User talk:Imamadmad: Difference between revisions
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<div style="font-size:125%;line-height:110%;text-align:center;font-family:'Georgia', 'Times New Roman', serif">'''Welcome to the [[file:wordmark | <div style="font-size:125%;line-height:110%;text-align:center;font-family:'Georgia', 'Times New Roman', serif">'''Welcome to the [[file:wiki-wordmark.png|Tardis:About]] Imamadmad!'''</div> | ||
We hope you'll enjoy being a part of our community! If you're new to either us or wiki editing in general, you might want to check out some of these links: | We hope you'll enjoy being a part of our community! If you're new to either us or wiki editing in general, you might want to check out some of these links: | ||
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:As for the other matter, I suppose I wasn't forceful enough in my request. I'd rather you just revert the ban, as it's plainly unjust. | :As for the other matter, I suppose I wasn't forceful enough in my request. I'd rather you just revert the ban, as it's plainly unjust. | ||
The whole thing is a ''huge'' misunderstanding. If you dig a bit deeper into the evidence, what you see is that [[user:BroadcastCorp|BroadcastCorp]] banned me, [[user:Skittles the | :The whole thing is a ''huge'' misunderstanding. If you dig a bit deeper into the evidence, what you see is that [[user:BroadcastCorp|BroadcastCorp]] banned me, [[user:Skittles the hog|Skittles]] and [[user:Mini-mitch|Mini-mitch]] at DWA in a fit of pique because [[user talk:BroadcastCorp#You are infinitely banned|he had been perma-banned here for clear, Wikia-verified sock puppetry]]. [[user:The Thirteenth Doctor|The Thirteenth Doctor]] therefore reverted the ban within a matter of hours, then promptly banned [[user:BroadcastCorp|BroadcastCorp]] for abuse of powers. [[user:BroadcastCorp]] was then globally banned by Wikia. Thus there was no actual, reasonable ban of me at DWA. [http://drwho.answers.wikia.com/wiki/Special:Log/block?page=User%3ACzechOut As can be seen at my block log] the original block lasted for a little over four hours. It didn't, as [[user:Master of Spiders|Master of Spiders]] is alleging, "lapse". There's no question of him re-instating the wishes of the previous administration, as it's very clear the previous administration meant for me to be unblocked. | ||
:Moreover, according to the current state of [[w:c:drwho.answers:Doctor Who Answers:Policies]] there are not now any policies in place to cover the kinda "crimes" of which [[user:Master of Spiders]] is accusing me. As you're aware, you guys are in a state of upheaval over there, and are only just now writing policy. Thus to block someone who hasn't even contributed to your wiki at all since 2011 for something that happened long ago, when there aren't even ''current'' policies to cover the ''alleged'' behavior, is clearly wrong. | :Moreover, according to the current state of [[w:c:drwho.answers:Doctor Who Answers:Policies]] there are not now any policies in place to cover the kinda "crimes" of which [[user:Master of Spiders]] is accusing me. As you're aware, you guys are in a state of upheaval over there, and are only just now writing policy. Thus to block someone who hasn't even contributed to your wiki at all since 2011 for something that happened long ago, when there aren't even ''current'' policies to cover the ''alleged'' behavior, is clearly wrong. | ||
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:Please revert the ban immediately. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 21:45: Thu 20 Dec 2012</span> | :Please revert the ban immediately. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 21:45: Thu 20 Dec 2012</span> | ||
== Protecting category creation == | |||
To answer the question you most recently asked at [[w:c:drwho.answers:forum:Eliminate the categories now]], I suspect you will not be able to ever eliminate category creation at a Wikia wiki. It is technically ''possible'', because it's a switch that's flipped in the MediaWiki configuration files. But that means it would require Staff involvement to do it. I don't think they'd agree, under the theory that they want each Wikia wiki to look and operate pretty much like every other. Because the assumption that they want to have all wikis behaving roughly the same is ''probably'' true, you couldn't javascript it away, either. | |||
I think you're just stuck. | |||
However, it's always worth asking staff, because they ''might'' see your point. I'd recommend a [[Special:Contact]] query. | |||
Also, category control is one of the things that a bot is ''really'' good at. I don't share the pessimism of 88.240 in that discussion. It would be relatively easy to control the massive numbers of random categories at your wiki with a bot. I could even do it for you, if we get this little blocking matter resolved. | |||
Oh, and I've just got word that you're no longer "banned from chat" here. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 22:34: Thu 20 Dec 2012</span> | |||
== DWA block == | |||
I understand your caution, but I must point out that [[User:Master of Spiders|Master of Spiders]] has not, in fact, removed the block — despite apparently assuring you and [[community:Thread:469028|definitely assuring ''me'']] — that he has done so. I have ''always'' been a friend to your wiki, long before it was "your wiki", stretching back to 2008. Again, the ''only'' reason I was ever blocked there was because a person who broke our [[T:SOCK]] rule ''here'', decided to exact revenge ''there''. Again, I never broke any rule ever promulgated at your wiki, and my ban was reverted in a mere 4 hours, and remained struck down by the ''legitimate'' administration team on your wiki. Since MoS has now indicated his willingness to unblock me, but simply hasn't pushed the button, I urge you to please unblock me immediately. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 12:57: Fri 21 Dec 2012</span> | |||
:Weird, cause it's still getting the "blocked" tag next to my name. Have you tried blocking me then unblocking me again, to see if that clears things? Ohhhh wait I know what it is. It's because he blocked me for 100 years, including my IP address, and 100 years haven't passed yet. You have to unblock my IP too. Please see [[help:Blocking#Special note to administrators]] for instructions. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 13:39: Fri 21 Dec 2012</span> | |||
