Wikipedia

User:The Interior/B&BNovember draft

< User:The Interior

Welcome to the second issue of Books And Bytes. Read on for some updates about what was going on at the intersection of Wikipedia and the library world in the last month.

Biblioteca Palafoxiana, in Puebla, Mexico

Accounts, survey, metrics

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Although TWL has no new accounts to announce this month, we are in discussions with several database providers. Two organizations, EBSCO Publishing and ProQuest, are interested in which specific databases from among their large title lists Wikipedians are most interested in. TWL has put together a survey to help them with this, as well as gather more general information about usage, editor satisfaction and the direction Wikipedians would like to see their library moving in. The Google Forms survey is below - we thank you for your feedback.

  • SURVEY LINK HERE

The JSTOR pilot program, which gave 100 free accounts to top article writers, expired this month. Thanks to Steven Walling, an extension until the end of January was secured. Talks with JSTOR are ongoing to keep this valuable resource available free of charge to editors. New data from the Credo Partnership showed a 500% increase in links to the site in total since the program began. With much larger numbers in general, and a shorter time frame, the HighBeam increase of 390% as of May 2013 is also of interest. Special thanks to Johnuniq for compiling this data. If you are data-inclined, TWL always needs help compiling statistics. These stats are useful not only to our current partners, but also to prospective new partners.

Help Needed: TWL Account Manager

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TWL is seeking help to manage the dispersal of donated accounts. The role involves watchlisting the application pages, vetting candidates using a fairly simple set of requirements (1 year activity, 1000 edits on any Wikimedia project(s), email enabled, and an expressed desire to use the account for article work), and emailing the access codes to users. As it stands, this would be not more 1 hour of work a week (though it will be heavier when new accounts are announced). It is important that subscribers get prompt replies to their applications. If you are interested, please get in touch with The Interior or Ocaasi.

Wikipedia Visiting Scholars

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Along with the announcement of a position at George Mason University, a second institution has expressed interest in hosting a Wikipedia Visiting Scholar placement - University of California at Riverside Library. More details on this partnership should be announced in December. Also in December, George Mason will be seeking applications for their position. For more information on the Visiting Scholar program, see this page.

New Talk: The Future of Libraries and Wikipedia

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Future_of_Libraries_and_Wikipedia.pdf

Presented at George Mason University

TWL presenting at ALA mid-winter conference in Philadelphia on Jan 25

Spotlight on people: Another Believer and Wiki Loves Libraries

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Books&Bytes was pleased to interview two of the community’s Wiki Loves Libraries event coordinators, IJethroBT and AnotherBeliever. This fall, both organised edit-a-thons, one in Chicago, and another in Vancouver, Washington. For this issue, we will present Another Believer’s interview. Be sure to catch the December issue to hear about IJethroBot’s experiences.

Another Believer is a Wikipedian based in Oregon. He works on articles on music and the arts, and has been editing since 2007. He has organized three library-related edit-a-thons in the Portland area. His most recent event was at the Vancouver Community Library.

 
Recent Vancouver, WA, event, organized by Another Believer

What first attracted you to organising WLL events?

My introduction to "real life" Wikipedia activity was an invitation to participate in an outreach project at the Wikimedia Foundation offices in San Francisco in 2010, followed by the Wikipedia 10 celebration in Portland, Oregon in 2011. From then on, I was hooked. I had found a community where my obsession with research, writing and the mission of Wikipedia required no explaining. I continued attending meetups and networking with Wikipedians, both online and offline. It was at Wikimania in Washington, D.C. where I received a thorough introduction to the GLAM-Wiki initiative, which promotes collaboration between the Wikipedia community and cultural institutions. Later that year, I was invited to help Multnomah County Library host an edit-athon at Portland's Central Library. The opportunity was appealing, giving purpose for a local meetup and a way for me to trial collaborating with a cultural institution.


In your opinion, are library edit-a-thons a good way to recruit new editors?

