Talk:Wiki 101

Welcome to the Wiki 101 Talk page!

Notice that this page is in the Talk: namespace. Feel free to ask questions about Wiki 101 here. Many times, those with more experience editing wiki pages forget what it was like first learning how to edit, so don't be shy asking questions!

You can use the + tab at the top oif this page to start a new thread or click on the closest edit link above an existing thread to join it.

What is a thread?

All Wikiversity pages have an associated Talk: or _talk page. These are where participants talk with each other about the topic discussed on an article, category, template, or other page. It provides a separate area for discourse, questions and answers, debate, brainstorming and many other activities that revolve around its associated page.

In the same way that an article page is broken down into sections, its associated discussions may be broken into threads. When you use the + tab at the top, you are presented with a box for a heading for a new thread. This can be in the form of a question (such as What is a thread?) or may be some discussion about a section (such as Wiki 101#Namespaces) covered on the Wiki 101 article.

To join the What is a thread? thread, click the edit button directly below the heading. You will see my text in the editor. To respond or comment on what I've typed, simply begin your first paragraph with a colon (:). That will indent your text one level. If your comment exeeds one paragraph, just begin each paragraph with a colon. If someone else has responded before you, add two colons (::) to each of your paragraphs. When you are finished typing, use four tildes (~~~~) to automatically sign and date your post. CQ 17:06, 1 November 2006 (UTC)

namespace suggestion

I having been thinking about the "user" namespace, would like to suggest offering users the possibility if being defined as either primarily a "student" or a "teacher" rather than just a "user". What do people think? AlistairReece 14:49, 23 August 2007 (UTC)

I think there is wide agreement that in a learning environment like Wikiversity it is important to have efficient ways of knowing what other people are trying to learn and who can help them towards their learning goals. In a conventional learning environment there is often a well-defined distinction between learner and teacher and everyone functions efficiently while wearing those labels. There can even be situations at Wikiversity that replicate the conventional learner/teacher relationship in wiki format, such as when a teacher brings students to Wikiversity from a conventional classroom. However, new namespaces are almost never the best solution to organizing things in a wiki. One powerful and flexible tool available to us is the "template". In particular, use of "userbox templates" has become the established way of quickly informing other wiki participants about one's interests and skills. See for example User:Teemu. --JWSchmidt 15:14, 23 August 2007 (UTC)

I agree with the userbox route - one could put multiple userboxes on a page and say "this user is a teacher of ...", "this user is a student of ...", or even combinations of these. --HappyCamper 15:36, 23 August 2007 (UTC)

I was pondering that further after I put the original idea here. Was thinking about my own experience and how I would regard myself as a "student" of technical writer, but I am keen to get involved in developing the theology school - when time allows - which I would imagine make me a "teacher" in that sense. The userbox idea looks very useful. AlistairReece 05:46, 24 August 2007 (UTC)

As I go from page to page at Wikiversity my role changes. On one page I might be trying to teach another participant something. On the next page I might be trying to learn from other Wikiversity editors. My role can even change on the same page, depending on who else is editing the page. In general, I just think of myself as a Wikiversity participant. We are all collaborating to create a community and environment that facilitates learning. In a wiki community, actions are what counts, and the actions are page edits. If your edits help me with my learning goals, then I guess you could say I'm your student. --JWSchmidt 14:30, 24 August 2007 (UTC)

Learning and Thinking

lol May have to wait for an alumni club to publish testimonials, rags to riches stories, etc. and attempt to compare to other prestigious institutions. I wonder if we could get the traditional magazines who rank credentialed institutions to starting a ranking or selection or evaluation guide for institutions with no accreditation? 70.110.62.240 01:11, 26 November 2007 (UTC)

Going back to the actual Wiki 101 resource

There had been many edits to this page that transformed it into a description of The Magic of Xanth. I must have copied the wrong link into this, the link seems to have nothing to do with the Magic of Xanth. --Abd (discuss • contribs) 02:42, 23 October 2013 (UTC) (See w:Xanth.) This was all done by IP editors, one or many. The content is "fan" content, probably not appropriate for Wikiversity, though it's not impossible to create an educational resource here to study some topic in fandom, just as there are university courses that cover many aspects of popular culture and literature. The content may be fantasy, that's fine in user space. There is no question but that the content would be routinely be allowed in user space here, as an exercise, say, in wiki editing. I recommend to the BON (IP) that a user account be created and that content can be copied from the version linked above, into that user's personal user space, i.e., if it were User:XanthFan, the page User:XanthFan/The Magic of Xanth could be created. Alternatively, I may create the page in User:Abd/Playspace.

Please don't make what could be educational fun into mere vandalism. --Abd (discuss • contribs) 02:36, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

Moving the Magic of Xanth content to The Magic of Xanth and restoring this page to Wiki 101 content. Also adding a block on editing by IP address to reduce vandalism. -- Dave Braunschweig (discuss • contribs) 01:41, 23 October 2013 (UTC)

I dislike creating mainspace content pages with no responsible user, so I was suggesting, above, that the user register an account and use it to create that page. (Or, alternatively, I've created pages in my Playspace, where I'm responsible for them. Just my opinion, though. and I'd recommend blocking the IP for a month or so, since it has only been used for, effectively, vandalism, and did not respond to the suggestion here. The block can refer to the IP talk page with an offer to allow Magic of Xanth editing from a registered account, and you can allow account creation in the block options. Sometimes it works. Sometimes not. Thanks for your attention Dave, in any case. --Abd (discuss • contribs) 02:35, 23 October 2013 (UTC)

I have added a one-month block on the IP. I'm mixed on the content. As posted, it's effectively solicitation rather than educational. I'm inclined to tag it with a proposed deletion so it could be deleted in January if there's no follow-up. -- Dave Braunschweig (discuss • contribs) 03:42, 23 October 2013 (UTC)