User talk:Admin
--BenTrem 00:54, 14 January 2008 (CST) Spam is deff a problem (When it isn't gold miners it's Chinese rock crushing; 'sup with that?!). Seems that securing MediaWiki could be a cottage industry. *n00dge*
Jeffrey 15:03, 19 October 2007 (MDT): I found information about captcha and also using a spam blacklist. There is a spam black list extension for media wiki and also "confirm Edit" extension for captcha. How should we proceed in setting this up? Let me know if there is any way that I can help. I wouldn't mind helping to set up these features but would need access. Do you have some kind of development server were we could test out some of these things. Spam black list may work for Media Wiki 1.6.x but not guaranteed it is supported on 1.9.x version of Media Wiki, confirm edit was design after MW 1.5.x.
Admin 11:35, 17 October 2007 (MDT) Yeah, it's pretty much a daily battle to keep the spam contained; after a normal weekend, it can take more than an hour to remove all the offending material.
I have to imagine -- as you've suggested -- that these registered users are automated (created by bots), and would thus have great difficulty with CAPTCHA. Anything you learn about adding that function to the site for account security would be greatly appreciated!
Jeffrey 11:13, 12 October 2007 (MDT): Hi, yes MediaWiki supports CAPTCHA. I saw it when I clieck on the create account page. Seenig that a lot of the more recent SPAM is coming from registered users most likely created by bots, I would suggest that we enable CAPTCHA ASAP. I will try to find out more information on how we can add CAPTCHA to the site for new account creation. I am not sure how the spam is borken down it might be helpful to know how much is from registered accounts and how much is anonymous. If we are getting a lot form anonymous users then we may also have to restrict edits to registered users. I think this is a small price to pay for avoiding spam, but that decision really depends on how much time it takes to clean up the spam. It seems like this is a daily activity from the recent changes log.
Admin 15:59, 24 August 2007 (MDT) Hi, Jeffrey!
Yeah, there's been a drastic spike in spam lately, and it sure wouldn't hurt to automate a filter. CAPTCHA sounds like a solid idea, though I don't know if Media Wiki supports it, either. Please let us know what you learn from your own efforts -- and if we can be of any help, just let us know.
Great to have you back!
Hi again, sorry I have been away for a while, I have been very busy lately. Seems like we are getting a lot of spammers. Maybe we could implement a CAPTCHA. Not sure if media wiki supports using this. I will try to find out as I plan on creating my own personal wiki. I am planning on using Media Wiki and hopefully all goes smooth otherwise, maybe you could give me a hand when I get stuck. Jeffrey 12:55, 22 August 2007 (MDT)
Admin 09:38, 8 January 2007 (PST) Hi, everybody. Now that 2007 is officially underway, we want to inform you of some upcoming developments:
First and foremost, the HTML version of Just Enough Structured Analysis -- which is currently available on Ed's wesbite -- will be discountinued in months to come; it's our hope that the many readers around the world who made (and make) that material so popular will happily relocate here. (The downloadable PDF of the entire manuscript will remain available, however.) Obviously, this won't be the smoothest transition, but we feel it necessary for the material to remain up-to-date and pertinent.
We've already had some server issues, but seem to have resolved that matter by switching to a dedicated server. With the help of a handful of subscribers, most of the chapters and appendices have already been uploaded to the wiki, and we have a handle on what little spam we presently receive. But, again, all this will change with the sudden influx of thousands upon thousands of new subscribers. The server could crash again. The spam will increase exponentially, both on account of spiders and no-good-niks. And, inevitably, there will be complaints and/or suggestions regarding look-and-feel elements -- everything from design to verbiage.
It's going to be a very exciting time for everybody -- which is why we chose to address you now, before the storm arrives. As mentioned above, a number of current subscribers (among them, Jeffrey in particular) have been helpful over the past few months in adding content and managing the wiki. Prior to opening this site up to the public (i.e., forcing the public to access JESA in wiki format, for lack of an alternative), we'd like to "deputize" as many of you as possible. What would that mean? Well, er, increased responsibility for absolutely zero pay. Sound good?
No, it would mean greater privileges to block users, institute or revert changes -- the authority to moderate the wiki. If the idea is appealing to you, please contact the Admin, and we'll respond directly. If not, thanks for all your participation thus far, and be on the look-out for some serious activity!
Jeffrey 09:45, 16 January 2007 (PST): I have a suggestion: Can we add a section to show the recently changes pages and maybe also recently adfded comments to the home page of this Wiki. It would make it easier for people looking at the Wiki to know exactly what has changed (not all users may know to click on recent changes and it reduces one click anyway) and also give users recognition for making changes, as their user name would show up on the home page. Also is there a way to identify when new users have joined. We should send some kind of Welcome message to all newly joined users to help build the communicty. I look forward to the increased activity, I think we will all grow and learn and hopefully progress systems analsysis.
Admin 11:42, 17 January 2007 (PST) All good ideas, Jeffrey; we'll look into implementing as many as we can.
Jeffrey 14:32, 17 January 2007 (PST): Let me know if I can help in any way. I will try to find out more about how to do this in Media Wiki.
Jeffrey 09:22, 23 February 2007 (PST): Wow we are up to 24 users now. Nice to see the SAW community is growing. I look forward to learning, collabortaing, working and growing with everyone.
Admin 11:18, 23 February 2007 (PST) Hey, Jeffrey. Yeah, I know! Very exciting stuff. I think it's the result of two factors: first, we took down the HTML manuscript, redirecting all traffic to the wiki; and, second, I asked Ed to elicit more user participation on his blog. As the SAW community continues to grow (nice term, by the way), my sincere hope is that people continue to interact with the material. But -- as always -- we have to thank you for your continued participation. Talk about lonely: if you hadn't been here from the start, we would've been talking to ourselves ....
