The Signpost

Featured content

A dash of Arsenikk

This edition covers content promoted between 30 September and 6 October 2012
A Braathens SAFE DC-3, from the new featured list of the numerous aircraft used by the airline. The list's writer gives some information below.

This week the Signpost interviews Arsenikk, an editor of six years who has brought sixteen lists through our featured list process, mostly regarding transportation in Norway but also about the 1952 Winter Olympics and World Heritage Sites in Africa. Arsenikk tells us about why he joined the project, what moves him, and how editors can join the sometimes daunting world of featured lists.

A diagram of the stations on the Oslo Metro, one of Arsenikk's several featured lists on transportation in Norway.

On joining Wikipedia

My original interest in Wikipedia arose from reading about airlines, and especially destination lists—information I was not able to easily find elsewhere. I started adding some content on the Norwegian Wikipedia, but quickly switched to the English edition, largely because I found that the standards (especially referencing) are higher. I enjoy researching and writing full-length articles and enjoy the feeling of knowing an article is "complete". Wikipedia is largely a work in progress, and featured content allows the satisfaction that, at least in one small area, we are finished. The featured processes not only fix individual issues, but allows feedback on ways I am systematically wrong, which allows me to correct all future articles I write.

On featured lists

Featured list (FL) reviewers are nit-picky and it is necessary to keep track of a wide array of guidelines, styles, recommendations and common practice. The easiest part, although perhaps the most time-consuming, is filling in the tables. Once the general structure has been established, adding additional entries is often trivial. I find the atmosphere at featured list candidates (FLC) very welcoming and uplifting. Even though the purpose of the candidacy review is to provide criticism, I have never felt any negativity.
Except for station lists, my transport-related lists have been ground-breaking in the sense that I did not have an existing "template" FL to copy. This makes them much more difficult to compose, as a user-friendly and encyclopedic structure must be established while keeping in mind issues such as accessibility for the color-blind. At the same time, these were often lists where the FLC process contributed a great change in the list's structure, and thus the process was of the greatest value. Although considerably more work, such lists also give more satisfaction; it is in many ways similar to solving a puzzle. Someone else nominating a list using the same structure I "invented" gives a priceless feeling of humility.
For editors new to FLC, I would recommend starting off with a scope (topic) which has several existing lists. Look at the newest FLs and copy the structure. It is also important to read the criteria, the Manual of Style and other guidelines to understand the standards the article will be measured by. A featured list review should concentrate on the small issues rather than serve as a tutorial. For articles, I would strongly encourage taking the article to both good article and peer review before its candidacy, although this is rarely needed for lists. The featured process is first and foremost a place for article improvement, so take all feedback as constructive advice. Reviewing is an important part of the learning process; being able to assess and articulate feedback betters one's ability to refine one's own contributions.
Horses on a beach at Holkham National Nature Reserve
File:Christian Bale Batman Begins Premiere Hollywood 2005.jpg
English actor Christian Bale; his filmography has been featured.
Chesme Church in St. Petersburg
Acrobatics on a Chinese pole

Nine featured articles were promoted this week:

Six featured lists were promoted this week:

Five featured pictures were promoted this week:

Space shuttle Endeavour appears to straddle the stratosphere and mesosphere

















Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2012-10-08/Featured_content