User talk:Balloonman/Archive 5

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[edit] E-mail

It seems our e-mail don't always connect! You have one, though. seresin | wasn't he just...? 00:28, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Requests for Coaching

Hi there. I appreciate you taking the time to explain your thought process to me; I understand and agree with it. If I have been overeager, it is because I recognize the growing influence of Wikipedia and its future as the online information repository, and I wish to get in the door to adminship before it is flooded even more than it already is. Also, I haven't been impatient - I realize that it will be 3-6 months before I am qualified; I was even thinking a year. However, maybe I don't understand the coaching process. If I needed to be a viable candidate before I signed up for coaching, why be coached at all? Is it just a last-minute validation of a candidate's qualifications? Perhaps. I was envisioning the coaching process being a several-month process that took a fledgling Wikipedian and turned out a viable admin candidate.

Anyway, I really do appreciate you taking the time to address my concerns, and I have no illusions about either administrator responsibilities, qualifications, or my own lack thereof. I merely wish to ensure that I am constantly on the right track. Tanthalas39 (talk) 21:34, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Coaching advice/Sockpuppetry

Hi! I have been following your advice, and taking part in XFD debates, and have been doing minor edits to articles. I would like to do more serious edits, but as I can only edit at work (no connection at home) and do not have access to any books, I am worried that any edits I do might be concidered original research. I do know a lot about magic and conjuring, but have deliberately stayed away from those, else I get into an edit war by deleting any explained secrets. I don't think that would be helping anyone!

Anyway, the reason I am dropping a line is that I have been called into a sockpuppet case (Wikipedia:Suspected sock puppets/Vr) by User:Shonali2000. This was because I was the first person to drop a post on the user's page (a welcome message). The problem is that I know very little about sock-puppetry, certainly not the technical side of things. I have dropped a message on the talk page explaining what is going on (I'm assuming good faith and that this user is innocent), and a message on the evidence page, offering help and requesting technical advice. I was hoping that you could just keep an eye on what I am doing as you aren't involved with the case and would therefore be able to offer impartial advice. I know you're not my mentor, but if you can help, that would be great!

I figure that if I am to become an admin, then I will need to be able to understand the ins and outs of this sort of thing...

By the way, looking at your username, are you by any chance a fellow balloon strangler modeller? StephenBuxton (talk) 17:47, 21 February 2008 (UTC)

I accept! Thanks very much for offering your assistance. I have created the coaching page, and responded to some of your concerns. StephenBuxton (talk) 07:49, 26 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Admin Coaching Re-confirmation

Hello, previously you expressed interest in participating in the Wikipedia:Admin coaching project. We are currently conducting a reconfirmation drive to give coaches the opportunity to update their information and capacity to participate in the project. Please visit Wikipedia:Admin coaching/Status to update your status. Also, please remember to update your capacity (5th table variable) in the form of a fraction (eg. 2/3 means you are currently coaching 2 students, and could accept 1 more student). Thank you. MBisanz talk 08:58, 24 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Congratulations on your DYK!

Updated DYK query On 24 February 2008, Did you know? was updated with a fact from the article David Corbett, which you created or substantially expanded. If you know of another interesting fact from a recently created article, then please suggest it on the Did you know? talk page.

Congratulations and keep up the good work! Ruhrfisch ><>°° 22:43, 24 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] padillah Request for coaching

I noticed on the Coaching status page you had one slot left for coaching. I wondered if you would coach me. PastorDavid tried to coach me but some things in his RL were apparently sidetracking him. I have tried an RfA before but was advised to remove the request, before I fell victim to WP:SNOW, and find a coach. I have a page for coaching setup already and would like your input. Please let me know your thoughts. Padillah (talk) 15:26, 26 February 2008 (UTC)

Thanks but forget it. After reading some of your posts you're just too... Thanks, but I'll look elsewhere. Padillah (talk) 15:17, 27 February 2008 (UTC)
I love it... a person with about 1500 posts comes to my talk page asking me to coach him... but decides that I'm too... wow, I wonder what the insult was intended to be?Balloonman (talk) 15:20, 27 February 2008 (UTC)
I'm sorry if you felt there was an insult in that, I did not mean one. I mostly thought that you would understand the reasoning so there was no need to rehash it here. If you don't understand and really feel the need for an exposition on the reasons I think we would be incompatible, I can give them to you. Padillah (talk) 15:44, 27 February 2008 (UTC)
It was the dropping of "and your just to..." I hadn't seen your post on the admin page where you felt like I was being rude, I wasn't. I've posted my reasoning on what you need to do before you are a viable coachee your talk page.Balloonman (talk) 22:08, 27 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Coaching overhaul

I just wanted to let you know I'm not trying to force a certain number for the checklist. I just wanted it to jive with the message I was sending out so that users wouldn't all ask "why did you say X when the page said Y". I think we do need more discussion on what exactly are the right levels of edits and experience. Maybe some sort of stat analysis of RfA successes and failures. MBisanz talk 21:59, 27 February 2008 (UTC)

Also as for an edit count level, my rule of thumb is that unless you have more than 1 FA, you really should have around 8,000 edits, with at least 3,000 to the mainspace and significant participation in a space outside of main/talk/usertalk (like wiki, images, cats, portal). MBisanz talk 22:05, 27 February 2008 (UTC)
The problem is that you did put a number in there, and that number (200) was WAY too low. We've already seen people coming in saying, "But I meet that requirement" why hasn't any accepted me as a coachee. Set the parameters higher and let them filter themselves out. Candidates who clutter the coaching page for months become frustrated and makes the process look worse than it really is. Coachees don't need to be ready for adminship today... but should be ready in the foreseeable future. If I wanted to adopt a person, I would.Balloonman (talk) 22:06, 27 February 2008 (UTC)
Well right now we're down from 70 to 45 requests. Some have been matched and are waiting for confirmation. I suspect that in a day or two when I do the notifications for people with less than 2,000 edits, it will shrink further. For the people between 2000 and 25000 I'll probably just leave them in old requests and check back to see if they reach 2500, but I'm not passionate either way on that). A backlog of 10-15 requests should provide coaches who pick their own coachees (as opposed to being introduced) with a good enough selection to find someone they match with. MBisanz talk 22:16, 27 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] RE:What you need to do (IMHO) to prepare for admin coaching

