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'''Wikipedia''' is an [[online encyclopedia]] founded  on January 15, 2001 by two [[United States|American]] citizens, pornography entrepreneur and bond trader [[Jimmy Wales]] and philosophy professor [[Larry Sanger]]. It is controlled by the [[United States]]-based [[Wikimedia Foundation]]. Although it has editions in 250 languages, only 130 have more than 1000 articles.<ref>[http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/List_of_Wikipedias List of Wikipedias - Wikimedia], accessed August 1, 2008.</ref> After about four years from the date of its foundation, Wikipedia had about 450,000 articles,<ref>Aaron Weiss, The Unassociated Press, N.Y. Times, Feb. 10, 2005, at G5.</ref> and after six years it had about 2 million entries.<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Statistics English Wikipedia statistics]</ref>
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'''Wikipedia''' is an [[online encyclopedia]] founded  on January 15, 2001<ref>Morley Winograd, Michael D. Hais, ''Millennial Makeover'', pp 237, Rutgers University Press, 2008, ISBN 9780813543017</ref> with the money obtained through the Bomis<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080328/BIZ/803280327 |title=Wikipedia at a crossroads |archiveurl=http://archive.is/20120916/http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080328/BIZ/803280327 |archivedate=2012-09-16}} ''Mail Tribune''</ref> web portal by two [[United States|American]] citizens, Internet entrepreneur and bond trader [[Jimmy Wales]] and philosophy professor [[Larry Sanger]]. It is controlled by the [[United States]]-based [[Wikimedia Foundation]]. Although it has editions in 250 languages, only 130 have more than 1000 articles.<ref>[http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/List_of_Wikipedias List of Wikipedias - Wikimedia], accessed August 1, 2008.</ref> After about four years from the date of its foundation, Wikipedia had about 450,000 articles,<ref>Aaron Weiss, The Unassociated Press, N.Y. Times, Feb. 10, 2005, at G5.</ref> and after six years it had about 2 million entries.<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Statistics English Wikipedia statistics]</ref>
  
 
==History==
 
==History==
In 1996 an American citizen named Jimmy Wales, who made money through bond trading, moved to San Diego, California, to found the Bomis pornography ring.<ref name=WFSDFS>[http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/12/17/jimmy_wales_shot_dead_says_wikipedia/ Wikipedia founder 'shot by friend of Siegenthaler'] ''The Register''</ref><ref name=Britannica>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1192818/Wikipedia Wikipedia] ''Britannica Online''</ref> In March 2000, Wales founded Nupedia, an English language free content online encyclopaedia, with Larry Sanger as editor-in-chief. Nupedia was organized in a manner so that articles were to be written by experts and to be reviewed under a formal process. By January 2001, less than twenty four articles were completed in that project, and Sanger proposed supplementing Nupedia with an open-source encyclopaedia. On January 15, 2001, Wikipedia was launched as a feature of Nupedia.com, but following objections from the advisory board, it was relaunched some days later as an independent website. In its first year, Wikipedia expanded to some 20,000 articles in 18 languages. In 2003 Nupedia was closed down and all its articles were moved into Wikipedia.<ref name=Britannica/>
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In 1996 an American citizen named Jimmy Wales, who made money through bond trading, moved to San Diego, California, to found the Bomis web portal<ref name=Britannica>{{cite web |url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1192818/Wikipedia |title=Wikipedia |archiveurl=http://archive.is/20120604/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1192818/Wikipedia |archivedate=2012-06-04}} ''Britannica Online''</ref> In March 2000, Wales founded Nupedia, an English language free content online encyclopaedia, with Larry Sanger as editor-in-chief. Nupedia was organized in a manner so that articles were to be written by experts and to be reviewed under a formal process. By January 2001, less than twenty four articles were completed in that project, and Sanger proposed supplementing Nupedia with an open-source encyclopaedia. On January 15, 2001, Wikipedia was launched as a feature of Nupedia.com, but following objections from the advisory board, it was relaunched some days later as an independent website. In its first year, Wikipedia expanded to some 20,000 articles in 18 languages. In 2003, Nupedia was closed down and all its articles were moved into Wikipedia.<ref name=Britannica/>
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=== Wikia ===
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In 2004, Wales and then-fellow member of the WMF Board of Trustees [[Angela Beesley]] founded the for-profit company [[Wikia]].<ref name="2.0">{{cite news
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|first=Tom
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|last=McNichol
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|title=Building a Wiki World
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|url= http://money.cnn.com/magazines/business2/business2_archive/2007/03/01/8401010/
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|work=[[Business 2.0]]
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|publisher=CNN
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|date=May 1, 2007
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|accessdate=October 31, 2007 |archiveurl=http://archive.is/20120916/http://money.cnn.com/magazines/business2/business2_archive/2007/03/01/8401010/ |archivedate=2012-09-16}}</ref>
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<ref name=signon>{{cite news |last = Sidener | first = Jonathan | title = Everyone's encyclopedia | work = [[The San Diego Union-Tribune]] | date = December 6, 2004 | page = C1 | url = http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20041206/news_mz1b6encyclo.html | accessdate=April 22, 2009 |archiveurl=http://archive.is/20120526/http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20041206/news_mz1b6encyclo.html |archivedate=2012-05-26}}</ref>
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<ref name="utopia">
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{{cite news |last=Getz |first=Arlene |title= In Search of an Online Utopia |work= [[Newsweek]] |publisher= [[msnbc.com]] |date= February 1, 2007 |url= http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16926950/site/newsweek/ |archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20070418204627/http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16926950/site/newsweek/|archivedate=April 18, 2007 |accessdate=October 31, 2008}}</ref>
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<ref name=slashdot>{{cite news |author= Sanger, Larry |title= The Early History of Nupedia and Wikipedia: A Memoir |work= [[Slashdot]] |url= http://features.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/04/18/164213 |date= April 18, 2005
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|accessdate= October 31, 2005 |archiveurl=http://archive.is/20120711/http://features.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/04/18/164213 |archivedate=2012-07-11}}</ref>
  
 
==Is wikipedia free?==
 
==Is wikipedia free?==
 
It receives support from Bomis Inc. in the form of free [[w:bandwidth|bandwidth]] and this connection with a [[for-profit]] [[corporation]] is seen as a burden affecting the functioning of Wikipedia as a free encyclopedia as it claims to be.  
 
