On 03/10/06, Jake Waskett jake@waskett.org wrote:
In keeping with tradition, I'd like to propose a technical solution that everyone can ignore. ;-) Suggestion: Automatically insert a suitable template into new/unsourced text. I'd propose something similar to {{not verified}}.
I did suggest article preloading a while ago. I *think* this is available in MediaWiki. Is it time this looks like a good idea on en:?
Something like:
'''ARTICLENAME''' is ... (a quick few sentences about it)
(a few more sentences about it)
==References==
(List what you used to write this article that others could fact-check it with.)
==External links==
* [http://somethingorother.example Page about $ARTICLENAME]
Is the time for such a thing right yet?
Model 1: Have the Wiki automatically insert this template into text of a new article in the main namespace. Model 2: Have the Wiki automatically subst this template into the beginning of all articles in the main namespace *unless* the article contains at least one ISBN/external link/<ref>/etc. There are pros and cons to each. Model 1 is easy for a determined hoaxer to circumvent. Model 2 is trickier to implement, requiring either two passes or a flag to maintain, but more robust. It would also have the benefit (some might say drawback) of drawing attention to a lot of *currently* unsourced articles.
It'd save me going around putting {{unreferenced}} on lots of articles. Mind you, method 2 could be implemented by a semi-automatic bot. I must say, I'm tempted.
- d.