::I can't even give you a block ID number, because I'm now locked in an endless loop where every time I hit the edit button, I'm sent back to the login screen. Could you please send in a [[Special:Contact]] form to Wikia Staff and let them know there's a problem beyond your ability to solve, please? {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 13:43: Fri 21 Dec 2012</span> | |||
:::Wait a sec. Looks like that endless loop was just at the forum page. When I try to edit my talk page, I get the standard block error. Looks like the block ID is 250. So what you need to do is click this: http://drwho.answers.wikia.com/wiki/Special:BlockList?action=unblock&id=250 | |||
:::That ''should'' take care of the problem without a need to involve Wikia. Thanks :){{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 13:50: Fri 21 Dec 2012</span> | |||
:Perfect! Thanks :) | |||
== Bot at drwho.answers == | |||
Now onto other matters. | |||
I've asked Icecreamdif (as the most recently-active bureaucrat) to submit a request to Wikia that [[user:CzechBot]] be given a bot flag. Without this, all of the bot's edits will show up as normal activity in the logs, which — trust me — you don't want. So, start drawing up your list of things you'd like cleaned up that occur repeatedly on pages and I'll fire up the bot when the flag has been changed. I'm trying to figure out a way that you can communicate your requests in a way that I could easily see them. Obviously the preferred solution would be just for you guys to switch over to the new forum style. Then, you could create a new thread dedicated to desired bot runs, and every time there was movement, I'd see it. If, for whatever reason, you don't want to implement the new forum style, I guess you're gonna have to just put a little note on my drwho.answers talk page, advising me that there's been movement at the forum thread. | |||
Also, I'm looking at the logo I made for you guys and it's not quite right at higher resolutions. I'll try to slide you a new one soon. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 14:03: Fri 21 Dec 2012</span> | |||
== Name == | |||
After almost 125 responses (!), the discussion over the wiki's imminent name change appears to be nearing conclusion. You have 24 hours to register your objections at [[Thread:117468]]. If you don't, the name will change to '''Tardis Data Core''' tomorrow. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 23:01: Tue 08 Jan 2013</span> | |||
== Careful == | |||
Please do not give hints to people on how they can violate copyright by obtaining videos illegally, as you did in [[Thread:120168]]. This is a specific violation of the third of our [[T:CHAT RULES]]. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 13:22: Wed 16 Jan 2013</span> | |||
::No worries. It is a ''very'' fine line. Thing with ''Confidential'' is, though, that anything you put up ''must'' be illegal because it would be very expensive indeed to rights-clear any ep of ''Confidential'', due to the heavy use of 21st century music. In fact, it's music clearance that's the reason why most eps of ''Confidential'' only appear as "cut downs" on home video. It's actually easier to clear ''Doctor Who'' for internet broadcast than ''Confidential''. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 20:07: Wed 16 Jan 2013</span> | |||
== Improper banning from the Doctor Who Answers site == | |||
Sorry for crossposting, but despite what the page says, one cannot actually leave a message on an admin's talk page if a ban/block is in place over at Doctor Who Answers. Master of Spiders has blocked me, apparently for correcting a post that said in November 1963 there was only one TV network in the UK. I changed it to say 2 because of ITV - otherwise where did The Avengers air? Here is what Master of Spiders put down: | |||
Reason given: adding false information, **could also be stalking other posters | |||
Start of block: 05:03, January 23, 2013 | |||
Expiry of block: 05:03, January 26, 2013 | |||
Intended blockee: 70.72.211.35 | |||
Block ID: #284 | |||
Current IP address: 70.72.211.35 | |||
I hate to use the wording, but I'm going to have to demand Master of Spiders explain his rationale for suggesting I am stalking other posters. Where did he get THAT from? Now - I've got an issue with certain users of THIS wiki stalking me and reverting edits that I make. I could make an allegation right now against a certain user, but I will not stoop to the same level. Fact is Master of Spiders has 200 edits at the Doctor Who Answers page. I think I have a few more. Anyway, I hope you can help. Since I'm apparently a stalker I have no problem pointing out that I note you have lodged a warning against Master of Spiders previously for banning, of all users, Czechout. So there is precedent. If you guys don't want me around - and I already know my knowledge and interest is not wanted at the Tardis Index Core or Datafile or whatever, so I will no longer be contributing here - then I'm happy to step away. I've got enough issues to deal with in real life. Thanks for the ear. As I'm not coming back to the Data Core site, if you wish to reply your best bet is to leave a note on your Doctor Who Answers talk page. [[Special:Contributions/70.72.211.35|70.72.211.35]]<sup>[[User talk:70.72.211.35#top|talk to me]]</sup> 05:46, January 23, 2013 (UTC) | |||
== Message alerts == | |||
Please return to [[Thread:126323]] at your leisure for a follow-up question. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 13:18: Sun 07 Apr 2013</span> | |||
==Search at DWA== | |||
I've played around a little bit with the search stuff at DWA, but caching is really slow right now, and I need to move on to other things back here. I'm a little confused what you're looking for, exactly. Are you trying to get just simple black on white, whether you click on it or not? Or are you trying to have one colour for the unchecked state and one colour for the "focus" (clicked) state? Lemme know and I'll try again tomorrow. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 23:35: Sun 07 Apr 2013</span> | |||
:Okay, now that caching is working okay again—and I'm not sick anymore—I'm back onto your problem. There definitely ''is'' a difference in rendering between browsers. I've not quite got the code down correctly, but I've sent out a request for help. Shouldn't be too long before it looks the same, cross-browser. Sorry for the delay. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 20:38: Wed 10 Apr 2013</span> | |||
