Talk:Anti-Wikia Alliance/Archive 1


 * The comments section of Forum:Anti-Wikia Alliance has been moved here after becoming too long.

__NEWSECTIONLINK__

''Wanna say a few words why? Please express your feelings.''

I HATE THE NEW SKIN!

 * Get rid of the new look–Unregistered contributor~aka~X~
 * It's just too confusing. ♥ misstditylerfan | Talk | Contributions ♥ 20:22, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * The new skin is rubbish. It's harder to navigate/use, and looks awful. It's just for advertising. Instead of being (for example), it now gives the feeling of  . Monaco is the most user friendly AND eye friendly MediaWiki skin I've ever seen, and is the only reason I've ever stuck around Wikia through updates that have made wiki life frustrating/more difficult. This time they've gone too far.
 * WIKIA !!! presents: Red Dead Wiki --Smiley12 was here at 02:22, October 1, 2010 (UTC)


 * I believe I must add my two cents in here. Monaco may have been difficult to maintain but we have been putting its usability to good use. Oasis disables all MediaWiki files that we had painstakingly developed. Which means our templates go bonkers, our collapsible content goes bonkers, our tabs go bonkers, a whole lot of things are undone. THANKS SO MUCH for undoing our hard work. *facepalms* Cou- ra-  geuh !  17:51, October 1, 2010 (UTC)
 * There's No Reason, What so ever to Have it. But Is Wikia Gonna Listen to Us? Hell No! Crotocall 23:25, October 2, 2010 (UTC)


 * Wikia became Facetube. This is just wrong. DelNorte 10:20, October 5, 2010 (UTC)

Wikis Moving

 * Who removed all of those other wikis moving?! The point of this is to show many wikis are moving n the first place! Just, like, put a * next to wikis with over 1k article content.  --Havoc '48   01:03, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * Wikia doesn't care if a small wiki leaves, but when major ones start leaving, then that's when they start having second thoughts about this skin, don't worry, there'll be plenty of big wikis interested in leaving. --Smiley12 was here at 01:13, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * You sound like a staff member.  --Havoc '48   01:34, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * NOOOOOOOOOO!!!! The last thing I want to be is wikia staff, I've lost total respect for them because of this. --Smiley12 was here at 01:41, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * Just stop avoiding the point. Get the other minor wikis in. Do it.  --Havoc '48   01:46, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * Also who keeps randomizing the header order? Galleries belong at the bottom of pages.  --Havoc '48   01:48, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * There. Fixed the errors --Smiley12 was here at 01:54, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * Some of the wikis in the leaving list were added by an unregistered contributor. Without permission from the actual wikis. (See page history. I have contacted some admins of big wikis though. --Smiley12 was here at 01:55, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * You can now add your wiki with 50+ pages.
 * Unregistered Contributor~aka~X~: I've left messages on the talk pages of admins on the Ed, Edd n Eddy Wiki and the Simpsons wiki.
 * I'm an admin on the Simpsons Wiki (Wikisimpsons) and we are strongly considering it! --Smiley12 was here at 02:40, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * Bleach Wiki is considering the move a little more highly right now. Only one admin is in full support with another one who has not made up his mind. I am only a policy and standards committee member there(basically a moderator) but I support the moveGod (Pray)  04:11, September 30, 2010 (UTC)

(reset indent) Good job but the page needs serious organization.  --Havoc '48   21:19, September 30, 2010 (UTC)

Bleach Wiki

 * We all at Bleach Wiki are dissapointed with the decision to move forward with this mandatory update. October 6 is the test date, we will see just how the Wiki functions under the new look...if it can be worked with and if it becomes too much of an issue (and much of our data is sacrificed because of it), then we will make an informed decision about picking up and moving somewhere else. Until then, keep up your work guys and don't be discouraged...TVthePunisher 01:23, September 30, 2010 (UTC)

Bleach Wiki is considering its options. We will wait for the test date to see if we can make the wiki so we do not have to sacrifice our information but if there is no way to do so, we may leave. We are looking into shoutwiki and even just Mediawiki. we will see how things go--God (Pray)  02:39, September 30, 2010 (UTC)

Hopefully we won't have to move, but at this point I'm not very optimistic. TheDevilHand888 03:00, September 30, 2010 (UTC)

Bleach Fanfiction Wiki
It seems that we at BFF are pulling out too. We're sick of the staff not listening to us and we're going to take things into our own hands and get a fresh start on Shout Wiki. ---Ten Tailed Fox talk page 03:00, October 1, 2010 (UTC)

As an admin at Bleach Fan Fiction, I have advised members to sit on wikia until a more finalized version of the Oasis skin is implemented for an "open" beta in order to make a more informed decision. However, I will not be opposed to a final decision by BFF staff and community to move off Wikia in the case that the skin is unsatisfactory. --れび (talk to Lavi!) 04:08, October 1, 2010 (UTC)

My Lego Network Wiki
Anyone know if they're leaving for certain? --Smiley12 was here at 02:49, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * No, we aren't, and that had nothing to do with the new skin. 03:02, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * We aren't moving, we're just annoyed that the shoutbox is going. Some of our editors may even leave...
 * 17:43, September 30, 2010 (UTC)

WoWWiki
WoWWiki - third largest wiki and the largest encyclopedic wiki on Wikia - is a definite possibility for a fork - see wowwiki:Forum:Should WoWWiki leave Wikia? for discussion. That page includes a pro/con list that might be helpful to other wikis. -- 03:11, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * If WoWWiki leaves, Wikia would be gutted. ☆ The   Solar   Dragon  ☆ 05:21, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * Thank you pcj, get Wowwiki to move, it will show wikia that without the community, they are nothing. :) -- Seahorseruler (Talk Page) (Contribs) 12:50, September 30, 2010 (UTC)

