User talk:Ched/Archive 39

Archive 35

←

Archive 37

Archive 38

Archive 39

Archive 40

Archive 39

Administrators' newsletter – July 2021

News and updates for administrators from the past month (July 2021).

Administrator changes

BusterD

Kees08 • Nickshanks • Protonk • Schissel • Ultraexactzz • Wknight94

CheckUser changes

TheresNoTime

Oversighter changes

TheresNoTime

ST47

Guideline and policy news

• An RfC is open to add a delay of one week from nomination to deletion for G13 speedy deletions.

Technical news

• Last week all wikis were very slow or not accessible for 30 minutes. This was due to server lag caused by regenerating dynamic lists on the Russian Wikinews after a large bulk import. (T287380)

Arbitration

• Following an amendment request, the committee has clarified that the Talk page exception to the 500/30 rule in remedy 5 of the Palestine-Israel articles 4 case does not apply to requested move discussions.

Miscellaneous

• You can vote for candidates in the 2021 Board of Trustees elections from 4 August to 17 August. Four community elected seats are up for election.

---

• Discuss this newsletter
• Subscribe
• Archive

Sent by MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 14:17, 1 August 2021 (UTC)

July corner

July

June continued ... last year's flowers match the image on the user page nicely, see? - DYK that her last reply to me was in a thread Green for hope? - The DYK set in honour of Yoninah appeared yesterday, including Psalm 85, with the kiss of justice and peace - we wrote that together.

Fourth of July: Brian's birthday, remembered in gratitude for his unfailing inspiration and support - remember the Chapel - the missed - the music? - Can I interest you in a user's first FAC, Carillon? --Gerda Arendt (talk) 13:13, 4 July 2021 (UTC)

Thank you for the touching memories Gerda, they speak volumes. I'll take a look at Carillon, and will read through it when time permits. It is a lengthy article, and I trust it deserves an FA rating. Still, I will read through it and if I see anything that can be improved I will do so. Best wishes to you always. — Ched (talk) 21:12, 4 July 2021 (UTC)

More music: 2 songs, the morning song - about rising from being down, in more than one sense - is a GA, - there should be more given my initials, but I also want to care for articles of those who recently died (now Esther Béjarano), and psalms in memory of Yoninah, - more missing than there. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 16:39, 16 July 2021 (UTC)

Gerda Arendt, the morning song looks very beautiful. It is definitely an inspirational song of rising from the darkness of night, mourning and despair into the light of day, joy and peace. This speaks volumes to me. I love morning songs. --ARoseWolf 17:21, 16 July 2021 (UTC)

Thank you so much, ARoseWolf, you were next "in line" to be included in my virtual choir, I was just too hungry, - and now - how lovely - I don't have to explain! You probably saw what I wrote on my talk about the one who "gave" me the morning song. She lost her husband, and their home burnt down, but she celebrated a big birthday the following year, and invited to the house-warming of the new home last year. We just met there again, listening to the Beethoven, and I took the last rose image in her garden, the one with the rain drops on the petals. - People asked about the floods in Germany, - they didn't touch where I live, but I feel with those who lost so much. - I plan to upload more pics, stay watching: early morning before the "golden sun" even, mushrooms, and the Rhine with high water. A new cat can be seen already on Rosiestep. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 18:30, 16 July 2021 (UTC)

A couple of good posts - TY both. The GA (person) vs. GA (article) concept did occur to me not all that long ago. :-). Two great articles Gerda - thank you for those. One thing that did cross my mind is how "morning" relates to "mourning". That is something I think about. Wishing you both well. — Ched (talk) 18:39, 16 July 2021 (UTC)

I am not exactly sure who coined the phrase, "Soul Work is not a high road. It's a deep fall into an unforgiving darkness that won't let you go until you find the song that sings you home." Those words have always resonated with me since I heard them for the first time. I have experienced this deep darkness and needed a Song to bring me out of it. my grandmother. She was a German-Jew, stubborn, oh so stubborn, but it was this stubbornness that I needed in order to find my way home and learn to speak again. I remember her songs in Hebrew that she would sing over me. I remember her words as if she was speaking them to me now. They dispelled the darkness and soothed the pain. I am a Rainbow because she shined the sunlight on me as a child. I am alive because she refused to let the night last forever. Thats why I always tell people to keep singing their Song. You have no idea the impact it can have on another person. Your Song may just lead them home. --ARoseWolf 19:06, 16 July 2021 (UTC)

Did you know that Vivaldi composed cello sonatas? Cello songs? I didn't until I took the pic. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 21:29, 21 July 2021 (UTC)

No I didn't know that. I don't know much about Vivaldi to be honest. That is a nice picture you took though. Did you take that on your cell phone? Camera? — Ched (talk) 21:55, 21 July 2021 (UTC)

My Motorola cellphone which I practically use only as a camera. See more. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 22:12, 21 July 2021 (UTC)

Nice! I'm impressed Gerda, those are some really nice shots you have. I especially like the nature ones. The one in the woods with the light streaming through is so fantastic. — Ched (talk) 23:07, 21 July 2021 (UTC)

That was a magic day! It' will be my November pic, as the foxgloves are July. My friend who had surgery also loves it (and she saw it shortly after the diagnose). Today birthday of a beloved woman who was born in 1899, with a song for DYK about lighting candles, breaking bread and have mugs full of wine, - sometimes it just works. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 06:06, 22 July 2021 (UTC)

Today, the news that a young woman died of COVID-19, - I didn't know her, not even her name, imagine, but her brother, and her father a bit who is devastated, and I know she left two small children, one too small to understand what death is ... --Gerda Arendt (talk) 14:45, 27 July 2021 (UTC)

