Reported on 1273507077|%e %b %Y, %H:%M %Z|agohover by 
Merwyck
Released for use
New site is at http://merwyck.wikidot.com.
Old site is at http://defunct-merwyck.wikidot.com.
I was the originator (under another wikidot account) of the merwyck site. I created it as private so there are no other people or their content to consider (I was just curious to see whether the name was available).
The same day I created that site, I decided I wanted to change my email address/account name before developing the merwyck wiki. I deleted my original wikidot account to make a new account with a different name, then intended to use the merwyck site name under that new account.
I didn't realize that the merwyck site would be unavailable to me under the new account, and I deleted the old account before I could do anything differently.
I'm not sure exactly what I want to do with the site but the name has great sentimental value to me so if you would allow me to reclaim it, I'll be very happy.
Thank you.
Squark (or whoever reads this), you may also be interested to read the original discussion about this wiki here: http://community.wikidot.com/forum/t-240369
Shane Smith
ethicalwd.com - Blog - Wikidot Editor - Docs
NEW! ZoomPlanner - A new tool for freelancers and small business! Join the waiting list.
Site "released". This is user is the MA of merwyck.wikidot.com again.
Okay, Merwyck, if you'd like to delete the site (or change your email address, etc) and can't figure out how to do it feel free to ask on the community ;-)
Shane Smith
ethicalwd.com - Blog - Wikidot Editor - Docs
NEW! ZoomPlanner - A new tool for freelancers and small business! Join the waiting list.
Thank you very much for restoring my site! I'm so happy! :)
I cannot access the site manager, though.
The default page has no side bar and when I click on the link to go to the site manager (or just add admin:manage to the site url) it takes me no where.
Is there something else I need to do, or is this something that requires back-end technical adjustment?
Thank you again for your help! :)
“Men and women range themselves into three classes or orders of intelligence; you can tell the lowest class by their habit of always talking about persons; the next by the fact that their habit is always to converse about things; the highest by their preference for the discussion of ideas.” —Henry Thomas Buckle
When you arrive at the admin:manage page what do you mean by "it takes me no where"? That doesn't tell me much XD
I can only guess you mean that the page doesn't exist. If that's the case, then create it, and add this code to the page before saving:
Shane Smith
ethicalwd.com - Blog - Wikidot Editor - Docs
NEW! ZoomPlanner - A new tool for freelancers and small business! Join the waiting list.
Shane, thanks again for your quick reply.
Under my old MA account, I changed the Wikidot default landing page from 'start' to something else (don't remember the name).
On my different default page, I removed the side bar code… I added the modules that show non-members cannot apply for membership, and the module that informs non-members that they cannot apply for membership.
I left the link to site manager on this new default landing page.
Now that the merwyck site has been restore to my current MA account, I only see that default landing page that I changed to. And apparently the page thinks I'm a non-member rather than the MA because when I click on the links to edit the page, view the source, delete the page, etc., I get a message that says only members may access the site's content.
So the merwyck site views me as a non-member vs. as a MA. I have no access to the site other than simply being able to view the alternate default landing page that I created during a learning/testing phase under my old MA account.
Thanks in advance for your help.
“Men and women range themselves into three classes or orders of intelligence; you can tell the lowest class by their habit of always talking about persons; the next by the fact that their habit is always to converse about things; the highest by their preference for the discussion of ideas.” —Henry Thomas Buckle
It sounds like you've been added as a read-only user for the private site, which is something I've never actually tried doing before (I usually just invite people as members to edit as well). I'm not sure why you've only got access like that, but I can only assume it's a mistake Squark made when he added you to the site.
Some quick questions… if you go to the admin:manage page, what do you see?
Shane Smith
ethicalwd.com - Blog - Wikidot Editor - Docs
NEW! ZoomPlanner - A new tool for freelancers and small business! Join the waiting list.
Here's what I see:
The "Site Manager" link is set to http://merwyck.wikidot.com/admin:manage but clicking that link simply remains on the page.
Hope this helps.
“Men and women range themselves into three classes or orders of intelligence; you can tell the lowest class by their habit of always talking about persons; the next by the fact that their habit is always to converse about things; the highest by their preference for the discussion of ideas.” —Henry Thomas Buckle
Well technically it does change the page (you'll see that the URL includes the admin:manage part after you click the link) — but you definitely aren't a member, and definitely aren't the MA, if that is the message you see.
Unless Squark meant that he reversed the deletion of your other account that used to be MA. You might want to check if you can log in there.
Edit: Google Chrome! Good choice! XD
Shane Smith
ethicalwd.com - Blog - Wikidot Editor - Docs
NEW! ZoomPlanner - A new tool for freelancers and small business! Join the waiting list.
Hi, Shane.