GuildWiki
We at GuildWiki (#9 on the wikia traffic list) are extremely disappointed in Wikia's absolute failure to live up to the commitments they made to our community when they acquired GuildWiki in 2007. We are strongly considering leaving Wikia for greener pastures. See http://guildwars.wikia.com/wiki/GuildWiki_talk:Community_Portal/Leaving_Wikia. Felix Omni 18:55, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * I heard from RT that you were leaving. Another one of Wikia's big wikis. Hope you find a happy new home if you leave. ☆ The   Solar   Dragon  ☆ 13:47, October 1, 2010 (UTC)

PvXWiki
Pretty much to echo what GuildWiki and others have said, we're getting the fuck out of Dodge. Wikia made us a lot of promises, and hasn't lived up to a single one. I have personally never been as frustrated with a community or the support of a website. For more information, see http://pvx.wikia.com/wiki/PvXwiki_talk:Community_Portal#Moving_from_Wikia Karate Jesus  01:35, 1 October 2010 (UTC)

Think of wiki's as cupcakes
Ok say you have cupcakes (all wiki's) and a bucket of shit (new stuff) why would you ruin a perfectly good batch of cupcakes? i mean i wouldn't do that would you so why would these people do that to our cupcakes? 03:22, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * Now imagine AWA No longer bus cupcakes from that company, we switch to a new cupcake company! Smiley12

Please Cease Spamming
I request that those interested in this group cease spamming the various blog posts and venues of interest about the new skin. Such spamming makes it virtually impossible to have a constructive dialog, and such dialog is really the only way to resolve matters. Surgo 04:12, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * Don't worry, if we ignore your comment that would make us as bad as the staff themselves --Smiley12 was here at 04:51, September 30, 2010 (UTC)

Host ourselves
I believe that many editors would be willing to spend a small amount of money on their hobby, and with that, it is possible to set up a wiki farm of our own that would be financed by contributions from the individual wikis. (How you come up with the money is your own choice - ads, amazon partner program, a sponsor, donation drives, merchandise - the possibilities are endless). We'd have self-administrated wikis with real control over themselves; be able to implement some nice features of Wikia such as shoutbox, central help and templates, a monaco-compatible skin (probably without widgets), and a transferable OpenID login that allows you to switch wikis at will. I think this (and being independent) would be well worth the effort. -- ◄mendel► 09:00, September 30, 2010 (UTC) Help:Smelly Users (talk) was last edited at 13:20, September 30, 2010 (UTC)
 * Where would we get the code to split up the MW servers, or can it already do that? Funding?


 * The code for creating a multi wiki - Wiki (wiki farm) installation is out there, it the technical skills to add all the extensions etc that is more of an issue. Also the Hosting capacity / bandwidth required for a stable service. We all hate it when we canot edit. !!


 * I'm currently tying to find how to get a personal Mediawiki installation working so I can create a new Wiki as 80%+ of contributions to Tractors Wiki were by Me or based on wikipedia pages. As i have very few editors adding any significant content anyway, at the moment I'll just stop adding new content to expand the existing wiki. Instead I can then build a new site off line and look into either hosting it my self as read only (no public edits) or try to find a commercial sponser to host it, as the 'free wiki' hosting model is looking very vulnerable to corporate changes in policy. Some of the Forums I edit on are privately hosted (very donations or small sponsered adverts cover costs). - BulldozerD11 18:12, September 30, 2010 (UTC)

An alternative for Gaming wikis
If you have a gaming wiki that is looking for a new home you might want to look at Curse.com. They are interested in growing their network. -- Wynthyst talk 17:10, September 30, 2010 (UTC)

NIWA
For any Nintendo-oriented Wikis considering this, please feel free to contact us over at the Nintendo Independent Wiki Alliance (NIWA) for more information about what we can do for you. We are not a Wiki farm, but we are very keen on helping Wikis become independent, and supported by a growing network of like-minded Wikis. You can contact ANY member of any Wiki staff. I am known simply as Xizor over there. Good luck no matter what you choose! --Xizor159 20:13, October 1, 2010 (UTC)

TechEssentials
For any technology-related wiki, you might want to consider them. Here's their homepage, and you can request a project here. — I-20 the highway  22:56, October 1, 2010 (UTC)

My Quote:
Hey, I just came in and saw the quote I found at the top of the page! Thanks for using it.
 * Not exactly your quote, but a very good quote though. Something the Staff will never understand. --Smiley12 was here at 05:24, October 2, 2010 (UTC)

What To Do About The Chaos Of New Wiki Links?
When all these wikis DO move to new urls, how are we going to keep track of them all in one place? Should we make a website/wiki which has the url to all new moved wikis? Tonris1 23:10, October 2, 2010 (UTC)
 * It's a good idea... A website that has the logos of all the leaving wikis that link to the wikis would be good. --Smiley12 was here at 00:15, October 3, 2010 (UTC)
 * I'll look into that. --Smiley12 was here at 04:36, October 3, 2010 (UTC)

Fan Art
I Just Wanted to Say, Great Job on The Fan Art Guys! I Hope you Enjoy Mine. :] Crotocall 20:57, October 3, 2010 (UTC)