See, now, to me the note you left on my talk page... is coaching. Thanks for the input and now I know which way to go to get there. (BTW I was asked if I was going to apply for adminship and then told coaching might be more help)Padillah (talk) 01:04, 28 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Coord'ing

Its a bit lonely up there at the top of the AC page. How about both our names as Coords? MBisanz talk 09:03, 28 February 2008 (UTC)

Of course its open. Given the work you've put into the new table, I think we've both managed to make the page much easier to understand and resolved the various loopholes that led to the previous backlog. I was an intern at PWC-TAX-WNTS in the Metro-NYC office last summer (2007), and pending rejection from law school (likely), will be an Associate there this fall. MBisanz talk 07:10, 2 March 2008 (UTC)
Cool... depending on what aspect of Tax you work in, Tax is a nice area because they don't have a true "busy season." I'm just now coming off of 6 weeks of 70-90 hour weeks... 50-60 hours will be the norm thru March.Balloonman (talk) 07:14, 2 March 2008 (UTC)
Well I worked in Exempt Orgs, so we have all different sorts of deadlines and what not. My main motivation is that tax staff rarely leave the office, where audit staff are running all around town.
The way I did the first set of pairings was to match users as they re-listed themselves, to give a sense that the project was working. I tried to pair first to coaches with more than 1 opening, and then those with 0/1. In some cases, when I saw a user I knew to have issues I'd pair them with a more experienced coach. Also, if a user had say 0/3 listed, I'd try and stagger the edit-counts of the coachee so they all wouldn't hit RfA at the same time. Recently I've been using the edit-counts to pick those closest to RfA to give to coaches.
I see the logic behind notifying the coaches, the reason I had the coachee "finding" them was the wording on the mainpage "The project coordinator does, at times, make efforts to contact people and connect students with coaches. However, if you wish to speed up the process, do this yourself." I figured that if the coaches, who were admins, weren't picking from the huge list, then it was probably better to try and motivate those seeking something rather than those giving something. Pairing might be too strong a word though. I've also thought of using introducing or suggesting. And I know at least one coach doesn't have email enabled, so that might present problems. MBisanz talk 07:20, 2 March 2008 (UTC)
And if you ever need to do something like [this] I know about checkuser policies and how you have to be purposfully vague. MBisanz talk 07:22, 2 March 2008 (UTC)
I saw that edit and was kinda curious about what you found out about him...Balloonman (talk) 07:24, 2 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Padillah

Thanks for entirely misinterpreting what I wrote. I merely meant to point out that the footballer was obviously notable and that Padillah wouldn't do his case for adminship any good by getting his AfD count up with such doomed nominations. I was trying to help him, not threaten him. Why don't you assume good faith about my actions? Calling what I wrote a threat is entirely out of order and I request an immediate apology. Nick mallory (talk) 07:32, 29 February 2008 (UTC)

Sorry, when you goto somebody's talk page to tell them to withdraw an AfD nomination or it will be held against them during a future RfA, then that is a veiled threat. This is not a friendly note, it is a veiled threat: I'd withdraw this if I were you, otherwise it's only going to be held against you...Balloonman (talk) 14:05, 29 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] My RfA

Thank you very much for your very strong support for my admin application, which recently closed successfully (36/3/1). I hope I can continue to justify the confidence that you have placed in me. If there is any way that I can help out more, or if you have any handy tips for a freshly-hatched admin, please drop me a line. Thanks again. - 52 Pickup (deal) 22:03, 1 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Admin coaching

Hello. Thanks for responding. And about that little issue with my brother has been solved. As you can see I've been collecting all of the discussions I've taken part in to make it easier for you. Another is that if it does affect my final outcome be sure to tell me of all the things I did wrong. And please don't remove my account if you find anything suspicious. I've made lots of contribs but if you think I need more time to mature then please feel free to discuss this because I am willing. All I really want to do is know everything about Wikipedia - how it runs, how I can improve it...I've been tirelessy contributing to Wikipedia actively for more than two months now and am really enjoying it. The trust issue I hope can be solved if it now isn't. LOTRrules (talk) 18:20, 2 March 2008 (UTC)

What do you mean? I have stuck with LOTRrules for a long time now..., if you mind me asking...why change my name? I don't fully understand what you mean...can you explain further? I'm a bit puzzled. LOTRrules (talk) 17:28, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
It was a joke... my first three students all have names that begin with "S"... you are breaking the trend ;-) Balloonman (talk) 18:42, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
By the way I'd love to be your student. LOTRrules (talk) 17:47, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
You're gonna have to give me 3 days or so to sort out my private matters. I'm on a break for 3 days or so, okay? I've got stuff to do... LOTRrules (talk) 20:45, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] The Military history WikiProject Newsletter : Issue XXIV (February 2008)

The February 2008 issue of the Military history WikiProject newsletter has been published. You may read the newsletter, change the format in which future issues will be delivered to you, or unsubscribe from this notification by following the link. Thank you.
This has been an automated delivery by BrownBot (talk) 03:55, 5 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] LOL!

Sorry about that.  :) I have to tell you, I was amazed that there wan't already an article. Those commercials were classics. Great job. --PMDrive1061 (talk) 07:22, 5 March 2008 (UTC) This is RE his moving the page immediately after I created it causing me to loose my subsequent edits on Alex the DogBalloonman (talk) 07:27, 5 March 2008 (UTC)

I was surprised as well. I actually have been planning it for several months, but didn't get around to it until now.Balloonman (talk) 07:27, 5 March 2008 (UTC)

Glad to do it. Just when you think everything in heaven and earth is covered here, along comes a really glaring red link like this one. I've managed to discover a few lately, but it's getting harder to do. --PMDrive1061 (talk) 07:31, 5 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] William E. Baxter Jr. vs. the United States

Updated DYK query On 6 March 2008, Did you know? was updated with a fact from the article William E. Baxter Jr. vs. the United States, which you created or substantially expanded. If you know of another interesting fact from a recently created article, then please suggest it on the Did you know? talk page.

