Personal Information
Name : Sneha Singh
Email : snehasingh7395@gmail.com
Social handles : LinkedIn GitHub Hashnode
Available working hours : 25-30 hours per week
Location: India (GMT+5:30)
Professional information
I am a seasoned technical writer with a strong passion for clear communication and user-centric documentation. With over a year of experience in technical writing, I have honed my skills in translating complex technical concepts into easily understandable language for diverse audiences.
I am excited about the opportunity to participate in Google Season of Docs 2024 and contribute to the success of the Wikimedia Foundation's mission.
Upon reviewing the project proposal, I assessed my technical writing skills against the requirements outlined for this project, and I believe they align well.
- I have been part of the editorial committee of the research society of my school, and published around 6 research papers in a year.
- I am an active technical writer on hashnode as well, Hashnode profile
- I am also a part of GDSC and IEEE society and have contributed in the editorial part as well.
- Link to my resume, Resume
- I have a solid understanding of MediaWiki's functionality
- I thrive in collaborative environments and am eager to work closely with developers, and users to deliver high-quality documentation
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Project statement
Project title
Consolidate MediaWiki Help Documentation
Synopsis
MediaWiki.org is the documentation wiki for MediaWiki: an open-source wiki platform used by Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects, as well as by many other organizations and projects.
Detailed description
Before MediaWiki.org existed, MediaWiki documentation was stored on a different wiki: Meta-Wiki (also called Meta). Since MediaWiki.org was established as the official wiki for MediaWiki documentation, most MediaWiki documentation pages on Meta have been moved to MediaWiki.org.
However, there are still some pages on Meta that contain MediaWiki documentation. In most cases, these pages cannot be imported directly to MediaWiki.org because of licensing restrictions or because a corresponding page already exists on MediaWiki.org. This duplication makes it harder for users of MediaWiki to find the information they need and harder for documentation writers to maintain the docs, and as a result, the Meta pages have often become very outdated.
Some documentation on Meta relates to MediaWiki but is specific to how MediaWiki is used on Wikimedia projects. This content should stay on Meta, while duplication between the two wikis should be reduced as much as possible.
The scope of this project includes:
For pages listed under Project:MediaWiki_documentation_on_Meta-Wiki/List#Has_MediaWiki.org_equivalent, compare the Meta page with its MediaWiki.org equivalent, and add any missing information to the MediaWiki.org page.
For pages listed under Project:MediaWiki_documentation_on_Meta-Wiki/List#No_MediaWiki.org_equivalent, create a MediaWiki.org page that covers the content on the Meta page.
For pages listed under Project:MediaWiki_documentation_on_Meta-Wiki/List#Actually_WMF-specific, review the pages for usability, and design and implement an organisation to make these pages easy to discover and maintain.
Project Goal
The project aims to achieve the following goals
Reduce the number of pages that need to be moved to MediaWiki.org (either partially or completely) from 82 to 0.
Organise the MediaWiki-related pages remaining on Meta to make them easier to use and maintain.
My Solution/approach
To effectively consolidate MediaWiki help documentation and organise Meta-Wiki pages related to MediaWiki, the following approach will be implemented:
- Comprehensive Content Comparison:
- Thoroughly analyse each Meta-Wiki page listed under Project:MediaWiki_documentation_on_Meta-Wiki/List#Has_MediaWiki.org_equivalent in comparison to its MediaWiki.org equivalent.
- Identify any missing information on the MediaWiki.org page and ensure it is added to provide comprehensive documentation.
- Creation of Missing Documentation:
- For pages listed under Project:MediaWiki_documentation_on_Meta-Wiki/List#No_MediaWiki.org_equivalent, create new pages on MediaWiki.org covering the content present on the Meta page.
- Ensure that the new pages follow established documentation standards and guidelines for clarity and usability.
- Review and Improvement of WMF-Specific Pages:
- Review pages listed under Project:MediaWiki_documentation_on_Meta-Wiki/List#Actually_WMF-specific to assess their usability and relevance.
- Design an organisational structure that categorises these pages effectively, making them easy to discover and maintain.
- Implement the designed organisation on MediaWiki.org to enhance user experience and streamline maintenance efforts.
- Leverage Community Collaboration:
- Engage with the MediaWiki community and stakeholders to gather feedback on documentation needs and priorities.
- Encourage contributions from community members to enrich and maintain the documentation.
- Establish communication channels for ongoing collaboration and support.
- Documentation Maintenance Plan:
- Develop a documentation maintenance plan outlining responsibilities, processes, and timelines for keeping MediaWiki documentation up-to-date.
- Implement version control mechanisms to track changes and revisions, ensuring transparency and accountability in the documentation maintenance process.
- Evaluation and Feedback Mechanism:
- Regularly evaluate the effectiveness of the consolidated documentation and organisational structure.
- Solicit feedback from users and stakeholders to identify areas for improvement and address any emerging needs or challenges.
- Iterate on the documentation based on feedback and evolving requirements to continuously enhance its quality and usability.
By implementing this solution approach, the project aims to achieve the following goals:
- Reduce the number of pages requiring migration to MediaWiki.org from 82 to 0.
- Enhance the organisation and usability of Meta-Wiki pages related to MediaWiki, making them easier to use and maintain.
- Foster a collaborative and inclusive documentation ecosystem within the MediaWiki community, ensuring that documentation remains relevant and valuable to users and contributors alike.
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Proposed Timeline
Project Kickoff and Onboarding (2 weeks):
May 20 - June 1
- Set up accounts and orientation to tools.
- Review project plan.
- Decide on communication channels and frequency.
Phase 1: Deduplication (20 pages) (4 weeks):
June 2 - June 29
- Audit each Meta page.
- Identify its MediaWiki.org equivalent.
- Determine any information that needs to be added to the MediaWiki.org page.
- Identify information specific to Wikimedia that should remain on Meta.
- Write content needed for MediaWiki.org and gather feedback.
- Publish completed content.
Phase 2: New Content (62 pages) (9 weeks):
June 30 - August 31
- Review pages and group into subject areas.
- Audit pages in each subject area.
- Identify additional information needed for MediaWiki.org.
- Determine where new information should be added in the context of existing MediaWiki.org documentation.
- Write content, gather feedback, and publish.
Phase 3: Organise (5 weeks):
September 1 - October 5
- Review Wikimedia-specific content on Meta, including content identified during phases 1 and 2.
- Design an information architecture for this content.
- Gather feedback on the proposed architecture.
- Implement changes to meta: Help based on feedback.
Project Wrap-up (3 weeks):
October 6 - October 26
- Identify and complete any remaining cleanup tasks.
- Identify follow-up work or ongoing maintenance requirements.
- Write a comprehensive project report detailing outcomes, learnings, best practices, and recommendations.
This timeline provides a structured approach to efficiently complete the project within the allocated six-month timeframe. Each phase is carefully planned to ensure a systematic and thorough approach to consolidating and organising MediaWiki help documentation, culminating in a comprehensive project report that captures the project's achievements and insights gained.
Proposed Budget
I'm prepared to commit 25-30 hours per week to this project. I understand that the project's needs might change, so I'm flexible and willing to adjust my schedule and put in extra hours if necessary to make sure we achieve our goals.
Given the complexity of the tasks and my dedication to seeing this project through, I suggest a fee of $10,000. I believe this fits within the project's budget. However, I'm open to discussing this further to ensure it works for everyone involved.