User talk:JesseW/First version revert proposal

So, if I'm interpreting it right, this is effectively PWDS, except that it uses the word "revert", which Wikipedians like, in place of the word "blanking", which they equate with vandalism. And it sounds like it would have a different interface for doing it.

This might just work. A couple of questions:

• Can we address the objection at that this will just make every AfD be preceded by a revert war? PWDS came with, essentially, a one-revert rule for blanking, with disputes going to AfD. We may need that here too. But that's not even enough for some people.
• How will the interface work? Non-admins don't have an actual "revert" in the interface, of course; they have to change the text to something. If it's blanking or a single template, then it will be vilified by the same people who attack PWDS and XD6.

If revert power for non-admins ever gets added, it seems like this would be a whole lot easier to sell people on, because then it can use the same interface. If it's a different interface it feels like a delete button. But do you have an interface idea? rspeer 05:20, 18 December 2005 (UTC)

You are understanding it right; the point is to highlight that some bad stuff can be reverted, but the same bad stuff on a new page must be handled differently. From then on it's just an argument for PWDS. As for the revert war issue, of course the 3RR (and maybe even a 1RR) would apply - it's just another edit. As for Dragonflights objection that the real problem with AfD is the poloization - I don't know how to respond to that. As for interface, I had a suggested interface in an older version of the proposal (see the history), but I removed it as it just seemed to confuse people. The idea I had was the concept of a "zeroth version"(i.e. the Mediawiki:Noarticle message), to which anyone could change a page to - the state where "there is no current version of this page". It would be availble in the history (just before the current first version) where non-admins could click, hit edit, and save, just as they do to revert a page now. Admins could use the rollback tool as normal (of course, only if all the edits were by the same person, as is the case now), otherwise they'd use the same method as normal users. The only big difference is that people would have to realize that redlinks may have history - of course, this is true now, (it's just that the content of them, unlike the edit summaryies is hidden from non admins). Hope this makes any sense. Thanks so much for your comments! JesseW, the juggling janitor 20:51, 18 December 2005 (UTC)