Project:About

This wiki is for the documentation, discussion and development of the MediaWiki software, the software which powers websites like Wikipedia and other projects of the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation, as well as many other wikis around the world. It is kindly hosted by the Wikimedia foundation.

All textual content of the site MediaWiki.org is released under the GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL), except for pages that explicitly state that their contents are in the public domain. See Project:Copyrights for full details.

What MediaWiki.org is

 * MediaWiki.org is about MediaWiki itself
 * MediaWiki.org has only one topic: the homonymous wiki engine MediaWiki. At the moment, this site is just meant to give a fundamental introduction to MediaWiki. All other matters are currently still in the state of starting up (relevant contents, e.g. the MediaWiki Handbook, are stored on Meta-Wiki and should be moved with a well thought-out plan in the future ... we still have to work out the plan in detail).
 * Even though there are some pages in other languages, English is the main and reference language on the whole site. This may change at some time in the future, and translation efforts are needed.


 * MediaWiki.org is solely for the documentation of the MediaWiki software
 * Manual:Contents will be the front door to comprehensive MediaWiki system administration documentation.
 * Help:Contents will be the front door to MediaWiki generic site user help (licensed as public domain for easy inclusion into any MediaWiki instance).
 * This site therefore includes pure descriptions, advice, suggestions, and contains how-to's; this includes tutorials, walk-throughs and instruction manuals related to the subject matter.
 * If you are looking to write a free manual for other software, have a look at Wikibooks, which is a sister-project that is suited for such things.
 * This site is for the software. Content relating to so called "metadata" about the projects should be referred to Meta-wiki.


 * MediaWiki.org is heading to become a first access point
 * This site is meant to become the first access point to the world of MediaWiki, collecting and including all important information about it - in the long run.

What MediaWiki.org is not

 * MediaWiki.org is not Wikipedia
 * MediaWiki.org is not the free encyclopedia Wikipedia, please read the article about the names. Wikipedia is merely a wiki running using the software documented by this site. If you're interested in working on the wiki encyclopedia, check it out directly.


 * MediaWiki.org is not a free host or webspace provider
 * This site is not meant to store private, commercial or any other content that is unrelated to the software MediaWiki. It is also not meant to be used as a test wiki e.g. to try out formatting (only use our Sandbox for that or have a look at our test wiki) or to create valid XHTML contents for foreign projects.
 * You may not host your own website, homepage, blog, or wiki at MediaWiki.org. If you are interested in using the wiki technology for a collaborative effort on something else, even if it is just a single page, there are many sites that provide wiki hosting (free or for money). You can also install wiki software on your server; see the Wiki Science wikibook for information on doing this.
 * Of course, users can have their own personal pages, but they are used for information relevant to working on MediaWiki.org. If you are looking to make a personal webpage that is not related to MediaWiki, please make use of one of the many free homepage providers on the Internet or find a suitable blog for you. Advertising, especially external links, may be removed from a user's page when there are no relevant user contributions related to MediaWiki.


 * MediaWiki.org is not a repository of links, images, or media files
 * This site is neither a mirror nor a repository of links, images, or media files. Please upload only files that are useful for MediaWiki.org and provide full information on source and a free license; everything else will be deleted. Read the upload instructions carefully and consider uploading media files to the Wikimedia Commons, where they can be linked from all Wikimedia projects.
 * All content added to MediaWiki.org may have to be edited mercilessly and redistributed at will. By submitting any content, you agree to release it for free use under the GNU FDL, or if it's stated explicitely, as Public Domain.


 * MediaWiki.org is not a vehicle for advertising
 * This site is not a vehicle for (commercial) promotion or advertising, propaganda or advocacy - other than for MediaWiki itself and the Wikimedia projects.


 * MediaWiki.org is not an indiscriminate collection of information
 * This site is not an indiscriminate collection of items of information about whatever. That something is dealing with any wiki or with any software issue in general does not mean it is suitable for inclusion in this site. Please try to stay on the task of creating contents concerning the software MediaWiki.


 * MediaWiki.org is not a forum or a chatroom
 * Don't (mis)use this site, especially user pages and talk pages, as a forum, bulletin board or chatroom (which is a question of quantity and contents, of course). We have an IRC channel on irc.freenode.net for that: #mediawiki.
 * See also the recommended communications channels.

MediaWiki.org history
The first edit in the current wiki on this site happened in August 2004. All the content still is and, of course, will be work in progress. For more about the software history see MediaWiki history.

Contact
Please see Communication.