Nostr notes by Brooke Vibber :mediawiki:

thou shalt not connect a television to the internet

2026-10-25T19:33:00Z

In reply to nevent1q…z28w
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thou shalt not connect a television to the internet

Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. is still stonewalling UK staff's ...

2026-10-20T15:50:08Z

Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. is still stonewalling UK staff's unionization effort, dragging their feet on negotiations. The Foundation's attempt to reduce the size of the bargaining unit is now heading to arbitration:

https://wikiworkersunited.org/announcements/2026-10-19-uk-bargaining-unit-scope-negotiation-goes-to-arbitration/

The capture of Wikimedia Foundation C-levels and middle managers ...

2026-10-01T17:58:28Z

In reply to nevent1q…fff6
_________________________

The capture of Wikimedia Foundation C-levels and middle managers by the AI slop brigade scares the crap out of me, and I wish there was something I could do.

My concerns were not well received by those managers internally last year.

Wikimedians should be fighting against AI/LLM slop as hard as we ...

2026-10-01T17:57:21Z

Wikimedians should be fighting against AI/LLM slop as hard as we can to save what we can of free/open culture and software

On my way to Canada for WikiConference North America! Visiting ...

2026-09-17T16:48:19Z

On my way to Canada for WikiConference North America! Visiting friends in Toronto and Edmonton before the conference, then in addition to talking to people about MediaWiki I'll see a lot of wikimedian friends there. :)

Say hi if you're at WCNA next week!

We're all a social bunch aren't we... :)

Hey Wikimedians and MediaWiki enthusiasts! I'll be at ...

2026-09-10T22:34:19Z

Hey Wikimedians and MediaWiki enthusiasts! I'll be at WikiConference North America in Edmonton later this month, and if you're interested in the future of MediaWiki development I want to talk to you!

> More than 200 staffers at the Wikimedia Foundation, the ...

2026-09-04T01:03:47Z

> More than 200 staffers at the Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit behind the encyclopedia Wikipedia, have voted 158-14 to join the Communication Workers of America labor union.

https://www.wired.com/story/wikipedia-workers-vote-on-whether-to-unionize/

The votes for the unionization of Wikimedia Foundation US staff ...

2026-09-03T01:29:30Z

The votes for the unionization of Wikimedia Foundation US staff will be counted tomorrow; once everything's worked out we should know for certain that the union will be recognized.

But that's just the start. UK union negotiations continue -- because Wikimedia Foundation refused voluntary recognition in both countries -- as does the process for statutory recognition there.

And the unions in both countries must negotiate their contracts with management to ensure all staff are protected.

Nice blog post (in German) from Wikimedia Deutschland on their ...

2026-08-28T16:47:13Z

Nice blog post (in German) from Wikimedia Deutschland on their positive experience with a worker's council (which is legally distinct from a union in Germany, but somewhat overlapping) in the context of the ongoing unionization effort at Wikimedia Foundation in the US and UK.

https://blog.wikimedia.de/2026/08/27/gewerkschaften-und-betriebsraete-wikimedia/

Starbucks United's 12,000+ baristas are calling for a boycott ...

2026-08-25T17:44:06Z

Starbucks United's 12,000+ baristas are calling for a boycott of Starbucks until the company agrees to a contract:

https://bsky.app/profile/sbworkersunited.org/post/3mtw3i4bsqk2a

25 years of Wikipedia 23 years of Wikimedia Foundation 7 months ...

2026-08-20T23:04:58Z

25 years of Wikipedia

23 years of Wikimedia Foundation

7 months of Wiki Workers United's union campaign

2 months since requesting voluntary recognition in the UK with a supermajority of eligible staff

1 month since requesting voluntary recognition in the US with a supermajority of eligible staff

Statutory recognition is expected soon in the UK, as we have the numbers

On September 3 the US votes will be counted; again we expect to have the numbers to win NLRB recognition.

On the wall of my office; the thing I'm proudest of helping ...

2026-08-14T23:48:22Z

On the wall of my office; the thing I'm proudest of helping build at Wikimedia Foundation. <3

Jimmy Wales breaks with WMF leadership on Littler Mendelson ...

