Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 20:35, 25 November 2008

Archives

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48

This page has archives. Sections older than 14 days may be automatically archived by Lowercase sigmabot III.

Template:ACE2008Candidate

• /About me
• /Plaudits

Disambiguation

Hi. Just a reminder of the thread at Misplaced Pages talk:Manual of Style (disambiguation pages)#Consistency issue. I think all the editors there are willing-to-be-convinced; we just need some specific and representative examples to keep the discussion focused. I suggested the long blue (disambiguation), but anything long should be suitable.

Thanks. -- Quiddity (talk) 01:58, 17 October 2008 (UTC)

Hmmm ... I'm thinking "a second blue link must serve an important interpretative function for the sentence fragment itself, and one that is not served by the first", as my version. Charles Matthews (talk) 14:52, 17 October 2008 (UTC)

Could you respond at the thread itself? Just replying to me on your own talkpage won't further the discussion!

If you could edit a long disambiguation page (such as Mercury (the example currently used in the guideline), or Blue (disambiguation)) into the style that you would recommend (with a diff link showing the changes), that would probably be the most clear&efficient way to communicate your thoughts to everyone. Thanks. -- Quiddity (talk) 19:14, 17 October 2008 (UTC)

Intending to, but suddenly there has been a lot else to discuss. Charles Matthews (talk) 09:04, 22 October 2008 (UTC)

No problem, I noticed that :) We're not disappearing anywhere, and as you said, a full debate over the matter could be very useful. I'll just bump the thread, if it gets close to being archived. -- Quiddity (talk) 17:00, 22 October 2008 (UTC) (datebump -- Quiddity (talk) 01:39, 18 November 2008 (UTC)

Many thanks. Apart from 140 election questions, a mediation, another offline conversation, and an ArbCom FAQ I've been drafting ... not much to do, really. But fixing the archive is one off the list ... Charles Matthews (talk) 13:45, 18 November 2008 (UTC)

Archiving assistance

Hi Charles, one of my hobbies is archiving talkpages and setting up archivebots... May I set up a bot for your page, and an automated archive box? Or would you rather handle it manually? I could set up a bot that would automatically archive any threads that had gone inactive for a period of time (14 days?), and then you wouldn't have to worry about it anymore. You could still archive threads more quickly on a manual basis at any time of course. Let me know? :) --Elonka 14:36, 21 October 2008 (UTC)

Hah, right now, that seems a thoughtful suggestion. I graciously accept. But longer than 14 days would be better. Charles Matthews (talk) 14:57, 21 October 2008 (UTC)

Righto! I've set it for a 30-day cutoff, and this can be easily changed depending on your needs. BTW, don't worry about it blanking your page or anything, as the bot is set by default to never completely harvest everything, and it'll always leave at least five threads on your page. This is also configurable, if you would like the minimum to be less or more. And sorry for the clutter to your watchlist... I had to move some of the existing archives around in order to get the archivebox to work on "automatic" mode. But it should all be good now, and I added some headers so you can easily step through the archives if you ever need to go hunting for something. From now on, you should never have to worry about archiving again!  :) Hope you like it, and if you'd like any tweaks, let me know, --Elonka 16:49, 21 October 2008 (UTC)

Many thanks. Sounds as if it would be difficult to break, at least. Charles Matthews (talk) 16:59, 21 October 2008 (UTC)

You should move /Archive27 to /Archive 27 in order to follow the previous/standard naming convention, and so that the {archivebox|auto=yes} can find and list it. -- Quiddity (talk) 01:39, 18 November 2008 (UTC)

Charles, I also tweaked the bot down to a 14-day cutoff, since your page has been fairly busy lately. --Elonka 17:49, 18 November 2008 (UTC)

OK, thanks, I'll get the hang of it all. Charles Matthews (talk) 17:53, 18 November 2008 (UTC)

Flowcharts

I'm happy to help with the flow charts. Do you have a idea of what you want or a rough sketch? --Kevin Murray (talk) 00:42, 25 October 2008 (UTC)

I've been away for a few days. Before I went I was working on an idea for maintenance of redlink lists in project space, specifically related to the needs of merging in old encyclopedias. We were having a thread earlier, here on this page, about the situation where a bluelink goes to a wrong page, for the intended meaning. Trying to place this all in context, I came up with a list of (I think) 15 states of such a link on a list; and the link might be red or blue (and change, either way). In other words under this scheme there is quite a large diagram to show, to make clear the process. It might need breaking down into several, though. I'll try to put up a subpage with details, so you can have a look at it. Charles Matthews (talk) 10:31, 29 October 2008 (UTC)

