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Archive 1 | Archive 2 | Archive 3 | Archive 4 | Archive 5 | → | Archive 10 |
If a tip on the project page has no title, then you can assume it's empty, even if it has a blue link (those pages are merely prepped with the boilerplate links). -- The Transhumanist 09:48, 1 July 2006 (UTC)
I decided to take a look at the various versions of the tip of the day template, and was a bit surprised at how much it has proliferated.Several Wikipedians have adapted the thing for use in various formatting situations, and a couple of enhanced versions have been created as well.Here's the whole list, with descriptions:
-- The Transhumanist 14:01, 1 July 2006 (UTC)
Hi CB,
I was wondering, once July is filled up with tips, how would I go about adding them to the Template:totd-random ?
--
The Transhumanist
15:00, 1 July 2006 (UTC)
Thanks CB.I have just one more thing to say:Wow.-- The Transhumanist 15:43, 4 July 2006 (UTC)
I've filled July with a selection of tips from this page, revisions of previously posted tips, some brand new ones, and some combinations.If you would be so kind as to look them over before they hit the mainstream Wikipedia population, I'd really appreciate it.Thank you.Now excuse me while I pass out...-- The Transhumanist 17:33, 1 July 2006 (UTC)
Rfrisbie
talk
22:06, 1 July 2006 (UTC)
RaveDave also pointed out the following on my discussion page:
I've fixed the first tip, and have replaced the second tip.Please look them over.
Thanks you guys, for all the feedback.-- The Transhumanist 13:38, 2 July 2006 (UTC)
We are now working on November!At this rate, we should have the rest of the year done soon.So put out the word that we're collecting tips!
And when you come across a particularly useful trick or technique, be sure to come here and let the rest of us know about it!
Some good places to find ideas for tips:
-- The Transhumanist 11:02, 6 July 2006 (UTC)
A procedural question - do you like to wait until a month's worth of tips are ready, or is it okay to keep them moving through the queue until they make it to a subpage? Rfrisbie talk 21:05, 3 July 2006 (UTC)
I've expanded {{Totd-tomorrow}} to be this project's announcement and task list template.So now you can kill two birds with one stone, by seeing the next day's tip and this project's announcements (and alerts) at the same time.Now we all have an easy way to contact everyone on this project.Please place the template on your user page if you'd like to receive announcements and alerts from the other members of this project.Thank you.-- The Transhumanist 15:51, 3 July 2006 (UTC)
Here's what it looks like:
Please proofread the daily tip...
It's displayed below one day early. Some tips are obsolete. So we need new tips too. Please share your best tips and tip ideas at the Tip of the day department. Tomorrow's tip of the day... ![]() Displaying tips on your user page
If you would like to display the Wikipedia tip of the day on your User page, here is how: Edit your User page and insert one or more of the following bolded strings (including the four curly braces), preview your edit, and when it looks right, save it. To see a visual display of the below templates check out the Tip of the Day Display template gallery.
– – To add this auto-updating template to your user page, use {{
totd-tomorrow}}
|
Are beginners covered well enough in the tip collection?That is, have we provided all the essential tips beginners need to know?-- The Transhumanist 15:51, 3 July 2006 (UTC)
Um, we're getting off-topic.I've covered the rescheduling issue in detail under its own heading below.But in addition to reusing the tips we already have, we need to explore every nook and cranny of Wikipedia for the best tips we can find to achieve this project's goals.What are our goals?I have been assuming they are the following:
Tips are already being rescheduled.Note the repeats in July.Also, the "signature tip" is already getting reposted in various forms about once a month.The two "dozen best tips" tips also repeat tips in another way.But...
Rather than merely reposting the tips in the same form, we should always strive to improve them.(Of course, there will be some tips that hit home so well that they are hard to improve upon, but most leave plenty of room for improvement.)So, when I reuse tips, I generally try to enhance them in some way, like rewriting them for clarity, or at least paraphrasing them so they don't get stale.It's interesting that after you let them sit awhile (a few weeks) and come back to them, you view things in a new perspective and can instantly see ways of improving them.But when you stare at the same ones day after day, they tend to get fixed in your mind.
Refreshing the tips can take a number of forms:
But this begs the question of what tips should be rescheduled/recycled in the first place?Well, most of them, of course.All we have to do is figure out the relative frequency at which the various tips should be repeated.
