User talk:Wnewbold

Wikipedia Online Ambassador Program
Welcome to Wikipedia, Dr. Newbold! Were you aware that we have an outreach program specifically designed to assist professors and students that wish to incorporate Wikipedia into their course curriculum? Campus Ambassadors are trained to come into your classroom and teach your students how to edit Wikipedia articles -- think of them as the embassy staff when your students visit the foreign land of Wikipedia. Campus Ambassadors can also help you adjust your syllabus to accommodate a Wikipedia assignment. Online Ambassadors serve as virtual mentors to you and your students, offering individual feedback about your contributions on Wikipedia.

I serve the Wikipedia community as an Online Ambassador and would like to invite you to consider becoming involved in the Ambassador Program. If you are interested, sign up on the program page (instructions are provided) or contact the Campus Team Coordinator, Annie Lin, for more information: alin [at] wikimedia [dot] org. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Best regards,  Cind. amuse  21:38, 29 March 2011 (UTC)


 * We have our first beginning article posted in a holding subpage at User:Lbowman1/West_Washington_Street_Bridge ! Many more will follow this weekend and next week. Is it the best practice to hold in a subpage until it is ready to go public?  Also, I have a question about signatures.  Why does the line "unsigned comment" sometimes appear along with the user's id? Does that mean he/she forgot the the four tildas? Best,   Webster Newbold 21:27, 1 April 2011 (UTC)

Talk pages
On another note, user talk pages are designed for editors to discuss improvements to an article or other Wikipedia page. Oftentimes, automatic messages may show up on this page unexpectedly. For that reason, I would like to recommend that you move your project communication page to a subpage of your user space. For example, you can click on this red link and paste the content in the new editing window that opens up. Then leave a link to the page on your user page. The Ambassador Program will also provide guidance in creating a course page, as well as work to provide a Campus Ambassador and Online Ambassador to assist you in working with Wikipedia. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.  Cind. amuse  22:18, 29 March 2011 (UTC)

Put comments and questions related to our project here.

Hello from Ling

 * Hello Dr. Newbold. I used to be a Wikipedia Ambassador, but had to quit because of real-life time constraints. I would be happy to chip in and help with your project. I've sent you an email with a little additional info. Later &bull; Ling.Nut (talk) 01:12, 30 March 2011 (UTC)
 * Oops, it appears that I misunderstood. You aren't a pat of the Ambassador program, but have been invited to join. Please accept my apologies for th misunderstanding. &bull; Ling.Nut (talk) 05:23, 30 March 2011 (UTC)

Help chat
Hi, I was assisting you in the Wikipedia help chat room. Got a question, need any more help? No problem, click  here  to ask me. WilliamH (talk) 16:59, 25 October 2011 (UTC)


 * Hi, thanks again for the help. I'm teaching a digital literacies class where students are doing editing projects in groups, so I or some of my students may indeed have some questions in the next few weeks. We'll keep your generous offer in mind. Webster Newbold (talk) 01:26, 26 October 2011 (UTC)

Anna Russett's Sandbox.
Hello, I saw your request to have Anna's sandbox moved to the correct location. In my attempt to help I moved the talk page, but not the sandbox itself. I should clarify that I am not an administrator in any sense, but only another user trying to help. I left a message for Anna at her talk page. To streamline this discussion, please respond there after reading the message I left. Sorry for any inconvenience. Cliff (talk) 06:48, 27 October 2011 (UTC)


 * I have performed a merge - all edits made across the two pages can now be found within the history of User:AnnaRussett/Personal_sandbox - check the History tab for posterity, and click the timestamp to see how the page looked at that time. I guess you all now realise that the Wikipedia software distinguishes between lower and upper case. :) WilliamH (talk) 20:34, 27 October 2011 (UTC)


 * My apologies for messing this up. For future information, the pages and content in your personal space, for example User:Cliff/Sandbox are yours. Copying and pasting and adding or deleting content in these areas will not affect Wikipedia as a whole. Do with them as you will. Because I wasn't sure what was needed, I did not move the content myself. If things like this happen in the future, you can copy the "wikicode" from one page to another, then request the deletion of any pages you no longer want. I am available to you if you have any more questions. Happy Editing. Cliff (talk) 21:58, 27 October 2011 (UTC)

Your contributed article, New Articles Basics


Hello, I notice that you recently created a new page, New Articles Basics. First, thank you for your contribution; Wikipedia relies solely on the efforts of volunteers such as yourself. Unfortunately, the page you created covers a topic on which we already have a page - Wikipedia:Starting an article. Because of the duplication, your article has been tagged for speedy deletion. Please note that this is not a comment on you personally and we hope you will continue helping to improve Wikipedia. If the topic of the article you created is one that interests you, then perhaps you would like to help out at Wikipedia:Starting an article - you might like to discuss new information at the article's talk page.