 * Yours, Crotocall, is the funniest (I'm such a fan!). Smiley's really nail the point across, and mine are just cheesy. Everyone else is doing well, too. -- † TurtleShroom™! Jesus Loves You and Died for You!! † :) :) <span title="OASIS, OASIS EVERYWHERE!">OASIS?! DO NOT WANT; DO NOT WANT!! <span title="RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!! IT'S THE OASIS!!">Come, my friends! Together, we shall make a new look for Wikia! We shall make... THE OASIS!! 01:09, October 4, 2010 (UTC)

This looks great in the new skin!
The way the infobox and table of contents fit together on Forum:Anti-Wikia_Alliance makes it seem as if it was made for that skin. --Yoshord 21:45, October 3, 2010 (UTC)
 * Oh god, what are you looking at the new skin in, a 2 inch phone screen?The page, especially the fanart are compressed together from the space on the sides. *Shudder* --Smiley12 was here at 01:05, October 4, 2010 (UTC)

Grand Theft Wiki is considering a move
Just thought I would bring some good news. Grand Theft Wiki is considering a move! I'm gonna add us to the list under "pending". Chimpso (Talk) 03:58, October 4, 2010 (UTC)

An alternative site
I'm one of Jimmy Wales' leading critics of Wikia. I would like to mention to you all that if you're interested in building content on my own wiki (put together the words "My" and "Wiki" and "Biz", and you'll figure it out), my policy is to allow users to post their own AdSense ads, and keep 100% of the revenues, which is sort of the opposite of what Wikia does. I'd give you the full name of the site, but Wikia has blocked its very utterance. Maybe this is why. What does that tell you -- that a site would mechanically prohibit the mere mention of a competitor's site? -- GregoryKohs 15:19, October 4, 2010 (UTC)
 * P.S. I've tried to put that graphic into the gallery on the main page, but I keep getting "The modification you tried to make was aborted by an extension hook". Can anyone else make it work? -- GregoryKohs 15:36, October 4, 2010 (UTC)
 * On its face, I think it is rather presumptious to think that you had such a huge influence on wikipedia. I don't know all the facts, and I could be completely wrong.
 * I would add your site (or how to get to your site) to the alternatives to wikia section:Forum:Anti-Wikia_Alliance, but I don't want to risk being banned. Anno1404

A mind experiment
Wikia lives through its community and its users. Now, if all wikia users, each and everyone, would stop their work, stop editing completely, after the new skin is set as default, then wikia would collapse and be like dead. If there are no users tht can be dictated, if all wikis intentionally looked like shit because of no customization of them, maybe then the responsibles will see what huge bullshit they're actually doing. DelNorte 10:20, October 5, 2010 (UTC)

"Fanart"
First of all, using Sannse and Sarah's avatars in the "fanart" section is not not fair to them (it's called shooting the messenger). It's also possible that it's illegal to do so without their permission. As staff it's possible for them to delete the images themselves if they want to, but in my opinion you should remove them from the gallery yourself and ask the uploader to mark them for deletion as an author request. 13:17, October 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * Their images are licensed under the GFDL and CC-BY-SA, respectively. It's not illegal to modify them or create derivative works based upon them. As for good taste, that's another thing. -- 13:23, October 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * Okay, then there definently is no legal issue. My first argument is still valid though. 16:40, October 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * I find the comics extremely funny and the target not very sympathetic. After how badly this has all been handled, the scorn is well deserved, but not very well though out. Posting these comics is extremely unwise because the staff could use these pictures as a reason to delete this forum.
 * So I am practicing self-censorship and I removed all three. These comics are simply not valuable enough to the project to risk this entire project being delted.
 * I have notified the editor. Anno1404 17:33, October 6, 2010 (UTC)
 * Anno, if you object to my work, why did you keep Airhogs' depiction of Sarah Manley in front of the crucified Jesus? I'm a censor-mongerer and was tempted to remove that AND the one that nearly used the F-word, but I didn't in respect that they wouldn't remove my own. If I respect their work, they will in turn respect mine. Surely, Sarah in front of Christ (with Monaco placed over His head) is worse than "Know Your Staff Speak" or calling them hypocrites. That's a direct depiction of a Staffer too. If you must enforce revoking my comics because of Staff portraits, you must remove that one, as well, or you're being hypocritical. -- † TurtleShroom™! Jesus Loves You and Died for You!! † :) :) <span title="OASIS, OASIS EVERYWHERE!">OASIS?! DO NOT WANT; DO NOT WANT!! <span title="RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!! IT'S THE OASIS!!">Come, my friends! Together, we shall make a new look for Wikia! We shall make... THE OASIS!! 19:38, October 6, 2010 (UTC)

Please see your talk page, I just removed Air's also. I didn't see his before. As the powerless we have to be careful otherwise we will be crushed and ground into oblivion by the powerful. :( Anno1404 19:56, October 6, 2010 (UTC)

Huge logo
I removed the huge logo, it takes up the entire screen and the info box on the right already has the logo:

You are welcome to add it back. Anno1404 16:34, October 6, 2010 (UTC)

Backup
With the backup are we: Anno1404 19:36, October 6, 2010 (UTC)
 * 1) retaining all pages
 * 2) retaining the history so we can contact editors about the shoutwiki site if the page is deleted?

Suggested name change for this forum
I think the name of this forum should be changed. I whole heatedly support the goals of what editors are doing here, but I do not see myself as anti-wikia, and I cannot see myself joining a group which is anti-wikia. I love wikia. I see myself as anti-oasis skin. And even better yet, I see myself as an editor who wants more collaboration and cooperation between staff and the community.

