On 6/26/07, Jens Frank <jf(a)mormo.org> wrote:
There should be no change at all in how the German Wikipedia way works
either way we go, although I'll check that out firsthand before
instituting changes. Those using the current default can preserve it
with a one-line addition to MediaWiki:Common.css, and likewise for
individual users.
Different behaviour for different wikis is a very bad idea. That would
be confusing. The edit link should be placed in the same way on all WMF
wikis.
They already are different. I also remember quite well how strongly dewiki
users reacted last year when the edit links suddenly appeared in a different
place than from what they used to. There was also extensive discussion about
where the edit links should go and there was even some talk about doing a
community-wide vote on it. If the edit link position were standardized
across all wikis you can be sure that this will happen again. People tend to
get irrate when someone external messes with their habits.
As to the confusion different positions may bring: the question was raised
because of usability concerns meaning the solution proposed here is meant to
address new users who aren't familiar with the softwaree's interface or its
functions. Chaning the edit link position addresses that by making the
relationship between the links' position and their function more intuitive
to new users.
My guess is that it's not anywhere near typical for new users to be active
in multiple wikis so that different edit link positions wouldn't affect
them. Once they have gotten used to the interface and might consider
venturing out to another wiki (most likely Commons, my guess), they might be
surprised that the links are at different places but I highly doubt they
will have problems operating them. Of course, empirical data would be
preferable here too.
Sebastian