Re: [Wikimania-l] [Wikimedia-l] Community consultation on the future of Wikimania

[Austin Hair]

On Thu, Dec 3, 2015 at 8:33 PM, Risker <risker...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> On 3 December 2015 at 14:21, Austin Hair <adh...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> On Thu, Dec 3, 2015 at 5:11 PM, Ellie Young <eyo...@wikimedia.org> wrote:
>> > A lot of work has gone into preparing for  the consultation.It will
>> > be going out December 14.  We are looking forward to getting everyone's
>> > feedback in the weeks after and into early January.
>>
>> Is there a particular reason it's being delayed until the 14th?
>>
>
> Perhaps because that would be close to the end of the Harassment
> consultation, which is also being managed by other sections of the Community
> Engagement department? And also after the Community Tech Wishlist
> consultation?  I'm thrilled to see so many attempts to reach out to the
> community, but on the other hand if the community is asked to consult on too
> many things at once, it can have a limiting effect on participation.
> Running three major community consultations all at the same time could turn
> out to be counterproductive, especially at a time of year when so many
> community members are also deeply involved in activities within their
> personal life.

Okay, no need to get antagonistic.

An e-mail was cross-posted to two lists I manage (wikimedia-l and
wikimania-l) about a topic I have a long-standing (i.e., since 2004)
interest in. I was curious about the specific timing, as if it were
something that had to be managed on a 9-to-5 office schedule.

For my money, I don't think that the community is so mentally taxed
(or, for that matter, so closely intermingled) that they need a break
between talking about technical issues and our international
conference. (And, for that matter, that this issue isn't being
"managed" the other way around.) But if this is the official
justification, so be it—that's all I asked.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] [Wikimedia-l] Community consultation on the future of Wikimania

[Austin Hair]

On Thu, Dec 3, 2015 at 5:11 PM, Ellie Young  wrote:
> A lot of work has gone into preparing for  the consultation.It will be 
> going out December 14.  We are looking forward to getting everyone's feedback 
> in the weeks after and into early January.

Is there a particular reason it's being delayed until the 14th?

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] A trip to Petra after Wikimania

[Austin Hair]

I was going to write a summary of our (Finne's and my) trip to Petra,
but Manuel covered everything nicely. Take special note of the higher
admission prices, as they were raised recently and probably differ
from what's in any guidebook you might have.

The only thing I have to add is that, as Petra is currently seeing
lower than usual amounts of tourism (even for the season), the
service-oriented economy is a bit hard up, and they'll often start out
quoting extremely high prices for everything. The flip side of that is
that you have significant bargaining power, and can usually argue your
way down to about half, but it may be daunting for those new to the
experience. (Expect some to get downright angry with you,
and—sorry—you're in a better position if you're male.)

Oh, and for those who'd prefer a more traditional hotel experience
with air conditioning and ensuite bathrooms, I can't recommend
http://alanbat.com/ enough. They have two hotels, with the more
expensive al-Anbat 1 (where we stayed) charging around €60/night
(breakfast and dinner included) for two people in a double room. It's
on the outskirts of the tiny town, up the mountain, but you get a
great view in return and a taxi into town can be had for 2-3 dinars.
As a bonus, the hotel's currently rather empty, so the service is
incredible. (If you see Khaled at the desk, tell him I'll send him
those MySQL resources soon.) They also got us a car back to the Aqaba
border for 40 JOD (~€40).

I, too, am happy to share my experiences, so just grab me if you see me around.

Austin

On Thu, Aug 4, 2011 at 12:42 PM, Manuel Schneider
manuel.schnei...@wikimedia.ch wrote:
 Hi all,

 some comments about trips to Jordan / Petra as Danny and me have been
 there prior to the conference.

 We rented a car in Haifa and drove down to Eilat, passing Be'er Sheva
 via the route 40 - all through the middle of Negev. This trip is about
 400 km and takes approx. 6 hours (we stopped a few times to take pictures).

 == Border Crossing ==
 The border brossing is open on workdays from 6:30 - 22:00, on Friday and
 Saturday 8:00 - 20:00.

 You can't take a rental car with you. There is a big parking space at
 the border crossing. The place is easy to find, from both routes (40 or
 90) you will pass it on your way shortly before of Eilat. If you have an
 accommodation in Eilat or come by bus you might take a cab to the border
 crossing.

 The regulations say that it is not allowed to bring drinking water and
 food into Jordan. This is practically not checked and enforced. We
 brought our water and food with us, no problem.

 === Leaving Israel ===
 1. booth: The outgoing border tax is 101 NIS, they accept also EUR and
 USD. You get a bar code in return.
 2. booth: Show your passport and barcode, you receive a stamp that you
 left Israel.
 3. gate: show both again, they scan the barcode and open the gate for
 you to leave the border terminal.

