Wikipedia and Movies

Internet Movie Database is one of the most well-know sources for film and TV information. There’s another game in town, however. A site called makeuseof.com highlights 7 tips on how to use Wikipedia.

Takeaway:

“Featured content on Wikipedia comes in various forms, from articles, lists, topics, and portals. Films and movies have a portal for themselves.“

Of possible interest . . . a free download called “The Internet Guide to the Movie Addict“.

Wikipedia and Librarians: Let’s Hold Hands and Drink Kava Kava Tea

Librarians and Information Professionals have a love-hate relationship with Wikipedia, the collaborative, user-generated encyclopedia. (Actually, teachers of all levels perhaps have more beef with the tool, refusing to allow students to use it.) Recently, Wikipedia released a FAQ for librarians.  I think Wikipedia’s own philosophy gets it right:

“We believe that Wikipedia is an excellent starting point for research, and can be particularly useful for getting a quick and reasonably accessible overview of a particular topic area. Wikipedia can also be remarkably detailed and comprehensive, particularly in subject areas such as technology and science. But we don’t believe that anyone should accept what they read on Wikipedia (or anywhere) uncritically. We encourage readers to explore topics further, by clicking on the article footnotes to go the original information sources or using the further reading recommendations and external links.”

In other words, Wikipedia is a launch pad. It’s not a destination.

And for those who doubt Wikipedia’s accuracy, you’ll appreciate this comment:

“. . . in December 2007, the German magazine Stern released a study concluding that the German Wikipedia was more accurate, complete and up-to-date than the longstanding print encyclopedia Brockhaus – the Encyclopedia Britannica of Germany.”

Wikipedia is here to stay. It shows up in Google search results . . . usually in the Top 10 hits.

Embrace it.

Hey, if you don’t like an article or entry . . . well, you can edit it and change it. Share your knowledge.