Wikipedia.org is more popular than... and Wikimedia meetup Central and Eastern Europe/Archive: Difference between pages

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''This page should not be taken too seriously; the domain names we list below are not necessarily considered Wikipedia's '''competition'''; in fact, we actively collaborate with some. Alexa's rankings only measure '''certain''' people who use '''Windows/IE''' to browse the web; any website that receives a large part of their traffic from Linux, BSD, Mac OS or even Windows users who don't use IE, will not appear as popular as they really are (though it is easy to argue that includes Wikipedia!). On top of this, the Alexa toolbar and service are only available in English. Finally, the web presence of many of these sites is not nearly as important to them as other '''publication/distribution channels''' (CD ROMs, print, or storefronts, for example). It's just for fun, folks!''
 
'''Other languages:''' <!-- [[/Pl|Polski]] --> [[/Ro|Română]] ('''''Please translate into as many languages as possible''''')
Background info: [http://www.the-home-grown-biz-advocate.com/12in13.htm "What is Alexa Ranking?"], [http://www.internetbasedmoms.com/articles2/alexa.html Using Your Alexa Toolbar Wisely: Assessing Traffic Ranking]
 
The Romanian Wikipedia is planning a meetup of the entire Central and Eastern European Wikimedia community in early 2005, significantly before the Wikimania 2005 conference. This meetup will be less formal than Wikimania and focus more on CEE (Central and Eastern Europe) issues.
Dramatic ranking jumps:
* '''Jan 2003''': A [[Wikipedia:en:Slashdot effect|Slashdotting]] and other media coverage resulting from the English WP's '100,000 article' press release.
* '''Aug 2003''': Featured on CNN's TechWatch television program, on CNN's homepage for a day, and on their Tech homepage for another day.
* '''Jan 2004''': New servers come online.
* '''Aug 2004''': New machines come online.
 
==Who can participate?==
===Wikipedia's Alexa ranking milestones===
*'''#500''' : First breached on a day-by-day basis in early May 2004. 3 month ranking was 497 on 11 October 2004, daily was 275, weekly 288 on this date.
*'''#450''' : On 19 October 2004, the three month average was 450, still showing a steady growth with a weekly average of 231.
*'''#400''' : The 400 ranking has been passed on November 1st, the weekly average is now 235.
*'''#350''' : On November 15th, 2004, the 3 month average was 337, breaking 350 for the first time. The weekly average was 222.
*'''#300''' : On November 28th, 2004, the 3 month average was 292, breaking 300 for the first time. The weekly average was 182.
*'''#250''' : December 19th, 2004: 3 month average: 222, weekly average: 191.
*'''#200''' : 7th January 2005: 3 month average 199; one week average 143.
*'''#175''' : 29th January 2005: 3 month average 175; one week average 137.
*'''#150''' : 6th March 2005: 3 month average 138; one week average 114 (Note: as of this date the 3 month ranking on Wikipedia's own Alexa page hadn't been updated for over three weeks, but it was shown in this position on Wikipedia's top 500 list).
 
Actually, anyone who's part of a Wikimedia community can. ''But'' only the Wikipedias listed below are considered to be Central and Eastern European Wikipedias, and will be the main focus of this meetup.
==Wikipedia.org is more popular than...==
 
Note: Some of the countries/communities listed below do not really lie in Central or Eastern Europe as far as geography is concered but are incloded in this list and invited to take part in this meetup for various reasons (lited in breckets next to each such entry).
According to [http://www.alexa.com Alexa.com]... here's a [http://www.alexa.com/site/site_stats/signup?site_url=www.aljazeera.net+www.wikipedia.org+www.dmoz.org+www.geocities.com+www.nlm.nih.gov+&range=3m&widget=g&style=d&submitted=true&mode=graph&range=3m&amzn_id= nice little '''graph'''] of WP vs. a few other important sites.
 
===Large communities===
Wikipedia.org is more popular than (input the domain name into the "Compare Sites" field [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=&y=t&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wikipedia.org%2F here]). '''The current, large rating graph of Wikipedia for the past 30 days can be found [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=30d&size=large&y=t&url=wikipedia.org here].'''
*Bulgarian
*Czech
*Estonian (OK, so Estonians are Northern Europeans, but come on... why not be part of this?)
*Hungarian
*Lithuanian
*Polish
*Romanian
*Serbian
*Slovakian
*Slovenian
*Ukrainian
 
'''Other languages:''' <!-- [[/Pl|Polski]] --> [[/Ro|Română]] ('''''Please translate into as many languages as possible''''')
In order to be listed in this first section, wikipedia.org must have a higher ''three month average'' rating ''and'' be consistently ahead on a weekly basis for at least two solid weeks.
 
The Romanian Wikipedia is planning a meetup of the entire Central and Eastern European Wikimedia community in early 2005, significantly before the Wikimania 2005 conference. This meetup will be less formal than Wikimania and focus more on CEE (Central and Eastern Europe) issues.
=== Encyclopedia/Search Reference Sites ===
* excite.com ([http://www.excite.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=wikipedia.org&y=t&url=excite.com graph] ) Wikipedia ahead on 3 month ranking by January 2005
*Internet archive ([http://www.archive.org/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=archive.org&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) Ahead since October 2004
* dmoz.org ([http://dmoz.org/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=dmoz.org&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) Passed at the end of September 2004.
* '''Merriam Webster Dictionary''' ([http://www.m-w.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=m-w.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - similar since late March 2004, Wikipedia consistently ahead since early May 2004.
* multimap.com ([http://www.multimap.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=multimap.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - Overtaken late March 2004, but only consistently since May.
* '''Hotbot''' ([http://www.hotbot.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=hotbot.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since March 2004
* Mysearch.com ([http://www.mysearch.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=3m&size=large&compare_sites=mysearch.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since March 2004; taking a hard tumble.
* '''Library of Congress''' ([http://loc.gov website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=loc.gov&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2003
* Looksmart.com ([http://Looksmart.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Looksmart.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since late January 2004
* '''Britannica'''.com ([http://Britannica.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=britannica.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since June 2003
* Whatis.com ([http://www.whatis.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=whatis.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since June 2003
* HowStuffWorks.com ([http://howstuffworks.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=howstuffworks.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since August 2003 (reliably since October 2003) -- '''NB: listed as #50 on Alexa's "Top 50 Reference Sites" list'''
* Amazon.ca ([http://amazon.ca website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=amazon.ca&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]} - since August 2003
* Amazon.fr* ([http://www.amazon.fr website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since August 2003
* Bartleby.com ([http://bartleby.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=bartleby.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since July 2003
* Infoplease.com ([http://infoplease.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=infoplease.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since July 2003
* Encyclopedia.com ([http://Encyclopedia.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Encyclopedia.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since April 2003 <small>
* 4Reference.com ([http://4reference.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=4reference.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since February 2003 or longer
* Onelook.com ([http://onelook.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=onelook.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since February 2003
* 1911Encyclopedia.com ([http://www.1911encyclopedia.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=www.1911encyclopedia.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since before December 2002
* '''www.arxiv.org''' ([http://www.arxiv.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=www.arxiv.org&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 or longer
* '''Everything2'''.com* ([http://Everything2.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Everything2.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 or longer
* Nupedia.org ([http://Nupedia.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=nupedia.org&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since (long) before December 2002
</small>
 
==Who can participate?==
=== Journal/Other reference sites ===
* NIH ([http://www.nih.gov website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=nih.gov&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]). Wikipedia well ahead by November 2004.
* '''NASA''' ([http://Nasa.gov website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Nasa.gov&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - NASA jumped ahead in January 2004, but with the cooling of interest in the [[en:Mars Exploration Rover Mission|MER mission]], Wikipedia started getting higher marks in early April. NASA is however variable, and might easily get higher again temporarily.
* '''NOAA''' ([http://www.noaa.gov website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=noaa.gov&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since March 2004
* '''SciAm'''.com ([http://www.sciam.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=sciam.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since February 2003
* HistoryChannel.com ([http://HistoryChannel.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=HistoryChannel.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since March 2003
* Biography.com ([http://biography.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=biography.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since March 2003 <small>
* ScienceDaily.com ([http://sciencedaily.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=sciencedaily.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since mid-January 2003
* StraightDope.com ([http://straightdope.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=straightdope.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 or longer
* Open-site.org ([http://open-site.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=open-site.org&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 or longer
* Mathworld.Wolfram.com ([http://mathworld.wolfram.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=mathworld.wolfram.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) and Scienceworld.Wolfram.com ([http://scienceworld.wolfram.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=scienceworld.wolfram.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 or longer (but not in January 2003)
* Urbandictionary.com ([http://urbandictionary.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph])
</small>
 
