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Wikipedia


Wikipedia

Wikipedia is a user-generated online encyclopedia that in November 2010 boasted 400 million users. It is the 5th most popular site in the world. Wikipedia has no advertising and every year launches a fundraising appeal to ask money from users.

About Wikipedia

Wikipedia was founded by Jimmy Wales in 2001. It is multilingual and only found on the web. Wikipedia uses Wiki software, which allows users to create content. Wiki is a Hawaiian word meaning 'quick.' Each article on Wikipedia links to other articles about subtopics and related topics.

Over 91,000 active contributors work to create and add to 16,000,000 articles in over 270 languages. Hundreds of thousands of users make edits to articles each day.

Articles and additions are checked to see if they meet with Wikipedia's policies, including:

*they are verifiable
*they avoid opinion and unreviewed research
*are free of copyright restrictions
*they avoid contentious material about living people

The wiki software allows quick edits and revisions of mistakes. Because Wikipedia is electronic and not printed, articles on historic events and breaking news can be edited within minutes. Newer articles can sometimes contain misinformation and even vandalism, while older articles tend to be more balanced and have richer and more in-depth content.

During its early years Wikipedia was scorned by more established researchers. In more recent years it has earned a solid reputation and is often the first place that even the most careful researcher goes for a quick overview of a topic that they may know little about.

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