We could probably speculate until the cows come home about what Squark might have thought or done but the fact remains… I cannot gain access to my merwyck site :)
I did try to log into the old MA account; no go.
So if you would please ask Squark or whomever to either restore my MA status on merwyck, or just to wipe the merwyck site entirely and I'll create it anew, that would make me happiest… please? :)
(Thinking about the choices, I definitely think wiping & recreating would be less-risky of future glitches; if given the choice, that's be my preference).
Thanks, Shane.
ps- Yep, Google Chrome FTW!
“Men and women range themselves into three classes or orders of intelligence; you can tell the lowest class by their habit of always talking about persons; the next by the fact that their habit is always to converse about things; the highest by their preference for the discussion of ideas.” —Henry Thomas Buckle
Squark is watching this page so he should get an email about this discussion.
Wikidot's been hiding away a bit lately. I suspect they're busy on making improvements for new users, and the overall user experience. In other words… it might take a while for him to notice this as WD is busy with other things at the moment.
There are ways to delete spam sites without waiting for wikidot to get involved themselves, but that makes the URL permanently unavailable for new sites, so it won't work in your case.
Cheers,
Shane
Shane Smith
ethicalwd.com - Blog - Wikidot Editor - Docs
NEW! ZoomPlanner - A new tool for freelancers and small business! Join the waiting list.
I think I already mentioned this to you… but not being able to create the site there isn't something you need to wait for. You can easily create the site at a different name, and then move it as soon as this site name is released.
Shane Smith
ethicalwd.com - Blog - Wikidot Editor - Docs
NEW! ZoomPlanner - A new tool for freelancers and small business! Join the waiting list.
Shane,
I'm a bit confused by your most recent comment: "…as soon as this site name is released."
As far as I'm aware, the site name was already supposed to have been released per:
Unless I'm misunderstanding something, we're not waiting for the site name to be released. What we're waiting for is the MA assignment to be corrected so that I may access the site as the MA.
Honestly, I think the solution, at least in part, may be to restore the merwyck site's default start page to "start".
Under my old MA account, I had changed the default start page to some other name *but*… I believe I left the "start" page completely as it was originally. So…
Squark, I understand you're very busy with other things, but I wonder if you (or someone) would change the merwyck site's default start page back to "start" and let's see if that provides me with MA access to Site Builder.
Thanks to everyone for your time and help! :)
~
edit: ps- making the site membership public might help, too, if that not too much to do while changing the default start page. Thanks! :)
“Men and women range themselves into three classes or orders of intelligence; you can tell the lowest class by their habit of always talking about persons; the next by the fact that their habit is always to converse about things; the highest by their preference for the discussion of ideas.” —Henry Thomas Buckle
To release the site name is to delete the site so that someone can create a new one with the same name. I think Squark emphasised the fact that he didn't, technically, "release" the site because instead of deleting it he made you the MA again.
It's just that this website here where you request site names to be released only has a "pending", "rejected" and "released" status for each page… there's no "MA-changed" status or similar :) Just terminology…
As for changing the default home page, that shouldn't have any effect whatsoever on your ability to access the site manager. If you can't access it now, looking at a different page won't make any difference.
Based on your screenshot above and the comments you've posted above, it sounds like you're not the MA at all.
Please try this:
Shane Smith
ethicalwd.com - Blog - Wikidot Editor - Docs
NEW! ZoomPlanner - A new tool for freelancers and small business! Join the waiting list.
Hi, Shane. I followed your instructions and the site is listed among "My Sites" but I still end up at the landing page indicated in my screenshot (earlier comment). If your logic holds, then I ought to be the MA.
But we both know better ;-)
Let's review what we know. As the MA on my previous account, here's what I did:
If my memory serves me correctly (that the above 5 points are all that I changed), then it seems to me that there are 3 significant variables likely to be relevant to the trouble I'm currently experiencing:
a) Site visibility (in my case, "private"). I imagine private sites are rarely, if ever, the object of MA reassignment because before someone ask for a site-name release, they seem to know how long it's existed and when the last activity occurred. If a site is private, none of that information is available to a non-member; public-sites, however, would reveal that information to the person requesting a site-name release.
b) New default page ("mystart"). I suppose it's not such a big deal to have a non-default start page on a public site though I don't imagine changing the start page to something else is a high priority for many people. I was a programmer/analyst for nearly 20 years so it's in my nature to experiment with things from a "behind the scenes" way of thinking. Changing the start page and adding/eliminating code was my way of experimenting such that if I did something incorrect or stupid, I knew I'd have the default start page to revert back to.
c) No sidebar module in default page. This, to me, seems the most structurally significant change from an internal point of view. If a site theme is coded with sidebars assumed to be present/visible, and a person removes the sidebar module from a page's internal structure… what would be the result? As the original MA I can tell you that the result was a simple visual change. But since having the MA 'transferred' from my old account to this one, that change isn't merely visual—there's something going on 'behind the scenes' that's preventing me from accessing the merwyck Site Manager or any other page. Though the merwyck site is visible under "My Sites," there is no other functional indication that I have MA access/privileges.
