Wikipedia World

(**This is probably my second post that could be filed under the “coolness of the day” category. It is both a cultural awareness story and a personal interest. I hope you find it interesting.**)

This post is a shout out to one of the biggest best data networks/archives in the world. No offense to anyone, but if you are on the Internet and have not heard of Wikipedia, you must literally live under a rock.

Did anyone wonder whose idea was Wikipedia? I’m sure you already guessed that I’ll tell you anyway: an American by the name of Jimmy Wales (**yeah, I know, he sounds and looks British as hell**). In my opinion he is a bloody genius and the work he’s achieved through his project of peer-review-based online encyclopedia is phenomenal. Wikipedia is a testament to the unity of Our World and the power of people’s voices. (**Gosh, I sound sappy…**)

I’ll tell you what I love about one of the top 5 most popular websites in the world: it has information on almost anything and anyone of importance; … it is accessible by everyone; it is in about 265+ languages; it is open to editing, improvement and questioning done by the readers themselves; it is probably the best source of news on the internet; it is free of charge. Wikipedia is simply magical! It is incredible and it has given a new definition to the term “wiki.”

As a tribute to the power of this online Encyclopedia, I will write my own little section of “Did You Know…?” - one of the daily features on the Wikipedia homepage: Here is my question to you guys – did you know that originally, the term “wiki” (n.) meant “a collection of web-pages”? Well, I’ll be honest and tell you that I found that out just 30 minutes ago. Please be honest too and tell me if you knew the original definition of “wiki” or not and whether you are as amazed as I am by the new meanings this term has acquired in the last (almost) eight years.

If you are one of those people who just remembers Wiki as suddenly just being there, you might wonder what do I mean “in the last eight years?”. Well, the site was launched as what it is today in 2001 and it is almost 2009, which would make the world’s largest database (**okay, maybe with a few exceptions…**) eight years old. There is no better way to describe this collaborative academic project than in the words of  its creator: (**seriously, someone should slap me silly for being so cheesy and sugary (Just for reference, in case anyone gets any ideas, I am JOKING. I’m using figurative language (sort of) and if you slap me I’ll punch you like a boxer.)**)

“Imagine a world in which every single person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge.“

— Jimmy Wales, Founder of Wikipedia

Isn’t that quote poetic, beautiful, inspirational and extremely appropriate? I tried, but could just not describe Wiki any better than he did – I think I got down the inspirational part, but I sound cheesy and he does not. Anyway, now let’s see if all the web-surfers out there have been as observant as I have been, in noticing the relatively recent plea for donations that the website has been launching for the past few months, trying to meet its goal of 6, 000, 000, USD, which is supposed to be the maintenance cost and yearly expenditures of Wiki. I bet a bunch of you are thinking “What’s she on about????” Here’s the deal:

Wiki seemed to be in financial trouble, because it is FREE! I always wondered how many people were working to keep this amazing data bank running. After a little research I found that although it has 150 000 regular contributors, aka volunteers, aka “staff,” they do not get paid anything! Can you believe this? People are actually doing a gigantic amazing mental and somewhat physical labour (**pardon my Brit-English that sometimes creeps up in my writing. I personally prefer it to American English. Original is always (here this word is used loosely) the best.**) for free, out of their own will, simply because they believe in a cause! (**Yes, there may be hope for humanity yet… if all the ignorant ones do not run us into self-destruction first… I apologize for the extreme pessimism that sometimes creeps up into my writing, but Hey, that’s life.**) Moving on: the actual Wikipedia site maintenance, et cetera, et cetera is comprised of 23 people who do get paid. I think that is a really small company, in reality.

**Oh, I forgot to mention that most of my facts are being cited directly from Wiki, in case anyone was wondering how I came up with the numbers and all that.**

Now it is time to give bonus points to some members of the Internet community and to hopefully make others feel as shitty and ashamed as possible. Yeah, I know, how very mean of me….except that I think I’m justified:

• Round 1:

- BONUS POINTS go to every single person that donated to Wiki, promoted it, etc. You people, are FANTASTIC! (**Yes, I am fantastic too, even though I am a poor poor college student.**)

- BOOOO to all the people that could have afforded to help out Wiki, use it just as much as the next person (which is A LOT), and were too selfish to care and help a good cause. Wiki is used by 275, 000, 000+ (**I am citing this one from Jimmy Wales.**) people per month. Less than 6 freaking million of you donated something! Honestly, each of the 300 million users had to give less than 3 CENTS to help Wiki meet its goal within a month! Seriously, I hope you feel bad about yourself.

• Round 2:

- BONUS POINTS to all the observant webbers (**I think I just invented a new word…**) that noticed the more recent Thank You note by Jimmy Wales, for helping Wikipedia finally meet the sum of 6 millions in donations and cover its costs for this fiscal year.

It came to my attention just now that I need to stay more objective in my little expose and set my personal feelings on Wiki aside, in order to give some of the valid criticisms against the site:

(**Forgive me for the lack of massive elaboration on those: I am showing favoritism, but I am also acknowledging it.**)

1. Anyone can edit the content and there is no good mechanism instituted to validate the content of the edits. Essentially, the site is easily a great one-stop for the world’s Internet Trolls.

2. It is said some admins and politicians have altered information based on personal interests and opinions, thus making articles nonobjective. Jimmy Wales is guilty of that too.

3. Wiki has made it hard to delete user accounts. Really hard.

4. Online donations seem to require you to use PayPal. What happened to the good old times of sites that are both secure and allow you to simply write your card number down and be done with it??? I had to use postal mail. Seriously!

5. Information is not 100% reliable, but I already said something very similar in #1.

6. Sometimes there is content which I cannot find much on, if anything, but that is rare.

7. I have often been unhappy with the Wikipedia search engine. If there is no article on something within the Wiki database, it will give you no results. It makes sense, but I think in such cases Wiki should generate a Google search or something of the sort.

8. Jimmy Wales has been accused of taking a big cut out of his profits.

Alright, I am out of criticisms, but you may read many more on Wikitruth.com, Truemors, Valleywag and other sites.

Here are the links to some of the general (and more Wiki-flattering) stuff I’ve referred to: Thank You note, Donations plea, Wikipedia, Jimmy Wales.

I’ll finish this off by sounding inspirational and sappy again: Knowledge is power. Help spread it.

P.S.: On the question of whether Wiki should just succumb to posting ads on the site to keep it free without begging for donations, my answer is HELL NO! I get enough infomercials from everywhere else already. Besides, kids go on that site! The whole world does! Imagine the influence ads will have on the general population and the even bigger role they will play in politicizing us and making us into a single mass-cultured prejudiced unit. …As always, feel absolutely free to support or challenge my views, but make sure you back up your opinions with something. (**In other words: please do it.**)