User talk:Smoothswim

Response by smoothswim
Given my experience of Wikipedia so far, this title comes across as trolling (sarcasm.) Thanks! I guess... Smoothswim (talk) 23:16, 4 October 2019 (UTC)
 * I intended it as a preface to the next para but forgot to change the level of the latter ("never ascribe to conspiracy anything more easily explained as a cockup*). So no sarcasm or trolling intended. (btw, you don't need a sub-section heading to reply). --John Maynard Friedman (talk) 18:08, 5 October 2019 (UTC)

Welcome!
Hello, Smoothswim, and welcome to Wikipedia! Thank you for your contributions. I hope you like the place and decide to stay. Here are a few links to pages you might find helpful:


 * Introduction and Getting started
 * Contributing to Wikipedia
 * The five pillars of Wikipedia
 * How to edit a page and How to develop articles
 * How to create your first article
 * Simplified Manual of Style

You may also want to complete the Wikipedia Adventure, an interactive tour that will help you learn the basics of editing Wikipedia. You can visit the Teahouse to ask questions or seek help.

Please remember to sign your messages on talk pages by typing four tildes ( ~ ); this will automatically insert your username and the date. If you need help, check out Questions, ask me on my talk page, or, and a volunteer should respond shortly. Again, welcome! --John Maynard Friedman (talk) 21:05, 4 October 2019 (UTC)

Response by smoothswim
Thanks for the tip John! I will use it to sign. Although I'm not really intending to be around here much longer. The experience so far has been horrible. I was warned that there is a toxic community here but you seem OK :) Smoothswim (talk) 23:21, 4 October 2019 (UTC)
 * We have a rule, WP:Please don't bite the newbies, so please believe that at least the initial responses you got were genuinely intended to help you. Unfortunately, flame wars get started easily online and the reference to the Administrator Noticeboard was an acknowledgement that things becoming derailed. As for "toxic community", of course I would think that is unfair, but conversely some contributors don't realise that WP:Wikipedia is not a forum for personal opinions like Twitter, nor a place for pet theories (see WP:No original research) or fringe points of view (see WP:FRINGE and WP:Neutral point of view. So yes we are hostile to that kind of contribution. People also get a bit put out by having material that they have worked on for hours being edited (sometimes heavily), it can be hard to accept that we don't WP:OWN an article we create. It can be really annoying to have your work being changed while you are still writing it, so it is a good idea to use your WP:SANDBOX to create the draft and then copy it over when you feel that it is ready. --John Maynard Friedman (talk) 18:40, 5 October 2019 (UTC)

=Discussion=

There is currently a discussion at Administrators' noticeboard/Incidents regarding an issue with which you may have been involved. From AnUnnamedUser (open talk page) 03:05, 4 October 2019 (UTC)

Response by smoothswim
I added a response. I regret ever coming to Wikipedia and editing just to be trolled. Lesson learned. Smoothswim (talk) 00:07, 5 October 2019 (UTC)

Questions
Questions can be added here:

October 2019
Please remember to assume good faith when dealing with other editors. Thank you. bonadea contributions talk 05:01, 4 October 2019 (UTC)
 * As another editor from MK, may I offer some friendly advice? That caution from The Management means please don't accuse other editors of vandalism or blindly revert what they have done. Wikipedia works by people having a go and accepting other editors' contributions and edits as being genuinely intended to improve the article. We don't WP:OWN the articles we create. If someone makes an edit you don't like, use the article talk page to debate it - perhaps the reason is that something wasn't clear and needed explaining better.. Wikipedia needs editors who contribute good new content (especially about Milton Keynes, but then I'm biased), anybody can tart it up. So please don't be discouraged! --John Maynard Friedman (talk) 21:05, 4 October 2019 (UTC)

Response by smoothswim
Again, I feel like this is an attack and an example of toxic community here at Wikipedia. I could go on and pick at your points and offer you some friendly advice but it's a waste of both our time. Remember: Never assume. Editors must act in good faith. I never once assumed ownership of any single article despite your assertion and articles I created and edited were vandalized by a serial deleter. This is not the place for this discussion and your comment could be misconstrued as brigading. Please. Just. Stop. Smoothswim (talk) 00:07, 5 October 2019 (UTC)
 * On the contrary, I see a new editor from MK trying to get started and am genuinely trying to help. --John Maynard Friedman (talk) 18:57, 5 October 2019 (UTC)

Lead Section
Per WP:LEAD, the lead section should give a summary of the highlights or key points of the article. When you get a chance, you should write that.

Response by smoothswim
...And so could you or anyone else. Correct? Smoothswim (talk) 00:07, 5 October 2019 (UTC)
 * Yes, absolutely, I could. But then I don't know anything about skateboarding so whatever I do wouldn't be as good as you could do. The lead is intended as a "teaser trailer" for the article - see for example Milton Keynes. --John Maynard Friedman (talk) 18:45, 5 October 2019 (UTC)

The Buszy, "fanzine" criticism
How to other skate park articles resolve the "it's just a fanzine" criticism? --John Maynard Friedman (talk) 20:49, 4 October 2019 (UTC)

Response by smoothswim
They don't need to. Using the "it's just a fanzine" banner is just a method of trolling used to try to discredit an editor in this example. The fact that there are over forty well researched sources proves without a shadow of a doubt that this is no fan work.

The truth is that I have skateboarded at the Buszy since 1996 and lived in the City Centre for 5 years. I grew up around all of the goings on at the place and was writing the article because no body else was. The Skate MK project and MKDP (the building's owners) haven't even tried to add anything but hearsay to Wikipedia about it's history. Hearsay, which I BTW went out of my way to find sources to validate. I suspect Skate MK could have prioritised funding to add information to Wikipedia if they thought the site had relevancy. But no one was going to write this article IMO and no one was talking about it at the meetup. The Buszy is of massive historical importance to Street Skateboarding. It is the World's first ever custom build Street Skateboarding plaza. I was of the opinion that Wikipedia was the place for factual information about that sort of thing.

If it's the trivia section, please just remove or repurpose it.

Thanks for making the point John. Smoothswim (talk) 00:07, 5 October 2019 (UTC)
 * All of what you say is true, so the objective now is to make an article that is attractive and will be taken seriously. My use of the word "fanzine" was lazy. What I meant to say that the tag "written to much from a fan's point of view" exists because it is a common problem, we've all done it. The way to improve it is to look at other articles in the skatebaording project to see in what way they are better. Or ask for another member of the project to do a review. But you really must be willing to accept constructive criticism in the spirit that it is given in. We are all volunteers here. --John Maynard Friedman (talk) 18:55, 5 October 2019 (UTC)

October 2019
The next time you call a fellow editor a fascist without providing rock solid evidence, you will be blocked. That is a personal attack and is utterly unacceptable on this website. Cullen328  Let's discuss it  00:27, 5 October 2019 (UTC)

Hello Smoothswim from fellow WikiProject Skateboarding member!
{| style="background-color: #fdffe7; border: 1px solid #fceb92;" I'm Wil540 and I am a member of WikiProject_Skateboarding like you and I also run an independent digital history project focused on skateboarding called the Skateboarding Digital History Project.
 * style="vertical-align: middle; padding: 5px;" | Harold_hunter.png
 * style="vertical-align: middle; padding: 3px;" | A sick Harold Hunter wallride for you!

Unfortunately, the Rick McCrank article has been nominated for deletion. Please contribute if you feel opinionated on the nomination: Articles_for_deletion/Rick_McCrank_(2nd_nomination) --Wil540 art (talk) 14:49, 17 December 2020 (UTC)