2026-08-09T03:21:25Z

Jimmy Wales breaks with WMF leadership on Littler Mendelson "union avoidance" firm:

> I was not aware when I said that no union busting law firms had been hired that Littler Mendelson had been hired. When I found out, I immediately emailed the WMF to say that I think it was a mistake and to recommend firing them immediately.
-- Jimbo Wales 00:41, 9 August 2026 (UTC)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Jimbo_Wales#c-Jimbo_Wales-20260809004100-Femke-20260802182900

I just wanna give a personal thanks to everybody out there for ...

2026-08-06T15:44:30Z

I just wanna give a personal thanks to everybody out there for all the community support for Wiki Workers United (npub1wdg…c3uh)

Community pressure *does* work and *has* helped us in negotiations.

Workers at Wikimedia Foundation just want to do their jobs effectively without interference or fear of losing their jobs. And those jobs are to support the communities of editors, readers, outreachers, organizers, fact-checkers, template writers, module debuggers, and more who make Wikipedia and its sister projects happen.

And so it begins :) NLRB vote for unionizing Wikimedia ...

2026-08-06T00:23:54Z

And so it begins :)

NLRB vote for unionizing Wikimedia Foundation's US staff is in the works:
* ballots to be mailed to staff on August 11
* must be returned for counting before September 3
* there will be opportunity for observers and to dispute eligibility at the count

https://apps.nlrb.gov/link/document.aspx/09031d458432a7a5

nice work in progress by ...

2026-08-04T01:48:23Z

nice work in progress by [@molly0xfff](https://hachyderm.io/@molly0xfff ) at meta: wmf claims and responses regarding the union issue

https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wiki_Workers_United/Claims_and_responses

I felt really grounded in the rich community ethos of the ...

2026-07-26T05:48:22Z

In reply to nevent1q…qmks
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I felt really grounded in the rich community ethos of the Wikimedia movement -- not just editors, not just organizers, not just WMF staff, not just affiliates, but *all* of us working together for a common goal of people working together to share knowledge more freely with the world.

It's *so* energizing, and I'm more proud than ever to be a part of this movement and to have been so for twenty-five years. <3

Here's to twenty-five more!

#Wikimania #Wikimania2026

yawning waking up welp that was a fine fine #Wikimania ...

2026-07-26T05:37:37Z

*yawning waking up* welp that was a fine fine #Wikimania y'all :babyglobe_party:

Time to go home today! :babyglobe_sad:

Big WikiLove :wikilove: hugs to all the old friends and new friends I talked to, and to anybody I missed!

I'll see many of you again soon at Wikiconference North America in Edmonton, or at the MediaWiki Users and Developers Conference in Ljubljana, or at the Wikimedia Hackathon in Tirana, or next year at Wikimania in Santiago, etc!

#Wikimania2026

> Workers at the Wikimedia Foundation — the San ...

2026-07-24T14:26:43Z

> Workers at the Wikimedia Foundation — the San Francisco-based foundation that hosts Wikipedia — demanded voluntary recognition of their union, Wiki Workers United U.S., on Monday.
>
> The staff who run the platform say they want a stronger voice in their workplace, better job protections and an end to common practices that make life “precarious for everyday workers,” according to Jeremy Bernick, one of the union organizers.
> ...

https://www.kqed.org/news/12092335/staff-of-san-francisco-based-wikipedia-demand-union-recognition-raise-concerns-over-ai

Having a great time at #Wikimania #Wikimania2026 so far! Got a ...

2026-07-22T11:46:39Z

Having a great time at #Wikimania #Wikimania2026 so far! Got a community wishlist item knocked out yesterday, had some great conversations today. Next up is a serious session about board election reform, which is going to be interesting...

✊ Lots of interest and support for Wiki Workers United among editors and other contributors so far! We got this!

US & UK branches of Wiki Workers United, the two largest ...

2026-07-20T13:54:38Z

In reply to nevent1q…67d6
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US & UK branches of Wiki Workers United, the two largest countries in Wikimedia Foundation's staffing, are both officially in the midst of seeking recognition.

