Wikipedia:Featured article review/Bicycle/archive1

Bicycle

Article is no longer a featured article

Review commentary

I'm bringing this article here primarily due to reference problems.

• 2(a): There are lists that need to be converted to prose. The article needs a copyedit: compare this sentence: "No single time or person can be identified with the invention of the bicycle." with this sentence from the next paragraph: "Scottish blacksmith Kirkpatrick MacMillan refined this in 1839 by adding a mechanical crank drive to the rear wheel, thus creating the first true 'bicycle' in the modern sense." Confusing.
• 2(c): This article has several reference problems:
  • Improper reference formats — for example, "The New Columbia Encyclopedia" is listed as a reference with no specifics and web references have no access dates given.
  • Inline citations use a strange style that should be converted to a better system, such as cite.php. (minor) - Fixed myself
  • Note 5 reads "'Bicycling Life' (external link, below)", which indicates that the site should be moved to the references section, but I do not see the link in either section.
  • Insufficient inline citations.
• 3(a): The lead section is not concise. It looks a little long, but that may be able to be corrected with a copyedit. It mentions the static nature of bicycle design twice in its current form.
• 4: Image:Utility bicycle.jpg uses an obsolete license tag. Its source is an image on the Polish Wikipedia, but appears to have been deleted. The image layout at the top of the article is poor.
• 5: The History section is too long for a summary style section.

Pagrashtak 23:00, 14 July 2006 (UTC)

Talk message left at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Cycling. Sandy 21:54, 16 July 2006 (UTC)

Left messages at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Environment and Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Energy development --jwanders^Talk 18:45, 25 July 2006 (UTC)

I've copy-edited the lead, as Pagrashtak suggested. Reduced it from 4 paras to two, without losing any pertinent information. --jwanders^Talk 18:45, 25 July 2006 (UTC)

Also removed the image with the offending license tag... just the difficult issues to go... --jwanders^Talk 18:53, 25 July 2006 (UTC)

I've copy-edited the first few sections. Here's what has been done since nomination. Can we have a reassessment of progress, perhaps by the nominator? It's a very worthy article. Tony 15:39, 27 July 2006 (UTC)

Almost no inline citations; for example, There are reports of mountain bicycles being used in scouting by U.S. Special Forces in the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan and in subsequent battles against the Taliban. The only country to recently maintain a regiment of bicycle troops was Switzerland, who disbanded the last unit in 2003. Sandy 13:14, 29 July 2006 (UTC)

FARC commentary

Main FA criteria concerns are prose and summary style (2a and 5), format of citations (2c), LEAD (3a), images (4). Marskell 15:23, 30 July 2006 (UTC)

• Remove The article is overly reliant on lists (in violation of 2.a) and hasn't enough inline citations (a violation of 2. c.) LuciferMorgan 21:00, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
• Remove I hope to get this back to FA someday, but don't have time to add the citations it needs at present. It can go around the loop again --jwanders^Talk 10:12, 5 August 2006 (UTC)
• Remove, reluctantly. Since I had a go at the lead on 27 June, nothing much has been done. Pity. Tony 10:56, 5 August 2006 (UTC)
• Remove per jwanders Niz 12:53, 7 August 2006 (UTC)
• Remove mostly due to a lack of inline citations and problems with the existing references as mentioned in the nomination. Pagrashtak 23:56, 7 August 2006 (UTC)
• Remove lack of inline citations. Sandy 20:45, 13 August 2006 (UTC)