[WikiEN-l] Positives to publicity

[Steve Bennett]

On Thu, Aug 27, 2009 at 11:12 AM, Emily Monroe<bluecaliocean at me.com> wrote:
> I agree. Maybe have a Signpost-like note to everyone subscribed to
> Signpost? Maybe have that actually in the Signpost? Something like
> "Editors note: There's an influx of newbies, so please be patient".
> How will that work?

Nah. We need permanent solutions. Wikipedia is a terrible place for a
newcomer. Fortunately the Usability project amongst others is doing
something about this.

It would be interesting if someone did a study on initial interactions
between newcomers and oldbies to see if anything can be improved. But
IMHO the best way to avoid newbies getting "bitten" is to help them
avoiding newbie mistakes in the first place - a good interface, the
right help and a few safety checks would go a long way. ("Whoa there
newbie, you just wiped the whole page. Here's how not to do that...")

Steve