Wikipedia talk:Wikipedia Signpost/2016-12-22/In focus

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Is this filter active on all User pages? Will editors be notified if it prevents an edit to their userpage? Can it be opted out? John from Idegon (talk) 04:07, 22 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

@John from Idegon: It is active for all user pages, with exception for Jimbo Wales (who has an explicit invitation for anyone to edit the page). I don't think editors are notified, but the filter is public and logged. As noted in the article, MusikAnimal and xaosflux have been discussing/working on an opt out mechanism that should be available soon via a template that you (and only you) can add to your own userpage. I JethroBT ^{drop me a line} 04:47, 22 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Why aren't talk pages filtered? Smallbones_(smalltalk) 04:49, 22 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

@Smallbones: User talk pages weren't part of the original proposal. I could be wrong, but I think a lot of folks feel that editors should be able to communicate with other editors via their user talk pages, even if they are unregistered. I JethroBT ^{drop me a line} 04:53, 22 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

@Smallbones: User talk pages were part of my original proposal on the Inspire Campaign, but I was convinced to limit the RfC to just base user pages, for the reason I JethroBT mentioned above. Funcrunch (talk) 05:40, 22 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks, JethroBot. One further question. Where is the filter log located? Good to hear from you, as always. John from Idegon (talk) 05:15, 22 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

@John from Idegon: The relevant edit filter log is here. Funcrunch (talk) 05:39, 22 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Hey! The work has stalled, but I think all we need to do is test the new opt-out system before enabling it for everyone. Will try to get the ball rolling soon. Indeed, it's very much preferable that talk pages be open. There's generally not a compelling reason that a new user would edit your personalized userpage, but the talk page is for communication, which is essential for collaboration. Especially when they need to reach out for help, etc. — MusikAnimal ^talk 08:27, 22 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

This seems like an impactful solution to a real problem, where a lot of folks came together and opted for a good solution with immediate value rather than waiting for a perfect one. Thank you for documenting it, I JethroBT! Jkatz (WMF) (talk) 17:00, 22 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Why don't we put an active filter on the article pages rather than waiting for the ClueBot to revert vandalism? Hawkeye7 (talk) 00:26, 23 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

@Hawkeye7: There are a ton of filters active for article pages for specific kinds of vandalism (e.g. Special:AbuseFilter/815 and Special:AbuseFilter/260, so there's some of that preventative work going on already. A filter like this one for the article space would need some careful consideration, I think. It's true we get a lot of vandalism from unregistered editors, but they also make a considerable number of productive edits to this project. Do we want to require registration for people to contribute to the sum of all human knowledge? You might also want to check out a 2014 Wikimania presentation by Halfak (WMF) and Steven Walling on unregistered editors: Hi, my name is 192.195.83.38: unmasking anonymous editors on Wikipedia. They talk about how unregistered editors are contributing around the 8:00 mark. I JethroBT ^{drop me a line} 03:00, 25 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not a Wikipedian, so I can't view the AbuseFilters, but I'll take your word for it.

I wasn't thinking about cutting off unregistered editors, just preventing obvious vandalism. Hawkeye7 (talk) 05:27, 25 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

If I recall correctly, several other language Wikipedias filter their articles by default. Perhaps it was pending changes—doubt it was semiprotected by default czar 00:16, 27 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I just want to express my appreciation for all who involve themselves in protecting our user pages from this playful fellow and many others, some of whom are far less lighthearted. – Athaenara ✉ 19:32, 23 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Great initiative :-) Doc James (talk · contribs · email) 01:39, 25 December 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I don't understand, how does the new filter work? Are only edits of new editors affected? What if a newbie wants to contact a mentor? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.34.44.188 (talk) 10:00, 3 January 2017 (UTC)[reply]

How it works is that if an anonymous or new (less than four days/10 edits) user attempts to edit the user page of another editor, they get a notice that such edits are not allowed. User talk pages are not affected, so anonymous and new editors can still contact others that way. Funcrunch (talk) 17:07, 3 January 2017 (UTC)[reply]