User talk:Spawn Man/Archive7

WP Dinosaurs

Hi Spawn Man, I couldn't help but notice the back-and-forth conversations between you and Sheep. I wanted to say, first of all, thanks for trying to talk about this in a constructive manner. Clearly, your feelings are hurt, and you've been upset about this for a while. It can be really, really hard to see your contributions edited right back out of the encyclopedia, especially after spending a long time on them. You clearly have a lot of love for the project and for the subject. But part of what makes a great editor on WP is just knowing that nothing you write will ever last very long. It's always being re-written, it's always changing. It will never stay the same, and it's likely that in a few years' time, even everything Sheep has written will be totally changed. That's the nature of Wiki. I think I've written something on close to every dinosaur article on WP. But several of my contributions (OK, a whole lot!) have been edited right back out by one editor or another, especially by the 'pro' editors. I don't think one word of my contributions to a few articles even remain. But we're here to build the best encyclopedia possible. That's the goal. So even though it's important to feel like you're contributing something, and clearly you are, just remember your edits may not last very long, may be completely re-written. It says below the edit screen "If you don't want your writing to be edited mercilessly... do not submit it." We always have to keep that in mind, Spawn Man. Our writing is always going to be edited mercilessly, as long as we're on Wikipedia. You indicated to Sheep that you feel you can't write any articles on dinosaurs because they will be rewritten. But that's what Wikipedia is all about. The key is just understanding that, shrugging it off, and moving on. We've got more than 1,000 articles in our category. There's about ten or twelve serious editors on our project, which averages out to about 100 articles per editor. That means there's plenty of space for all of us: you, me, Sheep, everyone. Right now, there are 200 extremely short articles that can easily be expanded by anyone, even someone who is not a pro, as long as he considers that everything will eventually be re-written. I hope this somehow makes you feel a little better. I hope you'll be bold and again start writing dinosaur articles. Good editors are sorely needed on our project, and I know you love the subject. :) In peace, --Firsfron of Ronchester 05:55, 12 June 2006 (UTC)

What he said. Also I don't "plan" to rewrite every dinosaur article top to bottom. But most of the ones I have rewritten really needed it. I am getting extremely tired of this argument so I am going to look at it empirically now. I provide a list on my userpage of the 42 articles I have done a lot of work on. Of those, 2 didn't even exist, 25 had the stub tag before I edited them, 4 were untagged but technically still stubs (1-2 paragraphs), and 7 were a little longer than stubs but still very short (3-4 paragraphs). Many of the existing articles had numerous inaccuracies or outdated information, and most of them were completely uncited, or just listed a website (helpful, but a tertiary resource at best). Only 4 articles on which I have done major revisions were longer than four paragraphs when I got to them (Ampelosaurus, Ankylosaurus, Psittacosaurus, and Zupaysaurus). Ampelosaurus probably didn't need to be completely rewritten, but was, so there is one point in your favor. Ankylosaurus actually has significant sections of text which were carried over from previous edits, and a large part of what was written previously was actually incorrect. I think everyone can agree that Psittacosaurus was totally inadequate and NEEDED a complete rewrite as it was more about the family Psittacosauridae than the actual genus. Finally, Zupaysaurus was a collection of one- or two-sentence subheadings and needed an update as there has been new research published. For awhile I was just going through the dinosaurs in alphabetical order, and I actually took pains to skip larger articles if I thought they were correct and comprehensive (Allosaurus).

So what is the problem here? 90% of the articles I have edited were unacceptably short before I got to them. If an article is really short and I plan to do a ton of work to make it much longer, I don't see why I should feel obligated to copy and paste certain sentences as-is just because they were already there. If an article has inaccuracies or is not comprehensive, and as you say, I have access to better primary research which would allow me to fix it, I don't see why I should refrain from making major additions to the article just because someone's feelings might get hurt. Do you?

As far as my "nominating everything about dinosaurs," that's not particularly accurate since I have nominated exactly one article for anything (Albertosaurus for FAC). I haven't even nominated anything for the dino collaboration. Psittacosaurus was nominated by Firsfron, although I made most of the changes, but since I was the primary author, that was expected. In any case, several others did a lot of work on that article (copyediting, getting permission to use images, etc) and I think the entire Project can be proud of the work that was done getting it featured.

