Help:Notes for admins - Revision history

Karellen at 23:23, 29 August 2020

2020-08-29T23:23:33Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:23, 29 August 2020
Line 2:		Line 2:

	This page outlines basic instructions and tools for wiki admins. All Team Kodi members are admins {{smaller\| (If you don't have access, poke Ned about this) }} and should have access to these tools, but please use them responsibly and with due caution. The way Mediawiki works, changes are applied live and right away.		This page outlines basic instructions and tools for wiki admins. All Team Kodi members are admins {{smaller\| (If you don't have access, poke Ned about this) }} and should have access to these tools, but please use them responsibly and with due caution. The way Mediawiki works, changes are applied live and right away.


	'''[[Help:Notes for system admins]]''' - Some options for the wiki are configured in the localsettings.php file on SRV1, which requires terminal/server access. For security reasons only a few members of Team Kodi have such access. However, most things can be changed by any wiki admin via the web interface, as described below.

Karellen at 23:22, 29 August 2020

2020-08-29T23:22:15Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:22, 29 August 2020
Line 79:		Line 79:
	Since this page only scratches the surface of the wiki admin tools, be sure to check out the MediaWiki manual for additional details. This includes instructions on how to delete pages (or restore, as even deletions are not permeant unless specifically purged), projecting pages from being edited by non-admins, and more.		Since this page only scratches the surface of the wiki admin tools, be sure to check out the MediaWiki manual for additional details. This includes instructions on how to delete pages (or restore, as even deletions are not permeant unless specifically purged), projecting pages from being edited by non-admins, and more.

	~~== Misc notes ==~~


	[[Category:Wiki]]		[[Category:Wiki]]
	~~[[Category:Team Kodi specific notes]]~~

Ned Scott at 00:55, 20 March 2015

2015-03-20T00:55:05Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:55, 20 March 2015
Line 78:		Line 78:
	{{main\|mw:Manual:Administrators}}		{{main\|mw:Manual:Administrators}}
	Since this page only scratches the surface of the wiki admin tools, be sure to check out the MediaWiki manual for additional details. This includes instructions on how to delete pages (or restore, as even deletions are not permeant unless specifically purged), projecting pages from being edited by non-admins, and more.		Since this page only scratches the surface of the wiki admin tools, be sure to check out the MediaWiki manual for additional details. This includes instructions on how to delete pages (or restore, as even deletions are not permeant unless specifically purged), projecting pages from being edited by non-admins, and more.

			== Misc notes ==


	[[Category:Wiki]]		[[Category:Wiki]]
	[[Category:Team Kodi specific notes]]		[[Category:Team Kodi specific notes]]

Ned Scott: /* Interface */

2014-11-24T00:25:53Z

Interface

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:25, 24 November 2014
Line 35:		Line 35:
	** '''[[MediaWiki:Common.js]]''' - Global javascript.		** '''[[MediaWiki:Common.js]]''' - Global javascript.
	** '''[[MediaWiki:Sitenotice]]''' - Display a global message on the top of every page, like when a new version is released.		** '''[[MediaWiki:Sitenotice]]''' - Display a global message on the top of every page, like when a new version is released.

			=== Custom wiki skin ===
			At least two different "skins" have been made for the wiki to make it look consistent with the main site at http://kodi.tv . Both skins are actually installed and you can try them out by changing your skin in your user-specific settings ([[Special:Preferences]]). Neither are enabled by default because the version 1.19 of MediaWiki is too old for either skin to function properly.

	== User accounts ==		== User accounts ==

Ned Scott: /* A little background */

2014-11-24T00:06:51Z

A little background

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:06, 24 November 2014
Line 10:		Line 10:

	== A little background ==		== A little background ==
	Who runs the wiki? Who's in charge?		{{collapse top\|Who runs the wiki? Who's in charge?}}

	A long time ago, from best I can tell, the original "XBMC Manual" started out as a PDF document that was copied to the wiki. This was done with the intention of keeping things up to date, and it probably worked for a while, but the wiki quickly outgrew the original document structure it was based on. This lead to many pages being outdated or even redundantly written, among other issues. The mediawiki software was also outdated for a while and a massive spam issue forced the Team to block public account creation. There weren't any instructions for how to go about doing this, so very few accounts were ever made and things got even more outdated.		A long time ago, from best I can tell, the original "XBMC Manual" started out as a PDF document that was copied to the wiki. This was done with the intention of keeping things up to date, and it probably worked for a while, but the wiki quickly outgrew the original document structure it was based on. This lead to many pages being outdated or even redundantly written, among other issues. The mediawiki software was also outdated for a while and a massive spam issue forced the Team to block public account creation. There weren't any instructions for how to go about doing this, so very few accounts were ever made and things got even more outdated.
Line 23:		Line 23:

