Should read 2030 Strategy, not 2023 strategy, sorry.
Paulo Santos Perneta <paulosperneta@gmail.com> escreveu (terça, 23/01/2024
à(s) 19:41):
> I wholeheartedly agree with this sentiment. We are currently grappling
> with rather rudimentary approaches when it comes to uploading and reusing
> video and music files...
> The incredibly useful Graph has been down for quite some time. The
> extensive capabilities of Wikidata query representations, particularly with
> geolocated data on maps, appear to have barely scratched the surface.
> Listeria frequently experiences issues and underwent a major update that
> disrupted previous queries.
>
> On a personal note, I attempted to create a dynamic digital library of
> works under a free license using Wikidata for our Digital Humanistics
> centre. However, I discovered that with the available tools, I would need
> to code the presentation myself, as the options for reuse outside of
> Wikidata were very basic.
>
> On the whole, the Wikipedia experience remains challenging, especially for
> newcomers. The much wanted Visual Editor developments and improvements seem
> to have stopped years ago. The recent changes made by the 'Desktop
> Improvement' team to the default Wikipedia skin seem to be more geared
> towards readers than editors and have apparently worsened the overall
> experience, according to feedback I've received from newcomers.
>
> These are just a few instances that have underscored, and continue to
> underscore, my belief that we are likely not on the path towards achieving
> the objectives outlined in the 2023 Strategy.
>
> My personal impression is that the issue doesn't necessarily stem from a
> lack of funding to pursue these objectives but rather from the ineffective
> expenditure and allocation of those funds. I wish I knew how to contribute
> to changing or improving this situation.
> It would also be great to see a comment/opinion from current CEO Maryana
> Iskander on this state of affairs, and if there is some roadmap for
> improving it.
>
> Best,
> Paulo
>
>
> Galder Gonzalez Larrañaga <galder158@hotmail.com> escreveu (terça,
> 23/01/2024 à(s) 11:03):
>
>> Dear wikimedians,
>> Nearly one year ago, the Graphs extension was disabled from all wikis,
>> because there was a security issue that should be solved (
>> https://phabricator.wikimedia.org/T334940). A wide team from the WMF
>> worked on a solution for some weeks, but after Northern Hemisphere spring
>> ended, summer came, then the monsoon season, and now it is again summer in
>> the Southern Hemisphere... and Graphs are still disabled. All the solutions
>> proposed have been dismissed, but every two months there's a proposal to
>> make a new roadmap to solve the issue. We have plenty of roadmaps, but no
>> vehicle to reach our destination.
>>
>> Seven years ago, we were discussing our Strategy for 2030. We used
>> thousands of volunteer hours, thousands of staff hours and millions of
>> dollars to build a really well-balanced strategy. There we concluded that "*By
>> 2030, Wikimedia will become the essential infrastructure of the ecosystem
>> of free knowledge*". We also made some recommendations to improve the
>> User Experience (
>> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Movement_Strategy/Recommendations/Improve_User_Experience)
>> and claimed that we wanted to Innovate in Free Knowledge (
>> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Movement_Strategy/Recommendations/Innovate_in_Free_Knowledge).
>> Well, the situation is now worse than it was seven years ago, let me give
>> some examples:
>>
>>
>> - Graph extension is used in thousands of pages, some of them highly
>> relevant, as COVID or Climate Change information. There are thousands of
>> graphs broken now, and the only partial solution give is loading these
>> graphs as images, instead of promoting an interactive solution.
>> - Meanwhile, a place like Our World in Data has been publishing data
>> and interactive content with a compatible license for years. (Remember, "*By
>> 2030, Wikimedia will become the essential infrastructure of the ecosystem
>> of free knowledge*"). Trying to add this data and graphs to Wikimedia
>> projects has been done by WikiMed, and it is technically possible, but
>> still blocked to deploy (https://phabricator.wikimedia.org/T303853).
>> - Wolfram Alpha is like a light year ahead us on giving interactive
>> solutions to knowledge questions, even the silliest ones (
>> https://www.wolframalpha.com/input?i=how+many+oranges+fit+in+the+Earth%3F).
