[WikiEN-l] Readers First

Thu Jul 28 20:59:21 UTC 2005

I agree with the general idea but there
are some details where I think your proposal
goes further than is practical. Take this:

"Try to avoid jargon - but where it is particularly relevant or where it
is necessary, explain all jargon clearly on the article page - a link to
another article is not enough."

Taking 'jargon' to mean 'technical terms' I
think this is not always practical. Is 'chromosome'
a technical term? How about 'nucleotide'? I don't
think it's practical to explain those terms in
every single molecular biology page where they
are used. If someone who doesn't understand these
terms is reading the [[Polymerase Chain Reaction]]
page chances are she won't understand the context
anyway - even if the terms were briefly explained.

Redundant explanations make a page cluttered.
Short explanations are often imprecise to the
point of being wrong or not helpful. And one of
the great advantage of reading Wikipedia (online)
is the ability to click on technical terms for
more information.

Technical terms are (usually) not just a method
for ivory tower academics to keep the commoner
out. They're a necessary component of the foundation
of knowledge in their respective disciplines.

It's just not practical to explain everything
from first principles in every single article.

Regards,
Haukur