So you want to delete a virus article

Hello editor. You probably came here because you wanted to delete a computer virus article, and are politely posting a notice of deletion. Thanks, but please consider working at a "higher level", by advocating and establishing new policy to govern the inclusion, maintenance, and deletion of computer virus articles.

A significant portion of the computer virus articles are stubs. A vast number of computer viruses are listed, but no article for them exists. Said articles and lists are subject to vandalism, and many others are of unacceptable quality.

Can you suggest some standards for computer virus articles? Are you in a project, like Wikipedia:WikiProject_Malware or Wikipedia:WikiProject_Computer_Security, that is in a position to establish these standards? Please do so, or consider getting involved with others.

Article mention: Perhaps a virus needs to be listed by at least three antivirus sites in order to receive mention on one of the lists of computer viruses, worms, etc. This would help manage the lists, but I'm not sure what a "good" virus article looks like, though it's easier to say what should not be in a good virus article. We should probably change the format of the lists to properly link to each site that mentions the virus.
Article naming: e.g. all computer virus articles shall be suffixed with "(computer virus)", as in "Foo (computer virus)". What's the difference between a virus, worm, and trojan horse, though? At any rate, we should use (computer worm) and (trojan horse) suffixes, to be consistent.
Article content: do mention platform, don't rip off copyrighted content without permission

In practice, enforcing such standards across Wikipedia is a nontrivial maintenance burden, but a bot or two might help. Certainly, a group of like-minded people is helpful.

Still, there could be some educational value in the shorter virus articles, but I suppose that's a matter of taste. I would claim that a collection of virus articles is worthwhile, though.

So, I think, the way you could be most helpful, is to engage others. Just going off and deleting an article is a missed chance to engage others and increase article quality on a larger scale.

Thanks,

A-Day ^(c)_(t)

List of computer viruses deletion vote notice

Please help the List_of_computer_viruses stay alive! You seem to have a heavily vested interest in this article. A-Day 23:59, 30 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you! A-Day 04:08, 31 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Oop, looks like there's similar voting going on for the list of trojan horses. Thanks again (and sorry for bothering you!) - A-Day 22:09, 31 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

I appreciate you taking the time to cast your second vote. I'll never bother you again. Thank you, A-Day 22:26, 31 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Oh you are not bothering me, feel free to inform me of such votes, my comments were directed at the nominator... :) --Cool Cat^Talk|@ 23:03, 31 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Hey hey! I'm glad there are no hard feelings. On the bright side, the nominator has to be doing a good job editting articles. A-Day 00:58, 1 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Well, voting knowlege for deletion is something frowned upon by the masses here on wikipedia ^-^' --Cool Cat^Talk|@ 01:01, 1 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

List of trojan horses deletion vote notice

Thanks for your vote for the list of computer viruses. Please consider voting similarly for the list of trojan horses as well. Thank you - A-Day 23:54, 31 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks for your help! A-Day 00:37, 1 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

No problem! It boggles the mind to see people trying to delete such useful lists. --Revolución (talk) 01:22, 1 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Agreed. In my opinion, the nominator contributes well, just had some poor judgment with these nomintations. A-Day 01:31, 1 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks for your vote for the list of computer viruses. Please consider voting similarly for the list of trojan horses as well. Thank you - A-Day 01:15, 1 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks for your help! A-Day 01:32, 1 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

No problem. I am unfamiliar with the method of posting to user comment pages... but thanks for alerting me to that other article. Such lists are the collaberative effort of many wikipedians and is what Wikipedia is all about. To suggest their deletion is outrageous. --Christopher 02:21, 1 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Yeah, putting the list up for deletion wasn't in the best taste, but he still does some good editting. I'm glad you have such a deep respect for the work that Wikipedia is. There's so much to learn from it on so many levels. Thank you - A-Day 02:32, 1 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks for your vote for the list of computer viruses. Please consider voting similarly for the list of trojan horses as well. Thank you - A-Day 00:07, 1 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks for reminding me. I had meant to vote on it but forgot all about it. Reyk 02:53, 1 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

No problem! A-Day 03:37, 1 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Tearing things up

You will notice I'm boldly moving virus and trojan articles alike to reflect a more consistent and descriptive naming scheme.