Najidah article query

Hello Charles. I'm wondering about the Najidah (Australia) article, which you had edited a while ago tidying it up a bit. It ever so feels like a bit of an advert, and if one analyses what links to it, it seems thin. There are so many organisations like this, maybe in Australia, does it make sense to have this one stand out so ? I applaud its work, but I think it was inserted with clever visibility desires and motives, or not, as the case may be. If you had an impression, I would be grateful. Oh --- also --- nice work on your co-authored new book on "How Misplaced Pages Works" via No Starch Press. Well done to you and your co-authors. Bests. --- (Bob) Wikiklrsc (talk) 01:31, 25 October 2008 (UTC)

I agree it needs work. I saved it from speedy deletion, basically because the notability issue wasn't then addressed. My question would be about what independent coverage of the organisation there is. Copyediting for tone is also required, but that's a secondary issue. Charles Matthews (talk) 10:23, 29 October 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for your reply, Charles. Well, I take your points, and will look into it when time permits. Bests. --- (Bob) Wikiklrsc (talk) 16:30, 29 October 2008 (UTC)

personal attacks

Hi, I would like to appeal to your help to forstall further unpleasant edit warring. Gandalf and I had a bit of a spat at the talk page of graph. He found it to be good wiki etiquette immediately to go on an offensive against my new page Ghosts of departed quantities as well as my edits at uniform continuity. Please comment. Katzmik (talk) 09:47, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

Well, a few points.

• • As far as I'm concerned, graph now means symmetric non-reflexive relation. Older books do say otherwise. So the whole debate at graph (mathematics) seems unfortunate.
  • Your approach of nominating an "expert" is usually unhelpful. Misplaced Pages is compiled by looking at expert writings, not by adopting one expert as an authority. So, I think Gandalf is at least 60% right here.
  • I have been wanting to discuss with you the choice of topics. It is clear to me that you have much to contribute to our articles. A title like Ghosts of departed quantities is not the best kind of topic, though. It is more like a headline in a science magazine, if you understand me. I know something about the whole area: philosophical criticism of the methods of calculus, I would call it. Therefore I would prefer an easier title: easier in the sense that the scope of the article is clearer. Charles Matthews (talk) 16:20, 29 October 2008 (UTC)

He and I seem to be mending fences, and even working together at uniform continuity, I hope this continues (what I objected to at the graph talk page was what I felt was a wanton accusation of disregard of a wikipedia regulation, but I can certainly have expressed myself without appealing to motherhood and apple pie, for which I have apologized). As far as Berkeley is concerned, we are not responsible for his choice of words. The words he chose are the ones to have entered our collective scientific consciousness, who cares whether it sounds like a BBC soundbite? I think that instant recognisability of the title is a far better indication of the scope of the article than the best penned prose. Katzmik (talk) 16:34, 29 October 2008 (UTC)

No, I can't agree. It's not one of the usual problems, but you seem to have a - what? - blind spot about the scope of a topic, and the expectations of the type of content. This can make your contributions look a little "displaced". Which is a shame, since we are sure you have interesting things to write here. Charles Matthews (talk) 22:07, 29 October 2008 (UTC)

If you feel you have a valid criticism please make it on the talk page of the article in question. We are talking about a name change for an article? Katzmik (talk) 11:06, 30 October 2008 (UTC)

I can do that, but I wanted to make some overall comment, too. Titles here are a little different from on a general wiki - that's the real point. Charles Matthews (talk) 11:09, 30 October 2008 (UTC)

Hobby Editing

Can I interest you in taking a break from your religious editing? Go strategy needs some well written and concise paragraphs on yose and middlegame for the FA push. Love, --ZincBelief (talk) 17:17, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

I've added a section under "Strategy" - hope that was what you had in mind. Charles Matthews (talk) 07:27, 31 October 2008 (UTC)

Thank you Charles, I shall endeavour to pepper it with references.--ZincBelief (talk) 11:53, 31 October 2008 (UTC)

Clarification

Re: { http://en.wikipedia.org/Overdetermined_system : Inhomogeneous case }

Dear Charles

I would like to ask for a clarification regarding the inhomogeneous case entry in the overdetermined system wiki I preemptively apologize for your time in case the issue is trivial - however is not that clear to me, maybe due to lack of linear algebra expertize :)

In the page under consideration, there is the following statement:

"M equations* and N unknowns*, such that M>N and all M are linearly independent. This case yields no solution."

My question: The number of the linearly independent rows of an MxN matrix (M equations, N unknowns) equals the rank of the matrix. However, from page 105 in Strang the row rank = column rank. How it is possible to have M linearly independent rows leading to a rank = M, but then M > N? Shouldn't the rank be always ≤ min(M,N) ?

