Hey Developer Advocacy!
I was wondering if you all would be able to help me re-think the intro paragraph we use on our hackathon pages.
I have been using the same summary for years and I don't even remember where it came from. I think we could do a better job briefly summarizing the event in a more clear and more welcoming way.
This is the current text we have on the [[https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Hackathon_2019|Wikimedia Hackathon 2019]] page:
> The Wikimedia Hackathon is a major event that brings together developers from all around the world to improve the technological infrastructure of Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects, particularly the MediaWiki platform on which they are based, and other Wikimedia code development.
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> The Hackathon will take place in Prague, Czech Republic, from May 17th-19th, 2019.
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> This is your opportunity to meet the Wikimedia tech community, learn about the technologies and projects that power Wikipedia and thousands of other MediaWiki based websites, and propose or join a demo-able project to hack on during the event.
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> Developers new to Wikimedia and tech-curious editors are also welcome!
> Just bring your laptop, ideas, and energy to contribute – we promise a great event, cool atmosphere, and an inspiring venue! We also want to make the event family friendly, so check out our family room and childcare options in case you want to bring your loved ones.
and this is the current text we have on the [[https://wikimania.wikimedia.org/wiki/2019:Hackathon|Wikimania 2019 Hackathon]] page:
> Wikimania Hackathon 2019 will take place on Wednesday and Thursday, 14–15 August 2019, during the Wikimania 2019 pre-conference in Stockholm.
>
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> Developers, designers, translators, documentors, testers, and anyone interested in collaborating on a technical hacking project are welcome at the Hackathon.
The Wikimania 2018 & 2017 pages used the same language, but the [[https://wikimania2016.wikimedia.org/wiki/Hackathon|Wikimania 2016 Hackathon]] had a bit more text in the "What is a Hackathon?" section:
> Wikimania Hackathons (sometimes called "Hacking days" or "DevCamps") have been held previously at Wikimania 2005 (Frankfurt), 2006 (Boston), 2007 (Taipei), 2009 (Buenos Aires), 2011 (Haifa), 2012 (Washington DC), 2013 (Hong Kong), 2014 (London), 2015 (Mexico City), there have also been various other Wikimedia Hackathons, DevCamps, and developer meetings.
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> People spend their time hacking on anything related to MediaWiki or one of the Wikimedia projects (and sometimes other things, too). The Hackathon events are completely open; we welcome both seasoned and new developers, as well as people working on MediaWiki, tools, pywikibot, gadgets, extensions, templates, etc. Interested technologists and hackers of all backgrounds are welcome at the Wikimania Hackathon. Prior experience with the MediaWiki software is not required. Translators with a linguistic background who can help improve language support for Wikimedia technology projects are also needed.
There is also the text used in [[https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Hackathons|mw:Hackathons]], which could be adapted or re-used.
https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Hackathons/Definition says:
> A hackathon is an event in which a large number of people with different skills meet and work together on a common goal. It can last between a few hours and several days.
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> Wikimedia Hackathons normally last between 2 and 4 days and focus on technologies and projects powering Wikipedia and thousands of MediaWiki installations. Wikimedia hackathons are essentially large development community meetups that attract many developers and designers who care deeply about the issues and technology impacting MediaWiki and the Wikimedia projects. You will get a chance to work together with other developers, designers and Wikimedians, in a productive, fun, and supportive environment.
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> Wikimedia hackathons play an important role energizing our engineering community and connecting it to local groups. We need more of them in different places!
> What do we want to achieve at hackathons?
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> * Work on prototypes, sprints, and other collaborative efforts to be showcased at the end of the event.
> * Strengthen community health and developer ties through working together on projects and other ways of mingling.
> * Reach out to new developers, onboard them during the event, and turn them into regular contributors.
> * Make progress on the most recent community wishlist, featured projects list or on a project (or projects) specific to the hackathon.
Randomly tagging Srishti for this task but would welcome the help of any of you! Happy to use the same text for both events or use different text for each event. May be to late for Prague, however I would like to change the text on the Wikimania Hackathon page for 2019.