::Lol. I was one space away from having solved it on the 7th! Frustrating. I hate it when tiny semantic errors get in the way. Anyway, I have cracked the code, and the search bar (and ask your question bar) both look the same on all major browsers. Well I don't actually know about IE, but I presume that it works on at least IE 10, because I have specifically coded for that eventuality. Now, what I don't know is whether you like the way it looks. Now that I've found the way to make it look however we want, it's really up to you to tell me if you like what it's currently doing. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 02:47: Thu 11 Apr 2013</span> | |||
:::Okay, I think it basically is sorted according to your request, albeit with a tiny modification. I made the unfocused background be slightly off-white, so that when you click on the search box it becomes a ''touch'' whiter to clearly show focus. Clear your caches in your various browsers and give it a whirl. If that's not quite to your liking, I think you'll find that the basic code is functional. You just have to play around with the colors to get what you want. You might want to think about doing something to the underlying theme via Theme Designer. You've got like four different shades of blue, all competing for attention. When you settle on a new base theme — and no, it really shouldn't go to a vote because a) people's perceptions of colour are too different to ever get perfect agreement or consensus and b) most users simply don't have access to the tools you do and it wouldn't be easy to adequately explain the options, since Wikia don't give us tools to make swatches for demonstration — then you might have to go back in and alter the changes made to the search/answer boxes. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 00:35: Fri 12 Apr 2013</span> | |||
== Wikia exchange == | |||
Meant to apprise you of an exchange I've recently had with Wikia regarding your observation that it's impossible to remove Category:Answered questions: | |||
:[[User:CzechOut|CzechOut]]: Is there a way to get rid of the category "Answered questions" on an answers wiki? We've tried manually removing it, but it always returns. I'm not sure if that's a feature or a bug, but it's really not desirable on this wiki. | |||
:[[User:Kirkburn|Kirkburn]]: Unfortunately I do not believe there is a simple way to do this - might I ask as to why this category is undesirable? I know the page currently has an issue of only showing 200 articles, but I have requested to see if this can be remedied. | |||
:[[User:CzechOut|CzechOut]]: I'm just looking for a way to be able to see all the questions, since this wiki has never employed a rigorous categorisation scheme. The thought was if I could remove "answered questions", I could force all the questions onto Special:UncategorizedPages, where at least I'd be able to see 1000 questions at a time, and gradually be able to categorise all the pages. | |||
:It's just difficult to tell whether I've touched every question when there's no condition of being "untouched". | |||
:Moreover, "answered questions" is a sort of false category, since it doesn't mean that there's an actual answer present. It only means that someone has typed one character and pushed "publish". This means you can't even categorise questions upon asking them, which means that those who wish to answer them have to wade through a series of questions until they find a subject matter that they're competent in. With a subject like the multimedia, 50-year-old Doctor Who, people do tend to specialise in one area or another. Some people know a lot about the audios; others only know about the most reason televised seasons. So working through questions that are merely organised by the time they are asked is a random and frustrating event. — which could be greatly improved by the asker of the question — or someone — being allowed to categorise the question without that automatically meaning that the question gets slapped with the "answered questions" category. | |||
:[[user:Kirkburn|Kirkburn]]: Ah, thanks for the explanation, I can see how that makes sense: it is a bit odd for a page to be marked answered simply for having been categorized. | |||
:I will pass along the feedback and see if there's anything we can do about it. | |||
{{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 11:35: Wed 17 Apr 2013</span> | |||
== Categories at DWA == | |||
Can you be more specific? What's the fork in the road you've come to? {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 00:22: Mon 22 Apr 2013</span> | |||
==Sam(antha) Jones== | |||
Very much "Sam Jones" is how she's known as a majority of the time. Most people will search for that. --[[User:Tangerineduel|Tangerineduel]] / '''[[User talk:Tangerineduel|talk]]''' 16:00, May 17, 2013 (UTC) | |||
==Complaint against Master of Spiders, an admin on Doctor Who Answers Wiki== | |||
I am lodging a formal complaint against Master of Spiders, an admin on the Doctor Who Answers Wiki. Earlier today, I edited the question [http://drwho.answers.wikia.com/wiki/How_did_the_time_war_start_and_why How did the time war start and why?] on the Answers site. I removed personal opinion and speculation in keeping with site policy that I and others have contributed to creating. I then spent some time working on a revision (per a cleanup request on the page) of another question. I went to save to be found Master of Spiders had blocked me for "deleting material from articles." I had clearly explained in the Edit Summary why I removed the material I did. I then looked at the history and found Master of Spiders was the previous editor of the article on the Time War. So this is definitely a conflict of interest - I deleted something he added and he knee-jerked and banned me. He is abusing his position as admin and needs to have the toys taken away from him. I have notified him on his Tardis Data Core talk page that I was taking this action. And of course the only reason I'm not doing this on your talk page at the Answers Wiki is because the guy banned me. [[Special:Contributions/70.72.211.35|70.72.211.35]]<sup>[[User talk:70.72.211.35#top|talk to me]]</sup> 17:32, June 3, 2013 (UTC) | |||
I'll look into it. It may talk a while cause I'm short on time now, but I have received your notice and will investigate. [[User:Imamadmad|Imamadmad]] ([[User talk:Imamadmad|Contact me]]) 21:12, June 3, 2013 (UTC) | |||
I have examined the evidence and have left you and Spiders a response at [[w:c:drwho.answers:User_talk:70.72.211.35#Improper_conduct|your talk page on DWA]]. If you have any further complaints about Spiders specifically, especially regarding his role as admin, please take it to the appropriate forums so it can be discussed by everyone and so Spiders has an opportunity to express his side of the story. Thank you. [[User:Imamadmad|Imamadmad]] ([[User talk:Imamadmad|Contact me]]) 05:56, June 4, 2013 (UTC) | |||