Actually, anyone who's part of a Wikimedia community can. ''But'' only the Wikipedias listed below are considered to be Central and Eastern European Wikipedias, and will be the main focus of this meetup.
=== University Sites ===
* Harvard.edu ([http://www.harvard.edu website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=harvard.edu&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since November 2003
* MIT.edu ([http://www.mit.edu website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=mit.edu&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since November 2003
* Cornell.edu ([http://www.cornell.edu website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=cornell.edu&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since September 2003
 
Note: Some of the countries/communities listed below do not really lie in Central or Eastern Europe as far as geography is concered but are incloded in this list and invited to take part in this meetup for various reasons (lited in breckets next to each such entry).
=== News and Media sites ===
*usatoday.com ([http://www.usatoday.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=usatoday.com&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) First passed in September 2004; consistent since November 2004.
*CCTV* ([http://www.cctv.com.cn website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=cctv.com.cn&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - China's largest television station - since December 2004
* '''FOXNews'''.com ([http://www.foxnews.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=foxnews.com&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) - since November 2004
* Drudge Report ([http://www.drudgereport.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=drudgereport.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since November 2004
* '''WashingtonPost'''.com ([http://www.washingtonpost.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=wasingtonpost.com&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph] ) - since November 2004.
* Al Jazeera* ([http://www.aljazeera.net website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=aljazeera.net&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - Wikipedia was ahead in February-March 2004, but Al Jazeera jumped ahead again in April. Wikipedia higher again since June 2004, reliably since August 2004; al Jazeera varies depending on the main ongoing news stories of the week.
* '''Boston'''.com (Boston Globe newspaper) [http://www.boston.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=boston.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - Since May 2004
* '''Reuters'''.com ([http://www.reuters.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=reuters.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) sporadically since April 2004
* '''MSNBC'''.com ([http://www.msnbc.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=msnbc.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) since April 2004
* '''WSJ'''.com ([http://www.wsj.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=wsj.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - sporadically since Feb 2004, well ahead since April 2004
* '''LATimes'''.com ([http://www.latimes.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=latimes.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since February 2004
* '''ChicagoTribune'''.com ([http://www.chicagotribune.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=chicagotribune.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - Since February 2004
* '''Salon'''.com* ([http://salon.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=salon.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - neck-and-neck since September, well ahead since December 2003, except for one day when the WP site completely crashed.
* '''Time'''.com ([http://Time.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Time.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since October 2003 (reliably since January)
* '''AP'''.org ([http://www.AP.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=www.ap.org&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since early September 2003 (reliably since early November 2003)
* TheRegister.co.uk ([http://theregister.co.uk website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=theregister.co.uk&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since August 2003
* tf1.fr* (first French channel) ([http://www.tf1.fr website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=tf1.fr&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since August 2003
* '''NPR'''.org ([http://www.NPR.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=www.NPR.org&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since July 2003 (reliably since August)
* Heise.de* (large German IT news site) ([http://heise.de website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=heise.de&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since June 2003
 
===Large communities===
=== Community/Organizational sites ===
*Bulgarian
*classmates.com ([http://www.classmates.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=classmates.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]). -since December 2004
*Czech
* Open diary ([http://www.opendiary.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=opendiary.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]). Passed consistently in Oct 2004.
*Estonian (OK, so Estonians are Northern Europeans, but come on... why not be part of this?)
* Livejournal.com* ([http://Livejournal.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Livejournal.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]). First higher days were late March; seems to have been overtaken medio April, consistently since May. LiveJournal has very high traffic from AOL and other places whose traffic isn't recorded by Alexa.
*Hungarian
* '''Friendsreunited.co.uk''' ([http://www.friendsreunited.co.uk website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=2y&size=large&compare_sites=friendsreunited.co.uk&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph] ) - since early 2004
*Lithuanian
* '''Slashdot'''.org* ([http://Slashdot.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Slashdot.org&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since February 2004
*Polish
* '''Freshmeat'''.net* ([http://freshmeat.net website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=freshmeat.net&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since March 2003 (reliably since May)
*Romanian
* GNU.org* ([http://gnu.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=gnu.org&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since March 2003
*Serbian
* Beliefnet.com ([http://Beliefnet.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Beliefnet.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since March 2003 (but equal in June 2003) <small>
*Slovakian
* Kuro5hin.org* ([http://Kuro5hin.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Kuro5hin.org&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 or longer
*Slovenian
* Linux.org* ([http://Linux.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Linux.org&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 or longer (but not in January 2003)
*Ukrainian
* Linux.com* ([http://Linux.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Linux.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 or longer
* OpenOffice.org* ([http://OpenOffice.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=OpenOffice.org&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 or longer
* Debian.org* ([http://debian.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=debian.org&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 or longer
</small>
 
===Smaller communities===
*Aromanian
*Belarusian
*Latvian
*Macedonian
*''any other country/language group in CEE - '''please add'''''
:Bosnian (188 users, 1433 articles)
:Kaszëbsczi (278 articles)
 
=== Corporate sites Perhaps===
* Amazon UK ([http://www.amazon.co.uk website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=amazon.co.uk&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]). Three month ranking higher January 2005.
* Shockwave.com ([http://www.shockwave.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=shockwave.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]). Ahead for good since November 2004.
* Freeservers.com ([http://www.freeservers.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=freeservers.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) Since October 2004.
* Infospace.com ([http://www.infospace.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=infospace.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) Since October 2004.
* eBay Canada: ([http://www.ebay.ca website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=ebay.ca&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) Since October 2004.
* Warner Brothers ([http://www.warnerbros.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=warnerbros.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) Since August 2004.
* voila.fr* (Wanadoo portal (French major ISP, virtually state-owned)) ([http://www.voila.fr/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=voila.fr&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since May 2004
*Sun.com ([http://sun.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=sun.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - Since late May 2004
*'''CafePress.com''' ([http://cafepress.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=cafepress.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) - Since March 2004
* '''Sears'''.com ([http://www.sears.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=sears.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - Since March 2004
* ibm.com ([http://www.ibm.com website] |[http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=ibm.com&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) Passed considerably in daily rank at the end of September 2004, 3 mo. rank since Q4, 2004
* '''Intel.com''' ([http://www.intel.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=intel.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - sporadically since January 2004, ahead since March 2004
*Amazon.de* ([http://www.amazon.de website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=3m&size=large&compare_sites=amazon.de&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since February 2004
* '''priceline'''.com ([http://priceline.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=priceline.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since March 2004
* '''Ebay France''' ([http://www.ebay.fr/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=2y&size=large&compare_sites=ebay.fr&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since November 2003
* Electronic Arts ([http://ea.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=ea.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - similar since September 2003, Wikipedia more clearly ahead since February 2004
* '''Bomis'''.com (don't tell Jimbo!) ([http://Bomis.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Bomis.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since August 2003
* Motorola.com ([http://motorola.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=motorola.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since August/September 2003
* palmOne.com ([http://palmOne.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=palmOne.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since medio August 2003
* Kodak.com ([http://Kodak.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=kodak.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since late August 2003
* MySQL.com* ([http://mysql.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=mysql.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since August 2003
* '''Redhat'''.com* ([http://Redhat.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=redhat.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since July 2003
* '''CocaCola'''.com ([http://CocaCola.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=CocaCola.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since February 2003
* Netcraft.com* ([http://netcraft.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=netcraft.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since February/March 2003 <small>
* '''Pepsi'''.com ([http://Pepsi.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=pepsi.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 or longer (but not in January 2003)
* Oreilly.com* ([http://oreilly.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=oreilly.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 or longer (but not in January 2003)
* Easyjet.com ([http://www.easyjet.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since September 2003
*'''AMD'''.com ([http://www.amd.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=18m&size=large&compare_sites=amd.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - sporadically since April 2003, ahead since June 2003
</small>
 