It receives support from Bomis Inc. in the form of free [[w:bandwidth|bandwidth]] and this connection with a [[for-profit]] [[corporation]] is seen as a burden affecting the functioning of Wikipedia as a free encyclopedia as it claims to be.  
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==Criticisms==
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{{main|criticism of Wikipedia}}<br>
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Wikipedia is criticized for exhibiting systemic bias and inconsistency.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2004/oct/26/g2.onlinesupplement |title=Who knows? |archiveurl=http://archive.is/20120715/http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2004/oct/26/g2.onlinesupplement |archivedate=2012-07-15}}</ref> Many university lecturers prohibit students from citing Wikipedia.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/01/26/wiki |title=A Stand Against Wikipedia |archiveurl=http://archive.is/20120605/http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/01/26/wiki |archivedate=2012-06-05}}</ref>
  
 
==References==
 
==References==
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*[http://www.wikipedia-watch.org/ Wikipedia Watch .org]
 
*[http://www.wikipedia-watch.org/ Wikipedia Watch .org]
 
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6947532.stm Wikipedia 'shows CIA page edits']
 
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6947532.stm Wikipedia 'shows CIA page edits']
 
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[[Category:Wikipedia| ]]
 
[[Category:Wikipedia| ]]
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Latest revision as of 10:06, 16 September 2012

Wikipedia is an online encyclopedia founded on January 15, 2001[1] with the money obtained through the Bomis[2] web portal by two American citizens, Internet entrepreneur and bond trader Jimmy Wales and philosophy professor Larry Sanger. It is controlled by the United States-based Wikimedia Foundation. Although it has editions in 250 languages, only 130 have more than 1000 articles.[3] After about four years from the date of its foundation, Wikipedia had about 450,000 articles,[4] and after six years it had about 2 million entries.[5]

History[edit]

In 1996 an American citizen named Jimmy Wales, who made money through bond trading, moved to San Diego, California, to found the Bomis web portal[6] In March 2000, Wales founded Nupedia, an English language free content online encyclopaedia, with Larry Sanger as editor-in-chief. Nupedia was organized in a manner so that articles were to be written by experts and to be reviewed under a formal process. By January 2001, less than twenty four articles were completed in that project, and Sanger proposed supplementing Nupedia with an open-source encyclopaedia. On January 15, 2001, Wikipedia was launched as a feature of Nupedia.com, but following objections from the advisory board, it was relaunched some days later as an independent website. In its first year, Wikipedia expanded to some 20,000 articles in 18 languages. In 2003, Nupedia was closed down and all its articles were moved into Wikipedia.[6]

Wikia[edit]

In 2004, Wales and then-fellow member of the WMF Board of Trustees Angela Beesley founded the for-profit company Wikia.[7] [8] [9] [10]

Is wikipedia free?[edit]

It receives support from Bomis Inc. in the form of free bandwidth and this connection with a for-profit corporation is seen as a burden affecting the functioning of Wikipedia as a free encyclopedia as it claims to be.

Criticisms[edit]


Wikipedia is criticized for exhibiting systemic bias and inconsistency.[11] Many university lecturers prohibit students from citing Wikipedia.[12]

References[edit]

  1. Morley Winograd, Michael D. Hais, Millennial Makeover, pp 237, Rutgers University Press, 2008, ISBN 9780813543017
  2. Wikipedia at a crossroads. Archived from source 2012-09-16. Mail Tribune
  3. List of Wikipedias - Wikimedia, accessed August 1, 2008.
  4. Aaron Weiss, The Unassociated Press, N.Y. Times, Feb. 10, 2005, at G5.
  5. English Wikipedia statistics
  6. 6.0 6.1 Wikipedia. Archived from source 2012-06-04. Britannica Online
  7. McNichol, Tom (May 1, 2007). "Building a Wiki World". Business 2.0 (CNN). Archived from the original on 2012-09-16. http://archive.is/20120916/http://money.cnn.com/magazines/business2/business2_archive/2007/03/01/8401010/. Retrieved October 31, 2007. </li>
  8. Sidener, Jonathan (December 6, 2004). "Everyone's encyclopedia". The San Diego Union-Tribune: p. C1. Archived from the original on 2012-05-26. http://archive.is/20120526/http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20041206/news_mz1b6encyclo.html. Retrieved April 22, 2009. </li>
  9. Getz, Arlene (February 1, 2007). "In Search of an Online Utopia". Newsweek (msnbc.com). Archived from the original on April 18, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20070418204627/http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16926950/site/newsweek/. Retrieved October 31, 2008. </li>
  10. Sanger, Larry (April 18, 2005). "The Early History of Nupedia and Wikipedia: A Memoir". Slashdot. Archived from the original on 2012-07-11. http://archive.is/20120711/http://features.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/04/18/164213. Retrieved October 31, 2005. </li>
  11. Who knows?. Archived from source 2012-07-15.
  12. A Stand Against Wikipedia. Archived from source 2012-06-05.
  13. </ol>

External links[edit]