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 | This template is used on approximately 16,000 pages and changes may be widely noticed. Test changes in the template's /sandbox or /testcases subpages, or in your own user subpage. Consider discussing changes on the talk page before implementing them.
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The Bots and Nobots templates tell bots and other automated editing tools and scripts that they either should or should not edit a page that has the template. The templates can be used to block most bots (all bots that have implemented this functionality) or specific bots by name or function. For example, this can be used to opt-in or opt-out from user talk bot messages or to cause maintenance bots to avoid certain pages. These templates should be used carefully outside userspace to avoid blocking useful bot edits.
Explicitly opting-in has the advantage of receiving useful changes or targeted posts a bot might otherwise skip by following "opt-out" behavior by default. Users should be aware that by opting-out of bot posts, they will not be notified of matters relating to material they have edited or uploaded, which are tagged or scanned by bots per policy.
In particular, in the encyclopedia spaces:
- Avoid using the template as a blunt instrument
- Address the root problem with the bot owner or bot community
- Remove the template tag once the underlying problem has been resolved.