Finally, for Velociraptor, let's actually look at what has been written and see how much of it I wrote. If you don't feel like going to look yourself, I'll tell you now: I wrote the lead and the sections on history and provenance, and I will probably do the reference section since I have a stack of them sitting on my bookshelf at home and it will be very easy for me to do. That leaves the description, taxonomy, and pop culture sections which I don't even plan on touching. In any case, anybody can write whatever they want, and even edit over the sections I did edit. I don't even care if someone edits my edits, as long as they are accurate!

Sorry if this response has an exasperated tone, but I am really tired of wasting time defending myself about this for no reason, so please stop harassing me about it. Clearly what you really want is for me to leave altogether so you can feel like top dog again. Well, sorry.Stricken as it is unfair for me to assign motives to someone I don't know. Sheep81 10:46, 13 June 2006 (UTC)

Ghandi

I take it then, that you think G's writing was too idiosyncratic for the claim made in the caption ... Tony 16:09, 12 June 2006 (UTC)

WikiProject Viruses

Hi! Just letting you know that it's (hopefully) back in action -- Serephine ♠ talk - 07:55, 14 June 2006 (UTC)

Award!

		The Original Barnstar
		for fantastic contributions (and inspiration/drive) to the Dino Project - Ballista 08:07, 14 June 2006 (UTC)

I really appreciate ths man... Thanks a lot, Spawn Man 02:19, 15 June 2006 (UTC)

Re: Barnstar

Well... my image editing skills are mostly limited to simple cut-and-paste jobs. If you can get me (a) a barnstar background image you'd like to use (should be easy if you're willing to choose from the existing ones) and (b) a overlay dino image you like (more difficult, as it needs to have a transparent background and be recognizable at a fairly small size, not to mention being freely-licensed) I can whip something up for you. If you're looking for something more sophisticated in terms of image editing, that'll be rather beyond my meager talents in that field; you might try asking one of the more proficient barnstar designers (Essjay and Sango123 come to mind, but I suspect they're both quite busy) if they'd be able to help you. Kirill Lokshin 05:07, 21 June 2006 (UTC)

Thanks, I'll contact Sango to see if she can do anything. She seems really nice so I think she might be able to help out. I'll scout out a skull image or something huh? Thanks again, Spawn Man 09:56, 21 June 2006 (UTC)

florid & humorous

Hi - No offence - just that your turn of phrase can sometimes appear a little aggressive, when I'm sure you don't mean it to (e.g. the recent "I'm surrounded by idiots") - doesn't bother me as I enjoy straight talk and lively turn of phrase but I fear some may be take offence. Just trying to be helpful - shall bow out now and leave it up to you - in fellowship - Ballista 10:44, 21 June 2006 (UTC)

Well I am surrounded by idiots. Not my fault... ;). Spawn Man 23:08, 21 June 2006 (UTC)

Machica mi! 203.100.218.97 23:10, 21 June 2006 (UTC)

We need to have a talk (uh oh can't be good)

I know you really enjoy editing & uploading photos onto dinosaur articles, but some care must be taken! Some of your photos are out of focus/in bad light/irrelevant (choose 1 or more). Other times, you just place them in the most akward locations, such as all in one section. Take some care to carefully plan out where they will go or where they will fit. Don't just plonk them anyhere k? The ones which aren't that good, don't put them in. Think of it like a piece of cake. You've just eaten a buffet meal & you're sooo full. But everyone else is eating cake, so you want some. You don't need it, but just cause it's there you eat it. Or think of a bad picture as a toy you never use. You never use the toy, so your mum wants you to throw it out. You plead that you do play with it, but you never do. If a picture is bad or is overcrowding the text, throw it away or don't use it. It will save everyone time & overall, make the article ten times better. This was a friendly reminder from your friendly neighbourhood Spawn Man! Thanks, Spawn Man 00:01, 22 June 2006 (UTC). P.S. Kids, eat your veges!

