Wikimedia Forum/Archives/2011-02

Toolserver resources in need of attention

It's a shame about all the previously useful stuff listed on Toolserver/Projects, Toolserver/TStoc (see below) and elsewhere.

As of current, a high percentage of the items listed there is defunct or, rather, unreachable due to expired accounts and the like.

Toolserver/Projects is documenting rather a misery. (To make myself clear, please evaluate the introductory paragraph on that page.)

The once well-maintained, now (just officially) outdated Toolserver/TStoc is not much more well.

TStoc should not so much be viewed as outdated in that if it were, wouldn't everything it once listed be listed in Projects and be intact? Or does it?

Somebody please review the issue and do something about it?

--217.229.24.51 23:43, 18 January 2011 (UTC)

I totally agree with that comment... Anthere

Seconded. -- OlEnglish ^(Talk) 06:13, 5 February 2011 (UTC)

⅓ ed. I don't see an updated equivalent on the Toolserver wiki either. –SJ · talk | translate 14:25, 6 February 2011 (UTC)

Support needed for Wikipedia QnA website to open

Hi,

Wikipedia is a great system to organize a set of articles, and it has a large help system as well. But newcomers and mid-termers alike would have lots of similar questions about the system, specific guidelines, or techniques of writing articles.

StackExchange, a free Question and Answer network of websites would start a website dedicated to Wikipedia and Wiki questions if the community only supports the project by voting for it. This website would have a very unique set of features that cannot compare with the way Wikipedia handles questions, simply because it is different. In Wikipedia questions are added to pages, much like a forum. In StackExchange, questions are added to a database that is searchable where each question can be voted for by the community.

• Database of questions, listings by vote, or by newest/oldest
• User accounts with ranking system per user based on helpfulness
• Answers are voted for by users, and best answers show on top
• Tagging and searching for questions by tag (eg. 'syntax', 'images', 'audio')

I'm writing here to call for the support of Wikipedians around the world, simply for our own benefit. If we can vote for this site and visit it regularly to answer questions then Wikipedia could grow so much faster since newcomers would have an intelligent and easy-to-use platform for their questions and troubles.

1. Please start on this proposal page.
2. You'll need to login (link on the top)
3. Then you have to click the "Follow" button (or "Commit", if available)
4. When the site begins you will get a link to it on the same page.

Thank you! Tomjenkins52 14:53, 24 January 2011 (UTC)

A nice idea. I'd like to see us set up an OSQA site, like http://help.openstreetmap.org, rather than a (proprietary) StackOverflow site. Here's a slightly dated comparison of the two. –SJ · talk | translate 13:56, 6 February 2011 (UTC)

MediaWiki:Gadget-searchbox.js

Hello, I've installed wikt:fr:MediaWiki:Gadget-searchbox.js from wikt:pl:MediaWiki:Gadget-searchbox.js. It adds the text treatment functions: "go to line n°", "change the capitalization", "search and replace" (eventually "replace all"), and sort alphabetically. JackPotte 20:44, 9 February 2011 (UTC)

Friendly reminders

Wikipedia user should be aware for the following website, and its link is similar to Wikipedia's link.

• wikiedia.org
• wikipeda.org
• wikiepdia.org
• wikipedoa.org

These site I think is not controlled by Wikimedia Foundation. --Waihorace 14:32, 21 January 2011 (UTC)

It's a deliberate attempt to catch traffic from people who have mistyped the name Wikipedia, but as the landing pages are clearly different to Wikipedia, people should see that they have landed in the wrong place, and will type again. I don't think it's a serious enough issue for the Foundation to consider buying the names. SilkTork 23:24, 21 January 2011 (UTC)

These sites claim that you have owned a big prize from Wikipedia, [1]. So they're misleadable.––虞海 (Yú Hǎi) ✍ 10:58, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

Ugh. Shameless!! They even tried to rip off the puzzle globe! -- OlEnglish ^(Talk) 06:11, 5 February 2011 (UTC)

Yeah. When I noticed the image changed to a coin, I knew that they were stopped from trying to mislead people. WhisperToMe 01:22, 14 February 2011 (UTC)

Requests for new languages

Requests for new languages/Wikiversity Chinese translation for all mw & extension messages is done. What next? --Waihorace 10:31, 21 January 2011 (UTC)

The project needs an active community (I would rather say it's more than 3 active USERS) now, and it is required to keep the community active for several months. BTW, It's ironic to answer you in English. --DS-fax 14:15, 21 January 2011 (UTC)

We do understand some English, but coming back to the subject, the request for Wikiversity Chinese is done, just lacking someone to submit the proposal to the Language Committee. Are you able to? Hydriz 10:51, 20 February 2011 (UTC)

Regarding chapters

Thread brought from Wikimedia Foundation wiki feedback.

