View source for Illerai:Requests for adminship/Ostentatio

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==[[User:Ostentatio|Ostentatio]]==
{{Userinfo|Ostentatio|links=yes}}__NEWSECTIONLINK__

So it's been a little while since we had one of these – well, to make it official: as I believe aspects of my editing could benefit from the position, I would like to nominate myself for the role of administrator at the OSRS Wiki.

''I, Ostentatio, accept this nomination for administratorship. I have read the policies concerning administrators. I realise that this nomination may fail. If I do get community consensus, I promise not to abuse my tools because I realise that this is a serious offence. If the community finds that I have done so, my tools will be revoked, and in extreme cases I could be given a community ban. Signed,'' [[User:Ostentatio|Ostentatio]] ([[User talk:Ostentatio|talk]]) 01:06, 2 August 2023 (UTC).

===Questions for the nominee===

'''1. What work do you intend to take part in?''' <br />
One factor motivating this request is community outreach, partly stemming from past experiences in liaising with outside communities. With the Guide namespace a reality and the Deadman: Apocalypse game mode on the horizon, I'd like to try to engage with the Deadman Mode playerbase in an effort to bring over some of their practical knowledge of how to approach the seasonal variants to the wiki. I've spoken to DMM players in recent months while sprucing up our regular [[Deadman Mode]] page, and know there exists a desire within that community to open themselves up to documentation, in the hope that greater accessibility may attract new players to their game mode – this might be a good opportunity to do so.<br/>
As to how this relates to adminship, it is a regrettable fact that the role serves to ease these kinds of communication, which I imagine would not hurt when liaising with a community that has historically been wary of sharing information, so as not to give up their competitive advantage. I've some experience interacting with the Crack the Clue Discord, starting with a push for their server to become part of our affiliate program, and I can't deny it's been awkward at times explaining that I'm just an editor, and do not represent the wiki, yet still bring across that we would very much welcome their content and contribution, and that I'm able make these kind of assurances – de facto still speaking for the community, while not being able to say so.<br/>
People outside of the wiki don't necessarily have feel for what it means to be a regular editor, yet they do tend to possess preconceived notions of what an admin is – whether accurate or not. 

Somewhat uniquely perhaps, I'd enjoy being able to purge images from the Cloudflare cache when the need arises, which has come up now a number of times in the past. On a few occasions I've been reluctant to ask for admin assistance due to a lively conversation taking place in a main channel, which would be disrupted and pushed down if multiple purges turn out to be necessary – obviously this is not ideal, and being able to do so myself quietly in a bot channel would represent a clear improvement.<br/>
Likewise, being able to directly offer help to other editors who have their images held ransom by Cloudflare I believe is valuable: infrequent editors are often (rightfully) proud of an image they have uploaded to the wiki, a feeling which can be tarnished whenever CF decides that would be an opportune occasion to cache the wrong image. Being able to resolve such situations quickly would reflect well on us, and may be desirable with an eye towards editor retention.<br/>
With respect to other advanced permissions, there have been some cases recently while renaming and rearranging pages where I was prevented from overriding an existing redirect when attempting to place a page there, causing the workflow to be interrupted  while seeking admin assistance. While I've never really had much issue just slapping a <nowiki>{{D}}</nowiki> on a superseded file page and moving on to other business, I feel I would be able to benefit from being able to avoid moments like these that cause friction in editing.

Finally, I believe I could make a positive contribution in managing community discussions, at least as far as more mundane closures are considered – just by way of example, I think we can agree it should not take us almost half a year to decide on the [[Special:PermaLink/14431745|deletion of a members-only money-making guide]] netting 30k an hour. I understand well the damage that can be caused by the ill-advised closure of a thread, and do not at all intend to rashly throw myself at the complex and ambivalent discussions we have currently running. Still, I enjoy taking part in the decision-making process, and, in due time, hope I might be trusted by members of the editing community to weigh their arguments fairly.

