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2233 discussions

Gdansk videos .. we were all deceived!
by Maysara Omar 01 Nov '10

01 Nov '10

They deceived us! They said videos of presentations and talks, etc. will be released, but they never did. And they don't even respond to our questions about them here. We don't want the "edited" and directed versions! Just release the thing as it was and it will be fine. But maybe you have deceived us! x-( :-) Maysara

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Wikimania Jury - Initial Discussion
by Joseph Seddon 10 Sep '10

10 Sep '10

Following on from the various emails that have gone around with regards to the creation of a Wikimania Committee I have created a placeholder page on meta and have gotten the discussion going on its talk page which can be found here: - http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Wikimania_Committee Much of what I have said is condensed from the emails on this list. This is simply progressing the disccusio to a more advanced stage so that we can move forward with it. Many Thanks Seddon

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wikimania bids, criteria and feedback
by phoebe ayers 14 Aug '10

14 Aug '10

Ah, August, when people's thoughts turn towards <s>the beach</s> <s>school</s> Wikimania bidding! ==bids== This is an informal reminder to those interested in bidding for 2012 to start thinking about putting up your public pages: http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania_2012 There isn't a timeline yet but last year's makes a pretty good guide. There's plenty of time, but the sooner you put up your ideas the sooner other people can offer to help :) Also, please remember that everyone is welcome *and encouraged* to comment on the bids, even tentative bids, with your concerns and ideas; your constructive support will help the bidders come up with the best possible proposal and will ultimately help the bid jury select the best bid. I would love to see more feedback on the bids ahead of time. The bid talk pages are the best place for this. ==bid criteria== Especially since there is a lively discussion about Wikimania locations and requirements going on now anyway, this is probably a good time to review the existing bid criteria and propose any changes. A list of past criteria and official requirements (largely the same from year to year, with some minor revision) can be found here: http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania/Judging_criteria please discuss and propose changes on the talk page. There are also general comments on many of the individual year pages that it might be helpful to aggregate, if someone has some free time :) This might also be a good time to consider possible improvements to the process for choosing a bid and running Wikimania, as well as how to move forward with the process for this year (including determining a timeline, bid jury, etc). There was lots of discussion on the lists earlier this summer about a Wikimania committee, but these ideas aren't reflected on the wiki yet; probably the best place for this discussion is: http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Wikimania best, -- phoebe -- phoebe.ayers(a)gmail.com | http://phoebeayers.info support Wikimedia: http://donate.wikimedia.org

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Problematic aspects of hosting the next conference in Haifa, Israel
by Maysara Omar 14 Aug '10

