User talk:Privatemusings/Archive 3

This user is sharp as a marble. Archive 1 | Archive 2 | current talk below



Link to audio from results page
I've removed the media link to the audio interviews you did, from the arbcom eelctions statistics page. This is because the page is a place many users visit candidates from, to vote; it should be as neutral as possible. In this case, even more so, as not all candidates are interviewed, and the interviewer himself is one of the candidates.

It's better that way. You should know better. (And you'll notice Signpost's election special isn't linked either.)

FT2 (Talk 13:08, 2 December 2008 (UTC)


 * Update - since the bot apparently is trying to insert it too, I have commented out the audio on its source link . Please do not undo this, or use this page to insert any material on the election page, until after the election. Thanks. FT2 (Talk 13:35, 2 December 2008 (UTC)
 * hmmmm... this a teeny tiny deal, but I'll pop something here anyways... I'm afraid I can't really agree that this audio compromises neutrality, though am obviously happy for consensus to decide about whether or not it appears there. Saying 'you should know better' is in my book a rather silly comment - but then, hey - so should you ;-) (is there a text version of that tongue sticking out thing?)
 * Consider taking some time to have a listen, FT - because the audio really isn't in any way an 'interview' - it was an off-the-cuff chat between a few folk who happened to be on IRC and Skype at the same time - hopefully it comes across as quite fun - I'm a big believer in the spirit of fun, and would love to chat with you about it sometime :-) Privatemusings (talk) 20:02, 2 December 2008 (UTC)
 * ps. Is there any on-wiki discussion about this? - you mentioned the agreement of admins? Privatemusings (talk) 20:02, 2 December 2008 (UTC)

and for the curious - here's the audio in question... Privatemusings (talk) 20:06, 2 December 2008 (UTC)
 * I've so far failed to find any chat about this, so confirmation would be great :-) Privatemusings (talk) 03:23, 4 December 2008 (UTC)

Your conduct with Sexual content
Just to make sure that this is documented and that I have attempted to talk with you on your talk page over this, I wish to refer you and others if it comes to an investigation back to the project talk page and the many discussions there that refer to consensus.

You have assured me and others that you respect consensus yet you ry to drive a coach and horses through it again and again and again.

I have assumed good faith for long enough. I now see from your conduct that you choose to say one thing and mean another. The evidence is there.

I request you in my capacity as an ordinary editor of Wikipedia to give up your one man crusade against things that you do not like when it is shown that a consensus has built against you. In the case of this rejected policy consensus is wholly against you and yet6 you are still attempting to change it to make it in some manner acceptable. It is time to yield to consensus.

I, and it appears others, are within a whisker of asking for substantive intervention in the manner in which you are allowed to edit Wikipedia because of your disregard of consensus. Others will be asked to judge your behaviour.

It would behove you to think clearly about your future conduct in order to avoid this. Fiddle Faddle (talk) 14:07, 5 December 2008 (UTC)
 * consider me so behoven, fiddle... I mentioned this on the talk page of the proposal too (and thanks for coming by here to talk about it - I really hope discussion is the best way through this issue) - but perhaps you could offer, or we could work on, a framework that allows for non-disruptive contributions to the proposal? I'm sure you agree that it's possible to disagree with consensus, whilst respecting it, and that at heart, consensus is the balancing of a wide range of opinions and ideas etc. etc. I do think you're conflating disagreement with disruption a bit, and will likely buy in to any structure you suggest which allows for open and honest input / ideas, and avoids the chilling 'just shut up' effect. cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 21:44, 5 December 2008 (UTC)


 * You mistake me for someone who thinks this proposal or any proposal aligned with it is a good idea. I disagree with it and you at a fundamental level.  Consensus is wholly against you.  Give your crusade and soapbox up.  After your latest edit to the rejected proposal and your disregard of consensus I will request admin intervention.  Fiddle Faddle (talk) 18:29, 7 December 2008 (UTC)
 * ah fiddle - it's ok to disagree you know! - given that you're happy to express your own viewpoint so strongly, I'd hope that might be an indication that someone a little less involved should really make the call as to what constitutes a 'crusade' and 'disruption' - try not to sweat it, and neither will I.... Privatemusings (talk) 22:58, 7 December 2008 (UTC)

Sexual Content
Hi there PM. I suspect our paths have crossed a few times, as I'm a paid up member of WM-au (you've even posted on my talk page before.

Anyway, I think you misunderstand what I was saying on that page - while I certainly think that sexual content is over-represented on a lot of our pages, my concern is more with how we can manage perceptions of what some might see as objectional content. Screaming WP:NOTCENSORED and sticking our fingers in our ears is not a good way of dealing with legitimate criticism of this sort; and I feel that doing so only hurts the credibility and image of the project in the long run.

Any complete encyclopædia will need to cover these potentially touchy subjects, and some tasteful illustrations plainly have a place in making sure that this coverage is comprehensive (although we still have a way to go here, some guy jizzing all over himself, taking a picture of it, and uploading it as an "educational" picture just makes us look stupid, in my opinion). We just need a better way of explaining to the public why sometimes it's necessary to do it. Lankiveil (speak to me) 04:02, 7 December 2008 (UTC).
 * can I quote you on that, Lank? (the example you give is perfect! I love it!) - I was aware of your involvement in the aussie thing, but just meant that we hadn't really chatted previously. Your bit about the management of perceptions is preaching to the choir over here - and I feel that a clear policy that communicates clearly some good advice is the best (or at least one) way to achieve that - I'm getting increasingly concerned that we're in danger of a big blowup here, which will harm the project (and the endeavors of the aussie chapter) enormously - I'm thinking specifically of the Chapter's involvement in school work in the future here - if you're up for a bit of work in this area, it'd be cool to talk stuff through a bit more - either here or at Sexual content...... cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 23:02, 7 December 2008 (UTC) ps. and thanks for your expert minuting yesterday :-)