'''2. What have been your most helpful contributions to the Old School RuneScape Wiki, and why?''' <br />
This parameter is used to fill out the second question, which is also optional.
I'd like to think some of the mechanical documentation I've been able to contribute has proven of use to players, such as updating the [[Special:Diff/14381245|dragonfire protection table]]; revising the chances of [[Special:Diff/14396160|cracking the wall safes]] at the end of Rogues' Den; summarising the new drop rates of [[Special:Diff/14444837|clue vessels]] since the release of Combat Achievements; figuring out the chances of [[Special:Diff/14385490|luring in a chompy bird]] together with Rhys; expanding our Deadman Mode page, starting with the addition of its [[Special:Diff/14378507|global Wilderness drop table]]; detailing the conditions that block the [[Special:Diff/14413688|spawn of superior creatures]]; or smaller things like noting the existence of a [[Special:Diff/14369920|pure protection mechanism]] at the end of the Observatory Quest.

Drawing up some slightly more involved interactive maps I believe could also qualify, such as the ones instructing players how to obtain the [[Special:PermaLink/14415811|socks of ruin]] and the [[Special:PermaLink/14415817|cloak of ruin]] – before players could just plunder the Varrock west bank, of course. In a similar vein, I've been quite happy with the image work I've been able to contribute since an extended render distance has become available for on-wiki use. This has mostly consisted of taking shots for in-game locations, starting with Towelcat's revamp of the shop page imagery, followed by smaller series like re-doing the images of old mine locations; intermittently retaking safespot images; and taking new shots for the inaccessible locations page at Hlwys' request.

There are also some lore additions I remain proud of, such as the [[Special:Diff/14343356|history of Karamja]]; citing the [[Special:Diff/14345304|Fourth Age timeline]]; and the pages on the wars and battle of Great Kourend, starting (chronologically) with the [[Special:PermaLink/14400720|Rebellion of the Five Houses]]. I also help maintain the [[Special:PermaLink/14437944|horse page]].

'''3. Have you been in any conflicts over editing in the past or have other users caused you stress? How have you dealt with it and how will you deal with it in the future?''' <br />
And the third, also optional.
One moment of turmoil that springs to mind was the confusion that arose when a [[Forum:Discord collaboration: Crack The Clue|potential affiliation]] was being considered between ourselves and the Crack the Clue Discord server. The overhasty closure and consequent reopening of the thread had, it turned out, not adequately been communicated – a failure on my part to take into account unfamiliarity with on-site modes of contact – leading to a somewhat tense moment as they proudly announced their successful affiliation on Reddit. We quickly hopped over to their server to clear things up, and thankfully the situation could be resolved without lasting impact.

Another example I can think of was when Spine rightfully [https://discord.com/channels/177206626514632704/269673599554551808/1006006465959563314 called out] some of my stylistic excesses in the shop images I was retaking, which simply strayed too far from the norm of clear representation. I responded by admitting fault and offering to retake the shots in question. There's also the memorable time I tried to hide prose behind synced switches, which Crow was [https://discord.com/channels/177206626514632704/488476708631085086/1004869206694690927 quick to rectify].<br/>
A few months ago a minor disagreement arose over the inclusion of a total harvest experience column on the Farming crop tables, where I was luckily able to ping them in the Discord server with the question if we could discuss the changes. In the end we were able to work out a compromise whereby I added better signposting to the sections of the Farming page that were outdated, and undertook to improve upon our depictions of average crop yield, whereas the contributor agreed to go back on adding the metric.<br/>
A similar contention arose over the attack speed of the Bounty Hunter version of Zuriel's staff, which we could thankfully resolve by [https://discord.com/channels/177206626514632704/488476708631085086/1119050813831139378 contacting the editor] directly through the social media handle they provided in an edit summary. On occasion I've also sought to address friction through the medium of talk page posts, such as [[Special:Diff/14326918|this post]] asking Parbounli for clarification on how they had determined the dates where certain changes to music unlock hints were made. Conflicts and disagreement are a natural by-product of the editing process, but I do my best to open myself up to communication whenever it arises, and try to work through the differences.