All computer viruses will be in the format 'Foo (computer virus)'
All trojan horses will be in the format 'Foo (trojan horse)'
All computer worms will be in the format 'Foo (computer worm)'

This is required to differentiate biological viruses from computer viruses from trojan horses (and from worms too). Example:

biological virus AIDS
computer virus AIDS
trojan horse AIDS

I hope you agree this is much-needed progress. A-Day ^(c)_(t) 04:03, 3 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Complete, pretty much

I hope it's useful. A-Day ^(c)_(t) 08:18, 3 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Malware WikiProject invitation

Since you've done so much for expanding and helping with articles on computer viruses and other forms of malware, I do hope you will consider joining the Malware WikiProject! Hope to see you there. --Trafton 22:00, 11 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

AIDS (computer virus)

A proposed deletion template has been added to the article AIDS (computer virus), suggesting that it be deleted according to the proposed deletion process. All contributions are appreciated, but this article may not satisfy Wikipedia's criteria for inclusion, and the deletion notice should explain why (see also "What Wikipedia is not" and Wikipedia's deletion policy). You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{dated prod}} notice, but please explain why you disagree with the proposed deletion in your edit summary or on its talk page. Also, please consider improving the article to address the issues raised. Even though removing the deletion notice will prevent deletion through the proposed deletion process, the article may still be deleted if it matches any of the speedy deletion criteria or it can be sent to Articles for Deletion, where it may be deleted if consensus to delete is reached. If you agree with the deletion of the article, and you are the only person who has made substantial edits to the page, please add {{db-author}} to the top of AIDS (computer virus). Superm401 - Talk 11:00, 3 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry if you've just moved this in, but either way I think it needs to be deleted now and I try to warn authors of possible deletions. Superm401 - Talk 11:00, 3 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you for bringing the deletion notice to my attention. While I appreciate you going out of your way to give me a heads up, I'd suggest against removing AIDS (computer virus) and other virus articles. Please keep in mind many viruses are listed in the various lists of computer viruses, and most do not have articles. While virus articles, such as AIDS, tend to not be information rich, I think they're fun to read, give a glimpse into how even the not-so-notable viruses used to work, and pique curiosity.

I would encourage proactive individuals, such as yourself, to expand these virus articles, and possibly join the Malware WikiProject. To my knowledge, the virus articles have no leading authorship, so our list of viruses grows without much content, indicating that while many are interested in virus articles, no one yet knows an efficient way to bring volumes of virus-related content into Wikipedia.

At least, by keeping articles such as AIDS, we provide something of a template for others to use when a new virus article is merited. The AIDS article is also small, and so I feel it is not much a burden on Wikipedia. In the future, please make an argument as to why you'd like to delete an article, but again, thanks for bringing this up with me. Please continue this discussion on the talk page of AIDS. I hope you remove the deletion template from AIDS.

A-Day ^(c)_(t) 01:44, 7 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

As I noted, my reason was notability. However, the prod has been contested by someone else, and I will not take this to AFD. Superm401 - Talk 18:15, 7 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Not only do I think your response is lax (discussion should go on the AIDS talk page, not mine), but you also forgot to remove your notability template from the AIDS article. By your talk page, it looks like you've made a habit of meddling with articles you shouldn't. Please take responsibility for your mistakes and correct them. I expect better from an admin. A-Day ^(c)_(t) 03:26, 10 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I put my most recent response here because it was directed at you, not to editors of the AIDS article. When I first tagged AIDS (computer virus) with prod, I provided the exact reason "There is no evidence that this virus is particularly notable, among the many written." Of course, that was directed to editors of the article. Squell noticed the tag, and removed my prod nomination because he believes "Notability is a spectre that haunts all older viruses". Of course, anyone can remove a prod tag, with or without a reason, as the prod process is only meant for non-controversial deletions. When a prod tag is removed, an AFD nomination can optionally be made. In that case, of course, additional arguments and voting would be made on the AFD page. I chose not to make an AFD nomination for this article. Thus, I am making no further effort to delete it; it is therefore unnecessary for me to continue to justify why I thought it should be.

