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| − | {{WpBadge}}
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| − | {{Work|This page - and the Wikipedia+ initiative itself - is a work-in-progress and testing is invited.<br/>The latest alpha version of the extension can be downloaded [https://wikispooks.com/WikipediaPlus/wikipediaPlus.0.6.3.xpi here] (Firefox only for now).<br/>To discuss/provide feedback, use this [[Special:EmailUser/Peter|Email form]] or the above discussion tab.
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| − | }}
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| − | [[File:WP notification example.600x308.gif | frame | Wikipedia+ suggests alternative viewpoints to Wikipedia browsers]]
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| − | '''Wikipedia+''' is an initiative based on a browser extension which augments Wikipedia pages with links to additional relevant information unlikely to be covered adequately, if at all, on [[Wikipedia]] itself. Wikispooks is a '''Wikipedia+''' - enabled site.
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| − | '''''Note:''' The Wikipedia+ initiative has affiliation whatever with the [http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Home Wikipedia Foundation].''
| + | <div style="float:right;border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; margin: 1em; z-index: 10; padding: 0.4em; margin-right:0px;">{{#widget:YouTube|id=a3Sq0vUxwrc}}<br/>[[User:Robin|Robin Upton]] explains Wikipedia+ at [http://events.ccc.de/congress/2011/wiki/Welcome 28C3], 2011-12-29</div> |
| − | <br/>
| + | [[File:WP notification example.600x308.gif | frame | Ever fancy quick access to alternative viewpoints? Let Wikipedia+ suggest them for you]] |
| | + | '''''Wikipedia+'' is a tool for Wikipedia users unhappy with only a single narrative.''' It is a Mozilla approved open source browser extension to augment your Wikipedia experience. It notes where you're browsing and silently checks the alternative websites you have chosen to see if they contain matching information. If so, Wikipedia+ pops up a notification containing links to the matching pages, so alternative points of view are only one click away. |
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| | ==Rationale== | | ==Rationale== |
| − | [[Wikipedia]] is a vastly popular on-line encyclopaedia. Anyone seeking information on any subject will find that links to a relevant and useful Wikipedia page will almost invariably appear in the first few results of any Google search. However, in common with all [[MSM | mainstream media]] sources, there is a well-established [[Project:The Problem with Wikipedia|problem with Wikipedia]]: | + | [[Wikipedia]] is in one sense a victim of its own success; it has effectively become a [[MSM | mainstream media]] source, and as such it shares a [[Project:The Problem with Wikipedia|well-established bias]]. A wealthy few use their control of [[MSM | mainstream media]] to systematically exclude certain opinions. This lack of publication in what Wikipedia refers to as 'reliable sources' in turn provides justification for their exclusion from Wikipedia, nullifying its potential as an independent voice. Wikipedia+ allows you to avoid this censorship by choosing to supplement your Wikipedia experience with automatic cross-references to sites you judge to be of interest (e.g. Wikispooks). |
| − | {{QB|
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| − | To the extent that a subject is judged threatening to established power and the widespread acceptance of '[[Project:Definitions|official narratives]]' of events, the reliability and ultimate accuracy of Wikipedia articles touching on it is likely to be compromised. At the extremes of power and perceived threat, Wikipedia's 'Neutral-Point-of-View' <ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NPOV Wikipedia 'Neutral point of view]</ref> principle pretty much guarantees that the compromise will be fundamental. (See [[Project:The Problem with Wikipedia|The Problem with Wikipedia]] for a fuller discussion)
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| − | }}
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| − | '''This is the problem that Wikipedia+ addresses.''' | + | ==Technical Aspects== |
| | + | [[File:WP_in_status_bar.jpg | frame | left | Wikipedia+ in the status bar in the bottom right]] |
| | + | * Wikipedia+ requires '''Mozilla Firefox''', version 4 or above. |
| | + | * The latest version is [http://www.wikipediaplus.org/wiki/Download available here]. |
| | + | * By default, it is configured for ''Wikispooks'' users |
| | + | * When browsing Wikipedia, a notification bar will appear from time to time with links to Wikispooks or other sites of interest |
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| − | ==How Wikipedia+ works==
| + | {{RED|* The add-on is ''not'' available for modern browsers, only old versions of Firefox}} |
| − | '''Wikispooks''' and a number of other sites maintain indexes of Wikipedia pages whose subject matter renders them likely to suffer from the problem outlined above. The indexes contain links to additional information which is unlikely to be treated adequately, if at all, on corresponding Wikipedia pages.
| + | {{Template:Wikispooks Footer/Wikipedia+}} |
| − | | + | <!-- |
| − | Whenever a wikipedia plus user browses to a Wikipedia page, the '''page name''' is looked up on the alternate sites they have chosen. If it exists there, a notification pops up with links to the corresponding pages on the other sites.
| + | ==References== |
| − | | + | <references/> |
| − | <!-- PUT THIS SOMEWHERE ELSE, SINCE IT IS A SECONDARY CONSIDERATION, AND AT THIS STAGE, PEOPLE WANT A SIMPLE SINGLE HIT. | |
| − | If the extension does NOT pop the message bar, it indicates that additional information relevant to the current Wikipedia page is NOT currently available (or rather not currently indexed as being available) on the alternative sites list. In this circumstance you have the option of creating an appropriate index page on one or more of the alternative sites, by clicking the extension status-bar icon and selecting the required site. <ref>'''Note:''' Wikispooks requires users to complete a [[Project:Registered User Undertakings|registration process]] before index or other page editing/creation is possible. Other Wikipedia+ enabled sites will have their own individual requirements.</ref>
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| | --> | | --> |
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| − | ==Users==
| + | [[Category:Wikipedia+]] |
| − | Users may value the alternative perspectives they receive from Wikipedia+. It searches in the background, and only makes suggestions when it has found a result of potential interest.
