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'''Welcome to the ''Citizendium'' pilot project!'''
__NOTOC__
<center><div style="font-size: x-large">Let's get started!</div></center>


This is a general orientation for new contributors.  This is a comprehensive summary, but it is just a summary; there are links to pages with more detail (right now, many of them haven't been started).
; Learn about us
: Essential reading.  Don't miss these crucial documents.  (They're part of the [[CZ:Organization]] pages.)
:* '''[[CZ:About|About]]''' - An introduction to the ''Citizendium;'' our goals.
:* '''[[Help:Index|Help system]]''' - questions and answers to find the help you need.
:* '''[[CZ:FAQ|FAQ]]''' - A lengthier, question-and-answer style introduction.
:* '''[[CZ:Policies|Policies]]''' - The current "constitution" of the ''Citizendium'' community.


== What makes us different? ==
; How to get to work
: You don't need to read a thick manual before actually working.  We'd prefer it if you just dove in, which you can do, because wikis are ''easy'' (really!).  But the following documents should clarify your role as author or editor, and give you an idea of where to have your questions answered in the future.
:* '''[[CZ:Start Article|Start a new article]]''' - There's an easy way--and it is ''very'' easy.
:* Every contributor is an '''[[CZ:The Author Role|Author]]''' (we no longer have '''[[CZ:The Editor Role|Editors]]''').
<!--
:* '''[[CZ:The Author Role|The Author Role]]''' - Authors are the lifeblood of the project.  How to do your job.
:* '''[[CZ:The Editor Role|The Editor Role]]''' - "Editor" means something a little different here than what you might be used to.
-->
:* '''[[CZ:Introduction to CZ for Wikipedians|Introduction to CZ for Wikipedians]]''' - We do things differently here, but not ''that'' differently.
:* '''[[CZ:Essentials|A few essentials]]''' - Here are a few hints if you want to avoid common ''faux pas.''
:* '''[[CZ:How you can help|How you can help]]''' - What to do.  There's a lot that needs to be done!


We're glad to have you here and hope you'll join our friendly little (but growing!) community as an active contributor.  [[CZ:What makes CZ different?|What makes us different?]]  Well, for one thing, we're all contributing under ''our own real names''.  We take responsibility for our own work, and we like to think we're a bit more civil than your average Internet community.  For another thing, there are editors working right alongside authors. Editors can make decisions about articles in their areas of expertise, but for the most part, we collaborate just as folks do on Wikipedia--only with more collegiality. Editors also have a special task here that doesn't exist on Wikipedia: they can ''approve'' articles.
; ''Citizendium'' culture
: We're a community, and we have a culture.  Read about what "gets us going" and what "makes us tick."
:* '''[[CZ:Why Citizendium?|Why Citizendium?]]''' - Why should you contribute at all? There are many good answers.
:* '''[[CZ:Be Bold|Be Bold]]''' - If no one is giving out orders, you're free.  Freedom requires boldness!
:* '''[[CZ:Under Construction|Under Construction]]''' - This is a wiki.  Things aren't perfect; we keep making it better.
:* '''[[CZ:How to collaborate|How to collaborate]]''' - Collaboration with a global group of colleagues requires finesse.
:* '''[[CZ:Group Editing]]''' - Commentary on how editing and writing as a group is much different than rough draft/final copy formats that most are used to.
:* '''[[CZ:Professionalism|Professionalism]]''' - We're a pretty friendly bunch.


[[CZ:CZ isn't Wikipedia|We aren't Wikipedia]].  On January 20, we started an experiment. Although we started the pilot project as a fork of Wikipedia, we decided to try "unforking," i.e., deleting all the inactive articles, leaving us with only articles that we'd worked on.  We want to develop our own community, with our own rules and guidelines that might, in fact, be quite different from Wikipedia's.  A few differences, apart from the real names requirement and the presence of editors, are that we do not use "in group" abbreviations like "POV," and we really do take our neutrality policy seriously. Also, we don't permit user boxes on user pages; nor do we permit essays linked from user pages. Finally, our project governance, which is still under rapid development, will be quite different. We have a number of non-negotiable policies, and new policies will not be adopted by an impossible "consensus" but by vote of democratically selected representatives.
; Learn more
: This is just a getting-started page.  There's a lot more on the community home page, '''[[CZ:Home]].'''  Here are some other links to help you get started.
:* '''[[CZ:How to edit an article|How to edit an article]]''' - The technical nitty-gritty.  WikiMedia markup, etc.
:* '''[[CZ:Approval Standards|Approval Standards]]''' - A list of the qualities a good article should have.
:* '''[[CZ:Article mechanics|Article mechanics]]''' - A guide to mechanics and style
:* '''[[CZ:Subpages|Subpages]]''' - We're more than just an encyclopedia.  See what else.
:* '''[[CZ:Workgroups|Workgroups]]''' - How we organize ourselves by discipline.
:* '''[[Citizendium]] by Citizendium''' - our article about ourselves.
:* '''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dnL00TdmLY Introductory Video]''' - A third-party video introducing the concept of [[wiki]]s.


