Hoi,
I have asked and received permission to forward to you all this most
excellent bit of news.
The linguist list, is a most excellent resource for people interested in the
field of linguistics. As I mentioned some time ago they have had a funding
drive and in that funding drive they asked for a certain amount of money in
a given amount of days and they would then have a project on Wikipedia to
learn what needs doing to get better coverage for the field of linguistics.
What you will read in this mail that the total community of linguists are
asked to cooperate. I am really thrilled as it will also get us more
linguists interested in what we do. My hope is that a fraction will be
interested in the languages that they care for and help it become more
relevant. As a member of the "language prevention committee", I love to get
more knowledgeable people involved in our smaller projects. If it means that
we get more requests for more projects we will really feel embarrassed with
all the new projects we will have to approve because of the quality of the
Incubator content and the quality of the linguistic arguments why we should
approve yet another language :)
NB Is this not a really clever way of raising money; give us this much in
this time frame and we will then do this as a bonus...
Thanks,
GerardM
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: LINGUIST Network <linguist(a)linguistlist.org>
Date: Jun 18, 2007 6:53 PM
Subject: 18.1831, All: Call for Participation: Wikipedia Volunteers
To: LINGUIST(a)listserv.linguistlist.org
LINGUIST List: Vol-18-1831. Mon Jun 18 2007. ISSN: 1068 - 4875.
Subject: 18.1831, All: Call for Participation: Wikipedia Volunteers
Moderators: Anthony Aristar, Eastern Michigan U <aristar(a)linguistlist.org>
Helen Aristar-Dry, Eastern Michigan U <hdry(a)linguistlist.org>
Reviews: Laura Welcher, Rosetta Project
<reviews(a)linguistlist.org>
Homepage: http://linguistlist.org/
The LINGUIST List is funded by Eastern Michigan University,
and donations from subscribers and publishers.
Editor for this issue: Ann Sawyer <sawyer(a)linguistlist.org>
================================================================
To post to LINGUIST, use our convenient web form at
http://linguistlist.org/LL/posttolinguist.html
===========================Directory==============================
1)
Date: 18-Jun-2007
From: Hannah Morales < hannah(a)linguistlist.org >
Subject: Wikipedia Volunteers
-------------------------Message 1 ----------------------------------
Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2007 12:49:35
From: Hannah Morales < hannah(a)linguistlist.org >
Subject: Wikipedia Volunteers
Dear subscribers,
As you may recall, one of our Fund Drive 2007 campaigns was called the
"Wikipedia Update Vote." We asked our viewers to consider earmarking their
donations to organize an update project on linguistics entries in the
English-language Wikipedia. You can find more background information on this
at:
http://linguistlist.org/donation/fund-drive2007/wikipedia/index.cfm.
The speed with which we met our goal, thanks to the interest and generosity
of
our readers, was a sure sign that the linguistics community was enthusiastic
about the idea. Now that summer is upon us, and some of you may have a bit
more
leisure time, we are hoping that you will be able to help us get started on
the
Wikipedia project. The LINGUIST List's role in this project is a purely
organizational one. We will:
*Help, with your input, to identify major gaps in the Wikipedia materials or
pages that need improvement;
*Compile a list of linguistics pages that Wikipedia editors have identified
as
"in need of attention from an expert on the subject" or " does not cite any
references or sources," etc;
*Send out periodical calls for volunteer contributors on specific topics or
articles;
*Provide simple instructions on how to upload your entries into Wikipedia;
*Keep track of our project Wikipedians;
*Keep track of revisions and new entries;
*Work with Wikimedia Foundation to publicize the linguistics community's
efforts.
We hope you are as enthusiastic about this effort as we are. Just to help us
all
get started looking at Wikipedia more critically, and to easily identify an
area
needing improvement, we suggest that you take a look at the List of
Linguists
page at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_linguists. M
Many people are not listed there; others need to have more facts and
information
added. If you would like to participate in this exciting update effort,
please
respond by sending an email to LINGUIST Editor Hannah Morales at
hannah(a)linguistlist.org, suggesting what your role might be or which
linguistics
entries you feel should be updated or added. Some linguists who saw our
campaign
on the Internet have already written us with specific suggestions, which we
will
share with you soon.
