Commons:Picture of the Year/2012/FAQ
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Frequently asked questions (POTY 2012)
When will it start?
Round 1 began mid-January 2013 and Round 2 began in early February. We plan on announcing the contest across Wikimedia with banners and messages, so stay tuned. If you'd like to help, click "I'd like to join the committee" above and volunteer to help translate these messages.
Which pictures are eligible for the contest?
All pictures selected and remaining as Featured pictures during 2012 for Round 1. (More than 750 pictures were Featured in 2012: first half of the year, second half of the year )
Will my vote from beta-testing be counted, if I am eligible?
Yes, as long as the vote is valid (meaning we can identify the picture you have voted for, the picture was not added to the gallery by a mistake or vandalism and no error occurred). You can check all your votes in your contributions or by clicking My POTY in the top right corner on a gallery page.
Am I allowed to vote after the voting-period is over?
In short: We won't punish voting after the voting period with a block or other administrative action. You can vote as long as you don't have to use elevated privileges for voting (if you aren't an administrator, you can vote as long as you are able to). But your vote can't be counted if you voted after the voting-period is over and you may be reverted.
Where is the help for POTY-App?
It is located at Help:EnhancedPOTY.js. JavaScript is required. We will try to help users vote, but we are unable to provide in-depth technical support due to vote volume.
The vote-buttons are disabled, My POTY tells me, I would be ineligible but I recently created SUL and I know that I am eligible.
First try to click on "Check again" in the eligibility-section of My POTY. If this does not work, click on remove in "MyPOTY" and reload the page. In case the problem still isn't gone, it may be necessary to delete the cache and the cookies in your browser. After deleting cookies you might be logged-out. My POTY can be found on all gallery pages if your browser has JavaScript enabled.
Statistics — What do they show?
They are provided to show trends but are not necessarily correct. Invalid candidates and votes are included. Use them with care like you should do with all statistics you didn't fake yourself :-) I took about 2 snapshots per day. So voting a file will not immediately change them.
I am eligible because this tool confirmed it but POTY-App buttons are gray so I can't vote
You may have cross-site-scripting disabled. In this case POTY-App can't check your eligibility at your home-wiki. Or there are other problems. Here is an alternative to the automated voting button:
Manual voting instructions
- Be sure you are eligible to vote, and are logged in to Wikimedia Commons. It may be a good idea to have unified your Wikimedia accounts.
- On the Picture of the Year page click I WANT TO VOTE.
- Click on a category.
- Click on the Statistics button below and to the right of the image you want to vote for.
- Click on the Votelist link in the tiny popup.
- Click edit on the Votes section
- Add your user name in the same format as other users did before you. For example:
# [[User:Myusername|Myusername]] - Click Save page.
If you don't do it correctly, you will receive a message after attempting to save how to do it correctly.
Due to vote volume, we cannot provide in-depth technical support, but try looking in your browser's settings and menus or searching online for the answer to your question.