== Master of Spiders imposing wronful block on DWA user == | |||
Master of Spiders has imposed a 24-hour block on me on DWA for "making a personal attack" which was not a personal attack. What I said was a strong criticism of User 41's "contributions" to discussions on DWA. It was an attack on '''what was said''', not on the person who said it. 41 may have taken it personally but it was clearly & explicitly directed at what he said. | |||
It will always be possible to take criticism personally. If that is allowed to be turned into a reason for blocking those who make the criticism, it will cripple discussion. --[[Special:Contributions/89.242.65.110|89.242.65.110]]<sup>[[User talk:89.242.65.110#top|talk to me]]</sup> 11:43, July 7, 2013 (UTC) | |||
P.S. MoS gave no warning of his intention to block me. He gave no opportunity for me to point out that my message was not directed at a person but at what that person had said. --[[Special:Contributions/89.242.65.110|89.242.65.110]]<sup>[[User talk:89.242.65.110#top|talk to me]]</sup> 11:51, July 7, 2013 (UTC) | |||
Sorry 89, but you ''did'' call 41 stupid. While blocking is certainly not the way I would have fixed the situation, Spiders is an admin at DWA who the community decided to help admin them, and it is only for 24 hours. A warning would have been better, however I can't oppose or undo every move the other admins make. I hope you understand. Just try and refrain from calling 41 stupid next time, or any other name. [[User:Imamadmad|Imamadmad]] ([[User talk:Imamadmad|Contact me]]) 13:02, July 7, 2013 (UTC) | |||
== Messages at drwho.answers == | |||
Hmmm, something wacky is going on at drwho.answers that was preventing me from seeing your additions to [[w:c:drwho.answers:user talk:CzechOut]] until today. I went back to the site today because of an addition to a forum thread to which I was subscribed, but '''''only because I was there''''' did I get a "you have messages" alert. For some reason, that alert wasn't registering on other Wikia sites. I dunno if that means the answers wikis aren't providing message alerts to the wider Wikia network or not. Might be useful for you to leave a short message on my talk page both here and at answers simultaneously so I can see if there actually is a bug. The reason I think there might be a bug is because spotlights are totally turned off at answers, so that leads me to believe other aspects of inter-network communication might have been turned off. | |||
Anyway, as regards your August messages, I'll take a look, hopefully this week. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 16:10: Mon 16 Sep 2013</span> | |||
== Removed message == | |||
Hey, I'm removing your message at [[Thread:143558]] under the terms of [[T:FORUM]]. Really don't want to derail that particular conversation. It's ''only'' about the Doctor Who Awards thing we're doing with Wikia, but obviously we're doing other things. It's the 50th anniversary, for heaven's sake! Some would say that our new front page and growing Transmat pages are the start of the celebration. But we've also got a Wikia-wide, multi-round trivia event in a couple of weeks. And there's an exciting cross promotion with Wikia Lifestyle that we'll be announcing a little later in the year. And we may well have some other tricks up our sleeves. {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 03:30: Sat 02 Nov 2013</span> | |||
{{Christmas greetings}} | |||
== Message at DWA == | |||
I took action on that issue within just a few hours of you posting to my page. Or did I miss something? {{user:CzechOut/Sig}}{{User:CzechOut/TimeFormat}} 05:30: Sat 12 Aug 2017</span> | |||
== Glad to hear it == | |||
Thanks for reaching out. And once again, brilliant analysis of grammatical issues. I tried to explain this, but was too lazy to actually give a master-class in copy-editing. By the way, upon looking at that old forum (and learning the right pronoun), I was suddenly struck how much has changed since then. There is now a special space [https://tardis.wikia.com/d/f] where users are encouraged (gasp) to just talk about the show. And some of them actually ask questions (and some are intimidatingly good at drawing). So if this is your thing, you're certainly welcome to take these Discussions for a spin, give them a quick once over or what have you. [[User:Amorkuz|Amorkuz]] [[User talk:Amorkuz|<span title="Talk to me">☎</span>]] 21:54, January 12, 2019 (UTC) | |||
== Doctor Who Answers closed == | |||
Imamadmad, Doctor Who Answers has been closed. Not fair. [[User:Doctor 25|Doctor 25]] [[User talk:Doctor 25|<span title="Talk to me">☎</span>]] 19:32, May 21, 2019 (UTC) | |||
Yep, DWA is now officially closed. The new website will go up at http://www.doctorwhoanswers.com/, but right now it's not quite ready because I've not had enough spare time to sink into it. | |||
If you wanna stay connected while the new DWA is being built and chat with the community, I set up a [https://join.slack.com/t/doctorwhoanswers/shared_invite/enQtNjIwODQxMDIwMzExLTIyYzY0MDhlZGI4MTY2MDMzNThmMzM4NTBkYTM4Y2YwZDViZTA3NWQwZGQ1MGYzYzU4MGViYjkxZDA2OTAzYmY Slack community]. Join up and turn on notifications to stay notified on what's happening. Let me know if you have any questions, and hope to see you on the Slack soon! {{user:Imamadmad/sig}} 05:20, May 22, 2019 (UTC) | |||
Great! Let me know when it's ready. Thank you. [[User:Doctor 25|Doctor 25]] [[User talk:Doctor 25#top|<span title="Talk to me">☎</span>]] 20:39, May 22, 2019 (UTC) | |||
Will do 😊 {{user:Imamadmad/sig}} 02:54, May 27, 2019 (UTC) | |||
I cannot join up on Slack because the invite link is no longer active. [[User:Doctor 25|Doctor 25]] [[User talk:Doctor 25|<span title="Talk to me">☎</span>]] 20:02, June 7, 2019 (UTC) |
Latest revision as of 20:02, 7 June 2019
We hope you'll enjoy being a part of our community! If you're new to either us or wiki editing in general, you might want to check out some of these links:
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Thanks for becoming a member of the TARDIS crew! If you have any questions, see the Help pages, add a question to one of the Forums or ask on my user talk page.
Your input is needed!
You are invited to join the discussion at Forum:A second look at wiki achivements.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 17:21:43 Mon 22 Aug 2011
hello! :)
A "New Who" fan then, eh? I guess I qualify as one of those.. although I absolutely DESPISE those squishy, big-bummed Teletubbies they try to pass off as Daleks. I hate 'em with a passion. Sorry, WHERE was I going with this?
Anyway, nice to talk with you. Feel free to contact me for anything.
Your input is needed!
