Wikibooks:Pseudo-bots
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Pseudo-bots (also known as the flood flag or flooder) are users who can edit Wikibooks as normal, but these edits are not visible in the recent changes feed.
When to use the pseudo-bot flag
Users should use this permission when making repetitive changes to avoid flushing other edits and actions. Such actions must never be controversial, as using the pseudo-bot flag decreases the amount of oversight they may receive. Abuse of the pseudo-bot flag is treated as abuse of any other tool would be. Some examples of acceptable use would be:
- Deleting many spambot pages
- Deleting a large number of pages after consensus has been achieved at Wikibooks:Requests for deletion
- Blocking many open proxies
Unacceptable uses include attempting to circumvent legitimate oversight of any controversial action, regardless of whether it is an administrator task or not.
Administrators may also wish to equip the pseudo-bot flag when performing log actions on large numbers of usernames that are offensive or libelous (i.e. administrators performing local blocks, and so on).
Room for abuse?
One issue with the pseudo-bot flag is that there is room for abuse from users. If a user is making contentious edits or actions, they would be able to toggle the pseudo-bot flag to prevent them from being seen or monitored from recent changes, which is the primary source at which new edits are displayed and observed.
However, it must be remembered the administrators are already trusted with the ability to delete pages, block users, view deleted material, place protections on pages, etc. In the end, this added functionality should not require more trust than administrators are already given.
Granting the pseudo-bot flag is logged, and shown in recent changes.
Pseudo-bot flag or bot flag?
This is intended to replace requesting temporary bot flags from bureaucrats. Administrators who would otherwise request a temporary bot flag may simply flag themselves using the pseudo-bot flag.
Cases where a permanent bot flag should be given remain the same—the user should create a secondary account and request a bot flag as normal. Only temporary bot flags are replaced with the pseudo-bot flag.
Pseudo-bot flag by non-administrators
Non-administrators may add a request for the pseudo-bot flag at Wikibooks:Requests for permissions, where it can be granted by any administrator. When the edits are done, the user must remember to remove themselves from the pseudo-bot group. Administrators are also able to remove the pseudo-bot flag from any user if needed.