Wikimedia Launches Beta Program To Test Upcoming Features

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Wikimedia Launches Beta Program To Test Upcoming Features

Posted by timothy on Friday November 8, 2013 @08:20PM from the good-seats-are-still-available dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Wikimedia today announced the launch of a beta program simply called Beta Features. In short, the organization is offering a way for users to try out new features on Wikipedia and other Wikimedia sites before they are released for everyone. If you're reading this with bated breath, you'll be happy to know logged-in users can join the early testing right now on MediaWiki.org, meta.wikimedia.org and Wikimedia Commons. Wikimedia plans to release Beta Features on all wikis in two weeks, on November 21, although the date may shift depending on the feedback the organization receives."

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so by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-08 21:30 · Score: 1

what?
1. Re:so by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-08 21:56 · Score: 0
  
  Some open-source software available as beta before the real thing is released is nothing of interest. In this case, however, it seems as if the live system is mixed with the beta system seamlessly, so that it can be tested on the production sites. This might be a little tricky to get done free of interference.
  No, I didn't read TFA.
2. Re:so by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-09 00:38 · Score: 0
  
  Instead of fixing the real problems, they want to "add features."
  But instead of actually adding features, they are adding this "meta feature" which from the looks of it is nothing but a claimed change to policy regarding hypothetical new features, but with no enforcement.
  It's unbelievable. Just how far can they stick their heads up their asses?
Consolidation by game+kid · 2013-11-08 21:53 · Score: 4, Interesting

Wikimedia and its member sites do a lot of testing and public hearing-ing of features both on and off the main servers; this appears to be more a matter of consolidation under the Wikimedia banner, and more Google Labs-ish in general.

--
You can hold down the "B" button for continuous firing.
Truth by democracy... software by democracy by Joining+Yet+Again · 2013-11-08 22:42 · Score: 1

Can anyone in the world submit modifications/reverts to the code with a clunky HTML interface?
It's telling that Wikipedia (which is synonymous with the Wikimedia Foundation, really) won't eat their own dog food.
1. Re:Truth by democracy... software by democracy by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-08 22:51 · Score: 1
  
  Is it really? Is it 'telling' at all?
  Why on earth would they want to do what you are suggesting?
2. Re:Truth by democracy... software by democracy by Joining+Yet+Again · 2013-11-08 22:54 · Score: 1
  
  Why on earth would they want to do what you are suggesting?
  Yes, why would anyone try to create a useful repository by just allowing everyone to edit it?
3. Re:Truth by democracy... software by democracy by smittyoneeach · 2013-11-09 02:48 · Score: 1
  
  Managing 'useful' when the idea of the signal-to-noise ratio is so subjective cuts to the bone of the problem.
  Wikipedia is the start, not the end, of a research effort.
  
  --
  Get thee glass eyes, and, like a scurvy politician, seem to see things thou dost not.--King Lear
4. Re: Truth by democracy... software by democracy by bawolff · 2013-11-09 05:43 · Score: 1
  
  Actually yes, you can submit code reverts from the gerrit web interface, which is clunky according to many peoples definitions. However that's really not what you meant. MediaWiki is meant as software for managing prose, not code. Where the code is done with git, which is a tool meant for the job. The use cases are different. The wiki software is also meant for non tech people who would be confused by things like svn or git. That said MediaWiki (and hence Wikipedia) have a web api so you can make your own command line editing tools (and people have)
A proposal ... by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-09 00:09 · Score: 0

How about setting up http://nsa.wikipedia.org/ (or gchq.wikipedia.org for the Brits) ?
TFS couldn't even mention ONE example? by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-09 00:45 · Score: 0

Why would I have "bated breath" reading such an empty summary?
1. Re:TFS couldn't even mention ONE example? by tkjtkj · 2013-11-09 01:36 · Score: 1
  
  It *could* have been ' a baited breath ..' .. which then would beg the question: 'baited with what? .. a dead fish'?? ' Why oh why do these errors endure! Gentlemen and gentlewomen.. the accurate phrase is " abated breath ' .. "abate : to decrease; diminution; to lessen ; abate one's breath .. to hold it .. usually in anticipation ; " to wait with abated breath .." 'An ' can precede , as in " each person waited with an abated breath" (tho this is cumbersome construction).
  
  --
  "There are 11 kinds of people: those who know binary, those who don't, and those who could not care less!"
2. Re:TFS couldn't even mention ONE example? by fatphil · 2013-11-09 03:19 · Score: 1
  
  So the accurate phrase isn't "bated breath" then?
  Someone should tell Shakespeare, before he writes anything stupid and wrong like this:
  
  . Shall I bend low and in a bondman's key,
  . With bated breath and whispering humbleness, Say this;
  
  --
  Also FatPhil on SoylentNews, id 863
3. Re: TFS couldn't even mention ONE example? by Sigg3.net · 2013-11-09 22:12 · Score: 1
  
  Say what!??
  The suspense is killing me!
  
  --
  Defining Statistics and Social Research
Not for me... by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-09 02:13 · Score: 0

needs cookies. There is just one site out there I reluctantly tolerate cookies there, and it ain't Wikimedia.

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Good riddance!
1. Re: Not for me... by bawolff · 2013-11-09 05:31 · Score: 1
  
  Damn sites requiring stored session information (cookies) to maintain a persistent session (logging in).
2. Re:Not for me... by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-09 05:35 · Score: 0
  
  And how could it know the logged in user if not with cookies?
3. Re: Not for me... by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-09 07:08 · Score: 0
  
  Damn sites requiring stored session information (cookies) to maintain a persistent session (logging in).
  How dare they! Oh the humanity! Won't someone think of the children?!
  All cookies are clearly evil, and "saving user settings" is just bait to steal our souls!
Re:windows 7 keys online store by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-09 05:31 · Score: 0

Your spam looks hilarious when it repeats the same thing over and over.
Log in without cookies by Anonymous Coward · 2013-11-09 21:59 · Score: 0

> And how could it know the logged in user if not with cookies?
That's what happens when you let the frameworks dictate your thinking.
It's easy to do session tracking without cookies, e.g. via URL modifications (query parameters et al).
Where's the difference, you ask?
- Query params are visible by the user. This is something Marketeers consider a Bad Thing (for me it's definitely a Good Thing).
- Query params are much less of a cross-site thing (again Marketeers and me disagree on whether this is good or bad).
Look. Most of us here are making money on web advertising one way or another. But I refuse to brainwashing. And what I hate most is "when my $FRAMEWORK requires X that means X is necessary". Look beyound your little Joomla/Drupal/Django/Mason/Zend discworlds.
What has our trade come to?