Search

[GreenReaper]

Not technically the same people, actually... Wikia and the Wikimedia Foundation happen to share a number of members, but they're otherwise completely separate entities. But of course, I have no doubts that the FIA is secretly controlling the latter, too.

Now who's spoiling the conspiracy?

In truth, they are separate organizations, but there are several top people involved in both. In fact, there is a discussion about this that just started at Wikipedia. I spend quite a lot of time with the Wikia staff (they paid for me to present at Wikimania), and I happen to know that Wikipedia and Wikia were both started on the very same server, ross.bomis.com (at different times, obviously). If that's not suspicious I don't know what is! *grin*

[GreenReaper]

btw: nice you are here, when will YOU attend EF ?
i'm eager to meet you IRL :-)

I should really have dropped by when I lived in the UK, but I didn't know about it. Maybe next year, if I have the time free. Alas, there is not as much holiday here in the US as in Europe!

[Schneelocke]

In truth, they are separate organizations, but there are several top people involved in both. In fact, there is a discussion about this that just started at Wikipedia. I spend quite a lot of time with the Wikia staff (they paid for me to present at Wikimania), and I happen to know that Wikipedia and Wikia were both started on the very same server, ross.bomis.com (at different times, obviously). If that's not suspicious I don't know what is! *grin*

Oh? Interesting - I don't remember the absolutely earliest days of Wikipedia (I only did my first edits - that I can still find, at least - at the very end of 2001 and didn't sign up until in May 2003), but wasn't Wikia founded much later, after Wikipedia was already occupying several servers? (It was on three when I started in 2003...)

Of course, I don't actually *know*, but I always was under the impression that Wikia was only started long after Bomis was not directly involved with Wikipedia anymore.

[somewolf]

can we maybe go back to the topic:
blaming me for conduction those anouncements in this specific matter
and finding a solution on who'll do this ugly job next year

*trying to distract from the fia*


*wag*
just
somewolf



psst! o'wolf could you please do your job and spread some of this 'truth(tm)' again

[GreenReaper]

In truth, they are separate organizations, but there are several top people involved in both. In fact, there is a discussion about this that just started at Wikipedia. I spend quite a lot of time with the Wikia staff (they paid for me to present at Wikimania), and I happen to know that Wikipedia and Wikia were both started on the very same server, ross.bomis.com (at different times, obviously). If that's not suspicious I don't know what is! *grin*

Oh? Interesting - I don't remember the absolutely earliest days of Wikipedia (I only did my first edits - that I can still find, at least - at the very end of 2001 and didn't sign up until in May 2003), but wasn't Wikia founded much later, after Wikipedia was already occupying several servers? (It was on three when I started in 2003...)

Of course, I don't actually *know*, but I always was under the impression that Wikia was only started long after Bomis was not directly involved with Wikipedia anymore.

Yes, this is the case. It moved off Bomis servers after it started getting significant funding. Wikia was initially just the name of Jimbo's company that created Wikiasari, a "user-directed search" project, something like a directory. That project never really got going (like Nupedia). In late 2004 they started Wikicities instead, once it became clear that Wikipedia could not fulfill the needs of all wiki users. I joined on Christmas 2004, about a month after they started their first wikis, and have been involved since then. Earlier this year Wikicities became Wikia instead, as people got confused as to whether it was wikis about cities.

Hehe, sorry somewolf . . . I should get going now, I have work to do.

[Schneelocke]

can we maybe go back to the topic:
blaming me for conduction those anouncements in this specific matter
and finding a solution on who'll do this ugly job next year

OK... sorry. We kinda got sidetracked here, I guess. That being said, the only thing I'd personally say should be changed (IMO; YMMV) would be that the announcements are taking too long. Something like "attention please, the art show's gonna close in 15 minutes! I repeat, the art show is going to close in 15 minutes!" shouldn't take more than 20 seconds or so (a number I just made up, admittedly, but you'll catch my drift); at EF12, the announcements always seemed to draw out forever.

That, and the accent... it's OK if you've just got one, of course, but it very much sounded like it was intentional this year.

[SouthPaw]

Well I liked somewolf's announcements, though I'd have to agree on the speed issue.

Having said that, I seem to remember reading that "best practice" for doing PAs is to speak around 30% slower than you normally would. For an event like Eurofurence, I would say that doing so is particularly important, given that most of the attendees don't have English as their first language.

Cheers,

Southie

[Lions_]

you have to come up with something to make everyfur listen

unfortunately it took sometimes about 40 seconds until all that  "Attention please" was over.
so most of the people already stopped listening when the actual anouncement was finally spoken.

[somewolf]

i'd like to let everyone know that i won't do any anouncements anymore at ef
i just don't like being critizised for this since it wasn't my choice  to do this job in the first time

and of course i want to give everone else the chance to do this better than i did

yes it sucks
it's always the same ... get lost or do a better service for the ones who needed the anouncements :-)

do it better ... i'm waiting

just
somewolf

[Lions_]

it's always the same ... get lost or do a better service for the ones who needed the anouncements
do it better ... i'm waiting

THATS the reason why i wont do ANY job at EF any more
been through it. got the t-shirt.

[Eisfuchs]

Then you obviously didn't do a better job

[Schneelocke]

i just don't like being critizised for this

If that's how you feel, it may indeed be better if you don't do the announcements anymore. I mean... everyone really appreciates the time and energy you put into helping out at the con (I do, at least), but being able to deal with the fact that people may have suggestions for changes and improvements seems like a rather crucial thing to me, too. It's not only unrealistic to expect people to keep quiet all the time and say that everything's perfect even though they have criticisms, it also will make it impossible to actually improve things by addressing concerns (one way or another).

[Lions_]

Then you obviously didn't do a better job

well, mostly because if someone does something, he is told by EVERYONE that he is a looser and did the worse job ever.
then you see someone else doing that job, also quite good and he is also told that he did the worse job ever....
doesnt matter what was done
doesnt matter who said it.
fact is, whatever you do, someone expects something else but still cant tell you WHAT you did wrong.

and whats even worse is when someone tells you that you did something wrong that wasnt even your job or noone told you that you should do it.
But it doesnt matter if someone told you to do it or not. it wasnt done, its your fault and so youre incompetent.

[Eisfuchs]

Strangely I did never hear that myself, but, it might be that nobody noticed how badly I did my jobs, including those I was never supposed to do

[Lions_]

or that noone dares to criticize the great and only 'Eisfuchs'

naaw.. i think youre doing a great job
but i can't talk about experiences with you since i've never been responsible for your doings