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This is the documentation for {{tl|shortcut}} and its sister templates.
The ''[[Wikipedia:Shortcut|shortcut]]'' family of templates is put into context here, but they each have their own documentation pages, [[#See also|see below]].

A shortcut template is similar to the {{tl|anchor}} template, but it adds a visual ''box'' graphic to the rendered page, as well as providing an alternative name. Creating a redirect page is a requirement to fulfill the shortcut mechanism.

=== Usage ===
The characteristics of the ''box'' graphic are determined by which of the family of shortcut templates are chosen. For example, the ''policy shortcut'' box has the word ''policy'' on it for use on policy pages. The graphic alignment of the box depends on the whether it's a ''shortcut'' or a ''shortcut-l'':
*{{tl|shortcut}} – right-aligned box
*{{tl|shortcut-l}} – left aligned box
*{{tl|policy shortcut}} – ''shortcut'' that also says "policy"
*{{tl|Ombox/Shortcut}} – ''shortcut'' that embeds into message boxes

This template is not normally used for articles in the main namespace, because the graphic produces an avoidable [[WP:SELF|self-reference]].

# Insert the shortcut template. 
# Create a redirect page with the {{tl|R from shortcut}} template suffixed to the redirect. Name the page after your shortcut name.  Include the namespace name in both the shortcut name and the redirect page name. For example, substitute your own shortcut name as the title of the page, and substitute the proper namespace, then add the following as the top-line on your redirect page:
#:<nowiki>#REDIRECT [[</nowiki>''Namespace'':''Title of page with''#''Optional very long section name'']] <nowiki>{{</nowiki><tt>R from shortcut</tt>}}
# Verify operation.  Note that shortcut templates should display in all capitals, but operate without all capitals.

; Notes
These templates are mainly used on user pages and talk pages in reference to the Wikipedia, Help, and Portal namespaces. These templates inform about the shortcuts available to the page they are on. For example, [[WP:SHORT]] redirects to [[Wikipedia:Shortcut]] and therefore, Wikipedia:Shortcut renders a shortcut box listing WP:SHORT.  It is a self-reference that is normally avoided in the main article namespace.

The point of these templates is not to list every single redirect for a page (indeed, that's what "[[Special:WhatLinksHere|What links here]]" is for). Instead, they should list only one or two common and easily-remembered redirects.

The ''shortcut'' template can take up to five (5) shortcuts as parameters. 

For policy pages, one can use the {{tl|policy shortcut}} template, which takes up to ten (10) shortcuts as parameters. Be careful not to use a ''policy template'' on a guideline or essay.

=== Examples ===
{| class="wikitable"
! Code
! Result
|-
| valign="top" | {{tlc|{{BASEPAGENAME}}|WP:SHORT}}
| {{{{BASEPAGENAME}}|WP:SHORT}}
|-
| valign="top" | {{tlc|{{BASEPAGENAME}}|WP:V|WP:VERIFY|WP:SOURCE}}
| {{{{BASEPAGENAME}}|WP:V|WP:VERIFY|WP:SOURCE}}
|}

=== Anchors ===
These templates automatically add [[HTML element#Anchor|anchors]]. If a shortcut box with the shortcut [[WP:SHORT]] is placed on the page [[Wikipedia:Shortcut]], then the link [[Wikipedia:Shortcut#WP:SHORT]] will take you to the position in the page where that shortcut box is placed.

For instance, try this link: [[#WP:SHORT]]

Thus, if you make a shortcut for a section of a page, then you can use the anchor in the shortcut redirect itself. Like this:

:<code><nowiki>#REDIRECT [[Pagename#WP:SHORT]] {{R from shortcut}}</nowiki></code>

=== Positioning ===
This template is usually placed below the section header or at the top of a page. 

Before July 26, 2010, when the anchor was inside the box, this caused the section header to scroll above the page window. Fixes for this issue included:
* Placing the shortcut above the section header; a bit confusing when editing
* Creating the redirect to the section header, not the shortcut; this would break if the section header was renamed
* Placing an {{tl|anchor}} in the section header that duplicated the shortcut

These fixes are no longer needed, but do not break the current implementation.

=== See also ===
* [[Wikipedia:Shortcut]] – The how-to guide and guideline about how and when to create shortcuts and shortcut boxes. A must-read for anyone handling shortcuts.
* {{tl|Anchor}} – a way to overcome the otherwise permanent fact that section titles are the only way to link to a section
* {{tl|Ombox/Shortcut}} – for embedding into message boxes
* {{tl|Policy shortcut}} – for shortcuts to sections of policy pages
* {{tl|R from shortcut}} – for placement on the redirect page
* {{tl|Shortcut-l}} – for left aligned normal shortcuts
* {{tl|Template shortcut}} – used for shortcuts/redirects to a template page

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