*German (it's in Central Europe, after all - why not?)
=== Sex, Shock ===
**Pro: It's in Central Europe and a very valuable member of the Wikimedia community
* Playboy ([http://playboy.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=playboy.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since February 2004.
**Con: It doesn't share the common history with the rest of Central and Eastern Europe and, wiki-wise, it doesn't have the same issues - it is a much larger Wikipedia with a different series of issues.
* rotten.com ([http://www.rotten.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=rotten.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since January 2004
***It shares a lot of common history! Just look at those Polish-German edit wars. Inviting our German colleagues might help hammer out some badly needed consensuses.
* sex.com ([http://sex.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=sex.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since late August 2003
*Russian (13160 articles, 2355 participants, 11 admins)
* '''Penthouse'''.com ([http://penthouse.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=penthouse.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since late June 2003
**the Russian Wikimedia community can be considered to have relatively few things in common with the CEE Wikis, but nonetheless, it could be included
::*do anybody say Russia is not CEE? Look: Kaliningrad is <u>west</u> from Vilnius...
*Esperanto (21210 articles)
 
===What Humor,will Music,we Other =discuss?==
*Hot or not? ([http://www.hotornot.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=hotornot.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - Since May 2004, reliably since July 2004.
* MTV.com ([http://www.mtv.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=mtv.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - Since April 2004.
* rottentomatoes.com ([http://rottentomatoes.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=rottentomatoes.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - ahead since February 2004, three month average ahead since March 2004
* newgrounds.com ([http://newgrounds.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=newgrounds.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - ahead since February 2004
* '''National Hockey League''' ([http://nhl.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=nhl.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2003 (on-season)
* xe.com ([http://xe.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=xe.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - starting to be passed in late 2003, in January 2004 xe did better, in February back to Wikipedia ahead.
* Fark.com* ([http://fark.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=fark.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since November 2003 (reliably since December)
* allmusic.com ([http://allmusic.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=allmusic.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since October 2003 (reliably since November, but allmusic.com was higher during Wikipedia's low late December)
* '''TheOnion'''.com* ([http://theonion.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=theonion.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since September 2003
* art.com ([http://www.art.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=art.com&y=t&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wikipedia.org%2F graph]) - since September 2003
* WhiteHouse.gov ([http://WhiteHouse.gov website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=WhiteHouse.gov&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since late July 2003
* Anandtech.com ([http://anandtech.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=anandtech.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since medio August 2003
* TomsHardware.com* ([http://tomshardware.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=tomshardware.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since late August 2003
* 01net.com ([http://www.01net.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since July 2003
* Space.com ([http://Space.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=Space.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since May 2003 (but space.com temporarily overtook in late August)
* startrek.com ([http://startrek.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=startrek.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since late March 2003
* Cockeyed.com ([http://cockeyed.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=2y&size=large&compare_sites=cockeyed.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002
* SomethingAwful.com ([http://somethingawful.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=somethingawful.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since May 2003 (reliably since July)
* The Best Page in the Universe ([http://maddox.xmission.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=maddox.xmission.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since December 2002 (reliably since March 2003)
 
Firstly, our aim for this meetup is emphasizing the fact, that together we can achieve a lot more. CEE wikis are currently '''in very good shape''' - although we are a small region, we have many Wikipedias in the top 20 and some of the fastest growth rates. The Polish Wikipedia's performance is commendable as it is in the top 5 Wikipedias for a language only spoken by around 45 million people. The Bulgarian Wikipedia is also doing excellently. And so is the Romanian Wikipedia, renowned far and wide for its campaigns to secure Wikimania Cluj-Napoca 2005 (shameless self-promotion ;-) ''and not a very NPOV, too :P --[[User:TOR|TOR]] 20:47, 3 Jan 2005 (UTC)'').
===Uncategorized===
*Geocities.com ([http://geocities.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=3m&size=large&compare_sites=geocities.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) - since May 2004
*shopping7.org from Hong Kong ([http://shopping7.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=shopping7.org&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) passed in early November, 2004.
* sourceforge.net* ([http://www.sourceforge.net website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=sourceforge.net&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) Passed consistently in October 2004.
* ....
 
We will be discussing the experiences of each CEE Wiki, and learning from each set of experiences. We will also be presenting strategies for further growth, and ways in which Wikipedias can further the growth of an emerging IT environment such as that of most CEE countries.
''Please add widely recognized websites to this list.''
 
Most importantly, we need good spirit and a positive attitude.
==Wikipedia consistently ahead but 3 month rank not yet higher==
This is for sites Wikipedia appears to have reliably passed but where the Alexa 3 month rank hasn't yet reflected the increase in Wikipedia traffic rank or the decrease in the traffic rank of the compared site. If there appears to be uncertainty, the site belongs in the following section.
 
==BarelyWhy overtakenthis meetup?==
Wikipedia should be beating the sites in this section most days, but perhaps not all. Wikipedia will be close in weekly rating but considerably behind in 3-month ranking.
 
Well, I think all of you remember Cluj-Napoca's outspoken bid for [[Wikimania 2005]]. We lost that bid by the skin of our teeth and yet we would like to have a more local meetup in Cluj. That's the impetus ''behind'' this move. That doesn't mean this is a Romanian event. It is an event for every CEE wiki community. We will select cities in the same way they were selected for Wikimania.
Wikipedia.org 3 month rank for comparison: [1 Feb 2005: 172]
 
I think it would also be great to have a meetup in order to open up collaboration between CEE wikis. Wikipedia has really taken off in this region, even despite fairly limited Internet access and relatively low computerization.
*miniforum.org (in traditional Chinese) ([http://miniforum.org website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=miniforum.org&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) [1 Feb 2005: 141] Falling. Wikipedia ahead throughout January. Passing this would make Wikipedia 2nd among dot-orgs.
*AltaVista ([http://www.altavista.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=altavista.com&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) [1 Feb 2005: 156] Neck and neck for the much of January.
 
:I think having such a meeting would be a really great thing. Each of the meeting I participated to were really special moments. I wish many of you will be able to come. [[User:Anthere|Anthere]] 08:53, 1 Nov 2004 (UTC)
==Websites we seem to be on a trend to pass in the foreseeable future==
 
==But how about rivalries?==
Wikipedia.org 3 month rank for comparison: [1 Feb 2005: 172]
 
Our aim is to foster an environment where CEE wikis can work together... this meetup will help us in this. Rivalries are not helpful in any way between CEE wikis (this is not to say that CEE wikis should aggresively compete with other wikis). For all those who are jealous of their neighbouring country for having a larger Wikipedia (this sounds silly, but it ''does'' happen), CEE meetup seeks to abolish that! Let's work together to make Central and Eastern Europe the prime example when it comes to wiki.
* New York Times ([http://www.nytimes.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=nytimes.com&y=t&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wikipedia.org%2F#top graph]) [1 Feb 2005: 90] Ranking is both seasonal and liable to random fluctuations for major news stories. In Summer 2004 it fell below 150, and Wikipedia's ranking should be higher than that by Summer 2005. Wikipedia beat it on a daily basis for the first time in February 2005.
*wanadoo.fr No 1 French ISP and web site ([http://www.wanadoo.fr/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=wanadoo.fr&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) [1 Feb 2005:112] Rising, but more slowly than Wikipedia.
*reference.com (including dictionary.com, [http://dictionary.reference.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=reference.com&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) [1 Feb 2005: 135] Wikipedia ahead on weekly average on 20 February 2005.
*Walla.co.il (in Hebrew) ([http://www.walla.co.il website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=walla.co.il&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]) [1 Feb 2005: 142]. Rising strongly, but not quite as strongly as Wikipedia.
 