Since Wikipedia welcomes a constant flow of newcomers, there are a few topics that may deserve to be repeated as often as once a month, in order to support these newbies.Like the signature tip, one or more search tips, definitely the main link tip, and a few others.All reworked, of course.This is already happening.Because they are rewrites, you may not have noticed.:-)
At some point, the tip collection may become somewhat complete, and new tip creation in such a case would slow down (to whatever Wikipedia's rate of innovation happened to be at the time).This project could eventually become mostly a maintenance matter, recycling the tip collection in an endless cycle.
So far, I've been taking Omniplex's casual approach: going over the past tips and rewriting the ones that pop out at me.(See the 60-day rule in the instructions at the top of the page).
Speaking of the 60-days, we should always keep the project stocked 60-days in advance - so that the maintainers of the pages we support (help page, community portal, etc.) don't panic.(See the thread on the help page's talk page).
-- The Transhumanist 14:31, 4 July 2006 (UTC)
Who wants to take on a pledge?That is, who wants to make a pledge?Then the rest of us can hold you to it.;-)
What kind of pledge?Like "I'll explore the tools section of Wikipedia and create 5 tips by the end of July."Or, "I'll read the current help desk page and post any cools tips that I find."That sort of thing.Are there any takers?
Here are some potential pledges to choose from, in case you can't think of any:
I hereby challenge each of you to make a pledge!
Of course, I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't make a pledge of my own.So here it is:I pledge to get September fully stocked with tips by the time you are done reading this message.:-)-- The Transhumanist 14:31, 4 July 2006 (UTC)
I noticed a particular tip from 2004 went directly to Wikipedia:Tip of the day/September 24, 2006, even though I had added a comment that it contradicted the "Read more" link.In fact, it appears to incorrectly describe transclusion. It is not substitution.I thought the note would give us time to rework the tip, but it bypassed the stated process on the talk page.I assume other tips did as well.I don't mind helping out with this project, but I would like to know what process is to be followed.What's written and what's happening don't match. Rfrisbie talk 16:46, 4 July 2006 (UTC)
Regards,
Rfrisbie
talk
18:35, 4 July 2006 (UTC)
If this tip is "technical gibberish," what's the "technically acceptable" solution to the formatting design it is intended to support? Rfrisbie talk 04:00, 5 July 2006 (UTC)
{{
-}}
, or even <pre> constructs are anything but not better. On the other hand in tables using <br /> sometimes has the desired effect, where the only alternative would be a nested table, complex and potentially causing havoc with old and/or text browsers. Just saying "<br> is evil" misses those points.Assuming nobody will object, I've increased the scheduling buffer in the procedures above to 120 days.-- The Transhumanist 11:00, 6 July 2006 (UTC)
Where do I post a suggestion, when I know it needs more work before posting? My suggestion for a tip is this.
Do you sometimes make edits, without realising that you weren't logged in? There is an easy way to avoid this. Go to preferences, and choose a different skin. Or change the quickbar so itis on a different part of the page. That way, it's obvious straight away whether you are logged in E.g. you may wish to use the Cologne Blue skin. If another Wikipedian uses the same computer and likes the same skin, you could place the quickbar on the right hand side so that it's obvious who is logged in.
-- Singkong2005 ( t - c - WPID) 03:17, 13 July 2006 (UTC)
Post your suggestions at the new entries heading on this page. -- Think Fast 17:00, 13 July 2006 (UTC)
Wikipedia:tips - the previous format just wasn't feasible (and entailed copying all the tips to new pages so that they would show up right in the category system - a collosal undertaking, and not worth the effort in copying or maintaining the copies).So I've replaced it with piped links of the tip collection.The library is about half done, but needs the rest of the tips (at the bottom of that page) sorted, and then the entries in each section arranged in the best logical order of presentation. -- The Transhumanist 18:01, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
Wikipedia:Tip of the day/August 7, 2006 had some errors when it went to air... it boiled down to the [[google:]] search thing not handling spaces, which I eventually worked out and fixed.
