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"Disinfoboxes" are infoboxes that some editors are against using, on the grounds that disinfoboxes contain what they see as unnecessary repetitions of facts already presented in an article's lead or oversimplified dissemination of information that is devoid of necessary context and nuance. However, many infoboxes that are commonly nicknamed disinfoboxes can actually be very useful, albeit ones that should be used with care. It should also be remembered that, per MOS:INFOBOXUSE: "The use of infoboxes is neither required nor prohibited for any article. Whether to include an infobox, which infobox to include, and which parts of the infobox to use, is determined through discussion and consensus among the editors at each individual article".
Explanation[edit]
Disinfoboxes usually provide an easily readable, accessible summary of the article in hand. They make it easy to find out about the key facts in an article without having to locate them within its main body.
While there is repetition, these "disinfoboxes" make it easy for readers to find the key information.
Example[edit]
Analysis
The article above is an example of a stub article which has been merged into a larger article, London School Buses. The infobox is classed as a disinfobox because it is longer than 1/3 of the article. However, the infobox is clearly placed in the usual position. It provides many key details, such as bus route length, journey time, PVR and more which would all otherwise have to be incorporated into the text, which would result in an article which is:
- unpleasant to read
- does not meet or appear to meet the general standards of Wikipedia
- of poor quality
- difficult to read and comprehend
On the other hand, the box does not summarise the article, it supplements it.