Thank you very much

chris

Cpanagio (talk) 01:33, 28 October 2008 (UTC)

It's a mistake, introduced by this edit. The previous version should be OK. Thank you for pointing it out. Charles Matthews (talk) 10:36, 29 October 2008 (UTC)

Rules of Go#Territory

Hello. I'd appreciate comment at Talk:Rules of Go#"Original research" template. 128.32.238.145 (talk) 05:03, 29 October 2008 (UTC)

Titles

Hi, Concerning your remark on Ghosts of departed quantities, I think it would be great if material could be added on other philosophical challenges to infinitesimal calculus. Does the current title describe the current content of the page accurately? Katzmik (talk) 11:28, 30 October 2008 (UTC)

Roman Catholic diocese of X

I understand your concern for the long version, but the long version is more precise. I don't mind creating redirects for such pages, but the vast majority have been created by either myself or npeters22 as the long version first, without redirects to the short version. Apologies for making more work for you, but that was not the intent, the intent was simply to fill out the pages on all the Catholic dioceses worldwide. Thank you.

Benkenobi18 (talk) 06:06, 31 October 2008 (UTC)

Please understand a couple of things, since they matter. The title convention, generally, is not to use a "precise" name, but the common name. Therefore that is not really an acceptable argument. Secondly, since Misplaced Pages is a piece of hypertext, not a set of isolated articles, there is always an obligation to look at the ways a created article should be linked in. Creating a redirect from diocese of X is just common sense. You seem to think your long version is "standard", to judge by some of your comments. I have explained why it is not "standard" (doesn't match general practice on titles), and is not helpful either. We, none of us, work in a vacuum. Charles Matthews (talk) 06:57, 31 October 2008 (UTC)

Attempted Outing by an Editor who is suspected of being a sockpuppet of the article's subject, William Rodriguez

Hi Charles,

I'm an editor (Contrivance) of the William Rodriguez page. William witnessed 9/11 in the twin towers and has made a career of traveling around lecturing about his heroism. He's gotten a lot more press coverage in the UK than in the USA. The most serious article, in the Herald of Glasgow, points out weaknesses in his story.

I considered identity speculations about me a dumb joke for some time, but recently two 9/11 witnesses (Barry Jennings and Kenny Johanneman) have turned up dead and Willie seems to be hanging around with the allegedly ex-MI5 agent Annie Machon, and I no longer consider it appropriate to tolerate attempted outing and intimidation. I don't want any responsibility for any associated mischief that might follow.

Contrivance (talk) 21:41, 31 October 2008 (UTC)

I'm looking into it. Charles Matthews (talk) 21:59, 31 October 2008 (UTC)

Wow, you work fast! Thanks! Contrivance (talk) 22:02, 31 October 2008 (UTC)

I've placed a templated message on User talk:Celeronel. Fair warning. Charles Matthews (talk) 22:06, 31 October 2008 (UTC)

Mr. Charles, can you kindly check the other side allegations? H has been an obvious stalker, harraser and editing in bad faith. Check this time his postings and NPOV, his constant lack of judgemnt when he is shown to be mistaken by other Admins here, like Aude, Arthur Rubin and others. PLease also look at his insistence on vandalising the page constantly when evidence is shown to be contrary to his agenda. Also please look at the talk page, my talk page, Jazz2006 talk page and basically every other poster talk page to realise that hi has done the same actions to others. His complains of being called XX, after his initial name calling to every other editor, based on race jokes (check his talk page), insulting others for not being able to "comprehend" english, implying that everybody else is dumb(this is one of the recurring insults), his insistence of placing non wiki material after being constantly told not to by other admins. Etc Etc. In all fairness, I accept that I do not have the patience to deal with ppeople like him, but an effort should be made on your side to be also fair and see the other side. See the evidence posted and finally if fairness is the call, the same sactions should be performed on him as well. Calling the dead of Kenny Johanneman into this is really sad, Kenny was WIlliam's friend and left a suicide note calling for him to be nnotified among others. Do listen to the radio show were he talks about it.If he does not want to be responsible for any mischief, he should start to act correctly within Misplaced Pages rules. He has not. About Richard's Gage issue, it was Contrivance who insisted in placing a non-wiki item, from the powerhour radio, hosted illegaly on another site, he tried to change the matter of the content and it's significance, please do listen to the show and see his intial insistence on posting his point of view and changed facts. I only corrected it and learned that (with verifiable links by wiki-please check) that the organisation indeed was named to be a sponsor of homegrown terrorism in Legislative Hearings and televised on C-Span. Also it is false that he received more press in the UK than in the USA, just google "William Rodriguez 9/11" and see for your self. The Herald that he quotes is one of the many out there and counterarguments has been placed accordingly to show the differing views, wiki style. Thanks.Celeronel (talk) 02:34, 1 November 2008 (UTC)

for the record, you said "And please start fresh threads at the bottom, which is the convention here"

