Google Knol competitie cu Wikipedia

Google, in a challenge to Wikipedia, has created a user-generated online encyclopedia called Knol that identifies its writers instead of keeping them anonymous. “Earlier this week, we started inviting a selected group of people to try a new, free tool that we are calling Knol, which stands for a unit of knowledge,” the company wrote on its blog. “Our goal is to encourage people who know a particular subject to write an authoritative article about it.” Although it’s already drawing comparisons to the best-known user-generated Web encyclopedia Wikipedia, Knol is different in a few key ways. First, unlike Wikipedia, authors of articles on Google’s site are highlighted, not hidden. Similarly, articles on Knol aren’t collaborative; they are written by just a single author.



Users of the site, which is in beta-testing and invitation only, can still participate by ranking the usefulness of entries, adding comments and asking questions. Google will not serve as an editor and expects several knols on each topic. But can Knol unseat current online leader Wikipedia? Owned by the nonprofit Wikimedia Foundation, Wikipedia was founded in January 2001. It has more than 8.2 million articles in more than 200 languages, including more than 2 million in English. Knol’s respect for authorship will be a huge boon for Google and differentiate it from competitors like Wikipedia and Squidoo, Saffo said. In addition to it’s “star-making” potential, Knol has an added incentive — it allows its authors to make money from their writing. I guess students all over the world will be happy to use a new source for their essays…

Via:  www.rlslog.net