User talk:JWSchmidt/More 2007 discussions

Note: this is an archive of old discussions. Please do not edit this page. Continue these discussions at User talk:JWSchmidt. There are other archives at User talk:JWSchmidt/Discussion archive.

Writing documentation for quiz extension
I'm currently part of a small team at MediaWiki writing documentation for the quiz extension (the one which is already implemented on en.wikiversity.org). It looks to me as if the most sensible place to add it would be Help:Quiz. However I'm not exactly an old hand around here yet and hesitate to jump into extending the official help system? Be bold? Or is there a more sensible place for this documentation? McCormack 09:29, 7 April 2007 (UTC)

We've got jorbis
Hey JWS ... got this out of a discussion with gmaxwell on wikimedia-tech. http://tools.wikimedia.de/~gmaxwell/jorbis/JOrbisPlayer.php?path=Wikio_3_with_license.OGG&wiki=enwiki&wtype=wikiversity

Should we include this on our sound links? Let me know. Historybuff 20:26, 11 April 2007 (UTC)

Probationary Custodianship...
Thank you for the opportunity to be a probationary custodian. I appreciate you having slapped me around in the past, and I presume you will do so in the future when appropriate =). I will do my best to help the community and make Wikiversity a great place. --Remi 05:11, 12 April 2007 (UTC)

Case policy/guidlines?
Are you aware of policies on Wikiversity about casing? For example, should Managerial_Economics be Managerial economics, and be  ? --Remi 22:19, 18 April 2007 (UTC)
 * Thank you; it was hiding from me. :) --Remi 22:36, 18 April 2007 (UTC)

Flashcards
Did you ever use flash card s when you went to university? I did. I had a big stack of Biology cards and soon divided them into ones I knew, and ones I didn't. Because they were hard copies the stacks stayed put until the next day when I went through my ever dwindling "don't know" pile. That way I could focus on the ones I don't know. It sounds trivial but all the virtual flash card applications don't do this. They may have a temporary hide, but if you ever leave the webpage or logout, it's all back to one pile.

Well I think it would be SWELL if we could do the same thing virtually here in the Merry Ole Wikivesity. Except it would have to be tied to a login somehow so that that person's cards would stay in the piles they set.

Do you think it's a good idea? If so, do you know someone with the technical expertise to make it? Andrew 22:32, 19 April 2007 (UTC)

Are we having fun yet? (10th grade computer science students=vandals)
I think the mystery is partially solved. I believe that the vandalism is by students of Russell Zahniser, better known to most people as "Mr. Z." who is a teacher at Boston Latin Academy. One of the vandals created a page for him. This year he is teaching 10th grade Physics and AP Computer Science. I am trying to contact him now.

The newest vandalism is by User:Josh Rimer. Please rollback.

Do we have a list of all the names that the vandals used in the last month? Robert Elliott 05:12, 21 April 2007 (UTC)

With regards to the portal of life sciences...
I was going to fix it, but it looks like you did, so I will not take action unless it turns out my understanding is incorrect. --Remi 17:58, 21 April 2007 (UTC)

modified templates
I see that you reverted an edit to Template:Unknown license The same user also modified Template:Upload Information which looks bogus. I don't know enough about template syntax to judge for sure.--mikeu 14:40, 22 April 2007 (UTC)

question on footnotes
I am sure this is a naive question, but I am a new wiki user and have been adding footnotes using. Anyway, I can't seem to be able to get rid of some footnotes. See This page.] Sometimes they magically disappear though. Any suggestions or explanations? Toddkaplan 16:17, 22 April 2007 (UTC)

Re:question about your edit
Oh! I'm sorry that I can't add the link to the Chinese Wikiversity from the Main Page of the English Wikiversity. I found that there is a Chinese Wikiversity just before and I wanted to put a link right in the Main Page. --Chaplin 09:28, 23 April 2007 (UTC)

Need a picture
I remember seeing a picture which I think you created which looks like Wikiversity icon at Holloween. Where is this image? I need it for a page I am working on (about software bugs). Robert Elliott 07:47, 25 April 2007 (UTC) Got it! Thanks Robert Elliott

Biochem and Pharmacy
Hello. Oddly enough (?) linking

to Pharmacy in the Biochem front page, Schools, leads to editing, not to school:pharmacy. Help? HolyZarkon 22:21, 25 April 2007 (UTC)

It works. Thanks. HolyZarkon 13:14, 26 April 2007 (UTC)

Categories and naming...
I'm trying to figure out how to make the category equivalent. There seems to be a lot of links... sort of like a messy spiderweb.