	So yeah, if you're not sure about something, feel free to ask me (again, I'm Ned Scott). Don't shy away if you have new ideas or even criticism for the way things currently work. The wiki manual exists to serve the project, not egos. The very nature of a mediawiki means it thrives on multiple contributions, ideas, and collaboration. Heck, even if you're not an admin but you bothered to read this page (for some reason), then I'm probably very interested in any feedback you might have.		So yeah, if you're not sure about something, feel free to ask me (again, I'm Ned Scott). Don't shy away if you have new ideas or even criticism for the way things currently work. The wiki manual exists to serve the project, not egos. The very nature of a mediawiki means it thrives on multiple contributions, ideas, and collaboration. Heck, even if you're not an admin but you bothered to read this page (for some reason), then I'm probably very interested in any feedback you might have.
			{{collapse bottom}}

	== Interface ==		== Interface ==

Ned Scott at 21:40, 23 November 2014

2014-11-23T21:40:44Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:40, 23 November 2014
Line 4:		Line 4:


	Some options for the wiki are configured in the localsettings.php file on SRV1, which requires terminal/server access. For security reasons only a few members of Team Kodi have such access. However, most things can be changed by any wiki admin via the web interface.		'''[[Help:Notes for system admins]]''' - Some options for the wiki are configured in the localsettings.php file on SRV1, which requires terminal/server access. For security reasons only a few members of Team Kodi have such access. However, most things can be changed by any wiki admin via the web interface, as described below.


	In the same way that you can undo a page edit, you can also undo nearly all admin actions, so even if you make a mistake, don't panic ;)		{{note\| In the same way that you can undo a page edit, you can also undo nearly all admin actions, so even if you make a mistake, don't panic ;) }}

	== A little background ==		== A little background ==

NedBot: Robot: Changing Category:Team XBMC specific notes to Category:Team Kodi specific notes; cosmetic changes

2014-11-17T22:32:26Z

Robot: Changing Category:Team XBMC specific notes to Category:Team Kodi specific notes; cosmetic changes

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:32, 17 November 2014
Line 57:		Line 57:
	'''bot''' - this marks an account as a wiki bot. An automated program that does lots of boring edits that are automatically filtered out of [[Special:RecentChanges]]. The program interfaces with the wiki as if they were a user, hence this flag to mark them as a bot and not a normal user.		'''bot''' - this marks an account as a wiki bot. An automated program that does lots of boring edits that are automatically filtered out of [[Special:RecentChanges]]. The program interfaces with the wiki as if they were a user, hence this flag to mark them as a bot and not a normal user.

	=== Blocking and banning ===		=== Blocking and banning ===
	In the unfortunate event that a user must be blocked, please consider a temp block before a permeant block, just as you would for the user forums or other account areas. Specific pages can also be protected as an alternative to blocking an entire account, in the event that there is a dispute over a specific page's content.		In the unfortunate event that a user must be blocked, please consider a temp block before a permeant block, just as you would for the user forums or other account areas. Specific pages can also be protected as an alternative to blocking an entire account, in the event that there is a dispute over a specific page's content.

	*'''[[Special:Block]]'''		* '''[[Special:Block]]'''
	*'''[[Special:Unblock]]'''		* '''[[Special:Unblock]]'''

	== Spam ==		== Spam ==
Line 74:		Line 74:
	{{main\|mw:Manual:Administrators}}		{{main\|mw:Manual:Administrators}}
	Since this page only scratches the surface of the wiki admin tools, be sure to check out the MediaWiki manual for additional details. This includes instructions on how to delete pages (or restore, as even deletions are not permeant unless specifically purged), projecting pages from being edited by non-admins, and more.		Since this page only scratches the surface of the wiki admin tools, be sure to check out the MediaWiki manual for additional details. This includes instructions on how to delete pages (or restore, as even deletions are not permeant unless specifically purged), projecting pages from being edited by non-admins, and more.


	[[Category:Wiki]]		[[Category:Wiki]]
	[[Category:Team ~~XBMC~~ specific notes]]		[[Category:Team Kodi specific notes]]

Ned Scott at 23:13, 16 November 2014

2014-11-16T23:13:34Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:13, 16 November 2014
Line 64:		Line 64:

	== Spam ==		== Spam ==
	Since spambots have been pretty much stopped dead by the account request system, this really isn't used much anymore, but manual URL banning can be done using these pages. URLs can also be whitelisted. The master blacklist is taken from Wikimedia's global list ('''[[meta:Spam blacklist]]'''), then additional entries are applied from the English Wikipedia ('''[[wikipedia:MediaWiki:Spam-blacklist]]'''), and finally our local black/white lists are applied to that:		Since spambots have been pretty much stopped dead by the account request system, this really isn't used much anymore, but manual URL banning can be done using these pages. URLs can also be whitelisted.