I did not start at the top of the page, it was user Contrivance constant misusing of my page who did that. You are welcome to check that out on the history of the page as well. Thanks again.Celeronel (talk) 03:00, 1 November 2008 (UTC)

The comments were of course directed to all users of the page. Charles Matthews (talk) 08:36, 1 November 2008 (UTC)

Wow, asking Celeronel to explain the rationale for his edits (he just says "this belongs here") is stalking. I don't insult people (or invoke racism) for their problems in comprehending English--I recognize that it is the most difficult language in the world. I simply point out that poor reading comprehension results in some problems in research, interpretation, and communication. I didn't bring Kenny Johanneman in--Celeronel did, trying to obfuscate the reasons for WR's resignation from the Truth movement. Contrivance (talk) 03:36, 1 November 2008 (UTC)

FYI, I have blocked Celeronel indef as a sock of Wtcsurvivor. For details see WP:Suspected sock puppets/Wtcsurvivor. This account, Celeronel, was reviewed for blocking at the time this SSP was closed in mid-September but was not blocked then because it seemed to be no longer active. As I noticed after I happened to see the conversation here, this account has evidently returned to vigorous activity on the favorite article of Wtcsurvivor. EdJohnston (talk) 03:33, 1 November 2008 (UTC)

No content in Category:Archbishops of Lille

Hello, this is a message from an automated bot. A tag has been placed on Category:Archbishops of Lille, by another Misplaced Pages user, requesting that it be speedily deleted from Misplaced Pages. The tag claims that it should be speedily deleted because Category:Archbishops of Lille has been empty for at least four days, and its only content has been links to parent categories. (CSD C1).

To contest the tagging and request that administrators wait before possibly deleting Category:Archbishops of Lille, please affix the template {{hangon}} to the page, and put a note on its talk page. If the article has already been deleted, see the advice and instructions at WP:WMD. Feel free to contact the bot operator if you have any questions about this or any problems with this bot, bearing in mind that this bot is only informing you of the nomination for speedy deletion; it does not perform any nominations or deletions itself. To see the user who deleted the page, click here CSDWarnBot (talk) 19:10, 3 November 2008 (UTC)

Kuban Kazak-Hillock arbcom case

Hi, you recently signalled your intent to accept a case on Kuban kazak. It is not my position to direct you to change your intent, however, I would like to ensure that you have read all the statements which were submitted to the case in question after you signalled your intent to take this case on board. In the event that you haven't kept up with developments on the case, could you please review the case again, and consider if it does in fact require arbcom intervention. Thanks. --Russavia 03:02, 4 November 2008 (UTC)

Re your motion

I'm curious where you stand on the permissibility of user subpages that are designed to track articles with a problematic history, for the purposes of maintaining high quality articles. I'm not saying any particular current situation matches that description, but it is certainly possible. In this type of case, a page might have a list of articles and users, and some descriptions of editing style for users which may be interpreted as negative or detrimental to article quality. Would this be considered prohibited because it is not related to active dispute resolution? Avruch 20:25, 7 November 2008 (UTC)

Well, my personal view is that this is not what we want on the wiki. We have watchlists and Related Changes. We permit shared watchlists, therefore. In the interests of harmony, issues with particular editors should be raised first directly with them. Charles Matthews (talk) 20:34, 7 November 2008 (UTC)

User:Defender Of Justice

He just did this to your message - http://en.wikipedia.org/search/?title=User_talk:Defender_Of_Justice&diff=prev&oldid=250684070

- I think some action - probably blocking - is in order. Paul Austin (talk) 00:07, 10 November 2008 (UTC)

Deleting the message isn't anything serious. But I was unimpressed with some of the editing I saw - at tarantula, for example, switching many links around, apparently frivolously. Charles Matthews (talk) 07:32, 10 November 2008 (UTC)

Well, do something to him - asking him politely hasn't worked. Paul Austin (talk) 08:49, 10 November 2008 (UTC)

Asking politely is what we do, though. I'll post a message with stronger wording. Charles Matthews (talk) 08:51, 10 November 2008 (UTC)

Now blocked for 24 hours. Charles Matthews (talk) 15:47, 10 November 2008 (UTC)

Good. Keep an eye on him though - he'll soon be back to his old tricks, i fear. Paul Austin (talk) 09:02, 11 November 2008 (UTC)

Candidate Podcasts

Wikivoices (formally NotTheWikipediaWeekly) would be interested in making several podcasts with candidates running in the 2008 English Misplaced Pages Arbitration Committee election. Given the high number of candidates likely to be signing up during the nomination stage (likely to be around 45) it will be a very busy 2 weeks. These shows typically last about one and a half hours to record, taking into account setup time, and are recorded using the free, downloadable programme, Skype. The programme can be used on Windows, Mac OS and Linux operating systems and is also available on some mobile platforms. If any candidates have problems with installing or running the program please contact me at my talk page or by email

There will be 2 formats being run over the next 2 weeks. The first will be general discussion with a small number candidates at a time with several experienced hosts from Wikivoices. Each candidate will be given 2-3 minutes to introduce themselves then the main body of the cast will begin. The topics discussed will vary in each recording to ensure fairness however the atmosphere will be generally free flowing. These will be running throughout the two weeks starting tomorrow. Specific signup times can be found here at our meta page. PLease sign up for all the times you are available for. You will be notified which one we would like to attend.

