Hello there fellow wikians, and welcome to this special edition of the Staff Interview series! Today, we have a questionnaire filled out by none other than Rappy 4187!
1. When did you become a Wikia Staff Member?
- I was hired by Wikia on July 30th, 2012 to fulfill a role on the Community Support Team in a technical position.
2. What department of Wikia do you work in?
- I work on the Community Support Team as a Community Technical Support Manager. I mainly respond to technical requests through Special:Contact -- bug reports that involve JavaScript, CSS, advanced templates/infoboxes, and our various extensions and configurations. I also publish the Technical Updates as well as write an occasional blog about the more techy stuff.
3. What do you enjoy most about Wikia?
- Hands down: the diversity. Wikia's communities and users are all different and are filled with extensive talent and knowledge. I love working with users to build their communities in the more technical aspects.
4. If I recall correctly, you were a member of the VSTF before being hired by Wikia, right?
- Yes, for 4 months prior. The VSTF was a great opportunity for me as I worked on many wikias cleaning up spam and vandalism. This dedicated volunteer group works very hard to keep our communities enjoyable for readers.
5. What is your favorite wiki to hang out at?
- Currently, I do not have one ;(- although in my day to day work I am in contact with a great many interesting wikias. That is one of the great things about working here - you get to see and learn so much from the variety of topics that are out there.
6. On average, how many new staff members are hired?
- Keep in mind: Wikia Staff is a paid position. As any employer, we hire people as positions become available or when the company sees the need to expand and hire people for new positions.
7. What is it like in San Francisco?
- As some may not know, I work remotely from sunny Florida and have only been to San Francisco three times. However, the weather there is so nice compared to Florida's high humidity.
8. What's your advice for anyone interested in becoming a Staff member?
- I worked on Wikia as an editor for years. I taught myself how to use wikitext and HTML markup for page design and later branched into CSS and JavaScript to have more control over my wikia's look and feel. I've helped in designing some nice scripts over the years to make my site look different from others, such as this flip through document or this clan card maker.
My advice is to do what you are passionate about and try to learn as much as possible. Help other users out and have fun with what you do. When you feel confident in your knowledge, you can apply for a job directly. Good luck!
9. Aside from Wikia, what else do you enjoy to do?
- I enjoy a variety of games, mainly MMOs, as well as movies and TV shows. Frequently, movie quotes have a way of sneaking into my everyday work. (Some people say that I am like Dinozzo from NCIS).
10. If you could be Wikia CEO for 1 day, what would you do?
- I’d give everyone a day off -- with pay -- for the awesome job they do (it may be a Saturday though).
Stay tuned for our next edition!