Foundation wiki feedback/Archive/2012

This is an archive of past discussions. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on the current talk page.

FUNraising

I actually enjoy making contribution$ to organizations that benefit the world - and I appreciate your Thank You emails, and take to heart your fundraising requests.......... and as I sit here, thumbing through my "Wireless" catalogue, from PBS, I wish you would provide a more straightforward link to your Cafe Press merchandise (marketing, ugh) page......... Some people would love to "show" their support......

We're planning on making this more prominent in the future.  ℳono  20:00, 2 January 2012 (UTC)

wikimediafoundation.org

I think you guys are pretty good people. I used to use Encarta but now I have a MAC and I think they stopped making that program anyway. One thing I do miss is that the had a dictionary that gave the correct prononcuation of words. Do you guys have any plans to include this feature?

Yes, Wiktionary (here). Here is a full list of Wikimedia projects. --Z 00:52, 1 January 2012 (UTC)

Terms of use

in-re;Parkway West Sr. High Ballwin, Mo. You have it stated that the school was refered to as PWHS and that may be so but it was also called PaWeSeHi pronounced paw-wa-say`he.

Pagina Principale

Nella sezione "Trasparenza", andrebbe corretto il seguente testo "Se ti piacerebbe di partecipare ad una conversazione..." in "Se desideri partecipare ad una conversazione..."

In "Trasparenza" section, "Se ti piacerebbe di partecipare ad una conversazione..." text should be amended as "Se desideri partecipare ad una conversazione..."--Nubifer 09:47, 4 January 2012 (UTC)

Fixed, many thanks. PeterSymonds (talk) 15:11, 4 January 2012 (UTC)

Errors in Article

I tried really hard to figure out where to submit this comment, but your website seems to be designed to not allow feedback - it is an endless series of logic loops and dead ends.

Anyway, please relay this to whoever handles mistakes.

I read an article about "Bonny Hicks." There are two obvious factual errors:

1. It says that Silk Air is an Indonesian national airline. In fact, it is a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines.

2. It refers to the pilot of a crashed Silk Air flight as both a friend of Bonny Hick's ex husband, and as Bonny Hick's ex husband. I think it is the former, but I'm not sure. It obviously is not both.

Hi -- sorry to hear you find the site difficult to navigate! In a way, it may be easier to give feedback than you think: you can simply click the "edit" button in the upper right corner of the article, and improve the article yourself! YOu should be sure to include a link to an independent citation (like a news article) if possible. Alternately, you can click the "Discussion" tab and bring up these points there, and discuss with other editors what changes need to be made. Happy editing! -Pete F 18:47, 4 January 2012 (UTC)

Board of Trustees

Hi,

The dates for the Board of Trustees needs an update,

• Jan-Bart de Vreede, Vice Chair (term until December 2011)
• Stu West, Treasurer (term until December 2011)
• Jimmy Wales, (term until December 2011)

I'd imagine the new dates are December 2012, as per this .

Thanks,

The Helpful One 17:12, 4 January 2012 (UTC)

Done, many thanks. PeterSymonds (talk) 17:20, 4 January 2012 (UTC)

Talk:Accueil

"un des 5 sites les plus visités au monde. "

Le lien indique que Wikipédia est le 6ème, une petite maj s'impose :)

Merci! English: This Accueil should say 6th most popular website, not the fifth (the page hasn't been updated in over a year). I'll request this is fixed now. :) The Helpful One 15:45, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

Fixed. The Helpful One 15:47, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

Página Principal

Mistake in translation, the objective is: "Imagine um mundo onde todos seres humanos compartilhem livremente a soma de todo o conhecimento" pleas change asap, kiss. Rodrigo Tetsuo Argenton ^m 04:44, 7 January 2012 (UTC)

Fixed, many thanks. PeterSymonds (talk) 13:34, 7 January 2012 (UTC)

Download PDF Is Broken

When I do the following on the left side "Print/export", then "Download as PDF", it appears the service is currently broken. I have no idea where to report this issue, thus reporting it here.

I tried getting a PDF of the main page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page and some other pages, including logged into my account and logged out, and they all give this error.