>> We have good technical articles about a lot of things, but sometimes "*becoming
>> the essential infrastructure of the ecosystem of free knowledge*"
>> needs to provide solutions to exact problems, like the answer to an
>> equation, and how to solve it. That's also "free knowledge".
>> - Brilliant (https://brilliant.org/) is brilliant if you want to
>> learn lots of things, like geometry or programming. Way better than
>> Wikipedia. But... you need to pay for it. How could we even try if we can't
>> add anything interactive to our platforms?
>> - We can build interactive timelines using Wikidata, but we can't
>> embed them at Wikipedia. Weird, because I can do it in any external page.
>> Hopefully, Histropedia will do it better. http://histropedia.com/
>> <http://histropedia.com/>
>> - We could have something very special: inline links in video and
>> audio subtitles. We used to have them, but the new video infrastructure
>> doesn't allow it. Imagine a world where you can watch a video and link a
>> link in the subtitles just to know more about that.
>> - ...
>>
>>
>> The list can go on an on ("which phase the moon is today?"), but I think
>> that the idea is clear. We could have interactive content, but we are going
>> in the opposite direction, and every year we are further from our goal,
>> because other platforms are doing it better, way better. And this seems
>> like some wild ideas, but then I read the 2023-2024 annual plan section
>> called "Wiki Experiences" (
>> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Annual_Plan/2023-2024/Goals/Infrastructure#Bucket:_Wiki_Experiences)
>> and it looks like we should be going there. But we aren't.
>>
>> I'm sorry if this e-mail feels bitter. My experience in the last years is
>> that we are now further of what we need that we were before, even if many
>> chapters and volunteers are trying to overturn it.
>>
>> Thank to everyone who have been trying.
>>
>> Galder
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Wikimedia-l mailing list -- wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org, guidelines
>> at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and
>> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l
>> Public archives at
>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/T3TDXNOYBO2OUJVSKBOEFLY4I34YEA5B/
>> To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-leave@lists.wikimedia.org
>>
>
Paulo Santos Perneta <paulosperneta@gmail.com> escreveu (terça, 23/01/2024
à(s) 19:41):
> I wholeheartedly agree with this sentiment. We are currently grappling
> with rather rudimentary approaches when it comes to uploading and reusing
> video and music files...
> The incredibly useful Graph has been down for quite some time. The
> extensive capabilities of Wikidata query representations, particularly with
> geolocated data on maps, appear to have barely scratched the surface.
> Listeria frequently experiences issues and underwent a major update that
> disrupted previous queries.
>
> On a personal note, I attempted to create a dynamic digital library of
> works under a free license using Wikidata for our Digital Humanistics
> centre. However, I discovered that with the available tools, I would need
> to code the presentation myself, as the options for reuse outside of
> Wikidata were very basic.
>
> On the whole, the Wikipedia experience remains challenging, especially for
> newcomers. The much wanted Visual Editor developments and improvements seem
> to have stopped years ago. The recent changes made by the 'Desktop
> Improvement' team to the default Wikipedia skin seem to be more geared
> towards readers than editors and have apparently worsened the overall
> experience, according to feedback I've received from newcomers.
>
> These are just a few instances that have underscored, and continue to
> underscore, my belief that we are likely not on the path towards achieving
> the objectives outlined in the 2023 Strategy.
>
> My personal impression is that the issue doesn't necessarily stem from a
> lack of funding to pursue these objectives but rather from the ineffective
> expenditure and allocation of those funds. I wish I knew how to contribute
> to changing or improving this situation.
> It would also be great to see a comment/opinion from current CEO Maryana
> Iskander on this state of affairs, and if there is some roadmap for
> improving it.
