Almost a year has passed with no progress. Moving options could change around if no developments occur by October 23, 2011 (the one-year anniversary).
Well, now that we have confirmed that we are taking Nero's offer (although we can still try to affiliate with FTCR,) I have put up this FAQ. Users have come to me asking different questions about the move, so to assure everyone that everything on this wiki will be preserved, please read below.
Purpose
The move isn't finished yet! What's taking so long?
To be honest, I don't even know why. I mean, it's been 3 weeks, but I'm hearing "the wiki will be moved soon". In my opinion, "soon" is a generally fluid term; it could be a few days or 8 months. So to answer your question: I don't know at the moment.
Why are we moving?!
One word can describe the reason why SFW is moving: tyranny. Wikia has decided to take away our liberty by removing Monaco and forcing a new, fixed width, Facebook-esque skin called "Oasis" on us. Oasis is a new "wonderful" skin created by Wikia to "improve" our wikis. I'll point out some of the many flaws in its design.
First off, it looks like a Facebook skin, not a wiki skin. There is a toolbar that follows you as you surf, and it doesn't stop until you reach the bottom of the page. Plus, the skin is on fixed width, which means that every page will be crammed into a 40% space. Also, the header will be enlarged, taking up almost 10% of the whole page. Also, there is no widget dashboard, which means..no shoutbox! Plus, custimization options have become more limited in this new Wikia skin. Did I mention that this skin is mandatory?
So, SFW voted on whether or not we should move. The vote tally yielded a "Yes" vote, so for the first time in SFW history, we are leaving the Wikia wiki farm.
Can't we just convince Wikia to let go of the new skin and keep Monaco?
If we had a choice, we would. Unfortunately, thousands of users have tried, without success. Users have tried to call off Wikia's attempts to make the new skin mandatory, but it's still mandatory.
Who's leaving Wikia (with us)?
Wikia-wide, some popular wikis such as Club Penguin Wiki and Wikisimpsons have already moved. The most popular Wikia wiki (in terms of pages,) WoWWiki, is considering departure from Wikia. Other wikis are deciding right now.
On the Sonic side of Wikia, we have decided to move, and the Sonic News Network/SNN has decided to move as well. Shadow Spy Net and Sonic Sound Test Wiki are moving as well. However, Mobius Encyclopaedia will not be moving with us. So here's a recap:
- Sonic Fanon Wiki/SFW: Moving on October 23.
- Sonic News Network/SNN: Moving on October 23.
- Sonic Sound Test Wiki/SSTW: Moving on October 23.
- Shadow Spy Net/SSN: Moving on October 23.
- Mobius Encyclopaedia/ME: Undecided.
Wait! I just changed back to the old skin! We are safe!
For now. On 11/3, Monaco will be removed.
This idea SUCKS!!! You're just being pathetic!
First off, I'm an administrator. You could be banned for insulting others.
Secondly, we decided that it's the best course to take. Wikia has taken away the meaning of a "wiki" and a "community"; now we [the wikis] are just business tools that are being manipulated for Wikia's own benefit.
The move itself
Who will host SFW and our affiliates?
At first, this SNN user named FTA proposed that SNN move in with his website, Findthecomputerroom.com. He would move everything (including the Monaco skin) for SNN's benefit. This sounded like the perfect deal. However, there was one problem: SFW, Mobius Encyclopaedia and our other affiliates. SNN couldn't leave us behind. During the negotiations, however, some users' attitudes caused FTA to have a change in heart, saying that he "didn't really care about SFW and Sonic Sound Test". Plus, the FTCR.com forums had negative comments about some of our characters. Eventually, FTA made a final offer: SNN, or nothing. His request was denied.
Fortunately, there was some good news: Nero, a user here, proposed his own idea. His dad owns a web hosting company, so SNN, SFW and our affiliates could be hosted for free, with no strings attached! Plus, we wouldn't have to worry much about advertisements. He also said that his dad could move everything; articles, contributions, roles, Monaco, everything! So, in the end, we decided to take Nero's offer. However, one user is hoping that we could at least affiliate ourselves with FTCR.
Thus, we are moving to a separate, community-hosted (Phew!) wiki.
When will we move?
The common question, and the most asked question. We will move on October 23, 2010, about 11 days before Monaco is removed.
SNN and SFW will move first, then help move the other wikis when they decide to. That way, the wikis that are "ready" can move and avoid the new look; while the other wikis stay and decide.
Update (October 30)
The new site for SFW is still an empty husk, but I'm sure that we'll be moved. Unfortunately, we're not PAYING customers, so we might not get any priority with our host. So in a WORST-CASE scenario, I wouldn't expect SFW to be finished until December.
Update (November 12)
Good news and bad news, everyone.
The good news: we haven't been forgotten and the move is still on! :) Unfortunately, the timeframe I set up is looking to be more realistic. November or December.
I have a question about hosting? Will we get a free domain name, free hosting, etc.?
Ask Nero. He's our go-to user if you have any questions about the web hosting itself.
I'll just create another SFW on Wikia!
No. Just no. First off, the new, mandatory skin is global, thus it will be on every wiki come November 3. Plus, a lot of users might not even hear about it.
Should I create an account, pages, etc. right now?
NO!!! That will complicate the move.
Everything will be moved, but there are still some common questions going around.
What will happen to my pages?
They will be moved, according to our host. However, it is still recommended that you back up your own pages using the export utility. That way, if something goes wrong, you'll still have your own pages.
Will there be a change in policy?
Most likely. We still have some issues that haven't been addressed, such as a wiki-wide government and new rules to tone down on common mishaps, such as relationship pages and troll wars.
Will there be a Manual of Style?
Maybe. I'll have the community vote again when I make that proposal. Why would we need an MOS? As some users have already said, "we have standards". Some articles are neat, detailed and well-organized while some articles are just a big mess of text! Thus, it's important to know that for us to be regarded as a great Sonic wiki on the internet, we need to fix up our wiki's content with standards!!
If there isn't a Manual of Style, then there will still up "fixing up". Even a wiki with no grammar regulations needs to look better to secure a good place on the Sonic part of the internet. Thus, some criteria for recognition/awards might change (e.g. Featured User/Character/Article, etc.)
What if I use Monobook? Will anything happen to me?
If you use Monobook, then you should be able to get familiar with Vector. It's just like Monobook, but is much nicer and has a more vibrant look. So, the new site will not support Monobook, but will support Vector. If you use Monaco, you'll be fine.
Note: For those of you who don't know what Monobook is, it's the old Wikipedia skin. Vector is Wikipedia's current skin.
Do you have questions or comments about this FAQ? Sound off on the talk page!
A note from Wikia
Hello, I just wanted to leave a note here to about your wiki leaving. We would love for you to stay at least long enough to test out the new look. No matter what your decision is as a contributor here, to stay (which we hope you do!), leave or participate both here or somewhere else, we respect that. The wiki will remain open for the community that does decide to stay. If there is a specific questions I can answer to help in your decision making process, please let me know. Cheers, Sarah (Help Forum) (blog) 00:50, October 20, 2010 (UTC)