The second format will be based on a similar style to election debates. Questions will be suggested here by the community. A selection of these will then be put to a panel of larger panel candidates with short and concise 1-2 minute responses. Other than an introduction and hello from each candidate, there will be no opportunity for a lengthier introductions. Specific signup times can be found here at our meta page.

It is recommended that candidates attend both formats of casts and we will try to be as flexible as possible. We are looking for the greatest participation but also for shows with enough members to keep it interesting but not too many that it causes bandwidth and general running issues. I look forward to working with all candidates in the coming weeks. Seddσn 12:52, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

Hmm, interesting. I don't have Skype, but this could be a reason ... Charles Matthews (talk) 13:29, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

ArbCom Candidate Template

Hello, fellow candidate! Just so you know, in an effort to announce our candidacies and raise further awareness of the election, I have created the template {{ACE2008Candidate}}, which I would invite you to place on your user and user talk pages. The template is designed to direct users to your Questions and Discussion pages, as well as to further information about the election. Best of luck in the election! Hersfold 16:36, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for your work. Good luck yourself. Charles Matthews (talk) 16:38, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

Bishzilla

Your query - she is User:Bishonen, so your assumption is correct. Charles Matthews (talk) 17:02, 13 November 2008 (UTC)

Yes, Bish noted that in their questions (though I knew previously).

What I'm not sure what to make of is the seriousness of the candidacy, or if perhaps there is a "point" to the candidacy ("no big deal" or some such), or if it's just a case of wanting to use a different username for arbcomm, or whatever. So I dunno, and am not sure that it's worth the time pursuing to find out : )

That said, thank you for the clarification. You had no way to know whether I knew or not. Thanks again : ) - jc37 17:08, 13 November 2008 (UTC)

Oh, dead serious. We must elect women, you know. (Trying to be non-threatening, maybe.) Charles Matthews (talk) 17:12, 13 November 2008 (UTC)

Lol@ non-threatening.

See my comments at User:Bishonen/Bishzilla RFA : ) - jc37 17:57, 13 November 2008 (UTC)

Full and frank ...

Thanks for your (very) full and frank answer to my question at the election page. I do appreciate it and I hope that others will too. Best regards, Angus McLellan (Talk) 01:48, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

I'll be writing more in regard to Chaser's question. Obviously people want to hold me to account, and that is quite proper, and one reason I'm standing again (I suppose - when I decided to run, there were a number of factors to consider). Charles Matthews (talk) 07:56, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

Looking for a sharp stick...

Though James F. hasn't responded yet, I just thought I'd mention that (at least at the moment), your comments, coupled with some other things I've been reading lately, may have caused me to change my perspective on 2 year term lengths. (More ironic, since, I believe I was the first to suggest 2 year lengths quite awhile back.)

So at the moment, I'm looking for a rather sharp stick. When I find one I'll be back (smiles). - jc37 03:56, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

It all depends what we're trying to address. The two-year terms are supposed (I think) to reconfigure slightly the relationship of ArbCom and community. I was talking about maximising the useful arbitration work done. The main problem right now is long open cases. And that is several issues: drafting delay and voting delay have separate causes.

By the way, James will probably answer in a bit. Maybe you should just mail him. Charles Matthews (talk) 08:42, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

My main concern was/is burnout. Because that simply leads to less activity, or even possibly less-than-at-one's-best activity. And honestly because I like to think of myself as a nice person and don't like the idea of societical pressures on someone to continue on despite them feeling (emotionally, and perhaps even physically) that they don't wish to. And noticing how many resign early (which can be a minor trial itself).

