accounts, users may only use one account on Logopedia. If you are blocked and you create an additional account in an attempt to evade your previous block (this is called sockpuppetry) all your accounts will be blocked indefinitely. If this behavior continues, you will be reported to Fandom.
Users who create and intentionally use additional accounts (even if their primary accounts are not blocked) will have those additional accounts suspended indefinitely
If any user publicly sympathizes with a banned user and requests that the banned user be unblocked within poor reasoning, then that user will be treated as another account of the banned user and the account will also be suspended indefinitely.
Finally, of course, you are required to follow Fandom's Terms of Use.
Rule #4: Do not duplicate the site
We understand that Fandom allows duplicated wikis, but copying/plagiarizing pages and putting them onto your LP duplicate (without attribution) is harmful to Logopedia's reputation. It also includes an attempt to impersonate this wiki by using this wiki's background, wordmark, and the wiki header even by using a similar URL.
Any user who created a duplicate site without attributing pages will be banned from using Logopedia permanently.
Rule #5: Do not start demotion votes without administrative privileges
You are not to create a vote to remove an administrator without administrator rights. Only administrators are allowed to make decisions regarding the demotion of an administrator or bureaucrat. In addition, you cannot support the vote if it was not created by an administrator and instead report the user and the thread here. This rule is set to protect our administrators from being voted out by sockpuppets or anyone who attempts to sway the discussion to get away with removing an innocent administrator. If the vote has been started by an administrator, then you may add your vote to the discussion.
Any user found to be creating a vote without administrative rights will have the discussion closed and the user will be banned from Logopedia. If you have genuine concerns about the behavior of an administrator that may be violating Logopedia policies, contact a bureaucrat regarding the matter.
Rule #6: Follow talk page etiquette
On Logopedia, we use talk pages rather than message walls, and so there are a few rules about using these pages that you must follow.
To create a message on an article, go to the page you want to comment on and press the three dots beside the "Edit" button. At the bottom of the list, you should see a button that says "Talk" and it usually has a number in brackets at the end. Press this button to go to the article's talk page. From here, press the "Add Topic" button which can be found in the same place you would find the "Edit" button. Now you can type out your message. Alternatively, you could use the source editor to do this manually by inserting your title as a heading, enclosing it in two equals signs on each side (e.g. ==Message title==).
To create a message on a user's talk page, press the "Add Topic" button and it will create a new topic within that talk page. Alternatively, you could use the source editor to do this manually by inserting your title as a heading, enclosing it in two equals signs on each side (e.g. ==Message title==).
To reply to a message, go to the message you want to reply to from within a talk page. Now, press the edit icon located beside the title of the topic. Press it and you will begin editing that specific topic. Your reply should be placed underneath the message you are replying to. If there are other people who have already replied to the message before you, you must type your reply under those original replies. Use asterisks to signify who you are responding to. The original message should have no asterisk before it, but a reply meant to reply directly to the original message should have one asterisk before it. If you are replying to a reply of a message, your reply should be below the reply you are replying to, and should be followed by two asterisks, unless the reply you are replying to already has two or more asterisks before it, in which you would create your reply with one more asterisk than the message you are replying to already contains.
Once you have written out your message, both on article talk pages and user talk pages, you MUST sign it. Signing posts allows for the recipient and anyone else who views the message to easily see who sent the message and what time they sent it at. You can do this by typing four tildes at the end of your message (e.g. ~~~~). Doing this inserts your Fandom signature along with a timestamp of when you officially sent the message. You can customize your signature by going to your preferences page.
Another rule you must follow regarding talk pages on Logopedia is that you may not delete genuine messages from your own user talk page. Doing this is often perceived as rude and dismissive. When an administrator warns you on your talk page and you simply delete the message without responding, this will also be perceived as ignoring the warning. It is highly suggested that you respond to messages, but that is not required. You just can't outright delete them.
If you want to keep your talk page empty when conversations have concluded, you are free to create a talk page archive rather than erasing messages. This is where you can copy and paste entire messages from your talk page, and once it exists within a talk page archive, you are free to remove it from the original talk page. You can do this by creating a page on the wiki as you normally would, but with a specific title. It would typically be formatted like this: User talk:Username/Archive
Rule #7: Try to avoid edit farming or edit hounding
On Logopedia, edit farming is usually frowned upon. Editing too many pages at once, while not adding anything new to them, is typically considered as edit farming, especially when the editor does it for the sole purpose of boosting their edit count. However, if you have found a set of articles that need work on them, this is usually excused.
Edit hounding, where you look at a specific user's contributions to try to mimic them as much as possible, is also disheartened at Logopedia. We encourage users to be original as long as they follow the rules and our other guidelines.
You may get a temporary ban when you get caught either edit farming or edit hounding, depending on the situation. If you eventually break other rules as well, your block can be extended.
Rule #8: Follow Fandom's copyright rules
All contributions on Fandom are released under CC-BY-SA.
Do not submit copyrighted images or text without permission. Creative Commons (CC-BY-SA-3.0) or public domain images are strongly preferred on Fandom. Copyright-violating images will be deleted and you may recieve a warning or block.
For more information, see the following pages on Community Central:
Finally: Follow the above 8 rules! :)
You will not have a problem editing on Logopedia as long as you follow the 8 rules. Please note that if you violate these rules, do not necessarily expect to receive a warning. Obvious misconduct will result in a swift block. Thank you and happy editing!
Dealing with users violating these rules
If you are not an administrator, there is still a lot you can do to help despite not being able to block violators.
- If you believe their edits are in good faith and they are unaware of their violation of the rules and/or editing guidelines be sure to give a polite note on the talk page or Discord of the user, noting what they did wrong. Please direct them to the rules and/or editing guidelines depending on their violation. Threatening or yelling at violators will only upset them or encourage them to continue their actions.
- If their actions are a intentional or strict and obvious violation, such as uploading explicit images, obvious vandalism, or harassing other users, report them at Logopedia:User Reports and admins will decide on a block or a warning for the user as soon as possible.