You are invited to join the discussion at Forum:Can we disable visual editor please?.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 17:16: Tue 20 Dec 2011
Community tab =[[edit source]]
Well it wasn't exactly intentional, but I suppose I did decide to exclude the Howling from the nav menus in wikia. (It's still in the monobook nav.) We're at the limit of the things that can be added to that particular drop-down, so a few things have actually been squeezed out. The Howling was deemed of a lower priority. After all, the Howling isn't even in the same namespace as the genuine forums, it allows spoilers and its excluded from searches. It's very much meant as a place you have to work to find anyway, so that you won't be spoiled by its contents. The fact that it was effectively pushed off the navbar therefore seemed appropriate rather than problematic.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 12:55: Sun 13 May 2012
Thank you so much for helping me the asylum of the daleks was awesome and as a big fan of the daleks I really needed to watch that rather then wait a week thank u so much --Kingalien ☎ 07:15, September 2, 2012 (UTC)
Siggys[[edit source]]
If you click through on the link and look at the last part of the "when required" section, you'll see that signatures are required on "all odd numbered namespaces as well as 110, 112, 500 and 502". Howling is 112, as noted at the chart on the namespace page. And, indeed, Howling:The Howling reminds users to sign their posts.
The Howling is somewhat irrelevant to the post I just made, since it's not really a forum. Fortunately, the change of the code at the real forums makes it instantly clear that the Howling is a totally distinct area.
I suppose you could argue that this point needs to be made clearer, since you were confused about it. Ordinarily, I"d agree.
However, it's important to note the honest truth: we only have three custom namespaces available to us. This forum software switch is going to force us to create a brand new custom namespace, which would only leave us with one more. If we need one after that, guess which namespace will be deleted without even the slightest blink of an eye? Therefore, I'm not crazy about specifying the Howling in too many pages, because this might obligate the staff to have to do an extensive cleanup, should the Howling be deleted. For simplicity, whatever rules there are for the Howling are best left explicit at Howling:The Howling and Tardis:Spoiler policy.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 04:02: Mon 03 Dec 2012
Banned from chat?[[edit source]]
I've just noticed you appear to be falsely banned from chat. We had another user who experienced this same bug, so I've just filed a report with Wikia to have that fixed up for you. It has to do with an errant flag that's set on your account which local admin can't change. Sorry for the inconvenience; I wished I'd known earlier.
Also, I appear to be banned at Doctor Who Answers. Congratulations on your recent promotion there, but I was wondering if you knew that I'd been banned and could explain it, since I've not edited there in over two years.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 15:00: Thu 20 Dec 2012
- Heh, no, it is actually a bug. I mean you were very temporarily banned by Skittles the hog, but then came a software update to the chat feature, and you were stuck with the old flag. When I installed custom javascript over here to change the nature of the user group tags seen to the right of people's names, that js picked up on the old flag and is therefore showing you to be banned from chat. I'm not entirely sure whether you're actually banned from chat or whether it's just cosmetic. I wanna say that it's just cosmetic, because I seem to recall the other user affected by this issue being completely befuddled by being able to enter chat even though it said he was banned. Even though you don't use the feature, you could try entering chat to see if it works.
- As for the other matter, I suppose I wasn't forceful enough in my request. I'd rather you just revert the ban, as it's plainly unjust.
- The whole thing is a huge misunderstanding. If you dig a bit deeper into the evidence, what you see is that BroadcastCorp banned me, Skittles and Mini-mitch at DWA in a fit of pique because he had been perma-banned here for clear, Wikia-verified sock puppetry. The Thirteenth Doctor therefore reverted the ban within a matter of hours, then promptly banned BroadcastCorp for abuse of powers. user:BroadcastCorp was then globally banned by Wikia. Thus there was no actual, reasonable ban of me at DWA. As can be seen at my block log the original block lasted for a little over four hours. It didn't, as Master of Spiders is alleging, "lapse". There's no question of him re-instating the wishes of the previous administration, as it's very clear the previous administration meant for me to be unblocked.
- Moreover, according to the current state of w:c:drwho.answers:Doctor Who Answers:Policies there are not now any policies in place to cover the kinda "crimes" of which user:Master of Spiders is accusing me. As you're aware, you guys are in a state of upheaval over there, and are only just now writing policy. Thus to block someone who hasn't even contributed to your wiki at all since 2011 for something that happened long ago, when there aren't even current policies to cover the alleged behavior, is clearly wrong.
- If you really need proof that a user who's been on Wikia since it started, and who's been on Wikipedia since basically it started, did nothing wrong, then I urge you to look at this list of my contributions and hit every single occurrence of the word "diff". That will show you exactly what I've contributed to your wiki. (Well, exactly since 2010. In fact I've been there much longer, but records prior to the time that they re-did the way Answers wikis worked don't appear in current logs.) I challenge you to see one thing there that's seriously inappropriate.
- I notice that you personally are in a state of indecision over what to do about 41.whatever. If you're unwilling to ban him, given his actual, current, ongoing abusive behavior at your wiki, there must be no question that I, who haven't said a word on your wiki in about two years, should be banned.
Protecting category creation[[edit source]]
To answer the question you most recently asked at w:c:drwho.answers:forum:Eliminate the categories now, I suspect you will not be able to ever eliminate category creation at a Wikia wiki. It is technically possible, because it's a switch that's flipped in the MediaWiki configuration files. But that means it would require Staff involvement to do it. I don't think they'd agree, under the theory that they want each Wikia wiki to look and operate pretty much like every other. Because the assumption that they want to have all wikis behaving roughly the same is probably true, you couldn't javascript it away, either.
I think you're just stuck.
However, it's always worth asking staff, because they might see your point. I'd recommend a Special:Contact query.
Also, category control is one of the things that a bot is really good at. I don't share the pessimism of 88.240 in that discussion. It would be relatively easy to control the massive numbers of random categories at your wiki with a bot. I could even do it for you, if we get this little blocking matter resolved.
