Wikipedia embraces wider vandal lockout scheme

Iria · Dec 18, 2005, 12:39 AM

Wikipedia is getting a new feature called "Semi-protection" to help its its fight against article vandalism. Straight from the (temporarily locked for editing) description page:

Semi-protection of a page prevents the newest X% of registered users and all unregistered users from editing that page. Semi-protection is only applied if the page in question is facing a serious vandalism problem. It is not an appropriate solution to editorial disputes of any kind since it may restrict some editors and not others. Administrators apply semi-protection in the same manner as current full protection against vandalism is applied — either on their own initiative or following an alert on an article's talk page, requests for page protection, the administrator's noticeboard or some other relevant page. Semi-protection is only to be applied as a response to serious vandalism and not as a pre-emptive measure against the threat or probability of vandalism, such as when certain pages suddenly become high profile due to current events. Only when there is evidence of a serious problem of vandalism should semi-protection be applied.

Bravo! But alas, please no applause. Founder Jimmy Wales is telling people that this isn't news.

I see that some news media have picked this story up as if it is important. Please please please don't do that. This is one of many changes to the software which are coming soon, including the ability to put pages into a 'validated' state (better name should be determined) and so on. Treating this as a major policy change is therefore a huge huge error being made by people who have no understanding of how Wikipedia works.--Jimbo Wales 16:00, 17 December 2005 (UTC)

Of course, there is a difference between this change being "important" and it being a "major policy change," but whatever that difference is, Wales doesn't want to put it into words. Records indicate that this editorial change, which was first forumulated in late November, is part of a larger attempt to produce stablized content.
___________
Read More / Source: Ars Technica

Dec 18, 2005, 12:39 AM	#1
Iria DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 7,275 Rep Power: 89	Wikipedia embraces wider vandal lockout scheme Wikipedia is getting a new feature called "Semi-protection" to help its its fight against article vandalism. Straight from the (temporarily locked for editing) description page: Semi-protection of a page prevents the newest X% of registered users and all unregistered users from editing that page. Semi-protection is only applied if the page in question is facing a serious vandalism problem. It is not an appropriate solution to editorial disputes of any kind since it may restrict some editors and not others. Administrators apply semi-protection in the same manner as current full protection against vandalism is applied — either on their own initiative or following an alert on an article's talk page, requests for page protection, the administrator's noticeboard or some other relevant page. Semi-protection is only to be applied as a response to serious vandalism and not as a pre-emptive measure against the threat or probability of vandalism, such as when certain pages suddenly become high profile due to current events. Only when there is evidence of a serious problem of vandalism should semi-protection be applied. Bravo! But alas, please no applause. Founder Jimmy Wales is telling people that this isn't news. I see that some news media have picked this story up as if it is important. Please please please don't do that. This is one of many changes to the software which are coming soon, including the ability to put pages into a 'validated' state (better name should be determined) and so on. Treating this as a major policy change is therefore a huge huge error being made by people who have no understanding of how Wikipedia works.--Jimbo Wales 16:00, 17 December 2005 (UTC) Of course, there is a difference between this change being "important" and it being a "major policy change," but whatever that difference is, Wales doesn't want to put it into words. Records indicate that this editorial change, which was first forumulated in late November, is part of a larger attempt to produce stablized content. ___________ Read More / Source: Ars Technica