[WikiEN-l] What is happening to the community

[Ray Saintonge]

Oskar Sigvardsson wrote:
> Sarah commented that it seemed like there was much more spirit, much
> more drive to do something good back when she started in 2004. I think
> that has more to do with the fact that she was just starting out, more
> than the relative peacefulness of that year. All of us here are old
> dogs, who reads about every controversy and have definite views on
> most issues that come up. Most of the community isn't like that.
>   
That's what commitment is all about, but I think we lack leadership and 
vision.  Jimbo provided this when the project was younger, but the 
project has gone well beyond that.  NPOV, open access, and inclusiveness 
are great principles but in the absence of leadership and vision these 
are more difficult to accomplish.  Perhaps what some of us see as a more 
fractious environment is more an inability to see where we are going.
> I have a friend who started out a month or two ago, and he still feels
> what Sarah felt in 2004. He has gotten into a few arguements, but they
> have been settled amicably (everyone Aed GF) and he still feels that
> initial rush that all of us felt in the beginning; the joys of
> contributing. Doubtless, in six months or so, he will have been
> properly disillusioned and in two years he will be wondering what
> happened with all the civility there was in early 2008.
This is a very interesting observation.  Since last month's newbie 
wasn't here in 2004 he judges the norm by what he see now, without any 
reference point in what it used to be.  Templating, strict referencing 
and boilerplate image tags were not there in those days.  The newbie's 
norms are different since they include them from the beginning. A person 
returning now after 3 or more years of absence would find the 
environment much different from what he knew.  The 18-month burnout, 
which AFAIK is only anecdotal, has a ring of truth, and could be the 
basis for an interesting sociological study.  The old dogs are the ones 
who have managed their way through the 18-month crisis, and still stick 
around.

Ec