On 7/30/06, Steve Bennett stevagewp@gmail.com wrote:
On 7/30/06, Erik Moeller eloquence@gmail.com wrote:
The reviews would be sent to a to-be-created mailing list, e.g. reviews-l@wikipedia.org. Besides the form information, the messages would include an exact revision ID of the article that was being reviewed.
I don't think an email list is the right place for reviews to go. They should end up more tightly integrated in the wiki process.
It could be an option: ( ) Append my review to the wiki "discussion page", where Wikipedia users may respond to it ( ) Send my review by e-mail to a select group of volunteers, who will look at it and who may respond by e-mail
I for one would prefer to use only e-mail to begin with. Reviewers may not be comfortable with their personal information being published on the web, and the point is exactly to take away some of the complexity of the wiki process and to build a simpler, safer social environment where they will not have to deal with immature teenagers shouting at them. Friendly volunteers can instead take care of the incoming reviews, carefully build a social relationship with the reviewer, and try to bring them into the wiki proper if it makes sense. People from .edu domains can be treated with respect, and get the feeling that they have a special status that elevates them above the unwashed masses -- when in reality they have no special rights to the content whatsoever.
Many of the people who we should solicit input from are very familiar with e-mail. They are not familiar with "talk pages" and "wiki", and in fact intimidated by it. We should encourage use of the "right way of doing things", but I think we should also offer an "alternative way of doing things."
Erik