Brainstorming

To help plan for Wikimania 2014 we, the organisers, are asking you for input and ideas to help us make Wikimania 2014 the best Wikimania ever. All ideas are welcome!

If you would like to submit an idea for the Hackathon – please visit the Hackathon Brainstorming page.

Example: Make the WiFi faster!

The WiFi isn't fast enough. Make it faster! --Example (talk) 16:49, 10 August 2013 (UTC)

Children space / program

Have a space / program for children (e.g. 3-12 years old) "willing" to take part in the event with their Wikimedian parent(s) :-)

To the mysterious IP who posted this - this is somethign that is surely on my "to do" list as a program committee member. Feel free to drop by my talk page here if you'd like to get involved, or feel free to leave ideas here. Child care is one option, and perhaps a "Wikikids" type of thing. Totally open to ideas! SarahStierch (talk) 06:13, 12 August 2013 (UTC)

w:Wikipedia:TWA/Portal & more activities ? 98.169.251.81 19:21, 13 August 2013 (UTC)

By the time of the event my daughters will be 11 and 12, and they will be in England too. Ad Huikeshoven (talk) 12:00, 23 August 2013 (UTC)

Nice idea, Whose vetting the supervisors? 80.176.129.180 01:57, 6 September 2013 (UTC)

Anything useful here? https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/London_with_children 99.224.165.88

Hadj Larbi fethi

Electrical outlets everywhere!

pleeeease. Lvova (talk) 11:53, 11 August 2013 (UTC)

and power strips! +1 +1. I have a feeling London is going to surely do their best with this, based on conversations with the team. But +1 +1 +1 SarahStierch (talk) 06:14, 12 August 2013 (UTC)

+1. Particularly in the rooms that the presentations take place in. Mike Peel (talk) 13:32, 13 August 2013 (UTC)

Yes, it is important to offer electricity in the lecture halls, but it would be also nice to feed your laptop or phone while you're eating yourself, or having a coffee break. Also, maybe somewhere around the reception/information desk there could be some sockets or extension cord supplied with the adapters for a couple of widespread socket standards (US/continental Europe, maybe something else popular amongst Wikipedians) for those hapless folks who forgot or lost their own adapters. Also, if there is no other way to provide enough sockets, you could use extension cords (if they are not deemed to be fire hazards, this can sometimes be a little problematic). --Oop (talk) 14:26, 13 August 2013 (UTC)

Adapters are a very good idea. Possibly provide some converters too? Though I doubt anyone won't take their own. Foxj (talk) 18:10, 14 August 2013 (UTC)

I am looking into production of Universal power distribution units similar to airline units, that are either voltage auto-switching or at least providing some dedicated 110v power supply circuits for people who have not been able to secure converters for the trip (some equipment may not be suitable for general converters). Providing power and Wifi are at the top of my list, above all else. Declan --Patt8748 (talk) 11:48, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

COMMENT: As one of the folks who tried to lay down power strips en masse in the Jockey Club Auditorium the morning of the keynote, I'd like to add that sometimes this is less about the organizers and more about antiquated infrastructure/practices. We setup at least eight power strips along the wall, but the PolyU staff ripped them out saying they were a safety hazard obstructing the aisles. -- Fuzheado (talk) 15:39, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

From the organisers

At this stage I recommend that people Only bring their chargers and voltage converters, all other power distribution will be supplied by the venue and will only be handled by Barbican or WML technicians. UK health and safety practices can be a bit of a dog. All cabling will be laid and matted suitably to fixed locations. A lot of time and planning will go into all working areas to optimise distribution and power access for all Wikimania participants. In the largest spaces (theatre and hall) this will be a particular challenge both logistically and financially providing several hundred sockets is no mean feat especially as a temporary fixture in an established venue.

Also optimising your computer settings to preserve your battery as long as possible is wise. --Patt8748 (talk) 17:32, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

Other ideas

Thinking outside the box - how about a stack of those "battery boost" units which are available for loan during the day (and can possibly be returned and charged en masse each evening, ready for the next day). This may only be useful for mobile phones and tablets, not so much laptops. Of course there is a risk of people "accidentally" taking them home. -- Chuq (talk) 00:28, 16 August 2013 (UTC)

Tablets, smart phones

A lot of people this year were using tablets and smart phones instead of laptops. For the first tme ever, I travelled to Hong Kong with only an iPad and a smart phone, and I must say that for those few days I didn't miss my Power Book for an instant, and it was a lot less weight to lug around especially when it is not allowed to return to the hotel or the dorm before an organised evening event. Tablet batteries, unless used for some really processor hungry applications will last for a whole day and evening, and such mobile devices are much lest of a distraction to others when being used during plenary sessions. I expect that by this time next year, the use of mobile devices will be even more widespread. Kudpung (talk) 03:51, 18 August 2013 (UTC)

I am examining the cost of integrating USB/microUSB charging availability widely across the social areas for people who get caught short. --Patt8748 (talk) 15:26, 19 August 2013 (UTC)

Two live feed cameras (in some situations)