Words induce certain feelings, whether they are negative or positive, which can help or hurt this group. When we say we are "anti-" that is negative, and paints us in a negative light, invokes negative emotions in those we are trying to persuade, and helps feed criticism of this forum. What do you all think? What alternate name? Anno1404 19:36, October 6, 2010 (UTC)
 * Hi, wikia is the official name for Oasis. Anti-Wikia is referring to the skin, not the company. Also, stop changing the page around, it was fine as it was, thanks. --Smiley12 was here at 00:40, October 7, 2010 (UTC)


 * Anno1404 - It is ambiguous but Wikia inc have brought than on themselves by calling the skin Wikia instead of the code/development name of Oasis which is now one of the themes.
 * For clarity the distinction should be made clearer on the AWA front page / logo to avoid confusing casual visitors. Wikia inc in the past has provide us with a good service in the main to our mutual benefit, but with the new skin they have lost the plot (as has been discussed at length in many blog posts about the new skin) - forgetting content is an very important part of the sites success and 'we' the users provide that for FREE (in return for hosting us). No new content being added and no posting of incoming (backlinks) links from other sites we visit will reduce traffic over time and hit the ranking / growth of future traffic. - BulldozerD11 01:10, October 7, 2010 (UTC)

other sites discussing the change
[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Forum%3ASH%3AWikia%27s_ideas... Star Wars Wikia] Anno1404 21:50, October 6, 2010 (UTC)

Just a sidenote, if everyone (you reading this, that means you) could sign this, and pass it on to your respective wikis if you so wish. Thanks in advance. Athena32

Slogan
...is extremely cheesy. Try "Don't complain, just go to ShoutWiki" or "History repeats itself". Really.  --Havoc '<font color="Cyan">48   01:46, October 7, 2010 (UTC)

IRC chat
We need one. I've made one. It's ##AntiWikiaAlliance on freenode. It's place where staff can't do crap, so you're safe there.

Question
To the users that are leaving because of this new layout: Why not just leave if you want to leave? I don't see how making a forum about this is making Oasis a better layout or making Wikia better. All this seems to be (in my opinion) is some way of going out in style and a way to petition against the Wikia skin. I've also noticed that there's been a declaration of independence made as well - what good will that do? Is Wikia forcing you to stay? If you want to leave, just leave. I don't see anyone stopping you. This sounds like it's trying to turn Wikia into some dictatorship and that they are some type of overlords or whatever.

Also, if this is a way to get Wikia staff member's attentions, why not just comment on the actual blogs? They are listening, and if you read the blogs you can see that they are.

And the skin isn't really that bad, the only problems with it is that it took me around an hour to find page's history and the fixed width. And I guess all of that isn't allowed to remove per the new terms of use, but why not just contact Wikia staffers on the blogs or some other place instead of making this big of a deal that is not only on Wikia, but ShoutWiki (and possibly other sites) as well. --CodExpertTalk 21:43, October 8, 2010 (UTC)


 * I concur. Making this very arrogant and slap-dash forum won't do much. If you don't like it, fine. If you want to leave, do it. NO ONE IS STOPPING YOU, SO DON'T MAKE A DEAL OUT OF IT. --Callofduty4 23:49, October 8, 2010 (UTC)


 * It's alright, the only problem I have with it is the fixed width. Per Ex basically. 'm sure something will resolve all this anyways. Emblem-pirateflag-1.jpg Smuff [<font color="#1155FF">The cake is a lie. ] 23:59, October 8, 2010 (UTC)
 * Making forums such as this will do NOTHING for you. If you're going to leave Wikia, just leave. No one is going to miss you, no one is going to CARE that you left, because of a SKIN CHANGE. Stop crying over it, and leave without making a big fuss. Sactage 00:04, October 9, 2010 (UTC)
 * Hello jackass. ---Blackout- 18:42, October 11, 2010 (UTC)
 * This is not just about a skin change. Along with this new skin comes an entirely new and different Terms of Service, basically removing the rights of the individual communities to control the design and functionality of their community's site. This goes against the basis of a site that is supposedly only hosting these communities in exchange for advertising revenue. This seems to be totally counter to the idea of what a wiki/wikifarm should be. As for the new design, it does more than just provide a look, it also directs traffic to the largest and most prominent (and therefore the most revenue producing) wiki's while throwing the smaller wiki's under the bus. I can guarantee you that if your wiki is not in the top 15 in your perspective category, it will never ever see a direct link from anywhere else on Wikia. The new skin also increases the amount of advertising on each and every page. -- Wynthyst talk 12:57, October 19, 2010 (UTC)

No. We will fight. It's not that the skni itself is that bad, but more the moral issue if you know what I mean (which many of you may not). I personally will abttle to the bitter end because I beleive that it needs to be done. What i think, is that people are too lazy. They think that once a desicision has been made by whoever is in charge, that that's that. Well it's not. If you aren't willing to fight for what you believe in, then you obviously don't believe in it much. Why do you guys care? Why is it your business if we fight? It's not like we're fighting you. The only way to stop me fighting is to come to my house right now and shoot me. As a famous once said, "We will keep on fighting, 'til we can fight no more". In direct answer to your question, we are making a big deal about it so something gets done. You don't like us doing it? I don't care. -- 15:02, October 19, 2010 (UTC)

Forum Problems
For some reason, every time I edit the forum page, some header breaks. Why is this happening? — Sirnot1 (talk) 03:31, October 10, 2010 (UTC)

Wikia critical
I can help (This blog is in Spanish) 22:08, October 10, 2010 (UTC)

