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Welcome to the Database Correction page. This page is for letting me or the other editors know of corrections that need to be made. Please read the posting instructions carefully.
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| Friday February 01 19:41:24 2002 Database Style Manual |
| As threatened here's my whack at it. Additions, deletions, corrections and comments are welcomed from one and all.
Title: Tiger Woman, The (1944) ** Use the format per IMDb, i.e., put the article (A, An, The) last. For movies, TV movies and serials, always include the year the film was released. Again, the IMDb has this information ** If the IMDb identifies two films released in the same year, they include a Roman number with the year, i.e., (1973/II). Let’s use that, if necessary. Title: Untouchables, The Title: Invisible Man, The (1958) ** For TV series, as in other formats, put the article last. There are two schools of thought about the year -- one says that we should include the year the series began because a) that’s what the IMDb uses and b) the title might be recycled at some time in the future and cause confusion later. Another says a) most TV entries don’t have the year so it would be a heck of a lot of work to add the various dates, b) there really won’t be that much confusion and, where there is (i.e., The Invisible Man), we should include the year. I’m flexible -- I just want to be consistent. ** Where there are TV series and movies with the same title, let’s put the year after the series name, just to be safe…. Title: F.B.I., The aka FBI, The ** Sometimes TV series use periods after each letter of an acronym, like “F.B.I., The”; sometimes they don’t , as in “Mancuso, FBI”. The IMDb reflects both methods. To eliminate confusion when we search (the IMDb’s search engine ignores punctuation marks and spaces, but Brian’s search engine reads them), we should enter these titles with and without periods with an “aka” between them. Another example that leaps to mind is “VIP” aka “V.I.P.” ** No spaces after the periods -- it will be “F.B.I.” not “F. B. I.”, right? ** I spell aka without periods -- again, fewer key strokes. It’s no biggie; what do youse guys think? Title: Alarm für Cobra 11 - Die Autobahnpolizei (Alarm for Cobra 11 -- The Autobahn Police) aka Alarm fur Cobra 11 - Die Autobahnpolizei Title: Title: Jeff Gordon, il diabolico detective (1963) aka Devilish Detective, The ** When submitting foreign language film or TV series, use the foreign language title as listed in the IMDb (if available); if there is an alternate English title use it with “aka”. If there are multiple akas, use as many as will fit in the field. ** If the title is in a foreign language, but was not released in English, include a literal English translation (if possible). If it’s not an official title, but only a best guess do not use “aka”. ** If the film was originally released in Italy, and there are English, French and German alternate titles listed in the IMDb, only include the English version(s). In theory, a film could be released under hundreds of different titles, so let’s keep it to the basics -- the original title and its English equivalent(s). ** We need to establish a policy for diacritical marks in foreign titles. I don’t have one to offer at present. Title: Ivanna (1970) aka Scream of the Demon Lover; Altar of Blood; Blood Castle ** For movies that were re-released under various titles, use one “aka” then separate additional titles with a semicolon. There’s limited space in the Title field, so one “aka” is enough. I can’t think of a Movie that has a semicolon as part of the title. Actress: Lorna Gray (as Adrian Booth); two unknowns ** Use actress’ name as entered in the IMDb then, in brackets; if different, put the name actually credited in the film/episode. Put name in first name/last name order (given name/surname). ** If there are unknown actresses, identify the number, if possible. Actress: Animated (voiced by Minnie Driver) ** Use animated as opposed to ‘toon or other description. For one thing, not all of these are technically ‘toons. ** Maybe it’s just me, but I like to know the name of the voice actress portraying the cartoon character. Let’s include the information, if it can be obtained. ** BTW, what do we want to put in the “Actress” field for puppet series, like Stingray? Puppet or Animated? Description: Episode: "Enter Batgirl, Exit Penguin" (3.1) ** If the title begins with an article, put that first. I know that’s inconsistent with the IMDb, but 99.9% of the episodes are entered that way and I don’t think we should waste my time correcting them. As Emerson wrote: “Foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.” ** Put quotes around the episode name -- this quickly identifies that piece of information. ** The IMDb uses (#3.1) as their format while Epguides uses (3-1) as their format. IMHO, we should use (3.1) as the episode number format. It’s sorta like the IMDb, but drops the “#” since it’s a waste of a keystroke and provides