When there is a single camera, the operator has to choose between a tight shot of the speaker, a tight shot of the presentation, or something in between. I'd like it if there were two live feeds, one a tight shot of the speaker, and the other a tight shot of the presentation materials. As a viewer, I'd like to have two windows open, one with each shot. I want to see the speaker, but I'd like to glance at the materials on occasion, and I'd like to decide when to look at the slides, just as I can when I'm there live. Two cameras may not be appropriate when it is a speaker without presentation material, or if it is a panel presentation, such as the board Q&A, but it would be useful in many situations.--Sphilbrick (talk) 11:55, 12 August 2013 (UTC)

• +1 --Waldir (talk) 15:22, 15 August 2013 (UTC)
• +1 -- Agree, if we have the luxury of two cams per session, this would be ideal. -- Fuzheado (talk) 15:39, 15 August 2013 (UTC)
• +1 -- Agree, video is very useful for sessions you can't attend in person! Djembayz (talk) 17:32, 18 August 2013 (UTC)
• There are all kinds of inexpensive remote multi-camera set-ups these days, with just one operator needed to mix the feeds from four (or more) video cameras into one output feed. It's all pretty widespread stuff, and has been around for many years. Edwardx (talk) 23:37, 20 August 2013 (UTC)

Schedule

• I heard some tweet whining about the early hours of the plenary. you might want to consider a pre-plenary event for the early risers, with breakfast (karioke matins); and with an extended nap-time / tea time for those burning at both ends. Slowking4 (talk) 20:51, 12 August 2013 (UTC)
• There shouldn't be too many parallel sessions. I'd say at most 6. --Waldir (talk) 15:35, 15 August 2013 (UTC)
  • Agree -- no 9am plenary/keynotes, unless it's the first day. Problem is, most folks stay up late and it's also disrespectful to the invited speaker if there's a half-empty room. -- Fuzheado (talk) 15:41, 15 August 2013 (UTC)
• Fewer sessions. A solid 15m between sessions. Longer breaks and meals. A central (not peripheral) open space. Sj (talk)
• Focus participants on hosting discussions, rather than talking at the audience. Get the rooms full of amazing wikipedians doing and making things together, even if they are simply developing ideas around the presenter's theme. Sj (talk) 02:02, 16 August 2013 (UTC)
  • +1!! And all slides should be up in the wiki by the time of the presentation (except perhaps keynotes?). --Waldir (talk) 23:56, 27 August 2013 (UTC)
• Plenary sessions are often the kind of presentations that can be missed without actually missing some vital part of the conference. I tend to fall asleep during them. Problem is, it's rude to get up and go in the middle of one when it has nothing in particular to do with Wikipedia or Wikimedidia, or it's just various boards and committees congratulating themselves in public on their year's work. Kudpung (talk) 03:57, 18 August 2013 (UTC)

Badges

I've been to conferences before where the badge is a folded A4 sheet that contains the program and other essential details, which makes it far easier to quickly check the schedule on the move (no digging in a bag to find a booklet, or loading the schedule webpage on a phone/tablet/laptop). Perhaps this wikimania could do something similar? (also, nice big names on the badges please!) Thanks. Mike Peel (talk) 13:37, 13 August 2013 (UTC)

One important piece of information might be a tiny map of the conference area. If you're doing the folding thing, might include that. And while we're talking about badges: please use large letters so I can read a girl's name without staring directly at her bosom for five minutes. One of these days, some guy with a bad eyesight will get slapped. Also, including one's affiliation might be good - I'm pretty sure I didn't opt out of it the last time but I still had to write it down myself. --Oop (talk) 14:29, 13 August 2013 (UTC)

This was already done in 2011 in Haifa as I remember. Ruslik0 (talk) 10:36, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

Another badge-related idea is to use WMDE's Human API concept: Names should be big, and below them there should be space for a babel box (e.g. EN-3, FR-1, etc.) and interests ("talk to me about..."). And don't forget to have the information duplicated on both sides! --Waldir (talk) 15:26, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

I liked the "talk to me about..." stickers that some people had on their back in HK. The back makes more sense... if you are looking at someone's front, there is a good chance you are already talking to them! -- Chuq (talk) 00:39, 16 August 2013 (UTC)

Good point. The stickers idea should be adopted by Wikimania organization and be given to everyone with the registration kit. --Waldir (talk) 23:59, 27 August 2013 (UTC)

Happy to provide the design we used as a reference, and also a link to the stickers' fabric we used. --Nicole Ebber (WMDE) (talk) 18:42, 28 September 2013 (UTC)

Badges should be:

1. Big print
2. Double sided
3. Able to contain a mini schedule and map

-- Fuzheado (talk) 15:42, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

• Badges should have much larger fonts for the reasons stated plus craning to see someone's name sitting on the other side of a table. They should include:
• user name
• Real Name (optional)
• Home Wiki,, Chapter, or Wikimedia project, or 3rd party organisation
• The whole thing again in home language font if not Roman script
• venue map on the back
• Registration: clearly defined fields on the registration page for what and how visitors want the information to appear.

These learnings come from the two Wikimanias I have attended (2012, 2013). Kudpung (talk) 02:49, 18 August 2013 (UTC)

Colour coding for different key groups:- speakers and guests, attendees, volunteers and technical support. This will help attendees know who to ask for help, and for volunteers track down and find speakers in a crowd. Colour coded lanyards would have the advantage of being able to be seen from behind, however if small runs of lanyards is not cost effective a bold coloured border on the badge itself would serve.