Render server error
An error occured on the render server: RuntimeError: command failed with returncode 256: ['mw-render', '-w', 'rl', '-c', 'cache/04/04e9e5f2586231af/collection.zip', '-o', 'cache/04/04e9e5f2586231af/output.rl', '--status', 'qserve://localhost:14311/04e9e5f2586231af:render-rl', '--template-blacklist', 'MediaWiki:PDF Template Blacklist', '--template-exclusion-category', 'Exclude in print', '--print-template-prefix', 'Print', '--print-template-pattern', '$1/Print', '--language', 'en'] Last Output: 2012-01-09T09:41:04 mwlib.options.warn >> Both --print-template-pattern and --print-template-prefix (deprecated) specified. Using --print-template-pattern only. 1% reading /tmp/tmpfXrv7_/revisions-1.txt 0% error removing '/tmp/tmpfXrv7_' Traceback (most recent call last): File "/home/pp/local/bin/mw-render", line 9, in <module> load_entry_point('mwlib==0.13.0', 'console_scripts', 'mw-render')() File "/home/pp/local/lib/python2.6/site-packages/mwlib-0.13.0-py2.6-linux-x86_64.egg/mwlib/apps/render.py", line 211, in main return Main()() File "/home/pp/local/lib/python2.6/site-packages/mwlib-0.13.0-py2.6-linux-x86_64.egg/mwlib/apps/render.py", line 176, in __call__ writer(env, output=tmpout, status_callback=self.status, **writer_options) File "/home/pp/local/lib/python2.6/site-packages/mwlib.rl-0.12.9-py2.6.egg/mwlib/rl/rlwriter.py", line 2176, in writer r = RlWriter(env, strict=strict, debug=debug, mathcache=mathcache, lang=lang) File "/home/pp/local/lib/python2.6/site-packages/mwlib.rl-0.12.9-py2.6.egg/mwlib/rl/rlwriter.py", line 245, in __init__ self.tmpdir = tempfile.mkdtemp() File "/home/pp/local/lib/python2.6/tempfile.py", line 318, in mkdtemp _os.mkdir(file, 0700) OSError: [Errno 31] Too many links: '/tmp/tmpE0yC1_' in function system, file /home/pp/local/lib/python2.6/site-packages/mwlib-0.12.17-py2.6-linux-x86_64.egg/EGG-INFO/scripts/nslave.py, line 37''

I'm not sure if this is broken on multiple wiki's or just English Wikipedia.

Sbmeirow 12:07, 9 January 2012 (UTC)

Looks like someone fixed it. If it break again today, then I'll report it here. Sbmeirow 13:42, 9 January 2012 (UTC)

Thanks for reporting this, I checked again today and it seems to be working so hopefully this was only a temporary problem. Thank you again! :) The Helpful One 15:49, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

Términos de Uso

En la descripción que hacen titulada "La mil y una noches:760" hay un error en el artículo sobre "Las babucjasinservibles" La ciudad en la que habitaba el personaje que figura en esa narración (Abu Cassem) y la ciudad en la que se desarrollan los episodios, no era El Cairo, sino Bagdad. Estudié árabe con el famoso profesor García Gómez y tradujimos justamente esta narración, por eso sé bien lo que afirmo. Tampoco estoy seguro de que ese cuento pertenezca a "Las mil ý una noches". Es más ... lo dudo. Pero eso lo pueden averihuar ustedes. Quiten lo de El Cairo, por favor.

I believe the page in question is on the Spanish Wikisource. Therefore, I copied this comment on to the talk page. The Helpful One 15:57, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

SOPA Blackout

I donate to Wikipedia and I support the SOPA blackout! It is important to make online users aware of this critical legislation that could lead to internet content control. Censorship of any kind is the enemy of freedom. We must endeavor to keep all forms of information and expression free from censorship controls.

Thank you for the support..of both kinds! -Pete F 03:22, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

Terms of use

Your page regarding Warrant Officer Hugh Thompson Jr. and the My Lai massacre is inaccurate in regards to the helicopter WO Thompson was flying. There were no Raven OH-23's in Vietnam used in combat at this time and OH-23's could not perform the missions discribed. All Assault Helicopter Co's. were flying UH-1H (Hueys) at this time. It's a big mistake. Submtted: CW2 Dan Heckerman 61 AHC, 1967-1968, 1st Platoon Section Cmdr, LZ English, Bong Son, Vietnam

Hi, this page is for comments about [1], the official Wikimedia Foundation website. Please add your comments to the talk page of the article in question on the English Wikipedia. Best, The Helpful One 15:59, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

wikimediafoundation.org

LET'S TAKE OUR BALL AND GO HOME!

The WP blackout is the stupidest idea I've heard, and my contributions to WP (intellectual and financial) will end the second the blackout goes live ... I mean dead. And lasting until WP acknowledges the stupidity of the action and apologizes to the entire world.

The whole thing came up with no email to warn current financial and intellectual contributors. And I have no idea where I can even post my protest. It's all been done by the insiders.

Publicizing the issue is totally appropriate. Burning the book is dumb. An encyclopedia exists to provide information, including information about political issues. But engaging in active protest destroys WP's claims to neutrality.

Paleolith 04:35, 17 January 2012 (UTC)

Discussion has been happening on the public mailing lists and on wiki in prominent places for weeks. And the final poll was advertised by banners to all users. the wub "?!" 14:23, 17 January 2012 (UTC)

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

Hey guys, you didn't have to blackout everything from the English section, at least leave accessible all the links related to the SOPA legislation and the statement of your protest for people to be sure about the protest measures you're taking. Hope yours success in your just cause. Cheers! ;)

I think the pages about SOPA will be left open for everyone to read. Cheers. Aude 04:47, 17 January 2012 (UTC)

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

Thank you...really appreciate for being penalized for what the idiots in Washington try to do...guess I will just forget Wiki is out here in cyberworld even after you come back online for "English" pages...have a good life...