--BorgQueen (talk) 11:46, 6 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Template:DYK needs to be updated

Hi Balloonman,

Hopefully you're still around to read this, but since you were foolish kind enough to list yourself at Wikipedia:Did you know/Admins, I thought I'd come by and let you know that Template:DYK hasn't been updated in 11 hours. Thanks! --jonny-mt 08:08, 7 March 2008 (UTC)


[edit] Update on Buddhism

The Dalai Lama IS THE MAIN FIGURE OF BOTH TIBETAN AND BUDDHISM. WHILE THERE ARE MANY BRANCHES OF BUDDHISM, THERE ARE OTHER RELIGIOUS LEADERS UNDER HIM. (I'M A BUDDHIST, AND I KNOW ABOUT THIS. PLEASE DO NOT MISCONFUSE FACTS FROM THE 'MYTHS') —Preceding unsigned comment added by Prowikipedians (talk • contribs) 06:02, 9 March 2008 (UTC)

And I have studied Buddhism... the fact that you may wish to believe something does not make it a fact. Your branch of Buddhism may recognize him as such, but others do not.Balloonman (talk) 06:06, 9 March 2008 (UTC)

Please refer to: As the spiritual leader of Buddhism, the Dalai Lama was intrigued that scientists had found evidence that some parts of the brain might renew themselves throughout life. The discovery seemed to fit well with the Buddhist view that meditation can reshape and expand the mind to foster happiness and cultivate compassion. --http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans/programs/buddhism/ —Preceding unsigned comment added by Prowikipedians (talk • contribs) 06:08, 9 March 2008 (UTC)

???Balloonman (talk) 06:11, 9 March 2008 (UTC)

Sorry...wrong link..http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=7,2517,0,0,1,0 —Preceding unsigned comment added by Prowikipedians (talk • contribs) 06:11, 9 March 2008 (UTC)
How about let's get into this conclusion, that the Dalai Lama is ONE OF the highest leaders in Buddhism. (agreeable? according to source: http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=7,2517,0,0,1,0)

[edit] Thanks

Thanks for organizing my archive materials! Yours, Famspear (talk) 14:27, 9 March 2008 (UTC)

You're welcome... I thought it would look better that way and since you said you didn't know the technical stuff I decided to be bold ;-)Balloonman (talk) 23:46, 9 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] User:Balloonman/Admin Coaching AfD excercises

Exercise 4 and Exercise 6 point to the same page. Just FYI - Revolving Bugbear 20:26, 9 March 2008 (UTC)

thanks, I'll find a decent replacementBalloonman (talk) 23:46, 9 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Comments on my RfA

I want to thank you for the comments you made on my RfA. Between your comments and Rifleman's, I had to take a good hard look at my edit history ... and I didn't like what I saw. Thank you for making me aware of what I was doing. Justin Eiler (talk) 05:36, 10 March 2008 (UTC)

No problem. I try to look at candidates and generally try to give constructive feedback.Balloonman (talk) 07:32, 10 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Kaohsiung American School article

I noticed that you posted information on the Kaohsiung American School article. While that I am aware that there is a lot of copy-paste, I find little way right now to expand due to the little information I can actually write on this article. (its a small school, therefore, little information available.)

If you find that this SHOULD be nominated for DELETION, please delete it, however, I would like to receive a history of it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 211.21.238.26 (talk) 07:11, 10 March 2008 (UTC)

responded on KAS talkpage.Balloonman (talk) 07:28, 10 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] coaching exercise

Thanks for the heads up on the questions... what did you think of the test? Did you notice that 2 of the 3 dealing with Command and Conquer had more votes one way an the third a different way? And that 3 of the questions dealt with one case---it was speedy kept, sent back to AfD by DVR, and then deleted as a hoax?Balloonman (talk) 23:48, 9 March 2008 (UTC)

I think it was good, and it accomplished what it should -- to give the coachee exposure to AfD closures in a controlled setting, but at the same time demonstrate that AfD doesn't take place in a vacuum and the discussed actually is much more important that the votes.
I didn't give my coachee the DRV section, though, because I'm planning on doing DRV later.
Cheers! - Revolving Bugbear 17:09, 10 March 2008 (UTC)
One of the things about the DVR is that one of the cases reviewed one of the AFD's utilized previously. The final DVR excercise is the previous AFD revisited---with a completely different outlook!Balloonman (talk) 17:12, 10 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Re:RFA

Hello, I changed a my vote, because you and Tanthalas39 showed my his good sides:) Paweł Alden or my talk page 20:47, 10 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] An article which you started, or significantly expanded, Alex the Dog, was selected for DYK!

Updated DYK query On March 10, 2008, Did you know? was updated with a fact from the article Alex the Dog, which you created or substantially expanded. If you know of another interesting fact from a recently created article, then please suggest it on the Did you know? talk page.

Thanks for your contributions! Nishkid (talk) 23:14, 10 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] IP warning

I saw that, thanks. Did he create a Tanthalas39 page? Was it at least witty? Tanthalas39 (talk) 03:16, 11 March 2008 (UTC)

Oops, nope, I saw your correction. And the same tired old stuff... Tanthalas39 (talk) 03:18, 11 March 2008 (UTC)
Yeah, I forgot the User talk part of the link... normally people who come over are at least half way civil. He wasn't.Balloonman (talk) 03:23, 11 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] User talk:Equazcion

Mmm, this user is asking to be unblocked, and to be honest I can't find the reason why you blocked in the first place. Can you double check please? Thanks! -- lucasbfr talk 08:47, 11 March 2008 (UTC)

I apologized to the user above, I was trying to block an active vandalizer, who tagged this users page and must have blocked him by mistake.Balloonman (talk) 14:25, 11 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Thoughts re:tanthalas39

Hey there Balloonman, I just want to say although we (obviously) disagree about the timing of Dan's rfa and his experience/lenght of service/suitability, I want to say explicitly that there are no hard feelings on my side directed at you. Truly, I am upset at the way the RfA is going, but I don't mean that to come across as something against you personally. If there is anything I've added to the RfA that comes across as anything more than a simple discussion/disagreement, please let me know so I can strike it, as it is not my intention. To add levity, I think I'll use this diff to prove to everyone that you think Dan was actually ready a month ago. Hee hee (and of course, I'm completely joking and found that discourse between you two quite funny:-) Cheers, Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 17:57, 11 March 2008 (UTC)

