Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

Summary:

Updating a guide

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Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

TheMightyMcB 09 Jan 2021 02:41

Once again, the MAST Guide Updating Team is proposing a rewrite of an outdated core guide. This time, the FAQ is in the crosshairs. It has been rewritten by UraniumEmpire to better reflect the current attitudes and policies of the SCP Wiki and its staff. The proposed rewrite can be found here.

This thread is intended for all levels of staff (including JS) to be able to review the rewrite and propose changes before the weeklong timer expires and the change is implemented. If serious issues are spotted, the guide will not be updated pending heavy revision and another thread.

Re: Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

Karablue9482 09 Jan 2021 02:56

+ show block

How do I become a good writer?

(1) Practice writing a lot and (2) listen to feedback, and usually you will be able to create something good.

We also offer Seminars on a semi-regular basis, as well as various guides and essays on the ins and outs of writing.

I suggest adding a (3) that is reading the wiki, or something similar, since a lot of things are tied to other things, mixed with the fact we use a sort of "different" style in our writing.

Can I write something from a thing I read or watched as an SCP?

Nope. SCPs have to be original work. (Same for Tales.)

I also suggest adding here that it is also sort of a licensing issue, although that's a bit of a nit pick.

Is SCP-173 based on the Weeping Angels? Or the Endermen?

Possibly not. The current oldest known posting of SCP-173 on 4chan was created on June 22nd, 2007, a couple of weeks after the BBC airdate of Blink, and before the US airdate for the episode. The Endermen were created in 2010, much later.

I've never seen anyone ask if its based off Endermen. However, I have herd people ask about SCP-096. I think changing that would be beneficial.

Other than those odd things, I really like this rewrite. This is great and I can't wait to see it up!

Re: Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

aismallard 09 Jan 2021 03:42

The content looks good. I do have some nitpicks:

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There are a number of non-local links, pointing directly to a particular domain. We should avoid this, given the various login issues.

The following links should use [[[-type links, e.g. [[[page-name|My label]]]):

• "the SkipIRC Network" — chat-guide
• "sandbox wiki" — sandbox

The following links are to forum threads and should be path-based, e.g. [/forum/t-13973192 FAQ Update]:

• "this forum thread" — /forum/t-1082671/trying-to-find-an-scp-or-tale-but-don-t-remember-the-name
• "Ideas Critique boards" — /forum/c-89000/help:ideas-critique
• "Drafts Critique boards" — /forum/c-50864/help:drafts-critique
• "this forum post" — /forum/t-228926/site-history

Additionally,

If you have at least three pieces of artwork related to SCP, you can even make an art page!

would suggest cutting "even"

Re: Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

Croquembouche 12 Jan 2021 09:59

Noting that while I generally agree with this, I think the link pointing to Join should be hardcoded to be one that definitely works.

Re: Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

TSATPWTCOTTTADC 09 Jan 2021 04:33

[+] Some suggested edits:

• Capitalize the first letter of "SkipIRC".

• Replace "TheeSherm" with whatever is the name of the creator's YouTube channel or TikTok account.
  Or get rid of names of specific creators altogether, so we don't need to keep updating the guide whenever new channels shoot up in popularity. The off-wiki SCP content creator space changes rapidly.

• When first mentioning "Series 1", explain what that is.

• "peoples' recommendations". Should that be "people's recommendations"?

• Several occurrences of "show it to us" when referring to drafts. Some users are under the impression that staff have to approve their SCPs before publishing. The wording here could be changed to also help dispel that misunderstanding.

• "Bugger". In some dialects that's not a word that is suitable for use in an FAQ.

• "Curation". Readers may think that this implies curation in that particular literary sense of accepting or rejecting works for publication. That's not something any of the staff teams do, except maybe for collaborative pages that authors have placed in staff care for pruning.

• "JS". It's probably clear enough already, but might be best to just use "Junior Staff" instead.

[+] Some suggested crosslinks to add:

Use your discretion if you are afraid of overloading the FAQ with crosslinks.

• Several occurrences of "Contact staff". Link the Contact Staff page.

• Mention of authors' pages. Link the Authors' Pages hub.

• Mention of artwork pages. Link the Artwork Pages hub.

• "Can I change someone else's article?". Consider linking directly to the "Editing" section of the Site Rules. This can be facilitated by adding an #editing anchor to that page in the right place and then linking to /site-rules#editing.

I am wondering about retaining questions like "Is that [other site member] single?" and "Where is (insert member of site staff)?". There are more staff than there used to be, so individual staff members are less prominent. And there is much less focus on prominent staff characters in SCP articles than there used to be. Are community members asking these questions frequently enough to be in the FAQ?

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f . a . q | hours of writing could save you minutes of planning | build 1

Last edited on 09 Jan 2021 05:03 by TSATPWTCOTTTADC Show more

Re: Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

Hexick 09 Jan 2021 04:36

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+ Proposal Thoughts +

Do you have a Discord server?

We do not. Communication within the wiki community is conducted primarily through the skipIRC network.

I feel this is far too brisk and vague for an inquiry that's so common for newbies to ask, and it doesn't really give a reason for why we use IRC over Discord which, in my experience, is a common thing that users new to the community wonder. An example of an improvement I had in mind could be something akin to:

Do you have a Discord server?

We do not. Communication within the wiki community is conducted primarily through the skipIRC network. We solely use IRC due to it being far easier and better to moderate when compared to Discord, and is overall better layout-wise in regards to how we use our chat rooms as a community.

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But what about [SCP-related Discord server]?

The SCP Wiki does not operate an official Discord server for the Wiki; however, certain staff teams do operate private Discord servers in order to facilitate staff work. Additionally, many international/translation branches operate their own Discord servers.