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

You are only shooting yourself in the foot by taking such an action. Why don't you take a poll first before taking a unilateral action that will harm readers much more than congresspeople that support the legislation.

There was a poll which was well advertised and attracted input from hundreds of readers and editors. This action is anything but unilateral. the wub "?!" 14:27, 17 January 2012 (UTC)

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

You will have studied the implications on your blackout of the Obama edict enabling any person whom the President wishes to silence to be imprisoned indefinitely without trial.However your actions are clearly made for the benefit of the US more than of anyone else. It is "We the people" who will suffer, that is, ordinary US Citizens.The actions against which Wikipedia is protesting are, in my view, taken on behalf of the free world. The actions of the US legislature and their President are in abuse of the USA's Constitution. They are, themselves, against the interests of the US. Arguably, this raft of legislation mirrors similar measures unsuccessfully imposed since the beginning of recorded history down to other current renegade states in their dying imperial excesses.They defy the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The world is aware of the total impotence of the United Nations Organisation.Thus the Foundation stands for humanity as a whole in taking this action, which will be supported globally. If these comments are more apt in general discussion, please place them there.

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

I fully understand and support your position on these important issues. With due respect, please consider recommending concrete actions that Wikipedia users like myself can take to show solidarity to sustain a free and open Internet.

Thank you. [[|--72.189.166.61 05:32, 17 January 2012 (UTC)]]

I do too, as a user and a contributor to wikipedia Trassiorf 15:55, 17 January 2012 (UTC)

wikimediafoundation.org

I approve of your thoughts for the blackout. On the other hand? I donot think that is good protest means. Maybe rally people who use it for a common good (IE freedom of speech and my world thought). A formal wriiten protest signed by all of us treasure knowledge. Hope this makes sense as i do enjoy your sight woutlaw44@yahoo.com

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

Please do not block out Wikipedia English because of some law. I think it is almost bigoted against English speaking people who should not be forced out of a website from it's creators or foundation because they're protesting law changes that could into affect....

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

Hi, this image doesn't exist, did you mean to upload it? The Helpful One 16:16, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=23783

http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=23791

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

So much for NPOV and not taking sides in political arguments.

The principles that make wiki what it was are being thrown out the window.

110.32.27.203 12:11, 17 January 2012 (UTC)

The freedom to make it what it is is being thrown out of the window; hence the protest!

The Facebook button at the end of http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/English_Wikipedia_anti-SOPA_blackout links to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:SOPA_initiative/Take_action rather than itself. Is that intentional? Fayenatic london (talk) 13:03, 17 January 2012 (UTC)

I don't imagine it was intentional, but the button now goes to Facebook, so this was fixed. Thanks! AGK [•] 23:31, 17 January 2012 (UTC)

wikimediafoundation.org

Hi, Wikipedia has helped me a lot in my project works and various other researching purposes. Most of the science articles are so good it has given me a vast ocean of knowledge and allowed me to dwell into theoretical Questions. I have tried to keep up with the vast expanse of knowledge hidden beneath this "ocean" but I will never be able to know how much there is hidden in this "deep well of knowledge".

Certain things to share to improve the quality of material: 1.> Have a better explanation and derivation of formulas present in theories. 2.> Better updating of trends (Higgs' boson, breaking of Speed of light barrier)

English wikipedia being closed

So you are closing the english site because of an american legislation that will only take effect on american writers of wikipedia. And also you are closing the site which is what the american government want. Also you are holding a protest which is very pessimistic and they wont even notice it. To add there are another million websites on the internet and there are actual books that you can read that you can be ashored wont have any lies such as some pages on wikipedia which is youre biggest weakness. But you are such a big company that I dont think it will be a problem for you and did you even read all of the ideas in the legislation or are you just going on a rampage which could just change the ideas in the legislation. You are also turning away all the users of wikipedia who might already feel like they cant trust you because of some of the non-fiction which is fiction. To add you are holding ot at 7 o'clock in the morning shich is normally the time in england that children get ready for school and most adults get ready for work so not alot of time to finish homework and work. And I wonder what the newspaper will say.

From an avid english reader

Regardless of your stance, please note that U.S. legislation affects every version and language of wikipedia, regardless of where the contributor or reader is located. Seb az86556 17:33, 17 January 2012 (UTC)

To elaborate, this legislation affects the entire foundation. Some of the servers and the foundation itself is based in the US, which means all the Foundation projects are required to play by US rules, regardless of the citizenship of the user in question. Not to mention the community reached consensus to do this. 67.246.226.214 17:47, 17 January 2012 (UTC)

SOPA Protest

I'm sure you're getting a lot of messages, just want to say thank you and that we appreciate that you're making this statement loud enough that congressmen are going to have to listen (I'm a college engineering student so we've all been abuzz about this)

Thanks for the support! -Pete F 03:18, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

hOW CAN I SURVIVE FOR 24 HOURS WITHOUT WIKIPEEDIA!?