Absolutely. There are always challenges with recruiting and retaining editors, but it certainly makes sense for the largest and most popular reference work on the Internet to collaborate with institutions that exist to collect and make information resources available to the public. People who visit their local libraries might be the type of individuals who enjoy conducting research, or see value in sharing information. Libraries and Wikipedia both have an educational component, and partnering with cultural institutions certainly brings legitimacy to the latter. Even with limited resources, libraries have the ability to assist with outreach efforts and organizing meetups.

At your events, do you see more brand new editors, or editors with some prior experience?

Events tend to attract both new and experienced editors. Often I distribute invitations to meetups on-wiki, which obviously attracts people who have already created accounts and have a habit of checking their talk page, even if only occasionally. Brand new editors are usually attracted by the institution itself, whether the participants are curious staff, volunteers, or members of the public. Generally, forms of outreach by the library include event listings on the website and event calendar, on-site signage, and perhaps a regional library newsletter.

What can libraries do to make WLL events more successful?

Offer incentives to increase traffic. These do not have to be costly or complicated. Perhaps a behind-the-scenes tour of the library, or a promotional partnership with another institution. For example, how cool would it be if a library associated with an art museum offered free admission to a special exhibit? Or a staff member offered a private tour of the permanent collection, followed by an edit-athon where Wikipedians wrote articles about notable artists or works of art? There are ways to make editing interactive and fun. At the library events I have attended, librarians have been great about being prepared and having select resources pulled from the shelves and available for attendees. This eliminates the need for editors to spend time searching for materials.

You have organised several events over the years. How has your methodology changed since your first event?

 
Publicity!

My methodology has changed little. The process begins with contact and planning with the institution, outreach and invitation distribution to Wikipedians and the public, and a request for educational and/or promotional materials from the Wikimedia Foundation. It is important to make sure the event space can accommodate a group of reasonable size and provides enough electrical outlets. Refreshments and extra laptops are not required, but always appreciated. The day of the event, I greet my contact(s), set up the space, distribute materials and generally make myself available to participants. Sometimes there is a specific agenda, but often there are enough new contributors that much of my time is spent answering questions, registering new users, providing an overview of Wikipedia, and helping with first edits.

My methods have not changed, but I have learned that sometimes it can be beneficial to market some events to experienced Wikipedians and others to new users; mixing the two groups is never problematic, but new and experienced contributors have different motivations for attending. A group of experienced users can quickly generate content and collaborate on more challenging tasks, while new users often require lots of attention. I appreciate both groups, but recognize that mixing them does not always create the most productive environment.

How have library staff responded to your event proposals?

Librarians have responded positively, but I must confess that for each of the three library events that I have hosted, I was invited by the librarians themselves. I am willing to conduct outreach, but more often my problem is that I receive more invitations than I can accommodate. Regardless of the method of contact, the librarians I have worked with express an appreciation for Wikipedia and an understanding that this online reference work is unavoidable, serving an important purpose in our society. In each case, I felt that the librarians trusted my abilities and appreciated my willingness to collaborate with their institution.

Which works better – a focused approach (“We will work on X,Y, and Z during the edit-a-thon”) or a looser approach (“Just drop by and work on what you want to”)?

This is a great question, but one I find difficult to answer. Both approaches can work well, depending on who is in attendance and the general purpose of the event. If content generation is the goal, focus is better. For a general meetup, or an advertised "introduction to Wikipedia," a looser approach is more appropriate.

What are some things to avoid when hosting an event?

When I host an event, I assume the role of facilitator. I do not dictate how the meetup should be, or set firm expectations. I would never make anyone feel out of line for expressing their opinion, or stupid for asking questions.

If you had one piece of advice for a new WLL event organiser, what would it be?

Earlier this year, I was lucky enough to attend GLAM Boot Camp in Washington, D.C., where a guest speaker expressed the following words of wisdom that resonated with me: "one is better than none." In the context of event organizing, this means that there is nothing wrong with simply proposing and time and location for a meetup and then seeing if others are willing to join. It might take a few attempts to mobilize a small community. If I had a second piece of advice, it would be to have a good relationship with the librarian(s) or other contacts involved, make sure expectations are set, and align your reasons for hosting the event.

Wiki Loves Libraries events in December

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Books and Bytes Briefly

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https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Diversity, help us bring in new voices

Further reading

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