Note that some people like to have the option to occasionally hide their name badge (for example, some women who are worried about harassment). Werdna (talk) 03:45, 13 December 2013 (UTC)

Food

• Food should be dealt with based on the number of attendees; if we have 1000 people and there is only enough for 800, someone's day is ruined. As for what type of food, I'd say something quintessentially British (at least for one meal).Crisco 1492 (talk) 13:39, 13 August 2013 (UTC)
• Something British, something healthy, something meaty, something veggie, and everyone's happy. Another small but important detail: please don't clean up the counters too soon, there's always someone late and hungry. Give them time to eat. --Oop (talk) 14:31, 13 August 2013 (UTC)
  • +1 indeed for that last sentence. Crisco 1492 (talk) 14:44, 13 August 2013 (UTC)
    • I generally like my meals to include something meaty and something veggie, but also something fruity, something crispy, and something chocolatey. Cheers! BD2412 (talk) 17:18, 27 September 2013 (UTC)
• So by something quintessentially British, I immediately think of curry!Leutha (talk) 15:37, 14 August 2013 (UTC)

Special food

• LABELS. If there's one important thing about food, it's this. Many people want to know what they are eating, especially if they are from other countries, if they are vegetarians or vegans, if they have allergies or digestion issues, if they are weight-conscious, if they adhere to a religion with dietary laws, or if they are simply curious. Just write what that thing is and what does it contain. Don't take for granted that anybody will just guess what this or that food tray contains. Label, label, label. Everything. --ਅਮੀਰ ਏ. ਅਹਰੋਨਿ 15:36, 14 August 2013 (UTC)
  • Subsection about food labels: The Hong Kong organizers did a mostly good job with labeling food, and they added a useful thing: a clear "Veggie" mark on everything that is vegetarian. This is certainly useful to me, as I am vegetarian, but there are plenty of other considerations: nuts, gluten, eggs, spiciness, etc. Finding a way to label all this issues accordingly would be very nice. Last time I visitd London, many restaurants had such labels in the menu, so just find somebody who runs a restaurant with such labels and ask for advice.
• If people asked for vegetarian food, or for any other special food, it must be provided not just at the main event days, but everywhere - opening party, closing party, developer days, and any other meetings. Hotels can probably be an exception to this, but do write it somewhere, for example in the registration form.
• Some simple rules about vegetarians and vegans:
  • Vegetarians will eat vegan food, though there's a chance that they'll be very slightly disappointed; Vegans will not eat vegetarian food if it contains honey, milk or eggs or their derivatives. If there's a significant number of people who said that they are vegan, and having three types of food (non-veg, vegetarian, vegan) is too complicated, consider having just non-veg and vegan.
  • Fish is not vegetarian. Fish sauce is not vegetarian. Chicken is not vegetarian. Chicken broth is not vegetarian. Bread, or anything else, which is made with lard or similar stuff is not vegetarian.
  • Anything that is not vegetarian, is not vegan either. --ਅਮੀਰ ਏ. ਅਹਰੋਨਿ 15:36, 14 August 2013 (UTC)
  • Just to add to above, many vegetarians like me (mainly of Indian subcontinental origin) do not consider eggs, egg white or egg yolk, vegetarian either. Dairy products and Honey is OK, but as said above, if only 2 options to be considered, better go with Vegan and non-veg, but keep vegan quantity high, as that food will still be shared by non-vegetarians, but not vice-versa.--Dsvyas (talk) 20:41, 19 August 2013 (UTC)
• A less obvious consideration: a lot of beers and wines are not perfectly vegetarian or vegan, as eggs, fish, blood or other animal derivatives may have been used in their preparationgs. Not all vegetarians care about this, but if it's not too hard for you to find vegan beer and wine, it will be very appreciated. --ਅਮੀਰ ਏ. ਅਹਰੋਨਿ 15:36, 14 August 2013 (UTC)
  • Food labels are definitely a good idea, if not essential. It would be great if they could include a full breakdown of the content of the food - they should definitely say if they contain anything that attendees might be allergic to! If people will be queuing for food on both sides of the table, then there should also be labels on both sides (and ideally, they should be fixed to the food container rather than separate so that they can't accidentally be moved around). Note also that seafood is not vegetarian - there was at least one dish that was labeled as 'veggie' in Hong Kong that was covered in oyster sauce. Thanks. Mike Peel (talk) 15:46, 14 August 2013 (UTC)
• I assume that being a very multicultural city, the Londoners are rather conscious of the need for specific types of meals (kosher, halal, vegan, etc). If not, after the comments above, they probably are now :) -- Chuq (talk) 00:36, 16 August 2013 (UTC)