My intellectual rights

I, like probably several million other people, am going about my business trying to eke out a living from my limited talents as a photographer. I have been doing it for years and long before the internet the occasional thief stole a picture or two. Now everyone thinks it's their god given right to lift anything they find on the internet as though it has no consequence. When criminals, companies, organisations and anyone else that can use a keyboard starts removing your property and using it for themselves it is about time, long overdue, that governments stepped in and try to protect their citizens. My work is not virtual, its piracy reduces my ability to make a living in two ways - the loss of the sale of the photograph and the reduction of the value of the photograph because it can be pirated however much I try to protect it.

To see Wikipedia support pirates of copyright material of any type on the pretext that the legislation proposed reduces peoples freedom is a hollow joke. Am I supposed to give up my living to pirates for the greater good? I am afraid the internet is still in the Wild West era where honest town folk are deprived of their property at gun point and no sheriff or marshal seems to want to interfere. If Wikipedia and other big players did more to keep their organisations clean then legislation would not be required. Websites that host material that is copyrighted without the owners permission are making their fortunes from theft. But they winge on about "its not their job to control the content of their sites" while filling their pockets with gold created from the possessions of others. It would not be condoned or accepted anywhere else, except perhaps Somalia.

Some people seem to think that all creative media; music, film, television, games, books, photographs etc should be free for the entire world and that this constitutes freedom of speech. We are not all billionaires who can afford to give away our work for nothing unless and until, lawyers, manufacturers, farmers, supermarkets, bankers etc join in. Ah! what a wonderful world - Imagine.

But, I support your right to say what you will, to give away your virtual possessions - just don't steal mine.

No-one supports the theft of your property. At the same time, no-one supports accusing others of theft and arresting them without trial, warrant, or legal recourse. That's what this protest is about. Seb az86556 00:31, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

"Websites that host material that is copyrighted without the owners permission are making their fortunes from theft". Personally, I think this is one of the major factors which distinguish Wikimedia projects from a lot of the 'user-contributed' internet. We have aggressive policies demanding that content be freely licensed and our community actively patrols for infringement and removes it without request (sometimes this even makes the copyright holders complain, because they like the free PR!). Our communities even maintain blacklists of bad accounts on sites like Flickr where our contributors are forbidden to copy content from because they are known sources of 'whitewashed' infringement which the operators of those other sites willfully ignore even when we report them. Our community goes above and beyond the strict requirements of the law because we care about doing the right thing and because having proper and legal free content licensing is a core part of our mission.

And, of course, unlike flickr, youtube, facebook, etc. nothing on Wikipedia is done for a profit. Wikipedia is run by a charity. There are no ads on the site. The funding from the operation comes primarily from voluntary contributions by members of the public and a few grants here and there.

At the same time, the laws we're concerned about allow the suppression of material on pretext. They can allow misguided or outright dishonest claims to be used to suppress lawful material and they would reasonably be expected to chill free speech as sites become more conservative about what they publish to avoid claims. As a community our own success in avoiding infringement makes it obvious to use that infringement can be minimized without the use of such dangerous tools.

We make use of copyright ourselves— to ensure that our content and derivatives of it remain available to everyone under equivalently permissive terms. While there are some in our community who are outright opposed to copyright, there are a great many who are not, and our community includes many people who make their living off of copyrighted works (including many professional photographers who release a portion of their work as under free licensing as charity). --Gmaxwell 01:34, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

your comments are busted,wiki!

so,i log on,to find that you are blacking out for SOPA....this of course makes no sense,as the only people hurt are the ones who use you,and the people who are pushing the SOPA laws prolly will never even know about this...whatever it is...protest i guess...

however,the problem here is the i tried to post a comment to the announcement,and the system gave me a page with one sentence and no links telling me 'Slow down. You are posting too quickly.'...i posted once,and it was my first post,and i was reprimanded for posting too much??sounds to me like they are censoring people who dont like their little...idea....

so,SOPA is evil,and bad,we all agree,but shutting down wiki,as i said,doesnt help keep sopa away,it only hurts your users....bad decision

thanks

"If someone makes a law forcing you to wear shoes, you dont protest by breaking your ankle." - bull,jan 2012

wikimediafoundation.org

You are making a big mistake with the blackout. You solicit contributions from your users and are giving us a reason to say no by ignoring how the blackout affects us.

Speaking for myself only -- I don't think it's true that the effects have been ignored. The possible effects have been discussed in endless detail, and the actions have been carefully considered to balance the short-term and long-term interests of all Wikipedia's stakeholders. You may have a different conclusion, but I don't think it's fair to say anybody's interests have been ignored. (And you should also keep in mind, the action is that of the English Wikipedia community, not of the Wikimedia Foundation -- the Foundation is merely facilitating a decision that was taken by the overwhelming majority of the site's volunteer contributors.) -Pete F 03:15, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

thanks guys you will be missed,hurry back,long live freedom and liberty.

Thanks for the words of support! -Pete F 03:12, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

Protest against SOPA/PIPA is a good cause for the blackout

Whenever legislators attack the freedom of communication, and particularly the freedom to receive information, the web community should try to stage efficient protests. Including Wikipedia!

