Template:Selfref/doc

Purpose
The input to the Selfref template will not show in any reuse of Wikipedia article content where a self-reference wouldn't make sense. This way you can safely make a self reference where needed, but see Self-references to avoid.

To see this, view a printable version, and notice how this template masks what you tell it.

Usage
This template should not be substituted.

In most cases, is used to create a disambiguation link to a page in the "Wikipedia:" namespace from article-space; for instance, the page Objectivity (disambiguation) could have a self-referential "hatnote" link at the top:.

When using in this way, use the following format:

which produces:

When using in this way, the text will be indented slightly, italicized (Wikipedia house style for self-referential notes), and both preceded and followed by a linebreak.

To use it inline without the indentation and line breaking, add the parameter inline:

or use the alias Selfref inline:

both of which produce: (illustrated here on the same line as other content).

Unprintworthy content
Rarely, there is other, non-self-referential content which shouldn't appear in mirrors, print editions, or other off-Wikipedia reuses of Wikipedia content, and which shouldn't be italicized as a self-reference. It is preferable to mark such unprintworthy content with the Unprintworthy inline template (which includes the  CSS class, but not the   class, since links in such content will not be internal self-references). Although not all mirror sites do so, the content in question can be removed by reusers of WP content, without any reformatting, by ignoring or removing content marked up by this template, or more accurately by the  CSS class that it (and some other templates) use.

A "brittle", legacy usage of has technically also been used for such unprintworthy cases, and pre-dates the Unprintworthy inline template. This is to simply end the template with a pipe character – :

This method cannot be depended upon (for one thing, many editors will interpret the pipe as an error and remove it, turning the template into an indented self-ref hatnote!). This syntax has been obsolete since 2008, and any remaining uses of it should be replaced with Selfref inline (if real self-references) or Unprintworthy inline (if simply unprintworthy).