Fantendo needs message walls! In this blog, I will write why exactly we need them as well as refute reasons against message walls.
What are message walls?[]
Message walls are intended to be a replacement to talk pages, our current communication method. Similarly to how the forum threads work, you will be able to leave someone a message by going to the page "Message Wall:name" much like you go to "User talk:name" with our current system. There, you will be able to fill out a message much like you create a forum thread: you add a title, add your message, and click submit. Then, the user you've sent a message to will receive a notification in the top right corner of the screen. If you want to see how the message walls look, check out my message wall at another wiki, such as w:c:goombapedia:Message Wall:Lumoshi. I believe the message walls make communication more effective, as you can keep all related messages on one thread instead of hopping back and forth between talk pages as done previously.
Have we enabled message walls before?[]
To my knowledge, there have been two main attempts. The first was in February 2012, which was some time before I joined the site, so I don't remember the details. The second was in July 2013, when the message walls were enabled for a period of about three weeks or so but then disabled once more due to community consensus. I don't quite remember if there have been later attempts at it, but what I'm sure of is that there haven't been any in recent memory. With an overhauled community consisting of older users and newer users alike, I believe it is time to re-evaluate our community's stance on message walls.
But _____ so I don't want to enable them!"[]
...we can't personalize message walls like we do with talk pages![]
This is not true! The message wall system comes with a built-in greeting feature, so if you go to the page "Message Wall Greeting:name" you can incorporate a greeting to your message wall, which will let you set rules and stuff for your message wall, much like many of you have set in place for your talk pages. Simply Ctrl-C and Ctrl-V, and you're set!
...we can't use signatures on message walls like we do with talk pages![]
Again, not true! While there is no need to use signatures as your message wall will automatically attach your name to the post, you can always include your signature and a timestamp by adding four tildes (~) to your message.
...we can't archive message walls like we do with talk pages![]
It is true that we can't... because the system does it for us! After a certain number of threads are posted on your wall (I forgot the number exactly, but I think it's around five), your message wall moves them to another page to prevent clutter and long loading times. I understand some of you may not want to archive your message walls/talk pages, which is fine.
...I've had glitches with notifications from message walls![]
I will admit that this concern is legitimate and seems to vary from person to person. When message walls were enabled in 2013, I had no issues with faulty notifications, although some users certainly did. I trust that by 2017 (nearly 2018), Wikia has sorted out these kinks in its system. I've had a few glitches in recent times, although these glitches have come from the forums, rather than message walls.
...my talk page messages will disappear when we turn on message walls![]
That's fake news. Once we turn on walls, if you scroll to the bottom of the message wall, you will see a "see archived talk page" link or something to that effect, where you can view all your messages. I'm not sure if you can edit them, as MediaWiki may automatically protect them (can't confirm for sure), but you definitely can see all the prior messages.
...message walls remove the element of privacy![]
I've seen users complain that message wall messages are visible from the recent wiki activity, much like how forum threads are visible, while talk pages are not (you must click on the link to see a message). Some users view this as limiting to their privacy. However, I'm sure a lot of users click on talk page messages anyway when browsing the wiki activity or recent changes, and ultimately it won't make a major difference. Neither system is truly private. If you want actual privacy, then head to chat and send a PM.
...message walls do the same thing as talk pages![]
Yes, this is true. However, message walls do them better. As mentioned elsewhere, walls make it far more efficient by just grouping a conversation together rather than having messages scattered across participants' talk pages. I'm aware of the popular adage "if it ain't broke don't fix it", but I honestly disagree with that statement; there is always room for improvement somewhere. There are some cases where "fixing" something will make it worse, in which that statement is correct. However, as per all the reasons I have put forth in this blog, I believe message walls do not apply, as they are largely an improvement on talk pages.
Conclusion[]
tl;dr Fantendo should enable message walls going into 2018 as they are a more effective means of communication than talk pages, and there are very few legitimate arguments against message walls. Here's a poll to track community support. Also, I suggest that you comment as well, since polls are known to be inaccurate. (note: this poll is not official as I have no power to make an official poll; it's simply intended to track opinions)