Tracking how mainstream media cover controversial images
An interesting idea may be to track how mainstream media (ie those without a strong POV) handle the image. For example, this article blurred the girl's torso (which raised complaints that it made the cracked glass less obvious). Andjam (talk) 11:19, 8 December 2008 (UTC)
 * you make a very interesting point.... more anon perhaps... Privatemusings (talk) 03:27, 10 December 2008 (UTC)

John Ogden (photographer)
Looks okay for a start. Take a look at WP:WIAGA, but also with this article WP:LEAD - the lede info seems to not be present later in the article, whereas instead the lede should be a summary of the later info itself. Cirt (talk) 03:54, 16 December 2008 (UTC)
 * okey dokey... I think maybe I'll work towards expanding the body rather than contracting the lead? - I'll poke you again when I've done something..... cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 03:56, 16 December 2008 (UTC)

Heh, yes we could always do with help  YellowMonkey  ( bananabucket ) 03:58, 16 December 2008 (UTC)

Motion 1.3
Thank GOD that's over. Shoemaker&#39;s Holiday (talk) 06:16, 16 December 2008 (UTC)
 * hooray! - best wishes for the holiday season, and I hope you thoroughly enjoy all wiki-ing from here on in :-) cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 06:31, 16 December 2008 (UTC)

Guido den Broeder
A discussion of Guido den Broeder's conduct and status as an editor has begun at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:ANI#Improper_use_of_MfD_page.3F

I've alerted you since you are on his "respected user" list WLU (t) (c) Wikipedia's rules: simple/complex 02:44, 19 December 2008 (UTC)
 * I'm sorry to have missed this - and from what I can gather, Guido is now banned after a community discussion? I'll try and read a bit around this, and see what the devil's gone on? This is not a good outcome. Privatemusings (talk) 23:22, 1 January 2009 (UTC)

Images on Commons
Just FYI, I hadn't forgotten about this, and have been actively thinking about it. It's such a sore topic that's been awkwardly bludgeoned to death ad nauseum. If I'm going to even try doing something with it on Commons, I'm going to set it up to do it with the best possibility of a good change happening (one way or the other) for Commons' ability to service all the other sites here. My goal isn't going to be removal of the images itself--it will to do such images "right" which is more important. I'm not going to do anything which is based around local morality, or things seen through such a lens. It will be to make sure such things are done correctly for the protection of the image subjects, the editors working with them (legal protection--not "moral") and the protection of the WMF.

Which I expect will lead, if done right, to the removal of some such images we shouldn't have, but will make it possible for more (potentially many more) to be added at the same time. I will be personally against any changes that are bad around anything even slightly like some idea of BADIMAGES, religious/local morality, or "porn/nudes is bad", because that's all private morality territory, which isn't our business, concern, or interest. The only limiters (that I believe in, for images) are 1- Free, 2- Free for reuse, 3- Quality, 4- Re-usability, 5- Legality only in the jurisdictions that control the WMF servers/hosting (and all of these in no particular order, of course--legality actually comes first). rootology ( C )( T ) 18:29, 19 December 2008 (UTC)
 * I think we share much common ground, root, though I'd be interested to talk about the knock-on effects of image policy on project utility at some point - I just noticed the proposal I had started on commons is up for deletion, so maybe a clean slate and a chin wag with you is a good starting point for '09 (happy new year, 'n christmas, and all that too!) :-) Privatemusings (talk) 23:19, 1 January 2009 (UTC)

Overdue barnstar
My timing's a bit off. Perhaps some more prominent placement of endorsements during the elections could have nudged you over the line. But ... there's always next year! :) Alastair Haines (talk) 12:44, 24 December 2008 (UTC)
 * heh - indeed! - I'm really pleased and proud at how the elections ran though - it was a really interesting, positive experience for me (although I'm not sure about next year!) - see below for my belated chrissy wishes, and look forward to catching up this year too :-) Privatemusings (talk) 23:24, 1 January 2009 (UTC)

unitarian greetings

 * a fine Xmas message for all of us to be mindful of.... hehehe. Cheers, Casliber (talk · contribs) 23:03, 24 December 2008 (UTC)

Happy holidays


Thanks for making 2008 an interesting and enlightening year for me; at some point, our paths have crossed and I've found your comments amusing, helpful or thought-provoking—I'll let you guess which! Wishing you and yours a joyous holiday season, and happiness, health and hopefulness in 2009. I trust you'll enjoy this little token, a favourite performance of Baby, it's Cold Outside, for your holiday amusement. Best, Risker (talk) 01:09, 25 December 2008 (UTC)

Seasons Greetings



 * Feliz navidad, hombre. Thanks, SqueakBox 01:13, 25 December 2008 (UTC)

Happy New Year!
Dear Privatemusings,

Wishing you a happy new year, and very best wishes for 2009. Whether we were friends or not in the past year, I hope 2009 will be better for us both.

Kind regards,

 Majorly  talk  21:04, 1 January 2009 (UTC)

thanks to all! :-)
for the kind notes and friendly messages above - 'ain't wiki a wonderful place! - I'm now feeling a bit of a scrooge for not having dropped any notes in myself, if it's any consolation, I also forget to send christmas cards to friends, and am generally just a bit useless in that regard.... ho hum.... Looks like there's a bit of catching up to do, so I'll get to it, and hope everyone had a wonderful christmas and new year, and that 2009 has kicked off with a smile :-) cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 23:17, 1 January 2009 (UTC)


