Ian, is WP:BITE specifically considered to be NOT-policy at wiktionary?

Concerning BITE, I think that we've developed a culture that is less tolerant than Wikipedia of the newbies. This is because we have fewer prolific editors than them, so we need to spend less time fixing other people's mistakes and we're less patient. And this is not just my opinion by the way; it's been discussed before, e.g. on Wiktionary:Beer parlour archive/2010/January#Pulling our act together. In reply to your previous question about Jeff (SemperBlotto), User talk:SemperBlotto#Please do not bite the newcomers pretty much explains it all.

Thanks, yeah that about sums it up. Well I looked over dozens of edits and Jeff only reverted a couple, so I guess my case was kind of the opposite of the normal new user situation with regard to the definitions. And everybody has been very cool and helpful regarding format issues. I freely admit that I screwed up on respell, which was partly my own arrogant sense of style for which I have always just detested that word and partly my inept clicking the wrong link and missing the voluminous google list of uses of the word. It is a very contentious environment but as far as I am concerned language is sacred. I hope that Equinox revives his account, the guy is brilliant and he has a lot to offer. I think it might be OK to work up a somewhat softer reception for new contributors but the important thing is that Wiktionary does not become responsible for degradation of language, most particularly English and Sanskrit. Again, Equinox could be a major contributor to that, his vast knowledge,skills and abilities are far too important to not undelete and resume. I publicly apologize for antagonizing him by so stupidly overlooking the obvious on the respell matter and if it will bring him back on board I am more than happy to leave Wiktionary for an agreed term. However, I will not concur that he has any right to post that I allegedly "refuse to read" something or other as he has no way of knowing what I have and have not read, nor did I ever post any statement of refusal. It must be annoying to have a newbie whose sin is not the prevailing general ineptitude with language, but rather a poet's sense for it. But for a crew that has some excellent language [chops], it should mitigate any sense of annoyance you folks may have over things to know that I acknowledge that this is a space where everyone else is pretty much as smart or smarter than myself regarding our Sacred Mother Tongue. I hope that other dude - I suppose you call him that "chap" - comes back sooner rather than later, and accepts my apology, despite my reservation. It doesn't make it not an apology, it is just that I can't acknowledge that anyone else has ESP or remote vision and I do speak for myself on what I have and have not read. So if that assertion nullifies the apology, or delays its effect, or if perhaps I am just the lastest straw in a big haystack of setbacks at wiktionary, I honestly don't know what I will do. It is easy enough to see how one could become addicted to wiktionary; perhaps for some it is more productive to step back and write haiku on the beach...I don't know at this point whether that is the more enviable option. In any case, Jeff K. should get a prize for what he's been able to accomplish here, but I hope it doesn't get messed up with imprecise definitions which then propagate like, well, prions...