Spawn Man, the images that Ballista uploaded and added to the pages were all pictures that generally met with approval of the group. He did check with the group before adding them to the pages, none are out of focus or irrelevant, and all were added after lengthy discussions, of which you do not seem to be aware. Yet Cas, Dinoguy, myself, and Ballista all commented on the images many times on the project page and on the image review pages. Please do not undo the work of others when they have spent literally weeks of planning, commenting, and working with the images. If you think the images are out of focus, buy a different monitor. If you think the images are irrelevant, the proper time to have said something would have been during the image review process. --Firsfron of Ronchester 00:10, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

You seem to have an extremely large nose, cause I see it sticking in all of my conversations, commenting on all of my thoughts. Beside the point, may I draw your attention to Exhibit A:

It can be really, really hard to see your contributions edited right back out of the encyclopedia, especially after spending a long time on them. You clearly have a lot of love for the project and for the subject. But part of what makes a great editor on WP is just knowing that nothing you write will ever last very long. It's always being re-written, it's always changing. It will never stay the same, and it's likely that in a few years' time, even everything Sheep has written will be totally changed. That's the nature of Wiki.

I think I've written something on close to every dinosaur article on WP. But several of my contributions (OK, a whole lot!) have been edited right back out by one editor or another, especially by the 'pro' editors. I don't think one word of my contributions to a few articles even remain. But we're here to build the best encyclopedia possible. That's the goal. So even though it's important to feel like you're contributing something, and clearly you are, just remember your edits may not last very long, may be completely re-written. It says below the edit screen "If you don't want your writing to be edited mercilessly... do not submit it." We always have to keep that in mind, Spawn Man. Our writing is always going to be edited mercilessly, as long as we're on Wikipedia.

You indicated to Sheep that you feel you can't write any articles on dinosaurs because they will be rewritten. But that's what Wikipedia is all about. The key is just understanding that, shrugging it off, and moving on. We've got more than 1,000 articles in our category. There's about ten or twelve serious editors on our project, which averages out to about 100 articles per editor. That means there's plenty of space for all of us: you, me, Sheep, everyone. Right now, there are 200 extremely short articles that can easily be expanded by anyone, even someone who is not a pro, as long as he considers that everything will eventually be re-written.

I hope this somehow makes you feel a little better. I hope you'll be bold and again start writing dinosaur articles. Good editors are sorely needed on our project, and I know you love the subject. :)

In peace, --Firsfron of Ronchester 05:55, 12 June 2006 (UTC)

Me thinks you have forgotten that all work will be edited mercilessly, regardless of whether a little peace talk was discussed & signed prior. The images were bad. Presenting Group Exhibit B:

T. rex right hind foot (medial view) Oxford University Museum of Natural History. Double up of the existing photo.

Closeup of 'arm' (fore limb). Almost unseeable.

T. rex with diminutive, two-fingered 'arms' Oxford University Museum of Natural History. Again, poor lighting.

Closeup of jaws. Oh yes, very light & clear, not!

Spawn Man, what are you talking about? Two of the four images above were NOT added by Ballista. They are old photos from previous editors. The first photo is not a double, and was taken from the side, not the front.

It seems that they are all exceptional photographs, aren't they? Hands up who agrees? Nobody? Hmmm, I guess I was right that yes the ones I removed were badly lit & out of focus &/or a double of an exsisting photo. Not only that but look how they Ballista's pics were placed in the Velociraptor article, Exhibit C:

The people who agreed did so on the appropriate pages, not your talk page.

Description

Life restoration of Velociraptor.

Velociraptor skull in the Oxford University Museum of Natural History

Velociraptor skeleton in the Oxford University Museum of Natural History

Velociraptor was small for a dromaeosaurid. It had a skull length of 249 mm (9.80 in), a total length of 1.8 m (6 ft), a total height of 0.8 m (2.5 feet), a hip height of 0.5 m (1 ft 8 in) and a weight of 20 kg (45 lb).

The tail was stiffened, being held rigidly behind the body by a series of ossified (bony) tendons . The tail was stiffened, being held rigidly behind the body by a series of ossified (bony) tendons .

Unlike most theropod dinosaurs, which had three functional toes on the hindlimb, dromaeosaurs like Velociraptor walked on only their third and fourth digits. The first digit, as in other theropods, was a small dewclaw. The second digit was highly modified and held retracted off of the ground. It bore a relatively large, sickle-shaped claw, typical of dromaeosaurid and troodontid dinosaurs.