I did not add the notability template. HisSpaceResearch did, in this edit. However, I still agree the article lacks evidence of notability, and will not be removing the tag. You may, if you genuinely believe the article does provide such evidence. I have not used my admin tools in any way on this article. What I did, I did as an ordinary editor, in good faith, and in full compliance with policy. If you have concerns about other actions I have taken, please bring them up separately. Superm401 - Talk 02:14, 11 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

My bad. Thanks for the heads up on the notability template and humoring me with a justification. In the future, I'll be careful to inspect the activity history of the article before flaming the messenger. :) Thanks again. A-Day ^(c)_(t) 07:44, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks, and no hard feelings. You may want to explain more about the relationship between AIDS and AIDS II, which will help address notability concerns for AIDS; AIDS II seems more notable. Superm401 - Talk 07:56, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Heh, AIDS II is cooler than AIDS, but both of them exploited the same DOS vulnerability. It is the underlying insight into this vulnerability that makes them both notable. Actually, if AIDS predates AIDS II, I'd think AIDS is more notable than AIDS II... That said, I think we shouldn't split hairs too much and just let the articles be. A-Day ^(c)_(t) 08:16, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Do they actually use the same mechanism? It seems as if AIDS rewrites the EXE, and AIDS II creates a accompanying COM (which is executed instead of the EXE). Anyway, like I said, I'm done with these articles for now. Superm401 - Talk 08:20, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

AIDS (computer virus)

A proposed deletion template has been added to the article AIDS (computer virus), suggesting that it be deleted according to the proposed deletion process. All contributions are appreciated, but this article may not satisfy Wikipedia's criteria for inclusion, and the deletion notice should explain why (see also "What Wikipedia is not" and Wikipedia's deletion policy). You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{dated prod}} notice, but please explain why you disagree with the proposed deletion in your edit summary or on its talk page. Also, please consider improving the article to address the issues raised. Even though removing the deletion notice will prevent deletion through the proposed deletion process, the article may still be deleted if it matches any of the speedy deletion criteria or it can be sent to Articles for Deletion, where it may be deleted if consensus to delete is reached. If you agree with the deletion of the article, and you are the only person who has made substantial edits to the page, please add {{db-author}} to the top of AIDS (computer virus). Dchall1 (talk) 17:00, 2 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Per the AIDS and AIDS II articles, the AIDS family was the first known family of viruses to use the corresponding file technique to propagate infection. This is worthy of notice. Please remove your deletion template. A-Day ^(c)_(t) 06:56, 4 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

My bad. I didn't notice the previous prod tag, and didn't see your message on my talk page until just now. // Chris ^{(complaints)•(contribs)} 21:34, 11 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

AIDS importance

Per the AIDS and AIDS II articles, the AIDS family was the first known family of viruses to use the corresponding file technique to propagate infection. This is worthy of notice. It appears as though you are in a position to remove the importance tag from AIDS. I hope you find this acceptable. A-Day ^(c)_(t) 05:51, 13 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not removing the tag just yet. It does not state crucial information for an encyclopedia article, such as when it was first discovered, how many systems it affected, who possibly programmed it, etcetera.--h i s ^{s p a c e} _{r e s e a r c h} 16:49, 13 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Now there are links to source code, the author is noted, and an estimated data of authorship is provided. There's a link to a YouTube video too. Ready to remove your notability template? A-Day ^(c)_(t) 04:34, 17 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

X-D awesome A-Day ^(c)_(t) 03:15, 18 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Proposed deletion of A and A (computer virus)

A proposed deletion template has been added to the article A and A (computer virus), suggesting that it be deleted according to the proposed deletion process because of the following concern:

Lack of updating, obsolete virus, etc

All contributions are appreciated, but this article may not satisfy Wikipedia's criteria for inclusion, and the deletion notice should explain why (see also "What Wikipedia is not" and Wikipedia's deletion policy). You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{dated prod}} notice, but please explain why you disagree with the proposed deletion in your edit summary or on its talk page.