(And reading above, I'm wondering if perhaps I made James' task of responding easier... I dunno : ) - jc37 10:32, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

I'm not a checkuser: arbs who are may find it takes up most of the time they have. Regarded as a management issue, people burning out is quite complex. Charles Matthews (talk) 11:43, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

Agreed that it can be complex (which I think we both noted at your questions page : ) - jc37 12:30, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

I apologize for

this Slrubenstein | Talk 18:56, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

Apology accepted. Charles Matthews (talk) 10:02, 15 November 2008 (UTC)

Your comments

As you have chosen to mention me in your vulgar scramble to be re-elected please be aware I have posted a question in reply here:

Frankly, I find it incredible that such as you and James Forrester feel you have something further to offer Misplaced Pages, but we shall not go there. That you choose to mention Arbcom's secret (very wise) deliberations demeans you. That I cause you to become "into loops arguing" is probably because I am of more value to the project than you and your present colleagues. Please do not mention me, or involve me in you campaign for power again. Thank you. Giano (talk) 22:13, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

A chance to put across my point of view. It is an open secret that the ArbCom has been divided. The "loops" is a qualitative reason, in explanation: we debate the matter, without resolving it (it's the same as computers looping, I was using a metaphor). I have a couple of times voted against you. Two points. Firstly, when the ArbCom divides, you deserve to know how many voices each way. It is fair warning. Secondly, if I'm to speak to why I voted that way. The underlying problem is with any editor who cannot or will not treat other Wikipedians in good standing as colleagues. That's it: that is what has swayed my vote in the past. I value your work. You might find something to value in mine: we don't edit in the same areas. If you never had any signal from Arbitrators as to the problems they find, I think you might have more reason to be aggrieved.

In any case, I'm glad of a chance to explain. According to my lights, I'm acting honestly and openly.

My re-election is up to the whole community. I'm sorry not to have your vote. If I'm "kicked upstairs" as emeritus I imagine 2009 will be a pleasant year of article writing. I'm currently covering the 17th century (see Ramism, a new article). How about you? Charles Matthews (talk) 10:12, 15 November 2008 (UTC)

Speedy close RFC?

Is it possible to speedy close the RFC if issues are now resolved? Jehochman 14:49, 15 November 2008 (UTC)

Fine with me. The victim here of the "alleged outing" has not had a full hearing, but that is not the focus. Charles Matthews (talk) 15:18, 15 November 2008 (UTC)

RFArb page - Motion: Tobias Case

Would like to request that you change your vote so this may be archived sooner, before the RFArb page gets too much longer. I make this request given that the active current case (Kuban) has similar proposals - I expect they can be tweaked in such a way that it will eliminate the need for amending the Tobias case, while providing any necessary clarification. Ncmvocalist (talk) 18:04, 15 November 2008 (UTC)

If the way to go is to treat these points as part of the Workshop for that case, then, yes, the motion can be archived. I'm being guided by what others think here. We don't yet seem clear what is cosmetic and what constitutional in the differences, but perhaps that's a sign that some constitutional clarification will be seen in future. Charles Matthews (talk) 19:00, 15 November 2008 (UTC)

RfC Closure

You are welcome. Yes, I understand. Tried a couple times to steer discussion back to original Statement of Dispute. No problema. Onward. Mervyn Emrys (talk) 14:53, 16 November 2008 (UTC)

User:Dr. Perfessor

This seems to be a sockpuppet account of User:Mervyn Emrys. Look at this diff . The edits to the article on Lynton K. Caldwell seem to be a copyvio from an obituary reproduced here from the Bloomington Herald Times. Much of the obituary was copied-and-pasted into the article. Isn't there a rule about sockpuppet accounts? This diff seems to be unknowingly admitting the sockpuppetry, since the biographical material was added by User:Mervyn Emrys. Could someone possibly be playing the system? Mathsci (talk) 22:17, 16 November 2008 (UTC)

I'll ask directly if there is any connection. Charles Matthews (talk) 08:40, 17 November 2008 (UTC)

BTW, just in case you were interested, I very much like opera, but not melodrama. After BWV 651-668, I'll probably get to work on a Handel Opera, using my 2 volume Winton Dean (that I already added as a reference for all his operas). Ariodante looks as if it needs some TLC. Mathsci (talk) 03:41, 19 November 2008 (UTC)

More of a Wagner man myself. Charles Matthews (talk) 06:45, 19 November 2008 (UTC)

Wagner is not excluded :) Mathsci (talk) 07:35, 19 November 2008 (UTC)

I was chatting to User:Mindspillage at the Wikimania party about my actual tastes, and as I mentioned Purcell as well I don't think they made much sense to her (an actual musician). I have had this experience before: I say a few names and they don't seem to add up. (Alkan, Gubaidulina, ... just eclectic stuff). Charles Matthews (talk) 08:10, 19 November 2008 (UTC)

I am a fan of Purcell, too, as is our common friend in CA. The Mathematics Orchestra there played dance music from Abdelazar and the Fairy Queen arranged by me during graduation last year, so it's catching. Do you know the 4 pavans of Purcell for two strings and bass? Mathsci (talk) 13:49, 19 November 2008 (UTC)

Probably not - he's a recent discovery for me, though I've had Dido and Aeneas for a while. Charles Matthews (talk) 16:33, 19 November 2008 (UTC)

Arbcom Elections - Question Page list thing

Good morning. You already had most of the General Questions answered, so I did not transclude the master list. However, we had three late entries, so I posted them to your General Questions section, and moved two questions posted to you specifically. Those two questions went to the top section, right above the General Questions. I think I matched the formatting you already had, but please feel free to undo and redo as you see fit. Again, good luck with your candidacy. Best, UltraExactZZ ~ Evidence 14:28, 17 November 2008 (UTC)

Arbcom election

• User:Jc37/Userboxes/Deskana4Arbcom
• User:Jc37/Userboxes/NYB4Arbcom
• User:Jc37/Userboxes/Raul6544Arbcom

Per the above three (which were created last year through discussion with those under discussion), I'd like to select a few candidates to do the same with this year, and you're one of the those.

