Wikipedia:FAQ/Overview

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What is a Wiki?

A Wiki is a collection of interlinked web pages, each of which can be visited and edited by anyone at any time. You can even edit the page you are reading right now: just click "Edit this page" on this page (to the left or below)! See also What is a wiki for?

What are the aims of Wikipedia?

In a community-built encyclopedia, it seems a bit strange to say that there is a goal, but indeed there is a vision its creators had in mind that most of us share:

Our goal with Wikipedia is to create a free encyclopedia--indeed, the largest encyclopedia in history, both in terms of breadth and in terms of depth. We also want Wikipedia to become a reliable resource.

When did the Wikipedia start?

January 15, 2001. An earlier version of the wiki (including original versions of some of these pages) was briefly hosted on Nupedia.com (first posted January 10). The idea of a Nupedia-sponsored wiki originated out of a conversation Larry Sanger had with Ben Kovitz on the evening of January 2.

Who owns Wikipedia?

Well, that's an interesting question. The owner of the server, the domain name and the layout of the pages is Bomis, Inc. The articles are released by their authors under the GNU Free Documentation License, so the articles are open content. Therefore, it cannot be said that the owner of Wikipedia articles is Bomis. See Wikipedia copyrights.

Who is responsible for the articles on Wikipedia?

Who is responsible for the articles? Wikipedians. This is a collaborative endeavor. Untold numbers of people have contributed to different parts of this project, and anyone can do so. Including you! All you need to know is how to edit a page. (It would also be good to know what you are talking about.)

You can learn who is responsible for the most recent versions of any given page by clicking on the "History" link (at the top or the side of the page). But remember, if you spot an error in the latest revision and you don't correct it, then you share responsibility for the error. So be bold in updating pages!

If you are uncertain or find the wording confusing, quote the material on the associated talk page and leave a question for the next more knowledgeable reader or editor. This helps eliminate errors, inaccuracies or misleading wording more quickly and is highly appreciated by the community. Thank you!

I want to contact the project by e-mail, but there doesn't seem to be a contact address listed. Where is it?

We don't have one. If leaving a note in the Village pump isn't your style (or your browser has problems editing our pages), see the next question:

Where can I talk about Wikipedia with others?

There's a Wikipedia-L mailing list, and also the Meta-Wikipedia. If you want to communicate with a specific user, leave a message on his or her personal talk page; you can find a list of personal pages (and link to your own) at Wikipedia:Wikipedians. Finally, if you're looking to talk about a specific article or page, the best place to put your comments is on that page's Talk section.

What is Nupedia?

See how does Wikipedia relate to Nupedia.

Can I add Nupedia articles to Wikipedia?

Sure. Please do add Nupedia articles to Wikipedia, but also add Wikipedia articles to Nupedia!

Why are some Wikipedia sites at .org addresses (www.wikipedia.org) and some others at .com (meta.wikipedia.com, fr.wikipedia.com, etc)?

Originally all of Wikipedia was at the .com address. Bomis, the company owned by Wikipedia patron Jimbo Wales, hoped to make Wikipedia profitable, or at least cover the costs of operation, so it was at least theoretically a commercial operation. At one point, Jimbo was planning on placing unobtrusive advertisements on Wikipedia, but that plan has since been completely abandoned. There is now serious talk about forming a non-profit organization for the Wikipedia project.

To reflect this, the main English-language wiki has been moved to www.wikipedia.org, and the rest will follow as all our sites are upgraded to the new server software.

Is it "the Wikipedia," or just plain "Wikipedia"?

Excellent question. We don't know, and most of us probably don't care. Some of us say "the Wikipedia" and some of us say "Wikipedia" (and some of us say both).

If there were only one Wikipedia (which, as it happens, there is no longer; see international Wikipedia), then "Wikipedia" would be a (unique) proper name, in which case saying "the Wikipedia" would be rather strange-sounding, like "the Britannica." On the other hand, we might be using "Wikipedia" as a type term, like "encyclopedia," so if someone says, "I contributed an article to the Wikipedia the other day," it's like saying, "I contributed an article to the encyclopedia the other day." But in that case, we're using "Wikipedia" as a type term, and so it should be lower case: "wikipedia," right? Perhaps it would be best to refer to http://www.wikipedia.org/ as "the English Wikipedia" or "the English-language Wikipedia," since it is now only one of several Wikipedias (or is that wikipediae?). Clearly, we are in need of the services of a professional linguist.

On the other hand, it's common for British speakers to say "the Thesaurus" and mean Roget's Thesaurus. Names of reference works like "Britannica" and "Collins" are usually referred to without an article, but the OED is called "the OED" or "the Oxford", probably because the first word is used adjectivally.