User talk:The Arbiter/Archives/March to August 2010

ZooPro
ZooPro made these remarks on Talk:Cheetah for which he/she received a warning, to which he/she replied here. As a result of which he/she was blocked for 24 hours. ZooPro took umbrage at that and picked up his/her bat and ball and went home. --Michael Johnson (talk) 02:21, 11 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Yeah, he probably should have not spoken like that…sigh…he was a good contributor though, and I do know for a fact that he is director of a large zoo and is knowledgeable on animals. I really can’t say more than that, to preserve his privacy. Dr. Rhino  ★★★  16:40, 11 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Sorry? A director of a zoo? Don't think so. --Michael Johnson (talk) 00:17, 12 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Although he/she used "director" in several arguments, his/her userboxes always claimed "Zookeeper at Australia Zoo," not director. Donlammers (talk) 12:36, 12 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Yes, he is director of a zoo. I know this for a fact. I will also say that he has a Wikipedia article about himself, but doesn’t edit it due to COI. I won’t say anymore to preserve his privacy, but trust me on this one, yes, he is the director. Dr. Rhino  ★★★  22:53, 13 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Well I guess that could only be one person, and frankly the history of edits would seem to be out of character with that individual. In fact they seem out of character with any individual holding the level of responsibility claimed. One of the problems ZooPro has had in editing is his/her claim to be a zoo director, then making an argument from authority, as per this example. It really doesn't matter what a person does outside Wikipedia we still require reliable sources. ZooPro could be William G. Conway himself, it still wouldn't make his contribution any more valuable if he won't follow the rules. --Michael Johnson (talk) 00:36, 15 April 2010 (UTC)
 * That was probably a few more clues than I needed. In any case, it's unfortunate that, however it came about, he felt the need to respond as he did, both to the discussions and to the blocking. (I thought I was signed in, but I wasn't, so I'm signing now) Donlammers (talk) 02:49, 15 April 2010 (UTC)

hi
thx for considering me for adoption. yeah i would really love that :)

i have added myself as a new adoptee :)

Cosmos 03:31, 12 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Great! Just ask me any questions or for any advice you need! Dr. Rhino  ★★★  23:51, 13 April 2010 (UTC)

ZooPro & WikiProjects
Hi, Dr. Rhino! Long time, no see! I have not heard from ZP since the WikiProject Report. A lot of people were coming to me arguing about ZooPro not being there to answer. He said in a response on my talk page (now archived) that, quote:


 * Hey, Belugaboy. It's me ZooPro. Just to let you know, I've picked up my bat and ball and have headed home.

???   I don't know what that was. He was a great contributor.

Back to WikiProjects, WP:ZOO got a mention in the Signpost about how it's looking for members. WP:MAMMAL has not gotten any new members or much publicity since you left as of March 29.

Well, I'll check on ZooPro's page. I'll hope to be hearing from you soon, Dr. Rhino.


 * See you soon,


 * Belugaboy Talk to Me! 00:13, 13 April 2010 (UTC)


 * Yeah, unfortunately ZooPro left. I’m still doing a few things to get back in swing, and then I should be editing a lot. What have you been up to? Dr. Rhino  ★★★  23:02, 13 April 2010 (UTC)


 * I've been sort of in the shadows, working on a chapter book on my MS Word Program. I've basically done only a WP Report for WP:CHICAGO and that's it. Since ZP left, could I take up space for coordinator of WP:ZOO and WP:MAMMAL? Thanks!
 * Belugaboy Talk to Me! 23:25, 15 April 2010 (UTC)


 * WP:ZOO definitely doesn’t need any more coordinators…WP:MAMMAL, we’ll see later. Why don’t you just focus on launching the portal? That would help a lot. The Arbiter  ★★★  01:50, 9 May 2010 (UTC)
 * I still need schooling in portals, but I can still help with articles. If you don't need a coordinator until later, for the time being I nominate . See ya!
 * Belugaboy Talk to Me! 23:41, 12 May 2010 (UTC)
 * I agree with The Arbiter that the project does not need additional coordinators (me or anyone else). We need people working on articles. There are plenty of listings under Article Requests for editors of any skill and with just about any amount of time on their hands. Donlammers (talk) 10:44, 13 May 2010 (UTC)

WPZOO
Since you took a break, not much has been happening to the project. ZooFari decided to concentrate on commons work, so he's gone. ZooPro retired from WikiPedia, the circumstances of which have already been discussed. As far as I can tell he's still listed on other Wiki sister projects, but I can't say whether he is active there or not.

I'm not sure where I was when you left, so forgive me if you already know some of the stuff below.

I was going to go through and add the portal to zoo articles, but I don't think it's really in shape for that yet. It seems like Belugaboy has volunteered to take that over, so maybe it will get whipped into shape.