Gerda Arendt, Death awaits us all. It is indifferent to those whom it affects, even among the living. At times it seems cruel and unfair but in truth it is neither. It is unfeeling, it is transcendent of any human emotion we could try to bestow upon it. It shudders and shakes them off as if it but simple drops of rain rather than chains for binding. It takes, that is all it ever does, takes. My heart to those children who are now motherless. I hope they have a good support system and will grow up in love despite the trauma they endure. It may be a long and winding road but hopefully they have time to learn to sing. --ARoseWolf 16:30, 28 July 2021 (UTC)

Almost ironic that the poetry can be beautiful, and yet the reality is so sad. It's sad for us to lose even a single life, and yet we become numb to thousands. May God/Great Spirit/ <insert your chosen religion here> .. watch over the children. — Ched (talk) 16:28, 29 July 2021 (UTC)

dude, you were there! =)

(re: "when was this decided") Saw your name in the comments when I was looking up my old comment. Hope all is well! –xeno^talk 00:24, 12 July 2021 (UTC)

HEY there xeno, it's always great to see you. All is well? .. meh - still above ground, so not complaining. :). Yep - I remember that 2019 RfC - massive thing it was. I was wondering if maybe someone snuck another one in more recently though - considering some of the comments. (which wouldn't be hard to do since I'm mostly on the article/editing side of things these days.)

on a side note and in regards to the BN discussion, someone brought up the "old school admins" comment - and it is worthy of mention. The two returns I'm aware of are KillerChihuahua (back in 2019), who was then hounded unmercifully back off the project for a very minor disagreement. The second would be HighInBC (who got some push-back about a question at RfA that I considered completely reasonable myself), and he is doing an absolutely amazing job IMO. It's just my opinion, but I think the project is actually improved when "old school" comes back to town.

And on a final note: I know you approve of breaks from the tools, and I've taken 2 such breaks over the years. I was strongly leaning towards doing that again this fall, but given the current climate - I may think better of it. Anyway - I hope you and yours are doing well too. Stay safe, Stay happy, and don't be a stranger here. :-) — Ched (talk) 02:09, 12 July 2021 (UTC)

Thank you for your kind words. I have always thought that the only reasonable reaction to an experienced admin coming back after an extended absence should be "HOORAY!". These people have been chosen for their ability to interpret community consensus and implement it well. When they have a long history of doing just that why be concerned that they will be unable somehow to catch up.

I would like to add @Deepfriedokra: to the list of great admins that came back after an absence and have done a wonderful job since. HighInBC ^{Need help? Just ask.} 02:14, 12 July 2021 (UTC)

Did Deepfriedokra turn in the tools and get them back? I know them, but haven't interacted a lot. (just a positive impression though). I think El C and ToniB have taken a break, but I'm not sure they turned in the mop, and I don't think it was that long. At the end of the day though - I agree with you that "old school", aka experienced, admins should get more respect, rather than less. Not that they're any better than a brand new admin, just that they shouldn't be getting a cold-shoulder if they come back. (and TY for returning and putting in so much work HiBC) — Ched (talk) 02:27, 12 July 2021 (UTC)

Thanks for your nomination and support at my RfA

I know I've already said this but be aware I'm very thankful you folks shepherded me though this process. I'll expect a friend to hold me to account, so I'll expect you to do so. I keep seeing this "per Drmies" used but don't see the namestamp anywhere in my supports. Am I missing it? Oh, well. BusterD (talk) 20:57, 15 July 2021 (UTC)

{stalking} I think they were using his nom or co-nom statement as the rationale. Not sure, but that's how I took it at least. YMMV. Intothatdarkness 21:35, 15 July 2021 (UTC)

You're quite welcome, I think it is well deserved that you have the mop. Re: the "per Drmies comment - Intothatdarkness is exactly correct. In the case where I used it, I was attempting a bit of subdued humor (I trust his nom statement more than my own). The "per nom" supports have been used for ages where folks want to say why they support, and feel the nominator expresses their views sufficiently. It's also not unusual for the noms to abstain from posting a support !vote. Any closing crat would, or at least should, consider the nom statement as a support vote. — Ched (talk) 23:17, 15 July 2021 (UTC)

Per Ched. Drmies (talk) 23:40, 15 July 2021 (UTC)

Copy of deleted article

Hi! I find you in Category:Wikipedia administrators willing to provide copies of deleted articles. I would like you to help me. Somnifuguist was tagged my sandbox for speedy deletion and Athaenara was deleted it. But the content of the page was very important to me. My doctor advised me to use it for therapy. I could not even think that the contents of the sandbox could somehow interfere. So, I'm ready to copy what I had in the sandbox to save it elsewhere. Thank you! Georgii Kalnitzky (talk) 16:17, 26 July 2021 (UTC)

It appears that you haven't requested this at WP:REFUND as you were instructed to. I won't restore the deleted page, and since you don't have email enabled, I have no idea how to send the information to you. — Ched (talk) 02:03, 27 July 2021 (UTC)

Advice

I gave someone the advice of Don't today which may cause some backlash once others read it but I am just to the point that I don't really care. Actually, that is somewhat of a lie. I never really cared and will gladly speak about the folly that is humanity. I edit in good faith and I will continue to do so and make as big of an impact as I can for as long as I am afforded the opportunity to be here but I have seen great editors leave due to arbitration that seemed petty and indifferent to the harm they cause the encyclopedia as opposed to the over-all good. I am not naïve enough to believe that the encyclopedia wouldn't go on should any of us ever decide to leave, either willfully or against our will. To the contrary, I would hope and expect it might continue to improve. However, if we are here for the right reasons then, when we leave, there is a void that is simply not felt or seen, on the whole, because the impact of what could have been is unknown. The void is still there, however. --ARoseWolf 18:08, 28 July 2021 (UTC)

I think Hammersoft absolutely nailed it with "Don't" - so I don't think it's ever bad advice to give. — Ched (talk) 16:28, 29 July 2021 (UTC)

