Usage
- If your project has registered this as a gadget, just activate on your Preferences page.
- Otherwise include the following line into your common.js, global.js etc.:
mw.loader.load( "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:PerfektesChaos/js/lintHint/r.js&action=raw&maxage=86400&ctype=text/javascript" );
Default behaviour
In wiki main space (e.g. Wikipedia articles) on regular view or during source text editing of a page a yellow button is offered in top right corner, that triggers an analysis.
If problems were detected a large yellow box is inserted in top region of the page.
The yellow box contains a table of errors.
- If no error has been reported, a small green label is shown in the top right corner of content area in page view, or the button is refreshed on source text editing.
- The large error table box might be minimized into a button in the top right corner, and could be expanded again.
If pages are not used for viewing nor editing, but e.g. history, info etc., no action is taken. Note that only wikitext pages may be subject to investigation.
On Special:ExpandTemplates the facility is always offered.
Error table
If any, the table looks as follows:
| lint | + | ⇓ |
|---|---|---|
| category title | DIV | ↓ |
- The first column tells the Linter category.
- The + column contains additional information, if provided.
- The ⇓ column appears only if there is any source text area in page. Each ↓ links to a selected region where this error occurred.
There are detectable error types which are not yet in Linter categories. Choose later option to include them into table.
Limitations
LintHint does not expand transclusions that start with slash. For example, if on page Portal:Myportal the wikitext includes ((/Box-header)), this really means ((Portal:Myportal/Box-header)), but lintHint does not make this conversion. To force lintHint to analyze such transcluded pages, insert the full page name (Portal:Myportal in this example) before the slash in transclusion calls that start with slash. You can do this in an edit session to discover the identity and location of lint errors, possibly in other templates, fix the lint errors there, and not save the edit session where you inserted the full page names.
LintHint sometimes shows two or more errors in the same location on the page when there is only one problem to fix. To work around this limitation, fix as many problems as you can find, then run LintHint again. Repeat the process until LintHint shows no more errors.
Control page
On a virtual page some version information is shown, if gadget is active.
Two interactive ways are offered for individual investigation:
- Input any wikitext sequence and check out.
- Enter a page name and get result of analysis, without a need to visit that page itself. Might be followed by a revision ID (“oldid”).
The result appears on the same page like on a regular page. Page names entered are reflected by clickable links and would be opened in a new window.
Quick interactive customization
Some options can be set interactively on Special:Blankpage as soon as the script has been loaded. On pages where the analysis report box appears, a button 
is offered in the top right corner, which opens such User:Gadgets in a new browser tab or window. The same goes for the control page.
- Select options as desired.
- Finally use the submit button + that launches a server update if clicked.
When reloading a text page the preferences declared here come into effect.
Anonymous users can use this mode, too; options will be stored in browser profile rather than on wiki server.
This initial assignment may be overridden later on page by programmatic JavaScript. However, it is not recommended to mix both practises during initialization since a race condition would decide upon the final effect.
Configuration by JavaScript
Individual desire may be passed to the gadget at any time, best before loading if interactive costumization is not used.
The raw JavaScript code looks as follows:
// create a user defined object
var myLintHints = { };
// specify some object component
myLintHints.rooms = "-";
// communicate user defined object
mw.hook( "lintHint.config" ).fire( myLintHints );
// finally, load gadget
mw.loader.load( "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:PerfektesChaos/js/lintHint/r.js&action=raw&maxage=86400&ctype=text/javascript" );
Currently the following options are available:
| Name | Type | Default | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
rooms
|
Array string |
[ 0 ]
|
|
oldid
|
boolean | false
|
|
| (later) | boolean | false
|
Show also error types not yet in Linter categories. Needed only when encountered the first time, then memorized and not longer unknown. |
launch
|
boolean | false
|
Run analysis automatically in rooms rather than manual triggering by button.
|
| boolean | MediaWiki default | Converted source edit links on LintErrors special page into ParserMigration edit.Since ParserMigration is not active any longer, this option is pointless until any ParserMigration will be established again. | |
lazy
|
boolean | false
|
Suppress small label if no error detected. |
Further options will be considered when lint system grows.
Multiple calls of mw.hook("lintHint.config") will not influence other components that were set before, if not explicitly changed.