WWU-UK is entering formal negotiations because WMF refused voluntary recognition and chose negotiations instead.

It remains to be seen whether WMF will voluntarily recognize the supermajority US union or force staff to go through a formal National Labor Relations Board election.

✊️ Wikimedia is union strong!

#Wikimania #Wikimania2026

> Wiki Workers United U.S. Branch Demands Voluntary ...

2026-07-20T13:49:38Z

> Wiki Workers United U.S. Branch Demands Voluntary Recognition from Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit that hosts Wikipedia

https://wikiworkersunited.org/announcements/2026-07-20-us-demands-voluntary-recognition/

https://cwa-union.org/news/releases/wiki-workers-united-us-branch-demands-voluntary-recognition-wikimedia-foundation

#Wikimania #Wikimania2026

Wikimedia Foundation's UK staff -- our second-largest ...

2026-06-24T13:11:09Z

Wikimedia Foundation's UK staff -- our second-largest workforce by country -- have officially requested recognition by WMF as a branch of UTAW-CWU (United Tech & Allied Workers)

https://wikiworkersunited.org/announcements/#2026-06-24-UK-Wikimedia-Foundation-staff-seek-union-recognition

There's a local Wikimedia meetup in Portland, OR this ...

2026-06-09T19:11:06Z

There's a local Wikimedia meetup in Portland, OR this Saturday!

I'll swing by and hang out with the nerds; come join us and say hi!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Event:June_2026_meetup_in_Portland,_Oregon

ok let's see if i set this thing up right :D ...

2026-06-08T23:06:10Z

ok let's see if i set this thing up right :D

https://liberapay.com/bvibber/

Opened a LiberaPay to accept recurring support for my general Open Source work; this will cover general bug fixes to things like:

* MediaWiki and MediaWiki extensions where I'm not being contracted to do specific work
* emscripten, binaryen, and other WebAssembly tooling that I use and sometimes help with
* GNOME and other free desktop bits
* Browser and JS/wasm stacks
* ffmpeg stack

as I have been known to do

I am not the only open source developer who has scratched an ...

2026-06-07T20:22:07Z

I am not the only open source developer who has scratched an Esperanto-related itch on a project. 😉

Neil here works for The Document Foundation and had the opportunity to make some improvements to support the Esperanto localization of LibreOffice, notably autocorrect support for the common "x" convention for typing the accented characters with a bare keyboard (eg "cx" for ĉ").

Should make it easier on weird nerds typing up documents in our weird nerd language. 😃 ❤

https://neilblog.video.blog/2026/06/07/libreoffice-automate-korektos-x-ojn-al-capeloj/

hm, there is a 4k edition out these days (of the retconned one ...

2026-06-05T18:10:42Z

In reply to nevent1q…62um
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hm, there is a 4k edition out these days (of the retconned one ;)), no idea if it's actually a cleaner scan or just an upscale but it'll use more hard drive space when i rip em lol

booooooo I mean sure fine if you wanna have a recut version more ...

2026-06-05T18:07:40Z

In reply to nevent1q…9hmv
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booooooo

I mean sure fine if you wanna have a recut version more power to you, just don't take away the original cut. Every other movie seems to do this fine, why is George Lucas unable to be a normal person?

I'm still bitter about the Special Edition lol (Do they have ...

2026-06-05T18:02:28Z

In reply to nevent1q…a8yg
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I'm still bitter about the Special Edition lol

(Do they have the original cuts on the blu-rays? I might finally break down and get them if so)

On a personal journey to let go of anger and rediscover the joy ...

2026-06-05T17:22:52Z

On a personal journey to let go of anger and rediscover the joy of connecting to friends and family (watching Return of the Jedi)

Wikipedia, and the entire Wikimedia movement, has been a ...

2026-05-31T01:31:58Z

Wikipedia, and the entire Wikimedia movement, has been a democratic, anti-authoritarian experiment since the day of its inception.

It's a project that matters, something I've been proud to have made a career of.

I spent my 20 years at the Wikimedia Foundation trying to further that experiment on a professional basis, and I have never been prouder of my former colleagues at WMF than I have been these past few months as we've been making Wiki Workers United (npub1wdg…c3uh) a reality.