• The food in Hong Kong was pretty good. The downsides were the endless queues for it (sometimes 40 metres) taking up most of your lunchbreak, and it running out by the time you reached the food containers. Unfortunately, due to the locations of the venue, the dorms, and opening / closing times of canteens, too many people had to go without an evening meal too often. Mass catering is often a headache, and normal practice is to swallow the extra expense and follow the large scale catering rule rule that too much food is far better than too little. Food service in DC 2012 was well organised - several 'food islands' to walk around which avoided having to queue (stand in line), and the food, if not appreciated by everyone, was well and clearly labelled, and plentiful. I'm reasonably confident that the choice of dishes that will be on offer in London will be sufficiently religious//ethnic/demographically organised, and if not yet considered, now is the time to start having some open democratic discussion about it rather than having our diets decided for us by a small dedicated catering delegation. . Kudpung (talk) 03:40, 18 August 2013 (UTC)

Mobile app

I have longed for the mobile team to be inspired to create a mobile app for Wikimania. --Varnent (talk) 06:21, 14 August 2013 (UTC)

If we get the right volunteers onboard this could well be doable... Foxj (talk) 18:12, 14 August 2013 (UTC)

A mobile app was already announced by the London OC! --Dschwen (talk) 22:58, 14 August 2013 (UTC)

I'm working on this at the moment, actually - anyone who wants to get involved or has suggestions for this, please let me know. --KimiLawrie

@ User:Foxj Have there been any call for volunteers, if I may ask?

Lo, let us replicate arbitrary aspects of mediawiki on phones. It will be Fun. Add support for some version of 'recentmaniachanges' and some sort of global-messaging, by people at wikimania, to those using the app. (perhaps both of these could be in their own sidechannels on the app? with app-admins able to run banners across everyone's app for major announcements?  :-) Sj (talk) 02:04, 16 August 2013 (UTC)

Google's I/O conference app has received quite a lot of praise, and the source is available. The wub (talk) 09:16, 28 August 2013 (UTC)

┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘I'd like to place a request that the app includes wide support for a range of smartphones and tablets. I can (selfishly) offer testing on the GT-S5830i and Asus Eee Pad TF101. What features are expected to be included? Trevj (talk) 13:34, 30 December 2013 (UTC)

Arbitrary blobs of platform-specific executable code are rather silly. Let's try a radical idea: let's use the web instead. Tom Morris (talk) 15:45, 7 April 2014 (UTC)

Technical Committee

In response to my last request regarding a mobile app, a few other requests above, and some other conversations about admins for wiki maintenance - I am wondering if the Organizing team adding a Technical Committee to the existing committee structure would help with things like wiki maintenance, importing templates, technical stuff at conference - like wifi, maybe helping Program Committee with Hackathon, etc. --Varnent (talk) 06:24, 14 August 2013 (UTC)

I'm entirely interested in hearing further thoughts on this. In terms of network infrastructure the venue is well covered, although we will be adding more access points and potentially having multiple networks ahead of time. I think we would benefit from having network drives containing a Devcamp toolkit of essential software and a place that people can drop common files into. You are on our call list ;)--Patt8748 (talk) 12:40, 21 August 2013 (UTC)

Accessibility effort

It would be amazing if UK paved the way for accessibility efforts at Wikimania by creating an Accessibility wikipage, and maybe other creative things to support it. One idea would be to provide a space to request, or contact info on who to contact privately to request, certain accessibility things. It is possible that outside funding, or volunteers. might be able to provide basic accessibility services like specific kinds of sign language, indicate where handicap and family style bathrooms can be found, and help with unique housing, travel, or food accommodations. --Varnent (talk) 06:28, 14 August 2013 (UTC)

WisCon is exemplary at accessibility. I'm especially fond of the blue tape to mark out traffic aisles and the quiet room to help overstimulated people get a bit of temporary respite. Sharihareswara (WMF) (talk) 23:55, 24 September 2013 (UTC)

Use OpenConferenceWare

It might be useful to use OpenConferenceWare instead of a wiki to run this Wikimania's proposals and schedule. It's "an open source web application for supporting conference-like events. This customizable, general-purpose platform provides proposals, sessions, schedules, tracks, user profiles and more." Some of my favorite features:

• If a user clicks the favstar icon to indicate liking a proposal, it gets added to a sort of watchlist -- and the subset of proposals that get chosen to be scheduled sessions retain the star so it's easy to see them on the schedule.
• As Open Source Bridge has it set up, each session does link to a wiki page for notes.
• It's easy to set a deadline after which the site will no longer accept new proposals.

Barring that, it might be worth getting the Convention extension to MediaWiki up to par! What do the Wikimania 2014 organizers think? Sharihareswara (WMF) (talk) 00:02, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

Reasons to get the extension working: Revision history; Single user login; Flexibility; MW-integration.  :)

I'm not sure the deadline is a great reason pro OCW - since open-space sessions should be possible to draft at any time However having a system that lets people put together and update their own schedule -- whether via OCW, Google Calendar, or other -- strikes me as a killer use case. Sj (talk) 02:10, 16 August 2013 (UTC)

Ideas on these lines are a no-brainer - why hasn't it been done before? Very practical also for people with tablets or WiFi enabled smart phones. Kudpung (talk) 03:23, 18 August 2013 (UTC)

