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Hey all! I went on vacation for a few weeks (as you may have noticed by the wonderful Spongebob456 filling in for me to alert you all about Fandom's Pride initiatives), and it seems like Fandom exploded with new updates and general announcements during that time.
This is going to be a long post, so please bear with me 😅 Per usual, for the full extent of the details, I suggest reading the blogs, but I'm going to try and give you the tl;dr summary of them all (in the order they were published ... so most recent blogs are at the bottom):
- 1. Celebrate Pride Month with Fandom (click for blog post)
Although time moves quickly and we're already nearing the end of June, it is still Pride Month and Fandom still has events planned! As such, a small reminder to check out the blog and to attend the two upcoming roundtables:
- Roundtable about LGBTQIA+ Icons and Activists on TODAY, Wednesday June 22 - 9AM PST / 12PM EST / 6PM CET (check your own timezone here) (Discord link). If you have a local icon or a personal hero, please share them with the rest of us so we may all learn and be inspired to do better!
- Roundtable about LGBTQIA+ Fandom Admins on Wednesday June 29 - 9AM PST / 12PM EST / 6PM CET (check your own timezone here) (Discord link)
As a small side project, Fandom is committed to documenting the wikis who have made alterations to their design in some way to showcase their support for the LGBTQIA+ community. Read more about it in this blog and check out the Muppet Wiki feature for it! If I missed a wiki Pride initiative, please let me know, cause I LOVE to spread the rainbow and get the message out there that Love Will Keep Us Together!
- 2. Community Connect May 27-31, 2022 announcements (click for blog post)
Fandom's in-person connect event held in LA came to an end, and it was fantastic! Apart from the friendships that were forged, several features and upcoming initiatives were announced. Read the blog here to find an overview of the event and check out the announcements (some will be covered more in depth later in this post)!
- 3. Update to the community guidelines (click for blog post)
"Read and agreed" must be among the biggest lies on the internet. While we definitely recommend that you read and remember Fandom's Terms of Use, a simpler version of the user conduct section was updated to help everyone understand what's required of you. These guidelines don't list all the do's and don't's for Fandom, but they give a good starting point and cover some of the most important things for everyone to know. Read them here.
Apart from this, it's also always good to make sure your wiki’s rules and guidelines are up-to-date, too. If you have doubts on whether or not this is the case, don't hesitate to reach out to me, so we can review it all together!
- 4. Mobile Editing Fixes and Mobile Theme Designer Are Coming! (click for blog post)
Probably one of the most requested user improvements out there now that mobile is more and more common. So what's on the roadmap (without there being a concrete ETA):
Mobile Editing Fixes
- Tackling quality of life issues
- Some improvements including adding a mobile preview and making moderation easier with things like better utility for mobile page history and making it easier to undo/revert changes
Mobile Theme Designer
Create theme designer functionality for mobile, which includes supporting light and dark themes and an easy-to-use interface that gives customization options to admins.
- 5. Welcome Breanna, Fandom's new Senior Community Manager, Gaming on the Community Experience (click for blog post)
Ooh, this is my personal favorite to bring to your attention, as I am 100% biased here. I had the pleasure of meeting Breanna at Connect, and she quickly earned my respect and stole my heart by being this amazing person who will without a doubt do fantastic things for the platform. While she's a gaming SCM and you all are from a different vertical, Freezie is an icon and definitely someone you'd want to get to know and talk to, so don't hesitate to hop over to Central to her intro blog to say hi!
She will be doing a Discord AMA on Thursday June 23nd at 8AM PST / 11AM EST / 5PM CET (check your own timezone here), so join us and get to know our new Senior Community Manager, Gaming.
- 6. New Discussions Moderation Tools, Including Discussions AbuseFilter, Are Coming This Year (click for blog post)
It's become hard to ask communities for feedback about Discussions (and Message Walls and Comments) without receiving a request for moderation tools and functionality, so I'm ecstatic to say that YES, ABUSE FILTER FOR DISCUSSIONS IS COMING!
Other things being looked at of which the details still need to be worked out are:
- Making it easier for admins and moderators to access moderation tools
- Quickly remove problematic images without having to edit posts manually
- Creating an overall smoother moderation experience for category and tag changes
- Adding support for post/reply edit history
- 7. Introducing Admin Plus! (click for blog post)
The Admin+ program is Fandom's answer to the question "what makes a good admin?" and "how to showcase those skills on your resume in a professional setting?" Still being build so not accessible yet, this free admin certification program is made up of three online courses for eligible admins to take: Technical Foundations, Content Development, and Community Building. After successful completion, a badge will be awarded, which you can showcase on social media, resumes, or wherever you would like. Stay tuned for updates!
- 8. Fandom Stars, Fandom's New(ish) Creator Recognition Program (click for blog post)
Last but not least, Fandom Stars is BACK! Fandom Stars is the ultimate program designed to recognize and amplify Fandom’s most prolific creators, primarily editors, who go the extra mile to help others and create new and fresh content and fan experiences, so they may serve as ambassadors of the Fandom community and are able to experience one-of-a-kind opportunities only found on Fandom (not mandatory to attend if you're uncomfortable with in-person events). Becoming a Fandom Star requires participation though and taking a brief moment to complete a self-nomination form. Read more about it on its own landing page!
There will be a Discord AMA on TODAY, Wednesday June 22nd at 10AM PST / 1PM EST / 7PM CET (check your own timezone here) to learn more about Fandom Stars, so join us to chat about all things Stars!
Okay, I know this was A LOT! Told you several things happened while I was out. I do hope this overview made it a bit easier to keep track of everything, and if not, don't hesitate to reach out! You can do so be replying in the comments, reach out to me on my wall, or contact me on Discord (Lostris#4280), whichever floats your boat. Per usual, I would love to hear from you all. Take care! Lady Lostris / SOAP 09:51, 22 June 2022 (UTC)