 * You're behind on providing podcast MP3s for the RSS/iTunes feed, too. *Dan T.* (talk) 01:07, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
 * way behind, dan! - your teeth pulling persistence is appreciated, and as I (think) I mentioned before, what I plan to do when I get a mo (and am back on a different machine) is to download the OGGs from commons, splice them together again where necessary, and convert to mp3 - I don't actually really know how to do this currently, but I figure I'll figure it out! Once I've finished that housekeeping, I reckon we'll be due another injection of enthusiasm and energy into the wiki voices thing, and I hope to see you there! :-) Privatemusings (talk) 22:17, 2 January 2009 (UTC)

small grammar stuff
I know you've been itching to do that for a long time, but if I were you I would've put it off at least a few more months :-P Avruch  T 22:44, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
 * itching? moi? is that where that odd rash came from? - you might want to take a look at this, but regardless, I don't plan on doing anything substantive except chat a bit at the talk page for quite a while :-) Privatemusings (talk) 22:46, 2 January 2009 (UTC)


 * I know, that page is on my watchlist. Avruch  T 22:47, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
 * stalker! ban him! ;-) - I'm still catching up on the denouement of the arb elections, and the subsequent 'new committee' makeup and actions etc. - it certainly seems possible they'll get it together to say something, but we'll see..... Privatemusings (talk) 22:53, 2 January 2009 (UTC)

Errr, why don't you simply explain on the talk page what you find wrong on the page? When I saw your comment, my mind invoked images of fields of landmines, with all the mines being stepped upon all at the same time. --Enric Naval (talk) 23:26, 7 January 2009 (UTC)
 * heh! - good idea! - although rather than explain sort of word by word, hows about I make a change, revert, and then we can discuss? :-) Privatemusings (talk) 00:10, 8 January 2009 (UTC)
 * well, I started on just a small bit - lets see how we go.... Privatemusings (talk) 01:22, 8 January 2009 (UTC)

SCG Test
That photo of Duminy bowling is from the second day against Clarke. Some of the others show Kallis batting, which was not on the third day unless you took them in the first five minutes before he got out.  YellowMonkey  ( bananabucket ) 03:52, 9 January 2009 (UTC)
 * heh! indeed - these shots are from Day 2, not 3! - I've actually got heaps more - I need to go through the meta data properly (which is far more reliable for dates and times than my faulty recollection!) - I may have Duminy's first ever test ball, and the delivery in his first over which he took a catch from - and some celebrations afterwards, though I missed the catch! Thanks heaps for the barnstar regardless, which is a nice treat for doing something I find fun :-) best, Privatemusings (talk) 04:00, 9 January 2009 (UTC)

Giovanni di Stefano
When the restriction on your editing BLPs was lifted, I commented that given the issues you've had in this area, you should still stay away from highly problematic articles such as Giovanni di Stefano. I think you indicated that you understood that. With three million articles available for your editing, I do not understand why you feel the need to return to the one where your participation has been problematic. Please refrain from editing this article or its talkpage. Thanks. Newyorkbrad (talk) 19:21, 11 January 2009 (UTC)
 * User:Carcharoth dropped me an email about this too, and I gather there's discussion on the arbcom mailing list - I'll repeat here what I've said to Carch, which is that I'll happily stop editing the article and talk page while we talk about stuff (and to be crystal clear, I'll drop a note in to this thread well in advance of any compulsion to edit again!). I recall your advice, Brad, of several months ago, which I totally agreed with at the time, though I have long had it vaguely in my mind to complete my 'rehab' after a good calendar year's break by applying some of the lessons learned about gentle, effective ways to contribute at such articles (I particularly feel like I've learned alot from Enric). I believe some sort of discussion process may follow (with Carch? - and obviously your input would be greatly valued) - at this stage I don't think you're saying that any of the 4 or 5 edits I've made over there are problematic (though do pipe up!) - and perhaps in my absence you might be able to quickly come up with a sensible solution to the GFDL violation I noted on the talk page. You may be aware that I've been trying to address that particular problem quietly via email and chats here and there for a little while, so hopefully we can move on that :-) cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 21:41, 11 January 2009 (UTC)
 * note to self really - was good to catch up 'real time' and put a bit more meat on the bone of some concerns etc. - moving forward I expect discussion to come 'on wiki' today / early this week .... Obviously all feedback / comments are most welcome here, or in any suitable fora - just don't post to the article or talk page... it'd be moot, 'cos I'm mute ;-) Privatemusings (talk) 23:22, 11 January 2009 (UTC)
 * another note to self - had a good 45min chat with Carcharoth on this today - probably touch base again sometime next week - no editing for now. Privatemusings (talk) 03:17, 15 January 2009 (UTC)
 * ..and more! (what's the first sign of madness again?!) - flicked Carch an email today, hoping to catch up soon, with a view to setting a timetable for getting 'back on the horse'... Privatemusings (talk) 01:39, 20 January 2009 (UTC)
 * In terms of your editing this article, I was thinking "never" might be a good suggestion for a time frame. In the words of the well-known "New Yorker" cartoon, Would never be convenient for you? Newyorkbrad (talk) 01:40, 20 January 2009 (UTC)

