So I am looking at switching User:NoSandboxesHere from AWB to a always-running PHP script. It does exactly the same thing as the AWB process (just does a regex search on anything in the Draft namespace with {{User sandbox}} or {{Userspace draft}}), however doesn't rely on Category:Non-userspace pages using User sandbox, it uses getTransclusions from RMCD bot's version of botclasses, filtering by the namespace.

Do I need a new/replacement BRFA for this or can I go ahead and just switch it out. Example diff in my userspace is just here ({{Fuuuuuu}} is just an invalid template I added to the script to make sure the API calls were working) - Rich^T|C|E-Mail 21:02, 10 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Go for it. Primefac (talk) 21:47, 10 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]

We are creating a bot to scrape information of Malls in United States from the Wiki pages. Mall Data Scraping Bot (talk) 21:44, 31 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]

 Not done: User:Mall Data Scraping Bot: If you don't want to make any edits, see Wikipedia:Database download. If you want to have a bot make edits, a request must be made using your own, non-bot, account. Mdaniels5757 (talk) 21:48, 31 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Hello, I have inserted two pictures, Dainikjagran.jpg and Hindustanarticle.jpg, in an article. Both are original and aren't copyrighted material. That's an extract from a newspaper, which is legal to use. But now both are nominated for speedy deletion. Please approve both the images back. Don't delete them. Enigmaticpravin (talk) 09:50, 10 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]

This is the talk page for discussing improvements to the Bots/Requests for approval page, you may want to follow up with whomever you were discussing that with on their own talk page. — xaosflux ^Talk 11:43, 10 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]

QEDKbot (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log) was approved at Wikipedia:Bots/Requests for approval/QEDKbot on 20 May 2020, by @Primefac. The approval seems surprising, since there were several well-founded objections, and no community consensus for its functions. The BRFA was advertised at WP:Administrators' noticeboard/Archive317#Wikipedia:Bots/Requests_for_approval/QEDKbot, but not at any page which concentrates editors who work on categories, such as WT:CATP.

The bot's function is to populate Category:Empty categories with no backlinks. That category was nominated for deletion at Wikipedia:Categories for discussion/Log/2020 August 9#Category:Empty_categories_with_no_backlinks, and the discussion is still open. I spotted the discussion yesterday, and while the bot owner QEDK has been prompt and courteous in their replies, I haven't been able to glean from QEDK any clear explanation of what purpose is served by filling Category:Empty categories with no backlinks with category redirects. Those categories are supposed to be empty and to have no backlinks, so this amounts to categorising them as "all OK" ... which seems pointless.

In July, this was raised at User talk:QEDK#Category_redirects (permalink)by @Mclay1. There were two replies from QEDK, who could offer no explanation for the utility of this category beyond It's for housekeeping[1], which tells us nothing. Exactly what "housekeeping" is facilitated by this category?

Anyway with the CFD open I was very surprised to see that the bot has still been running. The CFD was notified to QEDK at 18:27, 9 August 2020 [2] by UnitedStatesian ... yet 2 minutes later, at 18:20, QEDKbot made its first edit[3] for two hours ... and in total, it has so far made 207 edits since the CFD opened. (see contribs list)

When the category's future is being discussed, it seems perverse for a bot to continue to populate it. At best that's WP:RECKLESS; at worst it's a bit WP:FAIT.

So I have two requests:

1. Please can the bot's authorisation be revoked for now, without prejudice to any future new authorisation if there is community consensus that this bot serves some useful purpose?
2. Please can all deletions by QEDKbot be reviewed, and any category redirects restored. I see for example that on 27 Feb 2020, the bot deleted Category:Fianna Fail leadership elections, which I presume was a redirect to Category:Fianna Fáil leadership elections; if not, it should have been a redirect. --BrownHairedGirl (talk) • (contribs) 02:36, 21 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you, @BrownHairedGirl:, I of course endorse both your requests, and would add a third:

3. That no reauthorization be given until the operator demonstrates that a page loggging all its CSD tagging is fully functional, to facilitate review of any deletions, of the sort requested in 2. above or otherwise, by non-administrators such as myself and User:BrownHairedGirl. UnitedStatesian (talk) 02:43, 21 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]