[[Category:Closed requests|Ostentatio]]
===Additional questions (asked by the community if necessary)===

==Discussion==
'''Support''' - I cannot really come up with anything negative to say about Ostentatio. Some of their screenshots can be a bit silly I guess? But they're an active editor, they take feedback or criticism very well, they're helpful to newer editors in discord, and they partake in the forbidden dark arts of actually citing lore (a rare skill to be sure). It'll be nice having another active admin I can annoy to block vandals :) {{User:Crow/Signature}} 01:16, 2 August 2023 (UTC)

'''Comment''' - Notable things not included: [[Toilet|this abomination]] and [[Horse|this second abomination]] ([[Abomination|Here is a third for those who like their links in threes]]). {{User:Fjara/Signature}} 01:33, 2 August 2023 (UTC)
:I'd like it be known that the second abomination, while abominable, is also immanent, and that the first abomination, while absent, does not merit detestation. [[User:Ostentatio|Ostentatio]] ([[User talk:Ostentatio|talk]]) 01:52, 2 August 2023 (UTC)
::[https://i.imgur.com/dDlMCmr.jpg image] {{User:Fjara/Signature}}
:::Look I'm just [https://i.imgur.com/jtmqEIJ.png following instructions]. [[User:Ostentatio|Ostentatio]] ([[User talk:Ostentatio|talk]]) 02:32, 2 August 2023 (UTC)
:::: [https://i.imgur.com/sdP28L3.png x] {{User:Fjara/Signature}} 03:05, 2 August 2023 (UTC)
:::::If I could read code, this would probably elicit some strong emotion. But I can't, so it doesn't. [[User:Ostentatio|Ostentatio]] ([[User talk:Ostentatio|talk]]) 03:10, 2 August 2023 (UTC) 

'''Support''' - I don't know if you have to actually be an admin to vote in these, but I'm commenting anyway. Ostantatio is not, in fact, ostentatious, and is actually a very friendly and helpful editor. [[User:Remyma|Remyma]] ([[User talk:Remyma|talk]]) 02:26, 2 August 2023 (UTC)
:You do not - this is a place for the community to discuss and come to a consensus, not just existing admins. [[User:Micha|Micha]] ([[User talk:Micha|talk]]) 08:25, 2 August 2023 (UTC)

'''Support''' - Ostentatio is clearly willing to put in the time and effort that being an admin requires (6k edits in a little over a year is insane to me). I have no objections. [[User:YoshiFan12|YoshiFan12]] ([[User talk:YoshiFan12|talk]]) 16:14, 2 August 2023 (UTC)

'''Soft oppose''' - Just seems a bit long. {{Signatures/Cook Me Plox}} 23:19, 2 August 2023 (UTC)
: '''Strong oppose''' this comment. - [[User:Andmcadams|Andmcadams]] ([[User talk:Andmcadams|talk]]) 23:22, 2 August 2023 (UTC)
: Why are you so orthogonal Cook? [[User:Jakesterwars|Jakesterwars]] ([[User talk:Jakesterwars|talk]]) 02:07, 3 August 2023 (UTC)

'''Support''' - [[User:Andmcadams|Andmcadams]] ([[User talk:Andmcadams|talk]]) 23:22, 2 August 2023 (UTC)

'''Support''' - very epic. {{Signatures/Lapis}} 03:07, 3 August 2023 (UTC)

'''Support''' - I feel like a proud mother having been the one to invite Ostentatio into the wiki Discord server which lead to him making a wiki account and I take full responsibility and credit for all of his contributions - of which there are many and of high quality also. Jokes aside, I do genuinely believe he has both the passion, skill, and temperament to be an worthy asset to the Wiki in this capacity. Could do with toning down the intensity of the prose a bit, but other than that, full support from me. <3 [[User:Lewufuwi|Lewufuwi]] ([[User talk:Lewufuwi|talk]]) 18:17, 4 August 2023 (UTC)
:I can attest to the veracity of Lewu's integral account of affairs, his animadversion of my occasional magniloquence included. How far we've come.
{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="margin-left: 1em"
|Genesis
|-
|{{Extimage|https://i.imgur.com/bwnRvlz.png|left|611px}}
|}
:— [[User:Ostentatio|Ostentatio]] ([[User talk:Ostentatio|talk]]) 18:42, 4 August 2023 (UTC)