Ditto... and that goes for Tan as well. I respect Dan, I just don't think now is the timeBalloonman (talk) 18:04, 11 March 2008 (UTC)
I didn't either, until I started coaching him. He knows this stuff and has done everything right before and during the coaching. I was honestly surprised by that, I thought I was in for a long haul (I saw you declining him as a coach on his talkpage and almost declined myself simply because of the apparent workload). Wow, was I pleasantly surprised. If you don't mind me asking a hypothetical question. Suppose you had taken on Dan as a coach. And suppose you were blown away by his policy knowledge, article writing ability using show preview instead of 10 edits to say one thing, and overall "soft skills". Are there circumstances where you would "close" the coaching early and go to RfA? I'm asking more for my own coaching that I plan to continue (Making you an admin coach coach I suppose :-). I don't want to put an editor through an RfA prematurely (and I still don't believe I did in this instance) - it causes unnecessary stress towards the inevitable +sysop. Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 18:10, 11 March 2008 (UTC)
I tend to be a little tougher on my coachees becaues I don't want coaching to become a "get by RfA free" card. Eg I want to know that the candidates have the skills and background to pass and to meet the possible objections. I want people to see "RfA coaching" and think, "Wow, that means something." In Dan's case, I would have probably have contacted the person who "rejected" him to begin with to find out why---just to make sure that there wasn't something you were missing (Imagine if I came out and said, he vandalized some pages in December?) Then I would have asked, what was it about his candidacy that concerned me and how can we address them? For example, I am currently working with Stephen and OverlordQ on preparing for RfA's. I'm hoping to have Stephen ready in about 2 months (OverlordQ just failed an RfA, thus it will be 3 months for him.) Both of them are primarily vandal fighters and have very little mainspace edits. I've asked both to work on article development. Whereever they have strengths, I would have them work someplace else. Before somebody becomes an Admin is when we can coach/guide them to help them become more well rounded. IMHO, admin coaching should be something that people have to work at to prove they want to be an admin---not a short cut to bypass the normal experience expectations.Balloonman (talk) 18:22, 11 March 2008 (UTC)
I agree that admin coaching is not a "get by RfA free" card. But admin coaching isn't required in the first place. I've seen opposes (albeit bad ones) because someone did go through coaching and called that a sign of power hunger. Another question, do you ever support an RfA candidate that has not gone through coaching? I think (and this is a very rough estimate), that only about half of currently successful RfAs have coaching prior to +sysop but its growing. (And I would estimate that 75-80% of "2nd or 3rd" RfAs have coaching before a 2nd or 3rd attempt.) As for Dan and your passing him up for coaching, I wasn't concerned enough to come to you because you stated very clearly why you weren't taking him on, on his talkpage (and I believe that if he had vandalized pages in December, you would have said so in your reasoning - if not, I would have surely found it in my extensive search thru his contribs before and during coaching anyway). All that to say (sorry, I'm quite verbose), had Dan simply self-nommed, with his experience level, I think he would've had a really good chance of passing (based on my experience at different similar RfAs of candidates with similar histories). That, to me, makes coaching/lack of coaching/length of coaching, a secondary issue. Thanks, Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 18:34, 11 March 2008 (UTC)
To answer your question, no very rarely does admin coaching play a factor in my vote...and it doesn't here either. Most candidates don't go through admin coaching. But in this case, I don't think Tan would have any chance if it wasn't for the coaching process. His lack of mainspace edits would have killed his chances.Balloonman (talk) 21:03, 11 March 2008 (UTC)
Thanks for your thoughts, once again Balloonman, and I respect your opinions both here and on this particular RfA. The irony of course, is that I personally have way less in the area of mainspace edits than Dan, and my RfA was nearly unanimous a mere 2 months ago. I suppose you would have opposed my candidacy though had you particpated in it - tee hee! -:) I snuck in!! All that to say, I've over-contributed to your talkpage here, and I'll leave you alone now. I appreciate you entertaining my differences of opinion. Cheers, Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 21:08, 11 March 2008 (UTC)
I don't mind... and (without actually looking) I probably would have opposed ya ;-) If Tan's nomination passes, it definately won't be the end of the world (I think he has the potential of being a fine admin) I'd just don't think that 3 months of active service where one's primary role is as vandal clean up is enough.Balloonman (talk) 21:39, 11 March 2008 (UTC)
In that case, I'm glad my RfA is over! Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!! Cheers, Balloonman, and thanks again for your patience with me and my musings. Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 22:38, 11 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Welcome

Welcome!

Hello, Balloonman, and welcome to Wikipedia! Thank you for your contributions. I hope you like the place and decide to stay. Here are some pages that you might find helpful:

I hope you enjoy editing here and being a Wikipedian! Please sign your messages on discussion pages using four tildes (~~~~); this will automatically insert your username and the date. If you need help, check out Wikipedia:Questions, ask me on my talk page, or ask your question on this page and then place {{helpme}} before the question. Again, welcome! --Sumestest (talk) 23:41, 11 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Userboxes followup

Thank you for your reply. My hesitation was based on this sentence found on WP:UBX#Using existing userboxes: "It may be considered uncivil to place any userboxes on any other user's page(s) without their permission." I appreciate the reassurance that the copying was acceptable, but perhaps the "guideline" should be changed to reflect this? Thomprod (talk) 17:16, 12 March 2008 (UTC)

I understand now. I took the phrase on any other user's page(s) to include my own. Thanks for straightening me out. Thomprod (talk) 18:41, 12 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] About categorys

Hello, what you know about categorizes articles? E.G. how is category for Bydgoszcz districts? Alden or talk with Alden 21:12, 12 March 2008 (UTC)

I'm not sure of what you are asking?Balloonman (talk) 03:08, 13 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] My RfA

Thanks for your support. - J Greb (talk) 22:58, 12 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] RfA - Discospinster

Thank you so much for your participation in my RfA. I hope to be able to gain your confidence in my new duties. ... discospinster talk 23:59, 13 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] New coaching match method

I'm trying something new at User_talk:Malinaccier#Coaching_matches_found in matching coaches and coachees. Should be a little less of a surprise for the coaches and offers more choice. Any comments? MBisanz talk 20:08, 14 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Zedla RFA

Sorry for the delay but just want to drop a quick note saying thanks for participating in my RfA which closed earlier this week. Valid comments about rounding out my experience were brought up and I'm going to work on them going forward. If you have any comments I'm always open to the counsel of others. Sincerely – Zedla (talk) 02:30, 15 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] RfA