< heh! not really Brad.... but I love your work! This is as quiet a spot as any to chat about why you think such a restriction would be appropriate - I'd really like to be able to contribute unencumbered, and feel I will have little difficulty now following all policies and guidelines. What would you think of a review in a month's time or so to see if I've helped, caused trouble, or how I've performed generally? ....I'll likely be utterly amenable to your advice to stop editing there if you can genuinely point to no value added.... Privatemusings (talk) 01:50, 20 January 2009 (UTC) you didn't really need to explain that you weren't being mean, Brad - I think the post was tighter without the clarification, but it's appreciated regardless :-)
 * Hi PM. Thanks for the e-mail. As I said, I'll reply on-wiki as you wanted to move things over here anyway. I agree with Brad that it would be best for you to avoid editing the GDS article permanently (or at least for a very, very long time - years and months, not weeks). It's not so much that you can't handle yourself OK on other BLPs (I think you can), but that your history at that article and the other history at that article makes it just too much trouble both for you and for others. You may improve, but the history will always be there. You would be doing everyone a favour if you agreed to stay away from it and edit other BLPs (where needed). Would you consider doing that? Carcharoth (talk) 03:47, 20 January 2009 (UTC)
 * I'm continuing to think about it - but I'm not sure I totally agree that my history really gets in the way that much... I look at the regular editors at that page currently and see a great collection of people, from Squeakbox, JoshuaZ, Avruch, Enric and Hag2 (Hag is the only editor I don't think I know quite well) - all of whom I think are up for the usual wiki-work to improve the article - and I don't think I'm likely to run into any problems at all, to be honest, despite disagreeing with some about some things - we've all been round the wiki block a couple of times or more :-) - what do you think about the idea of a month's gentle editing to see how it goes? I'm happy to just stop editing at the moment any specific concern is raised (hey - as you've seen, I'm also happy to stop editing when a more general sort of concern is raised too!) - and talk about it either at the talk page if it's an article related thing, or here if it's a 'PM' related thing. A month's trial, and a careful approach is what I'd like to move towards :-) Privatemusings (talk) 21:23, 22 January 2009 (UTC)
 * ps. - whilst concerns remain, I suppose Feb. is a good month to use for the trial, being the shortest 'n all! - That's what I'm thinking is the best next step.... Privatemusings (talk) 01:05, 23 January 2009 (UTC)
 * okey dokey - this is a sort of 'watchlist ping' - I plan on calmly recommencing conservative editing at the GdS page throughout Feb with the intention of reviewing at the end of the month. I'll happily stop to chat through any specific edit issues, and really welcome this opportunity to have a good look at whether or not I can help appropriately there :-) cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 06:24, 28 January 2009 (UTC)
 * I don't know if this is such a good idea. That is a very sensitive area.  Would you like to chat? NonvocalScream (talk) 12:31, 28 January 2009 (UTC)
 * Also, count me as the 3rd person to tell you, this is not a good idea. NonvocalScream (talk) 12:32, 28 January 2009 (UTC)


 * PM, I have kept this page on my watchlist because I think you have been over-robustly treated in a couple of matters - but I am not going to contemplate the hairs of my admin balls being even slightly perturbed over the matter of GdS. You have had the advice of two of the most fair and considerate editors currently involved in the project, and yet you feel that you should disregard their advice. Stay away from it, as you will do better service for it by remaining within the project doing other things than you will be by being banned. Nuff sed. LessHeard vanU (talk) 13:45, 28 January 2009 (UTC)
 * thanks for the comments guys... the impression I've taken so far from Brad, Carch, and Lessy is that my working at that article is akin to weaving the rope to hang myself (that's how I take the 'history will always be a problem, you'll run into issues, better not to get banned etc.' line of thought) - nonvoc is being pleasantly circumspect (and welcome back!), I totally agree that it's a very sensitive area, and am happy to chat via email, or here. As I've said above, I see things a little differently, and hope that my appreciation of the sensitivity of the article will actually be a plus in moving it forward. Enric's a great contributor over there, though he has some language hiccups once in a while, plus the general structure of the article might be able to be improved without any substantive / material edits - it's this sort of thing (from replacing 'on' with the correct 'in', to merging paragraphs where appropriate) that I planned on trying out during Feb. - I'm a lazy / busy wiki gnome at heart really, and felt this would help.
 * The other thing I've been trying to get sorted is the fact that the article isn't currently GFDL compliant - I think JoshuaZ has made a suggestion at the talk page which would take a helpful admin 5 / 10 min.s to implement.. perhaps if a helpful one is reading? :-) Privatemusings (talk) 21:45, 28 January 2009 (UTC) bottom line - I'm thinking more about this, and haven't really decided whether or not to edit in Feb yet.
 * The bottom line, PM, is not whether you want to edit this article or not, or how you want to edit it, but whether you are able to avoid pushing at a sensitive issue like this. Instead of pushing at the issue, are you able to instead accept this, even if you don't like it, and move on? It may be a harder decision to move on, but more people will respect you for that if you do it. Ultimately I hope you will come to agree that moving on from a single, specific issue, is sometimes the best thing to do. There is so much more you can do instead. Carcharoth (talk) 07:12, 29 January 2009 (UTC)
 * well okey dokey - I'm sure in the market for more respect! Essentially because people I like have asked me not to do something, I'll not do it - I've been pretty clear that I don't really agree with the reasoning, but hey - you guys are indeed lovely people, so it's a pleasure to concede that your suggested course of action is the go, even if I disagree with the point of view :-) No more GdS for me until 2010 (I won't edit the article or talk page, though may pipe up if a general issue is raised at a noticeboard or something - and if the article still isn't GFDL compliant by Jan 1, 2010 - I'll both smile, and rattle a cage or two :-) - your awareness of this issue, and its lack of resolution, should, in my view, be seen as important - a priority.


 * now some reading may be aware that I've been a little bit active in the area of 'sexual content' on wikimedia projects. It'd be cool from my perspective to solicit the feedback of those who considered the above worthy of comment - I'd beg 5 minutes of your time for what I believe is another important issue. Wikimedia is behaving poorly, in my view in hosting images such as this and this (fairly tame, but not really safe for work) - I'm concerned that a similar endemic lack of empathy towards BLP article management here on en is at play, and I believe more eyes and ears are necessary to support the evolution of a more mature and responsible approach. I've written what I hope is a light-hearted, but serious minded essay, and would hugely appreciate thoughts / feedback. It's here (contains graphic imagery) and here (no images / 'safe for work').
 * thanks one 'n all :-) Privatemusings (talk) 23:21, 29 January 2009 (UTC)

Alex?
Who is Alex that you mention in your RFAR statement?  Majorly  talk  23:22, 13 January 2009 (UTC)


 * Bakharev. Avruch  T 23:24, 13 January 2009 (UTC)


 * Ah. I was thinking it might have been me for a moment :P  Majorly  talk  23:25, 13 January 2009 (UTC)
 * heh! - nope! - For me this whole thing hinges on this diff - it seems FT may have lied directly to Alex B, which I think is just not on, really.... Privatemusings (talk) 23:27, 13 January 2009 (UTC)

