Wikidata:Status updates/Feedback 300th edition

The weekly newsletter written by and for the community reached its 300th edition on February 19th, 2018. At this occasion, we would like to know more about the habits of the readers, the things you would like to improve in its content or its format.

On this feedback page, you can answer several questions, and discuss the proposals of other editors. You don't have to answer all the questions. Thanks in advance for your feedback! Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 14:54, 13 February 2018 (UTC)

Your habits of reading

You can tell us how you usually read the Weekly Summary. How do you usually access it (discussion page, mailing-list, social networks, etc.)? How often? Do you read it entirely or only some parts?

• I read it on Project Chat, and I read (or skim) all of it except the repetitive "Monthly tasks" section - PKM (talk) 01:37, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
• The Wikidata status updates = in fact my favorite newsletter in the Wikiverse, because of its brevity (and because I'm a big Wikidata fan, of course - I tend to find everything around Wikidata interesting). I religiously check each week's version. I usually read it in my mailbox when it arrives on the Wikidata mailing list, but sometimes, before I get to my email, I spot a post about it on Facebook and then click through to the on wiki version. I usually open at least one link, often one of the articles about Wikidata that is mentioned. Spinster 💬 08:15, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
  • +1 to all this: its one of the better newsletters in the movement, and I think is a fairly good read. I really appreciate all the effort that happens here. Sadads (talk) 14:02, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• I stumble upon it in Project Chat. Sometimes I come to Project Chat just to see whether there is a new issue of the weekly summary. I first read the fun part (Example queries) then the news, then if I have time development and new properties. I usually spend like 30 seconds reading, then check a few of the queries and sometimes fix problems I find. I used to read the Wikipedia Signpost but now I can't remember the last time I read the Signpost. Syced (talk) 09:40, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
• I usually read it on Project Chat, every week and more or less all parts.--Jklamo (talk) 16:06, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
• I follow the Wikidata Google+ page, so I get notifications of all posts, including the ones sharing the newsletter; for me that's quite convenient, because the notification shows up anytime I use Google, Gmail, etc., i.e. pretty quickly. I usually skim the document, click the links that interest me, and either experiment with the tools or save links for reading or playing with later. Often I make minor edits such as typo fixes. Unfortunately one of the changes I made one week to the template were overwritten the next week, and I never got a response when I asked how to make the change permanent :( --Waldir (talk) 14:07, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
  • @Waldir: Thanks for your feedback! I was actually wondering if continuing feeding the Google+ page was useful, now I know that it is, at least for one person :) Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 11:46, 12 March 2018 (UTC)
    • I make sure to always +1 the posts to make sure whoever makes them knows someone is reading and appreciates them :) --Waldir (talk) 12:08, 12 March 2018 (UTC)
• I contribute to most editions, and therefore have Wikidata:Status updates/Next on my watchlist, so have usually read it as a draft, before it is sent out. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 14:09, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• I read ALL of it from the mailing-list every time its posted Thadguidry (talk) 15:03, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• After it hits my Inbox, I read or sim the Weekly Summary in its entirety each week. Its crisp, clean layout makes it easy to skim if I only have a few moments. One section I especially like is Example queries. --Rosiestep (talk) 15:58, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• Read it on my talkpage on nlwiki. I scan for the things I find interesting (usually new properties, RfA's etc., development related issues) and read those things. Mbch331 (talk) 17:32, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• I read it in email, and sometimes click through to the the top links. --Scott WorldUnivAndSch (talk) 19:44, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• Either on wikidata-l, or on the Project Chat, or on one of the talk pages of users who subscribed and which are on my watchlist.--Ymblanter (talk) 20:37, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• I receive it on my talk page and read it as soon as I have time. -- MichaelSchoenitzer (talk) 22:04, 2 March 2018 (UTC)

The content of the Weekly Summary

Which of the overall content of the newsletter do you find useful for your work on Wikidata? Is there anything which is less useful for you?

• I'm always most curious about the links posted to interesting articles, blog posts... because that usually points to interesting and inspiring reading materials. I'm quite interested in Wikidata's (creative) re-use and impact, and that's where I often discover good examples of that. Spinster 💬 08:15, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
• I like the sections "Development", "Events/Blog/Press" and "Other noteworthy stuff" most. I ignore the sections "Newest properties" and "Monthly Tasks". -- MichaelSchoenitzer (talk) 22:07, 2 March 2018 (UTC)

Sections

Below you can give feedback on the specific parts of the newsletter. For each section you can reflect on this questions: Do you find this section useful, and why? What would you like to improve?

Discussion

Usually includes: open and closed request for adminship, new and closed request for comments.

• I tend to miss things like RfA's, so having them mentioned in the newsletter makes me noticing these things. Mbch331 (talk) 17:39, 22 February 2018 (UTC)

Events/Blog/Press

Usually includes: upcoming events, blog posts, press articles, scientific papers related to Wikidata.