Yeah, it looks like I'll get the mop whenever a bureaucrat finds a spare one to give me. :)

Thanks a lot for being my admin coach. I learned a lot and enjoyed the process..and it's obviously paid off! So, here you go: I award you this barnstar for being one of Wikipedia's best admin coaches! I'm looking forward to working alongside you in the admin trenches! —Scott5114↗ [EXACT CHANGE ONLY] 06:30, 15 March 2008 (UTC) Consider this your thankspam! ;)

Thanks, you deserved it... You'll make a hell of an admin!Balloonman (talk) 06:38, 15 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Question

The people I usually ask such questions (my WikiGodparents) are apparently asleep. I'm writing an article about the historic Raleigh Water Tower and am trying to figure out if I can use a picture without it being a copyright infringement. It was taken a long time ago, so I don't know if the copyright law applies in this particular case. The picture is here. Do you know? AgnosticPreachersKid (talk) 08:01, 15 March 2008 (UTC)

I was going to say that copyright areas are not my strong point on wikipedia. But I know a little bit... copy rights on pieces of art are dependent upon the creator of the art work in this case a picture. It is based upon the date of death of the creator and has to be at least 50 or 75 years after the creators death to be part of the common domain. It was changed in 2003 or 2004 to protect Disney's copyright on Disney characters.
That being said, this picture is on a NPS website, anything produced by the Federal government is automatically part of the public domain. Thus, you would be able to use it, just make sure that you credit as a piece of work of the US Government.Balloonman (talk) 08:09, 15 March 2008 (UTC)
Oh, thanks. That helps me alot actually. I've been creating articles dealing with registered historic landmarks in Wake County, North Carolina and I've been needing pictures to add. Gracias. AgnosticPreachersKid (talk) 08:12, 15 March 2008 (UTC)
Again, if it is an NPS website or US Government (or agency of the US Government---like military or branch) website, then the work is in the public domain.Balloonman (talk) 08:16, 15 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Thank-you

I can has mop?
 Hi Balloonman! Thank-you for your support in my RfA (91/1/1).
I take all the comments to heart and hope I can fulfil the role of being
an admin to the high standard that the community deserves.
Seraphim♥ Whipp 17:17, 16 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Jeremiah Wright

You have incorrectly removed a sentence that is indeed directly supported by the source provided. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jeremiah_Wright&diff=198746503&oldid=198743508 Do not remove it again without discussing this on the Talk page. - Maximusveritas (talk) 01:26, 17 March 2008 (UTC)

The link I saw earlier was to a different source than this... but now this raises a new concern... the words in the article are verbatum from here. Plus, your note is a little abrupt.Balloonman (talk) 01:55, 17 March 2008 (UTC)
No, the source has been the same and the link was always to the same source. You are right that the words are verbatim, so I will change that. I'm not sure what you mean by "your note is a little abrupt". - Maximusveritas (talk) 03:01, 17 March 2008 (UTC)
I must have looked at the wrong link thenBalloonman (talk) 03:07, 17 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Michelle Ferguson-Cohen

For your information, it is not valid to withdraw an AFD nomination when there are other votes to delete. You can strike out your own deletion recommendation but you should not close it - once a nomination has been made and supported by another user, it's now the property of the community and a consensus will be formed on whether to delete or not. Stifle (talk) (trivial vote) 14:49, 17 March 2008 (UTC)

No good deed goes unpunished. The subject of the article has also opened a thread at Wikipedia:Editor_assistance/Requests#Request for deletion and deletion of references at Michelle Ferguson-Cohen in case you want to join the discussion. EdJohnston (talk) 18:03, 17 March 2008 (UTC)
How do you know it's the subject of the article? Anchoress · Weigh Anchor · Catacomb 21:53, 17 March 2008 (UTC)
???Balloonman (talk) 22:46, 17 March 2008 (UTC)
Sorry, my mistake. A review of the history of Michelle Ferguson-Cohen suggests that I was wrong in thinking User:JSane is the subject of the article. She is just a very persistent advocate, bordering on the warning in WP:COI:

Accounts that appear, based on their edit history, to exist for the sole or primary purpose of promoting a person, company, product, service, or organization in apparent violation of this guideline should be warned and made aware of this guideline. If the same pattern of editing continues after the warning, the account may be blocked.

User:JSane, though not the author, has no Wikipedia edits outside this area of interest. EdJohnston (talk) 23:25, 17 March 2008 (UTC)
She's been tagged by COIBOT with a COI warning. She swears that she isn't involved, thus AGF... we'll see. I think most people get involved with WP via a single channel. I wasn't going to edit anything more than the Military Brat article when I started here.Balloonman (talk) 14:48, 18 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] RFA thanks

Thanks for the support
Thanks for your support on my request for adminship. People could have easily opposed by clicking on the wrong edit window and signing their name, or even opposing due to a virus of some sort. Fortunately, this wasn't the case, as it passed 92/2/2. ♬♩ Hurricanehink (talk) 02:41, 18 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] template fix

Hey Bman. I fixed your admin exercises subpage/template/whatever. Changed the DVRs to DRVs. Cheers, :-) Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 18:45, 19 March 2008 (UTC)

No problem... I noticed... what did you think of the excercise?Balloonman (talk) 18:47, 19 March 2008 (UTC)
I did mention before that your admin coaching style is different than mine, right? :-) If I'm being honest, I think the examples/exercises are rather brutal. I wouldn't know how to close half of those (crap, I should check -- did I close any of those?). Handing someone a mop as a qualified candidate, in my opinion, is very different from expecting a new janitor to know how to repair and replace the main boiler. A new admin wouldn't shouldnt' close any of those, unless they wanted to find themselves at ANI or its ilk. Just my opinion though. Obviously, I'm a bit more lenient. That being said, I think they should stay. Good eye openers for me, and probably Dan too, of what is expected of a "seasoned admin". Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 18:52, 19 March 2008 (UTC)
Hell, some of them I wouldn't know how to close... and would probably close some of them differently today than I will in 2 months! But it gives people a chance to see what happens and how the candidate thinks. I wanted to include some (such as the Command and Conquer) that have differing 'results' how do you handle that? How do you handle bad faith noms? How do you handle various scenarios.Balloonman (talk) 19:09, 19 March 2008 (UTC)
I do see the value in them, putting it that way. It isn't so much "admin coaching", though, IMHO, but more like "scaring off unprepared admin candidates". I think they have value as such and should stay. I'm really curious to see how Dan handles them! Please know that however he answers, (unless he just swears at you or something else unexpected and ridiculous), I will still be a supporter of his.  :-) Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 19:41, 19 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Query

