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We all use Wikipedia, but what do we really know about it?
Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia
• Freely licensed without restrictions• All content created & maintained by
volunteers• Non-profit educational project,
supported by Wikimedia Foundation• All edits/versions are recorded
indefinitely• Software: MediaWiki
Biggest. Encyclopedia. Ever.
5,377,555+ articles in English alone
44 million+ articles in 295 different languages
“A Wikipedia article is a process, not a product.” -Clay Shirky
Global community site:https://meta.wikimedia.org
A Hybrid of Tool & Community
CC BY-SA 4.0 Jason Krüger for Wikimedia Deutschland e.V.
Serves Libraries’ & Archives’ Outreach and Access Mission
Views on SIA Website Views on Flickr Commons Views on Wikipedia0
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More web visits = Meeting our outreachmission
6th most visited website in the USA & globally60+ million unique devices per day!
Who or what merits an article in Wikipedia?
If a person or topic has received significant coverage in reliable sources that are independent of the subject, then it is deemed “notable.”
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Notability Or type in search shortcut WP:N
Wikipedia Content Standards
• Neutral Point of View• Verifiability
reliable sources, cited correctly• No “original research”
i.e. unpublished data, opinions, speculation
• Assume good faith towards other editors
• Avoid conflict of interest (i.e. creating a page about yourself) See Wikipedia: Policies and guidelines
Do I have to register an account?
No, but there are lots of advantages to doing so.
• A record of your work builds credibility & signals membership in the community
• More privacy, since anonymous contributors’ IP address is recorded
• More editing privileges: ability to create/rename articles, upload images, edit preferences
NOTE: There should be a 1:1 ratio between editors and accounts on Wikipedia. Shared accounts are not allowed.
Can I edit the Wikipedia article about my workplace? My boss? My grandma?
Possibly, but ONLY under the right conditions.
“When advancing outside interests is more important to an editor than advancing the aims of Wikipedia, that editor stands in a conflict of interest (CoI).”
Your #1 priority must be: making a better, more useful encyclopedia article.
Avoid Conflict of Interest Editing
• Register a unique user account • Disclose your affiliations (see
sample CoI Statement)
• Cite authoritative sources • Don’t remove “controversies”• Recognize that no one person can
“own” a Wikipedia article or control its content
ANATOMY OF AN ARTICLE
Infob
ox
Title
Main use of boldface
Related articles
Footnotes – inserted in body but display here
Headings
Pro search tip: search within specific “namespaces” to find your answers quicker!
ExamplesHelp:IntroductionWP:COI
LETS START EDITING!
Step 1 - Register a user account
1. Go to en.wikipedia.org, click “Create Account”
2. Choose a username and password
Step 2 – Check for Visual Editor1.Go to Preferences (top) and the Editing tab 2.Scroll down to Editor section3.Uncheck Temporarily disable the visual editor4.Change Editing mode to Show me both editor tabs5.Hit the SAVE button
Step 3 - Create a user page, and/or a user sandbox
1. Click the red link at the top with your Username on it, OR the “Sandbox”
2. Write something on the new page (Hello world!) and click Show Preview.
3. Leave a comment about what you did in the “Edit Summary” box, and then click Save changes.
Citing Sources
Images: Wikimedia Commons vs. “Non-free Use” rationale
Wikimedia Commons imagecommons.wikimedia.orgExample: Teton Range
Non-free imageen.wikipedia.orgExample: Look Mickey
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