If you think that the article you created should remain separate, contest the deletion by clicking on the button labelled "Click here to contest this speedy deletion". Doing so will take you to the talk page where you will find a pre-formatted place for you to explain why you believe the page should not be deleted. You can also visit the page's talk page directly to give your reasons, but be aware that once tagged for speedy deletion, if the page meets the criterion, it may be deleted without delay. Please do not remove the speedy deletion tag yourself, but don't hesitate to add information to the page that would render it more in conformance with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines. If the page is deleted, you can contact one of these administrators to request that the administrator userfy the page or email a copy to you. Additionally if you would like to have someone review articles you create before they go live so they are not nominated for deletion shortly after you post them, allow me to suggest the article creation process and using our search feature to find related information we already have in the encyclopedia. Try not to be discouraged. Wikipedia looks forward to your future contributions. GILO  A&E&uArr;  20:59, 1 November 2011 (UTC)

I've deleted the article at New Article Basics.
The mainspace is only for articles on encyclopedic topics. If you want to set up a course on Wikipedia, you should read this page: School and university projects, and set up any instructional pages either on a school website or in a subpage of your userspace. I've inlcuded the text of the deleted instructions below. Thanks, --Patar knight - chat/contributions 02:48, 2 November 2011 (UTC)

Sorry, putting that short page in the mainspace was a mistake. It's now on a subpage in my User area. Webster Newbold (talk) 03:42, 2 November 2011 (UTC)

{{Hidden|style = text-align:center;|titlestyle = background-color: light blue; color:Black; background:#ccccff;|contentstyle = border:1px Black solid;
 * header=New Article Basics|content=

Starting a New Article--First Steps
You will be working on a new article in your Pathfinder's sandbox or sub-page set up for that purpose. Everyone has access to these pages so anyone can add material at any time. Be sure to leave an "editing memo" telling what you did before you save any page Remember to include references for your material. Put your references at the bottom of the article first, so they can be accessed easily later for footnotes. Make any notes, questions, or comments in the sandbox Talk page. Be sure to sign your edits with "four tildes }}
 * Put them under a sub heading==References==
 * Create a hot link of the reference is to a Web page (highlight and use the link icon at the top of the editing box)

Institute Benjamenta
Hello Dr. Newbold, I just created a page on this film before realizing that one of your students was working on a draft for it in his/her sandbox. I wouldn't have done so had I realized there was already a work in progress, sorry. What are the odds that two people would be working on the same semi-obscure art film at the same time! Oh well, I really like what you're doing with this class. I wish I could have had similar assignments back in my college days, that would have been great. Mark Arsten (talk) 21:10, 21 November 2011 (UTC)

Online Ambassador
Hello Dr. Newbold, just a note to say I've signed on as an OA for your course. Feel free to contact me anytime, The Interior  (Talk) 20:58, 9 February 2012 (UTC)

Indiana stubs
Here's some stubs -
 * Indiana stubs The Interior  (Talk) 21:48, 28 February 2012 (UTC)

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Digital Literacies
Hi Dr. Newbold, I'd be happy to help out with this course. Nikkimaria (talk) 16:26, 28 September 2012 (UTC)


 * Thanks very much. I have two sections of the same course, and I'm hoping to have one ambassador working with each section. The Interior, whom I worked with last Spring, has already volunteered for one. Here is what we need most (besides gentle nudges from time to time as to appropriate WP protocol and procedures): students will be working in groups (four or five, depending on the section), and each group will agree on the article focus--new article, improvement, or stub expansion. Their first hard deadline is Oct 11, when their potential topic ideas are due; your timely feedback on which topics might work would be really helpful. The article drafts are due at the end of October–early November, and your feedback on their work and what needs to be done to make it suitable for publication is needed at that point. Will your schedule permit you to put in some time during these periods? There may also be questions from the group leaders at other times, but these two points I've mentioned are the most essential. Best, WN.
 * Yes, that's fine, especially with the smaller sections. Where will they be posting their topic ideas? Nikkimaria (talk) 01:42, 29 September 2012 (UTC)
 * Eventually, they will be posting ideas in the sandboxes of their group coordinators, whom I call "Pathfinders." We are still setting up user accounts and getting oriented. I'll have the pathfinders contact their ambassadors at the end of next week. I'd like to assign you to section 1, which will be in the classroom all together on Thursdays 9:30 to 10:45 am Eastern US time (13:30 to 14:45 UTC). It's not necessary that you be available then, of course, but if that could happen it might speed things up a lot. What time zone are you located in, and how would you prefer Pathfinders communicate with you?
 * I'm in Canadian Eastern Time. They can contact me via my talk page. Nikkimaria (talk) 19:54, 29 September 2012 (UTC)

Online Ambassador

 * As Interior noted, there was a minor technical issue, it should be fixed now. I am already an online ambassador for two courses, but if you find nobody else, ping me again and I'll try to help. The course subject certainly fits in my interests and expertise. --Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus&#124; reply here 18:57, 28 September 2012 (UTC)