Hi. Just out of curiosity - Is your username a reference to E. E. Cummings ? Cirt (talk) 07:55, 20 March 2008 (UTC)

No... now you really have my curiosity up? As I am not familiar with Cummings why would you think that? It has a reference to the fact that for 9 years I was a professional balloon entertainer.Balloonman (talk) 07:56, 20 March 2008 (UTC)
in Just, by E. E. Cummings. Read that poem in elementary school and I just love it, one of my favorites. Cirt (talk) 07:57, 20 March 2008 (UTC)
Also, that's cool that you were a professional balloon entertainer - a friend of mine is a magician and does some amateur balloon stuff, but I'm sure not as good as you if you did it for 9 years. Cirt (talk) 07:58, 20 March 2008 (UTC)

At any rate, I respect what you said at the RfA for Ctjf83 (talk · contribs), there were some things brought up during the RfA that I was unaware of, and had I been before, I would have told him to wait a while, and work more with Mr.Z-man (talk · contribs) or another experienced Admin, in some more Admin coaching, and also to gain some more experience in other areas of the project. Cirt (talk) 20:37, 20 March 2008 (UTC)

It's a lesson learned. Whenever you nominate somebody for Admin there are few things that I generally suggest: 1) Observe the current atmosphere at RfA's. It is constantly changing and what is expected today may not be what is expected in 3 months. 2) Review the candidate completely. I've only nominated 2 people for Admin and both were coachees--after spending HOURS reviewing their contributions. 3) If they've gone through coaching, the coach should be the one to do the nom (or it needs to be explained why the coach didn't.) As a coach, if a candidate asks me not to be their nom, that is fine by me. But if I choose not to nom, that will raise flags in people's books. 4) Breadth and depth. The candidate should have both.Balloonman (talk) 20:47, 20 March 2008 (UTC)
Thank you for the advice, I kinda figured some of that stuff out through the results of this RfA, but I'll take heed to these wise words in the future. Cirt (talk) 20:49, 20 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] *Posting Message After Database Unlocks*

It's not pretty to the eye, but but I made the number go away. =) -WarthogDemon 18:30, 21 March 2008 (UTC)

Actually that didn't do diddly-squat so I admit defeat. :( -WarthogDemon 18:32, 21 March 2008 (UTC)
LOL... it was fixed... I still want to know why it happens sometimes. I've seen it in other !votes where a vote sticks around even though it has been indented.Balloonman (talk) 18:33, 21 March 2008 (UTC)
It is fixed? It still seems to be counting all the strikeouts as one. D: Bah, I think I'm examining everyone's RFA too hard. Time to back off from the computer. =) I got real-life stuff I must tend to today anyway. -WarthogDemon 18:37, 21 March 2008 (UTC)
It was working... now the one is back! The Neutrals are haunted by a ghost vote!Balloonman (talk) 18:39, 21 March 2008 (UTC)
What's really freaky is that ghosts are, in fact, the "real-life stuff" I'm tending to. No joke. -WarthogDemon 18:40, 21 March 2008 (UTC)
Well you are a demon after all... which reminds me... I need to go change my !vote...!!!Balloonman (talk) 18:44, 21 March 2008 (UTC) Nah, I won't change it... I meant to vote "Neutral" with a note saying, "I can't vote for a Demon on Good Friday... will support tomorrow." but since I already voted, I'll leave it.Balloonman (talk) 18:45, 21 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] my RFA

 Thank you!

Thank you for your support in my RFA. The final vote count was (73/3/1), so I am now an administrator. Please let me know if at any stage you need help, or if you have comments on how I am doing as an admin. Have a nice day! :) Aleta Sing 16:58, 22 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Your question to User:Anonymous Dissident

You can find them here. bibliomaniac15 Midway upon life's journey... 04:14, 23 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Anne Fitch

The article Anne Fitch has been speedily deleted from Wikipedia. This was done because the article seemed to be about a real person, organization (band, club, company, etc.), or web content, but it did not indicate how or why the subject is notable, that is, why an article about that subject should be included in Wikipedia. Under the criteria for speedy deletion, articles that do not indicate the notability of the subject may be deleted at any time. If you can indicate why the subject is really notable, you are free to re-create the article, making sure to cite any verifiable sources.

Please see the guidelines for what is generally accepted as notable, and for specific types of articles, you may want to check out our criteria for biographies, for web sites, for musicians, or for companies. Feel free to leave a note on my talk page if you have any questions about this. NawlinWiki (talk) 04:41, 23 March 2008 (UTC)

And I nearly tagged it. :P I didn't because you're an administrator . . . durn it I hope this wasn't a test! -WarthogDemon 04:43, 23 March 2008 (UTC)
And this is what I hate about SPD patrollers... the article is created, saved as a draft, and deleted before a change can be made.Balloonman (talk) 04:53, 23 March 2008 (UTC)
Well, you can see the deleted edits, and they will show I gave you the benefit of the doubt, stubbed, and corrected a wikilink. I doublecheck myself. :) -WarthogDemon 04:56, 23 March 2008 (UTC)
  • Sorry, I should have asked you first -- but how is someone who paints labels for a small brewery notable? I'll restore if you ask me to. NawlinWiki (talk) 05:04, 23 March 2008 (UTC)
It's the third largest craft brewery in the united states. The brewery makes over 100 million bottles of beer every year sold in 18 states on over 15 labels. I'd argue that her art work has been seen by more people than most which would make her pretty notable. Especially, when that artwork has a distinctive style that people familiar with the brand recognize. The question isn't IMHO, notability, but rather verifiability. Before we recreate it, let me see if I can find more to substantiate the verifiability aspect. I still just hate how speedy deleter's delete articles minutes after creating them. I forgot to create the page off of my user page, but if I could change one thing about Wikipedia---it would be to force speedy deleters to wait an hour after tagging an article before deleting pages for notability issues. It pisses me off, and I should know better, I can be a MAJOR turn off to people who are newbies.Balloonman (talk) 05:19, 23 March 2008 (UTC)
I went ahead and recreated it after writing it in such a way that it now meets V, N, and RS.Balloonman (talk) 08:06, 23 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] No offence intended

TheProf | Talk has smiled at you! Smiles promote WikiLove and hopefully this one has made your day better. Spread the WikiLove by smiling at someone else, whether it be someone you have had disagreements with in the past or a good friend. Cheers, and Happy editing!
Smile at others by adding {{subst:Smile}} to their talk page with a friendly message.