Heads up about "We've moved" signs
It looks like this meets the official Wikia definition of "Vandalism" with admins on at least 2 wikis getting banned. Seems a bit like Hotel California - you can check out any time you like, but you can't ever leave. Agent c 00:43, October 12, 2010 (UTC)
 * Wikia doesn't have the right to remove a notice if it's based on community consensus. Start a page in an effort to reach consensus, and if you do, then add the notice. If it is removed, rather than re-posting it, send an email with a link to the consensus page. The users banned were banned for "Vandalism" because they were repeatedly spamming those notices after they were removed. Wikia has promised that they will not interfere with the consensus of general wikis (then again, Oasis lol), so they should have to respect your site's wish to link to another site. <font color="Black" face="cambria">Karate <font color="Black" face="cambria">Jesus  <font face="Arial" color="gray" size="1">00:48, 12 October 2010 (UTC)
 * They promised? Lol. Absurdopedia community showed a full and clear support for moving (19 active users), but the staff just removed a sitenotice about that. 21:50, October 12, 2010 (UTC)
 * From Sanse's Talk page on the subject:
 * I've written on this at length over here, so will point you to that. In short, you can't expect to leave a wiki and still have influence over it. If you decide to leave, then the wiki should be run for the benefit of any remaining community, and for any future community. And, much as we respect your right to edit wherever you want, we are not willing to host an advert for your alternative site on a wiki you have left
 * It Really is Hotel WikiFornia. Agent c 16:54, October 15, 2010 (UTC)
 * So a page saying "Should we go" that gets consensus isn't also a consensus to let people know that you've moved.... interesting. Agent c 21:09, October 12, 2010 (UTC)
 * I just thought I'd comment that I and another admin on the Talisman Online wiki have been stripped of admin rights and blocked for a year there based on comments I made to him on his talk page on OUR NEW WIKI. And the funniest part of my demotion and block is my comments to him were asking him to stop making changes to the wikia site. -- Wynthyst talk 06:38, October 21, 2010 (UTC)

ComplaintWiki
This forum is really interesting. This is something I can publish on ComplaintWiki.org. Grtz | CartoonistHenning 20:10, October 13, 2010 (UTC)

Make people know of Wikia behavior!
If you can write an article to some press, popular blogs etc. about Wikia behavior (offending the authors, violating the local community will etc.), please do so. Let no new user even think about starting participation in Wikia-hosted projects.

For Russian-speaking users I've written Russian Wiki-reality about AWA. Many russian-speaking users who're planning to create a new wiki visit this site, so it would keep their eyes open when dealing with Wikia.

My point is that no serious project should ever use this hosting, only sites that won't go above 10-20 pages anyway. 20:21, October 13, 2010 (UTC)


 * So you're trying to ruin Wikia for people who haven't even heard of nor have seen the new layout just because you don't like it? --CodExpertTalk 04:44, October 14, 2010 (UTC)
 * The problem is not the layout. Even more, I find Oasis quite good. The problem is that Wikia ignores authors and the local communities will. And I strictly believe that every new user that is going to use Wikia hosting must be aware of that. 04:55, October 14, 2010 (UTC)
 * Btw, when I'm talking about "abusing community will", I'm not talking about Oasis. I'm talking, for example, about staff intervention into my home wiki, Absurdopedia: when we've told them we're leaving they just started removing all notices about that and banning/desysopping our best authors that spent years working on our project. Yeah, this does not violate any law, you know, but this means that Wikia takes it's authors for nothing. Trying to damage a cooperative project to earn N extra dollars - that's Wikia's behavior.This is exactly what every potential user must know. 04:58, October 14, 2010 (UTC)
 * @CodExpert, why should we show any respect to Wikia? The company has always failed to satisfy the needs of the Uncyclopedia communities (if you ask them). Wikia's 'offer' has become a privilege. They get actually paid for inventing their own ideas and not for helping users. Why does Wikia have the domain .com? When do people start realising this? CartoonistHenning 19:38, October 14, 2010 (UTC)
 * WIkia are ruining it by themselves by not listening to their most hardened users. Most companies would kill for a "Hardened Fanbase" that gives them free content - thats right folks, Wikia's business plan is based on you doing the work for them! I don't think a little respect for the opinion of the folks that make their ads possible is a unfair - and if they won't listed to us, why the hell should we continue to give our labour for free to them - If your boss treats you like crap, you quit. Agent c 16:58, October 15, 2010 (UTC)
 * "If your boss treats you like crap, you quit." -- this is doubly true when you are a volunteer! 70.29.24.19 00:56, 19 November 2010 (UTC)

Learning lessons from history.
Just in the hope that someone who can see sense at Wikia is reading this.

The fact of the matter is, the merits of the old skin, vs the new skin are completely irrelevant, this is the wrong way to go.

How do we know this - because we've been here before. This very mistake was was made by a very big company, one that should have known better, and is unlikely to make the same mistake again.

I am referring to what is considered by some to be the biggest marketing disaster in history. When some bright spark decided to "improve" on one of the greatest brands, and greatest products of all time.

The Coca-Cola company decided to commit pure sacrolage by revising the famous recepie for is flagship product. Old Coke was withdrawn and replaced with "New Coke". In blind taste tests, New Coke was voted by panels as tasting nicer, it was indeed a "superior" product.

Cola fans all over the US were outraged and asked Coke to either backpedal, or at least keep the old coke available too. But Coca-Cola's executives knew better. New Coke hit the shelves, Cola fans bought up what they could of the classic formula and when the stores ran out, they switched to Pepsi.

