It is amazing how often we consult the Wikipedia, and how
useful and satisfying that consultation usually turns out to be. Initially, I had thought that the Wikipedia is
based on a counter-intuitive idea – that people would donate their time to
create something of value to humanity in general and make it freely available. Perhaps, it is not so counter-intuitive after
all. When it comes to sharing information, humans have been doing it for a long
time. GPS, or no GPS, most strangers to any Indian city would never find their
way to their destination but for the “Wikipedia editors” on the roads. These
are the guys willing to offer information when asked, and also correct the two other
guys whose answers are not as good as theirs. Some of the true Editors will say “follow
me, I am headed that way”!
What is
amazing is that this spirit has been shown to work in the world of IT, which is
to many professionals the “science of monetizing anything and everything
computers and cellphones can ever do”!
I don’t think that this is the end of the road for the
co-development of altruism and a sub-culture of IT! Once the basic idea has been demonstrated to
work, I am sure that a number of new developments triggered by the original
demonstration would flourish.
Wikipedia’s growth has been amazing. It is already one of
the most important “books” in human history. It is particularly impressive
because it is a living thing, constantly improving its scope, updating its
information, and getting rid of its errors.
These are the thoughts that ran through my mind when I read
an appeal for donations to Wikipedia. I made a modest donation and received a
thank you note that suggested I could use social media to tell my friends to
consider donating too! I can’t pack all that I have said above into a tweet,
and hence this blog post. Donate, write and talk about it! Wikipedia
is truly the common wealth of us all!
Srinivasan Ramani
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