Wikipedia

Ok, let me just put it this way...WHAT THE HELL IS A WIKI?

...well prior to looking at the video and going through websites about it, I really had no clue. Teachers and friends have used the term so often, but of course I have never really taken the time to look it up. I have used wikipedia in the past, but I usually try to stay away from it. I mean, we have all heard our teachers saying..."Use something other than wikipedia, something credible." So this obviously makes us think that everything on this site is a load of crap...that we can't believe anything that is written on the site. But now I know the real truth behind it.

Even though volunteers are the ones who put up the information, it is still based on factual and researched information. I guess I am still skeptical about using the information on the website. Specifically because I have been forewarned so many times in the past about using it.

I think that by watching the video on youtube, the founder of wikipedia talked in a way that made the website seem alot more credible and useful. He presented the facts and information up front and very professionally. I guess we rely on people like him to give us the green light to continue using sites like wikipedia to get information for our school research papers and projects. It would be a joke to say that I would use wikipedia to find information on how to save the world and how to cure rare diseases...BUT for other less important information, I think it is safe to say that I'll be visiting wikipedia more often.

I think that similar to a blog, wiki posts are open to anyone to share their expertise. However, when reading through wikipedia, specifically wikitravel, I noticed that they make it a point to tell you not to put stories and personal experiences as a source of information. They want concrete facts to make it easier for people to navigate through the page. This is very unlike blogs, or atleast from what I have noticed about blogs so far. I think blogs are meant for you to share what you know about something, but this can be done by using stories and experiences. Similar to my enthusiast blog, I am using my personal experiences with autistic children to present people with information and help them to learn something new.

When it comes to writing in electronic environments,wikipedia is a way for users to access various types of information quickly. I also feel that users from all parts of the world are able to contribute their ideas and what they know about particular topics.