The above caption is exactly how Ballista left it, all 3 large photos in one section along one side. Now this isn't a new article, this article has been to a collaboration & is now on FAC! I had, & have, every right to talk to Ballista about his photo skills. How dare you come here & start berating me because you discussed the descisions prior. Spawn Man 00:31, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

You don't treat people very well, and I can certainly leave you a message on your talk page. You nominated this article as a FAC when we've still got another article nominated for FAC, which is a (very minor) violation of the nomination policy. The group discussed these pictures and came to agreement. If you chose not to participate, that's fine, but it's 4 against 1. I do not think some out of focus pictures need to stay, but Ballista didn't put those ones on the page. Your message to him was ill-informed and out of line.--Firsfron of Ronchester 00:45, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Please pardon the intrusion

This is meant to be helpful, not scolding. I noticed your post here [1] and I thought I would let you know that many Native Americans consider asking for an Indian name to be very rude. Sort of like walking into someone's house and asking if saying you'd like to stay for a month. I don't know Sharon ouside of Wikipedia, so this may not even be the case with her. She may just be busy. I just thought you might like to know. Johntex\^talk 01:00, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Well sorry for not being adept in the field of Native Indian culture. I was just trying to be nice. Haven't you heard of Dances with wolves? Anyway, I'm just pissed off at the momento & going on a war path complaining about everyone. So if you don't mind, I'd prefer not to talk to you. Thanks, Spawn Man 01:30, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Images

WEll it would be relavent if I could find the page which discusses this or if I was actually involved with the talks.

The image review page is linked to WikiProject Dinosaur's talk page. No one can force you to notice the link. We discussed it; it's up to you to read the relevant discussions.

If you don't like the way I operate myself then don't go poking around things which weren't even being discussed with you.

The images affect me, as I'm part of the team that helped decide they should go up. The work of one editor (you) does not supercede the work of the rest of the team.

No I don't treat people nicely.

I wish you'd follow WikiPolicy, Spawn Man. It makes it a lot easier to collaborate with people if they're willing to be civil.

Now that that that's out of the way.

It's not out of the way, and as long as you treat people poorly, you will get poor results.

I wasn't saying Ballista was responsible for all of the pictures, I was merely talking openly about some of his pictures. I didn't even present the pictures Ballista didn't take to him, only as an example to you of the pictures I deleted. This is because there were 2 different topics, both of which you confused together & misinformed.

I read your message several times, and am not misinformed. You told him the pictures he added were out of focus, irrelevant, or duplicates. They were no such thing. You didn't check the edit histories, which would have shown you which pictures he added.

Topic 1, Me deleting some of Ballista's pics &/or moving them & his pic placement.

The pictures he placed met with the general apporval of the group. You either chose to ignore the discussion, or didn't know about the discussion because you didn't read the talk pages closely. Neither is the fault of the group, and Ballista didn't deserve the message you left him, which was both incorrect and rude.

Topic 2, Me deleting photos from other people.

You never mentioned it earlier. I'm telling you now that the message you left for Ballista says NOTHING about removing other people's photos. It was only after I TOLD you the photos you removed were mainly not even his, that you have changed your story. This does not match your earlier messages, either of them.

You came over & accused me of deleting other's hard work, both Ballista's & others. So I merely showed you all photos I deleted, not just Ballista's.

That's not what either of your messages say.

It is you Firsfron of Manchester that was misinformed.

Only by your own messages.

If you have a problem with me editing, so sue me, (not litterally, as the phrase, so don't go harrassing me with no legal threats either) .... Spawn Man 01:37, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

I don't have a problem with you editing. I have a problem with you leaving rude, uninformed messages for people who are trying to edit.

--Firsfron of Ronchester 01:59, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

I was informed, I was curteous to Bastilla. If you have a problem with me editing other's edits, then you should read the sign on the bottom of the page. Spawn Man 02:19, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

You were not informed as your own messages above state ("no one discussed this with me"), and by your own admission earlier, you feel you don't need to be courteous. I do not have a problem with you editing other's edits; I have a problem with you being rude, making ill-informed edits, and ignoring group concensus.--Firsfron of Ronchester 02:25, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Your simple primeval brain cannot comprehend that I was not acting for/as/in/ "The group". Since I did not see the messages about it, I was not in the group. Think of me as independant. I belong to wikiproject dinos, but I do not have to adhere to their rules. I adhere to wikipedia's rules, but not to the group's, who can never tell me how or when to edit. Spawn Man 02:30, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Re: Barn star

