[WikiEN-l] MediaWiki is getting a new programming language

[Sheldon Rampton]

Stevertigo wrote:

> The word "monopoly" implies unfair business practices such that make
> an inferior product the exceedingly market-dominant one. Putting aside
> its basic inapplicability in an open-source context, and the fact that
> in that context people will make free choices to use a tool, and not
> to mention participate in that tools' further development..  what is
> the argument?

If you don't like the connotations of the word "monopoly," maybe  
you'll be happier with "path dependence," which conveys the same basic  
point:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Path_dependence

Obviously, "unfair business practices" are not responsible for  
maintaining Wikipedia's existing templating system. However, path  
dependence clearly occurs even in open source contexts. I think path  
dependence plays a big role in enabling Wikipedia to maintain its  
standing as the most popular online encyclopedia, and it probably is  
responsible for preventing a number of improvements from happening  
with Wikipedia. For example:

(1) No WYSIWYG editing system.

(2) The current templating system, which works but is far from easy  
for most people to use.

(3) Governance practices which are sometimes less than optimal.

If you look at Wikipedia pages and really compare them to what has now  
become state-of-the-art website design, it's hard to avoid the  
conclusion that Wikipedia looks a lot like Web 1.0 rather than Web  
2.0. Web design has come a long way since Wikipedia was launched. Many  
websites now integrate video very nicely and use Javascript/AJAX to  
improve user-friendliness and make pages more interactive and dynamic.  
The semantic web is also becoming more than a buzzword, and it's not  
hard to imagine a "Wikipedia 2.0" that would incorporate those sorts  
of features to become even more useful, attractive and popular than it  
already is. So why aren't those features already in place? Because the  
huge weight of Wikipedia's millions of articles and users makes it  
inevitable that introducing those sorts of features will be more  
technically challenging than if someone were to design those same  
features for a website that only has a small number of articles and  
users. In short, path dependence means that Wikipedia's very success  
makes it harder in some ways for the project to innovate and improve.

-------------------------------------------

SHELDON RAMPTON
Research director, Center for Media & Democracy
Center for Media & Democracy
520 University Avenue, Suite 227
Madison, WI 53703
phone: 608-260-9713

Subscribe to our free Weekly Spin email:
<http://www.prwatch.org/cmd/subscribe_sotd.html>

Subscribe to our Weekly Radio Spin podcasts:
<http://www.prwatch.org/audio/feed>

Read and add to articles on people, issues and groups shaping the
public agenda:
<http://www.sourcewatch.org>

Support independent, public interest reporting:
<http://www.prwatch.org/donate>