Programs

• Some events for less-involved Wikimedians and passersby may have been a good idea. A lot of the sections are usually complicated, even for active Wikimedians, and I doubt any passersby would be interested or get anything out of it. If we're trying to attract new editors, let's have a chance for them to participate if they want to (if they're in the area)! Maybe Edit Wikipedia booths or sessions for newbies, a sort of Q&A about Wikimedia and the programs. Make Wikimania both a gathering to get work done and a big PR session. Crisco 1492 (talk) 11:42, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

This will hopefully be a part of the chapters/projects village we hope to have some public drop in booths offering 101's on a variety of subjects. 'Make Wikimania both a gathering to get work done and a big PR session' Bang on!--Patt8748 (talk) 17:44, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

A canonical schedule for "where to go to hang out with / meet wikimedians" - including appropriate space at the venue, and parties at various times - would be great. I met 2 people who were passing through wikimania HK who wanted to engage, stayed for 20m or so, but felt they were in the wrong place and out of the loop, and left. Sj (talk) 02:11, 16 August 2013 (UTC)

• SJ: Exactly. If we're in public venues, with access to the public, we should recognise them. Also, a couple of the Kazakh Wikimedians I talked to also seemed a little lost by the conferences, and having English as their second language didn't help them follow the complicated talks; I ended up having few suggestions where they could go to get the most out of it.Crisco 1492 (talk) 02:14, 16 August 2013 (UTC)

• Editing practice for newbies: Yes, this is a excellent idea. Perhaps not booths but just a long table in a fairly central area (people usually feel intimidated by having to find a special room for activities like these) like in your local library,, with 2 chairs in front of each computer for short (10 min max) one-on-one sessions offered by a team of volunteers. In fact, it's almost something I would volunteer to do.

Recognising people: see my suggestions above for visiting cards and badges. Kudpung (talk) 03:20, 18 August 2013 (UTC)

• If I go to London, I'll definitely be willing to do such sessions as well. I've done it quite a bit in Indonesia.Crisco 1492 (talk) 06:07, 18 August 2013 (UTC)
• Check out "Ten Ways to Make Newcomers Feel Welcome at a Con" for some additional ideas on how to make new folks feel welcome at Wikimania. I think the "want a group for dinner?" idea is great and have seen it work well at WisCon. I also like "a room in the con proper for people to go when they're lost and at a loose end and in the mood to meet new people." Sharihareswara (WMF) (talk) 23:54, 24 September 2013 (UTC)

Live broadcasting

I think we should broadcast the event via the Internet ..There are many people who want to see the event... I suggest using one of these free services:

1. Hangout On Air (Via Google)
2. livestream.com

ADMIRAL12 (talk) 17:31, 15 August 2013 (UTC) On the books quantity and quality TBC. I am making this a personal outreach project to local media projects and operations who would normally not get the chance to cover such an event or work on this scale. We have the bandwidth to do it, the logistical, technical and material resources will be varied. If anyone has any community broadcast connections in the UK who may be interested in being involved I'm entirely open to introductions.--Patt8748 (talk) 18:24, 17 August 2013 (UTC)

We don't need to go for free services - thankfully, we get free use of YouTube Livestream events because Wikimedia UK is a UK charity. Declan certainly has the knowledge to be able to do this, and I'm sure we can scrape together the equipment. Declan - have you got in touch with Stevie Benton about this? Chase me ladies, I'm the Cavalry (talk) 14:23, 20 August 2013 (UTC)

Mr Benton is on my list of people to be talking to in the near future.--Patt8748 (talk) 14:54, 20 August 2013 (UTC)

Excellent! Chase me ladies, I'm the Cavalry (talk) 15:20, 20 August 2013 (UTC)

• 'scuse me butting in here — I ended up pointed this way from the Wikimania-l list.

This is a job for Wikinews. ;-)

We have prior experience (that was culled from around 12 hours of live webcam/mobile phone footage). We've also had people do major London events before; the tech for the Paralympic games was 'spit, bailing twine, and - of course - duct tape'.

If we have the storage space — and the bandwidth — there is no need to go to third-party services, we can run http://live.wikimania2014.wikimedia.org. --Brian McNeil (talk) 10:49, 29 August 2013 (UTC)

Thanks for the input Brian, If someone in the deeps of Wikinews could shoot me a line and we can chat about what you guys have in-house capability wise and we can look at how there can be interplay between the various media streams. --Patt8748 (talk) 23:07, 30 August 2013 (UTC) ADMIRAL12 (talk) 02:46, 1 September 2013 (UTC)

Thats very cooooooooool Brian!! ADMIRAL12 (talk) 02:46, 1 September 2013 (UTC)

Upon a request from the german community I will bring equipment for session streaming:

• Camcorder - Panasonic NV-GS500
• Tripod - mini tripod
• Soundcard - USB with two balanced, phantom-powered inputs and monitor output
• Notebook
• Microphone - two boundary layer mics, one condenser hand mic (Røde NTG-2):

This will be used at least in one session for a Google Hangout / Streaming on Youtube. The camera will be connected via Firewire, Windows will detect it as a standard video device, so it can be used in the Hangout plugin. --80686 (talk) 12:49, 12 July 2014 (UTC)

I think that this is very important for Hangouts on Air: enable studio mode for each participant (i.e. computer connected to the hangout). Here's the difference: [1]. Lazowik (talk) 19:28, 3 August 2014 (UTC)

Stream of the opening Ceremony

Hi, we want to show the opening ceremony in our local Community-Space Lokal K in Cologne, Germany. Question: How, when and where will we find an information about a broadcast? Until now I did not find more than this discussion. --Superbass (talk) 15:09, 25 July 2014 (UTC)

Who was that guy/girl I had that interesting conversation with?