Good humour and acceptance is the key here!
== Reference and search sites still out of reach [3-mos. Avg]==
Wikipedia.org 3 month rank for comparison: [1 Feb 2005: 172]
 
==Formality==
* Google UK ([http://www.google.co.uk website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=google.co.uk&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) [1 Feb 2005: 27]
*netscape.com ([http://netscape.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=netscape.com&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) [Jan: 46]
*mapquest.com ([http://mapquest.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=mapquest.com&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) [Jan: 60]
*imdb.com ([http://imdb.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=imdb.com&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) [Jan: 65]
*about.com ([http://about.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=about.com&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) [Jan: 72]
* Lycos.com ([http://www.lycos.com/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=6m&size=large&compare_sites=lycos.com&y=t&url=wikipedia.org graph]). [1 Feb 2005: 77] Has revived after a slump in mid 2004.
*craigslist.org from San Francisco, 1st among dot-orgs ([http://www.craigslist.org/ website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=craigslist.org&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) [1 Feb 2005: 83] Rising strongly.
*Ask Jeeves, aka ask.com ([http://ask.com website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=ask.com&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) [1 Feb 2005: 86]
 
This meetup is intended to be '''a lot''' less formal than Wikimania (you can probably sense this by the writing style here ;-) It's basically both a community meetup '''and''' a conference, but not a very formal event. We still need conference facilities though...
==Other selected out-of-reach sites [3 month average]==
Wikipedia.org 3 month rank for comparison: [1 Feb 2005: 172]
 
==Speeches==
* BBC ([http://www.bbc.co.uk website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&compare_sites=bbc.co.uk&y=t&y=t&url=wikipedia.org#top graph]) [1 Feb 2005: 28]
* eBay UK ([http://www.eBay.co.uk website] | [http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&range=1y&size=large&y=t&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wikipedia.org%2F#top graph]) [1 Feb 2005: 30]
 
==Note=Points onof Alexa rankingsview===
<nowiki>*</nowiki>Some websites are probably more popular than their Alexa rankings indicate because a disproportionate amount of their traffic likely comes from web users that cannot install the Alexa toolbar (non Windows/Internet Explorer users) or are not likely to install the toolbar (non-English speaking users and people concerned about computer privacy). It should also be noted that Wikipedia.org is probably more popular than its Alexa ranking indicates since two thirds of all Wikipedia articles are in languages other than English.
 
*[[User:Ronline|Ronline]] - a review of major CEE wikis and their achievements
[[Category:Wikipedia statistics]]
 
==Language==
 
OK, a big issue.
 
===The tri-language option===
 
One option: We have three world languages which are interesting:
 
*'''English'''
**'''Con:''' no CEE country speaks English as an official language
**'''Pro:''' but many people speak it as a foreign language
 
*'''German'''
**'''Con:''' not counting Germany, Austria, Switzerland etc., no CEE country speak it as official language
**'''Pro:''' many people speak it as a foreign language (in some countries as first foreign language), good knowledge of it partly because historically official language of quite alot CEE countries and ties to the German cultural area.
 
*'''Russian'''
**'''Pro:''' Due to Soviet influence many people speak Russian
**'''Con:''' Due to the fall of the Soviet Union, not so many ''young'' people speak Russian anymore, especially in non-Slavic countries like Romania, Hungary and Greece (Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, though non-Slavic, still have important Russian-speaking populations).
**'''Con:''' not written in the Latin alphabet
**Some countries may not take it particularly well if Russian is an official language of this conference (e.g. Estonia, Greece or even Romania and Hungary)
**'''Con:''' contrary to English and German, the Russian Wikipedia and wiki community is very small and unimportant.
 
*'''The local language'''
**'''Pro:''' This is important because local attenders are set to make up an important part of the base of participants. It would also be strange to, for example, host the conference in Romania but not have Romanian as a working language
 
We could use Esperanto... but not everyone knows Esperanto. We could use a few widely-spoken CEE languages like Polish and Romanian, but that would cause problems. Possibly both English and German could be used. But, this is an event where it is compulsory for all attenders to leave with a knowledge of every CEE language (only joking, but it would be good to acquaint ourselves with other CEE languages)
 
==Where do I express my opinion about this==
 
This page's [[Talk:Wikimedia_meetup_Central_and_Eastern_Europe|discussion page]]. Write what you think about this meetup, any proposals and ideas are also welcome, except for proposed location, which should be listed below.
 
==Location==
 
===Cluj-Napoca, Romania===
 
====Advantages====
 
*Located in the heart of Central and Eastern Europe - easy access from both Ukraine and Bulgaria, as well as The Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia, as well as the Western Balkans. A lot more central than a Baltic states location.
*High level of facilities, especially in comparison to Eastern Europe and the Balkans.
*Lower prices than in Central Europe (Hungary, The Czech Republic, etc)
*Large base of supporters
 
====Disadvantages====
 
*Harder to access from outside Europe, since it is not a capital city. Even from Central & Eastern Europe, you may have to connect somewhere (usually Budapest or Bucharest) before reaching Cluj-Napoca.
*Not part of the European Union - does not cater to passport-less travel.
 
====Getting there====
 
Cluj-Napoca is located in Transylvania, in central-west Romania.
 
===Prague, The Czech Republic===
 
====Advantages====
 
*The wealthiest and most visited city in Central and Eastern Europe, meaning lots of good infrastructure and tourism opportunities
*Wonderful setting
*Very good transport links from Western and Eastern Europe
 
====Disadvantages====
 
*Fairly small or inactive Wikipedia community
*Hard to access from Ukraine and Baltic States
*Fairly expensive by CEE standards
 
===Warsaw, Poland===
 
====Advantages====
 
*Large Wikipedia community - by far the largest in CEE (excluding Germany)
*Fairly easy to access and centrally-located
*Relatively good infrastructure and large city (Warsaw)
 
====Disadvantages====
 
*Hard to access from Southern Balkans (Greece, Macedonia)
 
===Kraków, Poland===
 
====Advantages====
 
*Large Wikipedia community - by far the largest in CEE (excluding Germany)
*Fairly easy to access and centrally-located
*Relatively good infrastructure and also large city (Krakow) -second international airport in Poland, rail and speedway
*One of the most visited Polish city, old capital of Medieval Poland, one of the most beautiful European city, on UNESCO list, with excelent climate, close to Tatry Mountains.
 
====Disadvantages====
*There are no disadvantages ;-)
 
===Ljubljana, Slovenia===
 
====Advantages====
 
*Beautiful city which not many people have visited - a new experience
*Slovenia is fairly wealthy and built-up
 
====Disadvantages====
 
*Harder to access than larger cities such as Warsaw, Bucharest and Prague
*More expensive than Romania, Western Balkans, Poland, etc.
 
==Participants==
 
List your name under the country that you live in.
 
'''NOTE:''' if you do not have an account on Meta and do not want to create one, please sign yourself this way: '''<nowiki>[[:zh:user:vipuser|vipuser]]</nowiki>''', which will be displayed as [[:zh:user:vipuser|vipuser]].
 
