From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Humorous Wikipedia essay
An
anti-Wikipedian
(
) is the evil doppelganger of a
Wikipedian
; they are
clearly not here to build an encyclopedia
, but to destroy it (in some instances, with a metaphorical
atom bomb
). The best explanation for their existence is the quote,
some men just want to watch the world burn.
[1]
Anti-Wikipedians come in all forms:
IP users
,
registered users
,
sockpuppets
and
edit warriors
. Their usual tactic is
vandalism
, but some also undermine Wikipedia subtly or with more elaborate schemes. What separates anti-Wikipedians from the average-Joe vandal is commitment; anti-Wikipedians may operate for years (even with
blocks
) with complete focus and energy on disrupting Wikipedia, while average-Joe vandal might insert "sucks dick" into a biography once or twice in their wiki-career. Anti-Wikipedians are the hardest vandals to combat, as being blocked doesn't discourage them from creating
a new account
or using a different IP address to continue their work.
More subtle anti-Wikipedians are difficult to identify. These may do a variety of things that aren't necessarily vandalism, but are intended to hurt Wikipedia in some way. This could include:
finding loopholes
in policies that allow them to, for example,
harass a user
; tagging articles for deletion or removing article content for dubious reasons; rearranging categories;
instigating disputes
between Wikipedians;
biting newcomers
;
gaming the system
; and
generally disrupting Wikipedia
in
bad faith
.
The main thing in common between Wikipedians and anti-Wikipedians is a long-term commitment to editing Wikipedia. They will also know their way around Wikipedia. Anti-Wikipedians may use the bookmark tool in their browser in lieu of the
watchlist
. They may also keep a document file, blog, or website to organize and coordinate their activities in lieu of a
user page
.
The easiest anti-Wikipedians to stop are the blatant vandals. Simply report them to the
Administrator Intervention against Vandalism noticeboard
and have them
banished to the Shadow Realm
or
blocked for extended periods of time
. However, they are almost guaranteed to return as either an IP user or sockpuppet. These socks will also have to be blocked once recognized as the anti-Wikipedian. This pattern of vandalizing/blocking/socking can continue for years.
The most difficult anti-Wikipedians to stop or even recognize are the subtle ones. In order to deal with this type of anti-Wikipedian, one must first have
undeniable
evidence of a history of generally disrupting Wikipedia on a regular basis. With this evidence, report them and request a block. They may or may not create a sockpuppet once blocked, so remain alert.
- ^
The Dark Knight
. Dir. Christopher Nolan. Perf. Christian Bale, Michael Cain. Warner Brothers Studios, 2008. DVD.
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- Adminitis
- Akin's Laws of Article Writing
- Alternatives to edit warring
- ANI flu
- Anti-Wikipedian
- Anti-Wikipedianism
- Articlecountitis
- Asshole John rule
- Assume bad faith
- Assume faith
- Assume good wraith
- Assume stupidity
- Assume that everyone's assuming good faith, assuming that you are assuming good faith
- Avoid using preview button
- Avoid using wikilinks
- Bad Jokes and Other Deleted Nonsense
- Barnstaritis
- Before they were notable
- BOLD, revert, revert, revert
- Boston Tea Party
- Butterfly effect
- CaPiTaLiZaTiOn MuCh?
- Complete bollocks
- Counting forks
- Counting juntas
- Crap
- Don't stuff beans up your nose
- Don't-give-a-fuckism
- Don't abbreviate "Wikipedia" as "Wiki"!
- Don't delete the main page
- Editcountitis
- Edits Per Day
- Editsummarisis
- Editing Under the Influence
- Embrace Stop Signs
- Emerson
- Fart
- Five Fs of Wikipedia
- Seven Ages of Editor, by Will E. Spear-Shake
- Go ahead, vandalize
- How many Wikipedians does it take to change a lightbulb?
- How to get away with UPE
- How to put up a straight pole by pushing it at an angle
- How to vandalize correctly
- How to win a citation war
- Ignore all essays
- Ignore every single rule
- Is that even an essay?
- Mess with the templates
- My local pond
- Newcomers are delicious, so go ahead and bite them
- Legal vandalism
- List of jokes about Wikipedia
- LTTAUTMAOK
- No climbing the Reichstag dressed as Spider-Man
- No one cares about your garage band
- No one really cares
- No, really
- No sorcery threats
- Notability is not eternal
- Oops Defense
- Play the game
- Please be a giant dick, so we can ban you
- Please bite the newbies
- Please do not murder the newcomers
- Pledge of Tranquility
- R-e-s-p-e-c-t
- Requests for medication
- Requirements for adminship
- Rouge admin
- Rouge editor
- Sarcasm is really helpful
- Sausages for tasting
- The Night Before Wikimas
- The first rule of Wikipedia
- The Five Pillars of Untruth
- Things that should not be surprising
- The WikiBible
- Watchlistitis
- Wikipedia is an MMORPG
- WTF? OMG! TMD TLA. ARG!
- What Wikipedia is not/Outtakes
- Why not create an account?
- Yes legal threats
- You don't have to be mad to work here, but
- You should not write meaningless lists
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