You should organize your workplace too.

✊

2026-05-28T23:09:49Z

In reply to nevent1q…s8vt
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✊

I just posted this announcement to wikitech-l mailing list. ...

2026-05-26T14:58:21Z

I just posted this announcement to wikitech-l mailing list.

Fun fact: if I'm reading our HR system correctly I'm ...

2026-05-03T09:04:21Z

In reply to nevent1q…fd3s
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Fun fact: if I'm reading our HR system correctly I'm overall employee number three! I'm pretty sure number one was Danny Wool who did office & misc work for a while, but I've been asking some of us other old farts who number 2 was and we're not sure. ;)

Over time, the situation with things like complex extension ...

2026-05-02T21:00:04Z

In reply to nevent1q…f8ju
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Over time, the situation with things like complex extension features complicated this sort of arrangement, and the modern Wikimedia Enterprise system is a fancy web API that renders stuff on our end, but on separate hardware from the production site and more deliberate throttling/access controls.

This was the work I was first hired for as a contractor, before ...

2026-05-02T20:58:22Z

In reply to nevent1q…gnyp
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This was the work I was first hired for as a contractor, before coming on as the first full-time employee at Wikimedia Foundation.

The 2005-vintage data feed system was built on the OAI-PMH XML repository syncing protocol, and allowed customers to keep a local MediaWiki instance up to date with page creations, edits, deletions, and image uploads/deletions so you could then scrape *that* copy instead of the live Wikipedia site.

Ask Jeeves was our first customer for the Wikipedia data feeds ...

2026-05-02T20:54:00Z

Ask Jeeves was our first customer for the Wikipedia data feeds product that was the great-great-granddaddy of Wikimedia Enterprise :)

RIP Jeeves

Nostr event nevent1qqsw3gmnr2kljccen8020twgfsfqwl02hvk3wfz6v6u3pdup0czaktszyqrk0rufred7lw2qssjuw9u8a7u63nelwau2krsq8lcywhwl8k7jyw6e2rm

2026-04-19T15:19:49Z

✊

RE: https://wikis.world/@legoktm/116410420599243242 Write every ...

2026-04-15T19:46:40Z

RE: https://wikis.world/@legoktm/116410420599243242

Write every work e-mail and Slack message assuming it's going to appear in court some day :)

> The proceedings also aired a Live Nation executive’s internal messages declaring some prices “outrageous,” calling customers “so stupid” and boasting that the company “robbing them blind, baby.” The executive, Benjamin Baker, apologetically testified that the messages were “very immature and unacceptable.”
nostr:note1msx23gcl8hnhcclxdrlh85uu9plsmg93h66ujahm5njsdntv86lqgvgq5e

my earliest recorded edit that got lastingly credited to my ...

2026-04-13T14:47:56Z

In reply to nevent1q…p7ja
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my earliest recorded edit that got lastingly credited to my account appears to have been drafting the "Unicode" article in Esperanto Wikipedia on 2002-01-02:

https://eo.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Unikodo&oldid=10877

Friends hoping to work for Wikimedia Foundation, I have bad news. ...

2026-03-17T17:42:07Z

Friends hoping to work for Wikimedia Foundation, I have bad news. As of today, we have stopped hiring from the following countries:

> We will no longer be hiring staff in the following previous hiring locations:
> Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Croatia, Costa Rica, Czechia, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Israel, Nigeria, Peru, Sweden, UAE, Uganda, Uruguay.
[from an internal info mail]

Here's the list on our jobs page of where we still hire:
https://wikimediafoundation.org/jobs/#section-13

Nostr event nevent1qqsgdp6keqd0mcey9h03tlvlax942ez06nc25nzaxc06vuy796kzdfgzyqrk0rufred7lw2qssjuw9u8a7u63nelwau2krsq8lcywhwl8k7jys5cr06

2026-03-03T17:57:47Z

Rights are not given; they are asserted.

Unions are like condoms -- if someone tries to tell you you ...

2026-03-03T17:20:49Z

Unions are like condoms -- if someone tries to tell you you don't need one, you *definitely* need one.