Created using Image:Tyrannosaurus (arm).jpg and Image:Palais de la Decouverte Tyrannosaurus rex p1050042.jpg

Hey, Spawn Man. I made a rough draft based on your bone barnstar idea (right). Is this similar to what you were thinking of, or would you prefer the T-rex skull over an actual barnstar? Please let me know if you want anything changed. Thanks, Sango123 02:30, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

• Wow, really? :D Well, if you're happy, then I'm happy. You don't need to get it approved or anything, just list it at Wikipedia:Other awards. Cheers, Sango123 02:40, 22 June 2006 (UTC)
  • Sure, no problem! Take care, Sango123 02:45, 22 June 2006 (UTC)
    • Everything looks good. :) G'night, Sango123 02:57, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

• Other Award page

There is an infomal protocol, that before an award, or star, is listed on the Wikipedia:Other awards page that it first get vetted on the Wikipedia:Barnstar and award proposals page. I went ahead and made the move for you. Please feel free to have evryone involvbed with your wikiproject comment on the award design. --evrik 15:07, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Sorry about that, I wasn't aware that even awards by WikiProject had to go through WP:BAP. Discussion shouldn't be a problem though, and I see you've already given one out. :) Cheers, Sango123 17:30, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

No Personal Attacks

Please see Wikipedia's no personal attacks policy. Comment on content, not on the contributor; personal attacks damage the community and deter users. Note that continued personal attacks may lead to blocks for disruption. Please stay cool and keep this in mind while editing. Thank you.

You forgot to sign.... Have a nice day. Spawn Man 03:04, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Thanks,--Firsfron of Ronchester 03:02, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

You started it... Spawn Man 03:04, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

I "started it" by telling you that your note to Ballista was both rude and not informed, as Ballista had consulted the entire group before adding those photos to the pages. You commented above that you didn't know about it, but that's no one's fault, as comments were made to the WikiProject talk page. You're "finishing it" by just making personal attacks, which have nothing to do with images, and don't solve the problem.--Firsfron of Ronchester 03:54, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Good Morning from England. Thanks, Spawn Man for taking an interest in my images. I had hoped to avoid any objection to my uploading a significant number of pictures onto WP almost simultaneously, by consulting the Project as a whole, both on the project page and on the collaboration page, before doing so. I had some responses from Dinoguy, Cas Liber and Firsfron. There were some constructive negative comments made about some of the pictures, which was useful in preventing them going up. Generally, however, the comments were positive. Some of the pictures were posted for comment for almost a week. Another time, please try to avoid this sort of retrospective action, by contributing to discussions at the time, prior to any alterations being made to articles. As it is, I had fun taking the pictures. They are posted on WP for everyone's benefit. They are then commended to the Project editors and to the other members of the editing WP community, to do with as they see fit. No sweat if your opinions are not the same as others. That's Wikipedia. I would have waded in on this discussion earlier, had I not been asleep (UK time). I shall continue to work, as before, by consultation with the Project. Good idea if we all do, to avoid adversarial encounters. So much to do, so little time - why waste time on disagreement? - Ballista 04:26, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

You have been blocked for 12 hours

For constant violations of WP:NPA. Please cease taunting others. Here is the documentation. --Woohookitty^(meow) 04:09, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

There is a difference between arguing a point and taunting your opponent. Stating that your opponent is an idiot or telling them that they have a simple primieval brain. No reason for name calling. --Woohookitty^(meow) 04:48, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

No sweat dude. I probably deserved it... ;) Spawn Man 10:25, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Well, you're a good contributor. I know how it gets sometimes, but you gotta keep the personal attack stuff under wraps. A suggestion is to write your posts in Word or wherever first and then read it and take out anything inflammatory and then post it. It's worked for alot of people that I've dealt with. Sometimes just the writing will get your frustration out. --Woohookitty^(meow) 13:51, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

And btw, thank you for calmly taking the block. :) The people I block usually aren't so nice. I know. It probably doesn't seem like a big thing, but I appreciate it. --Woohookitty^(meow) 14:02, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Welcome back. - Ballista 12:41, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Confused

Oh, whoa, I didnt expect you to get blocked...Anyways, I am sure that you really didnt mean all the stuff you said. I've missed a lot of discussion on the dinosaur talk page and I dont understand a damn thing of whats going on. I know that we've started or we've become a collaboration or something like that.. Now, I dont really meant to be stupid but whats a collaboration anyways?? and do I just continue to create all the dino stubs and expanding the articles like I used or do i have to be assigned some tasks or something like that? Frankly I am very confused about the whole situation in the project. Hope you can straighten it out for me.... Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 13:14, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Thanks a lot for straightning out the things for me... Jayant,17 Years, India • contribs 02:31, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

Sup, Spawn babe!