===Romania===
*[[User:Ronline|Ronline]]
*[[:ro:Utilizator:sp1ri|sp1ri]]
*[[:ro:Utilizator:Danutz|Danutz]]
 
===Poland===
*[[User:TOR|TOR]]
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Piom|PioM]]- if in Poland, but in city Kracow, not in Warsaw
*[[User:Kpjas|Kpjas]] possibly
*[[User:Blueshade|Blueshade]] if in Poland, then maybe...
*[[User:Chepry|Chepry]] - '''if''' in Poland
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Jerry|Jerry]] - possibly, maybe, but only in Poland :)
*[[User:Ausir|Ausir]]
*[[User:Taw|Taw]] - I could go if it was in Prague, Krakow or a place like that.
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Polimerek|Polimerek]] - Krakow (preferable), Warsaw, Prague is OK for me.
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Macieias|Macieias]] - 99,9% if breathtaking & magnificent '''Krakow'''
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Holek|Holek]] - 100% '''IF''' in Wroclaw, Poland :)
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Tukan|Tukan]] - 100% If in Kraków, maybe Warsaw or Prague.
*[[:en:User:Kpalion|Kpalion]] - as Tukan.
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Trance|Trance]] - in Kraków
*[[User:Jadwiga|Jadwiga]]
*[[User:Atreyyu]] - i wish it had organized in Poznan
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Matthias_gor|Maciej Maciejewski]] - if in Poland, in Kraków
*[[User:Datrio|Datrio]] - probably
 
===Bulgaria===
 
===Bosnia and Herzegovina===
 
===Hungary===
 
===The Czech Republic===
*Timespacemon
*[[User:Mormegil|Mormegil]] – if in Czechia, or maybe some really near location
 
===Slovakia===
 
===Estonia===
 
===Latvia===
 
===Lithuania===
[[:lt:User:Jakro64|Jakro64]] if in Lithuania, Latvia or North Poland.
 
===Belarus===
 
*[[User:Czalex|Czalex]] 10:51, 1 Mar 2005 (UTC): the closer to the East, the better :) Krakow or Warsaw from the listed would probably be possible
 
===Slovenia===
 
===Croatia===
 
*[[:hr:user:SpeedyGonsales|SpeedyGonsales]] - For meetup I prefer Ljubljana, Prague and Cluj-Napoca, in this order. And for language, english is usually the first solution, and on place we will see if some other language solution is feasible. Russian is my second choice (Ja govoru malenko po ruski :-)
 
===Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia===
 
===Greece===
 
===Serbia and Montenegro===
 
===Ukraine===
 
===Moldova, Republic of===
 
[[Category:Events]]
 
 
 
 
<!-- CRASH -->
----
 
 
 
 
===Perhaps===
 
*German (it's in Central Europe, after all - why not?)
**Pro: It's in Central Europe and a very valuable member of the Wikimedia community
**Con: It doesn't share the common history with the rest of Central and Eastern Europe and, wiki-wise, it doesn't have the same issues - it is a much larger Wikipedia with a different series of issues.
***It shares a lot of common history! Just look at those Polish-German edit wars. Inviting our German colleagues might help hammer out some badly needed consensuses.
*Russian
**the Russian Wikimedia community can be considered to have relatively few things in common with the CEE Wikis, but nonetheless, it could be included
::*do anybody say Russia is not CEE? Look: Kaliningrad is <u>west</u> from Vilnius...
 
==What will we discuss?==
 
Firstly, our aim for this meetup is emphasizing the fact, that together we can achieve a lot more. CEE wikis are currently '''in very good shape''' - although we are a small region, we have many Wikipedias in the top 20 and some of the fastest growth rates. The Polish Wikipedia's performance is commendable as it is in the top 5 Wikipedias for a language only spoken by around 45 million people. The Bulgarian Wikipedia is also doing excellently. And so is the Romanian Wikipedia, renowned far and wide for its campaigns to secure Wikimania Cluj-Napoca 2005 (shameless self-promotion ;-) ''and not a very NPOV, too :P --[[User:TOR|TOR]] 20:47, 3 Jan 2005 (UTC)'').
 
We will be discussing the experiences of each CEE Wiki, and learning from each set of experiences. We will also be presenting strategies for further growth, and ways in which Wikipedias can further the growth of an emerging IT environment such as that of most CEE countries.
 
Most importantly, we need good spirit and a positive attitude.
 
==Why this meetup?==
 
Well, I think all of you remember Cluj-Napoca's outspoken bid for [[Wikimania 2005]]. We lost that bid by the skin of our teeth and yet we would like to have a more local meetup in Cluj. That's the impetus ''behind'' this move. That doesn't mean this is a Romanian event. It is an event for every CEE wiki community. We will select cities in the same way they were selected for Wikimania.
 
I think it would also be great to have a meetup in order to open up collaboration between CEE wikis. Wikipedia has really taken off in this region, even despite fairly limited Internet access and relatively low computerization.
 
:I think having such a meeting would be a really great thing. Each of the meeting I participated to were really special moments. I wish many of you will be able to come. [[User:Anthere|Anthere]] 08:53, 1 Nov 2004 (UTC)
 
==But how about rivalries?==
 
Our aim is to foster an environment where CEE wikis can work together... this meetup will help us in this. Rivalries are not helpful in any way between CEE wikis (this is not to say that CEE wikis should aggresively compete with other wikis). For all those who are jealous of their neighbouring country for having a larger Wikipedia (this sounds silly, but it ''does'' happen), CEE meetup seeks to abolish that! Let's work together to make Central and Eastern Europe the prime example when it comes to wiki.
 
Good humour and acceptance is the key here!
 
==Formality==
 
This meetup is intended to be '''a lot''' less formal than Wikimania (you can probably sense this by the writing style here ;-) It's basically both a community meetup '''and''' a conference, but not a very formal event. We still need conference facilities though...
 
==Speeches==
 
===Points of view===
 
*[[User:Ronline|Ronline]] - a review of major CEE wikis and their achievements
 
==Language==
 
OK, a big issue.
 
===The tri-language option===
 
One option: We have three world languages which are interesting:
 
*'''English'''
**'''Con:''' no CEE country speaks English as an official language
**'''Pro:''' but many people speak it as a foreign language
 
*'''German'''
**'''Con:''' not counting Germany, Austria, Switzerland etc., no CEE country speak it as official language
**'''Pro:''' many people speak it as a foreign language (in some countries as first foreign language), good knowledge of it partly because historically official language of quite alot CEE countries and ties to the German cultural area.
 
*'''Russian'''
**'''Pro:''' Due to Soviet influence many people speak Russian
**'''Con:''' Due to the fall of the Soviet Union, not so many ''young'' people speak Russian anymore, especially in non-Slavic countries like Romania, Hungary and Greece (Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, though non-Slavic, still have important Russian-speaking populations).
**'''Con:''' not written in the Latin alphabet
**Some countries may not take it particularly well if Russian is an official language of this conference (e.g. Estonia, Greece or even Romania and Hungary)
**'''Con:''' contrary to English and German, the Russian Wikipedia and wiki community is very small and unimportant.
 
*'''The local language'''
**'''Pro:''' This is important because local attenders are set to make up an important part of the base of participants. It would also be strange to, for example, host the conference in Romania but not have Romanian as a working language
 
We could use Esperanto... but not everyone knows Esperanto. We could use a few widely-spoken CEE languages like Polish and Romanian, but that would cause problems. Possibly both English and German could be used. But, this is an event where it is compulsory for all attenders to leave with a knowledge of every CEE language (only joking, but it would be good to acquaint ourselves with other CEE languages)
 
==Where do I express my opinion about this==
 
This page's [[Talk:Wikimedia_meetup_Central_and_Eastern_Europe|discussion page]]. Write what you think about this meetup, any proposals and ideas are also welcome, except for proposed location, which should be listed below.
 
==Location==
 
===Cluj-Napoca, Romania===
 
====Advantages====
 
*Located in the heart of Central and Eastern Europe - easy access from both Ukraine and Bulgaria, as well as The Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia, as well as the Western Balkans. A lot more central than a Baltic states location.
*High level of facilities, especially in comparison to Eastern Europe and the Balkans.
*Lower prices than in Central Europe (Hungary, The Czech Republic, etc)
*Large base of supporters
 
====Disadvantages====
 
*Harder to access from outside Europe, since it is not a capital city. Even from Central & Eastern Europe, you may have to connect somewhere (usually Budapest or Bucharest) before reaching Cluj-Napoca.
*Not part of the European Union - does not cater to passport-less travel.
 
====Getting there====
 
Cluj-Napoca is located in Transylvania, in central-west Romania.
 