Online Ambassador
My apologies for not replying sooner. Should you still need assistance for an online ambassador, I am available. With thanks for your time. Maple Leaf (talk) 23:06, 6 October 2012 (UTC)
 * Thanks for getting back, Maple Leaf. We have secured two ambassadors to help us so don't have a need at present. I'll keep you in mind, however, for future projects. Best, Webster Newbold (talk) 01:38, 9 October 2012 (UTC)

Re: Finishing
Yes, that moving handout is fine; they should also create the article talk page and add the banner for your class once they've moved it. As to images: it looks like those currently in the article have already been tagged for deletion. The group could probably recreate the map using a map of New Jersey from Commons and cite the Google result as a source. For images of the salamander itself, they might try contacting the people who took these photos to ask for permission, or they could see if any of the sites listed here, or any US government sites (which are mostly PD), have usable images. Nikkimaria (talk) 18:49, 6 November 2012 (UTC)

Did You Know
NEW  The Interior  (Talk) 01:13, 18 November 2012 (UTC)

Topic selection
Webster, here are some resources for search for viable articles for the course.
 * Stubs: WP:STUBS, use categories to navigate.
 * Start Class Articles: Start articles often have a lot of room for expansion. These are a bit trickier to track down, as they are assessed by their relevant WikiProject.  To round these up, find a WikiProject on a desired topic area from this directory: WP:PROJDIR.  Then find the project's assessment template (usually on the home page).  That will give you a category of start class articles within the topic, i.e.Category:Start-Class Book articles.  (alternately there is also an alpha listing at Category:Start-Class articles)
 * New topics: Newly released books, albums, films. If the topic has some "buzz", sources will be popping up as they research.
 * Unreferenced articles: WP:ALS unfortunately this cat is organized by tagging date (!), but there is definitely some potential in there for topics. I'll think on some other resources. The Interior  (Talk) 05:32, 28 January 2013 (UTC)
 * Interior–Sorry it's been a while since I've had the chance to get back on WP--busy semester! I'm having some trouble finding the "start-class" listings for other projects like the one on books that you link to. The Category:Start-Class articles is very useful, but somewhat daunting I fear for absolute WP novices; the projects seem like they would be a better way to break down the many categories that exist. Anyway, could you offer some more guidance on how to find the start-class pages? Thanks! We are starting to look at WP in general on Thursday and will get down to serious topic hunting right after that. Cheers  Webster Newbold (talk) 04:44, 11 February 2013 (UTC)
 * Hi WB, the WikiProjects almost always have an "Article Statistics" template on their home page. Looking at WikiProject Indiana (which you should join/hook up with, btw!), it's about a third of the way down on the right hand side.  The wikilinks in the table are very useful, by clicking them they will index for you all Indiana-tagged articles within that quality rating. Most other WikiProjects use the same system (some are better indexed than others).  WP:PROJDIR is the master list of projects.  Hope this helps.  If you can give me any more guidance on what sort of articles you'd like to get the students working on, I'll help find indexes/categories.  Best,  The Interior  (Talk) 05:05, 11 February 2013 (UTC)
 * Note: the indexing is run by our Toolserver service, which has intermittent down times. Like right now it seems.  Should be up and running by tomorrow.  The Interior  (Talk) 05:22, 11 February 2013 (UTC)
 * OK,I think I'm learning this Project assessment thing slowly, but I'm still working on finding assessments via PROJDIR. Say I go from PROJDIR-->Culture and the Arts-->American TV Shows and Channels. I'm taken to a table section under that heading, but I don't see how I can get to start-class articles under American TV Shows. What steps am I missing? Webster Newbold (talk) 16:54, 11 February 2013 (UTC)
 * Just need to go one more level down, for instance from that list of TV-show themed projects, click on "24" to get to WikiProject 24, which has the article statistics table. I notice a few of the smaller projects don't have the tables set up yet, but most do.  Or you can go wider, by clicking on "Television" you get the "parent" project WikiProject Television, which has its table on a separate "assessment" tab.  Then you get a big pool, 12,000 start class.  Oh, just noticed that the tables on the PROJDIR pages have an "Assessment" column, that lets you know whether they have indexed their articles or not.  Handy.  The Interior  (Talk) 18:50, 11 February 2013 (UTC)
 * OK, think I've pretty much got it now. I'm going to try to generate interests in some general topics among the class before I put them into groups this time, so people can get aligned with topics they like (I hope). SO in the next class or two (Thurs and next Tues) I'll be trying this approach, after which I may have some specifics for you to help with. Cheers, Webster Newbold (talk) 15:49, 12 February 2013 (UTC)

Reviewing student drafts
Hey, Webster!

I'd be happy to take a look at the students' drafts; I'll keep an eye on their edits on Thursday and will hopefully have some helpful feedback. JMathewson (WMF) (talk) 20:48, 19 March 2013 (UTC)

Image Permissions
The Interior (Talk) 18:11, 14 April 2013 (UTC)