Thread:Extension talk:Widgets/mediawikiwidgets.org down/reply (15)

My widget is not a backup for anything on any other site. I created it, and shared it on my user page. There are many reasons I keep things on my user page. Firstly, nobody gets an opportunity to abuse me over it, and secondly, I just can't keep track of all the scattered flaky documentation sites out there. Some of them aren't even running current versions of their own software! Besides, a small minority of the developers throw a fit if I try to update "their" documentation here at mediawiki.org, and it doesn't inconvenience me at all to avoid them completely.

Those privately hosted documentation sites are destined for failure, and I've tried to warn some of the operators, and I got snubbed. They're frequently down, they frequently lose data, and their owners were frequently finding something to be angry about when I used contribute to their projects. So, they can have their wasteland out in the boonies that no one can find, and I can have my user page that everyone can find, and has never been down, ever.

Plus, my user page actually has some useful up-to-date documentation on the latest bugs, features, and changes. I'm a lot happier when people aren't throwing a tantrum because they don't like my contributions. A lot of other people appreciate it too, and I'm not alone in not wanting to deal with the Little Hitlers with arrogant egos so big that they think it's OK to give the big FUCK YOU every time you get within a mile of them. That's never OK, ever, to do to anyone. It's worthy of the utmost contempt.

I write good documentation, I do a good job finding bugs, and I'm nobody's kick toy. I'm loving my user page - nobody can shit on me anymore. No insults, no tantrums, no snideness, no belittling, no humiliation, no money-grubbing, no playing dumb with me like I can't speak English. I want nothing to do with anybody treats me like that, if I can avoid them, and so far, every single person who has treated me like that is one of the members of the same cabal of arrogant cunts that insists I play on their playground so they can fuck with me.

No, thank you.

I'll be courteous and respectful dealing with those people, but I'm not their entertainment. I say I forget when they treat me like that, but I really don't. I remember every insult, every snide bit of attitude. They think I'm nobody that's just going come and go like so many others, and I'm fine with that. They can think whatever they want. They can treat me like shit, and watch me smile back, while thinking it'll never come back to them...

Then, they can lick my balls when people ask for help and they get it from MY user page, not their little bully fiefdom. That's how I deal with their problems. I do things right, as best I can, and I take the abuse more or less quietly. While they're wasting their brainpower thinking up some new way abuse people, I'm avoiding them as best I can, and moving forward to accomplish something helpful.

So, yes, it is my business, but I'm not promoting anything. People come to my user page because they know it might have something helpful. Anyone can copy it from my user page to whatever hole they think it should disappear into. I put it there so it might be helpful.

Most of us are volunteers here, and I'm not on any payroll. If keeping some of my contributions on my user page helps me avoid nasty, abrasive people that are going to stress me out, then that's what I'll do. It's not worth dealing with them any more than I have to. It takes some of the enjoyment out of my participation here.

Just to be clear, I'm not saying or implying that the above is directed at anyone specific, and certainly not anyone participating in this discussion now. The people I'm referring to know who they are, and nothing more need be said. In fact, its not even directed at them, either, since it changes nothing whether they're aware of this little rant or not. Hopefully it makes it clear, however, exactly why I'm avoiding writing documentation in the "official" places. There's a lot less stress that way, and I sleep better at night.

Incidentally, this whole issue is a big one for the WMF, and if I remember correctly, polling on the subject revealed the same sentiments when people were asked why they stopped contributing to Wikipedia and other WMF projects. I don't know what the "final solution" will be, but the solution for me is usually to just avoid trespassing on anybody's territory. Putting documentation away from the WMF is like a "no trespassing" sign.