Looks like the error-checking needs to be more vigorous. I'll sign up (not that I'll be checking every day). Having said that... I love the tip of the day. I'm learning more. Thanks. Wipes tear from eye. -- Singkong2005 talk 06:49, 7 August 2006 (UTC)
Hello. The WikiProject Council has recently updated the Wikipedia:WikiProject Council/Directory.This new directory includes a variety of categories and subcategories which will, with luck, potentially draw new members to the projects who are interested in those specific subjects. Please review the directory and make any changes to the entries for your project that you see fit. There is also a directory of portals, at User:B2T2/Portal, listing all the existing portals. Feel free to add any of them to the portals or comments section of your entries in the directory. The three columns regarding assessment, peer review, and collaboration are included in the directory for both the use of the projects themselves and for that of others. Having such departments will allow a project to more quickly and easily identify its most important articles and its articles in greatest need of improvement. If you have not already done so, please consider whether your project would benefit from having departments which deal in these matters. It is my hope that all the changes to the directory can be finished by the first of next month. Please feel free to make any changes you see fit to the entries for your project before then. If you should have any questions regarding this matter, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you. B2T2 14:23, 26 October 2006 (UTC)
The long plaintext url in the codesample at Wikipedia:Tip of the day/November 4, 2006 is breaking the layout at Wikipedia:Community Portal#Departments. I'm unsure how to fix this, or reword it. Thanks. -- Quiddity 01:31, 4 November 2006 (UTC)
I'm working on a "Yearless Tip of the day."The test page is at Wikipedia talk:Tip of the day/Yearless. Rfrisbie talk 04:49, 5 November 2006 (UTC)
![]() |
Tip of the Day Barnstar
To Rfrisbie for the bright idea ![]() |
(I'm posting the above award to RFrisbie's talk page as well).Thanks Rfrisbie! -- The Transhumanist 14:27, 29 November 2006 (UTC)
Perhaps we need to archive the Tips considering some run from at least early 2006?
Cheers,
Anthon y cfc ( talk • email • tools) 22:19, Monday December 25 2006 ( UTC)
Hello, all. It was initially my hope to try to have this done as part of Esperanza's proposal for an appreciation week to end on Wikipedia Day, January 15. However, several people have once again proposed the entirety of Esperanza for deletion, so that might not work. It was the intention of the Appreciation Week proposal to set aside a given time when the various individuals who have made significant, valuable contributions to the encyclopedia would be recognized and honored. I believe that, with some effort, this could still be done. My proposal is to, with luck, try to organize the various WikiProjects and other entities of wikipedia to take part in a larger celebration of its contributors to take place in January, probably beginning January 15, 2007. I have created yet another new subpage for myself (a weakness of mine, I'm afraid) at User talk:Badbilltucker/Appreciation Week where I would greatly appreciate any indications from the members of this project as to whether and how they might be willing and/or able to assist in recognizing the contributions of our editors. Thank you for your attention. Badbilltucker 19:34, 30 December 2006 (UTC)
![]() | This is an archive of past discussions. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on the current talk page. |
Archive 1 | Archive 2 | Archive 3 | Archive 4 | Archive 5 | → | Archive 10 |
If a tip on the project page has no title, then you can assume it's empty, even if it has a blue link (those pages are merely prepped with the boilerplate links). -- The Transhumanist 09:48, 1 July 2006 (UTC)
I decided to take a look at the various versions of the tip of the day template, and was a bit surprised at how much it has proliferated.Several Wikipedians have adapted the thing for use in various formatting situations, and a couple of enhanced versions have been created as well.Here's the whole list, with descriptions:
-- The Transhumanist 14:01, 1 July 2006 (UTC)
Hi CB,
I was wondering, once July is filled up with tips, how would I go about adding them to the Template:totd-random ?
--
The Transhumanist
15:00, 1 July 2006 (UTC)
Thanks CB.I have just one more thing to say:Wow.-- The Transhumanist 15:43, 4 July 2006 (UTC)
I've filled July with a selection of tips from this page, revisions of previously posted tips, some brand new ones, and some combinations.If you would be so kind as to look them over before they hit the mainstream Wikipedia population, I'd really appreciate it.Thank you.Now excuse me while I pass out...-- The Transhumanist 17:33, 1 July 2006 (UTC)
Rfrisbie
talk
22:06, 1 July 2006 (UTC)
RaveDave also pointed out the following on my discussion page:
I've fixed the first tip, and have replaced the second tip.Please look them over.
Thanks you guys, for all the feedback.-- The Transhumanist 13:38, 2 July 2006 (UTC)
We are now working on November!At this rate, we should have the rest of the year done soon.So put out the word that we're collecting tips!
And when you come across a particularly useful trick or technique, be sure to come here and let the rest of us know about it!
Some good places to find ideas for tips:
-- The Transhumanist 11:02, 6 July 2006 (UTC)
A procedural question - do you like to wait until a month's worth of tips are ready, or is it okay to keep them moving through the queue until they make it to a subpage? Rfrisbie talk 21:05, 3 July 2006 (UTC)
I've expanded {{Totd-tomorrow}} to be this project's announcement and task list template.So now you can kill two birds with one stone, by seeing the next day's tip and this project's announcements (and alerts) at the same time.Now we all have an easy way to contact everyone on this project.Please place the template on your user page if you'd like to receive announcements and alerts from the other members of this project.Thank you.-- The Transhumanist 15:51, 3 July 2006 (UTC)
Here's what it looks like:
Please proofread the daily tip...
