How the file is kept

Reference codes

A code is the file prefix, BSCD, a two-letter series identifying the page, and a three-digit number that is the page's position in the file. Exhibits in the register carry the series EX and their own numbers. A code is allocated when a page is filed and is never reused, so a code quoted anywhere in the network resolves to one page for as long as the file exists. A page that is withdrawn keeps its code and is marked withdrawn.

The two dates

Filed is the edition date: the day the page's current text was published. It changes when the text changes materially. Template, navigation and footer changes do not change it.

Last checked is the day the page's sources were last re-opened and found to say what they were filed to support. It changes at each re-dating whether or not the text changes. A page whose last-checked date is older than its sources' known revisions is due for re-checking.

Structured data carries the same two dates, as published and modified.

Admission to the register

A source is admitted when three things are true: its provenance answers the five questions; it is filed against one stated fact, not a general topic; and its class is recorded. A source that would only repeat a claim already on file from the same custodian is not admitted as a second exhibit, because repetition is not evidence. Sources are never admitted for what they might support later.

Re-checking

At each re-dating every filed source is re-opened. A source that has moved is re-filed at its new address. A source that has changed so that it no longer supports its fact is marked, and the matrix row falls to the grade the remaining sources earn. A source that has gone is kept in the index as gone, with the date. The consistency audit and the citation counts are re-run and the timeline gains an entry.

Corrections

A reader who finds an error emails the address in the footer with the page code and the sentence concerned. An accepted correction changes the page text, updates the filed date, adds a line to the corrections log on the about page, and adds a timeline entry. Rejected corrections are logged too, with the reason. Nothing is silently rewritten; a reader comparing an old citation with the current page should be able to find why they differ.

One canonical page per concept

Each concept in the network has one page that holds its canonical wording. The reference property holds the entity and the definitions; the direct-answer property holds the criteria; this file holds the evidence. Other properties summarise and link. When two pages disagree, the canonical page is right and the other is corrected.