Mark this down, I don't ever plan to become the subject of arbitration but I WILL NEVER respond if I do become the subject beyond what is common courtesy. The approach is always one of guilt first and you can almost always find enough to prove guilt of something against anyone. Most opinions are formed before a case is ever brought and especially if you are a long term member with countless interactions. It quickly devolves into hate, anger and language with only one purpose and that is to completely destroy an individual. As I have stated before, there is no human alive that does not have a conflict of interest with another human or entity. With the exception of extremely egregious circumstances, of which I have not encountered many, I have seen very little that warranted the disciplines and admonishments that have been rendered by arbitration in the past. I consider myself an even-handed person, generally, though even I have reasons, almost always to benefit another for the purpose I feel I am led to. That is not a discussion for here. It is easy to be a judge of humanity when one removes themselves from their own. This is why I would make a terrible administrator for Wikipedia. I won't say the goal is different because I know and appreciate many administrators as good humans with beautiful Songs. I do not envy the task of being an administrator. I just don't feel I could ever fully give myself over to the role. Empathy is both a blessing and curse. There is no guideline, policy or law that could separate it from those who experience it and live with it every day. --ARoseWolf 17:09, 29 July 2021 (UTC)

August songs and flowers

August songs

Ched, I came to bring you the flowers, with thanks for your good wishes for my 12th today! - I agree, arbcom is not worth posting, a complete waste of lifetime. ARoseWolf, DYK the best template? I decorated, also for a (very very) distant relative's birthday. Songs invite to more music, places, food and flowers. Now some flowers for Hammersoft. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 20:15, 2 August 2021 (UTC)

Thank you Gerda, the photo and the flowers are beautiful. — Ched (talk) 02:54, 3 August 2021 (UTC)

thank you, on the day Rlevse declared me awesome, a year and a day after I joined, - miss him much, - great to have you! --Gerda Arendt (talk) 08:35, 3 August 2021 (UTC)

Today: 2 interesting DYK (I think), sadly 2 who died (on top of 2 from Poland yesterday), and a concert in which Daniel Barenboim just played piano, - and afterwards he and the orchestra received last year's prize (pictured). --Gerda Arendt (talk) 20:45, 7 August 2021 (UTC)

Today: 3 DYK, including that the author dedicated a summer story to a license plate number ;) - Five rows of images added, sunflowers and butterflies continued, four rows of 15 August alone, - a rich Monteverdi day, - enjoy! --Gerda Arendt (talk) 20:00, 18 August 2021 (UTC)

Very nice Gerda. I like the sunflowers (I've always enjoyed them), and nice shot of the Rhine. — Ched (talk) 23:25, 18 August 2021 (UTC)

Don't get me wrong, I love the rose. I am the Wild Rose but if you told me I could be any flower it would be the Sunflower. I love them and those vibrant yellow petals. --ARoseWolf 12:24, 19 August 2021 (UTC)

I think most, if not all, flowers are beautiful. Roses, sunflowers, tulips, ... and so many more. I suppose if I had to pick a favorite it would be the Cannas, but I'd be hard pressed to find a flower I didn't like. God was so very generous with this particular gift for us. — Ched (talk) 17:57, 19 August 2021 (UTC)

This is true. Such variety of diverse flowers spread all over the world. I really love Spring and early Summer when the land becomes covered in colorful blooms. --ARoseWolf 18:05, 19 August 2021 (UTC)

Giedrė Šlekytė - music blossoming when she conducts --Gerda Arendt (talk) 22:44, 21 August 2021 (UTC)

... and today: Teresa Żylis-Gara, the second soprano to impress me on stage, died, - long live the memory of her beautiful singing, remembered with thanks. 28 August 2013 was a special concert day: look. After Hillbillyholiday gave me a tree. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 20:43, 28 August 2021 (UTC)

I think losing those we've come to care about is the hardest thing about growing older Gerda. I am sorry for your loss, and I do admire the way you honor good people with articles, pictures, flowers and song. It's such a wonderful way show true caring for someone. Sending cyber-hugs your way. — Ched (talk) 22:21, 28 August 2021 (UTC)

IP info

Hey, stranger! Thank you for taking care of that item! ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 02:11, 14 August 2021 (UTC)

Hey there Bugs, always good to see you around. Glad to help any time I can. TY for catching it. — Ched (talk) 02:20, 14 August 2021 (UTC)

Thank you for coming to my defense at WP:ANI. I agree that the best thing is to try and avoid that user. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 04:19, 3 September 2021 (UTC)

I wonder if AldezD, in his attempts to claim I was socking, knew that he himself was spoofed a few years ago by a sock named AldezD2? [[1]] ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 17:39, 4 September 2021 (UTC)

Hey there Bugs. On the first - I was just calling it the way I saw it. I know you're quite capable to defend yourself, and to be honest, your humor at ANI never bothered me. In fact I much preferred it to our resident chief comic there - but others seem to like him .. meh, no accounting for taste I suppose. Still, all things being equal, I do admire your ability and self-control to avoid that cesspit. On the second part - I wasn't really familiar with them before that ... ummm ... let's just call it meritless, report. So I'm not familiar with the sock either. Not sure it's really worth tracking and researching things though. Either way - always glad to hear from you. — Ched (talk) 00:05, 5 September 2021 (UTC)

Thanks for your comments. ANI is not on my radar, so I don't know who the resident comic is there, and that's fine. :) As to that sock from several years ago, it's unlikely it could be investigated at this late date. Just one of those weird things. The probable IP sock that he accused me of is more likely one of my "fans" from years back who has several "tells" (which I won't define here), though I either didn't know or have forgotten who the sockmaster is. Be safe! ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 00:27, 5 September 2021 (UTC)

Administrators' newsletter – September 2021

News and updates for administrators from the past month (August 2021).