Peter Mandelson
Granting an "award" featuring prominent references in photograph and initialism to Peter Mandelson is rather nasty thing to do. I've interpreted it as an attack on FT2 under our No personal attacks policy, and as is my custom I have removed it as a courtesy to FT2. Please reconsider. I would be inclined to class this as "kicking a man while he's down." --TS 09:42, 16 January 2009 (UTC)


 * PM your comments are often jocular, so I will assume your good faith here. However, I also think there are somewhat inappropriate. FT2 has resigned, and poking him is poor. Further, if you want to demand he resigns all his tools you are welcome to do that (although I think it is simply demanding a second pound of flesh from a good servant who has made some mistakes) but doing it in a passive aggressive tone is also poor. There is hurt and damage here, and it's not really a time for ambiguous humour. If you really MUST comment, please just say it straight.--Scott Mac (Doc) 10:25, 16 January 2009 (UTC)
 * ah Tony, you're a legend! - I think I've mentioned to you before that it was partly your posts around 2002 /3 / 4 which drew me into the wiki as a fascinating place, and you continue to shine on :-) - you removed scott's reply at FT's page too, of course, and to respond to the general point - of course there's some humour (really satire, I guess) in my post - but also a serious point based on what I consider my and FT's amicable, open relationship (he's been kind enough to chat with me many times, and I consider much of the advice he's offered me strong, and I'd certainly consider him a wiki-friend, and someone I'd love to chat over a pint with) - the straight comment has been removed too of course I think the best foot forward for all (and I largely agree with the reasons you've outlined) would be for you to step down from checkuser and oversight too, and I expect that's under consideration at the moment. Give it some thought, because a clean break's a good one :-) . Re : the initials and the picture - I suspect Doc has clocked why Mandy was a good fit - he has after all come back strongly from difficulties to a position earning great respect, influence and power (he's back in the Cabinet, of course!) - and the alternative award I came up with on a whim was a whole bunch darker - but here it is, and I'm tempted to confer it on TS, though must consult with the committee :-) Privatemusings (talk) 21:00, 16 January 2009 (UTC)

Photos
I've started another poll per last. Regards, fellow amateur photography lover,  YellowMonkey  ( click here to vote for world cycling's #1 model! ) 05:11, 20 January 2009 (UTC)

your question on nl.wikipedia
Hi Privatemusings, I read your question on nl.wikipedia.

I'm not aware of any existing tools that do what you described, although you could probably use the Pywikipedia framework to do this. However, that would certainly not be an easy way. And of course, there are also the export/import special page, that export/import the page in xml format. The advantage of that tool is that you can copy an article's entire history along with the article. And wiki text automatically reappears after importing the xml file.

It may well be that you still find it necessary to develop a separate tool. I have to tell you I'm not a developer, and I'm not convinced of the necessity to develop a tool like this one. If there's a good article on Wikipedia, why not leave it there and link to it?

Best regards,

Galwaygirl (talk) 11:02, 21 January 2009 (UTC)
 * thanks heaps for your response, galway :-) - I'm still at the 'feasibility' stage of thinking about this, so am trying to work out what's technically possible, and what's easy etc. - the idea is that smaller 'wiki playgrounds' might be attractive to organisations (I'm mainly thinking schools) on a number of levels - firstly material is 'fit for kids', secondly, seeing how the dynamics work in a less energetic / chaotic (in the true sense of the word) environment might allow a deeper learning experience for some than just jumping in the deep end - and of course it might be a completely complementary approach - there's nothing to stop those who prefer the big bad en wiki from engaging here too :-) - I'm not quite sure where all this is heading, but we'll see! cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 01:39, 23 January 2009 (UTC)

Disrupting wikipedia to make a point
Please don't disrupt wikipedia to make a point. I have deleted you OT potentially BLP violating commentary at User talk:Ryan Postlethwaite/GH. You know as well as I do that there is absolutely no evidence he is Roy's son Nil Einne (talk) 09:41, 10 February 2009 (UTC)


 * What Nil Einne didn't tell you, and should have, is that he/she also approached Lar and Jayvb and I don't know who else about this comment. Interestingly, his/her comments to them are quite a bit longer. What you posted on RP's subpage was dumb, but harmless. Nil Einne, his mentorship and his restrictions on BLPs have expired. You probably knew that, though. Avruch  T 11:47, 10 February 2009 (UTC)
 * heh... I'm sorry you felt this was disruptive, Nil, and I apologise for time you feel may have been wasted - in my view, you've gotten a little hot under the collar for something which may not deserve such attention. I won't compound the error by asking again if Giles Hattersley is Roy Hattersley's son or not, because I understand your concern that this is contrary to wiki policy (I will take the opportunity to see if that's a red or blue link though...).
 * If you're up for talking through anything directly, Nil, then I'm more than happy to have a chat - perhaps about why I think your blanking of that talk page is a mistake (with strong redeeming features though - happy to talk about them too.....) - or about anything really. I see Lar and Durova replied to you too - truth is I do very much respect their thoughts in general, and am happy to talk about this with them, you, or anyone :-) Privatemusings (talk) 01:02, 11 February 2009 (UTC)