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| − | ===Requirements===
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| − | Wikipedia Plus currently requires '''Mozilla Firefox''', versions 3 to 5 inclusive.
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| − | * Download the latest alpha version [https://wikispooks.com/WikipediaPlus/wikipediaPlus.0.6.3.xpi here].
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| − | [[File:WP_in_status_bar.jpg | frame | Wikipedia+ installs discretely to the status bar in the bottom right]] | |
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| − | ===Installation===
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| − | *'''Firefox versions 4 & 5:''' Select Tools/add-ons on the browser menu. From the drop-down box next to the search box at the top of the page, select "Install add-on from File....". Browse to the downloaded .XPI file and select it. You will be presented with a window warning you to ''"Install add-ons only from author whom you trust"'' and detailing the extension name and file selected. Click the "Install Now" button. The extension should install and you will be prompted to restart your browser.
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| − | *'''Firefox version 3:''' Select Tools/add-ons on the browser menu. A dialogue window will appear. Drag and drop the .XPI file to the window. You will be prompted to proceed/cancel the installation. Following installation a browser restart is required to use the extension.
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| − | ===Setup===
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| − | After successful installation the extension icon and status will be present on the browser status bar (bottom-right).
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| − | *Click the text to enable/disable Wikipedia+
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| − | *Click the icon will pop-up the '''Wikipedia+ Preferences''' dialogue window. The window comprises 5 tabs plus OK/Cancel buttons.
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| − | The '''Appearance''', '''Behaviour''', and '''About''' tabs are pretty self explanatory.
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| − | | |
| − | ====Configuring Websites====
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| − | Wikipedia+ comes preloaded with some alternative sites which you may wish to use to supplement your Wikipedia experience, but the choice of sites is yours. The '''Sites''' tab is for configuring which sites Wikipedia+ checks. This tab shows a list of the sites, with the highest priority sites (checked first, appears on the left) at the top.
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| − | *There is a set of reasonably intuitive navigation, information and editing buttons to the right.
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| − | *Select a site and click on the pencil icon to the right (or just doubleclick the site) to bring up a dialog to edit it.
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| − | *Select a site and click the up/down arrows to change site priority.
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| − | *Click the plus icon to add a new site. A dialog will apear for you to input a name, a URL, and which language(s) it uses.
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| − | ===Use===
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| − | [[File:WP notification bar.600x59.gif | Click on the suggestion buttons to see the corresponding page]]
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| − | When browsing Wikipedia, if you the extension detects pages on other sites that may correspond to the page you are at, a notification bar will appear as shown above. To go to the sites it suggests, click the corresponding button. By default, these will appear in a new tab, though this can be changed from the options dialog.
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| − | ==Webmasters==
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| − | The tool suits any websites whose material complements the perspectives on Wikipedia, whether because it directly contradicts it, or simply because it contains more detail than is contained on Wikipedia.
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| − | ===Requirements===
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| − | Making a site ready for Wikipedia+ is a pretty straightforward task, and doesn't require changing any existing pages. The main task is deciding which wikipedia pages you wish to associate with which of your sites pages.
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| − | ===Choosing an access URL===
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| − | The first step is to choose a URL pattern by which Wikipedia+ can query the site, e.g. for this site, it is <font face="courier">http://www.wikispooks.com/wiki/{PageName}</font> This is requested by the browser add-in, with ''{PageName}'' replaced by the name of a Wikipedia page. It must return a 404 (Page Not Found) code unless a page is matching available.
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| − | ===Implementing the access URL===
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| − | All the access URL has to need is to translate a request for a particular wikipedia ''PageName'' either into a locally available page, or give a 404 code if no such page is available. Your means of implementing this will depend on the technology which your site already uses.
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| − | ====General Method====
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| − | One simple method is to have an access URL of the form <font face="courier"><nowiki>http://www.example.com/WP.php?page={PageName}</nowiki></font>, so that all incoming requests are served by a single script. This could read from a database of local page URL to match with wikipedia ''PageNames''. You may wish to use the simple script written for this purpose by Robin Upton, which is available [http://www.RobinUpton.com/WP/WP.php.0.1.zip here].
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| − | ====Wikis only Method====
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| − | If your site is a wiki, you could use dedicated namespace (this site uses <font face="courier">Wikipedia:</font>) to maintain an easy correspondence between the sites pages and Wikipedia's pages. If you already have content, the fastest way to make your site ready is to just add a redirect, so that <font face="courier">/wiki/Wikipedia:Some_Wikipedia_URL</font> contains <font face="courier"><nowiki>#REDIRECT[[Your_Local_URL]]</nowiki></font>.
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| − | ==Contacts==
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| − | *[http://www.wikipediaplus.org WikipediaPlus.org web site]
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| − | <!-- *[http://www.wikipediaplus.org/wiki/Wikipedia+_Enabled_Sites List of known wikipedia+ ready sites] -->
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| − | ==References==
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| − | <references/>
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