Assuming the act/process of changing MA's across accounts is expected to be simple/seamless in an otherwise default site (public; using default start page; sidebar visible), then the trouble I'm experiencing must (it seems to me) be related to one/some/all of these 3 variables. And as far as my own programming instincts may take me, I think the MA permission 'flag' (or however MA status is conferred/verified) has somehow been severed from the my current account. Although the merwyck site is listed under "My Sites" (per your previous reply), I have no functional access to the merwyck site other than to land on the site's default start page as a non-member.
With all that thinking in mind (and assuming we were to continue our troubleshooting efforts), it only makes sense to 'eliminate' the variables in this situation. And in this case, eliminating those variables involves:
Shane, I love a good puzzle/riddle. And my situation with the merwyck site is certainly puzzling. But more than trying to figure out the specific subtlety of what's not working, I just want access to the site. If I may be blunt: I feel frustrated by my lack of MA access that was supposed to have been granted 12 days ago.
If, by the time you/Squark/whomever read this message, there isn't some "a-ha! I know what it the problem is!" realization, and the fix is implemented, then please… let's stop trying to figure out what the problem is and, instead, just truly "release" the site name so I may create it anew.
I don't want to burden Wikidot with unnecessary interruptions in their site-wide development efforts; I just want my site name back. With that in mind, I'll ask again: please truly release the merwyck site name and let me create it anew from this account. That way, there are no unexpected troubles down the road from me working on an account that was troublesome from the first attempt to transfer MA status. I can begin just like any other MA, by creating a new account myself and enjoying all the built-in richness that Wikidot provides by default.
If you're unable to make the merwyck site name available to me for new creation, please consider recommending to me another free hosted wiki site where I may get the "merwyck" site name and enjoy the features a wiki provides. I figure you guys must know your competition better than anyone so if, for any reason, I'm unable to get the "merwyck" site name on Wikidot, an alternate wiki-hosting site recommendation from you would carry great weight with me.
Many thanks, Shane, Squark, and to whomever else may have been involved in my situation so far. I'm looking forward to developing my new wiki; and soon! :)
(EDIT: I found a list of hosted wikis at http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Starting_and_Running_a_Wiki_Website/Hosted_Wikis )
“Men and women range themselves into three classes or orders of intelligence; you can tell the lowest class by their habit of always talking about persons; the next by the fact that their habit is always to converse about things; the highest by their preference for the discussion of ideas.” —Henry Thomas Buckle
I think you're reading a bit too far into some of these things ;-) Changing or removing the side bar shouldn't have any effect on this.
I don't have the ability to release any sites… otherwise I would. Only Wikidot can do that.
I'm surprised Squark hasn't replied here again. I'll try posting a bug report with a link back here… and hope that makes them look at this a second time.
EDIT: Bug report posted.
Shane Smith
ethicalwd.com - Blog - Wikidot Editor - Docs
NEW! ZoomPlanner - A new tool for freelancers and small business! Join the waiting list.
Oh, and as for other wiki software that you can use… I've looked around myself and from what I can tell Wikidot is the best in terms of customisation and control (which is why I'm using it!) … but depending on your needs you might be able to settle for something else, and not miss the extra features.
I basically gave each of the top 5-6 wiki farm providers a go and found Wikidot was best. However, I must admit that most of the wiki providers on that page you linked to I haven't tried (probably because they're not that popular, therefore I'd never heard of them before).
Shane Smith
ethicalwd.com - Blog - Wikidot Editor - Docs
NEW! ZoomPlanner - A new tool for freelancers and small business! Join the waiting list.
Thanks for report, I didn't noticed this discussion. I'm sorry for that. You could've sent me an e-mail or PM and I'd take care of this immediately.
Thanks to everyone for your help. I can access Site Manager again from the default start page and I'm very happy about that.
I wish you a most excellent day! :)
“Men and women range themselves into three classes or orders of intelligence; you can tell the lowest class by their habit of always talking about persons; the next by the fact that their habit is always to converse about things; the highest by their preference for the discussion of ideas.” —Henry Thomas Buckle
If you need any help setting up your site, you can ask over at http://community.wikidot.com
Pretty much anything is possible in some form or another… so it's a good idea to search the community wiki, or post on the forums, to confirm if something can be done ;-)
Cheers,
Shane
Shane Smith
ethicalwd.com - Blog - Wikidot Editor - Docs
NEW! ZoomPlanner - A new tool for freelancers and small business! Join the waiting list.