Actually, to both Privatemusings and Avruch, Nil Einne also posted to my user talk. A clarification is in order for Avruch: Privatemusings's mentorships did not expire: all three mentors resigned. A conduct RFC followed. I certainly wish Privatemusings the best in his editing endeavors--which is why I mentored him both here and at Wikimedia Commons, and why I followed him to WikiVoices--and the current complaint appears to be unactionable. Yet Privatemusings would do well to note that, given his history, ambiguous posts are likely to be be viewed in a dim light by some members of our community. It would be a good thing all around if Privatemusings affirmed his commitment to the content side of our project by contributing a good article, or some other unequivocally beneficial contribution. Remaining hopeful yet concerned, Durova Charge! 01:28, 11 February 2009 (UTC)
 * I feel sure we know each other well enough for you to feel comfy in raising any concerns, D :-) - and indeed, your advice about creating a good article remains good (although a good article about a british journalist probably isn't a good choice just at the mo......) - I'm not sure of the ambiguity of the post I made really, but agree that it's not something worth causing distraction or disruption over, I'll shuffle off to more unequivocal waters now... cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 02:19, 11 February 2009 (UTC)
 * Well, the terms set out for the mentorships would have expired by now in any case. The mentorships went a bit further, I believe, than the ArbCom intended - a belief borne out when the committee decline to extend or expand the remedies in response to your collective resignation. Avruch  T 13:21, 11 February 2009 (UTC)
 * well it's no biggie in my view that the mentors resigned (although it was a bit of a bummer).... so I'm happy for that to be clarified at any time in any way, as indeed I'm happy to talk about why I think it played out that way - though there's not really much to be gained, I guess...... I think the most important thing to come out of this thread is a firm commitment not to ask disruptive questions about whether or not Giles is Roy's son or not. Gottit? Good. :-) Privatemusings (talk) 23:39, 11 February 2009 (UTC)

Avro Cadet
You've just added a nice pic of a Cadet on a trolley to the Cadet page and very smart she looks. I'm a bit worried by the caption, though. This says "an 6-17 built in Australia". Now the Avro 617 was an autogyro and the RAAF serial on the fuselage is clearly A6-23, so I don't know what this 6-17 means. Further, according to Jackson's Avro book A6-23 was an Avro Cadet (all the A6-x serials were), the first of a third batch built in Manchester UK and shipped to Australia in December 1939. So I think the caption should read something like "RAAF Cadet" or RAAF Cadet serial A6-23" if you want more detail or "RAAF Cadet serial A6-23 in Australia". I suspect by "built by" they mean "errected". Any objections to a tweak?TSRL (talk) 08:47, 11 February 2009 (UTC)
 * none at all! - you might be interested in this thread too - where another image had a caption I found it hard to make sense of - rather fantastically, an editor there sorted the mystery out quick smart - it's quite possible there's a similar explanation for this one.... You might also find some other pic.s which could be useful in this collection on Wikimedia Commons (images there just appear automatically here when linked). I'll be intrigued to hear if you find out any more about the little avro :-) cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 23:27, 11 February 2009 (UTC)

NTWW
Hey, just thought I'd drop by to express how interesting I've found this set of podcasts. Will it be possible for you to upload more of them to iTunes sometime soon? I'd appreciate it.

PS: Will you becoming to the Powerhouse Museum on the 13th or have you other commitments? &mdash; Anonymous Dissident  Talk 06:43, 7 March 2009 (UTC)


 * I'm the one maintaining the feed file, and I've had a lot of trouble getting Privatemusings to put up the rest of the episodes in MP3 form so that I can add them to the feed and complete the archives. Since I listen to podcasts via iTunes myself, there are many episodes of NTWW that I haven't even listened to even though I've been a participant in some episodes. *Dan T.* (talk) 17:12, 7 March 2009 (UTC)
 * thanks for the note, AD - and Dan has indeed been asking for ages for me to get the mp3s fixed up - what I (or anyone) needs to do is figure out how to merge the split OGG files on commons back into one file, and convert it into mp3. This seems like it should be doable, but I've not managed / bothered / figured it out yet.... I'd love to have enough time to organise and participate in some more conversations, and can solemnly promise that all future recordings by me will at least result in a distributed mp3 as well as the 'on wiki' files.
 * about next friday, ad - I'm hoping, but not sure - I made the wiki wed. at the last minute last week, which was cool - and I'd say I'm 50:50 for friday - wish me luck getting stuff done in time! :-) Privatemusings (talk) 23:30, 7 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Don't feel bad for not knowing about audio editing... I was pretty clueless about it myself until recently (and am undoubtedly still pretty clueless compared to a real professional), but I've been playing around with MixPad lately (and its companion WavePad), and those programs make it easy to do things like load sound files from one format and save them in another, and split, merge, and do other effects with them. For putting together multiple parts of a show, just load the clips into MixPad and put them end to end in one track and save as MP3... easy!  Now that this has come up, I just did it myself for episode 40 (which turned out to have only one part anyway), and put it up... it should show up on the iTunes feed momentarily.  I'll try to go do it now for the other episodes that are up in Ogg format, though I think there are some "lost episodes" there.  The programs are nagging me that they're about to expire because I didn't pay the bucks to register them, so I'll have to either pay or stop doing this in a few days. *Dan T.* (talk) 01:03, 8 March 2009 (UTC)
 * I see you've been hard at work Dan! Awesome! How much is the registration fee? let me know if a mini-fundraiser would help you out, if you're inclined to do this sort of thing a bit more, we may be able to work something out, I dunno..... thanks heaps for uploading the mp3s though - I can feel a few more conversations soon... admin.s seem to be dropping like flies! Privatemusings (talk) 04:44, 10 March 2009 (UTC)

Research Request
Hi privatemusings. While exploring the User talk pages of proflic editors, I somehow came across your name. I'm doing a research project at UCSC about Wikipedia and I see that you seem like an active and amiable member. If you have the time, I would love to hear about your thoughts and experience on Wikipedia. The discussion is already underway at my talk page, it would be great if you could jump in wherever you have a comment.

