Divisions[]
The page should be subdivided into Policies (more formal; sort of like rules), Practices, and Etiquette. (Or is there really any difference between Practices and Etiquette?)
Real Names[]
The following discussion started between MarkDilley and myself on the Main Page talk. I felt it was not relevant to development of the front page, and moved it to my own talk page. When Angela commented, I realized that this was not just a personal exchange between Mark and myself, but instead was a discussion of policy, and that I should put it here, as others might want to weigh in, and it isn't fair to expect them to find their way to my talk page to comment. – Nicholas Barry 06:31, 2 June 2006 (UTC)
A point of professionalism for me is for folks to use real names - do you think that will work for you? MarkDilley
- I think it is reasonable to ask users to edit under their real names, but I also think it is reasonable for them to refuse. An editor can be professional in editing, and in conduct with others, without revealing his or her real identity. Some people like the idea of the internet because you can have anonymity.
- I did read in your earlier message when you mentioned the use of real names, and I apologize for not responding then. I do use my real name. It is within the first six words of my user profile. I have made no attempt to conceal my identity (though I still believe an editor who acts professional in other ways should have the right to do so).
- (By the way, "Nabarry" actually comes from my real name, Nicholas Arthur Barry.)
- The reason I originally logged on using "Nabarry" is because this is my user name on Wikipedia, Meta-Wiki, and in fact even on my school email. Across Wikis it is important to have a continuous username, because many users edit on many different Wikis. Editors coming over from Wikipedia or Meta-Wiki will expect to find me here at Nabarry. In addition, now that I have created a profile here already, creating a new username would mean losing my current history of edits, and I would have to explain to other users with whom I have interacted (e.g. Angela, Sannse) that I have changed.
- In any case, it is a good idea for us to know who each other are. I think there will be a greater sense of community spirit when we can get to know each other as people, not just as internet identities. So I have filled out my personal profile a bit, and I'll do so more in the coming days. I'll also try to sign comments with my actual name (as seen below) from now on.
- –Nicholas Barry 08:05, 29 May 2006 (UTC)
- Hi Nicholas, real names is just a conversation I wanted to have upfront, no intention otherwise. I also strongly believe in the need for anonymity. For me it is a real names / anonymity thing, I am not fond of psudonyms (naberry easily links to your identity, so I don't have much issue with that at all.) MarkDilley
- Since all Wikia sites have a shared database, it doesn't make much sense to enforce a real name policy here since users may already be using something else on the other sites, though you could encourage them to state their name on their userpage if you think it will be useful. Personally, I see it as an unecessary barrier to entry that doesn't take into account the advantages of being pseudo-anonymous on the internet. Considering two Wikia staff even use false "real names", it's not a policy I'm about to advocate. --Angela (talk) 03:23, 2 June 2006 (UTC)
- I don't agree with you on that Angela, but you probably already knew that. I want real names based on a style of wiki community that I want to participate in. It doesn't make sense to me to be working on a wiki, even if it is a wikia wiki, with psudonyms. It is the style that I would like to see. Because the database is shared, is not really evidence of keeping a real name policy off this wiki, if it is what the particiapants of the wiki would like to do, that is what we are trying to figure out. Personally I don't believe in the advanatages of psuedonyms, I do believe in the advantages of anonymity. MarkDilley
Essays[]
What about personal essays? I think essays you don't want others to change around should be placed in your userspace. If you leave them in the normal area, they should be titled "Essay:Title of essay" so people browsing around realize that they are reading an essay, not an article. Clearly essays will be more POV and less collaborative than the rest of the site. But I do think that an essay left in the article-space (is this a term?) should be editable by other users. The idea is that the original spirit of the essay should be maintained, but it can be reworked to make it more convincing, eloquent, or whatever. Maybe this isn't practical. – Nicholas Barry (Nabarry) 08:29, 2 June 2006 (UTC)
POV[]
I'm not quite sure how the point of view policy should work out. I feel strongly that this project should be a great information resource on various movements. (Wikipedia's articles on movements, for example, lack a lot.) So there should certainly be a strong element of neutral point of view. People should be able to read about the strengths and weaknesses of a movement and its arguments on the very same page. On the other hand, part of the mission of this wiki is to make activism easier and more accessible to people, which means offering practical advice for what to do to aid certain movements. This is clearly POV. If we can keep these two separate, fine. But I'm afraid they may mix some. – Nicholas Barry (Nabarry) 08:35, 2 June 2006 (UTC)