'''Support''' - Extremely well-mannered behaviour, intricate lexicon, little conflict with colleagues, high GPS familiarity, great photography skills... oh your resume says you cleanup and even expand lore articles?! Yeah, you are hired right now. Welcome. Oh, and, here's an advise we would like to give to newcomers around here: "Just be aware there's always more to learn and you don't have to jump into doing ALL the admin things immediately." I'm sure you will do great. [[User:Shayani|Shayani]] ([[User talk:Shayani|talk]]) 10:18, 5 August 2023 (UTC)


'''Strong support''' - As Ostentatio is, in all likelihood, not going to reply to his own RfA with his characteristic long essay on the topic, I will do the best I can to fill that particular role for this thread. (Looking back several days after I first started writing this, I don't think I quite achieved that).

To bounce around a little bit and respond to different sections of his nomination/address my own thoughts:

{{Quote|One factor motivating this request is community outreach, partly stemming from past experiences in liaising with outside communities.}}

Community outreach is an area where I personally feel we as a wiki could do better, and having an admin who is specifically motivated to focus on improving that would be of great benefit to OSW, especially one who already has as strong of a history of excellent community outreach work as Ostentatio. In response to his comment that being an admin would help facilitate that role, I agree and have personally found myself deferring any outreach to external parties that has come up to admins, on the grounds that wiki admins would almost certainly get an all-around better response than someone who -to anyone not involved in the wiki community- is just some random person.

To quote Cook, Ostentatio is quite possibly the most "wiki editor" wiki editor of all time. Despite whatever odd fixation he seems to have with "horses" (whatever those are), and toilets, he has time and time again proven to be both incredibly approachable and an impressive source of knowledge when it comes to how to format something just so, or how best to name the files for the fifth or sixth variation of an item, or anything else of the sort. From my own experience, I recently reached out to him, asking if he knew offhand how to resolve an odd text wrapping issue I was trying to deal with, and within a few minutes he had a working solution for me, even if it was an absolute abomination. His friendliness and constant willingness to help played no small part in my own growth as a wiki contributor, and especially helped me to stick it out through a rather ''eventful'' first few weeks editing.

It should also not go without notice that the man is a living, breathing library when it comes to lore. If there's a bit of Geilinorean history that needs clarification, or an uncited bit of trivia regarding [[Rocky|a certain raccoon]]'s homoromantic tendencies, it's a pretty safe bet that Ostentatio will either produce a reference for it or go on a quest to seek the truth from Jagex.

In summary, since tl;dr - Do I support Ostentatio becoming an administrator here on OSW? Wholeheartedly. [[User:Duralith|Duralith]] ([[User talk:Duralith|talk]]) 22:38, 8 August 2023 (UTC)

'''Support''' - Ostentatio is a level-headed & friendly person. He is very engaged in the OS wiki & its community. {{Signatures/Logg}} 03:39, 9 August 2023 (UTC)

'''Support''' - ''Sicut noster Cicero de quodam Trebatio olim scripsit, nunc haec spondeo more Romano, quomodo homines non inepti loquuntur, probiorem hominem, meliorem virum, pudentiorem esse neminem quam Ostentationem. '' Ostentatio will make a great admin, and his equine obsession is pretty neat too. --[[User:Omnes Ferant|Omnes Ferant]] ([[User talk:Omnes Ferant|talk]]) 04:33, 9 August 2023 (UTC)

'''Closure''' – With unanimous support, Ostentatio will be made an administrator. --[[User:Julia|julia]] <sup>[[User talk:Julia|talk]]</sup> 05:34, 9 August 2023 (UTC)