Most people who travel to international conferences are armed with visiting/business cards; most people who visit Wikimania, except Foundation and chapter staff, don't. Standing up with a plate of food in one hand and fishing in shoulder bag for a piece of paper and a pen, and trying to understand someone's name and write it down is not very practical. Why not offer to print 'visitor' visiting cards for project members, to be ordered on registration? They could be picked up when checking in at the registration desk in the lobby. It may be a modest source of additional income if coupled with a small profit margin. Cards should have the same format as the WMF/chapter cards.

Maybe some kind of laser printer could also be provided to print cards at the registration table for those who register on arrival.. That said, the most chaotic area of Wikimania 2013 was the registration area which was a confused combination of registration, general information, help desk, and gathering point for transport groups. Kudpung (talk) 03:08, 18 August 2013 (UTC)

+1 Cards are really useful in outreach, and in recruiting new editors. The option of taking home a box of personal Wikipedian calling cards be a good investment for the organization! A generic "UserName, Wikipedian" would work for those who aren't representing a specific Wikimedia organization.

Another possibility for on-site networking: an optional scannable QR code on the conference badge that links to the user page. Djembayz (talk) 17:45, 18 August 2013 (UTC)

I like the idea of business cards (and if this suggestion isn't taken up, get your own printed; start a tradition! They're not very expensive.), though name badges should go some way towards solving this problem. HJ Mitchell | Penny for your thoughts? 18:03, 27 August 2013 (UTC)

Or make our own? Can the Mania 2014 committee perhaps get a graphic designer to create a blank master card? Post it for all somewhere in the WikiMania pages? Then we can fill-in-the-blanks and print our own using stock from any business supply store (Office Depot or Staples in the USA). Doctree (talk) 00:44, 12 October 2013 (UTC)

Great idea! I await the details.--Dthomsen8 (talk) 15:37, 24 November 2013 (UTC)

For those who have already met other users at Wikimania, you probably already can use the Personal Acquintances tool to sign up and let yourself be confirmed as enough users would remember you.

For now the most important language to translate the tool to is Spanish. Romaine (talk) 13:34, 21 April 2014 (UTC)

Signage and layout

Comparing again: The GU venue in DC was excellent. Pretty much everything on one floor, toilets and lifts (elevators) plentiful and easily found, and signs for finding everything. Much of this was lacking in the Hong Kong Poly, as well as special signage for the conference. The different classrooms and lecture theatres were scattered in various buildings on different levels throughout the complicated campus, making the walking experience comparable to that of a large airport - not good for people who can't get around so easily. Let's please remember for 2014 that not all Wikipedians are sprightly individuals in the 16 - 25 age group! Kudpung (talk) 04:11, 18 August 2013 (UTC)

I am a Wikipedian, but not a sprightly individual in the 16 - 25 age group! I remember all those steps getting to the food at Wikimania 2012, and I am less sprightly now. Planners, remember us.--Dthomsen8 (talk) 15:45, 24 November 2013 (UTC)

Babel fish

Make babel fish pins for those who are willing to translate for other attendees, make the badge big enough for them to write in the language pair/s that they are happy working with.--KTo288 (talk) 10:31, 22 August 2013 (UTC)

Make use of Team London

Team London is a legacy organisation from London 2012, it aims to build on the experience of Games makers, London ambassadors and other 2012 volunteers. The UK chapter can ask to join Team London as an organisation and once that is approved can post it's volunteer requirements on the Team London website.

Although open to everyone, the core of Team London audience are volunteers from 2012 who have experience in the wide range of skills needed for large events.--KTo288 (talk) 10:46, 22 August 2013 (UTC)

Welcome packs

Make welcome packs to be sent out to attendees, preferably before they arrive in London, especially those who are coming from abroad. Oyster cards have already been promised budget permitting, so other things that could go into the pack could consist of

• Map/maps the London ambassadors had very good ones they were giving out in 2012 we could ask Boris if they have any left

• Prepaid sim card:-free simcards with £1.00 pre-paid call credit from a particular provided can be redeemed at two terminals at Heathrow, however you are more often than not going to be stuck behind a queue for other things and they are usually out of stock. We could ask the provider if they are willing to give us about a thousand or so to distribute; if not other providers will provide sim cards free on request but with no call credit.

any other ideas.--KTo288 (talk) 11:31, 22 August 2013 (UTC)

Is there an explanation of Oyster cards somewhere? If so, put a Wikilink on the term here. I know what it is, but do others?--Dthomsen8 (talk) 01:22, 24 August 2013 (UTC)

Will this do en:Oyster card.--KTo288 (talk) 22:23, 25 August 2013 (UTC)

voy:London#Oyster card is probably a better source for travel information. - AdamBMorgan (talk) 17:53, 23 September 2013 (UTC)