>
> Best,
> Paulo
>
>
> Galder Gonzalez Larrañaga <galder158@hotmail.com> escreveu (terça,
> 23/01/2024 à(s) 11:03):
>
>> Dear wikimedians,
>> Nearly one year ago, the Graphs extension was disabled from all wikis,
>> because there was a security issue that should be solved (
>> https://phabricator.wikimedia.org/T334940). A wide team from the WMF
>> worked on a solution for some weeks, but after Northern Hemisphere spring
>> ended, summer came, then the monsoon season, and now it is again summer in
>> the Southern Hemisphere... and Graphs are still disabled. All the solutions
>> proposed have been dismissed, but every two months there's a proposal to
>> make a new roadmap to solve the issue. We have plenty of roadmaps, but no
>> vehicle to reach our destination.
>>
>> Seven years ago, we were discussing our Strategy for 2030. We used
>> thousands of volunteer hours, thousands of staff hours and millions of
>> dollars to build a really well-balanced strategy. There we concluded that "*By
>> 2030, Wikimedia will become the essential infrastructure of the ecosystem
>> of free knowledge*". We also made some recommendations to improve the
>> User Experience (
>> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Movement_Strategy/Recommendations/Improve_User_Experience)
>> and claimed that we wanted to Innovate in Free Knowledge (
>> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Movement_Strategy/Recommendations/Innovate_in_Free_Knowledge).
>> Well, the situation is now worse than it was seven years ago, let me give
>> some examples:
>>
>>
>> - Graph extension is used in thousands of pages, some of them highly
>> relevant, as COVID or Climate Change information. There are thousands of
>> graphs broken now, and the only partial solution give is loading these
>> graphs as images, instead of promoting an interactive solution.
>> - Meanwhile, a place like Our World in Data has been publishing data
>> and interactive content with a compatible license for years. (Remember, "*By
>> 2030, Wikimedia will become the essential infrastructure of the ecosystem
>> of free knowledge*"). Trying to add this data and graphs to Wikimedia
>> projects has been done by WikiMed, and it is technically possible, but
>> still blocked to deploy (https://phabricator.wikimedia.org/T303853).
>> - Wolfram Alpha is like a light year ahead us on giving interactive
>> solutions to knowledge questions, even the silliest ones (
>> https://www.wolframalpha.com/input?i=how+many+oranges+fit+in+the+Earth%3F).
>> We have good technical articles about a lot of things, but sometimes "*becoming
>> the essential infrastructure of the ecosystem of free knowledge*"
>> needs to provide solutions to exact problems, like the answer to an
>> equation, and how to solve it. That's also "free knowledge".
>> - Brilliant (https://brilliant.org/) is brilliant if you want to
>> learn lots of things, like geometry or programming. Way better than
>> Wikipedia. But... you need to pay for it. How could we even try if we can't
>> add anything interactive to our platforms?
>> - We can build interactive timelines using Wikidata, but we can't
>> embed them at Wikipedia. Weird, because I can do it in any external page.
>> Hopefully, Histropedia will do it better. http://histropedia.com/
>> <http://histropedia.com/>
>> - We could have something very special: inline links in video and
>> audio subtitles. We used to have them, but the new video infrastructure
>> doesn't allow it. Imagine a world where you can watch a video and link a
>> link in the subtitles just to know more about that.
>> - ...
>>
>>
>> The list can go on an on ("which phase the moon is today?"), but I think
>> that the idea is clear. We could have interactive content, but we are going
>> in the opposite direction, and every year we are further from our goal,
>> because other platforms are doing it better, way better. And this seems
>> like some wild ideas, but then I read the 2023-2024 annual plan section
>> called "Wiki Experiences" (
>> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Annual_Plan/2023-2024/Goals/Infrastructure#Bucket:_Wiki_Experiences)
>> and it looks like we should be going there. But we aren't.
>>
>> I'm sorry if this e-mail feels bitter. My experience in the last years is
>> that we are now further of what we need that we were before, even if many
>> chapters and volunteers are trying to overturn it.
>>
>> Thank to everyone who have been trying.
>>
>> Galder
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Wikimedia-l mailing list -- wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org, guidelines
>> at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and
>> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l
>> Public archives at
>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/T3TDXNOYBO2OUJVSKBOEFLY4I34YEA5B/
>> To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-leave@lists.wikimedia.org
>>
>