On another note, with respect to naming pages, it seems it would be prudent to keep names of things like "School:" "Topic:" and "Category:" closely conforming to naming conventions on Wikipedia so that way interwiki links will actually work when used as dynamic templates. On the other hand, things like courses, research projects, and some other pages in the main namespace, that would have no interwiki equivilant anyway, could be more flexible in the naming (i.e. Caps Wherever Is Appropriate). After all, on research papers and syllabi in brick and mortar colleges you would not see "Introduction to calculus", you would see "Introduction to Calculus"; and APA formatting states that main headings should use caps liberally on papers.

I hope that was clear, and if you have any suggestions or insights on how I could go about efficiently and effectively changing a category in such a way that it is functionally the same and also conforms to naming standards it would be appreciated. --Remi 19:48, 26 April 2007 (UTC)

Voice Conference
I don't know if this is the appropriate place, but anyway here we go. The thing I mentioned yesterday is at [teamspeak]. The client does record sessions. There's server-side software too. Non-profit orgs can use it for free. HolyZarkon 11:20, 28 April 2007 (UTC)

If you (or anybody else) feels like doing a few tests I might help if need be. I think that if there's an advantage (?) over Skype that's the ability to have channels you can enter instead of being called into them, though you can "shut the door" too. (And you can set up your own server.) HolyZarkon 09:03, 29 April 2007 (UTC)

Thanks
Hi John - I just got the buttons today. Thanks for your support - it meant a lot to me! --HappyCamper 02:52, 29 April 2007 (UTC)

Image source
Hi JWSchmidt. You should really mention exactly what image you used as a source for creating Image:Wikiuser.png on its image description page, preferably with a link, just so others can verify the license of the original work. Thanks. Mdd4696 15:16, 29 April 2007 (UTC)

Biochemisty

 * 1) Typo on the link to create a page created a "Medical Biochemisty" (no "r") page. Obviously I cannot delete the entry, to my knowledge. (I hat these keyboards, and they hate me) HolyZarkon 21:39, 1 May 2007 (UTC)


 * 1) I created the wikis for Biochem Medicines (Human and Vet), Biology and left the main as Chemistry.

The pet food crisis
Thanks for the great idea. That makes two :-) HolyZarkon 09:49, 3 May 2007 (UTC)

Vandalism
Reverting a few pages is ok. But when a troll goes on doing it repeatedly he needs to be stopped before his deeds. How do i report vandalism to a sysop or administrator quickly?? Bduttabaruah 19:14, 5 May 2007 (UTC)

I will keep that in mind the next time I see a vandal scourging wikiversity!! Bduttabaruah 10:26, 6 May 2007 (UTC)

Changing username.
Hello. Do you think you'd be able to change the custodian status from this username User:Remi0o to User:Remi? Thanks. --Remi 22:49, 7 May 2007 (UTC)
 * Oh, yeah. :-o --Remi 22:54, 7 May 2007 (UTC)

Thanks
Thanks for your help in medicine...if you want to help out more, let me know...i need it bad!PalMD 12:32, 8 May 2007 (UTC)


 * I have to parse that out a little. Why don't we lay out a general plan for level, tone, etc.  I'll start something here.--PalMD 18:18, 8 May 2007 (UTC)


 * Question: i put up an image of the staff of aesclepius on the Internal Med page. I'd like that to actually be a link button back to the school of med, and maybe use that on the school of med mainpage.  I have no clue how to do that.  A little help?--PalMD 13:30, 10 May 2007 (UTC)


 * If you are not a fan of that format, feel free to remove your edit, but that is what I had in mind. I'd like to think about using the image on School of Med main pages just as an identifier, but im not a wikigeek, so i'll take any advice i can get.--PalMD 14:09, 10 May 2007 (UTC)


 * Copyright image question: university logos? Any public domain or the like that you know of, or any regulations governing the posting of such images? --PalMD 19:16, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

Thanks again. If you or someone else has a chance, something is wrong with my reference structure in my STD article. Thanks.PalMD 20:39, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

