Common Knowledge?: An Ethnography of Wikipedia

A thorough academic assessment of Wikipedia structure and politics written from the inside by a longtime insider. Could be considered boring unless you yourself are already interested in the subject.

As a long time Wikipedia contributor who knows the high and the lows of Wikipedia it was a very bittersweet read for me. I'm not going to spoil your read but Wikipedia is a weird place, it takes a special person to survive this jungle that's a mix of hard line bureaucracy and soft-as-you-go democracy that's more about lobbying than anything else. When you get into it, it's like entering another world occupied by Humpty Dumpties (When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, `it means just what I choose it to mean -- neither more nor less) who try to outdo each other while you realize you become one of them.Dariusz describes an imperfect world full of imperfect people who try to create a perfect depository of all knowledge and despite the apparent impossibility almost manage it to a large degree.Like his famous countryman, Bronisław Malinowski (shame on you if you don't know who it is, just look it up on Wikipedia), Jemielniak has totally emerged himself in the culture he is describing and his insider views, real life examples and comments really make this book.It is a little too academic and dry at places when he tries too much to distance himself from his real love to the Wiki ideas but it wasn't enough to make me put it down with a shrug.Oh well, enough of that crap, I'm back to editing Wiki (again).