While it's, of course, a good idea to mention what exactly the staff-operated Discord servers are, there are many servers that are SCP-related such as SCPD that I think also should be addressed. Mainly this is in regards to mentioning that while these types of groups can have SCP Wiki staff members in them, these servers aren't actually sanctioned by SCP Wiki Staff. Example:

But what about [SCP-related Discord server]?

The SCP Wiki does not operate an official Discord server for the Wiki; however, certain staff teams do operate private Discord servers in order to facilitate staff work. Additionally, many international/translation branches operate their own Discord servers. Furthermore, all other SCP-related Discord servers and the activity/rules therein are not sanctioned by the SCP Wiki Staff, and are not officially tied to the SCP Wiki directly — even if individuals operating such servers also happen to be site and/or chat staffers.

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The Creative Commons license means anyone else can copy and profit off of anything you make if they wish.

I think it would be more helpful if we were to take "Creative Commons" and anchor this link to it: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

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Yes, we will help you sort out licensing confusion if you ask.

While it does mention that we'll help them out with licensing questions, there isn't really anything that properly directs new users to any place where they could contact members of the Licensing Team. It would be far more helpful to mention #site34 and/or link the Licensing Team Hub.

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Why don't you like my SCP?

Usually, we'll tell you. Remember, though, we're here to critique your writing, not you. If you feel that critique has veered into the realm of personal attack, contact a member of staff.

While it's already mentioned pretty well in the previous answers in this particular tab, I think we should again tie it back to suggesting that if a user's article doesn't succeed on the main site, if they didn't already receive critique, they should do so.

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Overall, putting my above statements aside for a moment, I feel this is much better in comparison with the original FAQ page, especially if my above recommendations were to be applied. Thank you in advance for taking the time to read my somewhat long post.

Re: Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

cybersqyd 09 Jan 2021 07:19

General full support; with a few relatively minor nitpicks:

[+] Thoughts

You can also post on Visual Records — anyone can join, even if they're not a member here.

Visual Records feels like effectively a dead wiki: I'm not sure if it's worth keeping in?

If you have at least three pieces of artwork related to SCP, you can even make an art page!

This uh isn't actually officially the policy, afaik: there's not actually any requirements listed anywhere to make an art page and so technically you don't need any pieces of artwork to make one. I think 'three' is a good number if this was a policy but I don't think it should imply it's a requirement if it's not technically one.

Also, read some Foundation Tales too!

Not necessarily a fan of referring to the tales hub as 'Foundation tales' since it's not exactly true; and part of me also wonders whether GoI Formats should be mentioned too, maybe as 'There's also tales and GoI formats to read too!'

There is an SCP that does something, but I don't remember the number. Can you help?

Probably! Ask around in chat and we might be able to help you. You can also try this forum thread.

Perhaps a personal stance but I generally feel like we should direct towards #site19 specifically to try to reduce the number of people asking this kinda thing in #site17

I remember reading this one SCP, but I can't find it anymore!

This feels like it could be rolled into the 'I don't remember the number' question; or at least moved to be immediately after it rather than five questions later.

Re: Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

The Pighead 09 Jan 2021 10:52

All the possible nitpicks in this rewrite have already been brought up by my fellow staffers, so I'll just say I'm in full support of this.

Re: Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

Ralliston 09 Jan 2021 12:54

Looks great; I do have a couple of nitpicks though.

[+] Said Nitpicks

Which SCPs should I read?

The biggest tip we can give you is: Don't ONLY read Series 1. Series 1 is great, but now we've also got Series 2, 3, 4, 5 and the latest series, Series 6. Try reading an equal number of SCPs from each series. Also, read some Foundation Tales too!

Additionally, check out the user curated lists for recommendations sourced from the community itself! You can also ask on the forums or in our IRC chat for peoples' recommendations.

If we're mentioning that tales exist too, I think that the same could be done for GoI Formats. I'd argue they get even fewer reads by newbies than some tales, and I can't think of any backlash mentioning them could cause here.

Usually, we'll tell you. Remember, though, we're here to critique your writing, not you. If you feel that critique has veered into the realm of personal attack, contact a member of staff.

I think that mentioning that no one is obligated to explain their vote here would be a good idea. I've seen a lot of newbies almost demanding critique on their posted articles and being very angry when they don't get said critique.

Nope. SCPs have to be original work. (Same for Tales.)

As in my first proposition - I think we should mention GoI formats here too.

For example, "Real Life" Zyn and Magnus

I think that making the nicknames of Zyn and Magnus into links to their profiles would be beneficial, especially considering they're admins and new people reading the guide would possibly learn that due to it, and I can't imagine that knowing which people are admins can be in any way a bad way.

Other than that, I'm in full support.

Re: Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

UraniumEmpire 09 Jan 2021 20:25

Posting to note that I've edited the FAQ to reflect the critique. If you don't see a certain change, I either didn't believe it was necessary or implemented it somewhere else.

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… and I'm not Robert Frost.

Re: Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

Kufat 09 Jan 2021 21:39

Re. underage users:

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I'm mature enough, but I'm technically underage. Can you make an exception?

Apologies, but we can't make exceptions for "maturity". If you tell us you're underage, or if we figure it out, we'll be forced to ban you.

However, excepting extenuating circumstances, we'll be happy to let you in as soon as you hit the right age.

As "extenuating circumstances" is a bit vague, I would suggest changing this last line to to something like:

Bans for being underage expire when a user reaches the minimum required age. As with other temporary bans, attempting to evade bans for being underage may result in a permanent ban.

Re: Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Update

UraniumEmpire 09 Jan 2021 23:14

Good catch. Updated.

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… and I'm not Robert Frost.

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