What the hell is this Trentacosta thing? Is it for real???PalMD 02:56, 11 May 2007 (UTC)

Introduction to Psychology
[] I saw you moved other content to Topic:Introduction to Psychology. However, Topic:Introduction to Psychology seems to be a course. I moved the content over to Introduction to Psychology for merging. Would I be incorrect in now deleting Topic:Introduction to Psychology? --Remi 23:06, 16 May 2007 (UTC)

Templates
In the end I only identified 6 which needed the treatment. One could continue to pro-active treatment of other high risk templates, but this might be going too far at this stage. McCormack 06:02, 17 May 2007 (UTC)

Fair Enough
Thank you for the response. And yes I understand the reversionof the edit I may not agree entirely, but I can see your point regarding the Mission. Once again Thank you and Thanks for the welcome as well. Regards.DrMacIntyre 15:39, 18 May 2007 (UTC)

Focus
There's so much to do here. I'm curious...what are your current interests/priorities on Wikiversity? --HappyCamper 05:35, 19 May 2007 (UTC)


 * I'd like to edit the main namespace more in the upcoming months. I think Wikiversity needs a clear example of a self-sustaining learning project. I've set my sights on building Portal:German at the moment, so I made some modifications to Portal in preparation for this. Eventually, I'd like to concentrate on developing science related topics. My wishlist also includes modifying pages in the MediaWiki namespace so that some editing conveniences will be available to newcomers. There's also the welcome template, which I think should be simplified somewhat. I also want to get to know the community a bit better...you included of course! :-) --HappyCamper 07:21, 19 May 2007 (UTC)


 * Sorry for the late reply - poor internet connection. "....[difficult] to artificially push volunteer wiki editors in a particular direction." <-- I agree. I rather admire Wiki Campus Radio, but I highly doubt we will see a sandbox server anytime soon. I personally like the idea of a collaboration of the month on the main page. Maybe we should revisit this issue somewhere, but for now I'd rather work on other things. I'll take a look at the Box portal skeleton, but it looks a little too complicated. I was thinking of building it from the ground up so it would be easier to document all the concerns/needs that a portal should address (after all, I noticed that you made Topic:Wiki/The newbie experience), but I'll take a closer look at the template for sure. --HappyCamper 01:04, 22 May 2007 (UTC)

Custodianship
Thank you for having taken the time to mentor me, and thank you in general for helping to develop Wikiversity. This is a great endeavor, and I hope to be able to continually contribute to its success. --Remi 20:21, 20 May 2007 (UTC)

Wikiversity Course
I just wanted to share that I have "finished" creating a full (if not short) online course using Wikiversity combined with a Wikibook. The project is "Teaching with Applied Academics" and I'd love to get your feedback about it. --Jacob Walker 23:57, 21 May 2007 (UTC)

Shared
Quick questions: What's the typical block length on Wikiversity, and does the fact that w:User_talk:203.29.244.7 appear to be a shared IP change how we block here? --HappyCamper 02:57, 23 May 2007 (UTC)
 * OK, that makes sense. I hesitated to do anything myself, so I was happy to see someone take action. Cheers, --HappyCamper 03:13, 23 May 2007 (UTC)

Rethink
Thanks for your help with my 'proposal'. The more I read about wikiversity, the more ideas I get. I need somewhere to put them, something like a 'white paper' section on wikiversity. I will want to re-edit furiously, without losing the valuable comments. The incubator is a good idea, but is it suitable for brainstorming ideas? The thinktank might be a better place, but I'd also like to get my website on the internet. PeterMG 01:48, 24 May 2007 (UTC)

Hi
Hi, After a long wikiversity break. I have returned. Student Galaxy 13:09, 28 May 2007 (UTC)

Mathematics website
Hi, I'm a PhD student of applied mathematics and I created a mathematics wiki. Can I put a link to it on the Mathematics portal page at wikiversity?

www.ExampleProblems.com

Thanks

Tbsmith 03:18, 29 May 2007 (UTC)

Question about References
I seem to be having a problem with references on my pages. I've written two entries for PHP so far, and with both, even though I only declare a single reference, yet the reference seems to multiply to 3 or 4 of the same entry when I save the page. I cannot quite figure out why this is happening. Any insight into this would be great. Thanks!

Ghenson 14:45, 5 June 2007 (UTC)

Thanks
The ?action=purge did it. Thanks for the heads up on this!