The legislators are ever more using indirect and unfair, "statistically justifiable" procedures to suppress unwanted/illegal practices and contents on the web. This must not be allowed. Whatever they want to prevent should be done by appropriately designed measures. Their incomepetence cannot justify collateral dammage to freedom in general.--Ilevanat 01:41, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

please don't pull the plug on me!!!

AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHGGGG!!!!!!

Error on SOPA page?

"Wikipedia depends on its existence for a free and open, uncensored Internet."

Maybe I'm missing something, but shouldn't that be something like "Wikipedia's existence depends upon a free and open, uncensored Internet."? --Stismail 1/17/2012 11:27 PM CT  Done -- we got that one fixed after a couple hours, thanks! -Pete F 22:13, 19 January 2012 (UTC)

Why java script?

Why entire blackout may be stopped by disabling java script? Bulwersator 07:22, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

  thank you!!! bull

Failed implementation: blackout

As noted, "To cancel the redirect of any wiki page, press esc when loading is begun. Tested and guaranteed;) https://twitter.com/#!/PontGate/status/159555223445176320". Please implement an effective solution representing en.'s consensus decision. the "no java" workaround was marginally acceptable on a technical basis. This isn't. Fifelfoo 08:51, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout/ca

Please, fix a typo: {{DISPLAYTITLE:Tancament de la Viquipèdia en anglès en protesta contra la SOPA}}. Thanks. --Vriullop 09:01, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

Fixed, many thanks. PeterSymonds (talk) 09:04, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

This Blackout is stupid

I understand your interest in making your point, but this Blackout is stupid. Most people don't need to be hit over the head with a hammer to get the point. Having a Blackout is hitting me with a hammer. Thanks for the poor judgement.

Thank you for your courage

I respect the rights of those who are against the blackout, and hope they will respect my topic. I would just like to say thank you for having the courage to go through with this. Companies have gone bankrupt and shut down for less nobler causes than this, and I am proud to consider wikimedia's sties my main resources for information. I believe that no matter what we make the internet to be, it is still a resource for information. To try and restrict what information people give to others, is little more than dictatorship.

I hope your efforts are not in vain, for it is no secret that the American Government has tried to mislead their students, in teaching them historical facts that glorify their country rather than speak the truth. Who knows what they will try to enforce on foreigners next, even beyond restricting their rights to share historical knowledge with the rest of the planet. The fight is not over until it's won, so let us hope there are still enough Americans in congress who value freedom of speech on a global scale.

the blackout - a possible next step

Hello.

I understand that typically wikpedia is not a political org. That said - it is an important time for us to defend our freedom and the wonderful space we call the internet.

I suggest an international petition against the actions of the US govt attempting to censor us. That is less than wonderful to say it nicely.

I would assume we can collect several million signatures in less than a week's time. We have to stop this. And we have to do it now.

Janis said "freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose". Well said - but 50 years later we face a different reality.

I will support this in any way I can - but the wiki folks are more up to speed on such things. Perhaps a new splinter site - like "wikifreedom.org" ?

Let's make it happen. When millions speak up - things happen.

Peace. Freedome. Weirdness.

That's what we all need.

- senor marcos - aka - mark young - mazatlan, sinaloa, mexico.

wmf:English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout/nl

Please fix the grammatical error on wmf:English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout/nl by replacing {{DISPLAYTITLE:Anti-SOPA black-out van de Engelstalige Wikipedia}} with {{DISPLAYTITLE:Anti-SOPA-black-out van de Engelstalige Wikipedia}}. Also, Sue Gardner is the "directeur" of the Wikimedia Foundation, not the "bestuursvoorzitter". Could someone replace those words? Thanks, Mathonius 14:32, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

Done by PeterSymonds. The Helpful One 14:53, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

Blackout

Wikipedia has chosen to throw its hat into the political ring through this action, and by so doing has removed its mask of neutrality. User's concerns about Wikipedia's content due to its editorial stance (or lack thereof) combined with this overt political action makes Wikipedia a very dubious source for information. "Better to let people think you are stupid than open your mouth and remove all doubt," goes the old adage. To Wikipedia we could say, "Better to let people think your content is suspicious than to become a political activist and remove all doubt."

The fact that this political action has occurred without an attempt at an explanation of how SOPA or PIPA could effect Wikipedia's day to day activities casts even further doubts on to their motives. The lack of explanation can only lead to the conclusion that giving an explanation would expose how much of their content is in fact stolen intelligence property ; it would amount to a mea culpa. A simple explanation of how trying to stop overseas pirating sites would devastate the free web would go a long way to alleviating the trepidation caused by this veiled political action. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 141.218.53.61 (talk • contribs) .

