Magnus Manske wrote:
Or, we could enable my option in MediaWiki to "upload" by giving a URL; me could support multiple URLs that way. That would require people to upload their files on some public FTP or HTTP server, and then transfer them to Commons.
Or they could directly ftp upload their file. I considered that option some time ago but didn't follow it.
People log into ftpupload.commons.wikimedia.org using their commons (or TUSC) username and password.
They arrive to a personal FTP space, where they can upload and delete any files they want.
It's not per connection, so if their 100MB video stops at 80MB they can resume the upload. FTP clients are also better at showing a progress bar.
They 'approve' the upload using a MediaWiki interface, where they choose which pending files to approve, license and comments.
Files not approved on a couple of hours are automatically deleted. You cannot hold more than 150MB pending approval on your personal area. (We may want to increase these limits for bots, so complete books can be uploaded on a single ftp session)
Downloading the files you uploaded may be blocked, to discourage people from using WMF as storage.
It allows for better (and so slower) file checking.
It also adds the ability for requiring a second approval of the file. Although not much useful on normal wikimedia usage, could be worth considering for upload of potentially dangerous filetypes.