This update project will take major time and effort on all our parts. The
end
result will be a much richer internet resource of information on the breadth
and
depth of the field of linguistics. Our efforts should also stimulate
prospective
students to consider studying linguistics and to educate a wider public on
what
we do. Please consider participating.
Sincerely,
Hannah Morales
Editor, Wikipedia Update Project
Linguistic Field(s): Not Applicable
-----------------------------------------------------------
LINGUIST List: Vol-18-1831
phoebe ayers wrote:
> On 10/9/07, David Strauss <david(a)fourkitchens.com> wrote:
>> Cary Bass wrote:
>>> The Jury for Wikimania 2008 bids have met and are pleased to announce
>>> that Wikimania 2008 will be held in Alexandria, Egypt.
>> I'm offended that the desire to have Wikimania hop around the globe
>> (rotation) trumps the egregious history Egypt has with LGBT and other
>> civil rights (local laws). While visitors to Egypt are certainly not at
>> the same risk, I refuse to spend any money in a country that -- as
>> recently as 2004 -- sentenced someone to 17 years of prison and two
>> years of hard labor for posting a personal ad on a gay website[1]. A
>> blogger was imprisoned in 2007 for four years for "insulting Islam and
>> defaming the President of Egypt."[2] Jimmy Wales even attended the
>> Amnesty conference denouncing the censorship. No legal or cultural
>> reforms since give me confidence that the situation has improved.
>>
>> Wikimedia and its projects have an abundance of people from marginalized
>> groups and political advocacy organizations participating at every
>> level. A place that persecutes, censors, and prosecutes such groups
>> under the banner of snuffing out "Satanism" is not a location that
>> affirms the pluralism and intellectual freedom of Wikimedia.
>>
>> People raised these objections early in the bidding process, but I have
>
> As a jury member, I do not remember any comments from you on this
> subject, David; perhaps I missed them. At any rate, what are you
> trying to accomplish by sending this message after the winner was
> announced, and not before when we were discussing the bids?
Other people raised these objections during the bidding process; I
didn't have to. Even if no one had brought the issue up, everyone on the
voting team should have been aware enough of the problems to them under
consideration without further prompting.
I thought it was a foregone conclusion that Egypt's human rights record
would cripple the bid enough that it wouldn't win.
> Wikimania and Wikimedia are both global in scope, which means that
> while we can condemn censorship and loss of human rights everywhere
So the "condemnation" amounts to docking a modest number of points for
"local laws"?
> we must also take into account a global range of values.
What is this supposed to mean? How can we balance condemnation with
toleration?
> Our projects
> focus specifically on free knowledge, and I expect that will be
> highlighted at the conference.
Even putting gay rights aside, Egypt's record of imprisoning political
and religious dissidents is directly counter to affirming "free knowledge."
Hi folks,
As week one draws to a close, I just wanted to say thanks for all the very
kind welcomes I've gotten from you all, both here & off this list. Many
people have jumped in to help me get acclimated, which I really appreciate
(as you all know, there's a truly dizzying amount of stuff to soak up :-)
So please consider this a collective thanks to everyone I haven't gotten
back to individually.
And - I want to offer my apologies in advance to anyone or any issue I'm
going to overlook in this first little while. A) I'm still getting my head
around many of the internal systems (e.g., the wikis, mailing lists, etc.),
and B) I'm wanting to focus on making first connections with a few people,
particularly the office staff. Those are my modest goals for this past week
and next; then, I've got a prior commitment that will take me completely
offline from July 7-25. That means my work won't really begin until
post-Wikimania.
I think you probably all have an idea of what I'm here to do. But to recap -
I'm a big fan of the projects, and I'm delighted to be able to come and work
with you all. And I am hoping and expecting I can help. In general: it's
clear to me, and also to the Board, that the Foundation is at a pretty
significant transition point. The bad news is, it's got some problems (lack
of administrative policies, some communications issues, some skills gaps,
etc.). The good news is, the problems are unsurprising, and for the most
part typical of young organizations, and completely fixable. Upshot: I've
seen -and grappled with- this kind of thing elsewhere, and I have a pretty
good general grasp of the kinds of things that need to happen in order for
the Foundation to get through this phase, and come out the other side
stronger and better. (The other good news, by the way, is that the projects
are -obviously- remarkably, phenomenally successful. So the core work of the
organization is in good shape.)