Have a nice evening! And thanks for your time. Rodomontade (talk) 02:58, 9 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Hi Rodo - I'll certainly give it a look, and pipe up if I figure I can contribute anything - looks interesting! Privatemusings (talk) 04:45, 10 March 2009 (UTC)

Katoomba, New South Wales
Hi, I was wondering if you had or knew of any historical pictures that could be used in the article Katoomba, New South Wales. I think this would work well in the article. Cheers .        Adam (talk) 07:06, 9 March 2009 (UTC)
 * you know what - I think I do! - if memory serves, I think I found a whole bunch of pic.s - I'll dig 'em out when I get the chance, and let you know - probably be 10 days or so though.... :-) Privatemusings (talk) 04:42, 10 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Thanks for the reply, I'll look forward to seeing them and using them in articles related to the Blue Mountains. Cheers .        Adam (talk) 06:30, 10 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Hi Adam - I'm having a few technical problems with a few pic.s, but have managed to get quite a lot online now - see this category and please do go right ahead and drop them into articles left, right and centre! (it's heaps fun) - cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 03:02, 26 March 2009 (UTC)
 * ps. I see you discovered them already! fantastic! - I'll try and get the 'missing' images online in the next week or two.... cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 03:37, 26 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Thanks for uploading and following through on my request, I discovered the pics yesterday and have used a few already. I will try to put some of the others into articles as well. Cheers. Also It would be good to have a few historical pics of some of the towns from up that way, especially Katoomba. Cheers and thanks again .        Adam (talk) 05:37, 26 March 2009 (UTC)

resigning as an admin
please could any passing steward remove my sysop bit. I wish to resign as an administrator forthwith because well, heck I've really tried hard to push for positive change, but just lately it feels like it's all too much. That and it's what all the cool folk are doing, and hey - one thing I'm a natural at is being a quitter! There. I Quit. I will from now on only involve myself in non-administrator tasks. Privatemusings (talk) 12:11, 10 March 2009 (UTC)

✅ Sarcasticidealist (talk) 12:36, 10 March 2009 (UTC) (not a steward)
 * Did you ever have a sysop bit? I seem to have missed that part. *Dan T.* (talk) 12:35, 10 March 2009 (UTC)

Flagged revisions proposal
Hi. I am working on a minimal flagged revisions proposal focused on BLPs. FR may seem dead, but I think we can gain consensus on something small and focused. If you have time, any comments are appreciated. Wikipedia_talk:Flagged_revisions --Apoc2400 (talk) 15:45, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

The Museum
Sorry to see you couldn't come. We had a great day and I believe we have a page up about our content plans here. And what indeed did Cas mean...? &mdash; Anonymous Dissident  Talk 09:15, 13 March 2009 (UTC)

JJJ
Heard you :) Viridae Talk 07:32, 19 March 2009 (UTC)
 * I've caught it too now! - was quite a fun piece, I thought - Cas, Liam and I clearly have the faces for radio ;-) Privatemusings (talk) 23:04, 19 March 2009 (UTC)

Requesting feedback on Open source notability and rewritten TurnKey Linux article
Hi, you participated in the VPP discussion on open source notability a month ago and I figured you might want to pitch in again and help get the discussion going on User:Abd/Open Source notability.

Also, I've rewritten the proposed article at User:Abd/TurnKey Linux, added reliable sources and opened an RfC requesting comments on how to improve the article and establish consensus regarding it's notability (or lack of). See the talk page for details.

Cheers!LirazSiri (talk) 16:14, 22 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Hi Liraz - on first impression the article looks good to me - I haven't really gone through it though, so will try to find time to do so, and will drop something in to the talk page / RfC. Good on you for persevering, and hopefully no matter what the outcome, we'll move forward in a relaxed, collegial environment :-) cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 10:40, 23 March 2009 (UTC)

Railway Square, Sydney
Hi, I have just placed a few of you black and white in the Railway Square, Sydney and George Street, Sydney artile. Check it out, I have arranged the images to show the before and the after.        Adam (talk) 00:07, 29 March 2009 (UTC)
 * I think they're awesome Adam :-) - it's great to see you getting these pictures out there - at some point I plan on getting back in touch with the folk at the museum (who are fantastic, and very open and up for working with wikimedia types) to show them where the images they released are being used, and how - you're not in Sydney by any chance with any interest in working with the Powerhouse people? :-) Privatemusings (talk) 23:45, 29 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Hi, sorry for the late reply. What kind of work did you have in mind?.        Adam (talk) 07:22, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

Heh
You made me laugh. Thank you. I wasn't expecting your shameless vandalism at all. Cool Hand Luke 04:45, 31 March 2009 (UTC)
 * well happy to help :-) - there's an odd wind blowing round the wiki at the mo, I reckon... dunno what's going on, but a smile must help, no? :-) Privatemusings (talk) 04:56, 31 March 2009 (UTC)

A booby prize
PM, would you consider withdrawing your clarification request? The Committee is saying it's outside their remit and an admin board thread may work it out. Durova Charge! 22:09, 15 April 2009 (UTC)
 * that booby is clearly wide awake! :-) - I'm just after resolution of a few important things (the aforementioned boobies, no less) - and will be very happy when this is all fixed up... I share your optimism that this will be sorted out fairly quickly :-) Privatemusings (talk) 22:13, 15 April 2009 (UTC)


 * Well since it's currently open at two venues, one of which can't solve it and one which can, the likelihood of getting things wrapped up cleanly would seem to improve if discussion centralizes at the useful venue. Agreed?  Durova Charge! 22:42, 15 April 2009 (UTC)
 * thanks for the tits 'n boobs, D, but I've been confuddled by a recent response by Coren at his talk page - I think maybe this matter is under discussion by the arbcom. I'm hopeful a way forward on both the block, and the treatment of the talk page, will emerge presently..... :-) Privatemusings (talk) 03:36, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

