Wikimedia

While I'd heard of wikipedia and wiktionary prior to this course, I was not familiar with the scope of wikimedia. I opened wikisource and immediately elected not to explore that site. I like history as a story but don't have a brain that stores names, dates, etc. Whether one argues that one's brain is wired a certain way before the links begin, or argues that the links are the way they are because of one's interests and experiences is a moot point for me at this time. I'm not a history buff... I've an interest in particular eras and places - ancient Egypt; the old West; Mayans/Incas; drawn to England; Salem, Massachusetts and the witch trials. I remembering thinking, as a child, that war was stupid. That countries/kings should decide the outcome of "war" by playing a game of chess. I even took US history as a "pass/fail" class at Wake, the only class I took that way; I needed it for certification as a public school teacher, but I'd never make a claim to being a history teacher. In any event....I did not peruse the Wikisource area for long.

I elected to look at wikibooks and read the introduction about that, moving to wikijunior after that. Because I've taught math of some sort for over two decades, I looked at the "Geometry for elementary school" to see what kind of text was available online. The text included proofs for a number of math "truths" that I think might not be necessary in an elementary math book. I question whether the title might refer more to elementary geometry than geometry for elementary students. I wondered how difficult it would be to change a title after the publication has gone to press, so to speak.

I found the concept of voting on what book(s) might be created to be an interesting one. I perused that portion of the website because I was going to vote. I liked the "ways to help" bulleted list; there were options of looking for grammatical errors, for supporting or finding references to verify information posted. For people who have a lot of free time, that could provide a wonderful way to support learning - editing and researching to ensure that the data posted is correct.

In the wikijunior section, I also looked at the e-book, "Bugs," and specifically at the entry for "walking stick." I found the information to be interesting and the photo/image clearly showed what a walking stick looks like. I'm not used to the concept of children's books online, still like to hold a book in my hand, but expect Kindels and other e-readers will eventually come down enough in price that a variety of readers use them. They'd certainly provide portability with lightweight access for readers.

The second wiki project I perused was Wikiquote. I recently read "The Princess Bride" and watched that movie last night for the first time with Charlotte friends with whom I spent the night. A search for "true love" resulted in several "hits" and I explored the two related to the Princess Bride. One entry showed famous lines from the movie, identifying the speaking character and responders. I was pleased to see pages interlinking throughout the wiki projects. While that's second nature on the site, I also now appreciate that someone had to create that interlink for that to work for the rest of us. Real people doing simple and not-so-simple tasks, all with a common goal in mind - to share free-access information. That's pretty cool!

I had great fun on this wiki project, Wikiquote, and can see myself referring to that when I write in the future. I'm a copious writer, or have been over the past five years, and I'm wired to think in non-linear ways, so having the wikiquotes will be a plus for me. It will be a site I can peruse for entertainment, reflection, and enjoyment. In the past, teachers in my county sometimes added a quote to their signatures in their e-mails. Wikiquote might have served as a resource for them. Recently however, someone somewhere decided that quotes aren't allowed in signatures. I'm guessing someone's quote invaded someone else's privacy.... who knows? In any event, I like Wikiquotes.

I was pleased to read the philosophy of Wikimedia, to read their mission to provide free access to their sites worldwise. I hadn't realized the full scope of the projects. What has been accomplished in less than a decade on that site is pretty phenomenal. I didn't peruse the wiki project designed for scientists...just didn't want to go there today with so much else to do. It's interesting to see what is available on the sites.

Soooo, I have completed the Wikimedia assignment!
Anne