Wiki Comments Section

[Para99]

Is there a specific reason the Wiki doesn't have a comments section similar to Allakhazam? Would it take up to much space or is it a hassle to get set up? Was there previously one and trolls ruined it?

I know there is the "Discussion" tab on pages, but most "Discussion" tabs for mobs are blank, I don't think a lot of people even realize it's there or what it's for. Often I end up searching the forums or Allakhazam for information, but then I'm hesitant to do a mass copy and paste of an old forum thread that may not be completely accurate to a mobs discussion tab.

I think it would be nice to have mob, quest, or zone information and various comments on one page that people could slowly contribute to over time.

[loramin]

First off, the discussion tab is really meant to be a place for wiki editors to discuss issues with pages. For instance if I see an image on a page that I'm not sure belongs, but I'm also not sure it should be removed, I might use the Discussion tab. I say "might" because, as you noticed, I (and most other wiki editors) don't bother with it. If you really need to ask the P99 community something, these forums are your best bet.

As for your question ... well first, you have to remember that the wiki only covers EQ from 1999-2001. Almost all of the information from that period has already been copied off Allakhazam, so if you copy stuff from there you're very likely to copy info from after 2001 which isn't relevant to P99.

But beyond that, an important difference between the wiki and Allakhazam is that the wiki is meant to be an encyclopedia, not a place of discussion. So if you do find some info on Allakhazam that is P99-relevant (maybe it's some comments from before 2002) then you absolutely should add it to the wiki, just not as copy/pasted comments. Instead, you should add it as a natural part of the wiki, which means adding it as part of the wiki's encyclopedia style.

[Para99]

Originally Posted by loramin [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

First off, the discussion tab is really meant to be a place for wiki editors to discuss issues with pages.

Oh, I always assumed it was meant to be like the Eldrig the Old page since I always check the Discussion tab for mobs and usually find additional mob information or nothing. I can't think of other mobs off the top of my head where the Discussion tab is additional mob info but I know I've seen it and several mobs that say "See discussion tab for more info" as the description on the main page.

Originally Posted by loramin [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Almost all of the information from that period has already been copied off Allakhazam, so if you copy stuff from there you're very likely to copy info from after 2001 which isn't relevant to P99.

I didn't word it well, I was referencing copy and pasting comments from p99 specific threads, not Allakhazam comments. Information from a p99 thread from 2012 might not be accurate in 2018 so the next guy looking for information on X mob is left to search for the same thread, which would be locked so no one can update it and say "Hey this thread isn't accurate anymore, don't waste your time".

Originally Posted by loramin [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

If you really need to ask the P99 community something, these forums are your best bet.

This is undoubtedly true currently, but a lot more people use the wiki than the forums. On top of that, people update the wiki main pages and erase past contributions, which are sometimes relevant, so then you have to search through the history of the page to get the full scope of information.

Anyways, was just curious.

[loramin]

Originally Posted by Para99 [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Oh, I always assumed it was meant to be like the Eldrig the Old page since I always check the Discussion tab for mobs and usually find additional mob information or nothing. I can't think of other mobs off the top of my head where the Discussion tab is additional mob info but I know I've seen it and several mobs that say "See discussion tab for more info" as the description on the main page.

Oh I see. Well, the wiki is what we make of it, so it's not wrong to use it the way that person did. My point was just that if you go to https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Help:Talk_pages (our wiki renames Talk=>Discussion) it will suggest the page is more for talking about content. In an ideal world that info, perhaps summarized, would get added to Eldrig's actual page instead.

Originally Posted by Para99 [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

I didn't word it well, I was referencing copy and pasting comments from p99 specific threads, not Allakhazam comments. Information from a p99 thread from 2012 might not be accurate in 2018 so the next guy looking for information on X mob is left to search for the same thread, which would be locked so no one can update it and say "Hey this thread isn't accurate anymore, don't waste your time".

Gotcha. I personally grab a lot of info from these forum, and my general philosophy is to use whatever I find, even it's old. Very little P99 information has been invalidated, so unless I specifically know it's outdated the odds are very good that it isn't. There's only been a few era-appropriate changes (eg. Plane of Hate revamp) and only a few "change how you play" bug fixes (eg. old Necro FD pulling).

Everything else (95+%) is still valid and always will be. Plus, even if you manage to mess up and update the wiki with something outdated, it's usually super easy to fix. You say a mob is at loc 0,0, another player goes and looks for them at 0,0, and when they don't see them they edit the wiki to remove the line about 0,0. No big deal.

Originally Posted by Para99 [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

people update the wiki main pages and erase past contributions, which are sometimes relevant, so then you have to search through the history of the page to get the full scope of information.

Humans are fallible so stuff happens, but hopefully cases like that should be very rare. If you ever see a pattern of someone deliberately removing content, please do contact a wiki admin (eg. me) because we have to "police" the wiki ourselves; Rogean, Llandris, and the rest all have their hands full with just the game and the forums.

Hope all that was helpful.