BrewWiki.com Status

[Positronic_Matrix]

I was reading a ten-year-old HomeBrewTalk (HBT) thread and a user referenced a BrewWiki.com page. After a short visit, I was impressed. In order to make contributions, I attempted to create an account, however discovered it was no longer possible. After some digging around it looks like the site, while still accessible, has gone into stasis. Indeed, on HBT, the wiki went from being referenced many times a year to being mentioned once every few years.

• Does anyone know why this resource decreased in popularity?
• Does anyone know why it is no longer maintained?
• Is there another active brewing wiki that replaced it?

 

[pricelessbrewing]

Looks like it was made by bradsmith of beersmith. He's mostly been focused on his podcasts and article postings from what I can tell.

 

[RPh_Guy]

Is there another active brewing wiki that replaced it?

I just launched this month!

https://***************.com/wiki/Main_Page

It's now totally open to anyone that that wants to contribute his/her brewing knowledge. I realize there are not many articles on it yet, but the ones I have written are thorough -- my sulfite article is probably longer than all the content on brewwiki combined.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

I just launched this month!

For those web pages that are referenced, would it be possible to "capture" a copy of the page in the Internet Archives (aka WayBack Machine)?

The "Brave" web browser recently introduced a feature to check the Internet Archives when a page "goes 404". Similar 3rd party add-ins exist for Firefox (as well as other web browsers according this).

 

[RPh_Guy]

For those web pages that are referenced, would it be possible to "capture" a copy of the page in the Internet Archives (aka WayBack Machine)?

Brad Smith's brewwiki site is still online and available, just horribly inadequate (in my opinion), unmaintained, and inaccessible for editing. So, there's nothing lost that needs to be found.
http://brewwiki.com/index.php/USA~Antivirus_+1+844+745+8575_mcafee_support_phone_number

Believe it or not, Homebrewtalk also has a wiki with equally poor articles, mostly abandoned, broken, and unmaintained:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/wiki/index.php/Do_Goldfish_Sleep
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Wine
(Ok, a little less bad than the brewwiki articles to be fair)

My site (****************) is starting from scratch. I am focused on creating evidence-based guidelines, i.e. practical instructions combined with a thorough discussion of the science backing them and references to scientific literature. This will be helpful for new brewers and will satisfy long-time brewers interested in science and optimization -- information for everyone. A peer-review process (intrinsic to a publicly-accessible wiki) I feel is necessary for creating quality articles.
Something like this is sorely lacking in the homebrewing community. I'm here to fill that void. I also have the technical skills needed to develop and maintain a website, and I believe I have the right combination of free time and enthusiasm to see this succeed.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

I just launched this month

Sorry, looks like I left out a phrase. Here's what I intended to ask:

For those web pages that are referenced in **************** articles, would it be possible to "capture" a copy of the page in the Internet Archives (aka WayBack Machine)?​

 

[RPh_Guy]

For those web pages that are referenced in **************** articles, would it be possible to "capture" a copy of the page in the Internet Archives (aka WayBack Machine)?

I don't know. I've just assumed the Way Back Machine operates on its own.
Worried about sources disappearing?

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

Worried about sources disappearing?

Nope, not worried; 100% certain that over time, some pages will disappear.

I don't know. I've just assumed the Way Back Machine operates on its own.

After reading the "brave" web browser announcement, I spend a small amount of time looking at the "Help Center" for the Internet Archives.

https://help.archive.org/hc/en-us/articles/360001513491-Save-Pages-in-the-Wayback-Machine may (or may not be of interest) to both readers and authors:

"Many people have shown interest in making sure the Wayback Machine has copies of the web pages they care about most. These saved pages can be cited, shared, linked to – and they will continue to exist even after the original page changes or is removed from the web."​

 

[RPh_Guy]

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind.