Template:what if

This template provides a shortcut markup for creating a link to a what if? article or book chapter in our what if? articles index, while {{Article}} is used only in the what if? articles page for the first column.

Usage

Further information: explain xkcd:Editor FAQ#How do I link to a what if? article?.

what if? is Randall Munroe's blog and book series. To link to one of the blog articles or a book chapter, you should always use the {{what if}} template. It links to the matching row of the what if? articles index, where every official what if? blog article, book chapter, and YouTube video are collected and explained. In the examples, the first part is the identifier of the row you want to reach, while the second part is the text that readers see. There are several kinds of identifiers:

• To link to an article from the blog, use the article number. For example, use ''{{what if|158|Hot Banana}}'' to link to the 158^th blog article, which results in: Hot Banana. This is the shortest and most common option, but it only works for articles that were published on the blog.

• To link to a chapter of one of the books, use the book number and the chapter number separated by a hyphen. {{''what if|2-63|Walking on the Sun}}'' links to the 63^rd chapter of the 2^nd book and results in: Walking on the Sun. The book numbers are 1- for What If? (the original book), 2- for What If? 2, and 3- for What If? 10th Anniversary Edition, whose only new chapter is Bonus Chapter (''{{what if|3-70|Bonus Chapter}}''). If the article is also on the blog, either form works.

• There are two ways to link to an official what if? YouTube video. This is the best option when an article has more than one video and you want to reference a specific one:
  • For full-length horizontal videos, use the number from the "YouTube" column with a Y before it. {{what if|Y34|the ''Keyboard Power'' video}} links to the 34^th video in that column, the Keyboard Power video.
  • For short vertical videos, do the same but with the number from the "YT Shorts" column and an S before it. {{what if|S16|video on swimming in spent nuclear pools}} links to the 16^th short and results in: video on swimming in spent nuclear pools. Long videos and shorts are numbered separately, so Y16 and S16 are different videos.

• You can also simply use the article title with the correct capitalisation. ''{{what if|Pigeon Chair|Pigeon Chair}}'' results in: Pigeon Chair. This suits articles that exist only in a book.

• To link to a single question of a grouped article, there are two methods:
  • Use the name of the reader who asked it. {{what if|Henry M.|last question of ''Weird & Worrying #2''}} results in: last question of Weird & Worrying #2. This anchor is more precise for multiple-question articles such as Short Answers sections, because it takes readers to the specific question. It cannot be used for anonymous readers: for that, use the method below:
  • Use the full question as written in the index. {{what if|Could life evolve in a constantly running microwave?|first question of ''Short Answers #5''}} results in: first question of Short Answers #5. It is the only option for anonymous readers, but it is longer and might break in the future.

• In all of the options above, leaving out the displayed text also works (e.g., {{what if|130}} results in what if? 130), but it does not show the title, so it is best to always add some displayed text. It usually matches the name of the article itself, but it can also be another wording if it fits your sentence better.
• You should use a simpler method when linking to a what if? article from one of these pages: what if? (blog), What If? (book), What If? 2, and What If? 10th Anniversary Edition. Because those four pages already embed the index, avoid using the {{what if}} template and instead use a normal anchor wikilink to keep the reader on the same page. To do this, place [[# and then any of the identifiers above, such as ''[[#2-63|Tire Rubber]]'' which results in: Tire Rubber (this link will not work outside the four pages).

When you mention an article in a sentence, the words what if? should link to the blog page or the specific book page, and the title should be in italics. You can copy these and replace the coloured parts:

• See the ''[[what if? (blog)|what if?]]'' article ''{{what if|28|Steak Drop}}''. results in: See the what if? article Steak Drop.
• See the chapter ''{{what if|2-38|Eat a Cloud}}'' in ''[[What If? 2]]''. results in: See the chapter Eat a Cloud in What If? 2.