Help talk:Resource types

Opposition to this page
This note is to record that during production of this page, I was placed under pressure not to continue the work (e.g. sarcastic comments describing the page as a joke). Creating a descriptive taxonomy of Wikiversity content production is possibly one of the most useful activities I have ever embarked on at Wikiversity and one which might have far-reaching consequences for informing and liberating ordinary users so that they can make wider use of Wikiversity. Some useful links on the topic of opposing the production/evolution of descriptive taxonomies: http://www.gustavholmberg.com/magnitude/2005/07/12/agnotology-the-cultural-production-of-ignorance and https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1096-0031.1997.tb00325.x --McCormack 07:54, 7 June 2008 (UTC)


 * This looks like a very important page - the normal English meanings of these words can vary, but we need to have some meaningful organisation here. Sorry that you seem to have quit Wikiversity and Wikipedia - without any obvious byebye message... Hope you come back soon. Boud 09:51, 21 June 2011 (UTC)

"Database" resource type
The "database" resource type occurred to me while analysing Moodle's resource type structure. Moodle allows contributors to run their own small databases. "The Database module allows the teacher and/or students to build, display and search a bank of record entries about any conceivable topic. The format and structure of these entries can be almost unlimited, including images, files, URLs, numbers and text amongst other things." (source: Moodle documentation). I once discussed with User:Darklama the needs of the Bloom Clock project, which effectively seemed to boil down to needing a (simple) database resource type. Mediawiki doesn't currently support this kind of thing. It may be worth looking at how Moodle supports user-defined databases. --McCormack 08:00, 7 June 2008 (UTC)

"Book" resource type
Technically books go on Wikibooks, but what happens when a book is also an educational resource in the narrower sense, such as a book on an educational topic, or a textbook for school or formal education? Perhaps some degree of overlap between the projects can be tolerated? Example: Assistant teacher course/Teachers' handbook by User:Fasten. --McCormack 09:12, 7 June 2008 (UTC)
 * I found Airplane Flying Handbook as well so I started Category:Books with a subcategory called Category:Training manuals. --McCormack 09:53, 15 June 2008 (UTC)

"Simulation" resource type
Lunar Boom Town is the Wikiversity project which made me think of this one. If I understand the intent of Lunar Boom Town, though, then in fact Lunar Boom Town is an umbrella project for many simulations. --McCormack 09:18, 7 June 2008 (UTC)
 * I subsequently added Category:simulations to the reformed Category:Activities. --McCormack 09:54, 15 June 2008 (UTC)

"Survey" resource type
The Moodle classification reminded me about User:SB_Johnny's experiments - e.g. Category:Wikimedia Demographics surveys. --McCormack 09:47, 7 June 2008 (UTC)

Case studies
Category:Case studies would be a sensible creation. --McCormack 13:54, 15 June 2008 (UTC)

"Activity" resource type
Activities is certainly a valid resource type. However existing classification on WV is rather dubious. Category:Activities is currently used only for fundraising! (Perhaps move this to Category:Wikiversity activities). And Category:Learning activities seems mostly to contain learning resources which are not activities - they were presumably classified as such because the creators didn't know what else to classify them as (there was no classification system) and the "learning activities" category at least had the word "learning" in it. --McCormack 09:24, 7 June 2008 (UTC)


 * I've partly sorted this one out. --McCormack 09:51, 15 June 2008 (UTC)

Miscellaneous resource types
Category:Miscellaneous resource types is being used for a bunch of stuff I found floating around the place which I didn't know what to do with. Quite a lot of them have reference function, and some of them might go in a tools category. --McCormack 13:49, 15 June 2008 (UTC)

Brainstorming list of possible further concepts
Can't currently find any of these on WV, but might be worth returning to. --McCormack 13:53, 15 June 2008 (UTC)


 * Roleplays
 * Exercises
 * Drills