 Walk over to the Jordan border terminal.

 === Entering Jordan ===
 1. booth: Leave your passport, you receive three stamps. The passport
 will forwarded to the second booth.
 2. booth: They check the passport, you need to undergo a biometrical
 check (look into a fancy webcam).
 3. security check: your luggage will be x-rayed
 4. border check: they check your passport and let you finally go.

 The border crossing is - as in Eilat - outside of the city.

 == Getting to Wadi Musa / Petra ==
 There are cabs waiting at the border. They will take you directly to
 Petra if you like. As it is off-season now the prices are lower but as
 you are out in the nowhere it is hard to negotiate.

 We paid 60 JOD (which is ~60 EUR) for the ride per cab which we could
 divide by three persons. The cab drivers accept also USD and EUR.

 We were lucky that we were transfered during out trip to another cab
 driver half way, so we met Odeh (+962 79 5576537). Odeh can pick you up
 wherever you like, also offers tours and knows practically everyone
 around Petra as he lives in Wadi Musa. He arranged a great accommodation
 for us, incl. pick-up and transfer service while he brought us to Wadi
 Musa. Ask him for whatever you need, a hotel room or sleeping with a
 bedouin under the billion stars...

 == Visiting Petra ==
 The entrance fee is 90 JOD and they only accept JOD. If you have an
 accommodation check-in before and bring a receipt with you - then the
 entrance is only 50 JOD. There are special prices for day tourists
 because they are not happy about the tours organised from Israeli side
 which bring in people for a few hours only, they bring with them all the
 food and water and basically don't leave any money.

 As we were on our own we spent 7 hours in Petra, seeing almost
 everything and spending the hot lunch time in a cave discussing
 Wikimedia things and recovering.

 A 1.5l bottle of water is available inside Petra for 1 JOD - if you ask
 the right people. Some try to get 3 JOD.

 We had a camel ride back from the place near the monastery (the far 

Re: [Wikimania-l] need confirmation

[Austin Hair]

On Wed, Apr 27, 2011 at 2:03 PM, Simona Kehler simonakeh...@gmail.com wrote:
 did i subscribed?

Nope.

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Boycott Wikimania 2011

[Austin Hair]

On Thu, Mar 31, 2011 at 11:08 PM, Anonyme cautio...@gmail.com wrote:
 I decided to do a complete boycott of Wikimania 2011 due to Israel's
 politics and the situation in the Gaza Strip and the illegal colonization in
 the West Bank.

I'm not sure you understand how a boycott works.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Israel = apartheid

[Austin Hair]

On Thu, Mar 31, 2011 at 1:50 PM, matthew satchwell
mattsatchw...@gmail.com wrote:
 Please dont hold you conference in Haifa
 If so I will be obliged to boycott you
 I was brought up in South Africa

I'm sorry we won't see you there, Matthew.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Israel = apartheid

[Austin Hair]

On Thu, Mar 31, 2011 at 3:23 PM, matthew satchwell
mattsatchw...@gmail.com wrote:
 This is the thing with Zionists, a questions is not answered, instead a
 tirade of rhetoric, except I read from your response that you do accept that
 there is a lack of freedom in Israel. (this is a start)

I want to start by apologizing to the other members of this list for
feeding this.

You talk about a lack of freedom, Matthew, but I have to wonder about
your definition. I heard nothing from you when we held Wikimania in
the following countries:

2005: Frankfurt, Germany, where you can be arrested for giving a Nazi
salute in public or drawing a swastika.
2006: Cambridge, Massachusetts, where you can be held without trial on
terrorism charges.
2007: Taipei, Taiwan, where you can be held without trial for any
reason, and with which most attendees' countries have no diplomatic
relations whatsoever.
2008: Alexandria, Egypt, which was a police state until just a few weeks ago.

Argentina and Poland are also not exactly bastions of freedom, and
there were visa issues with both conferences. That's not unreasonable,
though, since every country on the planet has visa obstacles with at
least one other country.

Oh, wait, that's not true. There is one, and only one: the Maldives,
where you can be arrested for not being Muslim.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] What to do about 2012, and the future

[Austin Hair]

2011/1/19 Delphine Ménard notafi...@gmail.com:
 On Wed, Jan 19, 2011 at 1:13 PM, Finne Boonen hen...@gmail.com wrote:
 However, most other fields have several conferences a year where
 people meet each other. I'm not sure we have enough events that allow
 real international 'mingling' to take place. In my experience most
 conferences we have are very local events, and there is real benefit
 from interacting in person with a wider community then the local one.

 I am a bit with Harel on this one. However, I agree with you Finne.
 To me, the solution would be to have a rotating (yes, the big R word)
 international event every other year (ie. it would be decided _in
 advance_ which continent wikimania is happening on) and allow/foster
 more regional international meetings the year in between. This would
 allow for the following:
snip
 *This would actually strengthen the ties between communities of big
 regions (such as the US, for example), by allowing people to
 participate in an event close to home at least once every other year.