Welcome template
If you have a minute, could you share your thoughts on Template talk:Welcome/new? --HappyCamper 18:10, 8 June 2007 (UTC)

Thank you
Thank you for answering my question about deletion of media files. --Kittybriton 20:19, 8 June 2007 (UTC)

exciting new work
Hello JWSchmidt, I read your user page with interest, particularly the bit about encouraging new models for research and learning with Wikiversity. I'm applying for a grant for my work - do I need permission to mention Wikiversity in the proposal? Open Research 20:50, 10 June 2007 (UTC)

Thanks for your help JWSchmidt! There is a very good chance of success, as my proposal has already been shortlisted, but I would like to change it to involve Wikiversity now. One of the central aims is a new model for research.

Free learning
Wow... Just looked at your Free Learning pages again. They have given me ideas about how to structure my pages. The power of the wiki format is quite something. Thanks for sharing everyone.Open Research 07:54, 12 June 2007 (UTC)

Research project - new school
"It then becomes an interesting exercise to ask which tasks can fruitfully be done with wiki technology" - yes, this is exactly what I am wrestling with at the moment. If a project requires collaborative content production, course learning material, but also evaluation of an activity's effectiveness, what implications does this have..? how does the real mix with the virtual? I am also interested about doing things that havent been done before, and I am interested in using media in combination, and the possibilities that this opens up... If you can point to references which highlight the strengths and weaknesses of different platforms/media for different uses, I'd be interested to read.

Could you also let me know, have you decided not to list the A. S. Neill School of Free Learning on the main list of schools because it is in development, or is it just that I am looking for its listing in the wrong place? I ask because I have been hesitating and I wonder if others use multi-stage strategies... thanks for sharing Open Research 21:07, 12 June 2007 (UTC)

Bureaucratship
Hi John, thanks for the notes on the custodianship cycle. This reminds me, what are we to do with your nomination for bureaucratship? Is there anything significant remaining to be done on Bureaucratship (which was your main criteria for waiting)? If not, I propose we close it as successful, or perhaps have a final comment period, if that would make you feel more comfortable. Cormaggio talk 08:21, 14 June 2007 (UTC)
 * Thanks - I just wanted to make sure that you wouldn't mind moving this towards closure - I would be very happy to have one more bureaucrat - especially since Sebmol isn't always around and neither am I. Just a bit busy at the moment, so can't do anything until later this evening, but feel free to do this yourself... Cormaggio talk 13:49, 14 June 2007 (UTC)

Hello
Hello John. Thanks for the welcome to Wikiversity. See ya round. Jimp 17:14, 14 June 2007 (UTC)

Re:Primary education—Thanks for the links, I'll have to check them out when I've got a chance. Jimp 17:27, 14 June 2007 (UTC)

Science Journalism
Hi again JWSchmidt, I'm starting to make useful contributions, with some wobbling on the way (getting used to namespace conventions). Could you tell me, how do you find out who started pages? Is it in the history? Did you start the Science Journalism Centre? I have lots to add to that... all bestOpen Research 18:23, 14 June 2007 (UTC)

counting contributions
Hi JWSchmidt, thanks for your help with the portal. Could you tell me, does the 'contributions' part of the software keep a tally of a users contributions, or does it wipe them off after a while. I am thinking about how one might devise a system to work out how much (or how little) people are contributing. Does the contributions page keep its tally or delete it? Open Research 08:09, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Energy Storage pages
Hi JWSchmidt, I've registered and starting to add more to the energy storage page. Please feel free to add more suggestions. The sections with least content, I will start moving to separate pages and for the moment, I will hang on to the ones with more subtitles and move later so as to keep the flow going. I'd like to know a bit more how we can still make each of the main sections flow together yet tie in with the idea that they are separate lectures, course or whatever. --Terence wiki 21:58, 25 June 2007 (UTC)

proposal from Vishal
Hi JWSchmidt, yes, the propsal is from me... its under development right now. If you have any suggestions, I would love to hear from you. All good wishes, Open Research 01:15, 27 June 2007 (UTC)

Nonsense pages...
Have you seen this? --HappyCamper 22:58, 28 June 2007 (UTC)
 * My first thought was actually this page. Seems simpler if these nonsense pages become a bigger issue. --HappyCamper 01:51, 29 June 2007 (UTC)