Wiki help

How is Wiki organized?

• Wiki is made up of many individual pages. Each page includes links to other pages. When at least four topics are listed on each page, Wiki automatically adds a "Contents" box near the top of each page.
• Some pages include an "Infobox." This is found on the right side of the page and is set aside by a text box. Inside the "Infobox" is a summary of the key facts regarding the subject.
• The Business pages include current and/or historical information on Wayne County businesses.
• The Internal Databases page includes a list of databases created by staff and volunteers of the Wayne County Public Library that are now available for public viewing.
• The Scanned Documents List page includes a detailed list of documents and photos scanned.
• The Surname pages include such items as name meaning & origin, vital records, census records, court records, and property records.
• The Township pages include such items as coordinates, historical information on the township, maps, businesses, churches and schools.

How do I find information on the Wayne County, Ohio Online Resource Center?

• Users may browse Wiki. In the left column of Wiki, there are some menu options. These include:
  • Beginning Genealogy: Basic guide to beginning genealogy
  • Wiki Help: Learn some tips for navigating through the Wayne County, Ohio Online Resource Center
  • Recent changes: See what has recently been modified or added on the Wiki
  • Genealogy, Local History, or Business Portal
  • Department Resources: browse through the topics to see which items the department may have on Wayne County, Ohio
  • Guides: browse through the topics to see what may be of interest
  • What links here: This tool is available for each Wiki page. This tool is similar to a "See Also" tool. Links to other pages related to the current page may be found here.

• User may browse the three Portals
  • The Genealogy Portal includes links to such records as birth, census, court, marriage, death, ethnicity, immigration and property. Many of these links start with a brief overview of the type of records. Some pages may include additional links to more information.
  • The Local History Portal discusses the overall history of Wayne County, Ohio. Such topics include buildings, cemeteries, churches, schools, military units, organizations and places of recreation. Some pages may include additional links to more information or to digitized images. The Local History Portal includes the library’s digital collection and historical atlases.
  • The Business Portal includes histories of many businesses located in Wayne County Ohio. These businesses may be defunct or currently in operation. A few directories have been digitized. Others will be added as time permits. The Business Portal includes links to programs and services offered through the Wayne County Public Library Adult Services Department.

• Users at any time may do a keyword search on the topic of interest. Enter the place, subject, record type, surname, or other keywords. Do not enter phrases that ask questions, etc. The Wiki search engine is not designed for this type of search. Such searches may be done through Google and Yahoo. Some search examples that may be done in the Wiki search box include:
  • Yoder
  • George
  • Birth
  • Maps
  • Plain Township
  • Wooster
  • Blacksmith
  • Manufacturing

• For many of the business entries, the SIC and NAICS codes are included. These may be searched using the Wiki search field.

• The default Boolean operator used in the Wayne County, Ohio Online Resource Center is “or”. For example, a search on Aaron Yoder will present results for all the words including Aaron and all words including Yoder.

• Users may include quotes to search two or more words together, such as “George Faber”. Users should use this option with caution because the results may be limited. The term must be searched exactly how it has been entered into the Wayne County, Ohio Online Resource Center.

• Because most of the information entered on the Wayne County, Ohio Online Resource Center is text-based, users may use the “Ctrl+F” command in the web browser to find a word on the page being viewed.

Where are the links from the old website?

• Most of the links have been transferred to the Wayne County, Ohio Online Resource Center. However, there is no designated page just for these external links. Rather, the external links may be found within the topic. For example, the link to the Wayne County Cemetery Preservation Society is found under "Death." The links to the US Land Deeds and the US Bureau of Land Management are found under "Property."

• The subscription databases and the most commonly used websites are part of the front page of the Genealogy Portal. These include:
  • American Ancestors
  • Ancestry Library Edition
  • FamilySearch
  • Heritage Quest Online
  • Rutherford B. Hayes Obituary Index
  • Swiss Anabaptist Genealogy Society
  • Wayne County Through the Years
  • Wooster Daily Republican 1917-1920

• Additional external links may be found within the content of the page.

Why does my search term appear to have zero hits?

• To aid our users, we are presently designing some cheat sheets. Here are some tips:
  • Surname pages have been created such as Yoder.
  • Places are not abbreviated: Plain Township, Wayne County, Ohio.
  • See Occupations for a list of occupations commonly found in Wayne County, Ohio directories and the US Census Records.
  • Industry terminology has been included based on the NAICS available through the US Bureau of Labor.

Why does the link lead to an empty page or appear non-operational?

• Not all Wayne County, Ohio Online Resource Center pages have been populated.
  • Red links lead to future pages. There is no information on these pages, or in Wiki language, the pages have not been populated.
  • Blue links lead to already created pages. Staff, volunteer or a community member have created pages from the link and added some information about the specific topic. The amount of information does vary from page to page.

• Sometimes coding may be incorrect. This may lead to bad links.

• Websites do change periodically. At times, the URL in the link on Wiki is no longer a valid link.

• If you encounter a problem with one of the links, please contact the department.

Why do some pages appear inconsistent?

• Wiki is a learning process for staff. The vision for Wiki changes as staff become more familiar with Wiki. Staff members are in the process of attempting to have like pages in a consistent format.

• Wiki is a collaboration project. Although staff attempt to have some consistency among the various pages, Wiki editors come forth with varying degrees of knowledge. The library provides guidelines for Wiki editors; however, the library also permits some flexibility within the Wiki editors' pages.