Archive:Proposals/Policy
Template:TOC-right This page reviews the specialized rules for managing the proposals system. All the basic information you should need to make most proposals is located on CZ:Proposals.
The purpose of the proposal system
The proposal system should
- serve as a single, central location for proposals about the Citizendium.
- manage and drive proposals forward, if necessary without the intervention of the Editor-in-Chief or certain other active Citizens; to make sure that proposals get as far forward as possible as efficiently as possible.
- explain and clarify to people just how their own proposal can be adopted with a minimum of unnecessary bother and confusion.
Components of a proposal record
A proposal "record" is what is contained in the yellow boxes on CZ:Proposals/Initial and the various subpages. That box is generated by the {{proposal}} template. Here are some salient details about each item in the template.
- Brief descriptive title: should be quite brief, as this will become part of a wiki page name.
- Summary: should be no more than 100 words. This is just a summary; the full proposal is located on a new page you create (on which, see below).
- Name and date of original proposer: type
~~~~; the username of the person who added the proposal to CZ:Proposals/Initial and the date and time added. The system doesn't care who "originally had the idea," but we'll give credit to the person who makes the proposal. - Username of driver: the "driver" is a person who commits to moving the proposal toward approval and action. See below.
- Next step: a phrase or sentence describing the next most immediate goal that will have to be achieved, in order to get the proposal adopted and put into action. See below.
- Target date for next step: this is a specific date, not something vague like "soon" or "sometime."
- Notes: any notes the proposer or driver feels necessary to include as part of the proposal record. Detailed notes belong on the full proposal page (again, see below).
The proposal driver
A proposal's driver takes responsibility for actually writing and defending the proposal up to the point where it is submitted to a decisionmaking body, such as the Editorial Council or the Constabulary. If a person must be a member of the decisionmaking body in order to present it to that body, then the driver is responsible only for making sure the proposal is sponsored by a member of the decisionmaking body.
The driver can be, but is not necessarily, the proposer. If a proposal has no driver, it will be dropped (see below). An idea can be great, but if no one is interested in championing it, it won't happen.
What constitutes a proposal?
What makes a proposal? Why make proposals at all?
It's probably best to answer this question with what doesn't require a proposal.
- New templates
- Revisions of templates
- Small group initiatives
These things can be done swiftly, and by individual empowerment! It doesn't take a community to "spackle a wall" (or "fix a leak"). If a few citizens choose to band together to perform a content initiative, then there's no need to ask for input: as with a certain shoe company, "just do it!"
Things that do require a proposal though are issues that have sweeping impacts in the entire CZ community, or across different disciplines or workgroups. There are things like naming conventions, or article standards that should be followed in order to keep a "convention" that is used across the entire project.
There are some things which, under no circumstances, should be a proposal at all:
- Jokes, ironic statements, or other pithy comments. These will simply be deleted, probably with no explanation. This includes political rants, tirades, op-ed pieces, and essays.
- Proposals may not be to remove any person from any position within CZ or from the project altogether; nor may they have the explicit or implicit purpose of criticizing a person. Making such a proposal will be grounds for warning or removal from the project by the Constabulary.
- CZ:Proposals is not the place to start arguments, or stage a coup. You may not make any proposals that a citizen should be removed from the project, or a proposal that "so-and-so is a jerk." Any ill-intent caused will be taken very seriously, and will be removed from this page by the constabulary with swift impudence.
How to make a proposal
Part of making a clear proposal is stating what your proposal is, as well as providing statements that support your argument. Making a proposal without any reasoning will probably not be viewed very well, or convincingly (or worst case, ignored!). The justifications for your proposal should be written neatly, and succinctly. If the proposal being made has had prior discussion, it might be appropriate to include links to those discussions, and maybe a summary of the different views on the topic.
Example:
Proposal: The Citizendium Logo should be colored red.
Reasoning:
- Red is a good, bright indicator color
- Red draws attention
- Red is known for it's "bold" appeal
- Red is used to indicate something important
--Robert W King 07:47, 9 February 2008 (CST)
Always remember to include your name when making a proposal. You can do this by simply clicking the "Your signature with timestamp" button on the edit toolbar or by adding --~~~~ to the last line of your proposal.
The proposal template
The easiest way to make a proposal is to use the {{proposal}} template, located at Template:Proposal. This is a pre-formatted template that creates a subheader, and has variable fields that can be filled in to quickly establish your proposal.
Summary: Please edit your proposal record and provide a summary.
| ||||
| To the proposer: please read the proposals system policy page if you want to fill out a complete proposal, not just this summary. If you don't, please ask around for someone (a "driver") to take over your proposal! Start complete proposal | ||||
How not to make a proposal
Bad proposals are not supported by any statements, and are not formatted well. Also notice that no name has been provided. Although you would be able to tell who made the proposal through the page history, it makes it inconvenient to your audience. Bad proposals are also vague; if something is inherently unclear, or confusing, then how is any action expected to be taken?
Example:
Proposal; the citiz should use green. I like green as a color, it looks better.
If a proposal is bad, it may be marked as such by a proposal editor using the template below:
| Reason: Badly formatted; use proposal template. |
Please reformat the proposal clearly, briefly, and using the {{Proposal}} template.
|
| Proposal editor: --Robert W King 11:30, 10 February 2008 (CST) |
After a proposal has been made
When presenting an idea, it is good to get the appropriate community input on the proposition. If you are making a suggestion about the way mathematics formulae should be formatted, obviously you would not want to bring it to the attention of the 'History Workgroup'. The most concerned parties would be the Mathematics and Sciences workgroups.
Remember that the Citizendium is largely a volunteer-based project, and it may take some time in order to receive responses to your proposal. In some cases, making a small recommendation may have sweeping consequences, and those should be considered.
The response template
You can easily respond to a proposal by using the {{response}} template. It looks like this:
| Response |
| By: --Robert W King 09:31, 9 February 2008 (CST) |
| It should be blue because it matches the rest of the wiki theme colors. |
Things to think about!
There are several things to keep in mind when making a response. There is by no means a solely inclusive list; your own curiosity is the limit!:
- Do you agree with the proposal?
- What caveats or problems do you forsee?
- What are the benefits? What are the negatives?
- What are the implications of accepting the proposal?
- How might it be accomplished?
- What would be needed to ensure use/employment of the resolution?
Contentious Proposals
Moving the proposal forward!
So you've made a proposal--now what?
Part of what makes a proposal into an initiative, is stepping up and committing to making it happen! Citizens are encouraged, but not required, to be the ones to "do the legwork" on an adopted proposal. After all, what would be the point of the process if there was no result!
Example of a proposal in progress
Here is an example of a proposal which is moving forward by someone who accepted responsibility for handling the proposal. The {{Claimproposal}} template is being used to indicate that this request has been passed onto the site designer, signed by Robert King, and indicated on the date at which it was picked up. Any additional notes can be added to the notes field to indicate it's status.
Summary: Please edit your proposal record and provide a summary.
| ||||
| To the proposer: please read the proposals system policy page if you want to fill out a complete proposal, not just this summary. If you don't, please ask around for someone (a "driver") to take over your proposal! Start complete proposal | ||||
| Proposals System Navigation (advanced users only) | |
|
Proposal lists (some planned pages are still blank):
|