Editing Copying (section)

{{Short description|Duplication of information or an artifact}}
{{For|selfref=y|the guidelines for copying in Wikipedia|WP:Copying within Wikipedia}}
'''Copying''' is the duplication of [[information]] or an [[wiktionary:artifact|artifact]] based on an instance of that information or artifact, and not using the process that originally generated it. With [[Analog device|analog]] forms of information, copying is only possible to a limited degree of [[accuracy]], which depends on the quality of the equipment used and the skill of the operator. There is some inevitable [[generation loss]], deterioration and accumulation of "[[noise (signal processing)|noise]]" (random small changes) from original to copy when copies are made. This deterioration accumulates with each generation. With [[digital data|digital]] forms of information, copying is perfect. [[Copy and paste]] is frequently used by a [[computer user]] when they select and copy an area of text or content.