[Wikipedia-l] is_sysop

[Lorraine Lee]

From: "Jimmy Wales" <jwales at bomis.com>

> I made a bunch of people sysop.  I think I got everyone who requested
> it.  Plus, I got a few more besides.

I didn't even know there was a sysop privilege.  Does 
wikipedia come with a long laundry list of specific 
privileges, like VMS?  When was sysop implemented?  
What does it consist of?  I must confess that when I first 
encountered the wikipedia, I was immediately attracted to 
it because, unlike arch-rival nupedia, it didn't come with a 
few dozen pages explaining why an intellectual lightweight 
such as myself with no advanced degrees is unlikely to 
have anything of value to offer.  Now I find out that even 
the wikipedia organization includes the concept of a 
"sysop".  This, in itself, is not something I find alarming, 
but it does lower wikipedia a peg on my opinion scale and 
potentially on larger scales such as the mythical "public 
relations".

> The only thing I ask of sysops is that you not delete pages unless you
> are ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN that there will be no controversy about it.
> :-)

According to the Reality Cracking school, it's impossible 
for anyone to delete anything.  So why make it a rule for 
people to obey?

> If we have fights about deleted pages, then I think the best thing to
> do is to implement some form of nondestructive delete.

I assumed you already had.  Perhaps periodic posts of 
compressed content to obscure administrative regions of 
usenet?  Or if even that is no longer part of the commons, 
maybe intellectual commoners like myself could be 
recruited as volunteers for the relatively simple tasks 
involved in downloading and archiving compressed 
wikipedia content.

> But, better to just not fight in the first place.  :-)

That would be a good first commandment.  Perhaps a 
good second commandment would be that all records of 
infighting that somehow arises within the wikipedia 
organization be destroyed.

:-)

> 
> --Jimbo
> 
> p.s. Anyone else who wants sysop, just email me.
> 
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