The Strange Case of the Missing Ads

Woah. Triple post?

And no, this thread may still be useful for further information and updates. I think the bulk of the avatar argument has finished.

I know I've done a lot of editing while not known, usually because I wasn't using my own computer and didn't feel like bothering with cookies.

To add, the biggest problem with unknowns is that we can't communicate with them. No PM, no email, nothing other than edit reasons, placing strategic comments in articles, or ban/locking. And banning only works if they don't switch IPs. We've had to lock several articles lately because an unknown was messing with them and ignoring comments, and they kept switching IP addresses.

Getting known on another computer is not such a heavy burden that it would stop you from editing if you were sufficiently motivated.

edited 28th Oct '10 11:18:31 AM by Fighteer

Is there any way we can make it obvious to new people that registering is as painless as it is? Finding out that I need to register for a wiki to edit it is usually a sure-fire turnoff to me, because I hate the confirmation e-mail rigmarole I'd have to do to correct a single factual error in, say, an article about a Pancho or Coulter Dixon.

@Wulf - Well, do they really have to edit? I mean...I'm not saying I'm for chasing people off from the site, but if it's a decision between scaring off anon editors and not having a wiki at all, I think the obvious decision is to make sure the wiki survives.

@Freezair: we are not requiring emails for registration at this time, per Fast Eddie.

Anyway, if someone wants to edit the wiki that badly, getting known should not be an unreasonable burden, especially if the Edit Page link directs them to the knower form.

edited 28th Oct '10 11:19:42 AM by Fighteer

@ Fighteer: What I meant was that situations like mine could also make up some part of the entirety of anonymous edits, and thus, turning anonedit off wouldn't require every single person who has ever edited anonymously to create a new account. Savvy?

@Fighteer-The thing is most sites do require emails for registration, and seeing a "Sorry! You need to Get Known to edit!" will make people assume "dammit, I gotta give these people my email, and then wait to get one from them if my spam blocker doesn't block it, then..." even though that's not the case. Though if we make it clear that it doesn't, that'll alleviate some of it.

edited 28th Oct '10 11:22:41 AM by Wulf

Oh, yeah, sorry, I get that. Makes sense that some people would edit anonymously if they didn't feel like getting known on the machine they happened to be on. There's also the issue of editing from public computers to consider; it could open your account to compromise. That's a universal problem though, not one restricted to this wiki.

I'm sure that if we make the "You need to Get Known" page state explicitly that we don't require an email address, it'll help solve that problem.

edited 28th Oct '10 11:23:51 AM by Fighteer

and : Which was what I meant. I was giving an example of why it should be obvious, because it can be off-putting if it isn't.

Re: The Get Known Page: It already does: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/knowerform.php

Edit: Oops, misread what you typed. Anyway, perhaps the message on the linked page should be on the "Need to Get Known" page.

edited 28th Oct '10 11:29:30 AM by Ironeye

We using different ads now(on wiki)? I notice it not Google or Amazon.

I'm still seeing Amazon.

All Amazon for now. Eddie wants to test the revenue stream.

edited 28th Oct '10 11:42:16 AM by Fighteer

I am seeing Ad Council ads on the wiki.

Ah, so you are. Amazon on fora, Ad Council on the wiki? Well, Eddie did say he was investigating alternative sources.

Currently looks like the Ad Council stuff is from Casale Media.

Must post and run.

New advertising source Casale being tested on the wiki.

The warnings when going to NSFG pages will be opt-out. If you are registered, they don't appear. Anyone else will get the warning and can pass through with a click.

The no-anons policy goes into effect later today. All wiki editors will see a screen once, asking them to accept our TOS.

Thanks FE!

Thanks for update Fast Eddie. Hoping things be smooth.

I've been thinking... Why exactly can't we rely on donations? The Other Wiki relies on it, but so does something like Project Gutenburg.

The Other Wiki and Project Gutenberg are both much more respektubl than we are.

I was going to post a detailed analysis of the question, but that pretty much sums it up.

Our userbase is not diverse enough to command the kind of donations we'd need, and partly also due to Most Tropers Are Young Nerds, they tend to be the kinds of people who resent donations as a support mechanism.

Another problem is that donation drives tend to be bursty; you get an initial outpouring but then people lose interest over time. Grant funding is one of the best ways to go, but then you lose some sense of ownership over the site.

edited 28th Oct '10 12:25:32 PM by Fighteer

↑³: I'd surmise it has to do with the relative size and contributor:workforce:content ratio on the site.

For news, I've got a call back from my former SE teacher, with whom I'll meet later tomorrow to discuss how "general-content" sites make their ad deals. In the meantime he has suggested me to check for how the "Stack Overflow" family of sites is doing it, in that apparently their service m.o. is similar to TV Tropes's.

Also, this thread advances too fast when I'm on the bus. Am I OK in that for former member e-mail won't be required but they will have to revalidate their accounts somehow in order to preserve edit privileges? I got lost on it somehwere. nvm, I lost FE's latest post.

↓ @Madrugada: correcting ^'s and 's for ninjaing is so fun, isn't it?

edited 28th Oct '10 12:28:06 PM by SilentReverence

^^^ Or don't have the money to make the kind of sizable donations a donation-only support structure relies on. $10 is nice, but you need those $500.00 and $1000.00 donors. A bunch of them.

^ No kidding.

edited 28th Oct '10 12:39:17 PM by Madrugada