Facing dwindiling sales, Coke did what was supposedly impossible - "Classic Coke" returned to the shelves. Sales of New coke continued to fall, Fast food joints stopped stocking "new" coke and only stocked "Classic". Eventually "New" Coke went the way of all failed products - everyone just forgot about it and it went away (except in Micronesia and American Samoa- as Coke II, side by side with the original).

The question hangs though, what if "Classic" Coke and "New Coke" were side by side on day 1 - without the contraversy, would have the majority come around? With no outraged fans losing the product they love pushing against them, would New Coke have gotten a fair chance?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Coke

Agent c 23:43, October 15, 2010 (UTC)

Beware when theme editing
I was recently demoted and permanently banned from my wiki for editing the theme to include an animated .gif in the background. I actively sought and received consensus prior to doing this and our site was giddy about it.

Do not, I repeat, DO NOT, expect consensus to protect you from Wikia anymore. They demoted all of our bcrats as well in an effort to shift control away from our users, and I'm proud to say that our users are fighting for us. They are very pissed the Wikia has stomped on our right as an autonomous wiki to self-govern itself and elect who we care to elect.

Just a warning. They can, and will shut your admins/bcrats down regardless of your community's collective will. <font color="Black" face="cambria">Karate <font color="Black" face="cambria">Jesus  <font face="Arial" color="gray" size="1">00:28, 20 October 2010 (UTC)
 * I think I have seen your posts before, you annoyingly never state in any posts which wikia you are referring too. Please do. Sorry to hear this. Anno1404 03:32, October 21, 2010 (UTC)

I deleted all my page on the Gaters wiki and asked for it to be removed and instead they restored all the pages and removed my adminship. NO ONE IS GOING BACK TO THAT WIKI, they are sore losers. Escyos 03:41, October 24, 2010 (UTC)
 * I'm from PvXwiki (a Guild Wars fan site), one of the top 100 wikis per page views. Ironically, Wikia restored our bcrats and admin rights, because it invalidates our image licenses if they force-control on our site.
 * However, even though we got our rights back, Wikia still has a few of their "helpers" in place on our site to manage us. They are watching us and reverting/banning good people. It's sad, really, but it looks like we're winning this war :D. <font color="Black" face="cambria">Karate <font color="Black" face="cambria">Jesus  <font face="Arial" color="gray" size="1">21:52, 28 October 2010 (UTC)
 * thank you for your information. I would suggest documenting here, with links, what is happening on your wikia. Anno1404 22:57, October 28, 2010 (UTC)


 * Karate Jesus won't be doing that as he's been globally blocked by Wikia; most likely for using the words "we're winning this war" above. -- ◄mendel► 09:27, October 29, 2010 (UTC)
 * Where are the global block logs? Thank you. Anno1404 18:27, November 7, 2010 (UTC)
 * I don't know, I've never seen it. -- ◄mendel► 21:15, November 7, 2010 (UTC)

Images
Hi Guys. Right, are images included in a database dump? We're attempting to transfer to an independent host, and would like to know if we have to transfer our 3040 images by hand.... which could take a while... Dragonfree 6000! 20:50, October 29, 2010 (UTC)


 * EDIT: And blogs/blog comments, for that matter.... Dragonfree  6000! 21:03, October 29, 2010 (UTC)
 * The XML database dump that Wikia provides has only article text, no images, no logs, nothing else. Blog posts are articles, so they are included. The dump has an entry for each File: page, though, so you can extract a list of images from it, and if you make [[Media: ... ]] links from them and put them on a page, you can easily grab all of them with a download manager such as fdm. -- ◄mendel► 23:28, October 29, 2010 (UTC)

The staff is going to far.
They are globally blocking user's and demoting them for putting up sitenotices yes SITENOTICES!!!That is totally unfair.They are even calling basic comments as in I HATE THE LOOK spam.They are ignoring all bad feedback they claim they are not but the fact is if they do respond they only ignore the main part or just answer the positive parts or respond to techinally or help comments.So please we gotta leave I cant take this disater anymore. 23:41, October 29, 2010 (UTC)

On moving Wikis
So, like everyone else, the Wiki I'm a part of (micronations) is attempting to move. However we've hit a few road bumps. The database dump is one and a half months out-of-date and Wikia doesn't seem like it's going to update it anytime soon (we asked for a new one a few weeks ago). ShoutWiki doesn't seem to want to accept the old imported database dump and keeps resetting the connection before it finishes the upload everytime someone tries. Same with Referata and Wikkii. I've asked for help from all three Wikis - ShoutWiki responded two weeks ago by saying it had been added to the import queue with no news since, Referata replied yesterday with news that they had re-enabled the import function but it still wouldn't work for me while I'm yet to hear back from Wikkii. Anyone have any ideas or are experiencing the same problems? Help would be greatly appreciated. Aldrich Lucas  talk  •  contributions  10:07, October 31, 2010 (UTC)


 * 1. On the problem with alternative wiki-hosting providers: I strongly suggest using your own server. It isn't that costly and most likely will soon pay off. 2. A fast and actual dump can be obtained using MediaWikiDumper tool, but importing the result requires direct access to MySQL on your server. If you have it, it's the best choice. 10:49, October 31, 2010 (UTC)