Dear Spawn babe, please relax - of course I always reply, it may take me a day or two depending on how busy I am tho (and very special messages like yours require extra dedication and can't be replied in a rush). I'm truly glad that you found Being Indian interesting, and it saddens me a bit that you felt hurt in the slightest by it. As I mention there, I'm not the author of that text (well, at least no entirely), but it has many "poetic licenses" to make the idea more clear and sometimes, yes, more blunt. To be fully honest, the majority of white people behave in the most correct way with me, and sometimes my heritage even gains me some (from my point of view, unexplainable) admiration. Yet, many of the things Rick says are plain but simple truth, trust me. Personally, every time I go to Dior or many other chic stores, the employees can't help but to give me a first glance with a mixture of suprise and sometimes, displeasure (well, I think that being over 6' tall also imposes). Overall, I believe that Being Indian is written with a big dose of irony, some frustration even (which I share to a big extent), but there are no lies in it. I removed many parts from Rick's original which I thought were too harsh, which you can check by visiting his website if you wish.

Regarding your request to give you an Indian name, well, I must say it's, humm... rather strange, hun. I understand there's a lot of, let's say, mystique regarding Indian names, and they are sometimes perceived as a sign of "coolness"; but trust me, that's not how we feel about them, they're just... well, they are us. Names are given in different ways according to the tribe; some follow specific naming traditions, while others simply allude certain characteristics of the person and may even change as time passes. My own name, which is how my family and some Comanche friends call me, was how my grandpa started calling me when I was around 5 years old for something I did, and it simply remained until today. But those names you hear every now and then from certain people boasting their Native American ancestry are normally nothing but forgeries. Like Rick says, whenever you meet someone greeting you something like "Hi, I am Great-White-Buffalo-Who-Flies-Over-The-Prairie-Riding-A-Blue-Eagle", you should immediately doubt his/her alleged ancestry. Names just happen; you can't simply craft one on request. It would be something as meaningless and made up as if I started calling you "Jack" all of a sudden; it wouldn't be you. And, my dear Steve, the truth is I hardly know anything personal about you, which makes the thought even more difficult. Just so you know, I haven't even named my bf anything different than his own true name! :) Be proud of being our dear Steve, and my Spawn babe; you don't need to be anything different than that ;) A great big hug! Phædriel ♥ tell me - 13:45, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Fighting dinos

Thanks for message, Spawn. Sadly, although I do have PhotoShop, I've never used it yet - I believe it would take a little while to acquire the necessary skills to do a good job. Your man is Firsfron, who has done some great edits on my shots. He may well be able to do the honours. All the best - Ballista 04:15, 23 June 2006 (UTC) (copied to Casliber)

Ya gotta be kidding me!!! Oh well, I'll give it a go asking him... I doubt he'll do it... Spawn Man 04:16, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

You bet he will! - Ballista 04:23, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

Thanks

You beat me to it (I'm currently working on articles to allow the lost links back) - I was going to say what an interesting time you must have had, generally working over the article during my nighttime. Nice work. - Ballista 05:10, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

Re: Velociraptor

But it would be so boring if I didn't find something to complain about! ;-) Kirill Lokshin 05:16, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

Tell me about it... I'm on the edge of my seat not knowing how to work the footnotes until Sheep81 gets on... ;) Spawn Man 05:23, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

I might be able to help there; what are you trying to do with them? Kirill Lokshin 05:24, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

I've figured out how to do the footnotes, so don't worry about that. My only problem now is getting this : (e.g. from text of velociraptor), (Jerzykiewicz et al. 1993), into a footnote. I mean, all I know is: Jerzykiewicz, no 1st name. (1993). no book, mag, publisher name. no page number. no isbn. And what does et al. mean? How am I supposed to change the Harvards into footnotes without this info? It would help a lot as this is the only real reason behind opposition on velociraptor... Thanks, Spawn Man 05:35, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