Sorry if what i said here sounded overly harsh. I just could'nt understand why no one could question User:Kmweber's oppose reasons without being told off. But now i see you where you were coming from. The only one of his opposes i myself really disagree with, is his oppose of TPH. Soxred's comment to Kurt at MFC's RfA is a little naughty. However, i think its just a case of Kurt getting himself a reputation. Again, sorry for any offence caused, and have a nice day! TheProf | Talk 13:37, 24 March 2008 (UTC)

I agree, Kurt has developed a reputation... but the attacks on him are also getting old. A few weeks ago they were particularly bad where people were coming out an blatantly attacking/mocking him... and at least twice people have taken him to RfC to try to get him to stop his !voting. EVERYBODY who spends any amount of time at RfA knows that is how he !votes. Everybody also knows that his position is in the minority, thus, let him vote and move on. Or make a comment and move on. TPH was probably the first time that people stood up for Kurt---which is why I echoed the sentiment. The response at TPH's RfA was mild, but it's been the pattern of some of mocking Kurt that has become disruptive. But I digress, thanks for the note.Balloonman (talk) 14:38, 24 March 2008 (UTC)
People have stood up for him at RFCs and other places, saying he has the right to his opinion and shouldn't be bashed for expressing it. Enigma msg! 15:12, 24 March 2008 (UTC)
And they are quite right. I once held similar views about his opposes, and I still do not agree with his rationale, but I can see why he believes it and I think he does so reasonably. Time and time again community consensus has shown he has a right to say what he does and that needs to be respected. SorryGuy  Talk  00:37, 25 March 2008 (UTC)
I don't agree with it... I don't even mind people opposing it. What I do mind is when people become condescending towards him because of it.Balloonman (talk) 01:31, 25 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Coach

I was about to say that is some one attached to me...couldn't figure out how that happened. Rgoodermote  15:46, 24 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Wikipedia:Requests for adminship/Billy 2

Just a note about this revert by MBisanz, I had already closed the RfA, under the snowball clause. I would suppose the reason he reverted would be to prevent further hurt to the candidate (eight opposes in a few minutes has to hurt a little...). Just so you are aware that the revert took place ;) Note, I actually agree with it—otherwise, I wouldn't SNOW for the "mercy" of the candidates in the first place! Kind regards, Anthøny 20:33, 25 March 2008 (UTC)

My logic ran, the count was wrong at 0/8/0, and rather than update it to 0/9/0, and thus invite others to add !votes and comments after the close, I'd just revert it. MBisanz talk 20:36, 25 March 2008 (UTC)
Actually, I didn't realize it was closed... it was being closed when I made my comment... It was open when I started looking at the page... and by the time the comment was made, it was closed---so no problems here. ;-)Balloonman (talk) 20:49, 25 March 2008 (UTC)
Aren't all comments after an RfA close reverted? Nothing different here. Reply to Balloonman: I had that happen once as well. I was adding my comment as it was closed, and it got submitted seconds after the close. Enigma msg! 20:54, 25 March 2008 (UTC)
Which is why there is no problem here... as I mentioned above, when I opened the page, it was still open, and apparently, while I was looking it over it was closed. It's a non issue. My edit was a good faith edit (not intended to be after the RfA was closed) and I have zero problems with it being reverted.Balloonman (talk) 21:17, 25 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] RE:Admin Coaching

Hey, sorry about the delay in getting back to you, I have been very busy. I appreciate your kind words, but at this time I have two adoptee's, school, and work and just not the amount of time I would want to give my coachee's. I will consider idea a little later once I have some more free time. Cheers, Tiptoety talk 22:10, 25 March 2008 (UTC)

No problem... I know that you are active with RfA's and thought you would make a good coach... so I had to inquire. We are getting a ton of requests lately for coachees.Balloonman (talk) 22:12, 25 March 2008 (UTC)
Yeah, I try and be as active as possible, just right now I have not been as active as normal. Maybe remind me in 2 weeks or so! Tiptoety talk 22:15, 25 March 2008 (UTC)
Now you're in for it!!! ;-) Balloonman (talk) 22:20, 25 March 2008 (UTC)
 :) Yep, what did i just get myself into........ :D Tiptoety talk 22:42, 25 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Wright

Please look at the talk page for J. Wright and tell me if my removal of the disputed information is within wiki policy. I feel that Linking Wright to Aids conspiracy polls of blacks is original research , and that we need a source to make the link for us to skirt the no original research problem. Please feel free to weigh in.Die4Dixie 01:58, 26 March 2008 (UTC)

sorry. didn't get to it in time... I'm only keeping a casual eye on this article... it is a little bit of a hotbed... and a little more political than I like.Balloonman (talk) 05:31, 27 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Re: Malleus

Hey Balloonman, you and I (obviously) have different takes on Malleus at the moment, just want to give you a heads up that Scetouax would like to withdraw the RfC, as seen here, and more recently, in this diff. It looks like you've been offline for a bit, just wanted to give you an orange bar on your talkpage about it. Your thoughts of course are appreciated. Cheers, Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 19:52, 26 March 2008 (UTC)