Hello. Please, I have a question.

As I have seen, there is no Wikimedia USA, but Wikimedia New York, and several other places in the USA as potential new chapters. Your reason about the possibility of having multiple national chapters is that they "may be founded on a metropolitan and regional-scale level, because of the unique issues of uneven population density throughout the country, and the relative unimportance of state boundary lines". On the other hand, the creation of multiple chapters in other countries is *forbidden*, regardless of their "unique issues of uneven population density throughout the country" (in Spain, if you pay close attention to the population, you'll find that it's everything but even, and let's not even think about Russia or China). So, my question is (sorry for being so blunt), does that mean that, in the future, you'll have several chapters to receive money from the Foundation and the rest of the countries just one each? --Dalton2 04:47, 16 February 2011 (UTC)

I'm relatively new. This chapters go by "legal" countries, right? In Spain we have CCAA, that means different legislations (with our different parliaments) and also different languages and different "Wikipedia's" projects. Long term should be created (i.e.) Viquimèdia Catalunya? --Emporio2012 08:23, 19 February 2011 (UTC)

I just see "Possibly the Basque region of Spain", OK, there's at least one "possibility" already in this sense. So I understand it depends on the people who ask for it, legal borders, density (related with the "use" of the project and the geografic situation where people could and is going to contact easier), etc. Here I see a discussion about the article I think you talk about... --Emporio2012 09:13, 19 February 2011 (UTC)

I just saw that "cat" has already its own proposal and, very nice by the way. OK, I'm learning step by step. Good day! :-) --Emporio2012 09:58, 19 February 2011 (UTC)

I'm not sure exactly what you're asking here. I assume you're referring the grants process, but these grants are only given a on a project-by-project basis. Whoever has a project worth supporting (whatever the scope of it) can apply and get support — there is no "fixed amount" for a given chapter or geographic area/country. Cbrown1023 talk 01:11, 20 February 2011 (UTC)

Wow

Finally, I found a more correct place to can talk with more users about Wikipedia, my first time here (I was thinking in send a fax to California but, it's nice that also it's possible to speak about it here). Well, it's only because I had very strong problems with the Spanish Wikipedia that affect me really (this is not a soap start, don't worry), and well, I really didn't think in more ways to can solve it or comment it, so I felt very insecure in Wikipedia en español.

I was reading last days opinions and cases of Wikipedia en español and I understand now that this is a very particular case, really and without doubt. I also use Viquipèdia and the difference is very strong but, what I mean is, that it's not only a "results" matter. I don't know if you have the information about what is happening in this Wiki...

Well, I think we or you must talk about it. What can I say at first is that now I have fear because the information that it gives is going in a very bad way... relatively "very bad" is small. Do you have references about this case? --Emporio2012 13:34, 17 February 2011 (UTC)

Context: She was blocked after creating some usernames attacking another female editor (while she was already having a short block). She admitted accounts linked to IP, but claims it wasn't her, but an acquaintance that was visiting her mansion and that it was done as a joke (cachondeo) [2] . es:Magister Mathematicae 19:48, 17 February 2011 (UTC)

Emporio2012 known sockpuppets:

• Libertatcom
• Bucephala la Gallinita (attack account against es:User:Bucephala)
• Bucephala FemiNazi (idem)
• Hermana Clausa [3]
• Began

es:Magister Mathematicae 22:26, 17 February 2011 (UTC)

::Hey, of course, I started to investigate seriously when I saw the politicies of the librarians in Wikipedia en español. Without a context I'd never do it. The point is that I started to investigate the bad references and, I was surprised. You're free to put this here about the case that involves me. I didn't say exactly what you trasmit here. Anyway, it's not the topic that I'd like to treat here. If anybody has to talk about last movements of the users when they open a topic in the forum, would be very large! I could talk about your "context" also, is anyone interested?