Oh, and I've just got word that you're no longer "banned from chat" here.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 22:34: Thu 20 Dec 2012
DWA block[[edit source]]
I understand your caution, but I must point out that Master of Spiders has not, in fact, removed the block — despite apparently assuring you and definitely assuring me — that he has done so. I have always been a friend to your wiki, long before it was "your wiki", stretching back to 2008. Again, the only reason I was ever blocked there was because a person who broke our T:SOCK rule here, decided to exact revenge there. Again, I never broke any rule ever promulgated at your wiki, and my ban was reverted in a mere 4 hours, and remained struck down by the legitimate administration team on your wiki. Since MoS has now indicated his willingness to unblock me, but simply hasn't pushed the button, I urge you to please unblock me immediately.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 12:57: Fri 21 Dec 2012
- Weird, cause it's still getting the "blocked" tag next to my name. Have you tried blocking me then unblocking me again, to see if that clears things? Ohhhh wait I know what it is. It's because he blocked me for 100 years, including my IP address, and 100 years haven't passed yet. You have to unblock my IP too. Please see help:Blocking#Special note to administrators for instructions.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 13:39: Fri 21 Dec 2012- I can't even give you a block ID number, because I'm now locked in an endless loop where every time I hit the edit button, I'm sent back to the login screen. Could you please send in a Special:Contact form to Wikia Staff and let them know there's a problem beyond your ability to solve, please?
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 13:43: Fri 21 Dec 2012- Wait a sec. Looks like that endless loop was just at the forum page. When I try to edit my talk page, I get the standard block error. Looks like the block ID is 250. So what you need to do is click this: http://drwho.answers.wikia.com/wiki/Special:BlockList?action=unblock&id=250
- I can't even give you a block ID number, because I'm now locked in an endless loop where every time I hit the edit button, I'm sent back to the login screen. Could you please send in a Special:Contact form to Wikia Staff and let them know there's a problem beyond your ability to solve, please?
- Perfect! Thanks :)
Bot at drwho.answers[[edit source]]
Now onto other matters.
I've asked Icecreamdif (as the most recently-active bureaucrat) to submit a request to Wikia that user:CzechBot be given a bot flag. Without this, all of the bot's edits will show up as normal activity in the logs, which — trust me — you don't want. So, start drawing up your list of things you'd like cleaned up that occur repeatedly on pages and I'll fire up the bot when the flag has been changed. I'm trying to figure out a way that you can communicate your requests in a way that I could easily see them. Obviously the preferred solution would be just for you guys to switch over to the new forum style. Then, you could create a new thread dedicated to desired bot runs, and every time there was movement, I'd see it. If, for whatever reason, you don't want to implement the new forum style, I guess you're gonna have to just put a little note on my drwho.answers talk page, advising me that there's been movement at the forum thread.
Also, I'm looking at the logo I made for you guys and it's not quite right at higher resolutions. I'll try to slide you a new one soon.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 14:03: Fri 21 Dec 2012
Name[[edit source]]
After almost 125 responses (!), the discussion over the wiki's imminent name change appears to be nearing conclusion. You have 24 hours to register your objections at Thread:117468. If you don't, the name will change to Tardis Data Core tomorrow.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 23:01: Tue 08 Jan 2013
Careful[[edit source]]
Please do not give hints to people on how they can violate copyright by obtaining videos illegally, as you did in Thread:120168. This is a specific violation of the third of our T:CHAT RULES.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 13:22: Wed 16 Jan 2013
- No worries. It is a very fine line. Thing with Confidential is, though, that anything you put up must be illegal because it would be very expensive indeed to rights-clear any ep of Confidential, due to the heavy use of 21st century music. In fact, it's music clearance that's the reason why most eps of Confidential only appear as "cut downs" on home video. It's actually easier to clear Doctor Who for internet broadcast than Confidential.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 20:07: Wed 16 Jan 2013
- No worries. It is a very fine line. Thing with Confidential is, though, that anything you put up must be illegal because it would be very expensive indeed to rights-clear any ep of Confidential, due to the heavy use of 21st century music. In fact, it's music clearance that's the reason why most eps of Confidential only appear as "cut downs" on home video. It's actually easier to clear Doctor Who for internet broadcast than Confidential.
Improper banning from the Doctor Who Answers site[[edit source]]
Sorry for crossposting, but despite what the page says, one cannot actually leave a message on an admin's talk page if a ban/block is in place over at Doctor Who Answers. Master of Spiders has blocked me, apparently for correcting a post that said in November 1963 there was only one TV network in the UK. I changed it to say 2 because of ITV - otherwise where did The Avengers air? Here is what Master of Spiders put down:
Reason given: adding false information, **could also be stalking other posters Start of block: 05:03, January 23, 2013 Expiry of block: 05:03, January 26, 2013 Intended blockee: 70.72.211.35 Block ID: #284 Current IP address: 70.72.211.35
I hate to use the wording, but I'm going to have to demand Master of Spiders explain his rationale for suggesting I am stalking other posters. Where did he get THAT from? Now - I've got an issue with certain users of THIS wiki stalking me and reverting edits that I make. I could make an allegation right now against a certain user, but I will not stoop to the same level. Fact is Master of Spiders has 200 edits at the Doctor Who Answers page. I think I have a few more. Anyway, I hope you can help. Since I'm apparently a stalker I have no problem pointing out that I note you have lodged a warning against Master of Spiders previously for banning, of all users, Czechout. So there is precedent. If you guys don't want me around - and I already know my knowledge and interest is not wanted at the Tardis Index Core or Datafile or whatever, so I will no longer be contributing here - then I'm happy to step away. I've got enough issues to deal with in real life. Thanks for the ear. As I'm not coming back to the Data Core site, if you wish to reply your best bet is to leave a note on your Doctor Who Answers talk page. 70.72.211.35talk to me 05:46, January 23, 2013 (UTC)
Message alerts[[edit source]]
Please return to Thread:126323 at your leisure for a follow-up question.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 13:18: Sun 07 Apr 2013
Search at DWA[[edit source]]
I've played around a little bit with the search stuff at DWA, but caching is really slow right now, and I need to move on to other things back here. I'm a little confused what you're looking for, exactly. Are you trying to get just simple black on white, whether you click on it or not? Or are you trying to have one colour for the unchecked state and one colour for the "focus" (clicked) state? Lemme know and I'll try again tomorrow.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 23:35: Sun 07 Apr 2013