Administrator changes

Jake Wartenberg

Emperor • Viridian Bovary

Ashleyyoursmile → Viridian Bovary

Guideline and policy news

• Feedback is requested on the Universal Code of Conduct enforcement draft by the Universal Code of Conduct Phase 2 drafting committee.
• A RfC is open on whether to allow administrators to use extended confirmed protection on high-risk templates.
• A discussion is open to decide when, if ever, should discord logs be eligible for removal when posted onwiki (including whether to oversight them)
• A RfC on the next steps after the trial of pending changes on TFAs has resulted in a 30 day trial of automatic semi protection for TFAs.

Technical news

• The Score extension has been re-enabled on public wikis. It has been updated, but has been placed in safe mode to address unresolved security issues. Further information on the security issues can be found on the mediawiki page.

Arbitration

• A request for comment is in progress to provide an opportunity to amend the structure, rules, and procedures of the Arbitration Committee election and resolve any issues not covered by existing rules. Comments and new proposals are welcome.

Miscellaneous

• The 2021 RfA review is now open for comments.

---

• Discuss this newsletter
• Subscribe
• Archive

Sent by MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 20:44, 3 September 2021 (UTC)

I glanced at the RfA thing - expansive as it is. I may add a note or two, we'll see. But thanks for stopping by Mr. Boticus Monthlycana. — Ched (talk) 00:05, 5 September 2021 (UTC)

Gerda's September corner

September songs

Omas gegen Rechts - enjoy strong women! I thought of Yoninah on the first day of Rosh Hashanah --Gerda Arendt (talk) 21:37, 7 September 2021 (UTC)

I've always appreciated, even preferred, "strong" women. As for Rosh Hashanah, I remember my friend David, may he Rest In Peace, as well as a dozen others who are friends. — Ched (talk) 19:10, 8 September 2021 (UTC)

I had dinner with a friend from Israel and his German wife. Rich Main page today: first TFA by promising author, pictured DYK by my friend LouisAlain who is discouraged by an AN discussion, and one of the Recent deaths. Enjoy! --Gerda Arendt (talk) 17:38, 9 September 2021 (UTC)

today: the day of bold red and black, for Dante who died 700 years ago, and Peter Fleischmann who died recently, leaving us films full of vision. Dante: just heard Inferno, imagined by a woman, the main character both speaking and singing with an inner 4-part voice! - Mahler's Eighth, - strange. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 18:28, 14 September 2021 (UTC)

I did see the movie Inferno, but I'll look for a YouTube version of the opera; it sounds interesting. Nikki deleting infobox stuff again eh? Sigh. I think sometimes she just can't help herself. — Ched (talk) 18:42, 14 September 2021 (UTC)

Sorry, no YouTube for something just premiered. Today: moar music, Beethoven, and my brother was in the orchestra, 10 July! - Please look at my latest entry (of today) to the Mahler, and tell me if it makes sense, because sometimes I really feel I can't express myself in English. I came across my 2015 archives, and the top line says it all. It's not about what FA author Brianboulton would have added or tolerated or what (and he showed always open to my additions while alive, with the one exception of Rinaldo (opera) where he supported the interests of another user to have a certain template in the top right corner, but the template was deleted earlier this year, and the user hasn't edited for almost a year) but what today's readers might find informative.

Peace Day today. - Could you perhaps say a word on the above mentioned Mahler discussion, for peace? --Gerda Arendt (talk) 10:39, 21 September 2021 (UTC)

I will think on it. (Talk:Nicolas Mahler) — Ched (talk) 11:32, 21 September 2021 (UTC)

nono: Mahler's Eighth --Gerda Arendt (talk) 11:43, 21 September 2021 (UTC)

I like your call to focus on what's best for the article. I can live with what we have (although "scoring" and "published" are normal things to have in addition. If I can live with the accusations of having been restricted for "bullying" and abusing Brian's name, I don't know yet. I guess I better unwatch. I had hoped the revert of Psalm 149 in 2018 was the last revert of an infobox musical composition, really. They are accepted in the notable compositions, 2430. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 15:03, 22 September 2021 (UTC)

Hey Gerda - yea, it's so easy to either get hurt, or hurt someone else when discussions turn personal. I think normally it's not intended, but especially when discussing someone who has passed, the feelings and emotions are so close to the surface, and so raw - that it's just best to not debate things. Technology has afforded us the ability to "chat" on pages, in chat rooms, and to text via our phones. Sometimes I wonder if it's such a good thing - we seem to have lost so much of the personal face-to-face interaction, and I think the filters between what we think and what we say have disappeared and/or lost a lot of their effectiveness. I am sorry for the pain you and others have endured, but hope we can all move forward. — Ched (talk) 10:16, 23 September 2021 (UTC)

Thank you, Ched, and I agree with all of it. It was not - as Iridescent put it - my most glorious moment to revert Tim with the edit summary I used (and quoted on the talk), but I was really kind of shocked about that revert - after three years of no reverts of infoboxes for musical compositions (not counting reverts by Francis Schonken which I never took seriously). All I wrote in the edit summary is true, though, and I made up my mind to explain on my talk. I won't visit the article talk again. I said what I wanted to say (including which parameters should normally be included for a symphony, and perhaps we should update the template docu), and I said some that I should perhaps kept to myself, and of course I should have stopped arguing with Nikki after two comments. Perhaps you hat the too personal stuff? (Don't use edit summary: T. restored - the second time - a 2010 box-less version of his friend's article, although the friend had accepted the 2017 box version by an IP which was in the article when he died.) We know BB as a man of compromise - he offered that for operas right after the infobox case, on my talk - and a man who wrote a Signpost essay in 2013 that can still be a guideline (link on my user page). It's anachronistic to return to a 2010 version as if all this had not happened. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 10:45, 23 September 2021 (UTC)