I'm still not totally sold on biennial idea, but this is the one
compelling reason for me. With two weeks of vacation per year, most
Americans have to carefully decide how to use it. Do I attend
Wikimania? Wiki-Conference NYC? And forget about me attending any
non-Wiki conferences, if I do that.

(Thankfully, the socialist country in which I now live (;)) guarantees
me a lot more free time, but I still appreciate the issue.)

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] What to do about 2012, and the future

[Austin Hair]

On Wed, Jan 19, 2011 at 2:04 PM, Harel Cain harel.c...@gmail.com wrote:
 I would just like to correct myself and all those people who I misled into
 using the word biannual. Thanks to Asaf Bartov to pointing out to me that
 the correct form is biennial. According to most dictionaries, biannual
 does exist but means semi-annual (occurring twice a year). I don't think
 anyone out there thinks we need *biannual* Wikimanias then, just maybe
 biennial :)

Yes, those two are incredibly confusing, and even I sometimes have to
stop and remember which one's which.  In common speech I usually take
care to clarify up front, even if I use the term later.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Problematic aspects of hosting the next conference in Haifa, Israel

[Austin Hair]

On Fri, Aug 13, 2010 at 9:32 AM, Yaroslav M. Blanter pute...@mccme.ru wrote:
 Not that I want to support this thread any further (and I believe you as a
 moderator could have already frozen it), but just to remark that as far as
 I know there is a single country in the world which provides hassle-free
 entry and hands in visa on arrival to visitors of any nationality. This is
 Maldives.

I did not know that!

Unfortunately, the fact that you can be prosecuted for practicing any
religion other than Islam[1] might be a problem for for many of our
attendees, making it a non-starter.

Austin

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maldives#Religion

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Problematic aspects of hosting the next conference in Haifa, Israel

[Austin Hair]

On Thu, Aug 12, 2010 at 11:21 PM, Maysara Omar maysara.o...@gmail.com wrote:
 Harel and Moushira,

 why the rush on closing this thread?!! :) Let us give time and space for a
 civilized and purposeful dialogue and deliberation to come to fruition and
 realization!

On Thu, Aug 12, 2010 at 11:30 PM, Maysara Omar maysara.o...@gmail.com wrote:
 Come on Harel, you are a true Wikipedian; you must have seen REAL yelling in
 your time before! :)

First, let me make it clear that although I speak as a member of the
selection committee that chose Haifa, I certainly don't speak on its
behalf.

I'm not sure why you created this thread, Maysara, since you
acknowledge that there's no chance of the venue being moved to another
country at this point in time.  You're also responsible for over a
quarter of the posts in it, most of which are rebuttals to people who
are entirely dismissive of your arguments, and now you're basically
just egging people on (see quoted text above).

Believe it or not, I actually don't dismiss your arguments—you've
raised several valid points, in fact.  I do want to point out that, as
others have suggested, all of these arguments were raised when
considering the bids.  Haifa won anyway.

You think that was a bad decision, and it's your right to think so.  I
obviously think otherwise.  :)

Your argument against Israel seems to hinge on visa difficulties, so I
just wanted to recap our past venues:

2005: Frankfurt, Germany.  Schengen area, a hotbed of immigration
dispute (believe me, I'm trying to emigrate there now, and witnessed
firsthand both the Dutch and Belgian elections); the default
destination for people from North Africa and the Near East, and
extremely cautious of people from that region.  Many invitation
letters were sent; thanks to the hard work of the organizers, most,
but not all, resulted in issued visas.

2006: Cambridge, Massachusetts.  I think we all know what a hassle it
is to get into the USA.  My country makes you jump through hoops to
get in, but when all was said and done we only had one attendee denied
a visa on the basis of merit.

2007: Taipei, Taiwan.  Taiwan isn't even recognized as a country by
most nations, but almost everyone who wanted to attend was able,
including representatives from Hong Kong (PRC).

2008: Alexandria, Egypt.  Egypt is, technically speaking, a police
state.  This said, although a few visas were denied, the organization
team made sure that most people—including a few Israelis—were able to
attend.

2009: Buenos Aires, Argentina.  I actually can't really comment on
this one; I believe one or two people were refused visas, but the fact
is that there isn't a single country on the planet that allows
citizens of all 195 countries (and other jurisdictions) hassle-free
entry.

2010: Gdańsk, Poland.  Like Frankfurt, in Schengen, but dozens of
invitation letters and close cooperation with government authorities
ensured that most people could attend.