Of course there's an added wrinkle here, which is that Wikimedia is truly
culturally unique; it is not a 'typical' organization. Trust me - I
recognize that, and I'll respect it :-)
So again - I just wanted to thank you all for your early support. If anyone
needs to reach me over the next week or so, I'd suggest using
susanpgardner[at]gmail.com - I'm a Blackberry person, and that's the account
that travels with me.
Thanks,
Sue
On 30/06/07, foundation-l-request(a)lists.wikimedia.org <
foundation-l-request(a)lists.wikimedia.org> wrote:
>
> Send foundation-l mailing list submissions to
> foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
>
> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
> http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l
> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
> foundation-l-request(a)lists.wikimedia.org
>
> You can reach the person managing the list at
> foundation-l-owner(a)lists.wikimedia.org
>
> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
> than "Re: Contents of foundation-l digest..."
>
>
> Today's Topics:
>
> 1. Sue (todos) (Florence Devouard)
> 2. Re: Sue (todos) (Aphaia)
> 3. Cloaks backlog (Sean Whitton)
> 4. Re: Welcome Sue ! (THD)
> 5. Re: Meta-l (Azdiyy)
> 6. Re: Meta-l (GerardM)
> 7. Re: Meta-l (Azdiyy)
> 8. Re: Meta-l (GerardM)
> 9. Re: Meta-l (Michael Bimmler)
> 10. Re: Meta-l (Azdiyy)
> 11. just an idea: add motivation commentary line, anonymized?
> (oscar van dillen)
> 12. Re: just an idea: add motivation commentary line, anonymized?
> (Aphaia)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Fri, 29 Jun 2007 14:47:46 +0200
> From: Florence Devouard <anthere(a)anthere.org>
> Subject: [Foundation-l] Sue (todos)
> To: foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
> Message-ID: <4684FF72.5090503(a)anthere.org>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
>
> Erik Moeller wrote:
> > On 6/28/07, Stephen Bain
> <stephen.bain-Re5JQEeQqe8AvxtiuMwx3w(a)public.gmane.org> wrote:
> >> Secondly, and this is directed more at the Board, I understand that
> >> Sue has been hired as a "consultant and special advisor" and not as
> >> Executive Director at least partly because of immigration-related
> >> restrictions on the work she is presently entitled to perform in the
> >> United States. Will the Board be providing the community with a
> >> description of the position "consultant and special advisor"? Are
> >> there any substantive differences between this position and that of
> >> Executive Director?
> >
> > I see no particular reason not to post Sue's job description, but I'll
> > ask the Chair to confirm that.
> >
> > The differences between a Board-level consultant and a freshly minted
> > ED aren't that great, as the Board needs to build a trust relationship
> > with this new staff member in either case. Beyond 3-6 months in the
> > future, should the professional relationship develop as expected, this
> > status will become too limiting, and I hope the remaining constraints
> > can be removed within that timeframe.
>
>
> Hello
>
> I am sorry, but I was not able to find an internet connection in the
> past 36 hours, and will probably be off for the week end. That was my
> last move of june (*relief*).
>
> So, yeah, things to be done
>
> * publish Sue job description on Foundation wiki (not done yet)
> * remove the reference for ED position being searched (apparently done)
> on foundation
> * create her asap a sgardner at wikimedia.org
> * add Sue to foundation-l, internal-l and internal wiki, office wiki,
> wmfcc-l, juriwiki-l, private-l, wikimania-l, wikimania-planning-l,
> fundcom-l.