• I would find it useful if this section were split - one section for events, another for blog posts, articles, press and such. Spinster 💬 08:15, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
  • Thanks! That's easy to do. Let's start from today ;) Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 11:46, 12 March 2018 (UTC)
• Links to blog posts, articles, papers are occasionally very interesting. To split events is a good idea.--Jklamo (talk) 16:20, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
• The most interesting part of the weekly summary: this shows how WD is used outside of the community and encourage to continue to work. Snipre (talk) 23:47, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
• I really like this section: especially the blog posts/articles have become really useful for me in learning about the application of Wikidata-- sometimes I wish there was bit more high-level summary of the works, but I understand that would add more overhead to the editorial process. I agree with Spinster: we should really spin out the events as a separate section.Sadads (talk) 14:02, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• Agree this is very useful. I already requested a split, at Wikidata talk:Status updates/Next#Events/Press/Blogs! Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 14:03, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• This is my favorite part, I look forward to seeing and reading many of the linked articles every week. ArthurPSmith (talk) 16:06, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• Less interesting to me. Mbch331 (talk) 17:39, 22 February 2018 (UTC)

Other noteworthy stuff

Usually includes: all kind of announcements the community wants to make around Wikidata, new features, feedback loops...

• For me the main way to learn about new tools, as Wikidata:Tools is now regularly updated. It would be nice to add all tools from this section to Wikidata:Tools.--Jklamo (talk) 16:20, 20 February 2018 (UTC)

Did you know?

Usually includes: newest properties, query examples, newest WikiProjects, newest gadgets, newest database reports, showcase items.

• I would find it interesting and useful if this section (or the newsletter in general) would include more updates about new tools and gadgets. I would also be very interested in a weekly list of new Mix'n'match catalogs. I can totally understand that this would not be easy to track/collect, however. Spinster 💬 08:15, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
• This is the most important section for me. The "newest properties" section should be extended by a list of deleted properties and a link to the property proposals with the current number of proposals. -- JakobVoss (talk)
  • @JakobVoss: Thanks for the ideas! A link to property proposal is quite easy to add. The list of deleted properties, though, I'm not sure. Could you help with that @Pasleim:? Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 11:46, 12 March 2018 (UTC)
• Also very useful section, mainly new properties and query examples. To add new property proposals is a pretty good idea.--Jklamo (talk) 16:20, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
• I don't really read this section: I prefer to go in the dedicated pages for the queries and the property creations. Snipre (talk) 14:08, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• The recent split, listing external IDs separately to other properties, is a great improvement. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 14:15, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
  • Hear, hear! --Waldir (talk) 14:49, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• I would suggest that the expression "Query examples" be a link to Wikidata:SPARQL query service/queries/examples. I tried adding the link to the /Next page, but it was overwritten the next week. By the way, this is one of my favorite parts of the newsletter! --Waldir (talk) 14:48, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• I volunteer performing the Schema.org - Wikidata properties alignment, so I pay attention to the newest General Properties. I was also the one who suggested we split General from IDs :) Thadguidry (talk) 15:05, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• Never know what interesting properties might have been created. It's easier if there's a quick to find list like in the newsletter, than having to monitor all the property request pages. Mbch331 (talk) 17:39, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• There are already various reports that show open proposals, but I don't think a report of new properties that were created in vain is available (< 50 uses in 3 month). Adding these to the weekly report might help us put them to use.
  --- Jura 10:11, 22 March 2018 (UTC)

Development

Usually includes: an overview of the tasks the development team and the volunteers have been working on during the previous week.

• There are sometimes information about phase 2 (lexemes) for Wiktionary. But the frequency is very low, so I sometimes thing it was abandoned/already developed. Maybe simple sentece Continuing on developing Lexemes, estimated launch 3Q/2018 JAn Dudík (talk) 06:07, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• Would be better split into two: "these are the things we're working on" and "these changes have been made and will affect the way you work". The latter should be listed first. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 14:07, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• Too technical. It was really interesting the two first when new datatypes were created or structure for the sources, but now I don't find any announcement which can change my way of editing in WD. Snipre (talk) 14:13, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• I like to see this, but I agree it would be nice to have some sort of estimated/target date for upcoming changes if possible. ArthurPSmith (talk) 16:08, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
  • @ArthurPSmith: Thank you for your feedback on this. I will discuss with the team about how we can provide you a better overview on how the things we change impact your daily editing, and when we plan to deploy these changes. Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 11:46, 12 March 2018 (UTC)

Monthly tasks

Usually includes: examples of tasks to do to help the community work on Wikidata.