14 Aug '10

Dear Wikimaniacs! okay i will address this issue, and please excuse me had it been addressed elsewhere online, and point me to where i can have a look on the discussion. One of the most important criteria in deciding on the place to host wikimania annual conferences is “ease of attendance”, which is only logical. [http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania/Judging_criteria] Now there are some serious concerns regarding hosting the next wikimania conference in Haifa, Israel. Please bear with me, and understand that non of these concerns has anything to do with politics, and that they are entirely practical: 1) This is a quote from a website of an American company called “A Briggs Passport & Visa Expeditors” [ http://www.abriggs.com/high_level/FER_I/Israel_FER.php] which specializes in securing “expedited passports and travel visas for international travelers ...” It says: “Israel has strict security measures that may affect visitors. Prolonged questioning and detailed searches may take place at the time of entry and/or departure at all points of entry to Israel, including entry from the West Bank and Gaza. Travelers with Arabic surnames, those who ask that Israeli stamps not be entered into their passports, and unaccompanied female travelers have been delayed and subjected to close scrutiny at points of entry. Security-related delays or obstacles in bringing in or departing with cameras or electronic equipment are not unusual. Laptop computers and other electronic equipment have been confiscated from travelers leaving Israel from Ben Gurion Airport during security checks. While most are returned prior to departure, some equipment has been damaged, destroyed or lost as a result. Americans who have had personal property damaged due to security procedures at Ben Gurion can contact the Commissioner of Complaints at the airport for redress. During searches and questioning, Israeli authorities have denied American citizens access to U.S. consular officers, lawyers, or family members.” This is not the only source that confirms these practices. 2) It is frequently reported, that airport and entry points officials, refuse to stamp the israeli entry permit in a separate paper and insist on stamping it in the passport. Travelers with an israeli visa, or even exit/entry stamp in their passports, may not enter many countries, including Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Kuwait, and Sudan, and perhaps other countries of which i have no knowledge. Carriers of visas and stamps from any of these countries and other countries as well (such as Bahrain, Pakistan, Algeria, Indonesia, and Malaysia) are reported to be frequently harassed and maltreated as they attempt to enter Israel. 3) I am rather concerned about the difficulty, and impossibility of some interested participants to be able to attend had they wanted. There are problems on the levels of acquiring a visa, then leaving their countries to Israel without trouble, then entering Israel, then leaving Israel, then getting back to their countries from Israel; the prospect of trouble and maltreatment exists with every step of these. Participants from Iran, Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine, and maybe other countries, are not even allowed to enter into Israel. Why should they not be able to participate in the wikimania annual conference? And why should the conference be held in such a place, in which precisely “ease of attendance” is absolutely lacking?! I believe that Israel is not an appropriate place in which to hold a conference such as wikimania for all the reasons mentioned above, and i believe that it is fair to reconsider the decision, and i hope that we, along with the wikimedia foundation, and along with the israeli participants too, will find reason to address the issue with view to fairness and practicality. Most appreciatively, Maysara Omar

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Re: [Wikimania-l] Problematic aspects of hosting the next conference in Haifa, Israel
by phoebe ayers 13 Aug '10

13 Aug '10

Forwarding message that was accidentally bounced. -- phoebe (listmod) > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > From: WereSpielChequers <werespielchequers(a)gmail.com> > To: "Wikimania general list (open subscription)" < wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org> > Date: Wed, 11 Aug 2010 22:07:31 +0100 > Subject: Re: [Wikimania-l] Problematic aspects of hosting the next conference in Haifa, Israel > I did raise some of the issues about access to Israel during the > bidding process - see > http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Wikimania_2011/Bids/Haifa#Arab_countries > But Haifa was the winning bid and we now need to try and resolve any > of the resulting issues that we can. > > Apparently Gdansk had good streaming coverage, but it was one way. I > think it would be good to top that and have two way interaction with > the facility for people around the world to ask questions via Skype, > and would request that the organisers consider that. > > The event is also going to take place during Ramadan which I assume > has implications for any Moslems who do attend. Though I assume that > the combination of hosting the event in Israel and during Ramadan will > mean that relatively few Moslems attend. However I'd like to suggest > to the organisers that they reconsider their commitment in > http://wikimania2011.wikimedia.org/wiki/FAQ#Ramadan from "Is there a > mosque in the vicinity of the venue? Unfortunately not so close to > the venue. Most of the mosques are located in the lower (older) > neighborhoods, while the venue is at the top of Mt. Carmel. We can > arrange a prayer hall for Muslims at the venue. " to "Is there a > mosque in the vicinity of the venue? > Unfortunately not so close to the venue. Most of the mosques are > located in the lower (older) neighborhoods, while the venue is at the > top of Mt. Carmel. If one of the attendees requests it in advance we > will arrange a prayer hall for Muslims at the venue" > > > Regards > > WereSpielChequers

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video recordings of talks(?)
by Maysara Omar 12 Aug '10

12 Aug '10

Hello to all, Is there any news about the video recordings of the many talks in the last conference in Gdansk? I remember that there were so many interesting talks which I couldn't attend because they were happening at the same time with other interesting talks that i attended! I really look forward to see the video recordings of these talks. Please let me know if you've got any news. thanks, Maysara

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Re: [Wikimania-l] [Foundation-l] Partecipation in Wikimania 2011
by Moushira Elamrawy 12 Aug '10