I have evaluated all unassessed articles, and am keeping an eye on the gategory. When something pops in, my goal is to assess it and make it into at least a good stub (preferably a start class article -- almost all articles that appear here are Basic Stubs, which I don't think we should be creating any more). I also went through the "articles needing attention" and either dealt with the reason for the attention request or (if I could figure out no particular reason they needed attention) got rid of the tags. I am also watching this list and can (hopefully) address issues that show up. Most of the articles on the list had no apparent issues beyond just "needing expansion" (and we have over 500 such articles already conveniently listed under start-class and stub-class if someone wants to expand them).

I updated the List of US Zoos and the state zoo templates to match, and updated the AZA list. I have made sure that all Colorado zoos (my state) we list have an article -- mostly start class now. I am now going through the AZA list to eliminate red links by creating start class articles. This will take a while, as I can't do more than about 1 start class article per week at best (and in some cases there are relates articles that need updating too). After that, I will tackle New Mexico zoos (sorry, my favorite states come first). I have a template I am using for starting articles that anyone is welcome to copy.

I have asked the project several questions about the lists, and you can see them at talk:WikiProject Zoo. I will start on this as a "side" project (just cranking out articles gets boring) in a week or two.

There has been some work on Zoo Basel, but not much else that I know of. Of course, I'm not watching all the zoo articles, so a lot could be going on that I'm not seeing. Donlammers (talk) 12:54, 20 April 2010 (UTC)


 * Hey Donlammers! Sorry for the delayed answer. Yes, the project seems to be falling into disrepair…I’ll do my best to keep it together. At the moment, what you have been doing is great. Keep assessing, and working on articles one by one. Everything else is good, too. As for the portal, I need to finish that up…I’m not sure if Belugaboy knows how to add pics and articles. Anyways, thanks for the heads-up, and happy editing! Oh, by the way, I’m currently working on expanding Niagara Falls Aviary. When I’m done, I may need you to assess it for me.  The Arbiter  ★★★  20:52, 24 April 2010 (UTC)


 * I have added Niagara Falls Aviary to the List of Zoos (it was not there). Do you think we should create "Zoos in " nav templates for Canada like there are for "Zoos of " in the U.S.? Or, is this supposedly handled by "List of CAZA members" (except that not all Canadian Zoos seem to be members). Let me know when you are done with the article and I will take a look. Donlammers (talk) 22:28, 24 April 2010 (UTC)
 * I think the Zoos in is a great idea. Anything to increase organization, you know. So, go ahead with that. The Arbiter  ★★★  00:08, 27 April 2010 (UTC)
 * I have created Zoos of Ontario (more to follow) since you are working on the NF Aviary article. I added it to Ontario articles, so if you are working on the NF Aviary article in your sandbox you may want to add it there too. Donlammers (talk) 11:52, 27 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Canadian province navboxes are done and deployed. I found a few other articles to add to WPZOO while I was at it. Donlammers (talk) 00:35, 29 April 2010 (UTC)

Progress
Just updating: I finished the Zoos of templates for Canada. I created an expansion section in the Article requests page and moved my easy stub to start list and start-expansion list here. I relinked "Expansion requests" here rather than directly to the stub page. I will be working on these lists over time, but the last couple of weeks I decided to make it so we have more starts than stubs (we do as of today, though just barely). I have done some work on the lists, splitting out US aquaria. Probably Canada and Brazil both deserve the same, but I haven't gotten there yet. I will now go back to my regularly scheduled creation of articles to eliminate the red links in the AZA list. Donlammers (talk) 13:06, 8 May 2010 (UTC)
 * Hey, awesome work! I don't know what I and the project would do without you. The Arbiter  ★★★  15:09, 8 May 2010 (UTC)

WP:NOT
Please don't censor article titles, as you did here.&mdash;Kww(talk) 18:36, 8 May 2010 (UTC)
 * Oops, sorry, that was unintentional. My computer has some filters, and I think it automatically removed a word. Thanks for the change back! The Arbiter  ★★★  18:49, 8 May 2010 (UTC)
 * Thanks for leaving the barnstar, but your edits remove the word "    " from "Winter      " in a whole separate section. I just thought you should know so you can make adjustments to your filters if necessary.

Active members
I'm still chugging away. I got us up to more starts than stubs, and have since ruined that by starting to re-assess start-class articles, many of which seem to still be stubs, and still have the stub template on the article page. I'm finishing the "A"s now, and have promoted a couple to C, demoted a few to stub, and upgraded a few from stub to start to avoid demoting. There is a list of what I think are easy stub to start updates on the Requests page now, and I just started a list of easy start to C articles. I'm going to try to get through one letter per week on the assessment/updates, but it will depend on how many need updates. I'm also trying to create one new AZA member zoo article per week (as a start-class article). I'm working on and off on the lists. I have a "checklist" for start and C class assessment here, which should maybe be incorporated into our assessment page eventually. I haven't gotten into B assessment yet -- just working my way up. Donlammers (talk) 10:54, 13 May 2010 (UTC)

I'm here too. I haven't done much fo the past couple of months, but the other day I edited the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium page. It's the first collaboration article, I believe. So I'm     for more! Takinzinnia (talk) 01:41, 15 May 2010 (UTC)

