[Foundation-l] Two Ways to Wikipedia - a concept for more effective editing

[Henning Schlottmann]

Ziko van Dijk wrote:
> * Report: Many people are not interested in becoming a Wikipedian,
> they just want to correct a typo or add a link or an information. They
> are mostly interested only in one peticular subject. Would'nt it be
> better not to let them edit, but to let them report? Their reports
> could be treated by a system similar to the current OTRS (support)
> team we already have.

That's exactly the idea behind the flagged versions. The advantage is,
that it is on-wiki, and does not need a media shift. And it can be done
by every acknowledged editor, not just OTRS-team members.

> * Become a serious editor: For those who would like to edit, to become
> a Wikipedian, we must build an easy and secure path. Someone who
> candidates as a Wikipedian should be required to leave an
> e-mail-address (to facilitate communication) and present himself a
> little bit (why he wants to become a Wikipedian, what he is interested
> in). This can be in perfect anonimity. Then it would be great to link
> him with a mentor, someone who is following his steps and helps him to
> fit into the community. Edits by this newbie has to be reconfirmed by
> his mentor or other people we know of that they treat a newbie
> politely.

Providing an e-mail address is already encouraged. We could improve the
wording a bit, though. But demanding a CV by prospective editors is
slightly over the top. Mentoring is nice if optional, but please
consider, that we don't have the active user base to mentor each and
every newbie, whether they want it or not.

Wikipedia once was about writing articles. These days is is developing
into a bureaucratic nightmare and I strongly believe your proposal would
be another step in a completely wrong direction.

Pretty much every proposal nowadays is about control. Control about
content and control about people. This is understandable, because of the
impact Wikipedia has on public perception and the possible dire
consequences for say living people. And we should be proud of the
quality Wikipedia has to offer and the working of our quality control.
But we should also be proud about the open culture and we should
continue to welcom contributions by everyone.

Ciao Henning