I agree with that third point, @UnitedStatesian. On top of the general problem of the bot being pointless, it lacks transparency. --BrownHairedGirl (talk) • (contribs) 02:51, 21 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]

After my brief conversation about the bot with QEDK, I still don't understand the point of tagging category redirects, for the same reasons BrownHairedGirl pointed out. To me, it seems like the creator of the bot misunderstood the function of category redirects. They do not serve the same purpose as regular redirects, and they should have no backlinks. The category redirect function should be removed regardless of whether the bot serves some other useful function. M.Clay1 (talk) 02:55, 21 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]

@BrownHairedGirl: A lot of misleading accusations here and there. So, let me address them in order:

• Re: no community consensus The bot was advertised at AN because it was an adminbot, it received quite a few comments on the BRFA w.r.t. its feasability - and a lot of the points were discussed and implemented.
• Re: why only category redirects? I have explained this multiple times that I need more time to actually make the bot work with other kinds of categories, and that category redirects were simply for demonstration. I have university and a part-time job, how easy is it to write programs in the time that's left?
• Re: no transparency How is this bot any different from other bots? ClueBot's all edits are found in its contribution, same with QEDKbot. MusikBot's protection actions are found in its protection logs. If you want to see what edits QEDKbot makes, see contributions, if you want to see deletions, see the Deletion logs. Even then, I still had written the code - I simply didn't get enough time to test it and it was buggy.
• Re: category redirects don't have backlinks Except they do. And the point of keeping them lying around is so that we can preserve the ones with some usage. In fact, a lot of them have a lot of backlinks (feel free to write a script and check this), the ones with no backlinks are basically pointless (in most cases, but in some cases, not).
• Re: bad deletions The bot only deletes categories in narrow circumstances, in the only example cited, the category was tagged by the owner and stated to be "created in error", so the point is moot.

That's all. --qedk (t 愛 c) 07:37, 21 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]

@QEDK:

1. feasibility ≠ desirability
   Yes, the bot does work. But that doesn't mean that the functionality is wanted or needed..
2. if categorising the redirects is simply for demonstration ... the you have demonstrated that the bot can do something with then. Demo over.
   Lack of time to create useful functionality is not grounds for running bot with no utility.
3. On transparency, UnitedStatesian has explained the problem several times
4. On the purpose of category redirects, you clearly have views on their utility ... but there is no sign that you have ever attempted to seek consensus for your view. You should not be running a bot in pursuit of a personal view for which you cannot demonstrate a clear consensus. Basically, this bot is preparing the ground for deletion of category redirects ... and there is no consensus for that.
   Also, note that your stated desire the delete category redirects contradicts your earlier statement about the redirects just being a demo.
   Your statement that the ones with no backlinks are basically pointless is alarming, because it shows a severe misunderstanding of how category redirects work and how they are used.
   • A category redirect which has no backlinks but is navigated by dozen of readers every day, is in your view basically pointless. That is perverse.
   • A category redirect which has no backlinks but is used by editors to categorise articles, is your view basically pointless. That is also perverse.
     Do you even know how category redirects help to categorise articles? If the editor is using WP:HOTCAT, then HOTCAT will automatically resolve the redirect before saving. And if the category is added by editing the wikicode, and HotCat isn't around to fix it, then User:RussBot will pick it up and fix it: see User:RussBot/category redirect log. Your intended removal of category redirects will break both HotCat and RussBot's functionality. There are thousands of category redirects which exist to resolve variations in language or typography, e.g, Category:Sinn Fein→Category:Sinn Féin or Category:German-Turkish relations→Category:Germany–Turkey relations ... but your only measure of their utility is backlinks which have not yet been fixed. That ignore readers and editors who use the redirects to navigate and to categorise pages.
     Similarly the ~14,500 redirects between the ENGVAR spelling variations of organisation/organization. The vast majority of them have no backlinks, but your seem oblivious to the consensus to mass-create them: see WT:CATP#Organi[SZ]ations_category_redirects (permalink).