Today: a woman in red, two who died under "in memoriam" and LouisAlain missed - my first editnotice read: "Every editor is a human being" which is quoted from a comment by Geometry guy in a 2012 discussion on WP:AN, remember? --Gerda Arendt (talk) 14:12, 27 September 2021 (UTC)

Always good to see more inclusive when it comes to women on wiki; although always sad to lose people. Indeed I do remember Geometry guy, a true beacon of common sense on wiki. It seems he does pop in now and again to edit an article or two - but his interest in ... ummm, let's call it "problematic editing", is no longer a high priority on wiki (and I share the same lack of interest most of the time myself). Gerda, "Every editor is a human being" is always a worthy quote, and I applaud your constant efforts to make it a standard on Wiki - thank you. — Ched (talk) 18:50, 30 September 2021 (UTC)

Thank you! I found Geometry guy's post on AN, and I put it back there, to little avail so far. Check for my name backwards. I asked a few now, and more on my talk. Feel so sorry for Martin who asked my questions and was called a troll. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 20:27, 30 September 2021 (UTC)

Nomination of List of people and films from Classical Hollywood cinema for deletion

A discussion is taking place as to whether the article List of people and films from Classical Hollywood cinema is suitable for inclusion in Wikipedia according to Wikipedia's policies and guidelines or whether it should be deleted.

The article will be discussed at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/List of people and films from Classical Hollywood cinema until a consensus is reached, and anyone, including you, is welcome to contribute to the discussion. The nomination will explain the policies and guidelines which are of concern. The discussion focuses on high-quality evidence and our policies and guidelines.

Users may edit the article during the discussion, including to improve the article to address concerns raised in the discussion. However, do not remove the article-for-deletion notice from the top of the article.

Clarityfiend (talk) 10:37, 8 September 2021 (UTC)

Administrators' newsletter – October 2021

News and updates for administrators from the past month (September 2021).

Administrator changes

Blablubbs

Alvestrand • Black Falcon • Deathphoenix • Dppowell • Mark Arsten • JGHowes (deceased)

Oversighter changes

Callanecc

Mkdw

Interface administrator changes

Galobtter

Guideline and policy news

• Following an RfC, extended confirmed protection may be used preemptively on certain high-risk templates.
• Following a discussion at the Village Pump, there is consensus to treat discord logs the same as IRC logs. This means that discord logs will be oversighted if posted onwiki.

Technical news

• DiscussionTools has superseded Enterprisey's reply-link script. Editors may switch using the "Discussion tools" checkbox under Preferences → Beta features.

Arbitration

• A motion has standardised the 500/30 (extended confirmed) restrictions placed by the Arbitration Committee. The standardised restriction is now listed in the Arbitration Committee's procedures.
• Following the closure of the Iranian politics case, standard discretionary sanctions are authorized for all edits about, and all pages related to, post-1978 Iranian politics, broadly construed.
• The Arbitration Committee encourages uninvolved administrators to use the discretionary sanctions procedure in topic areas where it is authorised to facilitate consensus in RfCs. This includes, but is not limited to, enforcing sectioned comments, word/diff limits and moratoriums on a particular topic from being brought in an RfC for up to a year.

Miscellaneous

• Editors have approved expanding the trial of Growth Features from 2% of new accounts to 25%, and the share of newcomers getting mentorship from 2% to 5%. Experienced editors are invited to add themselves to the mentor list.
• The community consultation phase of the 2021 CheckUser and Oversight appointments process is open for editors to provide comments and ask questions to candidates.

---

• Discuss this newsletter
• Subscribe
• Archive

Sent by MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 17:03, 1 October 2021 (UTC)

WTH is with the "new section" crap?

Is there a way to go back to the old source stuff? Or is this more of the "shove it down your throat" crap from WMF? I do not like this new "Add topic" interface, I do not like it Sam I Am. — Ched (talk) 14:38, 17 September 2021 (UTC)

(talk page watcher) Special:Preferences#mw-prefsection-editing - at the bottom there are three checkboxes under Discussion pages. You'll want to uncheck "Enable quick topic adding" I believe. More info at Talk pages project/Feature summary ~TNT (she/they • talk) 14:57, 17 September 2021 (UTC)

Thank you @TheresNoTime:, I appreciate the help. I don't remember fiddling with those preferences, but maybe I did. I'm going to have to spend some time looking over all that stuff soon (my reply link not working either). Not really sure how I screwed everything up, but I am grateful for the help. Best always, — Ched (talk) 01:49, 18 September 2021 (UTC)

It sounds like you have the Beta Feature for "Discussion tools" on. That gives you the [reply] took plus some other things. If you want to see the latest soon-to-arrive update, click on https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Village_pump_(miscellaneous)?dtenable=1 and look for the [subscribe] button for each ==Section heading==. Imagine a world in which you don't have to watch all of ANI to find out what's happening in the one section you care about. WhatamIdoing (talk) 17:44, 25 September 2021 (UTC)

TY WhatamIdoing for the info, and I'll check it all out. Yea - I likely did turn that on. I tend to check out my Prefs once or twice a year to see what's new. From what I gathered (all is back to normal now), I think some of my scripts were interfering with some of my prefs. I like that "subscribe to thread" idea! Hope that becomes standard. — Ched (talk) 18:36, 25 September 2021 (UTC)

Supposedly that will happen "soon" – for the Beta Feature, not for everyone. I don't know whether "soon" means "in a couple of weeks" or "probably someday". But "soon", for some value of "soon". WhatamIdoing (talk) 21:29, 25 September 2021 (UTC)

WhatamIdoing, it's always an honor to have you visit and offer your help here - TY for that, and I should have said so the first time. While I don't always agree with how the WFM spends its money, it's also not my organization, so I don't often say much in that regard. I am however, grateful for any additional tools they provide that makes editing easier. I am glad to see people like you out on the front lines explaining things and helping us adapt to these new changes. I think I first noticed you on Iri's talk, and I've always held you in high esteem - (just in case I hadn't said so before) :-). I know the "Beta" stuff can be buggy (just had a Windows ME flashback). Having worked in the computer tech field for many years - I understand that "Beta" is designed to work out those bugs. Since I've retired from the field (many years ago), I sometimes forget and get a bit pissy about it - but I usually calm down after a bit .. lol. TY for all your help. — Ched (talk) 19:04, 30 September 2021 (UTC)

Thanks for your kind words. I don't actually remember the first time I saw your name. You just always seem to be around when I least expect it.