It's displayed below one day early. Some tips are obsolete. So we need new tips too. Please share your best tips and tip ideas at the Tip of the day department. Tomorrow's tip of the day... ![]() Displaying tips on your user page
If you would like to display the Wikipedia tip of the day on your User page, here is how: Edit your User page and insert one or more of the following bolded strings (including the four curly braces), preview your edit, and when it looks right, save it. To see a visual display of the below templates check out the Tip of the Day Display template gallery.
– – To add this auto-updating template to your user page, use {{
totd-tomorrow}}
|
Are beginners covered well enough in the tip collection?That is, have we provided all the essential tips beginners need to know?-- The Transhumanist 15:51, 3 July 2006 (UTC)
Um, we're getting off-topic.I've covered the rescheduling issue in detail under its own heading below.But in addition to reusing the tips we already have, we need to explore every nook and cranny of Wikipedia for the best tips we can find to achieve this project's goals.What are our goals?I have been assuming they are the following:
Tips are already being rescheduled.Note the repeats in July.Also, the "signature tip" is already getting reposted in various forms about once a month.The two "dozen best tips" tips also repeat tips in another way.But...
Rather than merely reposting the tips in the same form, we should always strive to improve them.(Of course, there will be some tips that hit home so well that they are hard to improve upon, but most leave plenty of room for improvement.)So, when I reuse tips, I generally try to enhance them in some way, like rewriting them for clarity, or at least paraphrasing them so they don't get stale.It's interesting that after you let them sit awhile (a few weeks) and come back to them, you view things in a new perspective and can instantly see ways of improving them.But when you stare at the same ones day after day, they tend to get fixed in your mind.
Refreshing the tips can take a number of forms:
But this begs the question of what tips should be rescheduled/recycled in the first place?Well, most of them, of course.All we have to do is figure out the relative frequency at which the various tips should be repeated.
Since Wikipedia welcomes a constant flow of newcomers, there are a few topics that may deserve to be repeated as often as once a month, in order to support these newbies.Like the signature tip, one or more search tips, definitely the main link tip, and a few others.All reworked, of course.This is already happening.Because they are rewrites, you may not have noticed.:-)
At some point, the tip collection may become somewhat complete, and new tip creation in such a case would slow down (to whatever Wikipedia's rate of innovation happened to be at the time).This project could eventually become mostly a maintenance matter, recycling the tip collection in an endless cycle.
So far, I've been taking Omniplex's casual approach: going over the past tips and rewriting the ones that pop out at me.(See the 60-day rule in the instructions at the top of the page).
Speaking of the 60-days, we should always keep the project stocked 60-days in advance - so that the maintainers of the pages we support (help page, community portal, etc.) don't panic.(See the thread on the help page's talk page).
-- The Transhumanist 14:31, 4 July 2006 (UTC)
Who wants to take on a pledge?That is, who wants to make a pledge?Then the rest of us can hold you to it.;-)
What kind of pledge?Like "I'll explore the tools section of Wikipedia and create 5 tips by the end of July."Or, "I'll read the current help desk page and post any cools tips that I find."That sort of thing.Are there any takers?
Here are some potential pledges to choose from, in case you can't think of any:
I hereby challenge each of you to make a pledge!
Of course, I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't make a pledge of my own.So here it is:I pledge to get September fully stocked with tips by the time you are done reading this message.:-)-- The Transhumanist 14:31, 4 July 2006 (UTC)
I noticed a particular tip from 2004 went directly to Wikipedia:Tip of the day/September 24, 2006, even though I had added a comment that it contradicted the "Read more" link.In fact, it appears to incorrectly describe transclusion. It is not substitution.I thought the note would give us time to rework the tip, but it bypassed the stated process on the talk page.I assume other tips did as well.I don't mind helping out with this project, but I would like to know what process is to be followed.What's written and what's happening don't match. Rfrisbie talk 16:46, 4 July 2006 (UTC)
Regards,
Rfrisbie
talk
18:35, 4 July 2006 (UTC)
If this tip is "technical gibberish," what's the "technically acceptable" solution to the formatting design it is intended to support? Rfrisbie talk 04:00, 5 July 2006 (UTC)
{{
-}}
, or even <pre> constructs are anything but not better. On the other hand in tables using <br /> sometimes has the desired effect, where the only alternative would be a nested table, complex and potentially causing havoc with old and/or text browsers. Just saying "<br> is evil" misses those points.Assuming nobody will object, I've increased the scheduling buffer in the procedures above to 120 days.-- The Transhumanist 11:00, 6 July 2006 (UTC)
Where do I post a suggestion, when I know it needs more work before posting? My suggestion for a tip is this.