Each Wikimania will see a few people unable or unwilling to attend
because, by definition, most of its attendees will be coming from
other countries, and countries mean politics.  My colleagues and I
considered this issue, researched it extensively, and discussed it for
literally hours, and came to a decision that still favored Haifa.

You're entitled to your opinion, and our respective politics regarding
Israel are obviously different.  Again, though, I want to ask what
you're trying to achieve with this, and suggest that politics alone
don't warrant a disruptive mailing list thread.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] thank you

[Austin Hair]

2010/7/15 Delphine Ménard notafi...@gmail.com:
 And again, it's all about the people :)

Shh, you're giving away our secrets!

I've said it many times, but 90% of it is just getting a few hundred
Wikimedians together in the same building.  9% of it is making sure
they have power and Internet access.  The rest is icing—but it's the
icing that we agonize over for weeks.

Thank you, everyone, for all your kind words.  It's always hard to
tell at the time whether it's going well, so having someone say so
means a lot.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Lost: Purple Jacket

[Austin Hair]

On Sun, Jul 11, 2010 at 2:42 AM, Kat Walsh k...@mindspillage.org wrote:
 If anyone finds a ladies' purple jacket around the venue, please let
 me know! (It is lost and probably very scared and lonely, and will
 appreciate being reunited with its owner.)

If found, we will give it milk and cookies and wait for its owner.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] electrical inlet/outlet

[Austin Hair]

On Tue, Jul 6, 2010 at 1:15 AM, Francisco Treviño
zerofranci...@gmail.com wrote:
 Hi all.
 Could anybody from the people already at the Gdansk post a photograph
 of the electrical inlet/outlet plugs, to check compatibility with the
 ones all the rest of us uses.

The power sockets are europlugs with French-style grounding pins:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_plug#Type_E

I've just resent the confirmation e-mail to everyone who's registered,
but not yet confirmed.  Please let me know if you don't get this.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] My Registration

[Austin Hair]

Hi Felipe,

I checked the registration database just now, and cannot find you in there.
If you'll re-register, I'll follow up and make sure you receive a
confirmation.

Austin


On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:11 PM, Felipe Ortega glimmer_phoe...@yahoo.eswrote:

 Hi all.

 Sorry to reacitvate this, but I registered (apparently with success) last
 week (Friday, I think) and I haven't received any confirmation email yet, or
 details on how to pay the registration fee.

 Any way to re-submit the info?

 Thanks.

 Felipe.

 --- El *sáb, 3/7/10, Lodewijk lodew...@effeietsanders.org* escribió:


 De: Lodewijk lodew...@effeietsanders.org
 Asunto: Re: [Wikimania-l] My Registration
 Para: Wikimania general list (open subscription) 
 wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
 Fecha: sábado, 3 de julio, 2010 21:55


 is there any way people can help?

 2010/7/2 Austin Hair adh...@gmail.comhttp://mc/compose?to=adh...@gmail.com
 

 We're sending them via avian carrier, and the pigeons keep getting
 confused about what to call the city and get lost.

 In all seriousness, about half of you should have received your
 confirmations by now.  No, we're not sending them manually, but
 they're being sent in batches based on specific criteria.  Everyone
 will be asked to double-check their registrations before proceeding,
 and will be able to make any last-minute changes.

 Austin


 On Fri, Jul 2, 2010 at 6:46 PM, Gerard Meijssen
 gerard.meijs...@gmail.comhttp://mc/compose?to=gerard.meijs...@gmail.com
 wrote:
  Hoi,
  Maybe they are out of stamps.
  Thanks,
   GerardM
 
  On 2 July 2010 18:41, Harel Cain 
  harel.c...@gmail.comhttp://mc/compose?to=harel.c...@gmail.com
 wrote:
 
  Still no confirmation letter received on my end.
 
  Are they being sent out manually? (*shudder*)
 
 
  Harel
 
  On Fri, Jul 2, 2010 at 11:46 AM, Florence 
  anth...@anthere.orghttp://mc/compose?to=anth...@anthere.org
 wrote:
 
  I Got a confirmation email this morning (worked !)
  Flo
 
  Sent from my iPhone
  On Jul 2, 2010, at 9:59, Lodewijk 
  lodew...@effeietsanders.orghttp://mc/compose?to=lodew...@effeietsanders.org
 wrote:
 
  original confirmation email? I didn't have any email at all. Does that
  mean I got less emails than others (ie, I should start worrying)?
 
  lodewijk
 
  2010/7/2 Bence Damokos 
  bdamo...@gmail.comhttp://mc/compose?to=bdamo...@gmail.com
 
 
  I seem to have lost the original confirmation e-mail, so receiving
 the
  one with the payment details would convince me that I did not only
 dream
  about having registered :-)
  Best regards,
  Bence
 
  On Thu, Jul 1, 2010 at 9:52 PM, Tomasz Ganicz 
  polime...@gmail.comhttp://mc/compose?to=polime...@gmail.com
 
  wrote:
 
  2010/7/1 Erik Moeller 
  e...@wikimedia.orghttp://mc/compose?to=e...@wikimedia.org
 :
   2010/6/29 Austin Hair 
   adh...@gmail.comhttp://mc/compose?to=adh...@gmail.com
 :
   Meanwhile, *everyone* registered will get an e-mail today, one
 way
   or another.
  