 * Thanks for the advice but they finally updated the database dump. It's massive (536mb) and I'm having trouble importing it to ShoutWiki, Referata or Wikkii. Any ideas?  Aldrich Lucas   talk  •  contributions  03:00, November 3, 2010 (UTC)
 * You need to split it up into smaller chunks. My database dump is split up into three parts: 10mb, 52kb and 25kb respectively. The smaller ones got through okay, but the 10mb one won't go through no matter how many times I try. ---Blackout- 12:29, November 4, 2010 (UTC)
 * That is what is really holding me back, uploading the material. The wikia I have has almost 9,000 photos, most 1 mb or more. I want to pay for my own server, but I fear I won't be able to upload. Anyone have a suggestion?
 * We need some kind of instruction manual (maybe from people who moved?) on how to do this. Anno1404 03:43, November 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * MediaWikiDumper has download-images.pl script that saves all images automatically. Wowpedia used it. 07:16, November 5, 2010 (UTC)

so how did world of warcraft get around the problem of uploading large amounts of material? Anno1404 15:25, November 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * Haven't you read my answer above? They ran a script, and a script imported all images automatically. 17:24, November 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * I will probably buy a domain name this weekend and try this then. I am faily new at all this -- so I am not very familiar with how this works. thanks for the response. Anno1404 17:56, November 5, 2010 (UTC)


 * About shoutwiki: Don't import dumps to shoutwiki!, Instead, file a bug report about your wiki moving there, and they'll import the dump for you. No need to attach the dump. They'll pick the dump from the stats page of the wikia wiki. --Ciencia Al Poder (talk) -WikiDex 18:56, November 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * About images: You could download all images (except deleted ones) using some offline browser like WinHTTrack (for Windows). You only need to point it to Special:Allpages from File: namespace, and add rules to blacklist all first, and allow all from images*.wikia-nocookie.net --Ciencia Al Poder (talk) -WikiDex 18:56, November 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * What a REALLY good idea. Thanks Ciencia Al Poder. Anno1404 19:12, November 5, 2010 (UTC)

Mr. Chernenko, for 99% of users, including me, we will not know what to do with your program. In addition the absurdopedia.net/ seems to be severely lagging. Anno1404 01:42, November 6, 2010 (UTC)
 * is there a tutorial anywhere on how to use these scripts? Any help would be appreciated. Anno1404 15:24, November 6, 2010 (UTC)

Three suggestions
I suggest three new features on the main page, or a sub page:

I feel like wikia staff can get away with this continued abuse because we are so damn fragmented. We need to figure out how to make more community links. Maybe an IRC group? I am sure they have something like this. Maybe we can talk on #wowpedia ??

What do you all think? Anno1404 04:12, November 5, 2010 (UTC)

The Time Has Come To Unleash Some Spam
In protest of the new skin, and more specifically the removal of Monaco, we should upload loads of unnecessarily large files and massive pages filled with nothing but nonsense. Would wikia rather shell out on larger server costs or re-implementing a skin? Bluesilver 08:14, November 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * obviously you want to get blocked. It takes a site just a few minutes to revert vandalism, and will make everyone against the skin look bad. Anno1404 13:45, November 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * Not always few minutes. One of our admins has used a sysop vandalbot to merge the history of all articles all together. This was completely irreversible via standard wiki interface, and it took 6 days for Wikia to recover everything using their old backup copy. But you're right, simple vandalism like blanking etc. is just stupid. 14:13, November 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * P.S. If the staffers will global-block me on Wikia for helping other wikis to move etc., the code of this bot will be published, so that every sysop could use it to destroy its wiki. 14:19, November 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * Wow, that is a very potent warning.
 * Maladetz. At Kutada ve? Моя жена является украинский, и я жил в Одессе в течение двух лет. Anno1404 15:24, November 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * Edward's got some extreme power at his fingertips. I agree, a potent warning indeed. http://images.wikia.com/deadrising/images/3/36/P.png <font color="Blue">Frank - <font color= "Blue">West  http://images.wikia.com/deadrising/images/3/36/P.png 18:42, November 5, 2010 (UTC)

Backup of the poll
As soon as someone messes with the poll on the main page, all the numbers are reset, so here is the backup.



What is the worst part of the new oasis skin? Less article space to edit 236 Shoutbox gone 16 Image attribution required 13 Sidebar is to the right of the article 24 skin causes headache/eyepain/health issues 87 tool bar fixed on the bottom of the screen 10 increased add numbers, sometimes covering article content 16 Anno1404 19:28, November 5, 2010 (UTC)
 * }

Database Dump?
Hi. Sorry if I'm repeating anything here (tried checking). I'm just wondering a couple things:

How long does a database dump usually take (I requested one a few days ago)?

Am I correct in my understanding that a database dump will not include images and edit history?

My wiki is so 'small' (a little over 200 pages) that I imagine I could move it by copying and pasting if I dedicated a few days to the tedious procedure. However, I was hoping to maintain edit history in order to give others their credit. And I know that moving it manually would mean having to upload the images all over again. Anyway, I'd appreciate the answers if anyone knows. -- James26 23:57, November 8, 2010 (UTC)
 * Make a list of your 200 pages, put them into the big box of Special:Export, check "full history" and you get precisely what the db dump would give you. It includes edit histories, but no images and no logs (but you can export the File: pages for the images). -- ◄mendel► 00:28, November 9, 2010 (UTC)
 * Just saved the export. I'm planning to move to ShoutWiki. Is this the file I'll have to submit to them so that it can go in their queue? In any case, thanks for the help. -- James26 01:50, November 9, 2010 (UTC)
 * Got it sorted out. My thanks also go out to the founders of this movement and everyone who's offered advice/alternatives. I'll add the wiki to the proper list once the process is complete. -- James26 12:28, November 10, 2010 (UTC)
 * See the message above, which will answer your questions.
 * RE: "Is this the file I'll have to submit to them so that it can go in their queue?"
 * The main page states:
 * If moving to ShoutWiki, you will have to either e-mail them at technical@shoutwiki.com with the link to your wiki and the link to the new wiki or file a bug report at BugZilla.shoutwiki under imports with the same links.
 * The database dump for me was answered in about two days.
 * The next part is only for editors who are hosting their wikis alone:
 * If you are hosting your site alone, most servers, including godaddy will not allow you to upload more than a 2 mb each file, 10 mb total at one time. My database dump was 12 MB. So this was worthless.
 * In addition the mediawiki article about special import says you should upload no more than 100 pages at a time using Special:Import. This is true. Anything more than 1 mb, I had problems uploading.
 * Godaddy is even worse. It times out constantly when uploading using Special:Import, towards the end, it was only uploading 2 pages at at time before timing out. 800poundgorilla 03:59, 18 November 2010 (UTC)

