on 8/29/07 9:29 PM, Matthew Brown at morven@gmail.com wrote:
On 8/29/07, Marc Riddell michaeldavid86@comcast.net wrote:
When you say the "sources", aren't you referring to the "professionals"?
He probably is - but the point's valid - quite often the true experts need someone else to filter their material into a good encyclopedia article. The ideal Wikipedian isn't the person who writes the seminal papers, but someone who knows enough about the subject to be able to read them and apply them in context.
I do agree with you, Matt. A professional in a field looking for information in that field would not go to an encyclopedia for that information. However, a layman, wanting to get some basic ideas regarding a subject would. And they are, after all, who our primary readers are. I believe the main text of an encyclopedia should be written by persons with a basic grasp of a subject, who are able to convey those basics in a fluent, articulate manner, and rely on sources (professionals) for specific details. The professionals have their textbooks and journals. The laypersons have the encyclopedias - which are, in a way, translations. It's as though you published a journal article on a subject, and had a button to click on that says "Translate this Page" :-).
Marc