No offense caused, at least not to me, before closer inspection I just assumed the page had been vandalized. Having your tongue stuck in your cheek is indeed a good way to get it bitten, though. --Michael Snow (talk) 05:02, 16 April 2009 (UTC)
 * heh - I see someone put the gigantic boobs back, and I have now struck them. The striking of boobies will, I trust, help the arb procedures along... ;-) Privatemusings (talk) 08:06, 16 April 2009 (UTC)
 * ;) Durova Charge! 04:40, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for your note on my page regarding Alastair. I don't live in Australia, but in New York. Alastair and I know each other from Wikipedia and have high regard for each other's work. I was away from the computer for several days, but have posted on the request for arbitration page. Please let me know if you see any inaccuracies in what I'm gathering from everyone's notes. Thanks. SkyWriter (Tim) (talk) 04:23, 17 April 2009 (UTC)
 * It looks good to me, Sky - the offer for a drink stands if you ever pass through Sydney :-) - hopefully Alastair's situation will be sorted out very soon, although I think it's taken an unacceptable amount of time, and I think some have fallen well below par on this one... cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 04:38, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

So how does this work from here? The arbcom doesn't appear to wish to deal with it, while there is a consensus forming on the noticeboard to give Alastair the April 8th status he never violated. If there is any breach of faith from April 8th, it is on the part of those who have blocked him. That is, on April 8th an agreement was made, and on April 9th the agreement was broken -- not by Alastair, but by Coren. But there is no movement toward correcting that breach of faith either. Do we just sit and wait, or is there a road ahead?SkyWriter (Tim) (talk) 03:00, 19 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Another yes vote? Mathsci (talk) 18:14, 19 April 2009 (UTC)


 * Well, sure -- but I'm not an admin. SkyWriter (Tim) (talk) 18:25, 19 April 2009 (UTC)
 * extreme patience is unfortunately required, the wiki dispute resolution system being much better at exacerbating problems than at resolving them ;-) - my plan is just to keep rattling cages, and hopefully a penny will drop before too long.... Privatemusings (talk) 21:53, 19 April 2009 (UTC)


 * You've got a lot of good humor for this. Kudos to your nudges.  Alastair should have his thesis finished by the time this clears up...SkyWriter (Tim) (talk) 23:29, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Nobody
... expects the Spanish Inquisition! Our two terrible weapons are humour, tastelessness and irrationa... No, our three terrible weapons are humour, tastelessness, irrationality and UK-Eng variant spell... Wait, our four terrible weapons are... er... oh, never mind! LessHeard vanU (talk) 21:40, 17 April 2009 (UTC)
 * /me goes to get the comfy chair - we can't have sperm wasted carelessly! ;-) Privatemusings (talk) 23:55, 17 April 2009 (UTC)
 * ps. you'll have to check this page history for how witty I was being, Durova removed a racy image :-) Privatemusings (talk) 00:22, 18 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Giano was inviting me to do this kind of edit, though. You provided the material.  Durova Charge! 01:35, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Gulp
This gives an entirely new meaning to WP:POINT. Durova Charge! 22:12, 17 April 2009 (UTC)
 * well indeed - those things will have your eye out if you're not careful :-) - you know my feelings that there's a serious conversation to be had (or a least a silly conversation about substantive issues) - but it's sure hard to get anywhere.... looking through the diff.s it did amuse me that one of the first things to happen to that pic was covering up the rude bit... I stand by what I said in the 'reverse the polarity' bit, and I hope the community can get better at talking this stuff through... cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 23:55, 17 April 2009 (UTC)
 * ps. you weren't making a pun with the section title, were you? How well do you know Giano? ;-) Privatemusings (talk) 23:59, 17 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Entirely unintentional. Both you and LessHeard dove into a gutter I hadn't even noticed was nearby.  Now let's put this kind of thought to encyclopedic use...for example my newest featured picture.  Durova Charge! 00:06, 18 April 2009 (UTC)
 * that's a great photo :-) - I'm sort of assuming that your feeling is that my making puns etc. using rude pic.s has the risk of becoming disruptive, which is presumably why my spectacular witticism above was edited? - you'll appreciate the irony, though I accept the admonishment to go and do something useful probably has merit. Privatemusings (talk) 00:22, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Actually there's a lovely image that has tits on it (the soft round kind, in digital facsimile) that wouldn't take much labor to prepare for FPC. Just needs a few touches in GIMP or Photoshop. It pertains to a Shakespeare play; it must be encyclopedic. Could you be tempted to give it a go? Doesn't quite generate that tingle up the spine to a heterosexual female editor... Durova Charge! 00:30, 18 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Happy to give it a go - will it be easy? cheers, Privatemusings (talk) 00:33, 18 April 2009 (UTC)
 * All it actually needs is rotation and cropping, and handful of minor dust and dirt specks removed, a touch of brighness adjustment at the upper corners, histogram adjusted and colors balanced. Just for the text at the bottom margin, add a touch of contrast or do an edge sharpen filter.  Downloading will be a challenge, but it gets down to about 110MB after cropping and should be around 40MB when you convert to JPEG for upload.  Durova Charge! 00:55, 18 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Drums fingers. Now are you going to stare at this for hours or do I have to?  Checks time, mutters You can never get a man to look at boobs when it really helps the project...  Durova Charge! 01:43, 18 April 2009 (UTC)
 * nm. Durova Charge! 16:18, 18 April 2009 (UTC)


 * heh.. looks like you finished it before my download arrived! Plus I sort of wandered off the wiki for the weekend :-( - it looks good, although I'm one of the odd people who at heart kind of prefers the original, warts and all, often. I'm just catching up on the broo ha ha around naughty pic.s - in particular at Jimbo's talk page. It's not wiki's finest hour in my book. Privatemusings (talk) 21:51, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Sorry
I am screwed and can't come. Kicking myself and hope everyone enjoys the marvellous beers. Sorry. Will try May...Casliber (talk · contribs) 07:51, 22 April 2009 (UTC)
 * well at least you have the good manners to make sure your apologies get through before the meet - I managed to make it 2 out of 2 no-shows within the week - look forward to explaining myself over more beer in May..... Privatemusings (talk) 08:36, 24 April 2009 (UTC)


 * Let's make sure its belgian beer....Casliber (talk · contribs) 09:10, 24 April 2009 (UTC)