> * add her on staff page on foundation wiki
> * add her biography on foundation wiki
> * add the press release on foundation wiki
> * add announcement on foundation wiki (news) with links to pages "press
> release" and biography
> * then breath and wait till monday :-)
>
> Ant
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 2
> Date: Fri, 29 Jun 2007 21:57:10 +0900
> From: Aphaia <aphaia(a)gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Sue (todos)
> To: anthere(a)wikimedia.org, "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List"
> <foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Message-ID:
> <35be2a710706290557u63129c5ar78d59f02c4966e49(a)mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
>
> On 6/29/07, Florence Devouard <anthere(a)anthere.org> wrote:
> > So, yeah, things to be done
> >
> > * publish Sue job description on Foundation wiki (not done yet)
> > * remove the reference for ED position being searched (apparently done)
> > on foundation
> Done
> > * create her asap a sgardner at wikimedia.org
> Done and sent
> > * add Sue to foundation-l, internal-l and internal wiki, office wiki,
> > wmfcc-l, juriwiki-l, private-l, wikimania-l, wikimania-planning-l,
> > fundcom-l.
> > * add her on staff page on foundation wiki
> > * add her biography on foundation wiki
> > * add the press release on foundation wiki
> > * add announcement on foundation wiki (news) with links to pages "press
> > release" and biography
> > * then breath and wait till monday :-)
>
> * cough * vote, * cough* vote
>
> --
> KIZU Naoko
> Wikiquote: http://wikiquote.org
> * habent enim emolumentum in labore suo *
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 3
> Date: Fri, 29 Jun 2007 14:02:53 +0100
> From: "Sean Whitton" <sean(a)silentflame.com>
> Subject: [Foundation-l] Cloaks backlog
> To: "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List"
> <foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Message-ID:
> <c13e6b500706290602r5f5cb3deke33e08e1ce1610a3(a)mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=WINDOWS-1252; format=flowed
>
> Just a quick note to let you all know that your cloak requests have
> not been forgotten.
>
> There is a problem with the toolserver that means I can't access the
> list of submissions and also that new ones are not being accepted.
> They are however, I believe, all in there and so it is just a matter
> of getting at them when the toolserver admins fix things.
>
> Please spread this knowledge if people ask, and thank you for your
> patience.
>
> --
> Regards,
> ?Sean Whitton (seanw)
> http://seanwhitton.com/
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 4
> Date: Fri, 29 Jun 2007 21:39:38 +0800
> From: THD <theodoranian(a)gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Welcome Sue !
> To: "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List"
> <foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Message-ID:
> <63075c310706290639u4c07a52dr9ec7356fe61cef0f(a)mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
>
> Welcome aboard, Sue.
>
>
> :)
>
> Theodoranian
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 5
> Date: Fri, 29 Jun 2007 15:24:03 +0100
> From: Azdiyy <azdiyy(a)googlemail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Meta-l
> To: "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List"
> <foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Message-ID:
> <6af34c650706290724y45753752n85f736081fc5c67e(a)mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed
>
> can issues relating to multiple projects, chapters, board,
> and governance be discusses in the meta list
> azdiyy
>
> On 28/06/07, Stephen Bain <stephen.bain(a)gmail.com> wrote:
> > On 6/28/07, GerardM <gerard.meijssen(a)gmail.com> wrote:
> > > Hoi,
> > > What is meant by MetaWiki ?
> >
> > http://meta.wikimedia.org
> >
> > --
> > Stephen Bain
> > stephen.bain(a)gmail.com
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > foundation-l mailing list
> > foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
> > http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l
> >
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 6
> Date: Fri, 29 Jun 2007 16:29:33 +0200
> From: GerardM <gerard.meijssen(a)gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Meta-l
> To: "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List"
> <foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Message-ID:
> <41a006820706290729t3218e605u4ecf12bf130c8181(a)mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed
>
> Hoi,
> That is exactly what the foundation-l is for I would say.
> Thanks,
> GerardM
>
> On 6/29/07, Azdiyy <azdiyy(a)googlemail.com> wrote:
> >
> > can issues relating to multiple projects, chapters, board,
> > and governance be discusses in the meta list?
> >
> > azdiyy
> >
> > On 28/06/07, Stephen Bain <stephen.bain(a)gmail.com> wrote:
> > > On 6/28/07, GerardM <gerard.meijssen(a)gmail.com> wrote:
> > > > Hoi,
> > > > What is meant by MetaWiki ?
