Optional: write a lede — not necessarily a WP:LEAD. Interesting > encyclopedic.

As of August 18, the JCW compilation (see previous Signpost coverage) now tracks the number of distinct DOIs present on Wikipedia, and how many are flagged with |doi-access=free. Several of which are automatically tracked and tagged as free-to-read by template and bots. As of the August 1 dump, the compilation kept track of 3.70M citations, of which 2.41M had DOIs. Of the citations that had DOIs, 661,103 were identified as free-to-read, or about 27.44%.

The 17–18 August 2024 update of the CS1/CS2 module further identified the Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (doi prefix 10.4230) and the Living Reviews journal series (doi prefix 10.12942) as free-to-read registrants, as well as 11 individual journals that can be identifier by the starting pattern of DOI (like 10.1046/j.1365-8711..., 10.1093/mnras.., and 10.1111/j.1365-2966... for the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society). Citation bot will automatically flag those with |doi-access=free when it runs on the article (see our guide on how to use Citation bot yourself).

If you notice a DOI link takes you to a free-to-read article that wasn't flagged by the bot, you can flag the itation manually with |doi-access=free. You can also try to use WP:OABOT (see our guide on how to use OAbot yourself). If you are aware of fully free-to-read journals/publishers that aren't already kept track by the CS1/CS2 templates (see CS1/2 FAQ), leave a note at Help talk:CS1 and User talk:Citation bot.

Following the 20 August dump, the compilation kept track of 3.72M citations, of which 2.42M had DOIs. Of the citations that had DOIs, 663,976 were identified as free-to-read, or about 27.46%, (up from 27.44%). It took a few days for server cache to clear and tracking categories to be populated. I estimate that the 'true' count should have been about 666K, mostly due to MNRAS and MNRAS Letters being identified as free-to-read, but we'll see in the September 1st dump what the exact effect of the update was.

Related to the JCW update, all CS1/2 templates (like {{cite journal}} and {{citation}}), and the standalone templates {{doi}} and {{doi-inline}}, now support the flagging of free-to-read DOIs with |doi-access=free. The standalone versions, however, are not currently supported by any bot, nor do they have tracking categories.

Thanks to editors Headbomb and Trappist the monk for their efforts on templates and the identification of free-to-read publishers/journals, as well as the maintainers of Citation bot, JL-Bot, and OAbot (particularly AManWithNoPlan, JLaTondre and User:Nemo bis) for facilitating the mass-tagging of free-to-read articles.

– H

The 2024 WikiCup, hosted by users Cwmhiraeth, Epicgenius and Frostly, is entering its final phase, after Round 4 ended on 29 August. A total amount of 135 users, including the late Vami IV, joined the contest at the start of this year; however, just eight of them have made it to the ultimate showdown. Here are the finalists, ranked from first to last as per their scores in the latest round:

• Generalissima (1150 points);
• Arconning (791 points);
• AirshipJungleman29 (718 points);
• BennyOnTheLoose (714 points);
• Hey man im josh (601 points);
• BeanieFan11 (579 points);
• AryKun (499 points);
• Sammi Brie (472 points).

Since its creation back in 2007, the WikiCup has strived to "encourage content creation and improvement and make editing on Wikipedia more fun", and this year's edition has made no exception: according to the official data, competitors have so far contributed to 44 featured articles, 72 featured lists, 385 good articles, 94 in the news credits, and over 300 did you know credits; thanks to their efforts, 38 articles were also added to featured topics and good topics.

On behalf of The Signpost, we would like to thank the judges and every participant in the 2024 WikiCup, and wish good luck to the eight finalists.

– O

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Comment these items out if something happens.

• Milestones: The following Wikimedia projects have reached milestones: TKTK
• New administrators: While no new administrators have been promoted since last June, a RfA for user asilvering is being reviewed as the The Signpost goes to be printed.
• Articles for Improvement: This week's Article for Improvement is Cancel culture. Please be bold in helping improve this article! Next week's Article for Improvement (beginning 9 August 2024) is Caroline Islands.
• New record low count for active administrators: A new low point of 427 active administrators was reached on August 26, marking a new decline after the slight increase in July.