User:Keitei/Community

Many attempts have been made recently to "build the community" here at Wikipedia, many of which have failed spectacularly. They have attempted to increase a sense of community, unite editors, and make others realize that every editor here is also a human being. However, they have resulted in cordoned groups of editors uniting against the Wikipedia as a whole and communing amongst themselves. Clearly this cannot be the Wikipedia community, for the Wikipedia community would be unable to exclude itself as such. Therefore, I believe that we must attain a better understanding of who the community is, how it works, and how best to let it live.

The Wikipedia community is Wikipedians. Wikipedians are all who have decided to be recognized as an editor and not just by their edits. This is intentionally vague as we welcome anyone who wants to join, regardless of who they are, where they are, how old they are, what they are, or whether they're the same person as another Wikipedian. Any further subcommunities should be viewed as subcommunities. Any one WikiProject does not claim to be Wikipedia's community; they are merely a small facet of the larger whole. WikiProjects, therefore, are successful at promoting community feeling as their communities do not detract from the community as a whole. Groups claiming to be representative or working for the entire community will not work as they are not the entire community.

Concerted efforts to build community will not result in the Wikipedia community. Wikipedia's community already exists. It does not need to formed: it is already here. Furthermore, groups claiming themselves as above the community in as much as they are able to tell the community where it is, how it is, and such will not achieve any success, as the community defines itself.


 * Promoting a sense of community
 * I, for one, feel very much a part of the Wikipedia community whenever I use or understand Wikipedia jargon."Jargon is terminology, much like slang, that relates to a specific activity, profession, or group. It develops as a kind of shorthand, to express ideas that are frequently discussed between members of a group, and also to distinguish those belonging to a group from those who are not."But doesn't that exclude people?!?! and make us unwelcoming?!?! you ask. I say no. If someone doesn't know what something means, they should ask, and we should graciously explain, thereby welcoming them into the community. Yes, we say, you can know the ways of our community. Welcome to the fold.


 * Welcoming newcomers
 * Personally, I was nearly insulted by a welcome. Increasingly, it seems that this template is how blank user talk pages are dealt with, regardless of the age of the contributor (how long they've been contributing). I think that such a template may be useful for placing on a user talk page after that user's first edit. However, if it's been months, they've probably been around and seen those policies. Obviously they've done something that caused you to notice they hadn't had a talk page; comment on that instead. Hey I appreciate your work on this article is far more welcoming than here have a boilerplate cause I don't know how to deal with blank user talk pages.


 * Recognizing contributions
 * Concerted efforts to award people who fit certain criteria loses all the community feeling of people thanking out of sincerity. Barnstars are great things which should be encouraged, but not forced. I make a habit of giving barnstars to anyone who goes ahead and does something I'd been meaning to do. I no longer have to do the task and am grateful for this. I think that handing out barnstars or leaving thank you notes should be encouraged by example. When someone edits an article you've worked on extensively, I believe you should thank them and invite them to add more. Sincerity is key: be grateful they took the time to edit, but don't gloss over the fact if you didn't appreciate the contribution.


 * Community ties
 * Making connections at Wikipedia is not done as often as it should. There are many ways to overcome this; here are some of my ideas.
 * Write an article and then leave a note on someone's talk page asking them what they think.
 * This says, I value your input and respect your ideas.
 * If someone asks you to read an article they wrote and then comment on it, do so!
 * This tells them, I appreciate your contributions and your value as an editor.
 * If you are part of a WikiProject and notice a new contributor, welcome them to the WikiProject.
 * This lets them know that they aren't just signing a sheet of names, but rather joining a community.
 * Don't use a template.
 * Do let them in on some of the goings-on: So-and-so tends to edit these types of articles; so-and-so and so-and-so often disagree on these points; you might feel most comfortable here/there; we always need help here/there; we've been looking for someone who can do this/that.

Wikipedia's community works on an individual level. Do what you can and through your actions, you will encourage others to do the same.