Wikipedia:Rollback for users

This is intended to be a discussion on the formal process Wikipedia:Requests for rollback and the availability of the rollback feature to regular users. Views on different approaches to the topic are presented here.

Please conduct discussion on the talk page.

Background

edit
I hope this is an accurate summary, feel free to correct any errors

Rollback officially used to be an admin exclusive privilege. Unofficially there had been JavaScript code and other means granting a de facto rollback feature.

Recently developers have made it possible for regular users to use the rollback feature. Currently any administrator can grant "rollback" to regular users. Wikipedia:Requests for rollback was drafted to determine whether to grant or deny people the rollback feature.

Outstanding issues

edit
Non-rollback reverts will be referred here as undo
Please feel free to expand the content here. Please do so in a courteous neutral way.

Regular users and rollback

edit

Regular users should NOT have rollback

edit
This viewpoint believes regular users SHOULD NOT have access to the rollback feature.
Pros
  • Undo has an edit summary.
  • Lack of access cannot be abused. People can however use other tools (undo) if they wanted to abuse the revert function.
Cons
  • Undo is slower.

Regular users should have rollback

edit
This viewpoint believes regular users SHOULD have access to the rollback feature.
Pros
  • Rollback is faster.
Cons
  • Rollback lacks an edit summary.
  • Can be abused.

Granting of the rollback

edit

There is a need for the formal process

edit
This viewpoint believes regular users should have access to the rollback feature BUT only after going through a formal process.
Pros
  • User's conduct prior to the use of this tool is reviewed.
Cons
  • It is an additional formal process.
  • Tool can be abused despite this.

There is no need for a formal process

edit
This viewpoint believes ALL regular users should have access to the rollback feature by default.
Pros
  • It is NOT an additional formal process.
Cons
  • User's conduct prior to the use of this tool is NOT reviewed.
  • Tool can be abused.

Conclusion

edit

Rollback was activated and admins freely give it out; there weren't any serious repercussions.