[Wikipedia-l] Recent Changes, multiple linked languages and other dreams

[Magnus Manske]

Hi all,

before you waste lots of energy on discussion, be aware that the upcoming
wikipedia software, which is currently in beta phase, supports variables in
the text. For example, the date on the homepage is automatically adjusted
when you view it, with things like "{{{CURRENTYEAR}}}" being replaced with
2001 (this year).

That system could be expanded with things like
- {{{CATEGORY:Biology}}} in an article that could be seen as belonging to
biology
- {{{GERMAN:Haus}}} in the "house" article

These "variables" could be replaced for display with, say, a little German
flag linked to the German version of the "house" article, named "Haus".
These things don't have to be displayed inside the article, either; they can
go to the header, for example, so you'd have some little flags next to the
page title, or a category listing at the bottom.

That can be used for the category listing on recent changes (say, all
non-categorized articles, and biology only). Furthermore, all international
wikipedias could be checked once a day (or once a week), crosslinking
languages. If the English article links to the German one, the German one
will automatically link back to the English version. Also, if the German
article links to the Swedish, but the English does not, both English and
Swedish will be automatically updated.

This can be done without much trouble. We should wait for the software to be
tested and implemented with the "current" features only, though. Once the
new software is running wikipedia stable, all the other features can be
added.

Magnus