On 7/10/05, Fred Bauder fredbaud@ctelco.net wrote:
The jewel is in the lotus, beauty that arises from muck.
Indeed. It's a fabulous creation. Not so long ago something like this could only be found in the pages of Analog and Astounding.
One of the joys of my childhood was in getting out a volume of World Book Encyclopaedia to look up something. Hours would pass in the blink of an eye as I browsed from one article to another.
Wikipedia is a bit like that, with the abundance of hyperlinks to encourage browsing and random discovery, and perhaps one of its greatest charms is that it ISN'T a buttoned-down corporate affair. There are gems around every corner, little labours of shared love, and everywhere you see people hard at work improving, polishing, shaping; and diving in to be first with an update when something changes.
There's a loving community buzzing along hard at work 24 hours a day, and I cannot be persuaded that this is a bad thing.