no useful information. Besides, on my keyboard, the “.” is easier to type than a “-“. The first digit identifies the season, the second is the episode number within the season. ** There will be times that the IMDb has a different episode number than other references. Frankly, the IMDb has a lousy track record for this particular piece of information. When in doubt, use your common sense. ** Biff has noted that animated series frequently don’t have titles or seasons. We’ll just have to use the best identification possible in these cases. Would you care to propose a format, Biff? Episode: "Revenge of Hezekiah: Last Chance" (3.4.2) ** Some series (Dr. Who and The Tomorrow People come to mind) had episodes within episodes. Let’s be as precise as possible. In my example, the first number is the year, the second the over-arching series, and the third, the episode within that series. Episode: “19 January 2002 (27.11) – Jack Black, guest star” **Variety series episodes (The Carol Burnett Show or Saturday Night Live, for example) or talk shows usually are identified by their date and/or episode number in the IMDb or epguides.com. If there’s a scene from this type of show, let’s try to use date, episode number and, if known, the highest billed guest star/host to identify it. Unknown episode ** If the episode isn’t known, be sure to identify this lack of information, by typing “Unknown episode” (without the quotes) and then two carriage returns (one blank line) to separate it from the rest of the description. This alerts us to the missing data and allows the database’s search feature to identify these entries. “Lois Lane (Coates) is captured….” ** If possible, identify the name of the character and put the actress’ last name (only) in brackets. (First names aren’t necessary, you’ve already identified the actress in the appropriate field). If there are a bunch of female characters in a film and I’m not familiar with the actress, I like to identify the DiD before I get to the scene. Miscellaneous stuff: ** Put a blank line (two carriage returns) between paragraphs. ** Enter scene information in the present tense. ** Use proper punctuation. Capitalize the first letter in each sentence and the proper names. Two spaces after a period or colon, one space after a comma or semicolon. ** DON’T USE ALL CAPS. No need to yell. We can hear you just fine. ** The boss has declared “putz” to be a four letter word; use “male character,” “man” or something else Any other issues? It’s impossible to make anything foolproof, because fools are so ingenious but we can still try. |
| David |
| Friday February 01 20:26:35 2002 Re: Database Style Manual |
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>Biff has noted that animated series frequently don't have titles or seasons. >We'll just have to use the best identification possible in these cases. >Would you care to propose a format, Biff? > They almost always have titles ... which sometimes include the ep number ("Episode 7: The Night Before the Carnival"; "Session 13: Jupiter Jazz"). I'd suggest going with the title as it appears onscreen. Some series (going by ep guides I've seen) don't use the "2.1" type designations. Instead, you'll see a number indicating its chronology within the entire series ("35" instead of "2.9", for example). This is how I dealt with a scene in a Droopy & Dripple segment of Tom & Jerry Kids: <Title: Tom & Jerry Kids/Droopy & Dripple (AKA Tom and Jerry Kids/Droopy and Dripple) Medium: TV Series Actress: Animated Description: Segment: "Car Wash Droopy"> Would a better way be: <Title: Tom & Jerry Kids (aka Tom and Jerry Kids) Medium: TV Series Actress: Animated Description: Segment: "Droopy & Dripple (aka Droopy and Dripple): Car Wash Droopy"> For a series such as DEXTER'S LABORATORY, I'd indicate that the scene occured within a specific segment, listing the title of that segment as I would for a full-length ep (Episode: "Dad is Disturbed) ... and giving the time for the scene both withing the segment and within the show as a whole (e.g., "Occurs about three minutes into this second segment, and 13' into the full show."). Maybe I'm getting too anal ... the bottom line is to get useful info into the entry in a logical manner. As you said, David ... "the hobgoblin of little minds". |
| Biff |
| Friday February 01 20:37:59 2002 Whaddaya think? |
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Here's how I redid this entry: Record number: 5991 Title: Dexter's Laboratory Medium: TV Series Actress: Animated Description: Segment: "Dial 'M' for Monkey: Peltra" (from Episode 20 of the series) This segment of this ep (which also included "Don't Be a Baby" at the beginning and "G.I.R.L. Squad" finishing up, for ID purposes) included Agent Honeydew captured by Peltra at around 12' into the full ep. Her arms are pulled away from her and encased in high-tech "mittens", when her platitudes get on Peltra's nerves she uses old-fashioned duct tape to silence her captive. Honeydew manages to free herself with a handy key gizmo in her boot (but of course). Here's the original: Record number: 5991 Title: Dexter's Laboratory Medium: TV Series Actress: Animated Description: Episode 20: "Dial 'M' for Monkey: Peltra" This segment of the ep (which also included "Don't Be a Baby" at the beginning and "G.I.R.L. Squad" finishing up, for ID purposes) included Agent Honeydew captured by Peltra at around 12' in. Her arms are pulled away from her and encased in high-tech "mittens", when her platitudes get on Peltra's nerves she uses old-fashioned duct tape to silence her captive. Honeydew manages to free herself with a handy key gizmo in her boot (but of course). ************** New and improved? |