> > >
> > > http://meta.wikimedia.org
> > >
> > > --
> > > Stephen Bain
> > > stephen.bain(a)gmail.com
> > >
> > > _______________________________________________
> > > foundation-l mailing list
> > > foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
> > > http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l
> > >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > foundation-l mailing list
> > foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
> > http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l
> >
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 7
> Date: Fri, 29 Jun 2007 15:48:47 +0100
> From: Azdiyy <azdiyy(a)googlemail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Meta-l
> To: "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List"
> <foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Message-ID:
> <6af34c650706290748n4726a975h5fc142e00fe1dfeb(a)mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed
>
> i will start with the warning-less indef ban by one of meta
> [[en:Category:Rouge admins]] who blocked my ip with no warning and
> protected my talkpage.
> time for [[m:association of rouge stewards]]?
>
> thanks,
> azdiyy
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 8
> Date: Fri, 29 Jun 2007 16:51:51 +0200
> From: GerardM <gerard.meijssen(a)gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Meta-l
> To: "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List"
> <foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Message-ID:
> <41a006820706290751r4bd38203m86e5b5795b27dd86(a)mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed
>
> Hoi,
> It is a great start that will ensure that nobody will subscribe to this
> list.
> Thanks,
> GerardM
>
> On 6/29/07, Azdiyy <azdiyy(a)googlemail.com> wrote:
> >
> > i will start with the warning-less indef ban by one of meta
> > [[en:Category:Rouge admins]] who blocked my ip with no warning and
> > protected my talkpage.
> > time for [[m:association of rouge stewards]]?
> >
> > thanks,
> > azdiyy
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > foundation-l mailing list
> > foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
> > http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l
> >
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 9
> Date: Fri, 29 Jun 2007 17:39:13 +0200
> From: "Michael Bimmler" <mbimmler(a)gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Meta-l
> To: "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List"
> <foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Message-ID:
> <353e9f360706290839u12db29d4qc6b1f4c397be187(a)mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
>
> You've lost me here... First you talk of "chapters, board and
> governance" and then of your meta block. Sure you recognise that these
> two things are not really the same?
> Michael
>
> On 6/29/07, Azdiyy <azdiyy(a)googlemail.com> wrote:
> > i will start with the warning-less indef ban by one of meta
> > [[en:Category:Rouge admins]] who blocked my ip with no warning and
> > protected my talkpage.
> > time for [[m:association of rouge stewards]]?
> >
> > thanks,
> > azdiyy
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > foundation-l mailing list
> > foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
> > http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l
> >
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 10
> Date: Fri, 29 Jun 2007 16:52:14 +0100
> From: Azdiyy <azdiyy(a)googlemail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Meta-l
> To: "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List"
> <foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Message-ID:
> <6af34c650706290852i23b5110bwbd7daa9f80edb7ac(a)mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed
>
> http://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/foundation-l/2007-May/030517.html
> http://bugzilla.wikimedia.org/show_bug.cgi?id=10098
>
> what do you suggest if admins on irc do not want to get involved,
> foundation list is no the place, and friends of teh blocking admin
> dont want to upset him?
> an azdiyy list that no one reads? bug=?
>
> azdiyy
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 11
> Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2007 10:18:28 +0200
> From: "oscar van dillen" <oscarvandillen(a)wikimedia.org>
> Subject: [Foundation-l] just an idea: add motivation commentary line,
> anonymized?
> To: "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List"
> <foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Message-ID:
> <d3f9d3df0706300118u5df749d7n7147506986d736a(a)mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
>
> just a thought that spontaneously came to me this morning which i would
> like
> to share:
> (i know logs are not to be published but i am just quoting myself from
> #wikimedia)
>
> [09:50]<oscar>please allow me to prompt an open question: would it not be
> interesting to read the answers to an imaginary questionnaire about the
> final motivation of the voters (answers as to the "why" they voted
> such-and-so) [[Elections 2007/Questions to voters]] if it existed?[09:51]<
> oscar>like a commentary line as we have in edits, but anonymized[09:52]<
> oscar>alphabetically ordered in one big dump :-)
> (...)
> [09:59]<oscar>it was just a thought, like last year i suggested a debate
> [09:59]<oscar>which now did take place more or less[10:00]<oscar>who knows
> what happens next year?[10:02]<oscar>there could be several reasons for
> doing this however, hints for the wmf or the board, for online elections
> in
> general and perhaps reading each other's comments is useful as
> well?[10:03]<
> oscar>afterwards of course[10:03]<oscar>not *during* an election
> (end of quote)
>
> curious about your opinions!
