Saturday, August 14, 2010

Wikipedia

I admit it, sometimes when I'm doing a quick-shot fact check for my writing, I consult Wikipedia. 'What forms of casts were used prior to 1840? Oh, Dextrin. That's nice. What'll that do to Maggie? Can't move her arm for a few hours? Oh, well, that's fine.' 'When exactly did they invent steamrollers anyway?' 'Just how likely is my MC to die suddenly from a snakebite? And the stuff that she did to fix it? That made it worse? Oops. My bad...' That sort of thing. But, as anyone who spends a lot of Wikipedia knows, it's a black hole that sucks you into an info vortex from which there is no escape.

Who hasn't encountered this situation:


I know I'm not the only one that happens to.

3 comments:

  1. I like to play the game "Where would I find useful answers if I don't click on Wikipedia?" That is a fun game but it takes a while longer to find the answers.

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  2. Elaine -- Sounds like a good game, especially if it would keep me from getting lost on Wikipedia. Plus, I'd probably learn a lot.

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  3. Yeah, I use Wikipedia too- I was thinking of blogging about that in the future, actually. And trust me, I can waste a lot of time "researching."

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