			The master blacklist is taken from Wikimedia's global list ('''[[meta:Spam blacklist]]'''), then additional entries are applied from the English Wikipedia ('''[[wikipedia:MediaWiki:Spam-blacklist]]'''), and finally our local black/white lists are applied to that:

	* '''[[MediaWiki:Spam-blacklist]]'''		* '''[[MediaWiki:Spam-blacklist]]'''
	* '''[[MediaWiki:Spam-whitelist]]'''		* '''[[MediaWiki:Spam-whitelist]]'''

			== Further reading - Deleting pages, protecting pages, etc ==
			{{main\|mw:Manual:Administrators}}
			Since this page only scratches the surface of the wiki admin tools, be sure to check out the MediaWiki manual for additional details. This includes instructions on how to delete pages (or restore, as even deletions are not permeant unless specifically purged), projecting pages from being edited by non-admins, and more.


	[[Category:Wiki]]		[[Category:Wiki]]
	[[Category:Team XBMC specific notes]]		[[Category:Team XBMC specific notes]]

Ned Scott: /* A little background */

2014-11-16T23:09:24Z

A little background

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:09, 16 November 2014
Line 14:		Line 14:
	A long time ago, from best I can tell, the original "XBMC Manual" started out as a PDF document that was copied to the wiki. This was done with the intention of keeping things up to date, and it probably worked for a while, but the wiki quickly outgrew the original document structure it was based on. This lead to many pages being outdated or even redundantly written, among other issues. The mediawiki software was also outdated for a while and a massive spam issue forced the Team to block public account creation. There weren't any instructions for how to go about doing this, so very few accounts were ever made and things got even more outdated.		A long time ago, from best I can tell, the original "XBMC Manual" started out as a PDF document that was copied to the wiki. This was done with the intention of keeping things up to date, and it probably worked for a while, but the wiki quickly outgrew the original document structure it was based on. This lead to many pages being outdated or even redundantly written, among other issues. The mediawiki software was also outdated for a while and a massive spam issue forced the Team to block public account creation. There weren't any instructions for how to go about doing this, so very few accounts were ever made and things got even more outdated.

	In 2011, I (Ned Scott) was invited to join the team since I answered a lot of questions on the forum and expressed interest in helping out with the wiki. Previously, I was heavily involved in Wikipedia for a few years and was very familiar with the software. I figured I would just be helping out, but little did I know that no one really knew what was up with the wiki, and no one else was really interested in working on it. I was basically given the keys and told "have fun".		In 2011, I (Ned Scott) was invited to join the team since I answered a lot of questions on the forum and expressed interest in helping out with the wiki. Previously, I was heavily involved in Wikipedia for a few years and was very familiar with the software. I figured I would just be helping out, but little did I know that no one really knew what was up with the wiki, and no one else was really interested in working on it. I was basically given the keys and told "have fun" :D

	Since then the spam and user creation issue has greatly improved, and the community is a lot more involved now. Other members of Team Kodi are now fairly active in maintaining the wiki and help out with various ideas. We've restructured most of the content to be easier to browse, updated many technical portions of the wiki to help users contribute with ease, and other improvements. There are still areas that need a lot of love and attention, but we're in far better shape than we were during those "dark wiki years".		Since then the spam and user creation issue has greatly improved, and the community is a lot more involved now. Other members of Team Kodi are now fairly active in maintaining the wiki and help out with various ideas. We've restructured most of the content to be easier to browse, updated many technical portions of the wiki to help users contribute with ease, and other improvements. There are still areas that need a lot of love and attention, but we're in far better shape than we were during those "dark wiki years".

Ned Scott: /* Making more admins */

2014-11-16T23:07:46Z

Making more admins

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:07, 16 November 2014
Line 50:		Line 50:


	;Other options		==== Other options ====
	'''Widget editor''' - allows people to make widgets without being an admin. All users flagged as admins already have widget access, so you don't need to worry about that. Because this allows people to inject raw HTML into wiki pages, this is only something admins should have access to.		'''Widget editor''' - allows people to make widgets without being an admin. All users flagged as admins already have widget access, so you don't need to worry about that. Because this allows people to inject raw HTML into wiki pages, this is only something admins should have access to.