===Prague, The Czech Republic===
 
====Advantages====
 
*The wealthiest and most visited city in Central and Eastern Europe, meaning lots of good infrastructure and tourism opportunities
*Wonderful setting
*Very good transport links from Western and Eastern Europe
 
====Disadvantages====
 
*Fairly small or inactive Wikipedia community
*Hard to access from Ukraine and Baltic States
*Fairly expensive by CEE standards
 
===Warsaw, Poland===
 
====Advantages====
 
*Large Wikipedia community - by far the largest in CEE (excluding Germany)
*Fairly easy to access and centrally-located
*Relatively good infrastructure and large city (Warsaw)
 
====Disadvantages====
 
*Hard to access from Southern Balkans (Greece, Macedonia)
 
===Kraków, Poland===
 
====Advantages====
 
*Large Wikipedia community - by far the largest in CEE (excluding Germany)
*Fairly easy to access and centrally-located
*Relatively good infrastructure and also large city (Krakow) -second international airport in Poland, rail and speedway
*One of the most visited Polish city, old capital of Medieval Poland, one of the most beautiful European city, on UNESCO list, with excelent climate, close to Tatry Mountains.
 
====Disadvantages====
*There are no disadvantages ;-)
 
===Ljubljana, Slovenia===
 
====Advantages====
 
*Beautiful city which not many people have visited - a new experience
*Slovenia is fairly wealthy and built-up
 
====Disadvantages====
 
*Harder to access than larger cities such as Warsaw, Bucharest and Prague
*More expensive than Romania, Western Balkans, Poland, etc.
 
==Participants==
 
List your name under the country that you live in.
 
'''NOTE:''' if you do not have an account on Meta and do not want to create one, please sign yourself this way: '''<nowiki>[[:zh:user:vipuser|vipuser]]</nowiki>''', which will be displayed as [[:zh:user:vipuser|vipuser]].
 
===Romania===
*[[User:Ronline|Ronline]]
*[[:ro:Utilizator:sp1ri|sp1ri]]
*[[:ro:Utilizator:Danutz|Danutz]]
 
===Poland===
*[[User:TOR|TOR]]
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Piom|PioM]]- if in Poland, but in city Kracow, not in Warsaw
*[[User:Kpjas|Kpjas]] possibly
*[[User:Blueshade|Blueshade]] if in Poland, then maybe...
*[[User:Chepry|Chepry]] - '''if''' in Poland
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Jerry|Jerry]] - possibly, maybe, but only in Poland :)
*[[User:Ausir|Ausir]]
*[[User:Taw|Taw]] - I could go if it was in Prague, Krakow or a place like that.
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Polimerek|Polimerek]] - Krakow (preferable), Warsaw, Prague is OK for me.
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Macieias|Macieias]] - 99,9% if breathtaking & magnificent '''Krakow'''
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Holek|Holek]] - 100% '''IF''' in Wroclaw, Poland :)
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Tukan|Tukan]] - 100% If in Kraków, maybe Warsaw or Prague.
*[[:en:User:Kpalion|Kpalion]] - as Tukan.
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Trance|Trance]] - in Kraków
*[[User:Jadwiga|Jadwiga]]
*[[User:Atreyyu]] - i wish it had organized in Poznan
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Matthias_gor|Maciej Maciejewski]] - if in Poland, in Kraków
*[[:pl:Wikipedysta:Antares|Antares]] - In Kraków (if in Poland) or Prague/Praha (if not in Poland).
 
===Bulgaria===
 
===Bosnia and Herzegovina===
 
===Hungary===
 
===The Czech Republic===
*Timespacemon
*[[User:Mormegil|Mormegil]] – if in Czechia, or maybe some really near location
 
===Slovakia===
 
===Estonia===
 
===Latvia===
 
===Lithuania===
[[:lt:User:Jakro64|Jakro64]] if in Lithuania, Latvia or North Poland.
 
===Belarus===
--[[User:Czalex|Czalex]] 18:15, 27 Feb 2005 (UTC): The closer to the East, the better :) Krakow or Warsaw from the listed
 
===Slovenia===
 
===Croatia===
 
*[[:hr:user:SpeedyGonsales|SpeedyGonsales]] - For meetup I prefer Ljubljana, Prague and Cluj-Napoca, in this order. And for language, english is usually the first solution, and on place we will see if some other language solution is feasible. Russian is my second choice (Ja govoru malenko po ruski :-)
 
===Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia===
 
===Greece===
 
===Serbia and Montenegro===
 
===Ukraine===
 
===Moldova, Republic of===
 
[[Category:Events]]

Revision as of 18:59, 6 March 2005

Other languages: Română (Please translate into as many languages as possible)

The Romanian Wikipedia is planning a meetup of the entire Central and Eastern European Wikimedia community in early 2005, significantly before the Wikimania 2005 conference. This meetup will be less formal than Wikimania and focus more on CEE (Central and Eastern Europe) issues.

Who can participate?

Actually, anyone who's part of a Wikimedia community can. But only the Wikipedias listed below are considered to be Central and Eastern European Wikipedias, and will be the main focus of this meetup.

Note: Some of the countries/communities listed below do not really lie in Central or Eastern Europe as far as geography is concered but are incloded in this list and invited to take part in this meetup for various reasons (lited in breckets next to each such entry).

Large communities

  • Bulgarian
  • Czech
  • Estonian (OK, so Estonians are Northern Europeans, but come on... why not be part of this?)
  • Hungarian
  • Lithuanian
  • Polish
  • Romanian
  • Serbian
  • Slovakian
  • Slovenian
  • Ukrainian

Other languages: Română (Please translate into as many languages as possible)

The Romanian Wikipedia is planning a meetup of the entire Central and Eastern European Wikimedia community in early 2005, significantly before the Wikimania 2005 conference. This meetup will be less formal than Wikimania and focus more on CEE (Central and Eastern Europe) issues.

Who can participate?

Actually, anyone who's part of a Wikimedia community can. But only the Wikipedias listed below are considered to be Central and Eastern European Wikipedias, and will be the main focus of this meetup.

Note: Some of the countries/communities listed below do not really lie in Central or Eastern Europe as far as geography is concered but are incloded in this list and invited to take part in this meetup for various reasons (lited in breckets next to each such entry).

Large communities

  • Bulgarian
  • Czech
  • Estonian (OK, so Estonians are Northern Europeans, but come on... why not be part of this?)
  • Hungarian
  • Lithuanian
  • Polish
  • Romanian
  • Serbian
  • Slovakian
  • Slovenian
  • Ukrainian

Smaller communities

  • Aromanian
  • Belarusian
  • Latvian
  • Macedonian
  • any other country/language group in CEE - please add
Bosnian (188 users, 1433 articles)
Kaszëbsczi (278 articles)

Perhaps

  • German (it's in Central Europe, after all - why not?)
    • Pro: It's in Central Europe and a very valuable member of the Wikimedia community
    • Con: It doesn't share the common history with the rest of Central and Eastern Europe and, wiki-wise, it doesn't have the same issues - it is a much larger Wikipedia with a different series of issues.
      • It shares a lot of common history! Just look at those Polish-German edit wars. Inviting our German colleagues might help hammer out some badly needed consensuses.
  • Russian (13160 articles, 2355 participants, 11 admins)
    • the Russian Wikimedia community can be considered to have relatively few things in common with the CEE Wikis, but nonetheless, it could be included
  • do anybody say Russia is not CEE? Look: Kaliningrad is west from Vilnius...
  • Esperanto (21210 articles)

What will we discuss?

Firstly, our aim for this meetup is emphasizing the fact, that together we can achieve a lot more. CEE wikis are currently in very good shape - although we are a small region, we have many Wikipedias in the top 20 and some of the fastest growth rates. The Polish Wikipedia's performance is commendable as it is in the top 5 Wikipedias for a language only spoken by around 45 million people. The Bulgarian Wikipedia is also doing excellently. And so is the Romanian Wikipedia, renowned far and wide for its campaigns to secure Wikimania Cluj-Napoca 2005 (shameless self-promotion ;-) and not a very NPOV, too :P --TOR 20:47, 3 Jan 2005 (UTC)).