• This section is always the same, and hence I never read or act upon it ;-) Spinster 💬 08:15, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
• What about some really monthly task? every month another preferred page for merging duplicates JAn Dudík (talk) 06:07, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
  • @JAn Dudík: That would be amazing. But I can't do it on my own, some editors need to contribute to it by adding new content every week. Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 11:46, 12 March 2018 (UTC)
• The things you want help on, is always just a link to Phabricator. And not a selection of easy development things a volunteer could do. Having to check the whole list on Phabricator isn't what makes me help. So I stick to the requests for new monolingual languages to add when I get notified by Phabricator about new tasks concerning that. Mbch331 (talk) 17:39, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
  • @Mbch331: Good point. What about this query that lists all the Wikidata tasks that have been marked as "need a volunteer"? (usually simple tasks that doesn't request a deep background of our development systems) Does that help or would you like something else? Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 11:46, 12 March 2018 (UTC)
    • @Lea Lacroix (WMDE): A link to that query would be enough for me. Mbch331 (talk) 12:55, 12 March 2018 (UTC)

Your ideas of improvement

Existing sections

Are there some sections or topics you’d like to contribute to? Are there some sections that you’d like to improve, and how?

• Press/Blogs: I miss Wikipedia Signpost's "In the news" section, describing how Wikipedia has been portrayed or mentioned in the news this week. I guess Wikidata is not famous (or controversial?) enough yet haha. Also, I am definitely interested in learning about recent thesis and projects that mention or use Wikidata. Syced (talk) 09:46, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
  • @Syced: Thanks for your feedback. We try to do it as accurately as possible, the help of volunteers is really appreciated here, sometimes I miss important articles or scientific papers because I can't watch all the specific communication channels. Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 11:46, 12 March 2018 (UTC)

New topics

Are there new sections you'd like to create, or new topics you'd like to talk about in the newsletter?

• I would like to see additional highlights of collaborations, projects, or other activities beyond the typical listing of "monthly tasks". One of my favorite components of the Signpost is the WikiProject interviews: maybe not highlighting WikiProjects, but different collaborative projects that folks are working on would help a lot with a sense of knowing where community exists around Wikidata: this could be even a once a month feature, instead of every week. Sadads (talk) 14:02, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
  • @Sadads: Interesting! Usually when there are interviews or blog posts about a project, we put it in the blog/articles sections. If some volunteers want to start doing some interview or writing content to highlight the community work, I'd be very happy to share it in the Weekly Summary. Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 11:46, 12 March 2018 (UTC)
• ...

Talk pages

Do you use the newsletter's talk pages?

• I think Wikidata talk:Status updates/Next is under-watched. Maybe it should be merged into (and rediected to) Wikidata talk:Status updates? Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 14:10, 22 February 2018 (UTC)

   Support Matěj Suchánek (talk) 10:00, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

  • Alright. I'll create an archive page and redirect Wikidata talk:Status updates/Next to Wikidata talk:Status updates. Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 11:46, 12 March 2018 (UTC)

General

In general, are there improvements you’d like to support?

• Link it more prominently (Wikidata:Main_Page, Wikidata:Community portal...?) -- JakobVoss (talk) 09:16, 20 February 2018 (UTC)
  • Good point! I'll add it to Community portal. Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 11:46, 12 March 2018 (UTC)
• I didn't knew it's allowes to add stuff to the newsletter yourself until recently. Maybe you could point that out more clearly. Also I'd like to hear more about cool gadgets/tools. -- MichaelSchoenitzer (talk) 22:11, 2 March 2018 (UTC)
  • Thanks. This feedback round was also meant to highlight this fact :) Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 11:46, 12 March 2018 (UTC)

Non-readers

If you don't read the Weekly Summary, or used to read it but stopped, can you explain why? This is important for us to understand how to improve the newsletter.

• As someone who doesn't take part in wikidata, but is very interested in the project and the (very) cool uses it presents, I'll just honestly say that it was too big (text, bytes) and too frequent for my more casual interest. I'd pick up a monthly or abbreviated (with links, a la en.Wiki Signpost) in a heartbeat. ~ Amory (u • t • c) 16:31, 19 February 2018 (UTC)
  • The number of bytes is pretty high due to the inclusion of queries. Sjoerd de Bruin (talk) 17:43, 19 February 2018 (UTC)
    • Use of the forthcoming (yay!) URL shortener, for queries, will drastically reduce the byte count. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 14:13, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• Yes! Things are moving forward regarding the URL shortener, and hopefully we will soon be able to have one and reduce the number of bytes of the queries links :) Lea Lacroix (WMDE) (talk) 11:46, 12 March 2018 (UTC)

Other

Anything you want to add and can't find a place in the previous parts.

• Thank you, Léa, for the great job you do with this! Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 17:31, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• Just don't forget to obey Wikidata:Status updates/Next/Editnotice. Otherwise, the usefulness for subscribers outside Wikidata is lower. Matěj Suchánek (talk) 10:02, 24 February 2018 (UTC)
• ...