![]() | This help page is a how-to guide. It explains concepts or processes used by the Wikipedia community. It is not one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, and may reflect varying levels of consensus. |
In the context of Wikipedia, metatemplating involves the use of templates as a base to generate other templates. Some metatemplates work like any other template, and are transcluded. Others generate wiki markup on-the-fly; these are macro metatemplates, and are substituted. Metatemplating enables standardized templating, whereby many templates can utilize a common set of components and formats.
Macro metatemplates carry the normal disadvantages of substitution, but they also take advantage of two strong points: substitution is ultimately more efficient, and it allows for the dynamic generation of wiki markup. This makes it suitable for more intricate systems than those created with transclusion.
© MMXXIII Rich X Search. We shall prevail. All rights reserved. Rich X Search