Well, I'm not, I'm not interested in individual matters. I mean, I was investigating the case of Wikipedia en español and I saw bad points of this versions about 1. Quality. 2. Quantity (that means, related to the number of speakers). and 3. Internal ethical. This three points make Wikipedia in español differ to the others in a dramatic way in my opinion as user and reader. If there're guilty or if it's only a cultural problem or both is another thing. We can talk and share information about it in a respectful way or close the topic. --Emporio2012 18:05, 18 February 2011 (UTC)

By the way I've never asked to be unblocked of that page, Magister. I suppose my opinion and effords are unvalid, by your response, at least for you. Is what I tell you. I love this projects and I really like to contribute in the way I can. I found people differenciating the case. Simply I would like to know and find more information about it because I'm interested in this kind of perspectives also. Actually there's no reply here more than Magister response. I found this forum a good place to expose it by the head. Now, searching more, I see that there're some stadistics, that's nice. But I don't have any intention beyond expand my own information and free knowledge. So that's all. Its very nice to have known this part of the project and the chapters, and all. Thank you really for let me talk and don't delete my message, --Emporio2012 00:47, 21 February 2011 (UTC)

Data security of Special:Preferences

Special:Preferences contains private information such as an user identity number, an e-mail adress, a watchlist-token and the option to change the account's password. Nevertheless, it is still send via a non-secure connection.

At the beginning of 2010, after repeated public demands, Google has changed its connections for mail, document and calendar services to secure https by default.

Does Wikimedia intend to change its software too, so that Special:Prefences can be accessed through https, and make https the default setting just as Google did? If yes, when?

--Rosenkohl 14:42, 10 February 2011 (UTC)

You can access every Wikimedia website and every aspect of the site via the secure server at https://secure.wikimedia.org/. – Adrignola talk 13:43, 11 February 2011 (UTC)

Ok this would answer my first question. However, please remember that the Google services also could be accessed through https before 2010, but it was not set as default. So the point of the public demand was not that that Google should give the possibilitie to use https, but that Google should set it as the default. Also Special:Preferences pages are different from other pages since they contain private data. Nevertheless Wikimedia projects still don't have set https as default for Special:Preferences. So I don't think my second (and third) questions still have been adressed, Greeting --Rosenkohl 15:37, 11 February 2011 (UTC)

I'd just like to point out that the user id number isn't private. While it's not easily viewed (as there's little reason to do so), it is viewable via both pages on-wiki and various toolserver tools. There's also little use to knowing the user id except for possibly wiki-age bragging rights of some sort, I suppose. As far as Wikimedia changing its configuration similarly, I would tend to think that the direction to do so would come from the community rather than the Board, so the best way to implement such a change would be to suggest it to the greater Wikimedia community and develop consensus for the change. Best regards. Kylu 18:13, 14 February 2011 (UTC)

I have seen that there is not much travel on this page "Wikimedia Forum". Nevertheless had posted my questions here, with the idea that a place called a forum could fit to discuss an issue concerning the greater Wikimedia community. I remember that the whole Wikimedia community was called to participate at the Wikimedia board elections. All the other community decision of which I know were made on the level of single projects, e.g. the single language versions of Wikipedia.

So if not here at the Wikimieda Forum, where else do you think I could "suggest it to the greater Wikimedia community and develop consensus for the change"? Greetings, --Rosenkohl 14:36, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

bat-smg.wikipedia broken

All (as far as I can tell) pages on bat-smg Wikipedia redirect to a blank screen. I guess this is related to the many uses of document.write on w:bat-smg:MediaWiki:Common.js (turn JavaScript off to read the page). Should a steward perhaps fix this? Ucucha 22:10, 20 February 2011 (UTC)

Yes, it would be great if someone could fix that, most of these mediawiki codes were copied from Lithuanian and Polish wikipedias but now maybe became obsolete. Hugo.arg 16:32, 21 February 2011 (UTC)

Commenting out the document.write calls seemed to at least get rid of the blank screens, although there might still be some other issues. Interestingly, none of the javascript pages the commented code tried to include seem to have ever existed. Jafeluv 17:23, 21 February 2011 (UTC)

Now fixed by Krinkle. Jafeluv 11:52, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

(script?) problems with secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/vi/wiki/

no idea if this is the right place - but anyway...

At the moment I have problems to access the vi.WP with the secure connection, the main page is displayed for a short while but afterwards the screen is blank and the browser tries to connect to vi.wikipedia.org.

Any idea what is happening? Some incorrect scripts? Thanks, Rbrausse 09:59, 22 February 2011 (UTC)

No clue, but I confirm the problem: Screen blanks after load, only when using the secure server. May be in vi:MediaWiki:Common.js/secure.js, but not enough time to check. Kylu 17:03, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

The File „C:\WINDOWS\Temp\phpA545.tmp“ was not found.

First thing i´ve got to say is, I cant write english that good so please forgive me my mistakes :)

So my problem is, when i want to upload a picture, my wikimedia site tells me that it cant find that file. I have my wikipage working on a local server so it isnt found in the internet.

What can i do, that i can upload my files i need.

Greetings

Phinex 12:41, 23 February 2011 (UTC)