12 Aug '10

Thanks Harel for your email.. On 8/11/10, Harel Cain <harel.cain(a)gmail.com> wrote: > Israel is well aware of this situation, and offers the special > possibility of stamping not the passport but a separate page on entry > and exit, for any visitor that requests it A confirmation for the possibility of getting the stamp on a separate paper will be helpful for people who might have fear of losing their jobs in UAE or other gulf countries or of being banned from religious rituals in Saudi Arabia. > > As to visiting Israel being socially unacceptable in some societies, or a good reason for being harassed by one's own government, this is a very regrettable fact of Middle East politics, but totally not within the organizing team's sphere of influence. As I put it before it is a complex and complicated situation which I believe is better discussed without any judgments on politics, governments or social reactions. For participants who might have any conservations on going to Israel, attending Wikimania will have its own cons and pros which will remain up to the personal evaluation of the attendant, after all. Good luck with all.. M > > > Harel Cain > Wikimania 2011 team > >> Date: Wed, 11 Aug 2010 17:26:09 +0300 >> From: moushirah at gmail.com >> To: foundation-l at lists.wikimedia.org >> Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Partecipation in Wikimania 2011 >> >> Abbas: Let us not generalize; it is a complex and complicated matter >> about the will/ability to visit Israel if you happen to be a resident >> of an Arab or Muslim nation. >> >> I believe the "difficulty" of getting a visa varies from one country >> to another, but even with the help of the bidding team, an issue will >> remain unresolved, that is: Some countries do not allow persons with >> an Israeli stamp on their passports, to enter their borders. The list >> includes: Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Syria, UAE, Turkey ..and other >> destinations. I am not sure if there are exceptions for this rule in >> those countries. It is a complicated situation on political and >> ethical levels. >> Maybe it remains a personal choice of the participant whether to make >> it Haifa or not. >> >> M > > > -- > Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum videtur. > > _______________________________________________ > foundation-l mailing list > foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l >

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Noam Cohen discusses Wikimania..
by phoebe ayers 31 Jul '10

31 Jul '10

... on this weeks NY Times "tech talk" podcast. Subjects include: flagging enthusiasm for Wikipedia, the differences between the Foundation & the contributor base, WMF efforts to increase diversity, Google Translation Toolkit, British Museum collaborations, and a very brief mention of flaggedrefs. http://www.nytimes.com/ref/technology/techtalk.html Starts at 16:02 and runs for 7 minutes. -- Phoebe -- * I use this address for lists; send personal messages to phoebe.ayers <at> gmail.com *

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Biography of Lech Wałęsa in 104 languages of the world on Wikimedia Commons
by Daniel ~ Leinad 29 Jul '10

29 Jul '10

Hi all, I'm pleased to announce that the book about Lech Wałęsa, which was prepared for Wikimania 2010 in Gdańsk, has been published at Wikimedia Commons. The book contains biographies of Lech Wałęsa[1] in 104 languages of the world. Every biography comes from a different language version of Wikipedia. All the text was retrieved at the same moment - On the 1st of March, 2010. The book was prepared by volunteers from the Polish Wikipedia community and the whole book, including the cover, is available under CC-BY-SA 3.0. All the authors are listed on the book's last pages. During the closing ceremony of Wikimania 2010 the book was shown for the first time in public. And a few days after Wikimania, the President of Gdańsk, Wikimania organizers and Polish Wikipedians gave Lech Wałęsa the first copy of the book[2]. Now the book is available in PDF on Wikimedia Commons: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Walesa_-_Biographies_in_the_language…. [1] - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lech_Wa%C5%82%C4%99sa [2] - http://www.gdansk.pl/galeria?c=663 Regards, Leinad

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TRIVIA tonight!
by phoebe ayers 22 Jul '10

22 Jul '10

we are having a trivia night tonight! as advertised. It will be after the movie screening -- around 10:15pm. Location tbd -- it will either be in the concert hall or outside in the "ampitheatre" space. We will announce the location at the movie. signup: http://wikimania2010.wikimedia.org/wiki/Trivia_night -- phoebe -- WikiSym 2010: July 7-9 | http://wikisym.org/ws2010

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