/Raul's categorization of this as a disagreement
between a mob and a group of respected editors is wishful thinking. -- SJ
/A lie - I never anything of the sort. Please don't put words in my mouth. In fact, I think
Danny nailed it when he said the split in the community is between the people who think
the encyclopedia aspect comes first and those who think the social aspect comes first.
/Raul, you should have posted to this list about your decision about
the FA tomorrow: that is, to ignore the recent poll... -- SJ
/
I did one better than that, I posted my reasoning in a clearly marked section RIGHT BELOW THE POLL.
*And* my edit summary when I wrote the NES blurb was a link to the explanation. I did everything but
set up flashing neon signs pointing to it. But of course, you already knew all that, because you've
already responded to my comments there.
As far as ignoring the poll, this is yet another outright lie. I went with the 2nd highest rated poll
option (do nothing - e.g., a standard featured article) because, after asking everyone and his mother
for input (including the mailing list and Jimbo by name), I decided the first option did not meet the
one criteria of being the "daily featured article" - that is, it's not a featured article. And, the
article I did pick fulfilled Mav's secondary request that it be "fun". That's quite a lot of
attention to be paying to a poll I was ignoring.
Or, to put it another way -- the community was split with about 2/3's in favor of one option and
1/3 vociferously against it. Either way, one group was going to be pissed (at me). Jimbo's comments
weren't exactly decisive either, although they did push me in the serious-article direction.
Don't you just love no win situations?
/"it reflects the fact that Wikipedia EN is overpopulated by geeky teenagers who probably
prefer Red Bull to red wine and Game Boys to sex."/ --Viajero, aka Just Another Dinosaur
Hrmmm, where have I heard this before? Oh yes! This was the same rant that Xed always made (and
those of us who actually pay attention to what is happening on wikipedia - admittedly few on
this mailing list these days, as SJ's why-did't-you-post-it-here? comment shows - we remember
just how wonderful and friendly he was). But all the same, I'll be sure to pass along your
holier-than-thou sentiments to all the contributors who you've just insulted. I may not be the
"eminent worthiness" you label me as, but I'm sure the people you've stereotyped will appreciate your
comments just as much I did.
But on a more general note, this whole experience has left me thoroughly disgusted. The purpose of
this was to encourage people to write featured articles on quirky subjects. I said I'd go
with what the community decided, provided it met that tremendous, burdensome requirement of
being true. Silly me, what the hell was I thinking? An encyclopedia with true facts? Who ever heard
of such a thing? Of course, I do wonder - with all the time people have wasted bitching about how
terrible the process was, distorting facts and/or lying (SJ), and making personal attacks (Viajero),
just how many new featured articles could have been generated?
Just some food for thought...
--Mark