You have clearly done a fine job on the programming. But I am annoyed to find that is really all about your desire to pave the way for mass deletion of category redirects, because you didn't state that goal upfront, let alone seek consensus for it. That is no basis for a bot, let alone one which is adding otherwise pointless categories to redirects. --BrownHairedGirl (talk) • (contribs) 08:32, 21 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]

What do you mean by mass deletion? The bot doesn't delete even one category redirect, it's up to another administrator. I don't think you understand, because I said they are G6-able, not that they should be G6-ed. And I very clearly stated, "most" of them are basically pointless as is demonstrated by the handful of pageviews that most of category redirects get, so your counterpoint is baseless because I am generalizing and you are cherry-picking. I have no intention on removal at all, in fact, I think you're really misconstruing my suggested actions as something I intend to do. And you go on and on about category redirects but don't really understand that what the bot does is fundamentally different from your claims. I didn't seek consensus for mass deletion of category redirects because the bot does not do that, is that not simple enough to get? I have no issue with category redirects being around but some of them serve no use and that usage can be tracked with backlinks to some extent, that's it. --qedk (t 愛 c) 08:47, 21 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Grrrr. No, I am not misconstruing your actions. Your bot is not pulling the trigger, but you are making the hitlist for a pattern of deletions which you desire but for which you have not sought consensus. Despite being repeatedly asked both here and at CFD, you have not identified any utility for this bot other than creating that hitlist.

And I understand perfectly well what the bot does: it adds category redirects to your hitlist.

However, you still clearly do not understand the purpose and uses of category redirects, because backlinks are the least significant of their four main purposes. It just happens to be a usage which the bot can measure, but a little bit of logic shows that it is a completely bonkers, naive measure: if there are dozens of links to the redirects, and one or two new ones are added every few weeks, then when somebody cleans them all up your bot will see no backlinks and add the redirect to your kill list. A week, when someone creates another link, the redirect will be gone. We don't remove article redirects just because they don't currently have a hardcoded incoming link, and there is no basis for removing category redirects on that basis. Desired deletions of article redirects are discussed at WP:RFD, and category redirects at WP:CFD .... but you have decided to bypass the consensus-building processes at CFD, and instead create a hitlist for misuse of WP:G6. If you want category redirects to be culled in this way, then the proper way to do it is to open an WP:RFC. Instead you made a bot request to implement your kill list without even notifying WP:CATP. --BrownHairedGirl (talk) • (contribs) 09:11, 21 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]

What "hitlist"? Can you demonstrate that this "hitlist" has had mass deletions? If you have no evidence for this why are you choosing this sensationalistic wording? I've explained the rationale multiple times (and it was done at the BRFA as well) so me not identifying any utility is your perception, not fact. You seem to quite interesting in translating a tracking category into a "kill" list but forget that administrators could choose to delete them anyway (and anyone could nominate them at CFD), the bot doesn't do anything other than "track" potentially useless categories. I have no interest in "culling" and I suggest you drop that narrative. No one is saying that they have to be removed, but that some of them can be - and that seems to be nuance you're missing. I've already stated that tagging beyond category redirects and logging are feasible, and will be done, I don't see what else I can do here. --qedk (t 愛 c) 09:37, 21 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]

QEDK, please stop this evasion, and please own your own words. You have made it very clear that A) the ones with no backlinks are basically pointless (in most cases, and that B) they can be deleted by G6. So it is entirely clear that the whole purpose of this bot is making a hitlist to cull redirects. You have now made your goal crystal clear (which you didn't do at the grossly under-notified BRFA), and your attempt to cast that as my "narrative" or "perception" is a viciously nasty response: it's gaslighting. Please conduct yourself much better. I have seen this pattern before: -manipulation of consensus-formation (by woefully inadequate notification and lack of upfront clarity about goals) and then a belated admissson of the real goal followed by an attempt at gaslighting the objectors, It is very nasty stuff; please stop it. --BrownHairedGirl (talk) • (contribs) 10:02, 21 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]