I like the idea of distributing welcome packs in advance, but sending out Oyster cards in advance sounds to me like a logistical nightmare even before we consider the cost of international postage. HJ Mitchell | Penny for your thoughts? 18:00, 27 August 2013 (UTC)

The idea of sending welcome packs in advance of arrival was something I encountered during London 2012 as a gamesmaker at Heathrow airport, the idea was to get people out off the airport and on their way as quickly and smoothly as possible if logistics and cost makes a physical welcome pack impossible , we could try a downloadable one with intructions/links as to transport options. Hong Kong collated arrival information though I don't know if they used it, we could do the same, work out which days the greatest number of people will arrive and where and have meeters and greeters help them on their way.--KTo288 (talk) 18:14, 28 September 2013 (UTC)

Decentralize Video Sharing

Wikimania is an event every Wikimedian loves to take part in. However, not all do attend on a yearly bases. Recorded videos are available to info these 'did-not-attend' ones the 'how and what' happened at the event.

However, (following the events of the 3 most recent Wikimanias) recorded video sharing of the event with the global community sometimes leads into months. The delay reasons are mostly heaped on the fact that sharing of videos are voluntary tasks, and or take longer upload times onto the central servers.

Decentralizing video sharing can help solve this problem. How? Just at the end of the Wikimania event, all raw video files of the event can be brought under one roof and shared with any who wishes to copy onto their external hard drives and or personal computers. Persons may also wish to upload the ones they like best onto their personal online video sharing platforms.

I personally do not know how huge the individual recorded videos are. Even if they're 1080p of quality HD videos, they can be processed in a matter of couple of hours to SD with good enough quality plus smaller file sizes for copying

Allowing persons to copy these large videos to their countries, they in turn will be in a position to share with their local wikimedians, helping reduce the need for the long wait for the videos from a central point.

An intranet ( cable and/or wireless ) will help provide the needed sharing capability for all who'll like to take a copy of the videos along with them.

Its costly streaming and/or downloading videos in my part of the world. However, at least, a rep from my country was at this year's Wikimania, of whom I could have taken all the videos from when she returned. --Nkansahrexford (talk) 23:18, 28 August 2013 (UTC)

• This is a job for a dedicated server on-site.

1. People, as often as the like, drop off footage to a site-local server.
2. The server identifies the file format(s) - audio can just-as readily be processed.
3. Videos/Audio recordings are queued for conversion into relevant ogg/ogv formats.
4. Highest-quality version uploaded, and downscaling to resolutions more-appropriate for countries with slower connections, is queued.
   • I'd note here, that this is getting 'what you've got' out there as fast as-possible. Next, you do the lowest resolution likely to be of-use.

Assuming someone starts with 1080p, that's the first version up. If we need to offer right down to VGA, then that's next.

I'm a little out-of-practice, and this wasn't plugged-in audio-wise. --Brian McNeil (talk) 17:21, 29 August 2013 (UTC)

Safer WiFi?

Add a Tor input node so WiFi users can avoid surveillance if they need to. Britain has GCHQ with capabilities & goals similar to US NSA, and who knows who else might listen in.

Tor is an anonymity network. Here is a cheap interface to it: http://learn.adafruit.com/onion-pi/overview

+1 (in addition, a Tor user can opt for pluggable transports) --ralgis·/t/ 19:20, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

Hospitality for trans* and genderfluid/genderqueer Wikimedians

It would be great if this could be the best ever Wikimania for genderqueer and trans* Wikimedians' experience of Wikimania (especially on the topics of registration, accommodations, t-shirts, and other parts of Wikimania where gender comes up).

Examples:

• Help registrants with accommodation by allowing registrants to specify in the dorm registration form that they would need roommates who are trans* or genderqueer, or otherwise comfortable staying with people who are. Or ask whether they need a single room; some might
• Can we have gender-neutral toilets in venues?
• In the registration form, gender could just be a text box people can fill in as they wish

Sharihareswara (WMF) (talk) 23:11, 27 September 2013 (UTC)

Ah - and importantly, make it so people don't have to out themselves in order to receive appropriate accommodations, services, t-shirts, etc. Sharihareswara (WMF) (talk) 23:12, 27 September 2013 (UTC)

How about temporarily re-signing toilets as being unisex, including "unisex with urinals" for those built as gents? (I'm assuming toilets are already in place, rather than referring to any brought in specifically for the event.) Trevj (talk) 13:42, 30 December 2013 (UTC)

Toilets are something the team with contact with the venue can answer, but in terms of the registration form and T-shirt issues, that all seems reasonable. Tom Morris (talk) 15:42, 7 April 2014 (UTC)

Wilk and the Commons Recording Orchestra

SF conventions often host filk sessions, we could have a wiki folk sessions. Traditional folk songs and the classical music repertoire are PD however because in addition to copyrights there is the issue of performer's rights the number of ogg files we have on Commons is limited to those for which the performance rights have lapsed or those which have been donated by musicians or midi files created by wikimedians, the quality of such files is variable. We can make use of the Barbican as a concert venue and recruit singers and musicians willing to exchange their performance rights for attribution under creative commons to host a folk and classical music session that can be recorded as ogg files mixed with short talks on creative commons and free culture. This can form part of the fringe and/or outreach program, passerbys may be more interested in attending concert cum recording session in a traditional concert venue than just a talk on something that they think they have no interest in.--KTo288 (talk) 14:36, 14 October 2013 (UTC)

