[Commons-l] On upload forms

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 For a long time we've had to suffer with an image upload form which was pretty bare-bones, while attempting to shoehorn more smarts into it through templates and JavaScript hacks. Well, I think it's about time we prioritize really doing this thing right. Commons, and MediaWiki generally, needs an upload form which: a) Works sensibly b) Looks good c) Allows you to upload the file, extract metadata, compare duplicates, make sure it's sensibly named, and *then* commit it into the system. d) Handles batch uploads with a minimum of fuss (or at least, as minimally fussy as one can get with HTML file upload forms :) Note that this isn't going to be done by tacking JavaScript and templates onto the existing form; this is going to be a real effort to redesign it from scratch into something that handles today's actual needs. I'd appreciate hearing from people interested in helping out in the following capacities: * Designing user interface mockups * Helping code it up in MediaWiki * Testing the new form under development * Providing constructive criticism as we work This effort will probably take from a few weeks to a few months to get to the point where it's really live; we may even try experiments like having the old and new forms available side-by-side on the live site so people really have a chance to bang at it in real usage without forcing an in-flux test system on everyone. - -- brion vibber (brion @ wikimedia.org)