Cosmoskramer
I saw a note on his talk page that you've adopted him. Could you check to see that when he next edits he does change his signature to include a link to his user page, talk or contributions, as I've asked? Fences &amp;  Windows  14:45, 22 May 2010 (UTC)
 * Hello Fences&Windows! Sure, I’ll do that now. Thanks for telling me! The Arbiter  ★★★  15:42, 22 May 2010 (UTC)
 * Thanks. Fences  &amp;  Windows  20:42, 23 May 2010 (UTC)

Hi
WP Mammals seems remarkable untagged in the category department - I dont know if it has been considered for bot attention or not - however as you seem to be the name at the top of the list thoughts I;d pay a polite visit and say hi before I proceed - tagging is always good for project maintenance - imho - cheers SatuSuro 12:29, 23 May 2010 (UTC)

Bison query
Hi Arbiter

I left a question at Talk:American Bison re claimed skeletal differences to European bison. Perhaps you know someone on the zoology project who could help?--Charles (talk) 21:44, 23 May 2010 (UTC)

WP Zoo in the Signpost
Don't forget to post your answers to the interview questions for next week's article. Let me know if you have any questions regarding the interview. Thanks! -Mabeenot (talk) 19:45, 28 May 2010 (UTC)

WikiProject Animals Signpost Interview
Hello The Arbiter. Per the request on the WikiProject Desk at the Signpost, I have decided to feature the project on June 28. I will post interview questions here and look forward to your replies. Thank you,  m o n o   20:31, 5 June 2010 (UTC)

WikiProject Zoos
You asked on 13 May 2010 about the wikipedians who are still members of WikiProject Zoo. Well, I have been working on the articles about protected areas, zoos and and wildlife present in Pakistan, but I dont do them quite often, due to lack of sources. I wanted to tell that I am still an active member of WPZOO. I have worked extensively on the article about Lahore Zoo and brought it from start class to C class. I think it should get a reassessment. I am started and am working on other articles like Karachi Zoo, Islamabad Zoo and Bahawalpur Zoo, lists like Reptiles of Pakistan and Amphibians of Pakistan and templates like Protected areas, Zoos, Wildlife of Pakistan. Farjad0322 (talk) 12:45, 15 July 2010 (UTC)


 * The Arbiter is out on break right now, so I'm going to answer to this. I notice that you have the Zoo Project user box on your user page, but you are not in the participants list. If you could go [here and add your name, everyone would know you are an active member. You can include your preferences in the entry. As far as I know, I am currently the only one doing reassessment. I have been watching the Lahore Zoo article, and have been meaning to do a top to bottom copy edit, but have not had the time yet. Taking a quick look this morning, the main thing I see that needs improvement is that the controversies section is about 1/3 of the article, and particularly the Smuggling section goes on and on (sorry, I'm a tech writer, and my business is brevity). The basic structure is good, the article is well cited, and there are enough photos. It needs a logo, but that should be easy. After that, I think it's in line to be a B-class article. Once again as I promised several weeks ago (a promise I obviously didn't keep) I will try to get to a copy edit this weekend. [[User:Donlammers|Donlammers]] (talk) 12:06, 16 July 2010 (UTC)


 * I just added a logo and did a bit of copy editing. Gotta go now to start getting my son ready for summer camp. Donlammers (talk) 12:37, 16 July 2010 (UTC)


 * I added my name in the participants list. Yeah! I did realize that smuggling section was kind of boring and sucked. The controversies section is big, thats probably because media at my country does nothing but criticze most of the time. Thats why I also added a conservation efforts section. Finally, it can become B-article. THanks! Farjad0322 (talk) 13:11, 16 July 2010 (UTC)


 * I think media around the world tends to focus on criticism. It sells better, I guess. I just finished an article I was creating, so I will tackle a copy edit on Lahore Zoo next and see if we can get it up to B-class (it's not far). Donlammers (talk) 18:09, 16 July 2010 (UTC)

Still Alive
Still going strong old friend? Fill me in on the happenings. Zoo Pro  08:39, 6 August 2010 (UTC)


 * The Arbiter is out until "August or September." He's been gone almost as long as you have. I can fill you in on what has been happening in WPZOO, but not much about other projects. Donlammers (talk) 14:48, 6 August 2010 (UTC)
 * It's good to see you're back, ZooPro. I never communicated with you much but I still remember that time when you were having trouble keeping false info out of the cheetah article.  —  Soap  —  23:57, 6 August 2010 (UTC)

Thanks Donlammers that would be great, just chuck the info on my talk page please, and thanks Soap much appreciated. Zoo Pro  01:12, 7 August 2010 (UTC)


 * Hey ZooPro! Great to see you, my friend. Yeah, the notice says August or September. Don’t worry, I will be back soon, but right now I have been incredibly busy in real life. I’m still alive, and I will hopefully be editing soon. Thanks guys! The Arbiter  ★★★  19:32, 22 August 2010 (UTC)