So if you don't strongly oppose the idea, would you help by suggesting/selecting a few appropriate images? - jc37 15:11, 17 November 2008 (UTC)

Image:CRMatHeadway1.jpg, i.e. the second on my User page, might crop down to a good head shot of me. It is recent and at a good resolution. This one: Image:Honinbo Shusaku.jpg; of a famous go player, might be more what you are looking for.

Charles Matthews (talk) 16:21, 17 November 2008 (UTC)

• User:Jc37/Userboxes/Charles Matthews4Arbcom

And of course, you and others are welcome to use it. The phrase is customisable (as is the "float"). Enjpy. - jc37 23:52, 17 November 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for answer to my question

Not sure I love the answer, but fyi you have my vote (as do several others...). While I don't personally agree with some positions you've taken or explanations you have given, I value your experience and dedication, and think Arbcom will be better for having a variety of thoughtful viewpoints on it, even where I'm not sure I agree with them. Martinp (talk) 06:28, 19 November 2008 (UTC)

Thank you for your support. Charles Matthews (talk) 06:44, 19 November 2008 (UTC)

AfD nomination of Children of Albion: Poetry of the Underground in Britain

I have nominated Children of Albion: Poetry of the Underground in Britain, an article that you created, for deletion. I do not think that this article satisfies Misplaced Pages's criteria for inclusion, and have explained why at Misplaced Pages:Articles for deletion/Children of Albion: Poetry of the Underground in Britain. Your opinions on the matter are welcome at that same discussion page; also, you are welcome to edit the article to address these concerns. Thank you for your time. β 09:06, 20 November 2008 (UTC)

ArbCom questions

Hi. I'm Ral315, editor of the Misplaced Pages Signpost. We're interviewing all ArbCom candidates for an article this week, and your response is requested.

1. What positions do you hold (adminship, mediation, etc.), on this or other wikis?

2. Have you been involved in any arbitration cases? In what capacity?

3. Why are you running for the Arbitration Committee?

4. How do you feel the Arbitration Committee has handled cases and other situations over the last year? Can you provide an examples of situations where you feel the Committee handled a situation exceptionally well, and why? Any you feel they handled poorly, and why?

5. What is your opinion on confidentiality? If evidence is submitted privately to the Committee, would you share it with other parties in the case? Would you make a decision based on confidential information without making it public?

6. Why do you think users should vote for you?

Please respond on my talk page. We'll probably go to press on Tuesday, but late responses will be added as they're submitted. Thanks, Ral315 (talk) 10:25, 23 November 2008 (UTC)

1. Admin, arbitrator, oversight (ex officio: I hardly use the tool) on enWP.
2. Three (I think) as party, a large number in three years on the Arbcom.
3. Standing again. I think it is good to deal with my record in a public way, considering the accumulation of issues; and on a couple of the biggest of those issues this has been my first real chance to speak out (for different reasons, re Matthew Hoffman and re Poetlister). I still have time to deal with arbitration work - the reasons I was on leave in 2008 will not recur in the same form. We expect and hope for new blood on the ArbCom; but the committee works best with a broad mixture of people. So I'm offering my services once more.
4. 2008 (including late 2007) was a classic curate's egg. Big mistakes were made, and some exceptionally tough cases brought to conclusions that will probably last the test of time. Things were too fast or too slow, at least for public opinion; things were sometimes too prolix, and probably other things left out points that should have been included. I can quite see why people think this wasn't inspired stuff. Some initiatives seem to have run away into the sand. But since no one really has a better model for dispute resolution when all else fails, we have to move on. (External factors had a big impact, as everyone should understand.)
5. Confidentiality should be absolute, except by agreement. If emails come to the ArbCom, they are treated as confidential until such time as we have figured what is the appropriate way to pass on anything and checked back with the sender. In a private hearing it is in some cases to the right way to solicit evidence as private under explicit conditions (to be passed to other parties, or not). We had such a case this summer. In cases involving "conflict of interest" (WP:COI) it may really only be the ArbCom who can handle the delicate matter of whether an apparent conflict of interest of a pseudonymous editor is real, and the ArbCom who can fairly deal with the situation. Often we might know a real-life identity of an editor because the editor disclosed it to us. In that, case, clearly, we do the right thing in the case about COI but do not "out" the editor, and do not comment on the identity and speculation about it. What else?
6. "The devil you know"? I'm still a prolific editor committed to the project, as I was in 2005. The difference would be that I know more about Misplaced Pages and the dispute resolution process. Charles Matthews (talk) 15:19, 23 November 2008 (UTC)