- Okay, now that caching is working okay again—and I'm not sick anymore—I'm back onto your problem. There definitely is a difference in rendering between browsers. I've not quite got the code down correctly, but I've sent out a request for help. Shouldn't be too long before it looks the same, cross-browser. Sorry for the delay.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 20:38: Wed 10 Apr 2013- Lol. I was one space away from having solved it on the 7th! Frustrating. I hate it when tiny semantic errors get in the way. Anyway, I have cracked the code, and the search bar (and ask your question bar) both look the same on all major browsers. Well I don't actually know about IE, but I presume that it works on at least IE 10, because I have specifically coded for that eventuality. Now, what I don't know is whether you like the way it looks. Now that I've found the way to make it look however we want, it's really up to you to tell me if you like what it's currently doing.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 02:47: Thu 11 Apr 2013- Okay, I think it basically is sorted according to your request, albeit with a tiny modification. I made the unfocused background be slightly off-white, so that when you click on the search box it becomes a touch whiter to clearly show focus. Clear your caches in your various browsers and give it a whirl. If that's not quite to your liking, I think you'll find that the basic code is functional. You just have to play around with the colors to get what you want. You might want to think about doing something to the underlying theme via Theme Designer. You've got like four different shades of blue, all competing for attention. When you settle on a new base theme — and no, it really shouldn't go to a vote because a) people's perceptions of colour are too different to ever get perfect agreement or consensus and b) most users simply don't have access to the tools you do and it wouldn't be easy to adequately explain the options, since Wikia don't give us tools to make swatches for demonstration — then you might have to go back in and alter the changes made to the search/answer boxes.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 00:35: Fri 12 Apr 2013
- Okay, I think it basically is sorted according to your request, albeit with a tiny modification. I made the unfocused background be slightly off-white, so that when you click on the search box it becomes a touch whiter to clearly show focus. Clear your caches in your various browsers and give it a whirl. If that's not quite to your liking, I think you'll find that the basic code is functional. You just have to play around with the colors to get what you want. You might want to think about doing something to the underlying theme via Theme Designer. You've got like four different shades of blue, all competing for attention. When you settle on a new base theme — and no, it really shouldn't go to a vote because a) people's perceptions of colour are too different to ever get perfect agreement or consensus and b) most users simply don't have access to the tools you do and it wouldn't be easy to adequately explain the options, since Wikia don't give us tools to make swatches for demonstration — then you might have to go back in and alter the changes made to the search/answer boxes.
- Lol. I was one space away from having solved it on the 7th! Frustrating. I hate it when tiny semantic errors get in the way. Anyway, I have cracked the code, and the search bar (and ask your question bar) both look the same on all major browsers. Well I don't actually know about IE, but I presume that it works on at least IE 10, because I have specifically coded for that eventuality. Now, what I don't know is whether you like the way it looks. Now that I've found the way to make it look however we want, it's really up to you to tell me if you like what it's currently doing.
Wikia exchange[[edit source]]
Meant to apprise you of an exchange I've recently had with Wikia regarding your observation that it's impossible to remove Category:Answered questions:
- CzechOut: Is there a way to get rid of the category "Answered questions" on an answers wiki? We've tried manually removing it, but it always returns. I'm not sure if that's a feature or a bug, but it's really not desirable on this wiki.
- Kirkburn: Unfortunately I do not believe there is a simple way to do this - might I ask as to why this category is undesirable? I know the page currently has an issue of only showing 200 articles, but I have requested to see if this can be remedied.
- CzechOut: I'm just looking for a way to be able to see all the questions, since this wiki has never employed a rigorous categorisation scheme. The thought was if I could remove "answered questions", I could force all the questions onto Special:UncategorizedPages, where at least I'd be able to see 1000 questions at a time, and gradually be able to categorise all the pages.
- It's just difficult to tell whether I've touched every question when there's no condition of being "untouched".
- Moreover, "answered questions" is a sort of false category, since it doesn't mean that there's an actual answer present. It only means that someone has typed one character and pushed "publish". This means you can't even categorise questions upon asking them, which means that those who wish to answer them have to wade through a series of questions until they find a subject matter that they're competent in. With a subject like the multimedia, 50-year-old Doctor Who, people do tend to specialise in one area or another. Some people know a lot about the audios; others only know about the most reason televised seasons. So working through questions that are merely organised by the time they are asked is a random and frustrating event. — which could be greatly improved by the asker of the question — or someone — being allowed to categorise the question without that automatically meaning that the question gets slapped with the "answered questions" category.
- Kirkburn: Ah, thanks for the explanation, I can see how that makes sense: it is a bit odd for a page to be marked answered simply for having been categorized.
- I will pass along the feedback and see if there's anything we can do about it.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 11:35: Wed 17 Apr 2013
Categories at DWA[[edit source]]
Can you be more specific? What's the fork in the road you've come to?
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 00:22: Mon 22 Apr 2013
Sam(antha) Jones[[edit source]]
Very much "Sam Jones" is how she's known as a majority of the time. Most people will search for that. --Tangerineduel / talk 16:00, May 17, 2013 (UTC)
Complaint against Master of Spiders, an admin on Doctor Who Answers Wiki[[edit source]]
I am lodging a formal complaint against Master of Spiders, an admin on the Doctor Who Answers Wiki. Earlier today, I edited the question How did the time war start and why? on the Answers site. I removed personal opinion and speculation in keeping with site policy that I and others have contributed to creating. I then spent some time working on a revision (per a cleanup request on the page) of another question. I went to save to be found Master of Spiders had blocked me for "deleting material from articles." I had clearly explained in the Edit Summary why I removed the material I did. I then looked at the history and found Master of Spiders was the previous editor of the article on the Time War. So this is definitely a conflict of interest - I deleted something he added and he knee-jerked and banned me. He is abusing his position as admin and needs to have the toys taken away from him. I have notified him on his Tardis Data Core talk page that I was taking this action. And of course the only reason I'm not doing this on your talk page at the Answers Wiki is because the guy banned me. 70.72.211.35talk to me 17:32, June 3, 2013 (UTC)
I'll look into it. It may talk a while cause I'm short on time now, but I have received your notice and will investigate. Imamadmad (Contact me) 21:12, June 3, 2013 (UTC)
I have examined the evidence and have left you and Spiders a response at your talk page on DWA. If you have any further complaints about Spiders specifically, especially regarding his role as admin, please take it to the appropriate forums so it can be discussed by everyone and so Spiders has an opportunity to express his side of the story. Thank you. Imamadmad (Contact me) 05:56, June 4, 2013 (UTC)
Master of Spiders imposing wronful block on DWA user[[edit source]]
Master of Spiders has imposed a 24-hour block on me on DWA for "making a personal attack" which was not a personal attack. What I said was a strong criticism of User 41's "contributions" to discussions on DWA. It was an attack on what was said, not on the person who said it. 41 may have taken it personally but it was clearly & explicitly directed at what he said.