There's no veil here: this is transparently and unquestionably a political action! But it is one we've made our best effort to explain. You can see our general counsel Geoff Brigham's blog post explaing why SOPA and PIPA are bad for Wikipedia and the free web here. Sue's blog post on the blackout explains specifically why this kind of action and why now, quoting my mailing list post: our articles are politically neutral, but our existence isn't. We stand for some radical ideas, ideas that depend on a favorable legal infrastructure, and we need to defend the structures that allow us to exist. Kat Walsh (spill your mind?) 22:49, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

In addition, it is a (commonly repeated) mistake to think of Wikipedians' actions as being "neutral" in general. Every day, Wikipedians take strong positions on article talk pages, for instance arguing strenuously against corporate marketing departments that want to control or remove information in an article. These actions are not neutral! They are aimed at producing neutral content, but that is not the same thing. There is nothing new going on here; Wikipedia has always been a convening project for people with a very strong, passionate, and non-neutral belief in the importance of free knowledge. -Pete F 22:12, 19 January 2012 (UTC)

Those who object to the anti-SOPA initiative as being non-neutral are confusing the content of the encyclopedia, which should be neutral, with the activity of creating the encyclopedia, which is not. Undertaking to freely share the sum of human knowledge is a profoundly disruptive political act, not a neutral one, because knowledge is power. ~ Ningauble 15:21, 20 January 2012 (UTC)

SOPA/Blackoutpage

i am with Wikipedia. The Black out is condemned. This is totally bad for us ,so please do not enforce this rule over freedom of speech and opportunity to gain knowledge. this is against our freedom of sharing knowledge

wikimediafoundation.org

BLACKOUT POLICY

I concur with your approach to the pending legislation. I also support the use of Wikipedia to take political positions when the polices and basis of Wikipedia may be abridged by restrictions that, in fact, censor content.

The message with the blackout is very well said. I believe Wikipedia is not only there to be helpful but to give voices to all who make the effort to participate. This is root to freedom of expression, to free speech, to the fundamental to goverence in Wikipedia and to our pursuit of happiness.

James Meer Microflight@att.net

Thank you for your support! :) The Helpful One 16:42, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

English Wikipedia anti-SOPA blackout

Wikipedia should be free. i get game information from it.glitches awaeness i get from it.

sopa page has no edit button

so i used the well known and absurdly easy bypass to get the main sopa blackout page on wiki,to post that the blackout was somewhat of a failure due to the fact that there are at least two well known and easy to use workarounds...that being hitting esc as the page loads(to prevent the redirect to the blockade page) and disabling java active scripting...and the EDIT button was missing....both on the main page and the talk page...i would have liked to have been the one to post that on the page,because while i disagree with sopa,i also disagree with the blackout....how are we supposed to add new info if there is no edit button? ADD: ok,ive gone on to find out that NO wiki pages but this one have edit buttons anymore....so,another round of censorship from our pals at wikipedia,all for the sake of lawmakers who probably dont even realize,and certainly dont care,that wiki is 'blocked' (at least for those who havent yet heard how to bypass it)

Hi there! Thank you for your feedback. As part of the Wikipedia Blackout, although we have allowed certain pages to be viewed that are related to SOPA and PIPA, all editing has been disabled - even for administrators. Have a look at this page for a bit more information, only Wikimedia Staff and Stewards are allowed to edit, and this is for emergency purposes only. Best, The Helpful One 20:15, 18 January 2012 (UTC)

actually,the SOPA info pages are all blacked out....but easy to get to,as have the xfiles pages ive been perusing today...ok,i guess ill just have to make do going to every public site i can and spreading the wealth of my information about the bypass...good day

wikimediafoundation.org - How to join

Hi,

I was just trying to login, not sure if I need to.

I am not about to edit any article, just wondering if there is any benefits to joining, otherwise.

I support your blackout today.

I contacted both VT Senators, and my Congressman.

I also made a very small paypal donation.

Thanks,

jim bator 01/18/2012

Hi Jim. The Wikimedia Foundation wiki located at wikimediafoundation.org is closed to editing and can be edited only by certain people. The Wikimedia Foundation wiki contains information about the Wikimedia Foundation, the non-profit organization behind Wikipedia, and cannot be joined or edited. If you have a suggestion regarding the content of that site, post it on this page. If you're interested in editing Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, you can create an account or edit without one after the blackout. Thanks,  ℳono  00:24, 19 January 2012 (UTC)

Thanks for everything

Hello, I just wanted to say thanks to all involved in keeping this website alive. I have used this webservice (it is more than a website) many times over the years. For help with academic assignments yes, but honestly, I just enjoy browsing the site, seeing what experts have to say about topics of interest. I have made a monetary donation and I hope others do as well, since I firmly believe I know not one person who doesn't use this webservice. The accurate posts are the most valuable obviously and I, and millions of others, appreciate the efforts taken by you and your staff to keep the records accurate. Thank you so very much Mr. Wales, and your HARDWORKING staff.

Sincerely, Lorien

Welcome back

WIKI has my full support tim letchfield, LONDON, eNGLAND

SOPA/Blackoutpage

Just want to say that the main reason why these two acts are taking place is due the increasing lack of paid advertising for various tv networks. Therefore congress is trying to control Internet programming by channeling it onto specific sites which they would own.

ps. good luck and god bless

Thank you!!!!!