Ugh, no idea. I don't think anybody would be satisfied with just a name/year combo as a footnote; but finding out what paper (I'm guessing it's a paper?) it refers to requires somebody who actually knows anything about dinosaur literature, which isn't really my particular area. Sorry I can't be of more help here. Kirill Lokshin 05:39, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

NP. I've asked a paleontologist guy on here how to do it... Thanks though, Spawn Man 05:40, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

Here it goes....

On the Velociraptor article, it has been requested that this article be removed in the article's FAC. However, I think it is a highly needed picture. Is there any way you could photoshop out the glass exhibit line going through the picture & lighten it up significantly? It would save the picture & get velociraptor featured... Ballista told me you'd do it, but I doubt that... Anyway, thought I'd give it a shot, it will need doing eventually anyway.... Thanks, Spawn Man 04:18, 23 June 2006 (UTC). P.S. I'd do it, but I don't have photoshop..

Yes, of course I will work on it. Thanks for asking, Spawn Man. The skull of Velociraptor that is currently on the page is a Ballista/Firsfron co-production I'm really proud of, and I'm more than willing to work on the "fighting dinos" image, though I can't guarantee the results (I'm still a few credits short of a degree in computer graphics and animation). This one will be a bit of a challenge. Can I submit some sample finished preliminary versions to you on Saturday? Or is that too late? I ask because my home PC only has PhotoShop 7.0 while work has CS2, a bit more powerful.

If Saturday is too far away, you could download The Gimp. It's a free editing program, not as powerful as PhotoShop, but...well...it's free. --Firsfron of Ronchester 05:28, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

Don't think we're cool. We're only working towards a common goal... Anyway, I don't care when it's done, as long as it's finished at least 4 days before the velociraptor FAC closes... Thanks, Spawn Man 05:36, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

Saturday it is then! Unless someone else beats me to the punch, which is entirely possible... --Firsfron of Ronchester 05:42, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

Hi Spawn Man,

I'm not sure this will pass muster, but I did edit the photo. I removed the lines running thru the photo using Adobe PhotoShop CS2's "Healing Brush" and "Clone Stamp" tools. I lightened it significantly; I feel lightening it any further will cause the white areas in the front to wash out. I also removed distractions like the lights in the background, and cropped out a bit of "dead space" around the picture. Instead of just replacing the old photo, I created a new name for the new version, so we could compare them side by side. I really like this picture because it's a great example of an only partially prepared specimen, and with the two animals fighting, even in death, it's a really unique shot. I'm not sure all of the reviewers on the FAC will see it that way, but we'll see. I hope this photo can be used, but if you have further suggestions for making this a better picture, I'm definitely willing to try. Or, if you want to find someone else willing to give it a go, that's of course fine, too.--Firsfron of Ronchester 21:37, 24 June 2006 (UTC)

Hey guys! Thanks for working on the photo. I've been away most of this week and will be pretty consistantly for the next month, so I won't be able to devote too much time to Wiki for a while, unfortunately. Glad to see Velociraptor as a FAC!Dinoguy2 21:34, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

Oh, also, jsut for the record I think the shot is pretty terrible to begin with. The article does really need a shot of the fighting dinosaurs, and I support keeping my image there until a better one can be found, but... a better one should really be found.Dinoguy2 21:37, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

VC Raptor

Hi,

Don't be in so much hurry. FAs should represent Wikipedia's best works. I have noted down a few more issues in the article. Fix them and I will have another look (not necessarily support :D). -Ambuj Saxena (talk) 06:05, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

Please don't add requests for people to support the article. Although it is on your user page, it is seen in bad light. At best, just ask people to review it. -Ambuj Saxena (talk) 06:19, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

Changed wording so it presents a neutral stance... Spawn Man 23:37, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

Spawn, I added a new picture to the article... a screenshot from the first movie. Tell me if you like it or if I should choose a different scene. Sheep81 06:23, 26 June 2006 (UTC)