We will be discussing the experiences of each CEE Wiki, and learning from each set of experiences. We will also be presenting strategies for further growth, and ways in which Wikipedias can further the growth of an emerging IT environment such as that of most CEE countries.

Most importantly, we need good spirit and a positive attitude.

Why this meetup?

Well, I think all of you remember Cluj-Napoca's outspoken bid for Wikimania 2005. We lost that bid by the skin of our teeth and yet we would like to have a more local meetup in Cluj. That's the impetus behind this move. That doesn't mean this is a Romanian event. It is an event for every CEE wiki community. We will select cities in the same way they were selected for Wikimania.

I think it would also be great to have a meetup in order to open up collaboration between CEE wikis. Wikipedia has really taken off in this region, even despite fairly limited Internet access and relatively low computerization.

I think having such a meeting would be a really great thing. Each of the meeting I participated to were really special moments. I wish many of you will be able to come. Anthere 08:53, 1 Nov 2004 (UTC)

But how about rivalries?

Our aim is to foster an environment where CEE wikis can work together... this meetup will help us in this. Rivalries are not helpful in any way between CEE wikis (this is not to say that CEE wikis should aggresively compete with other wikis). For all those who are jealous of their neighbouring country for having a larger Wikipedia (this sounds silly, but it does happen), CEE meetup seeks to abolish that! Let's work together to make Central and Eastern Europe the prime example when it comes to wiki.

Good humour and acceptance is the key here!

Formality

This meetup is intended to be a lot less formal than Wikimania (you can probably sense this by the writing style here ;-) It's basically both a community meetup and a conference, but not a very formal event. We still need conference facilities though...

Speeches

Points of view

  • Ronline - a review of major CEE wikis and their achievements

Language

OK, a big issue.

The tri-language option

One option: We have three world languages which are interesting:

  • English
    • Con: no CEE country speaks English as an official language
    • Pro: but many people speak it as a foreign language
  • German
    • Con: not counting Germany, Austria, Switzerland etc., no CEE country speak it as official language
    • Pro: many people speak it as a foreign language (in some countries as first foreign language), good knowledge of it partly because historically official language of quite alot CEE countries and ties to the German cultural area.
  • Russian
    • Pro: Due to Soviet influence many people speak Russian
    • Con: Due to the fall of the Soviet Union, not so many young people speak Russian anymore, especially in non-Slavic countries like Romania, Hungary and Greece (Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, though non-Slavic, still have important Russian-speaking populations).
    • Con: not written in the Latin alphabet
    • Some countries may not take it particularly well if Russian is an official language of this conference (e.g. Estonia, Greece or even Romania and Hungary)
    • Con: contrary to English and German, the Russian Wikipedia and wiki community is very small and unimportant.
  • The local language
    • Pro: This is important because local attenders are set to make up an important part of the base of participants. It would also be strange to, for example, host the conference in Romania but not have Romanian as a working language

We could use Esperanto... but not everyone knows Esperanto. We could use a few widely-spoken CEE languages like Polish and Romanian, but that would cause problems. Possibly both English and German could be used. But, this is an event where it is compulsory for all attenders to leave with a knowledge of every CEE language (only joking, but it would be good to acquaint ourselves with other CEE languages)

Where do I express my opinion about this

This page's discussion page. Write what you think about this meetup, any proposals and ideas are also welcome, except for proposed location, which should be listed below.

Location

Cluj-Napoca, Romania

Advantages

  • Located in the heart of Central and Eastern Europe - easy access from both Ukraine and Bulgaria, as well as The Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia, as well as the Western Balkans. A lot more central than a Baltic states location.
  • High level of facilities, especially in comparison to Eastern Europe and the Balkans.
  • Lower prices than in Central Europe (Hungary, The Czech Republic, etc)
  • Large base of supporters

Disadvantages

  • Harder to access from outside Europe, since it is not a capital city. Even from Central & Eastern Europe, you may have to connect somewhere (usually Budapest or Bucharest) before reaching Cluj-Napoca.
  • Not part of the European Union - does not cater to passport-less travel.

Getting there

Cluj-Napoca is located in Transylvania, in central-west Romania.

Prague, The Czech Republic

Advantages

  • The wealthiest and most visited city in Central and Eastern Europe, meaning lots of good infrastructure and tourism opportunities
  • Wonderful setting
  • Very good transport links from Western and Eastern Europe

Disadvantages

  • Fairly small or inactive Wikipedia community
  • Hard to access from Ukraine and Baltic States
  • Fairly expensive by CEE standards

Warsaw, Poland

Advantages

  • Large Wikipedia community - by far the largest in CEE (excluding Germany)
  • Fairly easy to access and centrally-located
  • Relatively good infrastructure and large city (Warsaw)

Disadvantages

  • Hard to access from Southern Balkans (Greece, Macedonia)

Kraków, Poland

Advantages

  • Large Wikipedia community - by far the largest in CEE (excluding Germany)
  • Fairly easy to access and centrally-located
  • Relatively good infrastructure and also large city (Krakow) -second international airport in Poland, rail and speedway
  • One of the most visited Polish city, old capital of Medieval Poland, one of the most beautiful European city, on UNESCO list, with excelent climate, close to Tatry Mountains.

Disadvantages

  • There are no disadvantages ;-)

Ljubljana, Slovenia

Advantages

  • Beautiful city which not many people have visited - a new experience
  • Slovenia is fairly wealthy and built-up

Disadvantages

  • Harder to access than larger cities such as Warsaw, Bucharest and Prague
  • More expensive than Romania, Western Balkans, Poland, etc.

Participants

List your name under the country that you live in.

NOTE: if you do not have an account on Meta and do not want to create one, please sign yourself this way: [[:zh:user:vipuser|vipuser]], which will be displayed as vipuser.

Romania

Poland

  • TOR
  • PioM- if in Poland, but in city Kracow, not in Warsaw
  • Kpjas possibly
  • Blueshade if in Poland, then maybe...
  • Chepry - if in Poland
  • Jerry - possibly, maybe, but only in Poland :)
  • Ausir
  • Taw - I could go if it was in Prague, Krakow or a place like that.
  • Polimerek - Krakow (preferable), Warsaw, Prague is OK for me.
  • Macieias - 99,9% if breathtaking & magnificent Krakow
  • Holek - 100% IF in Wroclaw, Poland :)
  • Tukan - 100% If in Kraków, maybe Warsaw or Prague.
  • Kpalion - as Tukan.
  • Trance - in Kraków
  • Jadwiga
  • User:Atreyyu - i wish it had organized in Poznan
  • Maciej Maciejewski - if in Poland, in Kraków
  • Datrio - probably

Bulgaria

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Hungary

The Czech Republic

  • Timespacemon
  • Mormegil – if in Czechia, or maybe some really near location

Slovakia

Estonia

Latvia

Lithuania

Jakro64 if in Lithuania, Latvia or North Poland.

Belarus

  • Czalex 10:51, 1 Mar 2005 (UTC): the closer to the East, the better :) Krakow or Warsaw from the listed would probably be possible

Slovenia

Croatia

  • SpeedyGonsales - For meetup I prefer Ljubljana, Prague and Cluj-Napoca, in this order. And for language, english is usually the first solution, and on place we will see if some other language solution is feasible. Russian is my second choice (Ja govoru malenko po ruski :-)

Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

Greece

Serbia and Montenegro

Ukraine

Moldova, Republic of






Perhaps

  • German (it's in Central Europe, after all - why not?)
    • Pro: It's in Central Europe and a very valuable member of the Wikimedia community
    • Con: It doesn't share the common history with the rest of Central and Eastern Europe and, wiki-wise, it doesn't have the same issues - it is a much larger Wikipedia with a different series of issues.
      • It shares a lot of common history! Just look at those Polish-German edit wars. Inviting our German colleagues might help hammer out some badly needed consensuses.
  • Russian
    • the Russian Wikimedia community can be considered to have relatively few things in common with the CEE Wikis, but nonetheless, it could be included
  • do anybody say Russia is not CEE? Look: Kaliningrad is west from Vilnius...

What will we discuss?