To all at Wikipedia,

although I am just one individual, yet one of many, I would like to express my most profound gratitude for standing up and speaking out against PIPA and SOPA. You, and all who participated in speaking out deserve the deepest thanks so, here it is, THANK YOU! As a social worker, I value the importance and great need for knowledge and have come to rely upon websites that provide the same - particularly yours. My deepest regret this year was being unable to support Wikipedia with a small financial donation as I utilize this resource often. Unfortunately I was unable as I am battling end stage four liver disease and undergoing rigorous treatment and battling too keeping the roof over our heads (single mom two kids...). In that vein, it's important to me to send this message as part of the populous that does struggle thus is ever so appreciative for your tremendous efforts of providing a venue that is accessible, affordable and informative. In fact, it is a service that allowed me to stay informed throughout my treatment and continued illness and I am ever so grateful.

In summation, forgive my intimate candour regarding my circumstance, but I believe with my entire being that such circumstances are very relevant as it goes to the heart of what you provide - a service available to all. In my case, unable to get out of bed and/or unable to acquire materials due to physical and financial challenges, this, and other web services have afforded priceless to me and for that I thank you.

The fact that I live in Canada (Calgary, Alberta) does not afford me the ability to protest these bills to the US government however this issue was a catalyst that brought out a strength I haven't felt during this illness as I haven't much of that lately. I share these words to demonstrate how the thought of any such action by greedy individuals who subscribe to censorship for no other apparent reason but a money grab has evoked a rage in me. So, I hope, in turn that I speak for those who really benefit from what the current web offers.

I too, have published some works during my graduate years and have no second thoughts about others accessing my work although, being humble, would not assume any person may. That is not the point. I guess I am trying to say that even when I cannot afford food or some of the medications I require, I would not attempt to squeeze others inadvertently or not when they could benefit from knowledge. What angers me the most is that those (music and movie industries for example) who certainly do NOT need more of our hard earned money are desperately attempting to squeeze every last drop from those of us who have little and worse - those who have little to no access to knowledge!

Thank you again for your stance on this and thank you so much for providing me and billions with your wonderful service.

With deepest respect and utmost gratitude, Sheila Larsen Calgary, Alberta

wikimediafoundation.org

I just want Wiki to know, I'm very disappointed in the manner in which the organization decided to protest the current bills heading to congress. I am a frequent user of Wiki, and use it as a beginning resource when working on my literary materials. It royally pi**ed me off when I could not access the site's functionality. I understand Wiki asking for assistance in the protest, but the manner in which it was done only caused inconvenience to the people who actually wanted to use the resource. You should not be taking a political view, and you should certainly not risk the relationship you have with your client base. It isn't savvy, and it isn't professional. I expected more from you guys.

Ron, from Columbia Falls, Montana.

Correction needed at Advisory Board

At http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Advisory_Board#Mitch_Kapor

"He founding or co-founded the Lotus Development Corporation, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the..."

should be

"He founded or co-founded the Lotus Development Corporation, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the..."

Sven Manguard 18:54, 20 January 2012 (UTC)

Done. Killiondude 18:56, 20 January 2012 (UTC)

Feedback privacy statement/nl

"Terugkoppeling" lijkt me een heel onbekend woord. Hoewel het wel officieel Nederlands is, lijkt mij "feedback" duidelijker. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 217.123.25.172 (talk • contribs) 08:05, 22 January 2012‎ (UTC)

Misschien... maar "terugkoppeling" wordt wel degelijk gebruikt en "feedback" is een Engels woord, terwijl wij de Nederlandstalige Wikipedia zijn. Trijnstel 13:41, 22 January 2012 (UTC)

Het lijkt er op dat "feedback" ook wel degelijk een geaccepteerd woord is in de Nederlandse taal (vandaleTaalunie woordenlijst). En ben het met bezoeker 217.123.25.172 eens dat het een beter en duidelijker woord is in de Nederlandstalige gemeenschap. –Krinkle^talk 06:18, 7 March 2012 (UTC)

Ah, goed gevonden. Ik zal vragen om een wijziging voor die pagina (kan het zelf niet).

@someone with access to the foundationwiki. Please change the word "terugkoppeling" in "feedback" on the page Feedback privacy statement/nl. Trijnstel_talk 11:34, 7 March 2012 (UTC)

Done. Killiondude (talk) 17:38, 7 March 2012 (UTC)

wikimediafoundation.org

the concern about what happened these days between the FBI to intervene websites, media-wiki in his great contribution to the Wor deberoa wide web out for not piracy, but a gradual order, not the way generated a global chaos. sincerely marcewar - juegos de mario

I'm sorry, but I didn't understand what you meant -- could you rephrase it, please? Banaticus (talk) 19:18, 16 February 2012 (UTC)

wikimediafoundation.org

great plans!!

wikimediafoundation.org - Visual format of the blog

Hello! I frequently read the Wikimedia blog on a 1600 x 900 screen. The content is aligned to the left, so I see 850 pixels of content on the left and 750 blank pixels on the right. Could you change the format to center, so I see 375 pixels in blank on each side? Thanks! --NaBUru38 13:23, 1 February 2012 (UTC)

