This article helps our Volunteer Squad keep the database clean and consistent! It pertains to members who have Creator access and above. If you're interested in getting involved, read more about joining the Squad here. We'd love to have you aboard!

TABLE OF CONTENTS


Subject Names


  • In general, please use full, current, official names. Former names, nicknames, etc. can be added to the Alternative Spellings field. If a significant name change has occurred for the subject of a Subject, it may be good to note the change and when it occurred in the Subject's description field.
    • Use the full name, for example "Corgi Toys" versus "Corgi," but don't include legal suffixes such as "Ltd," "Inc.," "GmbH," etc. Instead of a Subject named "Shell Ltd." or "Shell GmbH" it should just be named "Shell."

    • An exception can be made for organizations most commonly known by an abbreviation or acronym. For example, United Parcel Service of America, Inc. is most commonly known as UPS, so UPS is the best name for the Subject.

    • If an official name is not in the English languages, please refer to our guidelines on non-English Subject names.

    • On series and subseries, please do not include the parent subject in the name ("Movie Maniacs", not "McFarlane Toys Movie Maniacs"). The parent subjects can always be stated in the identifier field if necessary. It will create keywords and make the series searchable.

  • Double check the spelling. There are a few cases where we still find a misspelled Subject with only one or two items attributed to it. This is because sometimes in the early days a Subject creator mistyped the subject while attributing an item to it, creating a second, incorrect subject in the database. If you come across one of these, please flag it and note which Subject it should be merged with.

  • Trademark symbols (™ and ®) should not be used in Subject names.

  • Companies often have several different legal entities or divisions for different products or different regions, but we generally want only a single Subject for the company's primary entity (i.e., the one that most people would think to search for). For example, we have one main Subject for the Shell oil company rather than separate Subjects for Shell Aviation, Shell Finance, Shell Deutschland, etc.



Subject Descriptions


  • Subject descriptions should be written from a neutral point of view (i.e. no editorials, marketing hype, sales pitches, etc.) and a third-person perspective (don't use the "I," "me," "we," and "us" pronouns). This is detailed in our Neutral Point of Viewpolicy.
    • A brand or organization's official description or "about us" information is usually not written in neutral language, but it may used as part of the Subject description if it adds relevant information as long as it is clearly labeled as such. Please see "Marketing Language" for guidelines.

  • Subjects that are only tangentially related to collectibles, such as actors, historical events, cities, etc., should generally have only brief descriptions, especially if they are well-covered by general reference websites like Wikipedia.

  • Subjects that are directly related to collectibles, such as brands, series, designers, etc. can (and should!) include more detailed information such as the Subject's background and history, an overview of associated collectibles and their common traits, etc. The mission of hobbyDB is to be a comprehensive resource about collectibles, so even if that information is readily available elsewhere it is still appropriate for Subject Descriptions.

  • Whole descriptions should not be directly copied from other websites, including Wikipedia, but parts may be quoted if properly attributed.

  • Please cite sources, especially for little-known facts and disputed information. Any text that is quoted or otherwise used in the process of writing a Subject description should be cited within the description, and its source should be added to the External Links section.

  • Subject descriptions can contain internal links to other hobbyDB pages. To add a link to a description, find a page you want to link to, such as a person or brand Subject or a Database Item, and copy the address (URL). Then select the text in the description where you want to add the link, click the chain link icon in the formatting bar, and paste the URL into the hobbyDB Link field.



People Subjects


  • Use the most common version of a person's name as the Subject Name. Their full name (including middle names or initials) and any variations of their name should be added to the Additional Spellings field.

  • The photo should ideally be a solo portrait of the person. Avoid using group photos with other individuals.

  • Parent Subjects can include characters the person has played, teams they have played or driven for, Brands they have worked for, etc.

  • An actor should be not be added as Parent Subjects to fictional characters. Instead, add the character as a Parent Subject to any actors who have played that character.

  • A person should have some relevance to collecting. Use Editorial Judgement to avoid creating pages for consumers or others that might never be needed as a Related Subject for another Database Item.

  • Add an Identifier if there are Subjects for multiple individuals with the same name.



See Also