How about a site that is yours

[Andy Hamilton]

A wiki site? as in a site that you can edit, add what grows well where and a site that could become a database for eco people/gardeners worldwide?

Perhaps called selfsufficientish.org - just a thought.

[Shirley]

I don't know much about wiki sites... do you have an example that we can see??

Would it detract from this one in anyway or would it more likely just be an extension of it??? So much great info here already.

[shiney]

I have to second Shirlz on this one Andy, it's a fantastic place anyway!

[The Chili Monster]

Hi all

A wike site is a website consisting purely of articles contributed by its membership. The best known is the online encyclopaedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
There's no guarantee that any posts to the site are accurate (or for that matter true) and is open to abuse (although I'm sure that can be remedied easily enough).
I think it's worth a shot. We've all got our different interests and the articles can easily be amended or expanded as necessary.

[Millymollymandy]

I didn't know that about Wikipedia. So it's not necessarily correct then.

I don't really understand what Andy is proposing but does it mean anyone can edit anyone else's article?

[wulf]

Yes - on an open wiki, anyone can edit anything. The security comes from the fact that you can clearly see all the changes that have been made and roll back to a previous version if ncessary.

I'm not entirely convinced that it will work, as it needs enough trustworthy people checking it on a regular basis in order to preserve the quality of the information. That might mean that some of our regulars here either get diverted away or give up wasting time on growing things to devote their life to typing

I wonder if the best way to use the technology might be a wiki that is only accessible to a relatively small and select group. It could become a place where discussions here could be refined into articles that end up being posted on the front page - a shared editing space but not one open to the whole world.

Wulf

[Muddypause]

I think a wiki site probably needs a critical number of people using it, so that any errors or sabotage gets spotted and corrected. This will probably also depend upon how large and obscure the site gets. Overall, I think Wikipedia is a marvelous resource that reflects well about the nature of humanity (there are more good contributors than bad), but there is a depressing article about it here

I don't see what would be wrong with a sort of general submissions area of the main SS-ish site, with some overseeing editor - but isn't that largely what it is now?

[The Chili Monster]

hee hee.
Mind you, I'm annoyed that some damned moderator removed a comment regarding the village where I live, especially when the substance was (1) true and (2) more acutely funny than the comments made about it on the Crap Towns section of The Idlers' website.
Besides, most of us here have a sense of humour.

[Boots]

Huh? mmm. Can you pass the salt?

[Andy Hamilton]

It seems that the vandalism is mainly due to politics on wiki then, and we won't be touching that.

My thoughts were really sparked about doing this with a thread a while back about a database with growing info on that we could all contribute to. My thoughts are (in an ideal world) that .org could become a place that you could check out your town/city/area and find info about the soil, weather conditions and what grows best in your area.

I think that there could be measures in place to try and keep a curb on spammers, a membership that has to be varified by a human for instance. In other words I get an email from a prospective editor/contributor who would like to add something and they have to give a brief explanation as to why they would like to contribute and I (or whoever) says yes or no.

I think that a critical number do have to use it, but that was much the same when this forum started, sometimes a week would pass with no posts. I am not saying that it will be a roaring sucess, but I do think that it could become a useful tool for self sufficientish folk (given enough time, perhaps 3 years or so). I would hope that it would not detract from this site, in the same way that .tv does not really. They are differnet sites, with different things on them, thus appealing to slightly different users.

[Andy Hamilton]

hee hee.
Mind you, I'm annoyed that some damned moderator removed a comment regarding the village where I live, especially when the substance was (1) true and (2) more acutely funny than the comments made about it on the Crap Towns section of The Idlers' website.
Besides, most of us here have a sense of humour.

On this site or wiki?

[The Chili Monster]

I was referring to an entry on wikepaedia that was returned to its original published state after someone added more enlightened (in my view) information to it.
I meant also that most contributors to this forum appear to have a sense of humour.

[Muddypause]

Waddaya mean 'most' of us...???

[Muddypause]

Actually, thinking on about the subject (getting hastily back OT), maybe it would be useful to have a sort of grower's guide wiki, where people could add specifics about particular plants they know about. Perhaps following a sort of pre-determined format covering the where/when/how-far-apart of growing, followed by a short item giving more detail. Maybe plus recipe and preserving sections for what to do with the plant afterwards.

[The Chili Monster]

Waddaya mean 'most' of us...???

wanted: a spade to dig myself a very large hole.

Then, getting back on track, it would be quite useful to have a "grower's guide wike" since it could be amended to allow for variances due to geography, container growing, etc.