Catholic encyclopedia

Hi Charles. I was wondering if you knew what percentage of the public domain Catholic encyclopedia we have on wikipedia. Wasn't there a list of missing articles somewhere? Count Blofeld 19:43, 23 November 2008 (UTC)

• Misplaced Pages:Catholic Encyclopedia topics. But I think the percentages there per letter aren't updated. My impression is that it is 90% done. The thing is, as explained at Misplaced Pages:Merging encyclopedias, the "headline" percentage tends to conceal what the actual status is. Charles Matthews (talk) 20:47, 23 November 2008 (UTC)

Psst! There nothing to vote on yet

There is no motion posted yet regarding SV. The natives are getting restless because they don't know what you are supporting, though I think it is both implicit and obvious. Maybe you want to make it explicit too. Jehochman 22:07, 23 November 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for the heads-up: too near my bedtime. I have amplified. Charles Matthews (talk) 12:13, 24 November 2008 (UTC)

Amenable group

Dumb question -- when the article says the left action L_g is defined by L_g(f)(h) = f(g^-1*h), should this be f(g*h)? As defined, this is actually a right action, correct? Kier07 (talk) 23:14, 24 November 2008 (UTC)

Hmm, there may be a convention. The "correct" convention would be compatible with category theory? Functors are covariant (default) or contravariant. So is G or its "opposite" group acting? We do have a conventions page, for mathematics. Somebody didn't like it, and perhaps it has been neglected. This could be one for there. Charles Matthews (talk) 13:34, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

This is the definition of the left regular representation. There is no ambiguity. Mathsci (talk) 16:24, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

Comment

You said something about a "swollen head", which I didn't entirely understand, but I'd just like to say that I think there are probably more diplomatic ways to express what you wanted to say. ☺Coppertwig(talk) 01:52, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

I think you are probably correct. Diplomacy has its place.

In commenting on cases and related matters, however, it is somewhat traditional for arbitrators to speak frankly about how they feel on matters, not to come across as guarded lawyer-like individuals. This can be helpful, in getting past the layers of abstract policy discussions, and conveying the essence of an onsite situation. Here, since the unblocking admin spoke her mind freely, and continues to do so, I was replying in kind. Charles Matthews (talk) 09:06, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

SV Motions

• Just to note that I left you and/or other arbitrators a couple of questions here. Given your vote on Nyb's motion (which did address one of them), I'm not sure you've seen them. Ncmvocalist (talk) 16:26, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

Thanks. Things are moving on, and you can be sure we're busy with this matter. Charles Matthews (talk) 19:40, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

Proxying for banned users

I am too afraid to make this question from my main account for fear of retaliation from harrasment sites. Since I am not using my main account, I will write this question on your talk page instead of your nomination questions page. On WikBack, why did you proxy edit for the banned user and longtime admin harraser armedblowfish? Solidarity for us (talk) 19:25, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

ArmedBlowfish left WP under a cloud, because her RfA was impossible after it was revealed by a checkuser that she edited through Tor. AB guards her privacy, and I have been told why. Subsequently I became involved in private discussion with AB, after she posted vociferously to wikien-l. I have taken the line that she is better heard through someone like me. You can call that advocacy if you want; I just think I'm better at formulating the points, for what they are worth. We're talking about privacy issues, and we should all be thoughtful about that. Charles Matthews (talk) 19:39, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

Greg in Piotrus arbcom

Wouldn't some form of restriction/parole be enough? Greg did not have any history of blocks, bans or warnings before his interactions with Boodlesthecat, and even now his block record is clean. I'd think that a stern warning should be at least tried before a permban, and I also don't think he has been doing anything wrong in the past weeks - further, this post indicates he is now taking BLP into consideration and he has recently posted a pledge in the workshop (see discussion here). Perhaps an alternative, more merciful remedy could be proposed? --_{Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus| talk} 20:17, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

And why are you pleading for this guy? He wrote some horrible things on this site. Why are you advocating for such a person? You are neutral, uninvolved, a friend, think he is a great scholar? Tell me why we are wrong to think this person is unsuitable for wiki editing. In fact editing where you are too involved to be pleasant is not a sign of great intelligence. No one who understands encyclopedias would add such things.Charles Matthews (talk) 20:35, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

1. G. Strang, Linear Algebra and Its Applications Brooks Cole, 1988