[Foundation-l] Incubator Wiki for New Wikimedia Projects

Thu Nov 17 16:07:28 UTC 2005

--- Robert Scott Horning <robert_horning at netzero.net> wrote:
> Which brings back to the original point.  Should Wikibooks be the 
> Wikimedia incubator project instead?  

No. It should be what it was founded to be: A place to develop non-fiction
books such as textbooks or manuals that have an instructional intent and are
meant to be read cover to cover or at least in some similar sequence. 

> 

> Wikijunior is a clear example of how Wikibooks is being used as 
> an incubator for new project ideas.  

Wikijunior is a set of books that fit the above criteria I laid out. It is
special in regards to its name, funding behind it, and the fact that approved
snapshots will be placed at wikijunior.org. But development-wise it is just
another wiki book (with its own set of contributors who work to make the whole
thing consistent - just like any other wiki book). 

>  Wikibooks is available right now and has that internal support to deal 
> with projects like Wikijunior, and frankly almost everything else on the 
> new project proposal page with just a few exceptions. 

Only those projects that can be presented as coherent books. A set of articles,
dictionary definitions, or quote pages, does not a coherent book make.
Wikibooks is the place to create instructional books that are intended to be
read cover to cover or in some similar sequence. A good Wikibook should be much
more than a collection of pages on related topics (yep - many current Wikibooks
are just that, but those are not completed books). 

-- mav

__________________________________ 
Start your day with Yahoo! - Make it your home page! 
http://www.yahoo.com/r/hs