Please consider improving the article to address the issues raised because, even though removing the deletion notice will prevent deletion through the proposed deletion process, the article may still be deleted if it matches any of the speedy deletion criteria or it can be sent to Articles for Deletion, where it may be deleted if consensus to delete is reached. Rory (talk) 23:41, 25 April 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Speedy deletion nomination of A-403 (computer virus)

A tag has been placed on A-403 (computer virus) requesting that it be speedily deleted from Wikipedia. This has been done under section G12 of the criteria for speedy deletion, because the article appears to be a blatant copyright infringement. For legal reasons, we cannot accept copyrighted text or images borrowed from other web sites or printed material, and as a consequence, your addition will most likely be deleted. You may use external websites as a source of information, but not as a source of sentences. This part is crucial: say it in your own words.

If the external website belongs to you, and you want to allow Wikipedia to use the text — which means allowing other people to modify it — then you must verify that externally by one of the processes explained at Wikipedia:Donating copyrighted materials. If you are not the owner of the external website but have permission from that owner, see Wikipedia:Requesting copyright permission. You might want to look at Wikipedia's policies and guidelines for more details, or ask a question here.

If you think that this notice was placed here in error, you may contest the deletion by adding {{hangon}} to the top of the page that has been nominated for deletion (just below the existing speedy deletion or "db" tag), coupled with adding a note on the talk page explaining your position, but be aware that once tagged for speedy deletion, if the page meets the criterion it may be deleted without delay. Please do not remove the speedy deletion tag yourself, but don't hesitate to add information to the page that would render it more in conformance with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines. HamburgerRadio (talk) 21:35, 17 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Articles for deletion nomination of A-403 (computer virus)

I have nominated A-403 (computer virus), an article that you created, for deletion. I do not think that this article satisfies Wikipedia's criteria for inclusion, and have explained why at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/A-403 (computer virus). Your opinions on the matter are welcome at that same discussion page; also, you are welcome to edit the article to address these concerns. Thank you for your time.

Please contact me if you're unsure why you received this message. HamburgerRadio (talk) 06:49, 18 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]

UVB-76 deletion notice

Let's vote A-Day ^(c)_(t) 23:15, 12 September 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Merger proposal

Hi,

I am proposing a merger of the AIDS II (computer virus) article with the AIDS (computer virus) article.

I do not agree with the previous requests to delete this virus, and do believe its inclusion on Wikipedia is beneficial. I do not however believe it should have two separate articles for both its variants.

Further to this I believe the AIDS (computer virus) article would benefit from having some additional information on it, as it is a little short.

I know this seems really picky, I am just a merge whore :p.

Please find the discussion page here: Talk:AIDS (computer virus).

Any feedback is appreciated.

Many thanks

Sirkus (talk) 13:52, 13 August 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks for your interest Sirkus, and I've noted my position on that talk page. I appreciate your restraint. A-Day ^(c)_(t) 12:00, 17 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Proposed deletion of Ah (computer virus)

The article Ah (computer virus) has been proposed for deletion because of the following concern:

seems not notable

While all constructive contributions to Wikipedia are appreciated, content or articles may be deleted for any of several reasons.

You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{proposed deletion/dated}} notice, but please explain why in your edit summary or on the article's talk page.

Please consider improving the article to address the issues raised. Removing {{proposed deletion/dated}} will stop the proposed deletion process, but other deletion processes exist. In particular, the speedy deletion process can result in deletion without discussion, and articles for deletion allows discussion to reach consensus for deletion. _nonsense ferret 22:44, 3 June 2015 (UTC)[reply]

ArbCom elections are now open!

Hi,
You appear to be eligible to vote in the current Arbitration Committee election. The Arbitration Committee is the panel of editors responsible for conducting the Wikipedia arbitration process. It has the authority to enact binding solutions for disputes between editors, primarily related to serious behavioural issues that the community has been unable to resolve. This includes the ability to impose site bans, topic bans, editing restrictions, and other measures needed to maintain our editing environment. The arbitration policy describes the Committee's roles and responsibilities in greater detail. If you wish to participate, you are welcome to review the candidates' statements and submit your choices on the voting page. For the Election committee, MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 12:51, 23 November 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Nomination of A and A for deletion

A discussion is taking place as to whether the article A and A is suitable for inclusion in Wikipedia according to Wikipedia's policies and guidelines or whether it should be deleted.

