Wikimania 2026

Adding interactivity to wiki pages using the calculator gadget

Session type: Lightning talk (5 minutes, in person only)
Track: Technology

Speakers

Bawolff

Hello, I'm User:Bawolff (Brian Wolff). I am a MediaWiki developer. I am interested in the power of Wikis to democratize knowledge. Recently I have been working on projects to allow Wiki contributors to create interactivity instead of just text.

Abstract

More interactive content has long been a desire of many Wikimedians. Previously solutions were limited to narrow types of content or required custom js, with all the complexity and red tape that involved. The {{Calculator}} project is an attempt to give users a safe way to add custom interactivity to articles where anyone can create any type of interactivity. I'll show some live examples of the system from English Wikipedia and talk about what is possible.

Additional information

How does your session relate to the event theme: Liberté, Équité, Fiabilité (Freedom, Equity, Reliability).
It supports freedom because it allows ordinary Wikipedians to create interactivity without waiting on devs or interface admins to approve javascript. It supports equity since by adding interactive illustrations to pages it may help people who learn better through multi-modal interaction absorb the educational content of articles.
Which Wikimedia audiences will find this content the most useful?
The primary audience would be advanced template editors as the system presented does requires technical knowledge. Less technical article writers and illustrators may also find this useful to know what's possible and what they can create create in cooperation with a template editor.
What is the experience level needed for the audience for your session?
Some experience will be needed

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