I really don't care, I wasn't gun ho about the RfC to begin with... I wouldn't have taken it there myself, but Malleus was rude. And when he was called on his incivility, he acted even more childish. Personally, I don't have much respect for the people who came to his defense either. Is he a net positive to the community? Yes, but that doesn't obligate rude behavior. Two people called him for his behavior, everybody else turned a blind eye to him. Your condoning it is appalling. I haven't been offline, I'm simply done with him.Balloonman (talk) 19:59, 26 March 2008 (UTC)
I apologize that I've appalled you. We have a different tolerance level, I suppose. I "hear" Malleus as direct, sometimes rude, and rarely incivil. Proves he's not a bot. I don't feel I "condone" bad behavior, or encourage it as I've also been accused, but I also cannot help but get involved when I feel that the behavior in question (and yes he was rude, I agree) doesn't warrant the outcome. We'll have to agree to disagree here, sorry. Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 20:09, 26 March 2008 (UTC)
Like i said, I wouldn't have taken him there myself. But all he had to do was say, "you know what, you're right, I was rude in the RfA." Instead, he got defensive and decided got even ruder---and everybody rallied around him because "he's a net positive." Sorry, you don't condone incivility. (Heck, if you read his talk page, others complained about him in another RfA.)Balloonman (talk) 20:16, 26 March 2008 (UTC)
...and if you read his archives, I've complained about him (to him) myself about lots of things. :-) The question now really is, if you don't care if the RfC is open, Scetoaux has withdrawn his support of it, and no one has endorsed Epbr's summary, how does it get closed? Can it get closed, or does it have to stay open (I honestly have know idea). Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 20:19, 26 March 2008 (UTC)
I have never been involved with an RfC... the only reason why I supported it was because Scetoaux felt it was needed and I couldn't argue with him.Balloonman (talk) 20:21, 26 March 2008 (UTC)
The only other RfC I've ever typed in was Archtransits, but I didn't close it or do much more than argue vehemently with people for no good reason. I'll do some "light policy reading." Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 20:24, 26 March 2008 (UTC)

If I may say so, I am quite happy for this RfC to go to the bitter end. Balloonman's misrepresention that I ever said "you know what, you're right, I was rude in the RfA" does him no credit whatsoever, as I said no such thing. I really have had just about enough of this wikistupidity and if the outcome is that I should be sanctioned, then fair enough, wikipedia obviously isn't for me. No hard feelings. --Malleus Fatuorum (talk) 20:33, 26 March 2008 (UTC)

Balloonman said he wished you would have said that, Malleus, not that you did say that. Look at it again if you would. Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 20:38, 26 March 2008 (UTC)
er excuse me Malleus, could you please show me where I said you said anything of the sort? You just accused me of misrepresentation. Please show me where I said, you said "you know what, you're right, I was rude in the RfA?" Or are you misrepresenting me? Oh wait, I get it, you didn't actually read what I wrote before you went on your offensive again. You read what you wanted to read. If you learned how to say, "you know what, I was rude, and I'll work on it" then people might have a better opinion of you. You do great work here, but you've shown yourself to be, what was the term laralove used... oh yeah, a dick.Balloonman (talk) 20:47, 26 March 2008 (UTC)
I find that life's too short for this kind of bullshit. I don't agree with your assessment, although I do admit that I misread what it was that you wanted me to say. Just hand out your incivility block and then we can go our separate ways. --Malleus Fatuorum (talk) 03:04, 27 March 2008 (UTC)
I stopped talking to you a long time ago... but you decided that you wanted to bring your incivility here.Balloonman (talk) 03:12, 27 March 2008 (UTC)
I would like to thank you for the adult way in which you have conducted yourself during this storm in a teacup. Just one last question though, what would have the penalty if I'd called you a dick? A lifetime ban? Curious that only administrators are allowed to be abusive. --Malleus Fatuorum (talk) 03:16, 27 March 2008 (UTC)
You've been the one that has been rude the entire time... you will notice if you care, that in the entire time that I've been an admin, I've only blocked about 20 people (all vandals.) And unlike you, I will apologize for quoting LaraLove there. But I'm tired of your allegations and your childish behavior. I politely pointed out that you were rude in the RfA, which nobody except you disputes, and you have yet to show any civility since.Balloonman (talk) 03:20, 27 March 2008 (UTC)
Perhaps what you really mean is that I have yet to show you any respect, which would undoubtedly be true. On the other hand I have found it quite easy to work with real content builders. Our motivations for being a part of this project obviously don't mesh. So I wish you luck with your wikilawyering, and I only ask that you leave me alone to help build content. --Malleus Fatuorum (talk) 03:29, 27 March 2008 (UTC)
So you're only reasonable if you consider someone else to be a "real content builder"? It doesn't help anything if you're rude to people, no matter what kind of contributor they happen to be. Being uncivil simply does not help, and it increases the amount of unproductive drama and wikilawyering. Enigma message 03:46, 27 March 2008 (UTC)
Dang it Enigma, I was gonna let Malleus get the last word in... as obviously that is the only way to get rid of him... but I'm secure (with my GA/FA/DYK's) in my contributions to the project... Again, he seems oblivious to the fact that all he had to do was show a bare minimum of civility or simply not respond and this would have been over a few days ago.Balloonman (talk) 03:53, 27 March 2008 (UTC)
Sorry about that. :) Sometimes I feel the need to chime in. I'll keep quiet now, unless someone directly addresses me. Enigma message 03:56, 27 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] MH's RfA

Hi Balloonman. I just noticed your neutral vote on Martijn's RfA. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for or recent "discussion" re: a different editor. Usually, you express yourself very clearly at RfA (and I almost always agree with you :-), but this particular "neutral" of yours is ambiguous. I sincerely and respectfully hope your "concerns" have nothing to do with the co-nominator, namely me, and have something to do with whatever you are seeing in the candidates qualities. I'm assuming good faith and believing it's the latter. I don't want to clutter the RfA, but if you would care to expand on your "I have some concerns?" Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 16:51, 27 March 2008 (UTC)

Absolutely, you're the reason... I mean, absolutely not. I don't really remember what my concerns were there (I do know that part of it was the 'secret' mediation on a sensitive subject.) But that wasn't the sole reason for my neutral. There were other things that I didn't fully like, but it wasn't strong enough for me to oppose.Balloonman (talk) 17:18, 27 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Re:Admin coaching

Sure, I'll coach Rgoodermote. Nishkid64 (Make articles, not love) 17:35, 27 March 2008 (UTC)

Cool... thanks. I'm trying to match candidates that I think will make decent admins and can benefit from coaching... with people I think can help them.Balloonman (talk) 17:37, 27 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Wikipedia:Requests for adminship/KnightLago

I have answered the questions you posed in my above RFA. If you have more questions or needed further explanation please let me know. Thanks! KnightLago (talk) 18:04, 27 March 2008 (UTC)