Ontology covers the structural patterns of the wiki, in the work of wp:ontology, reaching for the simplest way to structure the shared knowledge here, to help participants keep the wiki up to date, through ease of navigation and understanding, and consistency in organization.
This page discusses the fundamental structure of the wiki, in its current design, and hopefully receives updates as the structure is added on to, while retaining historical motivations at ready textual reference.
In metaphysics, ontology is the philosophical study of being. It investigates what types of entities exist, how they are grouped into categories, and how they are related to one another on the most fundamental level (and whether there even is a fundamental level).
The compound word ontology ('study of being') combines:
onto- (Greek: ὄν, on;[note 1] gen. ὄντος, ontos, 'being' or 'that which is') and
Namespaces (mw:Help...) of the wiki support keeping separate types of pages apart. MediaWiki software treats different pages differently, and parses wiki text to transform {{templates}} into text, and index [[Category:Wiki]] pages into categories. Other pages can be used as templates, from the (main)/Article namespace {{:Guilds}} can be included (with partial transclusion filters in its wikitext), as can {{:Category:Usage}}
Guilds are self-organized groups that maintain Resources and organize Events at Noisebridge — each a self-governing "mini Noisebridge," free to operate according to its own conditions and best practices.
If you have questions about space use or items owned by a guild, see Guilds/Contact.
Hacking, it's more than just electronicsCraft hackingVideo editing
If you use a guild's tools or space regularly, you may already be part of a guild!
What makes a guild different from just using a resource? Intention.
A guild is a group of people who've decided, explicitly, that they're responsible for keeping that resource alive for the next person.
The next step is making that explicit: showing up to help, asking what needs doing, and getting to know the people who keep things running.
Most Guilds have a regular meeting time. Make it your business to come to that meeting sometimes so you can meet people, share knowledge, and learn what the Guild needs and how you can help.
All guilds have a Discord channel (listed below). That's the fastest way to find out when people are around and what's happening.
The Guild concept is a home-grown Noisebridge cultural structure based on anarcho-syndicalism.
For philosophy, guidance, and patterns to follow, see MetaGuild.
The goal of a guild isn't just to keep the lights on — it's to Create More Masters: a growing group of people at varying levels of skill and commitment, where the more experienced are constantly training and upskilling others.
START SOMEWHERE: A guild needs at least one person willing to show up consistently and invite others in.
GROW THE PIPELINE: Invite people to learn, not just to show up. Look for interested people on Discord and in the space. Acknowledge every level of contribution — the person who sweeps up is as important as the person who fixes the machine.
GIVE CREDIT GENEROUSLY: Credit is how we distribute trust. Name people who help. Celebrate skill publicly.
TELL PEOPLE WHEN: Post current meeting times and events somewhere people can find them.
TELL PEOPLE HOW TO FIND YOU: Discord channel, wiki page, something.
TAKE NOTES: Written notes mean the guild's knowledge outlives any one person.
POST PHOTOS: At least one photo of your resources in their current state. Update it when things change.
NO SINGLE POINT OF FAILURE: If the guild would collapse when you leave, that's the next problem to solve. See MetaGuild.
HISTORY SECTION: Outdated info moved to History sections at bottom of pages or entirely old pages marked { { historic } } if they won't be updated or { { outdated } } if they need updating.
Put a list of maintainers at the very top of the page with 0 if there are none signed up. Add the { { recruitnig } } template to include a volunteers needed infobox:
Working Groups maintain aspects of the space, for the direct benefit of everyone and anyone, and not just for member, e.g. of guilds. They may exist in ongoing perpetuity or be formed to address a particular challenge.
Working Groups are helpful as an entity name with a lower threshold for starting or abandoning that Guilds.
Category:WG can help organize pages by merely tagging them with one of the WG sub-categories.
Guilds are self-organized groups that maintain Resources and organize Events at Noisebridge — each a self-governing "mini Noisebridge," free to operate according to its own conditions and best practices.
If you have questions about space use or items owned by a guild, see Guilds/Contact.
Hacking, it's more than just electronicsCraft hackingVideo editing
If you use a guild's tools or space regularly, you may already be part of a guild!
What makes a guild different from just using a resource? Intention.
A guild is a group of people who've decided, explicitly, that they're responsible for keeping that resource alive for the next person.
The next step is making that explicit: showing up to help, asking what needs doing, and getting to know the people who keep things running.
Most Guilds have a regular meeting time. Make it your business to come to that meeting sometimes so you can meet people, share knowledge, and learn what the Guild needs and how you can help.
All guilds have a Discord channel (listed below). That's the fastest way to find out when people are around and what's happening.
The Guild concept is a home-grown Noisebridge cultural structure based on anarcho-syndicalism.
For philosophy, guidance, and patterns to follow, see MetaGuild.
The goal of a guild isn't just to keep the lights on — it's to Create More Masters: a growing group of people at varying levels of skill and commitment, where the more experienced are constantly training and upskilling others.
START SOMEWHERE: A guild needs at least one person willing to show up consistently and invite others in.
GROW THE PIPELINE: Invite people to learn, not just to show up. Look for interested people on Discord and in the space. Acknowledge every level of contribution — the person who sweeps up is as important as the person who fixes the machine.
GIVE CREDIT GENEROUSLY: Credit is how we distribute trust. Name people who help. Celebrate skill publicly.
TELL PEOPLE WHEN: Post current meeting times and events somewhere people can find them.
TELL PEOPLE HOW TO FIND YOU: Discord channel, wiki page, something.
TAKE NOTES: Written notes mean the guild's knowledge outlives any one person.
POST PHOTOS: At least one photo of your resources in their current state. Update it when things change.
NO SINGLE POINT OF FAILURE: If the guild would collapse when you leave, that's the next problem to solve. See MetaGuild.
HISTORY SECTION: Outdated info moved to History sections at bottom of pages or entirely old pages marked { { historic } } if they won't be updated or { { outdated } } if they need updating.
Put a list of maintainers at the very top of the page with 0 if there are none signed up. Add the { { recruitnig } } template to include a volunteers needed infobox:
I don't remember the names of the tags to mark wiki pages for later work and updates, outdated, historic, are there others? Let's namespace these under a common extremely short wiki page template name, with compatible categor(y/ies), to include a heirarchy that can be wandered, even in the tag/template/category structure.
Perhaps call it "WikiWork", {{ww/outdated}}, but {{ww}} is included there, and includes a link to its: category, template and those pages include non-partially-transcluded explanations of their purpose, of the child pages in the heirarchy, and sibling pages that a user might want to use instead.
Compare Template:Outdated and Template:Historic. Asof/2025 outdated has a dashed border line, red, on red box, while historic has a solid, thin grey border line, with cute logo. Outdated is an invitation to editors, while historic is purely a note to readers.
Template:t{{t}}: This is the root page, of a collection of pages, as mw:help:subpages for easy, convenient use while editing. Include {{t/[subpage]}} to include reference instructional text in the page preview, Ctrl-Shift-p, while using source editing of wikitext.
The label is specified either as the block style or as a special paragraph prefix. The label becomes visible to the reader unless icons are enabled, in which case the icon is shown in its place.
Caution vs. Warning
When choosing the admonition type, you may find yourself getting confused between “caution” and “warning” as these words are often used interchangeably. Here’s a simple rule to help you differentiate the two:
Use CAUTION to advise the reader to act carefully (i.e., exercise care).
Use WARNING to inform the reader of danger, harm, or consequences that exist.
The word caution in this context translates into attention in French, which is often a good reference for how it should be applied.
To find a deeper analysis, see www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-caution-and-vs-warning/.
