Wikipedia: Wikipetiquette/Talk

Difference (from prior major revision) (author diff)

Removed: 18,27d17

I removed the following from the article since I believe there is some disagreement about it. Joao:

But I'm free to do whatever I please here. This is a wiki, right?

:No, you're not free to do anything here; Wikipedia doesn't belong to you. This is something most people learn to deal with by the time they're seven years old or so, though some people clearly never learn. This server is the private property of Bomis, Inc., who graciously chooses to allow nearly everyone to do certain things that serve its goal of creating an encyclopedia. If you don't agree with their goals or their methods, you can certainly discuss that with them, but if they make a decision it is theirs to make. If you can't support those goals, then go buy your own server.

A little partisan controversy never hurt anybody. We all know we're ultimately engaged in building an encyclopedia. Why try to stop people from doing what comes naturally? A little controversy won't spoil anything--I don't see what you're concerned about.

:Good point, maybe we are blowing things out of proportion, a little. Even if Wikipedia would continue to grow and thrive with the controversy, some of us think it would be better off without it. It seems we have wasted hundreds of hours, altogether, engaged in pointless debates that we could have avoided with tact, maturity, and attention to the task at hand. We could have been rather further along than we are now, perhaps with more participants, as well. If we can start a good anti-partisan-bickering habit now, then, in the years ahead, future Wikipedians will thank us for it.

TheCunctator deleted:

: We know all too well that we can't tell you what to do.

(Whether he was right or wrong to do so, in light of recent events, I don't know -- but I would like to at least keep a record here that the page once read that.) -- SJK

I think you're according Cunctator's edits far too much importance, Simon. --LMS

I have to disagree with this Q/A:

: But I'm free to do whatever I please here. This is a wiki, right?

: Well, you're free, yes. But we do have some community habits and standards,...

The only correct answer to this question is No, you're not free to do anything here; Wikipedia doesn't belong to you. This is something most people learn to deal with by the time they're seven years old or so, though some people clearly never learn. This server is the private property of Bomis, Inc., who graciously chooses to allow nearly everyone to do certain things that serve its goal of creating an encyclopedia. If you don't agree with their goals or they're methods, you can certainly discuss that with them, but if they make a decision it is theirs to make. If you can't support those goals, then go buy your own server. Bomis should be much clearer about this. --Lee Daniel Crocker

Is it just me, or does the Wikipetiquette page read like a page out of [B. F. Skinner]?'s notebook? ;-) --STG