As discussed on IRC, I would like to propose two extra fields for the database
schema:
table revision: rev_len unsigned integer
This field would contain the length of the revision's raw text, same as page_len
in page table. Having this field would tremendously help vandal-fighting bots,
as it will allow simple queries for page blanking and bulk imports (fairly
common forms of vandalism). It will also reduce the load on the server from such
tools, because the raw text will not be needed in many cases. The length will,
potentially, allow much more sophisticated analysis then what the next,
rc_change field would allow.
table recentchanges: rc_change signed integer
This field would contain the size of the change (delta) between two revisions
(either positive or negative). This change would also allow for quick vandalism
lookups.
Version: unspecified
Severity: enhancement