#19 Wikis

Jimmy Wales. Wikipedia, Wikimedia, Wikia
Originally uploaded by avg_milano

I'm glad I took the time to hear the TED speech by the outlaw Jimmy Wales. I had previously read the flip side in The Cult of the Amateur, by Andrew Keen aka the anti-Christ of silcon valley. I was interested in Wales' goals for democratization of information and in bridging the digital divide. Wales' key word is neutrality; I try to make mine (and I may have stolen this from someone whom I admire and respect, if so, you know who you are) is reasonableness. It's reasonable to check Wikipedia for a fast fact to get started, not so much, to use it as the sole source of research before a formal presentation to the Chamber. We just have to apply the same critical eye we always have to evaluating information: who is writing it? when was it written? can I verify this somewhere else? and so on.

Our WPL wiki is a good start, thank you Deanster. Would it work as a venue for 2 way communication regarding IT type goings on that would be more effective than email? (Obviously not the Internet is down, or as a substitute for a phone call when there is a patron standing in front of us with a problem) There could be categories for broader issues, such as "planning wireless for Rossland" as well as the little things, "floppy is stuck in INT 16". The big picture items could have status updates, the little niggly things, just deleted when fixed.