Submissions/Mobile apps: New directions in contributing to Wikipedia and Wikidata.

After careful consideration, the Programme Committee has decided not to accept the below submission at this time. Thank you to the author(s) for participating in the Wikimania 2015 programme submission, we hope to still see you at Wikimania this July.

Submission no.
3038
Title of the submission

Mobile apps: New directions in contributing to Wikipedia and Wikidata.

Type of submission (discussion, hot seat, panel, presentation, tutorial, workshop)

Presentation/discussion

Author of the submission

Dmitry Brant

E-mail address

dbrant@wikimedia.org

Username

wmf:User:DBrant (WMF)

Country of origin

United States USA, Russia Russia

Affiliation, if any (organisation, company etc.)

WMF

Personal homepage or blog
Abstract (at least 300 words to describe your proposal)

The WMF's growing Mobile Apps team has been demonstrating that it's possible to implement novel and engaging features on mobile devices with surprising efficiency (owing to the availability of more flexible and comprehensive backend APIs). This makes the Mobile Apps team uniquely positioned to experiment with new ideas for the Wikipedia mobile experience, specifically ideas for new contributory pathways.

This session will be about getting Wikipedians excited about the vast potential that apps offer for mobile contributions to Wikipedia and Commons, as well as spreading the word about how easy it is to get started with mobile development and the MediaWiki API. Given the thriving ecosystem of Android and iOS professionals and hobbyists, it's time for the WMF apps team to reach out to the larger Wikipedia community and nucleate the idea that anyone with mobile development experience can contribute to our apps, or create their own. This doesn't just mean writing code, but also generating ideas for the Apps Team to consider for new features and methods for user contributions.

In this session, we would:

  • Briefly summarize the work we've done so far with our native apps.
  • Summarize our short-term plans for new features in the apps.
  • Present some more "far out" ideas for potential contributory pathways, such as:
    • Fully editable Wikidata tables for all articles.
    • Record-and-upload pronunciations of article names, to eventually replace/augment IPA blocks.
    • A better way to upload photos to Commons (face detection, annotations, filters, etc).
    • A gamified WikiGrok-like interface for filling in missing Wikidata information.
    • An upvote/downvote/reputation system for all of the above.
    • Mobile notifications to engage with the user and encourage them to contribute more.
  • Open up the floor for suggestions/ideas/feedback on mobile app features.
  • Remind participants that the Mobile Apps team is always available for assistance in getting started with development.
  • Point participants to documentation and resources for getting started with app development, not just for themselves, but also for passing on to their colleagues and friends who might be interested in contributing.
Track

Technology, Interface & Infrastructure

Length of session (if other than 30 minutes, specify how long)
30 minutes
Will you attend Wikimania if your submission is not accepted?

Would like to.

Slides or further information (optional)
Special requests


Interested attendees

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  1. Daniel Mietchen (talk) 00:15, 1 March 2015 (UTC)[reply]
  2. -Another Believer (talk) 18:40, 4 March 2015 (UTC)[reply]
  3. Ocaasi (talk) 23:39, 4 March 2015 (UTC)[reply]
  4. Amir E. Aharoni (talk) 15:03, 6 March 2015 (UTC)[reply]
  5. Mrjohncummings (talk) 21:33, 9 March 2015 (UTC)[reply]
  6. Deskana (WMF) (talk) 03:37, 2 April 2015 (UTC)[reply]