Wikkii
I would not recommend moving to http://wikkii.com/wiki/Free_Wiki_Hosting unless you are willing to install advanced hosting, as this is the only way of importing your pages. I tried moving to Wikkii first, but I have put in a request to move to ShoutWiki instead. Just my opinion. The support people are however very friendly/helpful. --Hockeyben 14:41, 15 November 2010 (UTC)

Draco returns
Wikia, specifically User:DaNASCAT, has just removed all of our active sysops on http://micronations.wikia.com, protected a bunch of pages (including the newsfeed) and removed a redirect on the main page to our new site. I've also just sent them a contact form requesting that this be reverted (I'm holding my breath...). Anyone else had this happen to them? Any ideas on what to do about it? A-One 06:38, 17 November 2010 (UTC)


 * Yes, a lot of wikis that moved from Wikia had this problem. What you shouldn't do is replace the main page or several pages with just a link to the new hosting. Instead, add a notice to a template and put it to the main page and several important pages, this way the edit summary won't become so noticeable to staff which is patrolling recent changes. Always inform the edit summary with neutral comments like "notice added" or simmilar so it doesn't look suspicious. Specially when creating new pages that would show a link in the automated edit summary if left blank. And of course don't delete content. It's just vandalism.
 * Also, you should wait like 1 week or so to add a link to the link database of this wiki. Wikia Staff are probably looking at this and demoting sysops as new wikis are added here. --Ciencia Al Poder 19:45, 17 November 2010 (UTC)
 * How in the world did you go from "probably" here, to your big banner you posted on two of the pages?:
 * Talk:Anti-Wikia_Alliance/list_of_wikias_moving
 * Lets substantiate claims before we scare away editors from working here. 800poundgorilla 03:50, 18 November 2010 (UTC)

Here is DaNaSCAT taking away admin rights for several editors. 800poundgorilla 04:03, 18 November 2010 (UTC)
 * ...And giving bureaucrat rights to people just for volunteering. Smiley12 <small vertical-align="center">(talk • contribs) Admin.svg 20:04, 20 November 2010 (UTC)
 * Well it looks like we have gotten away with it for now at least :P The Wikia MicroWiki has had those rather large notices up for a few days, and nothing has happened. We're also slowly removing as many links to the old wiki pages as we can to reduce search engine rankings of pages and replace them with links to the new wiki, which appears to be working alright so far. A-One 11:23, 26 November 2010 (UTC)

team fortress
what is the Team Fotress wiki http://wiki.teamfortress.com/wiki/Main_Page --75.62.7.245 23:37, 3 October 2010 (UTC)

Why we left, and why you should too
I would like to post in the forums a letter, stating why so many editors left, and why future editors should too.

It will be created and then signed by editors who took their projects and left wikia.

I have created the page Why we left to begin this. 800poundgorilla 04:05, 18 November 2010 (UTC)

Help...
I'm moving all the wikis I've created to here...I'm a complete fail with codes though and I don't think I can do it. Can someone please help me? Also, is it ok if I stay on one wikia wiki? It's a lot bigger then the others and I didn't make it. I don't know if it'll move yet but I'll try and convince them to. I can't believe this...I'm actually in tears. Although I am quite pathetic. But please, can someone help me? I had no idea this was happening until I checked the Central Wiki about 45 minutes ago. I'm so lost....--Artimas Hunter 03:54, 27 November 2010 (UTC)

Moving
After finding out about this alliance from one of my wiki-buds, I've decided that, as one of the two active sysops of the Dark Cloud Wiki, we're going to move. The wiki has few editors, and I'm hoping this move will bring our community together. But the thing is, I'm a newb when it comes to scripts and whatnot, and our wiki happens to have 600+ articles and possibly even more images. Now, how would I be able to move these all automatically? I noticed a script for moving images above, but I have no idea how to use it. It would be much appreciated if someone could aid me. ^^

Shigura 05:48, 27 November 2010 (UTC)
 * ShoutWiki is the easiest and most reliable option, simply e-mail them at technical@shoutwiki.com with the link to your wiki and the link to the new wiki. 800poundgorilla 09:45, 27 November 2010 (UTC)

Simplifying instruction to leave
In an effort to make instructions as simple as possible, I changed this:


 * ShoutWiki is the easiest and most reliable option, simply e-mail them at technical@shoutwiki.com with the link to your wiki and the link to the new wiki or file a bug report at BugZilla.shoutwiki under imports with the same links.

To this:


 * ShoutWiki is the easiest and most reliable option, simply e-mail them at technical@shoutwiki.com with the link to your wiki and the link to the new wiki.

I also wrote that shoutwiki is the easiest and most reliable option, and that it is recommended. Based on peoples experiences here. 800poundgorilla 09:45, 27 November 2010 (UTC)