Parts of this aren't really "Beta"; they're just "not quite deployed here". As of ~12 hours ago, the [reply] button is out at some 700 wikis now, with only 10 (including this one, which is by far the biggest) to go. It won't work on this page, because of the background color/box. Peter's decided to do some A/B testing on the New Discussion tool (the one you were complaining about), and it's deployment is blocked on a warning notice anyway. (If you think it's bad, then the goal is to not let it be both bad and a surprise.)

The [subscribe] tool is super-useful, and I can't wait for it ...but I kind of wish there was a magic code that would keep it away from trolls and abusers. Have you ever seen two editors do a rapid-fire fight? You look at the timestamps (and their obviously frayed tempers) later and wonder if they were just waiting for the other one to reply, refreshing the page every few seconds, so they could jump right back in and instantly say he's wrong and I'm right. I wonder if our saving grace is that most of the time, there's only one jerk doing that, and the rest of us don't notice until we deliberately go looking for the other guy's comments (e.g., opening the watchlist).

Now imagine that every time you open a page, the system goes off and checks for you, and gives you a red notification at the top of the page, so that you will be instantly informed about that jerk's latest reply. Imagine that it does this for everyone. I'm not sure that it will be good for our equanimity. I would be very interested in hearing your thoughts on the story I've been telling myself. Realistic? Unlikely? What do you think? WhatamIdoing (talk) 03:42, 1 October 2021 (UTC)

Administrators' newsletter – November 2021

News and updates for administrators from the past month (October 2021).

Administrator changes

Clpo13

Brian0918 • JDoorjam • Karanacs • MrDarcy • Mindspillage

Interface administrator changes

Evad37

CheckUser changes

Dreamy Jazz • Ferret • GeneralNotability • Girth Summit • RoySmith

Oversight changes

Dreamy Jazz • LuK3

Guideline and policy news

• Phase 2 of the 2021 RfA review has commenced which will discuss potential solutions to address the 8 issues found in Phase 1. Proposed solutions that achieve consensus will be implemented and you may propose solutions till 07 November 2021.

Technical news

• Toolhub is a catalogue of tools which can be used on Wikimedia wikis. It is at https://toolhub.wikimedia.org/.

Arbitration

• GeneralNotability, Mz7 and Cyberpower678 have been appointed to the Electoral Commission for the 2021 Arbitration Committee Elections. Ivanvector and John M Wolfson are reserve commissioners.
• Eligible editors are invited to self-nominate themselves to stand in the 2021 Arbitration Committee elections from 07 November 2021 until 16 November 2021.

Miscellaneous

• The 2021 CheckUser and Oversight appointments process has concluded with the appointment of five new CheckUsers and two new Oversighters.

---

• Discuss this newsletter
• Subscribe
• Archive

Sent by MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 16:43, 1 November 2021 (UTC)

WP:ROPE

I have drafted an alternative version of this essay at User:Cullen328/sandbox/One last chance and invite your input. Cullen³²⁸ Let's discuss it 23:02, 28 August 2021 (UTC)

Cullen328, Thank you for taking this on. I will have a look, but probably won't get back to you until tomorrow some time. — Ched (talk) 23:16, 28 August 2021 (UTC)

Cullen328, as an officially unofficial stalker of Ched, I took the liberty of having a look at your re-write. I like it. I think you put thought and effort into it and it very much follows along the same lines as the original but without the controversial connotations. Great job, Cullen. When I saw you took it up I knew it would be great having watched your responses on Teahouse and working with you there. --ARoseWolf 12:47, 3 September 2021 (UTC)

Hey there ARoseWolf - great to see you out and about on Wiki - I hope your mending well. To be honest, I feel like I let Cullen down a bit on that. I did read through it, and made a couple notes - but by the time I got back to it, everything I would have changed - had been changed. I'll have to drop by and let him know that I do like it.

• general note - sorry I haven't been doing much here .. hopefully better days ahead. The cooler weather does seem to help a bit; at least until it gets down below freezing. — Ched (talk) 00:05, 5 September 2021 (UTC)

Moved obituary/FA page

Sorry in advance if this messes anything up. Having the obituary/FA list in the Signpost space made it likely we'd accidentally publish in the wrong issue. I've moved it to User:Ched/Obituary/FA-GA for now. ☆ Bri (talk) 18:16, 29 October 2021 (UTC)

@Bri - Thank you so much for that. The link got removed from the final obit, which saddened me, but it was the last place I wanted to debate with anyone. Sarah was such a wonderful person. To be honest, I was a bit worried that it would be deleted when the next month's Signpost came out - I'm so glad that you've been so considerate. Thank you so very much. — Ched (talk) 22:43, 29 October 2021 (UTC)

November thanks

November songs

Thank you for improving articles in November! --Gerda Arendt (talk) 14:00, 20 November 2021 (UTC)

Thank you Gerda and thank you for all you did and do on a regular basis. — Ched (talk) 17:49, 20 November 2021 (UTC)

Today we received the annual arbcom message (as below), which made me think, of Doug, and Flyer. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 16:16, 23 November 2021 (UTC)

TY for "Today". Arbcom is a many headed monster that can't be reasoned with, and it can't be defeated. I've broken my share of lances on that windmill, so the few lances I have left I save for the VERY bad days, and almost never pick up a said lance these days (lost cause anyway). And yes, we've suffered some great losses this year, more than I can count. I didn't do a candidate review this year, but I will vote. The best I can offer is to vote for those who will do the least damage to the project. The 2021 administration was one of the worst I've seen, hopefully we will rebound in 2022.

