In late 2006 I stumbled upon the User template categories and found that there were user templates that were not categorized. I started categorizing them, and while doing that, I found that there were a lot that looked alike. I also saw in some the ability to change what a template said a little bit. So, after I got done putting all of the templates into the various categories (most of which I created), I started working on merging some of the like templates I found earlier. Some templates were modified, while others needed to be created.
After the first merging of the Monty Python templates, I found the Templates for deletion process. I put all of the other Monty Python templates up for Tfd, and eventually the others were all deleted in favor of the master template I created.
Also during this time, I bumped into the German Userbox Solution. What I saw, I didn't like. That proposal was one of the worst ideas I had ever read. Why in the world would anyone want to put templates into user space. Not only did it make them harder to find, it also caused a lot more headaches in the use of them. I hoped that the creation of master templates would put a stop to that.
With 23 master templates created that replaced over 150 individual templates, I thought that they were safely in template space where they belong. I took an extended break from Wikipedia, only to find that someone came through and put 20 of them in user space. Now I have to find a way to get that reversed. In the list of templates below, there should not be any red links. Those are all master templates that should not have been moved to user space.