I had the idea of collaboratively writing a piece of music for a scratch orchestra to perform at the event using https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Extension:Score EdSaperia (talk) 15:21, 14 October 2013 (UTC)

If we do this, it may well be worth documenting the creative process as an example of the creativity at work. If we want to do this we could put a call out for musicians via TeamLondon, see above--KTo288 (talk)

T-shirts

This suggestion might sound silly, but it is important to some people: please, please make different t-shirts for men and women, as the Haifa team did in 2011 (with the V-necks in the shirts for women). I do not like to use manly clothes and I love to wear Wikimania/Wikipedia clothes on the street :) Mel 23 (talk) 01:08, 18 October 2013 (UTC)

Note that this suggestion (as worded) seems contrary to the aims suggested at Brainstorming #Hospitality for trans* and genderfluid/genderqueer Wikimedians. However perhaps standard and v-neck for the fuller chest (or similar) could be adopted as descriptions. Trevj (talk) 13:46, 30 December 2013 (UTC)

• I've read that for sme activities a Wikimedia T-shirt will be helpfull -special activities in museums, for instance. So T-shirts have to be easily available. They're also good merchandise to sell, so they could even help finance the event. 81.202.245.101 19:08, 13 December 2013 (UTC)

WikiBus

Organise buses with internet access from different destinations to London and to pick up Wikimedians. m:Wikimania 2014/Wikibus --Sebastian Wallroth (talk) 12:58, 23 October 2013 (UTC)

Something for just editors

I'm just an editor. I mean that I write and edit articles and upload images to commons. I can't write programmes and lack many but the most basic computer abilities. I don't think that condition is unique to me. There has to be some other just editors out there, and some of us will go to London. It could well be the case that there are a lot of us, as somebody has to do the writing of articles. Could something be arranged so that we could meet? I'm really interested in sharing experiences with them. B25es (talk) 18:39, 14 December 2013 (UTC)

Hiya - I think it's interesting that you make this distinction. The ability to navigate wikimedia and contribute is a lot more technical than you give yourself credit for, and if you've ever created a template or planned out and produced a project spanning more than a couple of pages, you've done something quite impressive, and "writing programmes" is only a case of learning a few more magic words. My goal with the wikimania2014 front page is to attract the tech community in London, because they've got a lot to offer and are smart but don't know much about wikimedia, and wouldn't understand how relevant it is to them without a bit of handholding. The themes are ones that I saw as central to the activity at Wikimania2013, but were never really articulated. I expect the Wikimedian community will show up no matter what, and there will be plenty of space and time to socialise and discuss about anything you want: I am going to be pointedly reducing the scheduled programming and increasing emphasis on breaks, unconference and breakout spaces to facilitate this. EdSaperia (talk) 16:40, 15 December 2013 (UTC)

Or to put it another way - what we'd think of as an editathon, most people in London would consider a hackathon, at least amongst the crowd that I am trying to reach out to; CF "Growth Hacking", "Life Hacking", etc EdSaperia (talk) 11:33, 17 December 2013 (UTC)

I understand that you're trying to atract technical people in into Wikimedia. My point of view is a different one. One of my activities in Wikimedia is taking pictures of places, for instance, one square kilometer of urban non-monumental space. It takes three or four hours to go and take the photographs; targets have to be predefined (remember we're talking about non-monumental parts of a city, so forget about Michelin Guide Verte); expect the unexpected is mostly the rule; articles have to be writen about what has been pictured (or even not pictured!)... Well, I understand that more people in other places have done similar things. I remember a group of Poles that made a project based on their railway network. I'm sure they've some knowledge I could use. And of course they are not the only ones I can learn from. Well, I hope you can understand better my proposal. Sorry for my too long explanation. B25es (talk) 16:36, 17 December 2013 (UTC)

Please

Please, take into account that what is discused here is of interest to both English native speakers and other people. So expressions such as GU in DC can be confusing (just an example, there are a handfull of similarly abreviated expresions only in this page). I think that means Georgetown University in Washington, but just writing out what it is meant to be said would help a real lot. B25es (talk) 18:45, 14 December 2013 (UTC)

I agree. Those from outside the UK (and even just outside London) would probably benefit from a glossary of abbreviations/terminology which can be easily referenced. I remember attending the European Social Forum in Paris, where I'd have been very lost without natives' guidance. Trevj (talk) 13:55, 30 December 2013 (UTC)

Making Room For Beginners

I believe there are people who have little or no knowledge about the technicalities of some of the tools, but are willing to express their thoughts and share ideas on how to make some of these things better. I believe having this in mind and providing a platform that does not make anyone feel left out is crucial to their involvement and participation. Flixtey (talk)

QRpedia views by the windows

Assuming that some windows in our part of the venue have interesting views of London, could we have a silhouette of the view with QRpedia codes for the places of interest? WereSpielChequers (talk) 23:26, 17 January 2014 (UTC)