== Be bold! ==
{{Getting Started}}
 
[[Category:Getting Started]]
One of the first things you must realize is that you've got to [[CZ:Be Bold|be bold]] if this project is going to work.  It is natural to be cautious about editing stuff that other people have written.  The fact that there are many highly-educated types here makes some people afraid to touch the wiki, period.  But this is a huge mistake.  We want and need the participation of a wide array of people.  This ''isn't'' an experts-only project in the least; most of our registered contributors are, in fact, authors, not (expert) editors.  Also, keep in mind that most people here are quite friendly.  So far, anyway, we've had very little unpleasantness here.
 
So, please, ''be bold'' about contributing.  Want to start a new article on a subject?  Please do!  You don't need to ask anyone's permission.  Want to fix someone's spelling or grammar?  Dive in, this is a collaboration.  Want to add a new section, or revamp a bibliography?  Add, revamp, and edit away!
 
But before you edit an article that seems pretty far along, have a look at the article's "talk" page (press the "discussion" tab at the top of the screen) and check for comments that people might have made.  On the use of the "talk page," see below.
 
== Under Construction, or, it's better to add something editable than nothing at all ==
 
The ''Citizendium,'' like Wikipedia and virtually all wikis, could have an "[[CZ:Always under construction|under construction]]" sign on every page.  Wikis are not conducive to instant perfection; high quality is achieved iteratively, gradually, over time and usually after quite a bit of interaction with others.
 
What does this mean?  It means: go ahead, add something.  It doesn't have to be perfect, it only has to be editable.  In other words, if someone else won't have to delete what you've added in order to make progress on the article, then add away.
 
This means that we will tolerate what are called "stubs" or "stub entries."  These are short entries, just one or two sentences.  Just please don't go around creating ''lots and lots'' of stubs.  If you're motivated to do that much work, please focus on just a few articles.
 
== How to start a new article ==
 
== How to collaborate on an existing article ==
 
== Get plugged in to the community ==
 
If you really want to have fun here, and you want to stay motivated, you need to get plugged in to the community.  To do that, you need a few pointers about where "the action" is going on.
 
First, the serious fun of wiki-watching consists largely of following developments on [[Special:recentchanges|the recent changes]] page, linked on the left under "project pages".  Virtually everything that goes on on this wiki can be observed from a God's-eye perspective there.  You can see what articles other people are working on.  You can see if articles ''you'' have been working on have been changed.  You can see ''who'' has been active (and when!).  And as a result of all this, you can join in with others!  If you see an article on a topic you're interested in under development, you can add your wisdom.  See [[CZ:The fine art of browsing the recent changes page|the fine art of browsing the recent changes page]].
 
Second, [[CZ:How to use the Citizendium forums|follow what's going on]] on [http://forum.citizendium.org/ the CZ forums.] This is the big community discussion area.  There are hundreds of categories of topics; you're bound to find something of interest, and someone who will discuss it with you (there are about 500 members as of January 2007).  If you want to see the latest posts, scroll to the bottom of the front page and look for the little link titled "[http://forum.citizendium.org/index.php?action=recent View the most recent posts on the forum.]"
 
Third, make sure you're subscribed to Citizendium-L and, if you're an editor, Citizendium-editors.
 
== Some faux pas to avoid (but remember that "be bold" business!) ==
 
 
----
 
''Note to persons editing this page: when finished, if you have created any links to any new/planned project page, make a link to that planned page from [[CZ:Project Home]].  If the link goes under the "Policy" section, then add it also to [[CZ:Policy Outline]]. --[[User:Larry Sanger|Larry Sanger]] 16:39, 21 January 2007 (CST)

Latest revision as of 12:58, 6 November 2024

Let's get started!
Learn about us
Essential reading. Don't miss these crucial documents. (They're part of the CZ:Organization pages.)
  • About - An introduction to the Citizendium; our goals.
  • Help system - questions and answers to find the help you need.
  • FAQ - A lengthier, question-and-answer style introduction.
  • Policies - The current "constitution" of the Citizendium community.
How to get to work
You don't need to read a thick manual before actually working. We'd prefer it if you just dove in, which you can do, because wikis are easy (really!). But the following documents should clarify your role as author or editor, and give you an idea of where to have your questions answered in the future.
Citizendium culture
We're a community, and we have a culture. Read about what "gets us going" and what "makes us tick."
  • Why Citizendium? - Why should you contribute at all? There are many good answers.
  • Be Bold - If no one is giving out orders, you're free. Freedom requires boldness!
  • Under Construction - This is a wiki. Things aren't perfect; we keep making it better.
  • How to collaborate - Collaboration with a global group of colleagues requires finesse.
  • CZ:Group Editing - Commentary on how editing and writing as a group is much different than rough draft/final copy formats that most are used to.
  • Professionalism - We're a pretty friendly bunch.
Learn more
This is just a getting-started page. There's a lot more on the community home page, CZ:Home. Here are some other links to help you get started.


Citizendium Getting Started
Quick Start | About us | Help system | Start a new article | For Wikipedians  
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