>
> best regards,
> oscar
>
> --
> *edito ergo sum*
>
> DISCLAIMER: This message does not represent an official position of the
> Wikimedia Foundation nor of its Board of Trustees.
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 12
> Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2007 17:31:39 +0900
> From: Aphaia <aphaia(a)gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] just an idea: add motivation commentary
> line, anonymized?
> To: "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List"
> <foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Message-ID:
> <35be2a710706300131l2bb6e583xe6be7256b2c1afcf(a)mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
>
> I had a similar - but opponent in its appearance inquiry last year.
> "Why did you not vote". It helps me to organize this year Election. At
> least PR for this community I asked their opinion.
>
> But I'd love to consider such after the election. Now seeing
> non-English communities hesitation for involvement (in Day 1, among
> 1100 votes, over 500 have come from enwiki alone, and there are only
> two other community over 100 votes were casted).
>
> Thanks,
>
> On 6/30/07, oscar van dillen <oscarvandillen(a)wikimedia.org> wrote:
> > just a thought that spontaneously came to me this morning which i would
> like
> > to share:
> > (i know logs are not to be published but i am just quoting myself from
> > #wikimedia)
> >
> > [09:50]<oscar>please allow me to prompt an open question: would it not
> be
> > interesting to read the answers to an imaginary questionnaire about the
> > final motivation of the voters (answers as to the "why" they voted
> > such-and-so) [[Elections 2007/Questions to voters]] if it
> existed?[09:51]<
> > oscar>like a commentary line as we have in edits, but anonymized[09:52]<
> > oscar>alphabetically ordered in one big dump :-)
> > (...)
> > [09:59]<oscar>it was just a thought, like last year i suggested a debate
> > [09:59]<oscar>which now did take place more or less[10:00]<oscar>who
> knows
> > what happens next year?[10:02]<oscar>there could be several reasons for
> > doing this however, hints for the wmf or the board, for online elections
> in
> > general and perhaps reading each other's comments is useful as
> well?[10:03]<
> > oscar>afterwards of course[10:03]<oscar>not *during* an election
> > (end of quote)
> >
> > curious about your opinions!
> >
> > best regards,
> > oscar
> >
> > --
> > *edito ergo sum*
> >
> > DISCLAIMER: This message does not represent an official position of the
> > Wikimedia Foundation nor of its Board of Trustees.
> > _______________________________________________
> > foundation-l mailing list
> > foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
> > http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l
> >
>
>
> --
> KIZU Naoko
> Wikiquote: http://wikiquote.org
> * habent enim emolumentum in labore suo *
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> _______________________________________________
> foundation-l mailing list
> foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
> http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l
>
>
> End of foundation-l Digest, Vol 39, Issue 67
> ********************************************
>
On the Moldavian Wikipedia it says for over a month "This wiki has been
closed for now." Is there any outlook on whether 'for now' means 'for ever'
or that it will be re-opened at some time? I am asking because I want to
know what to do with the interwiki for the bot. If the wiki is closed down
for good, I intend to remove them silently; if it will be opened up again
some time soon, I want to keep them in the same way as to 'normal'
Wikipedias.
--
Andre Engels, andreengels(a)gmail.com
ICQ: 6260644 -- Skype: a_engels
I happen to agree with Gerard that the Wikimedia Foundation does indeed support languages through the very act of supporting Wikipedias. I also agree that the foundation should be more proud of this fact and announce it happily. If we are doing something so positive, why not let people know about it, and why not even include it as one of our goals? It may not be our primary goal, but it certainly plays a supporting role towards reaching that goal ("the sum of all knowledge"). It is yet another gem in the WMF's crown.
That being said, I don't really understand what, specifically, Gerard is asking for. In what specific ways does the foundation need to "adapt" in order to meet the needs of smaller languages? "Resources" and "investments" usually imply money, but in what specific ways does Gerard think money can be used to support smaller languages? Please elaborate.
Finally, Mark Williamson's comment:
>> I imagine it would be easier if those people would be allowed to get Wikipedias instead of having to wait for years.
