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Post by DwarfLord
Fredo-p wrote:Looks like you need some screenshots of the examples listed. Are you working on taking those screenshots or adding them from other wiki pages?
Not yet. It was a good stopping place to put this wiki up for consideration. If response is enthusiastic I will gladly go a-hunting for good screenshots. Probably won't take long :lol:
Fredo-p wrote:Some wiki pages already exits for the mistakes mentioned. Will you be adding links to the respective pages?
Absolutely. The page is intended as a gateway for those who have probably been skipping the documentation and as such it needs links throughout. That's another bit of work waiting to see if response to the concept is enthusiastic :)
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Post by DwarfLord
qwaletee wrote:I would recommend a bullet list of safe edits, and surprisingly unsafe ones at the bottom. Public road names (following Waze abbreviations), road directionality, and simple correction to turn retsrictions are generally safe. Adding a new public road or correcting a significant error in the alignment of a road is usually safe. PLRs as shown in the detailed text are surprisingly unsafe. Highways, whether in reality or as listed in Waze road type, are typically going to cause more alarms when done by junior editors (assuming it is even possible, since they are usually locked).

Responding to error reports (UR) is safe as long as the editor is aware of UR etiquette and has someone to ask for help if it turns out the problem is not one they can figure out how to solve.
That's a great point, the "What should I edit, then?" section could use a lot more positive suggestions and general advice on where (and where not) to focus.
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Post by DwarfLord
The wiki is now "live" under the title "Incorrect edits", here:

https://wiki.waze.com/wiki/Incorrect_edits

I've removed the placeholder images and begun the process of adding real "before" and "after" examples, which will probably take some time. It is also missing many appropriate reference links to other wikis.

If anyone wants to add reference links, that would be fantastic. I will get to it but help is welcome.

My hope for the "before" and "after" images is to keep them simple, as focused as possible on the one issue being depicted, and targeted at the most common form of the mistake. And, whenever possible, to give the incorrect edit the benefit of the doubt. That is, I'd like to avoid clearcut wacko cases and instead show cases where a conscientious but uninformed editor apparently tried to help. (Also I do like the before and after images to have matching registration and zoom, I think it looks so much more professional.) If someone feels they have images that fit this plan then by all means include them. I will be working on it too.

Thanks again for the positive and helpful feedback!
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Post by DwarfLord
Thanks for the suggestions! They have been incorporated.

I'm continuing to add example images and links throughout the wiki.
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Post by DwarfLord
Thanks so much for the detailed review! I've implemented all your suggestions. I did want to respond to a couple of points, below:
kentsmith9 wrote:I think it would be good to add a very short section (one or two sentences) after the "Incorrect edits are..." section.
== Overall editing guidelines ==
Some editors have not had an opportunity to read through the editing procedures discussed in the Waze Map Editor documentation. In many cases, that documentation helps new editors much more than they realize. Be sure to check it out.
kentsmith9 wrote:Each section should link back to the WME manual or applicable style guide page that gives the detailed guidance for that issue. The basic information would be on this page and the details would be left to the manual or style guide. That would:
  • enable this page to be shorter and not look so intimidating
  • prevent maintenance of data in two different places if (when) it changes
There's now a "Further reading" section at the end of the article, with links to all five of the introductory wiki articles on editing of which I'm aware. Also some links to the forum. I adapted this from the page for Area Managers.

I'll confess to some concern that, from a beginner's perspective, the Waze wiki may seem encyclopedic rather than tutorial in both treatment and organization. For example, if I go to the Road types (USA) Ramp article, I see many things that I still do not understand, such as a J-turn (which the article helpfully explains is an RCUT/"Superstreet"). Of course I can find out what this is quickly, but the point is that parts of our documentation aren't especially tutorial in nature.

(It's an interesting aside that Wikipedia is of course intended as an online encyclopedia. So perhaps it is natural that any documentation system based on their engine might tend towards an encyclopedic rather than tutorial presentation.)

So, in writing an article explicitly oriented towards beginners making beginner mistakes, I felt that information should be immediately accessible as well as tutorial in scope. In some cases that meant reiterating information available in other articles. This was deliberate.

That being said, I'm in complete agreement that links to other documentation definitely belong throughout this article. I've been adding them as I go, and welcome help! I also plan to keep adding images as I come across good candidates.

Thanks again for the terrific review and suggestions!
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Post by DwarfLord
Looks good to me. I'm not sure quite so many instances of the message are necessary but perhaps it's appropriate given how this page will get used. But, shouldn't the words "don't panic" be printed in large, friendly letters? ;)
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Post by DwarfLord
I have added four misunderstood principles to the beginning of the Incorrect Edits page. These are:

- Misunderstanding Waze's purpose
- Thinking one edits alone
- Assuming road types are intuitively obvious
- Trying too hard to match the satellite image

I added these in response to encountering frequent deep misunderstandings of Waze, and am trying to get at the root of these issues up front.

Comments welcome!
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Post by DwarfLord
Thanks so much! In principle I'm delighted for folks to improve it, and that is after all the idea of a wiki. I'm also aware that my writing is wordy. I can't help it, it's like I learned to write (poorly) in the mid 1800's, though I often come back later and and see a zillion ways to tighten my prose.

My intent in this article diverges somewhat from a standard wiki approach that aggressively replaces text with links. I wanted this article to be a "one-stop shop" to a greater extent than the typical article. Many of the intended readers will arrive here not because they want to know something and are willing to keep following links until they understand it, but rather because someone told them they screwed up and they are reluctantly trying to find out how. So, I'd discourage tightening it in such a way that it requires readers to follow more links to get a satisfactory answer to that question.

Tell you what, why not pick what you consider to be the most worthwhile item to edit, have at it, and let me know when you're done. If we're on the same page (no pun intended) you'll have my unqualified blessing, otherwise we can discuss which is the best way to go :)
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Post by DwarfLord
Thanks, this is useful. I can see your main concern appears to involve my tone, which can be a bit strong at times. I do want to keep readers awake and engaged, but more than that, I'm trying to disrupt habits of thought. A stronger tone can help accomplish that. This is also a departure from the Wikipedia approach, which aims for an even tone and neutral language, and rightly so for that application.

So I don't mind making readers a little bit uncomfortable, but definitely not at the cost of making them feel unwelcome. Put another way, I want the article to be challenging, but never officious, pedantic or patronizing.

Tell you what, I'll review the article and see what I can do. Our styles are different enough it may be better for me to look into this just for the sake of uniformity.

If you have any other specific or general concerns please feel free to bring them up!
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