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HowToForTourBusConnections
MeatballWiki | RecentChanges | Random Page | Indices | CategoriesThis page is meant to contain all necessary information for wiki hosts who want to connect their wiki to the TourBus. Note that the TourBus is for living communities and people, so grow your wiki a few months for a few hundred pages and a dozen contributors before you join.
1. Starting (how to get a wiki connected)
We assume that you have an existing wiki and we try to describe the fastest procedure to get linked to the TourBus (expect to have an hour of work). In the best case it may take 3-4 days to get connected.
Provide the necessary information::
- add the information record of your wiki to WikisInNeedForBusConnections (you should get a response within 1-2 days).
- optional steps:
- optional: add a page about your wiki to Meatball so your wiki can be referenced more easily
- optional: add a homepage for yourself as host or representative of your wiki.
- optional: join the BusManagement
Create the TourBusStop page on your wiki: using TourBusStopTemplate
Here is a short description of what to do (section 2 gives a detailed description):
- Copy a template (MoinMoin) or a TourBusStop-page you like :or use TourBusStopTemplate
- Use the exact name "TourBusStop" (in German "TourBusHaltestelle?")
- Adapt the parts about the mission of your wiki and the sights.
- optional: prepare or clear the bus links
Reach an agreement on the tour(s):
- There has to be an agreement on the tour(s) your wiki will be linked in. This is between you and the BusManagement. You suggest the tour(s) in your information record on WikisInNeedForBusConnections. The BusManagement will comment on this.
Reach an agreement on the link position(s):
- There has to be an agreement between you, the BusManagement, the BusDriver?(s) and the hosts of the neighbouring wikis. Typically the BusManagement will make an offer on BusRouteDiscussion, so that anyone will be able to comment and vote.
2. Building the TourBusStop page
An official template is not necessary, or even desirable, due to differences in the syntax and graphical style of various wikis. But some consistency would be useful for passengers so that they develop a consistent idea of what a bus stop is and how to use it effectively. Well. . .TourBusStopTemplate, is something that I think will help new editors to get their TourBusStop up, if not useful for that, then for placing on wikis to point to the project. - MarkDilley
Guidelines
Existing bus stops share the following elements, from top to bottom on a page:
- Use the exact name "TourBusStop" (it is meant do be something like a standard; "TourBusHaltestelle" in German). So don't use BusStop, Tour_Bus_Stop or something like that.
- A short paragraph presenting the name of the stop and a brief description of your wiki
- For multi-lingual wikis, links to other-language representations of the bus stop page
- The tour bus icon. Existing stops reference the image from www.wikiservice.at/image/wikibus.gif or www.wikiservice.at/image/wikibus.jpg. (The GIF image is transparent; the JPEG image has a white background.)
- A list of bus routes passing through the stop. Some bus stops present these as a bulleted list; others present them as a table. In either case, each row/line should include the bus number, the name of the tour, and a link to the next stop on the tour. Some also provide "detours" to the starting station of each tour.
- A list of "Famous Sights" for your wiki. These are pages that would be useful for a first-time visitor to see to get an idea of what is special about your wiki. The size of the list varies, but should probably be kept to five items or less to avoid overwhelming visitors.
- Links to the TourBus, TourBusMap, and BusManagement pages in the MeatballWiki are helpful.
When possible, use Interwiki or "pretty" links rather than full URLs for the Famous Sights and Next Stop links.
The bus stop should reflect the overall look-and-feel of your wiki. Put the recommended elements in the recommended places, but don't try to make it look too much like another wiki's bus stop. It should be recognizable as a bus stop and also recognizable as part of your wiki.
Remember that the audience for the bus stop page is passing through while browsing a set of wikis. They are not necessarily the target users of your wiki, but they may still find your site interesting. So stay away from jargon or references that wouldn't make sense to a general audience. And remember that this site is the first impression many people will get of your wiki, so make sure everything is spelled correctly and that the page is neat and tidy.
If you have no specific reason to do otherwise, copying the TourBusStop page or Wiki:TourBusStop page is a good start.
There is a template page for MoinMoin type wikis at MoinMoin:TourBusStopTemplate.
CategoryBus