The article will be discussed at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/A and A until a consensus is reached, and anyone is welcome to contribute to the discussion. The nomination will explain the policies and guidelines which are of concern. The discussion focuses on high-quality evidence and our policies and guidelines.

Users may edit the article during the discussion, including to improve the article to address concerns raised in the discussion. However, do not remove the article-for-deletion notice from the top of the article. SL93 (talk) 04:48, 19 March 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Nomination of Acme (computer virus) for deletion

A discussion is taking place as to whether the article Acme (computer virus) is suitable for inclusion in Wikipedia according to Wikipedia's policies and guidelines or whether it should be deleted.

The article will be discussed at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Acme (computer virus) until a consensus is reached, and anyone is welcome to contribute to the discussion. The nomination will explain the policies and guidelines which are of concern. The discussion focuses on high-quality evidence and our policies and guidelines.

Users may edit the article during the discussion, including to improve the article to address concerns raised in the discussion. However, do not remove the article-for-deletion notice from the top of the article. SL93 (talk) 23:30, 25 April 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Proposed deletion of File:Null-balance voltmeter.png

The file File:Null-balance voltmeter.png has been proposed for deletion because of the following concern:

Orphaned image with limited possibility for reuse outside of the English Wikipedia because of the embedded English text.

While all constructive contributions to Wikipedia are appreciated, pages may be deleted for any of several reasons.

You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{proposed deletion/dated files}} notice, but please explain why in your edit summary or on the file's talk page.

Please consider addressing the issues raised. Removing {{proposed deletion/dated files}} will stop the proposed deletion process, but other deletion processes exist. In particular, the speedy deletion process can result in deletion without discussion, and files for discussion allows discussion to reach consensus for deletion. ★ Bigr Tex 02:38, 12 June 2020 (UTC)[reply]

File:Null-balance voltmeter.png listed for discussion

A file that you uploaded or altered, File:Null-balance voltmeter.png, has been listed at Wikipedia:Files for discussion. Please see the discussion to see why it has been listed (you may have to search for the title of the image to find its entry). Feel free to add your opinion on the matter below the nomination. Thank you. ★ Bigr Tex 02:27, 21 June 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Nomination of Actifed (computer virus) for deletion

A discussion is taking place as to whether the article Actifed (computer virus) is suitable for inclusion in Wikipedia according to Wikipedia's policies and guidelines or whether it should be deleted.

The article will be discussed at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Actifed (computer virus) until a consensus is reached, and anyone, including you, is welcome to contribute to the discussion. The nomination will explain the policies and guidelines which are of concern. The discussion focuses on high-quality evidence and our policies and guidelines.

Users may edit the article during the discussion, including to improve the article to address concerns raised in the discussion. However, do not remove the article-for-deletion notice from the top of the article.

SL93 (talk) 23:19, 19 October 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Proposed deletion of AIDS (computer virus)

The article AIDS (computer virus) has been proposed for deletion because of the following concern:

No sources, most likely made up, does not give a large credible claim of significance .

While all constructive contributions to Wikipedia are appreciated, pages may be deleted for any of several reasons.

You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{proposed deletion/dated}} notice, but please explain why in your edit summary or on the article's talk page.

Please consider improving the page to address the issues raised. Removing {{proposed deletion/dated}} will stop the proposed deletion process, but other deletion processes exist. In particular, the speedy deletion process can result in deletion without discussion, and articles for deletion allows discussion to reach consensus for deletion. Cranloa12n / talk / contribs / 19:58, 2 May 2022 (UTC)[reply]

Proposed deletion of AI (computer virus)

The article AI (computer virus) has been proposed for deletion because of the following concern:

non-notable

While all constructive contributions to Wikipedia are appreciated, pages may be deleted for any of several reasons.

You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{proposed deletion/dated}} notice, but please explain why in your edit summary or on the article's talk page.

Please consider improving the page to address the issues raised. Removing {{proposed deletion/dated}} will stop the proposed deletion process, but other deletion processes exist. In particular, the speedy deletion process can result in deletion without discussion, and articles for deletion allows discussion to reach consensus for deletion. Sohom (talk) 13:45, 28 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]