Thread:User talk:Internoob/Deprecating less-than symbol in etymologies/reply

Firstly, no need to apologize. I am not bothered.

RE: "Getting everyone to use the common format and structure is exactly what Wiktionary has been trying to do all along. We require that the entries conform to ELE, including the requirements on used headings, used format in translation sections, and more."

Yes, I agree that we value consistency. However, there needs to be a compromise between that and having a manageable number of rules so that we don't drown in them all. There's no way to easily make everyone's contributions exactly the same in structure. Some people put the oldest definitions first in a list, some put the perceived most common definitions first and for some people it's arbitrary. Some people use "colour" and others say "color". Some people use a * for the only item in a usage notes section and others don't bother. The list goes on. As individuals, editors edit differently. To change this requires effort.

Having said that, I will be willing to switch to abstain if I understand correctly that no one (whether newbie or senior editor) will be forced (or strongly recommended, or whatever language someone might use to "force" someone to do something) to use ", from" over "<". I don't care if users want to change what other people write if they think it's bad for some reason, but I won't go so far as to support it. All I care about at this point is that it won't become a silly point to nit-pick over just because it's been voted on.

If you can assure me of that much, I will abstain. (Or you can discount my vote for me, if time runs out before I do.)