MediaWiki talk:Copyrightwarning

My opinion is that the new format is too long. I feel strongly about this. I feel three lines should be sufficient, e.g:


 * Using categories
 * ...your choice here...
 * Editing, Images, Templates and Tables.

James 11:52, 28 February 2008 (PST)


 * James - Actually, several people have suggested to me that something like this is needed (here, not in a link) for editing that is not covered in the buttons. Is this a practical objection, that you have further to scroll to the buttons? If that's your objection, it might be possible to put this under the buttons, which is something like Wikipedia does (they combine a copyright notice with a large (ugly?) Javascript window for adding markup and accented characters/symbols).


 * Needing to publicise the new TableEdit was the final spur to try out what a few people had been suggesting (if we don't publicise TableEdit here, or the recently added templates, how do you propose users who don't look at recent changes would find out about them?). I am sure we would both like users to employ tables more, and this extension might facilitate that.


 * Another short-term reason for doing it is that the "Editing Help" link is broken, and the current help it can be redirected to is not that good, though I have tried to improve it a little.


 * I am not 100% sure I like this either, but as stated I felt we had to publicise TableEdit at least for a time, and it made little sense just to put that there on its own. At the moment, I think it should stop as is, and we'll see if anyone else joins your side of the argument, though most likely it won't stop like that permanently in any case. Gale

I've rephrased my objection (see above), and hope in it's revised form it is OK with you.

It's not the scrolling. It's the having this on every single edit page. On my 19" monitor it's taking up one third of the page.

I can see a very real value in publicising the Table Edit feature. But we could achieve that goal with one line:


 * Check out Advanced Editing Hints - We've recently added 'TableEdit' which provides a slick table editor.

The advanced editing hints page could include all the information here and more.

James 04:02, 28 February 2008 (PST)


 * I'd have though then the original copyright notice would have upset you as well? I did shave something off that. It's a shame we have not got enough users to really judge this. I know your opinion (which I could have guessed as you don't like help in situ whereas I prefer it - I hate being forced to click around) and I know the opinion of a couple of others that wanted this. I'd regard at least lists as "basic" rather than "advanced" but it's hard to find out about them given there is no button for these. Users not creating a summary when saving edits is quite a problem as well. I'd have loved something like this when I first started using Wiki, but it's not ideal if you have no option to hide it, and it's not easy for even me to judge until it's there for a few days for real. There "might" be some extension that can add hideable text, something like the TOC can be hidden. I think you can regard it as short lived in its current format. Gale


 * James: I'd like to reduce the copyright warning to the following, it's still a bit long for my tastes, but not as ridiculously so. I've tried using the TableEdit feature and it did not work well for me.  I suspect that to use it well needs a lot more instructions than can fit in the panel.


 * Gale 02May08, 16:46 UTC: James, in fact I have been working on improving (at least I hope so) Audacity Wiki editing and as part of these changes, I have reduced the in situ help to cover only formatting which is not available in the edit window buttons. So it will actually be a bit shorter than what you propose, even though it currently includes TableEdit instructions :=). I have not published it yet because I am working on some additional material to be linked to from Audacity Wiki editing, and also because like you I am a bit concerned by TableEdit and wanted to investigate it. If I agree the current TableEdit instructions in the in situ help aren't working and can't be fixed, then I'll go with just a link like you're proposing.  Maybe after the weekend if you can bear with me a bit longer?