Masticationpedia:Why create an account?

We are here to let scientific knowledge grow.

In Masticationpedia You don't need to be registered to read it, but getting an account will allow you to:

• Choose an appropriate user name, which will be reserved just for you on Masticationpedia and other projects run by The Charity.
• Create your own user page, to collaborate, share information about yourself.
• Communicate with other editors via your own talk page. You can also opt in to exchanging emails with other users.
• Get automatic notifications that alert you when someone has pinged you, or wikilinked your userid.
• Use custom preferences to change the look and behaviour of Masticationpedia.
• View a convenient list of all your contributions (edits), and use your watchlist to monitor changes made to pages that interest you.
• Use your unified login to work on the Charity's other projects.
• Use more advanced editing tools.
• Edit without revealing your IP address (which can be used to trace your physical location) to the public.

Username and privacy

If you create an account, you can pick a user name provided it is available and unique. Edits you make while logged in will be assigned to that name.

You will have your own permanent user page where you can write a bit about yourself. While Masticationpedia is not a homepage provider, you can use this to display a few free pictures, write about your work, etc. Many users use their user page to collect valuable information from this wiki and/or related projects.

You will also have a permanent talk page you can use to communicate with other users. You will be notified whenever someone writes a message on your talk page. If you choose to give an e-mail address, other users will be able to contact you by e-mail. This feature is anonymous; the user who emails you will not know your e-mail address.

You are actually less identifiable logged in than you would as an unregistered editor, owing to the hiding of your IP address (so long as you avoid disclosing identifiable information on your user page). You might want to consider privacy and the possibility of offline harassment, when deciding what to say on your user page.

Reputation, communication, and more successful edits

Having an account gives you a fixed identity that other users will recognize. Logging in under a user name lets you build trust and respect through a history of good edits, and makes it easier for veteran users to assume good faith, communicate and collaborate. Having a good name (or a pseudonym to protect your identity) promotes more responsible editing, and more civil discourse.

As your reputation builds, it is possible to earn privileges such as rollback, sysop/administrator, and others.

User preferences

As a registered user, you can customize the way pages are displayed by altering your preferences. There, in the Appearance tab, you can change the following display settings:

• Under Skin: various options as to the appearance of the website
• Under Math: how mathematical formulas are displayed
• Under Files: how large image thumbnails should be

And various editing preferences:

• How your username signature appears on talk pages
• How pages should be displayed in recent changes
• and many others