This is as opposed to Gerard: "we insist on a good user experience so a localised user interface is a must."
Experience proves that Mark is right: Many of today's successful Wikipedia's began without much of a local interface at all. Instead, people just got to work, and the interface got translated bit-by-bit along the way by admins, in exactly the same way a Wikipedia gets built as a whole by editors.
Not allowing people to simply "get to work" on a Wikipedia, and requiring that there be "several hoops to jump through before a new language gets its own project" actually works against smaller languages.
Instead, just let people get started! If the project fails, simply freeze it until speakers of the language come along who want to try to build it again.
To conclude, if there are positive ways that money could be used to support smaller languages, then the foundation should consider doing so. But regardless of monetary issues, people should be allowed to get to work on smaller wikipedias without too many hurdles.
Dovi
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Hello,
My name is Randy Wilson and I have been working at Wikijunior for the
last year. Because many of you are probably not terribly familiar with
Wikijunior, I would like to give you an overview of the project and
also give my opinion about some of the recent conversation.
Wikijunior was launched by the Wikimedia Foundation in November of
2004. There were three original titles, Wikijunior Big Cats,
Wikijunior The Solar System, and Wikijunior South America. In the
three years since, Wikijunior grown a great deal. Currently there are
more than twenty books in active development. The books include
diverse topics including books about history, culture, language,
science and mathematics. The books are illustrated with photographs
and illustrations and contain interesting and valuable information
appropriate for young people.
The project has adopted a formal mission statement "What is
Wikijunior?" which highlights the core values of the project. The core
values of Wikijunior are: kid friendliness, collaboration, fun,
reliability and openness. The project also has defined a manual of
style to help consistency. We have a structured method of creating new
titles which is intended to encourage collaboration on new titles and
continue to grow the project. We have developed an effective
methodology for collectively creating books from modules and tracking
the progress of each module.
Wikijunior has several books that are available in an html print
version as well as a pdf download. We have at least one book that has
been published as a print book and another that has been made into an
ebook and a streaming video book. Several of our books have been named
as "featured books" on Wikibooks.
While we have a lot to be proud of, there are a few areas where people
express concern related to Wikijunior. The age-appropriateness of the
books is spotty. Most of the books contain some modules (think
chapters) with excellent age-appropriate content. However it is fair
to say that many of the books have reading levels that are too high
for the intended audience. The quality of the information is not
always as good as it needs to be, there are too many factual errors
and too much unsourced information to be a reliable resource to be
used in schools. Some believe the new title policy restricts the
growth of the project and turns off potential contributors. Still
others believe that the wiki nature of Wikijunior makes it an
unsuitable platform for educational content.
Unfortunately, the number of contributors and contributions has
dropped to an alarming low over the past few months. Our ideal
contributor would be someone with a background in children's
education, or children working with adult assistance; so these are the
kind of contributors we would like to reach out to. Private
discussions with a few contributors have led me to believe that more
primary educators would be willing to contribute and use Wikijunior
except that the problems of vandalism and potentially incorrect
content are difficult for them to get past. You see, here in the US a
teacher could not only get fired for showing her class some of the
things I've seen on a vandalized Wiki page, but could actually end up
in jail. There is not a big problem with vandalism at Wikijunior and
the Wikibooks admins are generally effective vandal fighters. Still,
it has happened that there was a module vandalized with profanity
stuck into the middle of a paragraph that stayed that way for more
than four months.
The idea of creating a static site at Wikijunior.org has been
discussed before. In fact there was an announcement some time ago that
the board had decided to move forward and do just that. Some of that
discussion is at
http://en.wikibooks.org/w/index.php?title=Wikibooks:Staff_lounge&oldid=2657…
. Having a secondary static version would minimize the risk primary
school teachers run of exposing their students to foul language,
offensive content, and incorrect information. Here's one way that I
think it could work effectively with a minimum of developer time:
1) Wikijunior.org would run Mediawiki software and have the import
function enabled from Wikibooks.
2) Wikijunior.org would have a stripped down default skin with larger
fonts and no sidebar as its default. (See for example:
http://www.mono-project.com.)
3) Administrators could change their skin to make the editing tools visible.
