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1. Your name, affiliation2. Have you ever edited Wikipedia
before? 3. What are you hoping to get out
of today’s event?
Introductions
Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia
• Freely licensed without restrictions• All content created & maintained by
volunteers• Non-profit educational project, supported by
Wikimedia Foundation• All edits/versions are recorded indefinitely• Software: MediaWiki
Biggest. Encyclopedia. Ever.
• 5,029,029+ articles in English (see size of Wikipedia)
• 35 million+ articles in 288 different languages
“A Wikipedia article is a process, not a product.” -Clay Shirky
Global community site:https://meta.wikimedia.org
A Hybrid of Tool & Community
Who or what merits an article in Wikipedia?
If a person or topic has received significant coverage in reliable sources that are independent of the subject, then it is deemed “notable.”
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Notability Or type in search shortcut WP:N
Wikipedia Content Standards
• Neutral Point of View• Verifiability
reliable sources, cited correctly• No “original research”
i.e. unpublished data, opinions, speculation
• Assume good faith towards other editors
• Avoid conflict of interest (i.e. creating a page about yourself) See Wikipedia: Policies and guidelines
Do I have to register an account?
No, but there are lots of advantages to doing so.
• A record of your work builds credibility & signals membership in the community
• More privacy, since anonymous contributors’ IP address is recorded
• More editing privileges: ability to create/rename articles, upload images, edit preferences
NOTE: There should be a 1:1 ratio between editors and accounts on Wikipedia. Shared accounts are not allowed.
Can I edit the Wikipedia article about my workplace? My boss? My grandma?
Possibly, but ONLY under the right conditions.
“When advancing outside interests is more important to an editor than advancing the aims of Wikipedia, that editor stands in a conflict of interest (CoI).”
Your #1 priority must be: making a better, more useful encyclopedia article.
Avoid Conflict of Interest Editing
• Register a unique user account • Disclose your affiliations (see
sample CoI Statement)
• Cite authoritative sources • Don’t remove “controversies”• Recognize that no one person can
“own” a Wikipedia article or control its content
For overachievers!
Related articles
Non-Wiki external links
Footnotes – inserted in body but display here
Step 1 - Register a user account
1. Go to en.wikipedia.org, click “Create Account”
2. Choose a username and password
Step 2 –Turn on “Visual Editor”
1. Click the Preferences link at the top of the page2. Visit the Beta features tab, scroll down and check
the box “VisualEditor”
Edit Source Edit beta
MediaWiki software markup language
Type WP:CHEAT in the search box for more information
a.k.a. “Visual Editor,” what you see is what you get (WYSIWYG)
Type WP:VE/UG in the search box for more information
Relatively simple to learn, especially if you have any experience with HTML
Familiar symbols for formatting, similar to word processing programs
Best for ultimate control and ability to customize the page; working with wiki “templates” {{ }}
Best for making straightforward textual edits, adding links, headings, etc.
Not very good for people who dislike or get confused by markup languages! Also it is easy to lose your place, or make a typo. Always click “Show Preview” before saving!
Not very good for the more complex wiki markup, such as “templates” {{ }}, still a work in progress, so it can be buggy and/or confusing at times.
Step 3 - Create a user page or sandbox
1. Click the red link at the top with your username on it, or “sandbox”
2. Write something and click Show Preview. 3. Save.
It is good to get in the habit of leaving a comment too!
Images: Wikimedia Commons vs. “Non-free Use” rationale
Wikimedia Commons imagecommons.wikimedia.orgExample: Teton Range
Non-free imageen.wikipedia.orgExample: Look Mickey
WikimediaDC.org
To stay in touch and attend future events in the D.C. area