It'll have to do. It's a bit dark, but I don't want to change it incase it ruins the fair use thingy... *Sigh*... Thanks for your hard work, 90% are supportive votes.... Spawn Man 23:25, 26 June 2006 (UTC)

Sorry, didn't notice that the changes were made. I would have supported now, but anyway the article is already an FA. Good work. — Ambuj Saxena (talk) 06:07, 29 June 2006 (UTC)

Jewellery

Wow, I can't believe how much you've improved the article in such a short time. Great work. --GraemeL ^(talk) 13:31, 27 June 2006 (UTC)

I came to say the same thing. Amazing job! That article has been crappy for years. Brassratgirl 22:04, 27 June 2006 (UTC)

Ditto - on my list for a while, but never got a round tuit ;-) Hope you don't mind my tweaks (being a silversmith I'm a bit attached; hopefully not too biased). Good idea moving the list to its own page.Bridesmill 02:15, 28 June 2006 (UTC)

Wow! Thank you soo much guys for your praise. I didn't expect it & I really really appreciate it. I'm glad someone likes it cause I spent over 2 weeks draughting it out on my computer. I thought I'd put it up for FAC while the iron's hot, so you're welcome to vote on it at Wikipedia:Featured article candidates/Jewellery. Thanks so much for these posts & if you feel the article needs improving, please edit it. Thanks again, Spawn Man 03:05, 28 June 2006 (UTC)

The images Image:Sceptre with the Cross.jpg and Image:Insight may03 focus beaton large.jpg are not under free licenses and might cause some objections to FA status. --GraemeL ^(talk) 15:16, 28 June 2006 (UTC)

Re: Jewellery

I'll see what I can do. Maybe sometime later tonight, if I get around to it. Kirill Lokshin 00:24, 29 June 2006 (UTC)

I've added the some material on Mesopotamian jewellery based on the sources I happened to have on hand. I think the main thing to do would be to think a bit about the order of the sections; while a layout by continent might make sense from a bird's eye view, it's somewhat bewildering when trying to read straight through the article, since the text tends to make huge jumps in both geography and chronology without warning. Kirill Lokshin 01:39, 29 June 2006 (UTC)

Velociraptor

Awesome man, we got Velociraptor featured! Nice job organizing that. Sheep81 09:38, 29 June 2006 (UTC)

Brambles of Mordor

Hi there. I just returned to Brambles of Mordor after a while away working on other areas, and I noticed that you reverted to what looks like an earlier version with this edit. Your edit summary says: the content has not been incorporated into mordor text, therefore is allowed its own page acording to wiki rules. only 1 person voted on merging, if I was here would have opposed. Would you have time now to discuss the issues about this article? There are also a few other Tolkien and Middle-earth articles that it would be good to discuss if you have the time. Carcharoth 21:16, 29 June 2006 (UTC)

I've now incorporated the text at "Brambles of Mordor" into Mordor and restored the redirect. If you disagree, please add to my comments at Talk:Mordor. Thanks. Carcharoth 23:28, 1 July 2006 (UTC)

Response

Hi - sorry I never responded to this, until now (Nice copyediting on the velociraptor article BTW... Spawn Man 05:06, 23 June 2006 (UTC)) - I've had rather short access to WP, for the last few days and likely to be so for most of July. I have to say, nice work yourself! (& good work that Firsfron has done on the fighting dinos image, as I expected him to) - Ballista 04:19, 30 June 2006 (UTC) - P.S.; Good work all round, anyway, I just see that it's featured! Well done for your steerage. - Ballista 04:21, 30 June 2006 (UTC)

Military history WikiProject Newsletter - Issue IV - June 2006

The June 2006 issue of the Military history WikiProject newsletter has been published. You may read the newsletter, change the format in which future issues will be delivered to you, or unsubscribe from this notification by following the link. Thank you. Kirill Lokshin 05:25, 30 June 2006 (UTC)

COTW Project

You voted for History of Sicily, this week's Collaboration of the week. Please come and help it become a featured-standard article. Davodd 00:29, 9 July 2006 (UTC)

Velocipede Vs Velociraptors

You want answers? Think you can handle them? Well... HERE THEY BE MATEY. --R.D.H. (Ghost In The Machine) 23:55, 10 July 2006 (UTC)

You're my best friend on here, I hope you can stay... Spawn Man 02:42, 11 July 2006 (UTC)