Firstly, our aim for this meetup is emphasizing the fact, that together we can achieve a lot more. CEE wikis are currently in very good shape - although we are a small region, we have many Wikipedias in the top 20 and some of the fastest growth rates. The Polish Wikipedia's performance is commendable as it is in the top 5 Wikipedias for a language only spoken by around 45 million people. The Bulgarian Wikipedia is also doing excellently. And so is the Romanian Wikipedia, renowned far and wide for its campaigns to secure Wikimania Cluj-Napoca 2005 (shameless self-promotion ;-) and not a very NPOV, too :P --TOR 20:47, 3 Jan 2005 (UTC)).

We will be discussing the experiences of each CEE Wiki, and learning from each set of experiences. We will also be presenting strategies for further growth, and ways in which Wikipedias can further the growth of an emerging IT environment such as that of most CEE countries.

Most importantly, we need good spirit and a positive attitude.

Why this meetup?

Well, I think all of you remember Cluj-Napoca's outspoken bid for Wikimania 2005. We lost that bid by the skin of our teeth and yet we would like to have a more local meetup in Cluj. That's the impetus behind this move. That doesn't mean this is a Romanian event. It is an event for every CEE wiki community. We will select cities in the same way they were selected for Wikimania.

I think it would also be great to have a meetup in order to open up collaboration between CEE wikis. Wikipedia has really taken off in this region, even despite fairly limited Internet access and relatively low computerization.

I think having such a meeting would be a really great thing. Each of the meeting I participated to were really special moments. I wish many of you will be able to come. Anthere 08:53, 1 Nov 2004 (UTC)

But how about rivalries?

Our aim is to foster an environment where CEE wikis can work together... this meetup will help us in this. Rivalries are not helpful in any way between CEE wikis (this is not to say that CEE wikis should aggresively compete with other wikis). For all those who are jealous of their neighbouring country for having a larger Wikipedia (this sounds silly, but it does happen), CEE meetup seeks to abolish that! Let's work together to make Central and Eastern Europe the prime example when it comes to wiki.

Good humour and acceptance is the key here!

Formality

This meetup is intended to be a lot less formal than Wikimania (you can probably sense this by the writing style here ;-) It's basically both a community meetup and a conference, but not a very formal event. We still need conference facilities though...

Speeches

Points of view

  • Ronline - a review of major CEE wikis and their achievements

Language

OK, a big issue.

The tri-language option

One option: We have three world languages which are interesting:

  • English
    • Con: no CEE country speaks English as an official language
    • Pro: but many people speak it as a foreign language
  • German
    • Con: not counting Germany, Austria, Switzerland etc., no CEE country speak it as official language
    • Pro: many people speak it as a foreign language (in some countries as first foreign language), good knowledge of it partly because historically official language of quite alot CEE countries and ties to the German cultural area.
  • Russian
    • Pro: Due to Soviet influence many people speak Russian
    • Con: Due to the fall of the Soviet Union, not so many young people speak Russian anymore, especially in non-Slavic countries like Romania, Hungary and Greece (Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, though non-Slavic, still have important Russian-speaking populations).
    • Con: not written in the Latin alphabet
    • Some countries may not take it particularly well if Russian is an official language of this conference (e.g. Estonia, Greece or even Romania and Hungary)
    • Con: contrary to English and German, the Russian Wikipedia and wiki community is very small and unimportant.
  • The local language
    • Pro: This is important because local attenders are set to make up an important part of the base of participants. It would also be strange to, for example, host the conference in Romania but not have Romanian as a working language

We could use Esperanto... but not everyone knows Esperanto. We could use a few widely-spoken CEE languages like Polish and Romanian, but that would cause problems. Possibly both English and German could be used. But, this is an event where it is compulsory for all attenders to leave with a knowledge of every CEE language (only joking, but it would be good to acquaint ourselves with other CEE languages)

Where do I express my opinion about this

This page's discussion page. Write what you think about this meetup, any proposals and ideas are also welcome, except for proposed location, which should be listed below.

Location

Cluj-Napoca, Romania

Advantages

  • Located in the heart of Central and Eastern Europe - easy access from both Ukraine and Bulgaria, as well as The Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia, as well as the Western Balkans. A lot more central than a Baltic states location.
  • High level of facilities, especially in comparison to Eastern Europe and the Balkans.
  • Lower prices than in Central Europe (Hungary, The Czech Republic, etc)
  • Large base of supporters

Disadvantages

  • Harder to access from outside Europe, since it is not a capital city. Even from Central & Eastern Europe, you may have to connect somewhere (usually Budapest or Bucharest) before reaching Cluj-Napoca.
  • Not part of the European Union - does not cater to passport-less travel.

Getting there

Cluj-Napoca is located in Transylvania, in central-west Romania.

Prague, The Czech Republic

Advantages

  • The wealthiest and most visited city in Central and Eastern Europe, meaning lots of good infrastructure and tourism opportunities
  • Wonderful setting
  • Very good transport links from Western and Eastern Europe

Disadvantages

  • Fairly small or inactive Wikipedia community
  • Hard to access from Ukraine and Baltic States
  • Fairly expensive by CEE standards

Warsaw, Poland

Advantages

  • Large Wikipedia community - by far the largest in CEE (excluding Germany)
  • Fairly easy to access and centrally-located
  • Relatively good infrastructure and large city (Warsaw)

Disadvantages

  • Hard to access from Southern Balkans (Greece, Macedonia)

Kraków, Poland

Advantages

  • Large Wikipedia community - by far the largest in CEE (excluding Germany)
  • Fairly easy to access and centrally-located
  • Relatively good infrastructure and also large city (Krakow) -second international airport in Poland, rail and speedway
  • One of the most visited Polish city, old capital of Medieval Poland, one of the most beautiful European city, on UNESCO list, with excelent climate, close to Tatry Mountains.

Disadvantages

  • There are no disadvantages ;-)

Ljubljana, Slovenia

Advantages

  • Beautiful city which not many people have visited - a new experience
  • Slovenia is fairly wealthy and built-up

Disadvantages

  • Harder to access than larger cities such as Warsaw, Bucharest and Prague
  • More expensive than Romania, Western Balkans, Poland, etc.

Participants

List your name under the country that you live in.

NOTE: if you do not have an account on Meta and do not want to create one, please sign yourself this way: [[:zh:user:vipuser|vipuser]], which will be displayed as vipuser.

Romania

Poland

  • TOR
  • PioM- if in Poland, but in city Kracow, not in Warsaw
  • Kpjas possibly
  • Blueshade if in Poland, then maybe...
  • Chepry - if in Poland
  • Jerry - possibly, maybe, but only in Poland :)
  • Ausir
  • Taw - I could go if it was in Prague, Krakow or a place like that.
  • Polimerek - Krakow (preferable), Warsaw, Prague is OK for me.
  • Macieias - 99,9% if breathtaking & magnificent Krakow
  • Holek - 100% IF in Wroclaw, Poland :)
  • Tukan - 100% If in Kraków, maybe Warsaw or Prague.
  • Kpalion - as Tukan.
  • Trance - in Kraków
  • Jadwiga
  • User:Atreyyu - i wish it had organized in Poznan
  • Maciej Maciejewski - if in Poland, in Kraków
  • Antares - In Kraków (if in Poland) or Prague/Praha (if not in Poland).

Bulgaria

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Hungary

The Czech Republic

  • Timespacemon
  • Mormegil – if in Czechia, or maybe some really near location

Slovakia

Estonia

Latvia

Lithuania

Jakro64 if in Lithuania, Latvia or North Poland.

Belarus

--Czalex 18:15, 27 Feb 2005 (UTC): The closer to the East, the better :) Krakow or Warsaw from the listed

Slovenia

Croatia

  • SpeedyGonsales - For meetup I prefer Ljubljana, Prague and Cluj-Napoca, in this order. And for language, english is usually the first solution, and on place we will see if some other language solution is feasible. Russian is my second choice (Ja govoru malenko po ruski :-)

Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

Greece

Serbia and Montenegro

Ukraine

Moldova, Republic of