#TechLadiesWiki

and you can too!

Sara Snyder@sosarasays

1. Wikimedia DC is awesomewikimediadc.org @WikimediaDC

2. #GLAMwiki community is also awesome!

Shameless Plugs

1. Your name2. What is your level of experience

contributing to Wikipedia? 3. What are you hoping to get out

of your participation today?

Introductions

We all use Wikipedia, but what do we really know about it?

Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia

• MediaWiki software

• Freely licensed without restrictions

• All content created & maintained by volunteers

• Non-profit educational project, supported by Wikimedia Foundation

• All edits/versions are recorded indefinitely

• 4,853,274+ articles in English, 35 million articles in 288 different languages (see size of Wikipedia)

“A Wikipedia article is a process, not a product.” -Clay Shirky

Global community site:https://meta.wikimedia.org

Biggest. Encyclopedia. Ever.

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:NotabilityOr type in search shortcut WP:N

Wikipedia Content Standards

• Neutral Point of View

• Verifiabilityreliable sources, cited correctly

• No “original research” i.e. unpublished data, opinions, speculation

• Assume good faith towards other editors

• Avoid conflict of interest (i.e. editing page about self, boss) See Wikipedia: Policies

and guidelines

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

ANATOMY OF AN ARTICLE

LETS START EDITING!

Step 1 - Register a user account

1. Go to en.wikipedia.org, click “Create Account”

2. Choose a username and password There should be a 1:1 ratio between editors and accounts on

Wikipedia. Sharing an account is not allowed, so you should notcreate an account in the name of your organization.

Advantages of registering an account: – A record of your work builds credibility

– More privacy, since anonymous contributors’ IP address is recorded

– Ability to create/rename articles, upload images, edit preferences

– Signals membership in the community

Step 2 – Want a WYSIWYG? Turn on “Visual Editor”

1. Click the Preferences link at the top of the page

2. 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!

Citing Sources

Creating a new article

1. Do some searching around to confirm the article doesn’t exist under a different name.

2. Draft the article stub in your user Sandbox.

3. Search (unsuccessfully) for the exact name of the article you want to create.

4. Click on the resulting redlink to create the page, paste in code from your Sandbox, Save.

NOTE: “Submit for review” button is not required for registered editors.

Images: Wikimedia Commons vs. “Non-free Use” rationale

Wikimedia Commons image

commons.wikimedia.org

Example: Teton Range

Non-free imageen.wikipedia.orgExample: Look Mickey

Thank others for their work!

Ways to bring a positive & collaborative spirit to the community