As for the missing: I'm sorry that Doug chose another path for the sake of wikipedia, but if he is now happy, then I am happy for him. I weep for those we've lost in real life more though. Best always Gerda. — Ched (talk) 22:04, 23 November 2021 (UTC)

I don't weep for him. As LouisAlain said: the loss is not his, but Wikipedia's. Isn't it enough that people die, - do we have to drive others away? I had a simple question, and won't vote for those who said the case had to be taken. Really??? For whom? I said it wouldn't improve kindness nor a single article (on User talk:Hammersoft), and felt like Cassandre. --Gerda Arendt (talk) 22:12, 23 November 2021 (UTC)

Talk page stalker: I miss having Doug's voice of reason, intelligence, logic, and fearless integrity, but like you Ched, I think if he is happy then all is well. My recent run in with an arb was both kind of shocking and sad. I think the ability to listen to editors with humility plays out not just in election situations but signals the kind of arb who will listen deeply to editors and won't be afraid to stand up for what isn't popular. I was so surprised by those who jumped on me in my escapade with arb elections. Just surprised even shocked. I hope we can gather together arbs who will listen and act with integrity and courage. I would like to se an arb with enough courage to change their minds even when the group is moving in another direction. Anyway, I didn't know Flyer but SV, well, I hope also she is happy. I feel sure she is!Littleolive oil (talk) 00:28, 25 November 2021 (UTC)

yes! - Thanksgiving music --Gerda Arendt (talk) 23:00, 25 November 2021 (UTC)

reply to Littleolive oil: I can't say I'm surprised by it all. That particular arb enters this years election on the heels of what was described as .. from a poor choice, to conduct unbecoming due to the discussion of an open case on an off-site wiki-critical website. So it's easy to imagine if one was feeling defensive right from the start. I could be wrong, but that's the way I saw it. It's easier to simply hat or delete discussion than to try to understand a POV and provide an acceptable rebuttal. Personally I think Beebs is a very likeable editor, but there have been times his judgement has been questioned. I'm personally not up to debating "no win" battles on wiki these days, so if someone else has a different view than mine, that's fine too. I do agree that ideally we would have a collection of arbs willing to look at both sides, listen to the editors, and comport themselves with honor, integrity, and compassion. It's nice to think about, but if you expect that, you're likely to be disappointed more often than not. — Ched (talk) 22:49, 27 November 2021 (UTC)

reply to Ched. I don't generally expect anything, but hope springs...! As for my recent encounter: What surprised me was that the arb apparently didn't need my vote, and didn't seem to think from what happened that other editors would mind his behavior. I was a little surprised too by all who thought the tone was a good idea. I certainly created the question from an emotional position given the year's losses but with a straightforward question like, "I'm not sure what you mean," could have rewritten it. However, I was actually trying to be nice by explaining, but clearly that was not a good idea. Live and learn and in future don't ask candidates questions. Littleolive oil (talk) 15:06, 28 November 2021 (UTC)

this comes to mind — Ched (talk) 18:05, 28 November 2021 (UTC)

Hah!!! Littleolive oil (talk) 00:48, 29 November 2021 (UTC)

Administrators' newsletter – December 2021

News and updates for administrators from the past month (November 2021).

Administrator changes

A Train • Berean Hunter • Epbr123 • GermanJoe • Sanchom • Mysid

Technical news

• Unregistered editors using the mobile website are now able to receive notices to indicate they have talk page messages. The notice looks similar to what is already present on desktop, and will be displayed on when viewing any page except mainspace and when editing any page. (T284642)
• The limit on the number of emails a user can send per day has been made global instead of per-wiki to help prevent abuse. (T293866)

Arbitration

• Voting in the 2021 Arbitration Committee Elections is open until 23:59, 06 December 2021 (UTC).
• The already authorized standard discretionary sanctions for all pages relating to the Horn of Africa (defined as including Ethiopia, Somalia, Eritrea, Djibouti, and adjoining areas if involved in related disputes), broadly construed, have been made permanent.

---

• Discuss this newsletter
• Subscribe
• Archive

Sent by MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 17:24, 3 December 2021 (UTC)

Boo!

Happy Halloween!

---

Hello Ched:
Thanks for all of your contributions to improve Wikipedia, and have a happy and enjoyable Halloween!
    —usernamekiran • sign the guestbook • (talk) 18:59, 30 October 2021 (UTC)

:-) .. Thank you Usernamekiran - and a happy Halloween to you. — Ched (talk) 23:50, 30 October 2021 (UTC)

Editing news 2022 #2

Read this in another language • Subscription list for this multilingual newsletter

The [subscribe] button shortens response times.

The new [subscribe] button notifies people when someone replies to their comments. It helps newcomers get answers to their questions. People reply sooner. You can read the report. The Editing team is turning this tool on for everyone. You will be able to turn it off in your preferences.

–Whatamidoing (WMF) (talk) 00:35, 26 August 2022 (UTC)

Administrators' newsletter – August 2022

News and updates for administrators from the past month (July 2022).

Administrator changes

Valereee

Anthony Appleyard (deceased) • Capitalistroadster • Samsara

Guideline and policy news

• An RfC has been closed with consensus to add javascript that will show edit notices for editors editing via a mobile device. This only works for users using a mobile browser, so iOS app editors will still not be able to see edit notices.
• An RfC has been closed with the consensus that train stations are not inherently notable.