4) All modules on Wikijunior.org would be editable by administrators only.
5) Book development would continue on Wikibooks and be open to
anonymous edits as it is now.
6) When a module was ready, it would be transwikied to the
Wikijunior.org site by an administrator.
7) Each module would have a "contributing" link that would link back
to the Wikijunior development site on Wikibooks.
There is another potential side benefit of a static version. I think
that a static online version would be a major step toward physical
publication. The problem with production for print is that everything
needs to come together at the right moment. A static site would be
useful for "staging" a printable version piece by piece and allowing
contributors to visualize the completed version, watching it grow as
each module was vetted and moved over. The Solar System is an example
of a book that is really close to being ready. Primarily it needs
someone to go through and fix the many layout issues, select the
content to be included and give it an overall narrative.
I could see Wikijunior.org growing into an outlet for free works from
other projects. As long as the work is in keeping with Wikijunior's
core values and is intended to be consumed by children, I think that
it would be great to have other types of content. I think that
material from other GFDL projects that is suitable for kids could be
incorporated into a Wikijunior.org site fairly readily. For instance a
selected set from the gallery at Commons:Featured
pictures/Animals/Birds might be suitable. I didn't see much on
Wikiversity and Wikieducator that seemed aimed at children though but
perhaps someday soon. I don't think that a site at Wikijunior.org
needs to be specifically for "books and magazines". I think it could
certainly host podcasts, videos and other learning-oriented
open-content media (in the future.)
In relation to networking Wikijunior, we definitely need to gain more
mindshare among the open education community. I don't know how to get
people to blog about Wikijunior. Cross links with related projects
seems like a good idea to me. I would love to talk with anyone active
in such an organization, or anyone who has an open-education blog.
So far, attempts at an English-language kids encyclopedia (Wikikids)
haven't been terribly successful. I think that Wikijunior could offer
to host one if Wikibookians didn't object. I can see us developing
both a kids encyclopedia and a kids dictionary in the future. I
personally don't see a problem with keeping it all under the same
umbrella. But I think this would require discussion first.
I realize this has been a very long email, but I hope that it has
given some of you who are unfamiliar with the project a better
understanding of what Wikijunior was, is, and could be.
Thank you,
Randy Wilson,
xixtas
On 10/31/07, Nikola Smolenski <smolensk(a)eunet.yu> wrote:
>
> As a mathematician, I believe you will appreciate the metaphor of quantum
> tunelling. The same way a particle can "tunnel" through an energy barrier it
> would otherwise not be able to go through, a project could pass a "knowledge
> barrier", if helped.
I'm a mathematician, but I couldn't appreciate your metaphor, is that
a physics thing?
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: [Liste Burkina] Price of MIT professor's "$100 laptop" hits $200
Date: Wed, 31 Oct 2007 08:46:20 +0000
From: Mohamed SAWADOGO <sawadogo_m(a)hotmail.com>
Reply-To: burkina-faso(a)yahoogroupes.fr
To: <burkina-faso(a)yahoogroupes.fr>
References: <47283DFB.9070908(a)chu-lyon.fr>
"BOSTON (Reuters) - A computer developed for poor children around the
world, dubbed 'the $100 laptop,' has reached a milestone: Its price tag
is now $200.The One Laptop per Child Foundation, founded by MIT
Professor Nicholas Negroponte, has started offering the
lime-green-and-white machines in lots of 10,000 for $200 apiece on its
Web site (http://laptopfoundation.org/participate/givemany.shtml
<http://laptopfoundation.org/participate/givemany.shtml>).Two
weeks ago, a foundation executive confirmed recent estimates that the
computer would cost $188, which was already higher than the $150 price
tag in February and $176 in April.
The laptops are scheduled to go into production next month at a
factory in China, far behind their original schedule and in quantities
that are a fraction of Negroponte's earlier projections.It is
unclear when the machines will be ready for customers, as the Web site
said version 1.0 of the software that runs the machine will not be
ready until December 7.Foundation spokesman George Snell declined
comment on the pricing or release schedule.When
Negroponte said he could produce the laptops for $100, industry
analysts said it had the potential to shake up the PC industry,
ushering in an era of low-cost computing."
__________________________________________________________