Editing Incubator escapee wiki:History merging (section)

==Instructions for tagging a page for history merging==
# Place {{tlp|History merge|NAME OF PAGE THE ARTICLE WAS CUT FROM}} at the ''new location'', where the ''pasting'' was done. The page will appear in the hidden category [[:Category:Candidates for history merging|Candidates for history merging]].
# Consider notifying the user of the issue on their talk page, perhaps using {{tls|uw-c&pmove}}.

In cases where additional edits were made to the original version after the copy-and-paste and which the additional edits can '''all''' be safely discarded (e.g. [[WP:WPAFC]]-related templates, edits which were reverted, etc.), place <nowiki>{{History merge|NAME OF PAGE THE ARTICLE WAS CUT FROM|reason=|details=}}</nowiki> at the ''new location'' as described above.  Fill in the two parameters as needed for this particular situation (see {{tl|history merge}} for an example).

If there are no changes since the copied-from revision in either the original page or the pasted-to page, consider tagging the pasted page for temporary deletion using {{tl|db-copypaste}} (see [[WP:Speedy deletion#G6]]), and then do a proper page move. [[Special:ComparePages]] or a similar tool should be used to verify that no changes have been made. 

In more complex cases (explained below), please leave a description of the problem at [[Wikipedia:Requests for history merge]].

===Parallel versions===
{{shortcut|WP:PVER|WP:PHIST|WP:Parallel histories}}
The ideal situation for a history merge is when an editor copies and pastes all content from one page to a brand new page, and then the old page does not receive any more edits. In other words, where the first page's history stops, the second page's history begins, and there are no overlapping diffs.

Users sometimes send in an ill-advised history-merge request after the two pages involved have been [[Help:Merging|text-merged]]. If the two pages have separate origins and simultaneous separate parallel histories before they were text-merged, they should not be history-merged, as that would shuffle the parallel editing histories together in one list and make a mess. There is an example in [[Special:PermaLink/225136152|this edit]] of page [[Clemson Tigers football]]. There is an example with 5 incoming pages in [[Special:PermaLink/276468132|this edit]] of page [[Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Emo]]. The best thing to do would be to use the {{tl|Copied}} template and place it on the source and/or destination's talk page, in order to meet the copyright attribution requirements of [[Wikipedia:Copying within Wikipedia]].