   Did this happen? I don't think I received an e-mail.
 
  I guess no-one received an e-mail, including me :-(
 
  --
  Tomek Polimerek Ganicz
  http://pl.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Polimerek
  http://www.ganicz.pl/poli/
  http://www.ptchem.lodz.pl/en/TomaszGanicz.html
 
  ___
  Wikimania-l mailing list
  Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.orghttp://mc/compose?to=wikimani...@lists.wikimedia.org
  https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l
 
 
  ___
  Wikimania-l mailing list
  Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.orghttp://mc/compose?to=wikimani...@lists.wikimedia.org
  https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l
 
 
  ___
  Wikimania-l mailing list
  Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.orghttp://mc/compose?to=wikimani...@lists.wikimedia.org
  https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l
 
  ___
  Wikimania-l mailing list
  Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.orghttp://mc/compose?to=wikimani...@lists.wikimedia.org
  https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l
 
 
 
 
  --
  Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum videtur.
 
  ___
  Wikimania-l mailing list
  Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.orghttp://mc/compose?to=wikimani...@lists.wikimedia.org
  https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l
 
 
 
  ___
  Wikimania-l mailing list
  Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.orghttp://mc/compose?to=wikimani...@lists.wikimedia.org
  https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l
 
 

 ___
 Wikimania-l mailing list
 Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.orghttp://mc/compose?to=wikimani...@lists.wikimedia.org
 https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l



 -Adjunto en línea a continuación-


 ___
 Wikimania-l mailing list
 Wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Airport Pickup

[Austin Hair]

These are indeed prevalent in the old town.  Keep in mind that they do
not normally cash traveler's checks, though.

Austin


On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 4:31 PM, masti mast...@gmail.com wrote:
 there are a lot of Exchange Points called Kantor
 here are the ones ner the Venue:
 http://42.pl/u/2ni4_exchange
 Exchange points do not usually charge for operation. They just use a
 spread buy-sell

 masti

 On 07/05/2010 04:03 PM, Jeromy-Yu Chan (Jerry~Yuyu) wrote:
 I expect some exchange in cash, Euro to pln, as levy can be huge if I
 use a hong kong card

 On 05/07/2010, Finne Boonenhen...@gmail.com  wrote:
 On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 14:16, Takashi OTA
 supertakot+wikima...@gmail.comsupertakot%2bwikima...@gmail.com
 wrote:

 On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 9:07 PM, Guillaume Paumierguillom@gmail.com
 wrote:
 Speaking generally, it is usually cheaper to withdraw local money from
 an ATM using a credit / debit card (if it's possible for you), than to
 change money.


 ATMs are very easy to find in the old town.


 Finne

 --
 Maybe you knew early on that your track went from point A to B, but unlike
 you I wasn't given a map at birth! Alyssa, Chasing Amy





 ___
 Wikimania-l mailing list
 Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
 https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l


___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] registration confirmation form does not work

[Austin Hair]

Thanks for bringing that to my attention, Achal.

It looks like you indicated at the time of your registration that you
needed a visa, and at that time some fields we now require were not on
the registration form.  It was simply asking you to fill in the
missing information before continuing.

This wasn't an intentional design decision, and since anyone who needs
a visa has either already applied or is probably too late, I've
disabled that validation.

As of right now, 83 people have confirmed their attendance, and as the
e-mails continue this morning I expect many more.  I appreciate you
working around the problem, and I hope nobody was terribly
inconvenienced by this.

Austin


On Fri, Jul 2, 2010 at 8:08 AM, Achal Prabhala aprabh...@gmail.com wrote:
 I thought I'd let you know that there are a few problems with your form:

 1) Visa assistance details are required by default, regardless of
 whether one needs visa assistance - (without passport details the form
 is incomplete) - which is clearly an error

 2) The date fields in the visa assistance form which I filled out only
 to get past the confirmation do not have a disclosed format, so one has
 to guess the format that works by trial and error.

 You might have registrations confirmed faster if these bugs are fixed.


 ___
 Wikimania-l mailing list
 Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
 https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l


___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] My Registration

[Austin Hair]

We're sending them via avian carrier, and the pigeons keep getting
confused about what to call the city and get lost.

In all seriousness, about half of you should have received your
confirmations by now.  No, we're not sending them manually, but
they're being sent in batches based on specific criteria.  Everyone
will be asked to double-check their registrations before proceeding,
and will be able to make any last-minute changes.