It will always be possible to take criticism personally. If that is allowed to be turned into a reason for blocking those who make the criticism, it will cripple discussion. --89.242.65.110talk to me 11:43, July 7, 2013 (UTC)
P.S. MoS gave no warning of his intention to block me. He gave no opportunity for me to point out that my message was not directed at a person but at what that person had said. --89.242.65.110talk to me 11:51, July 7, 2013 (UTC)
Sorry 89, but you did call 41 stupid. While blocking is certainly not the way I would have fixed the situation, Spiders is an admin at DWA who the community decided to help admin them, and it is only for 24 hours. A warning would have been better, however I can't oppose or undo every move the other admins make. I hope you understand. Just try and refrain from calling 41 stupid next time, or any other name. Imamadmad (Contact me) 13:02, July 7, 2013 (UTC)
Messages at drwho.answers[[edit source]]
Hmmm, something wacky is going on at drwho.answers that was preventing me from seeing your additions to w:c:drwho.answers:user talk:CzechOut until today. I went back to the site today because of an addition to a forum thread to which I was subscribed, but only because I was there did I get a "you have messages" alert. For some reason, that alert wasn't registering on other Wikia sites. I dunno if that means the answers wikis aren't providing message alerts to the wider Wikia network or not. Might be useful for you to leave a short message on my talk page both here and at answers simultaneously so I can see if there actually is a bug. The reason I think there might be a bug is because spotlights are totally turned off at answers, so that leads me to believe other aspects of inter-network communication might have been turned off.
Anyway, as regards your August messages, I'll take a look, hopefully this week.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 16:10: Mon 16 Sep 2013
Removed message[[edit source]]
Hey, I'm removing your message at Thread:143558 under the terms of T:FORUM. Really don't want to derail that particular conversation. It's only about the Doctor Who Awards thing we're doing with Wikia, but obviously we're doing other things. It's the 50th anniversary, for heaven's sake! Some would say that our new front page and growing Transmat pages are the start of the celebration. But we've also got a Wikia-wide, multi-round trivia event in a couple of weeks. And there's an exciting cross promotion with Wikia Lifestyle that we'll be announcing a little later in the year. And we may well have some other tricks up our sleeves.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 03:30: Sat 02 Nov 2013
Christmas cheer[[edit source]]
As this fiftieth anniversary year comes to a close, we here at Tardis just want to thank you for being a part of our community — even if you haven't edited here in a while. If you have edited with us this year, then thanks for all your hard work.
This year has seen an impressive amount of growth. We've added about 11,000 pages this year, which is frankly incredible for a wiki this big. November was predictably one of the busiest months we've ever had: over 500 unique editors pitched in. It was the highest number of editors in wiki history for a year in which only one programme in the DWU was active. And our viewing stats have been through the roof. We've averaged well over 2 million page views each week for the last two months, with some weeks seeing over 4 million views!
We've received an unprecedented level of support from Wikia Staff, resulting in all sorts of new goodies and productive new relationships. And we've recently decided to lift almost every block we've ever made so as to allow most everyone a second chance to be part of our community.
2014 promises to build on this year's foundations, especially since we've got a full, unbroken series coming up — something that hasn't happened since 2011. We hope you'll stick with us — or return to the Tardis — so that you can be a part of the fun!
Message at DWA[[edit source]]
I took action on that issue within just a few hours of you posting to my page. Or did I miss something?
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍ 05:30: Sat 12 Aug 2017
Glad to hear it[[edit source]]
Thanks for reaching out. And once again, brilliant analysis of grammatical issues. I tried to explain this, but was too lazy to actually give a master-class in copy-editing. By the way, upon looking at that old forum (and learning the right pronoun), I was suddenly struck how much has changed since then. There is now a special space [1] where users are encouraged (gasp) to just talk about the show. And some of them actually ask questions (and some are intimidatingly good at drawing). So if this is your thing, you're certainly welcome to take these Discussions for a spin, give them a quick once over or what have you. Amorkuz ☎ 21:54, January 12, 2019 (UTC)
Doctor Who Answers closed[[edit source]]
Imamadmad, Doctor Who Answers has been closed. Not fair. Doctor 25 ☎ 19:32, May 21, 2019 (UTC)
Yep, DWA is now officially closed. The new website will go up at http://www.doctorwhoanswers.com/, but right now it's not quite ready because I've not had enough spare time to sink into it.
If you wanna stay connected while the new DWA is being built and chat with the community, I set up a Slack community. Join up and turn on notifications to stay notified on what's happening. Let me know if you have any questions, and hope to see you on the Slack soon! • Imamadmad Contact me 05:20, May 22, 2019 (UTC)
Great! Let me know when it's ready. Thank you. Doctor 25 ☎ 20:39, May 22, 2019 (UTC)
Will do 😊 • Imamadmad Contact me 02:54, May 27, 2019 (UTC)
I cannot join up on Slack because the invite link is no longer active. Doctor 25 ☎ 20:02, June 7, 2019 (UTC)