Regardless of how you feel about the quality or accuracy of the content that’s being developed on Wikipedia, as a collaborative initiative using a social medium it has been very successful. Even despite some of its more recent setbacks, you can’t argue that it’s brought together a multitude of individuals with very diverse backgrounds and expertise and allowed for the creation of a product that has become, for many, a first stop on their journey to learn something new. (If that’s their only stop then they’re not doing in-depth research, but then the same could be said for any other information resource.)

As I listen in on Wiki conversations and hear people present their arguments of why Wikis are a great way to get people to share, collaborate, and create good content, the first statements usually sound something like, “Well…its great because on a Wiki when somebody puts up inaccurate information or tries to vandalize the site, anyone else can easily go in and correct the error. “And that’s where the conversation usually stops because that’s usually enough to get a Wiki installed.

So what happens next? The Wiki gets installed overnight, they open it up to everyone, and after a little while they wonder why people aren’t using it or why the people who are using it are still creating really crappy content. Read the rest of this entry »