Austin


On Fri, Jul 2, 2010 at 6:46 PM, Gerard Meijssen
gerard.meijs...@gmail.com wrote:
 Hoi,
 Maybe they are out of stamps.
 Thanks,
  GerardM

 On 2 July 2010 18:41, Harel Cain harel.c...@gmail.com wrote:

 Still no confirmation letter received on my end.

 Are they being sent out manually? (*shudder*)


 Harel

 On Fri, Jul 2, 2010 at 11:46 AM, Florence anth...@anthere.org wrote:

 I Got a confirmation email this morning (worked !)
 Flo

 Sent from my iPhone
 On Jul 2, 2010, at 9:59, Lodewijk lodew...@effeietsanders.org wrote:

 original confirmation email? I didn't have any email at all. Does that
 mean I got less emails than others (ie, I should start worrying)?

 lodewijk

 2010/7/2 Bence Damokos bdamo...@gmail.com

 I seem to have lost the original confirmation e-mail, so receiving the
 one with the payment details would convince me that I did not only dream
 about having registered :-)
 Best regards,
 Bence

 On Thu, Jul 1, 2010 at 9:52 PM, Tomasz Ganicz polime...@gmail.com
 wrote:

 2010/7/1 Erik Moeller e...@wikimedia.org:
  2010/6/29 Austin Hair adh...@gmail.com:
  Meanwhile, *everyone* registered will get an e-mail today, one way
  or another.
 
  Did this happen? I don't think I received an e-mail.

 I guess no-one received an e-mail, including me :-(

 --
 Tomek Polimerek Ganicz
 http://pl.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Polimerek
 http://www.ganicz.pl/poli/
 http://www.ptchem.lodz.pl/en/TomaszGanicz.html

 ___
 Wikimania-l mailing list
 Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
 https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l


 ___
 Wikimania-l mailing list
 Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
 https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l


 ___
 Wikimania-l mailing list
 Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
 https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

 ___
 Wikimania-l mailing list
 Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
 https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l




 --
 Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum videtur.

 ___
 Wikimania-l mailing list
 Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
 https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l



 ___
 Wikimania-l mailing list
 Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
 https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l



___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Technical resources?

[Austin Hair]

On Thu, Jul 1, 2010 at 9:38 PM, Kurt Bollacker k...@longnow.org wrote:

 I thought I'd ask about the technical resources available for
 presentations and the conference in general:

 1. Will WiFi be available throughout the venue?

Yes.  Wifi is available throughout, and we're working on beefing it
up so everybody has coverage everywhere in the Philharmonic.

 2. I assume that projectors/screens will exist to which presenters can
   connect laptops.  Or is there another arrangement?

Every assigned room will have a projector with standard VGA and RCA connections.

 3. Are there any specific IRC channels or other backchannel forums
   suggested for informal communications?

#wikimania on irc.freenode.net is the official channel, and I'm sure
more topical ones will branch off as they usually do.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Registration

[Austin Hair]

Hey Cormac,

I'm sorry for the delay in getting back to you—some of these questions
were contingent on the results of a meeting I had this afternoon
(CET).

Accommodation costs are separate, and currently the least expensive
option is €20/night.  The bright side is that many of these will be
nicer than we were expecting, and sometimes even have just two beds to
a room.  (The rest will probably have three, so it's not as if
anyone's bunking with seven other guys in a barracks.)

We're working on bringing the price down for accommodation for the
luxury rooms in hotels, as well.  Those of you who made your choice
based on price, don't worry—you'll have an option to change your
decision before you pay.

Unfortunately, we really can't make a policy of invoicing employers
and educational institutions directly.

And yes, payment is still being finalized.  Meanwhile, your places are
being reserved, and anyone who registers now will be able to attend.

If anyone else has any questions, as always, please feel free to
e-mail me either on- or off-list.

Austin


On Tue, Jun 22, 2010 at 12:59 PM, Cormac Lawler cormag...@gmail.com wrote:
 Hi,
 A few questions about payment:
 1) Is the accommodation fee included in the registration fee of €40? If not,
 how much will the 'default' accommodation cost? (I realise there are several
 accommodation venues, but in the past Wikimania has arranged a cheap option
 'for the masses', which would be the option I'm interested in).
 2) Would it be possible to send an invoice for registration/accommodation
 fees to my university so that they could cover my costs directly (as opposed
 to me paying and then claiming back)? If so, who could/would do this? (WMF?
 WM Poland?)
 3) Also, I registered through the online form Austin linked to on that day,
 but haven't yet received payment options. Is this still being worked out, or
 did I miss something?
 Thanks,
 Cormac
 ___
 Wikimania-l mailing list
 Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
 https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l



___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Registration

[Austin Hair]

On Tue, Jun 15, 2010 at 5:59 AM, Shiju Alex shijualexonl...@gmail.com wrote:
 Usability issue with the form:

 Why the entire form gets reset if one of the entry is missing/wrong? It is
 really pain to  type the entire content again and again. (For example, I
 missed to select payment method, I end up in typing the entire content
 again.)