I agree with you. Centering the blog's layout is planned, unfortunately it isn't trivial, because the layout is based on the Vector skin from MediaWiki. I should be able to get to it in the coming weeks. guillom 13:09, 7 February 2012 (UTC)

wikimediafoundation.org

I strikr j ile would like to be granted un publi material thnk u :-)

Resolution:Licensing policy

The links to examples of EDPs are wrong - the English one should be "...Non-free content criteria", and the Polish one should probably not be given at all, as it is only a proposal.

wikimediafoundation.org

Hi, guess to tell something about Airbus A350 vs. Dreamliner of Boeing, but no chance due logging in and so on ... how can I use Wikipedia - to tell my owns???

Hi, you were trying to login to the website of the Wikimedia Foundation, the organization behind Wikipedia. The website you are looking for is Wikipedia, which can be found here. Wikipedia already has articles on both the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and the Airbus A350, which you can edit without logging in. Good luck! nl:Mark W (Mwpnl) ¦ talk 23:50, 15 February 2012 (UTC)

wikimediafoundation.org

While reviewing countries of the Middle East, it was discovered that Eygpt and Libya are listed as Middle Eastern countries. The Middle East is located on the Countinent of Asia. Egypt and Libya are on the Continent of Africa. They are North African countries.

Listed Errors; Egypt and Libya listed as Middle Eastern Countries

While reviewing information on the Middle East, it was discovered that Egypt and Libya are listed as Middle Eastern countries. Egypt and Libya are countries on the continent of Africa. Middle Eastern countries are located on the continent of Asia.

wikimediafoundation.org

I am a constant contributor to wikipedia, still I find my id in red letters whereas those who have been contributing after me have their names in blue letters. Why this discrepancy?

A red link simply means that the target page has not been created yet. If you click on the red link, User:Somesh virgo, it will bring you to your userpage and tell you that the page does not exist. If you put something on the page and save it, your name will appear blue. The red link does not mean that you are an "unestablished" user or anything, any link, like this one, that is aimed at any non-existent page will appear red. J.delanoy^gabs_adds 17:01, 23 February 2012 (UTC)

Improved translation Dutch version

I hope I have improved the low-quality Dutch version (robot translation?) of this page, see http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Translation_requests/WMF/Home/nl . Could somebody implement these changes? Thanks, cheers, JMMuller (talk) 11:15, 28 February 2012 (UTC)

Congratulations !

Hi Everyone !

I just wanted congratulate you for this FAN-TAS-TIC site !

I don't know WHO created it, but he must be thanked. It's a really precious tool and "source" (or "spring" ?) of informations when our dictionnary don't have the word that we look for. In my case, I was looking for a medical word who didn't exist in my french dictionnary. So, thank your !

Voilà, that's it...

All the best to all of you from France ! Mlle Marilyne Chenuet

Feedback privacy statement

I find that WIKIMEDIA is a excellent source of information and use you often when researching various projects. I find NO fault with what YOU have on the "USS WINDHAM COUNTY LST-1170" because it is the "Official" story of the squadron during the early 1960s. The events it mentions ARE fact, the "unofficial" activities are what's left out. And, for some reason or another, it's still "classified". The only thing I can suggest is that you might start the histories with the words "Official Records". Even this might confuse some people but those of us who where there, WE'LL know what it means!

Thank you for your fine work.

wikimediafoundation.org

Why does Wiki have sections labeled 'criticisms' for conservative organizations like Promise Keepers and Fellowship of Christian Athletes, but nothing like this for liberal organizations like ACLU? Is there a liberal bias in Wiki reporting?

Home

On reading about Napolean III,I noticed that the reference about to opium wars omitted the primary reasons for the war and it's the gain from its victory. The selling of opium to the the Chinese which the Chinese leaders did not want. Hence the name opium wars. There is plenty to be said on the subject but it seems to be of primary importance to the subject as well as a subject of no small conciquence to all parties involved including ,political economic social.

  The subject Little more than mention in this particular situation but it does seem an omission. 
      Wicapedia is a credit to the human race. 
          Sincerely ,
              Mr. Timothy R. Lewis

Account request by ItsMeBrandonSky (talk) 16:58, 11 March 2012 (UTC)

It is requested that an account at Wikimedia Foundation be made with the following info:
Name: ImBrandonHTFFan

Reason for account creation: User doesn't exist, create it for me. I will not vandalize.

Accounts are requested at Request for an account on the Foundation wiki. Please read the guidance on that page regarding why accounts are created first as the reason you give him isn't sufficient. Thanks QU ^TalkQu 18:34, 11 March 2012 (UTC)

wikimediafoundation.org

Op jullie hoofdpagina staat bij degene die vandaag zijn geboren ene Kemal Ataturk. Als je dan doorklikt naar zijn gegevens staat er dat hij in 19 mei geboren is.Wat is waar?

19 mei 1881 QU ^TalkQu 09:12, 12 March 2012 (UTC)