Who’s Behind Wikipedia?

“The problem with Wikipedia is that it only works in practice. In theory, it can never work. ”
―Unknown

With millions of users each day reading millions of articles, Wikipedia has become a ubiquitous fixture on any web user’s browser. Most are aware that it’s the “free encyclopedia” that “anyone can edit”. Thousands edit it each day, but few have a good understanding of how it really works; even fewer are involved in the processes that make it work. What are the rules and principles guiding those dedicated users? How are controversial topics handled? Who, in the end, decides what the final version of an article should say? When can you trust it and when should you not? This talk will give a quick overview of the essential principles, policies and practices that make Wikipedia work, with insight for both the casual Wikipedia user and those involved with creating or administering community-governed projects.

Date and time

13:30–14:20, Tuesday 29th January 2008, LinuxChix miniconf

Speaker biography

Brianna Laugher is a free content and wiki enthusiast, involved in the Wiki[mp]edia communities since 2005. She was a speaker at the 2007 Wikimania event (an international Wikimedia conference). She blogs on Wikimedia related topics at http://brianna.modernthings.org/.