| Biff |
| Friday February 01 21:31:38 2002 Re: Whaddaya think? |
| > Here's how I redid this entry:
> > Record number: 5991 > Title: Dexter's Laboratory > Medium: TV Series > Actress: Animated > > Description: Segment: "Dial 'M' for Monkey: Peltra" (from > Episode 20 of the series) > Epguides gives the episode number for this segment as 2-55. My head hurts. |
| David |
| Friday February 01 21:41:34 2002 Re: Whaddaya think? |
| > Here's how I redid this entry:
> > Record number: 5991 > Title: Dexter's Laboratory > Medium: TV Series > Actress: Animated > > Description: Segment: "Dial 'M' for Monkey: Peltra" (from > Episode 20 of the series) > > This segment of this ep (which also included "Don't Be a > Baby" at the beginning and "G.I.R.L. Squad" finishing up, > for ID purposes) included Agent Honeydew captured by > Peltra at around 12' into the full ep. > > Her arms are pulled away from her and encased in > high-tech "mittens", when her platitudes get on Peltra's > nerves she uses old-fashioned duct tape to silence her > captive. > > Honeydew manages to free herself with a handy key gizmo > in her boot (but of course). I like this format better. No matter how you cut it though, this scene is from the second season, so it's either 2.20 according to The Unofficial Dexter Website or 2-55 from Epguides or Pazsaz. Of course, I don't agree with either of the latter's nomenclature, because they give a different number to each individual segment. |
| David |
| Friday February 01 21:52:29 2002 Re: Database Style Manual |
| > This is how I dealt with a scene in a Droopy & Dripple
> segment of Tom & Jerry Kids: > > <Title: Tom & Jerry Kids/Droopy & Dripple (AKA Tom and > Jerry Kids/Droopy and Dripple) > Medium: TV Series > Actress: Animated > > Description: Segment: "Car Wash Droopy"> > > Would a better way be: > > <Title: Tom & Jerry Kids (aka Tom and Jerry Kids) > Medium: TV Series > Actress: Animated > > Description: Segment: "Droopy & Dripple (aka Droopy and > Dripple): Car Wash Droopy"> > For shows like this (ones that have two or three different characters under one title) I think I'd go with the IMDb title and, if the cartoon is different, put that one in parentheses. Title: Tom and Jerry Kids Show (Droopy and Dripple) Medium: TV Series Actress: Animated Description: Episode: "Car Wash Droopy" If I was searching for an scene of Tom Slick or Super Chicken, I doubt if I'd remember that the umbrella cartoon show was titled "George of the Jungle". |
| David |
| Friday February 01 22:06:02 2002 The Mag, ep Title Or Alt Title Question? |
| Record number: 1718 Title: Sister Said (part of "The Mag") Medium: TV Series Actress: Claire Hearnden Description: Episode: Unknown The series has something to do with an all-girl band who, unlike the Spice Girls, is actually good-looking. In this episode Claire is kidnapped by her ex-boyfriend. She ends of bound (wrists behind her back, but plenty of rope to secure her arms to her sides) and tape-gagged. Unfortunately, the rest of the band shows up to rescue her, instead of getting kidnapped, too. ______________ Sister Said is in IMDB with no alt title given. Figure Buddy is just doing his own thing with the ep: Title? Thanx |
| Jay L |
| kdnpr@yahoo.com |
| Friday February 01 22:34:31 2002 Re: The Mag, ep Title Or Alt Title Question? |
| > Record number: 1718
> Title: Sister Said (part of "The Mag") > Medium: TV Series > Actress: Claire Hearnden > ______________ > > Sister Said is in IMDB with no alt title given. > > Figure Buddy is just doing his own thing with the ep: Title? Or Sister Said was part of an umbrella series called "The Mag". Frex in the mid-70s MacMillian and Wife, Columbo and McCloud rotated as part of "NBC Mystery Movie". |
| Friday February 01 22:35:18 2002 Re: The Mag, ep Title Or Alt Title Question? |
| > Or Sister Said was part of an umbrella series called "The
> Mag". Frex in the mid-70s MacMillian and Wife, Columbo > and McCloud rotated as part of "NBC Mystery Movie". Oops. That was me |
| David |
| Friday February 01 23:25:59 2002 Re: Whaddaya think? |
| >
> I like this format better. No matter how you cut it > though, this scene is from the second season, so it's > either 2.20 according to The Unofficial Dexter Website or > 2-55 from Epguides or Pazsaz. > My bad ... it's the 20th ep from the second season, and the 33rd overall. I'll correct it now. |
| Biff |
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