Good point—this was overlooked because some browsers (namely, mine)
automatically repopulate those fields even if the page doesn't.  I've
added this functionality and am testing now to make sure it works
before I update the live site.

 I am not sure whether usability test is done for this site/web page.

A proper usability study, like the one done for Wikipedia, would take
more time and resources than were used to create the site in the first
place.  It basically falls to the best judgment of the designers
(okay, me), with the advice of others involved in organizing this
conference, experienced Wikimanians I asked for advice and testing,
and people like you who notice things nobody else did before we put it
online.

Thanks for pointing this out, and if anyone else has any suggestions
or criticism, please feel to send them to me either on-list or
off-list.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

[Wikimania-l] Registration

[Austin Hair]

Hi guys,

I know the matter of hours in my last update turned into a matter of
days, but much to my dismay, the issue of payment still hasn't been
resolved.

While we're working on this, however, you can go ahead and register.
The public announcement will come in the next day or two, once we have
this sorted out; those of you who choose to register now will get an
e-mail at that time with instructions on how to pay.

The address is: https://wm10reg.wikimedia.org/

Sorry for the delay, folks.  Things will hopefully go exponentially
more smoothly as we get caught up.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

[Wikimania-l] Registration update

[Austin Hair]

Hi all,

Registration is finally coming together, but there are a few details
left regarding bank accounts and fees which are being ironed out now.

Thanks for your patience, and rest assured that I'll continue sending
regular updates.  In the meantime, anyone who needs a visa (see [1])
and doesn't yet have an invitation letter, or has any doubt
whatsoever, should e-mail me at aus...@wikimedia.org.

Thanks,

Austin Hair

[1] http://www.wikimania2010.pl/wiki/Wizy/en

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

[Wikimania-l] Registration

[Austin Hair]

Hi all,

Registration for Wikimania 2010 should be open very shortly.  In the
meantime, however, anyone on this list with visa concerns should
e-mail me off-list so I can begin the process of getting you what you
need.

Regards,

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Registration still not open...

[Austin Hair]

On Sat, Jun 5, 2010 at 3:56 AM, Erik Moeller e...@wikimedia.org wrote:
 If you're running into tech nightmares, please consider just using a
 straightforward hosted registration system like Eventbrite or one of
 the higher end solutions. See this page for an overview of tools:

Or consider taking advantage of the help I've offered daily for over a
week, now, complete with software, only to be rebuffed every time.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] about wikimania page

[Austin Hair]

On Wed, Apr 7, 2010 at 12:31 PM, Fajro fai...@gmail.com wrote:
 Wikimania should have only one wiki.
 Why not merge all in wikimania.org?

In short:

* We don't own wikimania.org.

* Having separate wikis for each conference avoids quite a lot of
unnecessary maintanance each year, such as archiving *every single
page* and updating the user list.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] [Wikimania2010] Fwd: A few questions/remarks about Wikimania 2010

[Austin Hair]

On Tue, Feb 23, 2010 at 4:31 PM, Ray Saintonge sainto...@telus.net wrote:
 You're talking like someone who has never been a parent. By way of
 observation, one of the problems with this issue is that most
 Wikimedians are young enough to never have been parents themselves, and
 have no experience with the practical necessities involved.

Where's the like button in gmail?

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] [wikimania 2010] Babysitting?

[Austin Hair]

On Fri, Feb 5, 2010 at 5:30 AM, Mathias Schindler
mathias.schind...@gmail.com wrote:
 Thirded :). We are also considering coming to Wikimedia with Ada (age
 18 month by then, her second Wikimania..).

We've arranged for this in the past.  I do find it cute that we're now
accounting for the first generation of WikiBabies.  :)

Austin
(Still a few years off)

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Computer shop in Buenos Aires

[Austin Hair]

On Aug 22, 2009, at 1:51, Jim Redmond j...@scrubnugget.com wrote:

On Fri, Aug 21, 2009 at 23:36, Ray Saintonge sainto...@telus.net  
wrote:
My wife raised this since she is bringing her laptop.  I hope that I  
was

right in saying that a laptop works off its DC battery, and the public
AC only charges the battery.  A direct connection from the computer to
the wall power would likely scramble the timing when a 60 hertz device
is run with 50 hertz power.

The AC adapter converts the public AC to DC before the electrons  
reach the laptop.  The laptop then distributes that DC wherever it's  
needed: charging the battery, spinning the hard drives, lighting the  
display, whatever.  No need to worry about timing as long as the  
adapter is rated for 50Hz and 220V.




