Hey!

tl;dr after the next deploy merging two items creates a redirect, merge gadget (and every tool with a similar functionality) needs to be adjusted to the new functionality

There was a change to the functionality of merging items. Whenever you merge two items a redirect will be automatically created.
If you merge via the special page nothing changed - except for the item, that is merged into another item now also redirects to that item.
The same goes for the API except for using 'ignoreconflicts'- when the item is not left empty after the merge it won't be a redirect and still be there as before without the data that got merged into the other item. (So it will only have the data that would have given a merge conflict.)

Last but not least: The merge gadget will need some adjusting. That's expected since the functionality changed.
Please keep that in mind if you have any tool, that merges items.

Cheers,

Lucie

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Lucie-Aimée Kaffee
Working Student Software Development
Wikimedia Deutschland e.V. | Tempelhofer Ufer 23-24 | 10963 Berlin
Phone: +49 (0)30 219 158 26-0
http://wikimedia.de

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