Do you sometimes make edits, without realising that you weren't logged in? There is an easy way to avoid this. Go to preferences, and choose a different skin. Or change the quickbar so itis on a different part of the page. That way, it's obvious straight away whether you are logged in E.g. you may wish to use the Cologne Blue skin. If another Wikipedian uses the same computer and likes the same skin, you could place the quickbar on the right hand side so that it's obvious who is logged in.
-- Singkong2005 ( t - c - WPID) 03:17, 13 July 2006 (UTC)
Post your suggestions at the new entries heading on this page. -- Think Fast 17:00, 13 July 2006 (UTC)
Wikipedia:tips - the previous format just wasn't feasible (and entailed copying all the tips to new pages so that they would show up right in the category system - a collosal undertaking, and not worth the effort in copying or maintaining the copies).So I've replaced it with piped links of the tip collection.The library is about half done, but needs the rest of the tips (at the bottom of that page) sorted, and then the entries in each section arranged in the best logical order of presentation. -- The Transhumanist 18:01, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
Wikipedia:Tip of the day/August 7, 2006 had some errors when it went to air... it boiled down to the [[google:]] search thing not handling spaces, which I eventually worked out and fixed.
Looks like the error-checking needs to be more vigorous. I'll sign up (not that I'll be checking every day). Having said that... I love the tip of the day. I'm learning more. Thanks. Wipes tear from eye. -- Singkong2005 talk 06:49, 7 August 2006 (UTC)
Hello. The WikiProject Council has recently updated the Wikipedia:WikiProject Council/Directory.This new directory includes a variety of categories and subcategories which will, with luck, potentially draw new members to the projects who are interested in those specific subjects. Please review the directory and make any changes to the entries for your project that you see fit. There is also a directory of portals, at User:B2T2/Portal, listing all the existing portals. Feel free to add any of them to the portals or comments section of your entries in the directory. The three columns regarding assessment, peer review, and collaboration are included in the directory for both the use of the projects themselves and for that of others. Having such departments will allow a project to more quickly and easily identify its most important articles and its articles in greatest need of improvement. If you have not already done so, please consider whether your project would benefit from having departments which deal in these matters. It is my hope that all the changes to the directory can be finished by the first of next month. Please feel free to make any changes you see fit to the entries for your project before then. If you should have any questions regarding this matter, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you. B2T2 14:23, 26 October 2006 (UTC)
The long plaintext url in the codesample at Wikipedia:Tip of the day/November 4, 2006 is breaking the layout at Wikipedia:Community Portal#Departments. I'm unsure how to fix this, or reword it. Thanks. -- Quiddity 01:31, 4 November 2006 (UTC)
I'm working on a "Yearless Tip of the day."The test page is at Wikipedia talk:Tip of the day/Yearless. Rfrisbie talk 04:49, 5 November 2006 (UTC)
![]() |
Tip of the Day Barnstar
To Rfrisbie for the bright idea ![]() |
(I'm posting the above award to RFrisbie's talk page as well).Thanks Rfrisbie! -- The Transhumanist 14:27, 29 November 2006 (UTC)
Perhaps we need to archive the Tips considering some run from at least early 2006?
Cheers,
Anthon y cfc ( talk • email • tools) 22:19, Monday December 25 2006 ( UTC)
Hello, all. It was initially my hope to try to have this done as part of Esperanza's proposal for an appreciation week to end on Wikipedia Day, January 15. However, several people have once again proposed the entirety of Esperanza for deletion, so that might not work. It was the intention of the Appreciation Week proposal to set aside a given time when the various individuals who have made significant, valuable contributions to the encyclopedia would be recognized and honored. I believe that, with some effort, this could still be done. My proposal is to, with luck, try to organize the various WikiProjects and other entities of wikipedia to take part in a larger celebration of its contributors to take place in January, probably beginning January 15, 2007. I have created yet another new subpage for myself (a weakness of mine, I'm afraid) at User talk:Badbilltucker/Appreciation Week where I would greatly appreciate any indications from the members of this project as to whether and how they might be willing and/or able to assist in recognizing the contributions of our editors. Thank you for your attention. Badbilltucker 19:34, 30 December 2006 (UTC)