Commons:WikiProject Public Domain/PD-Art review

{{PD-Art}} and some of its cousins (see Category:PD-Art license tags) are widely used PD templates. By default, it transcludes {{PD-old}}, which may (i) not be correct and (ii) is not by itself sufficient (per COM:L, a US PD tag is also required). In very many cases, {{PD-Art}} can be replaced with either

1. {{PD-Art|PD-old-auto-expired|deathyear=XXXX}} (for works published before 1929)
2. {{PD-Art|PD-old-auto|deathyear=XXXX}} + a US PD tag (for works published after 1929)

Background

• Commons:Village pump/Copyright/Archive/2012/11#template:PD-Art

Guidance affected

• {{PD-Art/doc}}
• MediaWiki:Licenses (for Special:Upload) currently has PD-Art|Reproduction of a painting that is in the public domain because of its age. i.e. simply gives PD-Art without parameter for option "Reproduction of a painting that is in the public domain because of its age".
• Special:UploadWizard does something similar, needs to be changed by filing a bug (see Commons:Upload Wizard/Editing) – but it's not clear if it can pass parameters to a license. It applies {{PD-Art}} when uploaders choose
  • 1. "The copyright has definitely expired in the USA" and
    2. "Faithful reproduction of a painting that is in the public domain".
  • But PD-Art doesn't cover point 1 – it doesn't assert that copyright has expired in the US (and in fact, via {{PD-old}}, has a small note saying a US PD tag is required in addition).

Templates affected

• {{PD-Art}} / {{Licensed-PD-Art}} (transcludes PD-old by default)
• {{PD-Art-two}} / {{Licensed-PD-Art-two}} (transcludes PD-old and PD-1923 by default)

Workflow

One-by-one

1. Pick a random file using this link: Special:RandomInCategory/PD-Art (PD-old default).
2. Find the deathyear of the author, eiter from {{Creator}}-templates, categories or Wikipedia-articles.
3. Replace {{PD-Art}} with the appropriate tag listed above.
4. Save.
5. Repeat.

Tools

• Help:VisualFileChange.js – a very powerful tool, to be used with caution (access via "perform batch task" in the lefthand Toolbox). Can do text replacements ("custom replace" option) to execute the review process on many similar files at once.

Target for completion

?

Progress

• 8 November: 157k files in Category:PD-Art (PD-old default).
• 29 December: 126k files in Category:PD-Art (PD-old default).
• Current: 133,655 in Category:PD-Art (PD-old default).