[WikiEN-l] A.J. Jacob's The Know It All, the EB and WP

[Joseph Reagle]

°06.02.21.tu | reading encyclopedias

I am reading A.J. Jacob's The Know It All, his diary of his musings while 
reading the Encyclopaedia Britannica. And, ironically enough, it's given me 
a new way to enjoy the Wikipedia. When I want to learn more, I can type the 
word searches "claque" into my PDA and learn that canned laughter precedes 
the TV, and then learn of the odd yakuza sokaiya: "Sokaiya are a form of 
specialized racketeer unique to Japan, and often associated with the 
yakuza. They typically prey on shareholders' meetings, disrupting them (and 
causing the company a great loss of face) until their demands are met."

If I wanted to make this into work, I could also compare the Wikipedia 
entries and Encyclopaedia Britannica entries, maybe even improve any 
deficiencies in the Wikipedia, but I'd rather just enjoy myself for now.