Technical news

• The Wikimania 2022 Hackathon will take place virtually from 11 August to 14 August.
• Administrators will now see links on user pages for "Change block" and "Unblock user" instead of just "Block user" if the user is already blocked. (T308570)

Arbitration

• The arbitration case request Geschichte has been automatically closed after a 3 month suspension of the case.

Miscellaneous

• You can vote for candidates in the 2022 Board of Trustees elections from 16 August to 30 August. Two community elected seats are up for election.
• Wikimania 2022 is taking place virtually from 11 August to 14 August. The schedule for wikimania is listed here. There are also a number of in-person events associated with Wikimania around the world.
• Tech tip: When revision-deleting on desktop, hold ⇧ Shift between clicking two checkboxes to select every box in that range.

---

• Discuss this newsletter
• Subscribe
• Archive

Sent by MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 08:44, 5 August 2022 (UTC)

Administrators' newsletter – July 2022

News and updates for administrators from the past month (June 2022).

Administrator changes

AA • Gwalla • Ioeth • Laurascudder • Moriori (deceased) • Nat • Rfl

Drilnoth → AFigureOfBlue

Bureaucrat changes

Lee Vilenski

Interface administrator changes

Nihiltres

Technical news

• user_global_editcount is a new variable that can be used in abuse filters to avoid affecting globally active users. (T130439)

Arbitration

• An arbitration case regarding conduct in deletion-related editing has been opened.

Miscellaneous

• The New Pages Patrol queue has around 10,000 articles to be reviewed. As all administrators have the patrol right, please consider helping out. The queue is here. For further information on the state of the project, see the latest NPP newsletter.

---

• Discuss this newsletter
• Subscribe
• Archive

Sent by MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 13:28, 10 July 2022 (UTC)

Administrators' newsletter – June 2022

News and updates for administrators from the past month (May 2022).

Administrator changes

Tamzin

Barek • Darkwind • Geometry guy • ProcseeBot • RoyBoy • Sean Whitton • Valereee • Visorstuff • WAvegetarian

Sn0wflake → VersedFenrir

CheckUser changes

Ivanvector

Guideline and policy news

• Several areas of improvement collated from community member votes have been identified in the Universal Code of Conduct Enforcement guidelines. The areas of improvement have been sent back for review and you are invited to provide input on these areas.

Technical news

• Administrators using the mobile web interface can now access Special:Block directly from user pages. (T307341)
• The IP Info feature has been deployed to all wikis as a Beta Feature. Any autoconfirmed user may enable the feature using the "IP info" checkbox under Preferences → Beta features. Autoconfirmed users will be able to access basic information about an IP address that includes the country and connection method. Those with advanced privileges (admin, bureaucrat, checkuser) will have access to extra information that includes the Internet Service Provider and more specific location.

Arbitration

• Remedy 2 of the Rachel Marsden case has been rescinded following a motion. The remedy previously authorised administrators to delete or reduce to a stub, together with their talk pages, articles related to Rachel Marsden when they violate Wikipedia's biographies of living persons policy.
• An arbitration case regarding WikiProject Tropical Cyclones has been closed.

---

• Discuss this newsletter
• Subscribe
• Archive

Sent by MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 17:55, 2 June 2022 (UTC)

Editing newsletter 2022 – #1

Read this in another language • Subscription list for the multilingual newsletter • Local subscription list

New editors were more successful with this new tool.

The New topic tool helps editors create new ==Sections== on discussion pages. New editors are more successful with this new tool. You can read the report. Soon, the Editing team will offer this to all editors at most WMF-hosted wikis. You can join the discussion about this tool for the English Wikipedia is at Wikipedia:Village pump (proposals)#Enabling the New Topic Tool by default. You will be able to turn it off in the tool or at Special:Preferences#mw-prefsection-editing-discussion.

The Editing team plans to change the appearance of talk pages. These are separate from the changes made by the mw:Desktop improvements project and will appear in both Vector 2010 and Vector 2022. The goal is to add some information and make discussions look visibly different from encyclopedia articles. You can see some ideas at Wikipedia talk:Talk pages project#Prototype Ready for Feedback.

Whatamidoing (WMF) (talk)

23:14, 30 May 2022 (UTC)

Administrators' newsletter – September 2022

News and updates for administrators from the past month (August 2022).

Administrator changes

DanCherek • DatGuy • Femke • Z1720

Aldux • Graham Beards • Nyttend

Interface administrator changes

Mr. Stradivarius

Guideline and policy news

• A discussion is open to define a process by which Vector 2022 can be made the default for all users.
• An RfC is open to gain consensus on whether Fox News is reliable for science and politics.

Technical news

• The impact report on the effects of disabling IP editing on the Persian (Farsi) Wikipedia has been released.
• The WMF is looking into making a Private Incident Reporting System (PIRS) system to improve the reporting of harmful incidents through easier and safer reporting. You can leave comments on the talk page by answering the questions provided. Users who have faced harmful situations are also invited to join a PIRS interview to share the experience. To sign up please email Madalina Ana.

Arbitration

• An arbitration case regarding Conduct in deletion-related editing has been closed. The Arbitration Committee passed a remedy as part of the final decision to create a request for comment (RfC) on how to handle mass nominations at Articles for Deletion (AfD).
• The arbitration case request Jonathunder has been automatically closed after a 6 month suspension of the case.

Miscellaneous

• The new pages patrol (NPP) team has prepared an appeal to the Wikimedia Foundation (WMF) for assistance with addressing Page Curation bugs and requested features. You are encouraged to read the open letter before it is sent, and if you support it, consider signing it. It is not a discussion, just a signature will suffice.
• Voting for candidates for the Wikimedia Board of Trustees is open until 6 September.

---

• Discuss this newsletter
• Subscribe
• Archive

Sent by MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 11:11, 1 September 2022 (UTC)