Most consumer electronics, by the way, are rated for 110-240 volts at  
50-60 hertz.  Check first, of course, but a plug adaper is probably  
all you'll need.


Austin
___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Comments

[Austin Hair]

On Tue, Aug 5, 2008 at 6:24 PM, Filip Maljkovic [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
 Just to briefly add my two piasters to the table:
 I was, too, ripped off several times by several people, like most of the
 visitors at one point or another. We all experienced the chaotic
 Egyptian traffic. There were some other minor inconveniences, but if I
 sum it all up, I don't mind them. After the conference, I traveled a lot
 with some Wikimedians; we visited the pyramids of Giza, I rode a camel,
 we saw the way the people in Cairo and Alex really live (outside of the
 travelers' paths), we went to Luxor and saw wonders... All in all, I
 think this was one of my best trips: seeing and experiencing the best
 and the worst of a country makes you really appreciate it. And, at least
 in my book, the good things pretty much outweigh the bad things. And I'm
 sure most people would agree.

Indeed, and in case I wasn't clear in my previous e-mail (actually,
when I wrote it I was afraid I was sounding too defensive of Egypt,
and tried to tone it down), my arrival and stay in the country was
just lovely.  I experienced things not seen in the U.S. and apparently
a severe annoyance to some, but—and this is what I was really trying
to get at—I really wasn't bothered by them.  For sure, the things I
saw and did were well worth the sweltering heat and occasional
inconvenience, and I echo Filip wholeheartedly.

One thing I always kept in mind was that the American twenty in my
pocket was more than a day's wage, which made it hard to get mad about
being overcharged L.E. 5 for cab fare.  (At one point, I was
chastizing Phoebe for giving a cab driver L.E. 10 for the ride down
the corniche from our hotel, at least double the going rate—it's a
buck, she said, and it'll make him really happy.  It dawned on me
that in the U.S. I tip snotty waitresses more for less.)

 But we're talking about cultures and geography. The conference itself
 was done very well, IMHO, and it was more or less as good as the last
 years'. I sure hope I'll be able to attend the next one (although I wish
 the conference be set as early in August as possible).

You're right; the organizing team certainly couldn't do anything about
Egyptian culture if they wanted to.  I can pick nits, but as far as
actually pulling off a conference goes, they did superbly.

Austin
___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Questions about how to start - customs

[Austin Hair]

On Wed, Jul 9, 2008 at 10:47 PM, Geoffrey Plourde [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
 The question regards customs. In the event that people don't clear customs,
 or if customs delays them for a couple hours, will the ground team have
 plans in place to handle that?

Handle what?

In the event that you're refused entry into Egypt, there's not a whole
lot anyone can do about that.  If you're delayed a couple hours, you
may just miss the free shuttle.

However good the organization team may be, it's not their
responsibility to hold every attendee's hand through every step of the
process.  International travel is serious business, and you should
plan for the possibility that everything doesn't go like clockwork.
Your plane may be delayed, you may get stopped at customs, your taxi
might get a flat tire—that's just how it goes.  I wish everyone the
best, but I also expect that they can handle life like grown-ups in
the event that the unexpected does happen.

(Although I assume your question is rhetorical, since you don't appear
to be registered to attend.)

Austin
___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] Status of scholarships

[Austin Hair]

On Sat, Jun 7, 2008 at 12:45 PM, José Alberto Conrado Flores
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
 PS.- If a scholarship ommittee member has a little spare time, could they
 mind telling us (particularly or generally) the reason that we were not
 chosen? Thank you.

Unfortunately, with the hundreds of applications we received, we're
not able to reply individually to those who didn't receive assistance.
 This isn't to say that your applications weren't good, or what you
weren't deserving—the simple fact is that we have an extremely limited
budget, and we chose the people we thought were the best candidates
based on the information available to us.

If you weren't sponsored, it isn't that we looked at your application
and ruled you out, but rather that we weren't able to accommodate you
in our budget.  It's very, very difficult to weigh one person's value
over another's, and there are a great many candidates I wish we could
have helped, but that was the difficult task with which we were
charged, and we did our best.

Austin
___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Re: [Wikimania-l] [ComProj] GSOC 2008

[Austin Hair]

On Tue, Mar 11, 2008 at 6:33 PM, Cary Bass [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
 Christian J. Wong Cruz wrote:
   Hello everybody, I'd like to know if Wikimedia will be a mentor for the
   Google Summer of Code 2008 and if there is a mailling list about this 
 topic.
  
   Thanks
  

  Hi Christian, I'm copying your email to the
  [EMAIL PROTECTED] list, which is the appropriate place to
  ask this question :)

Actually, Wikitech-l would probably be a better place; I doubt anyone
here is qualified to answer that question.

Austin

___
Wikimania-l mailing list
Wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l