----- Original Message ----- From: "Anthere" anthere8@yahoo.com To: wikipedia-l@wikipedia.org Sent: Friday, December 12, 2003 9:01 AM Subject: [Wikipedia-l] Re: Differences in the language versions, was RE: Re: Press release : Logo putsch onthe FrenchWikipedia !
I must admit I see not how you reconcile the idea that an entry "should be a perfect translation" and the idea the content of an entry "will be discussed differently in different languages".
Different ways to reach the same top of the same mountain.
Even if fr: edit war customs are not the same as en: one (i.e. if and when to freeze pages), the "theoretically perfect npov expression to be reached a the end of times", or simply the npov "pivot" (if any, but we all need to believe in its existence before editing) is the same in both contexts, the same in any context.
Sameness in rules and goals and differences in customs and ways is a matter that goes far futher, I feel, but a simple small metaphor on how to reach npov could be something like the LCM reduction, don't you think? I mean that if something on a topic could not be understood or accepted by a given "gentleman" from any other ethnic/linguistic/political/etc. context, it should be removed. (Here "gentleman" stands simply for someone smart enough and fair...)
As I'm new here, I may have misunderstood some of the wk's goals but, again, npov means to me that any specific context (dividing human beings in categories) should be avoided as much as possible and, therefore, universalism* is the main goal. If I'm allowed to spend a little bit more of your time, I would say that an encyclopedia should divide only the "topics" into parts, not the "audience". (That's theory. In practice, sure, "audience" is always divided into languages and so on...)
Ruim'
* to answer also to Andre Engels, I don't think that "universalism" is "telling everything about everything", but maybe only something like "telling everything commonly accepted by "gentlemens" (LCM) about everything that supports common acceptance" (my 2 fens)