"Wikipedia and Knowledge Communities"

While assemblying an Ikea shelf ... my ears discovered another interesting presentation which landed on my iPod (my main M-learning tool) :

"Wikipedia and Knowledge Communities" is a presentation of Mitchell Kapor available on Open Source conversations.

Wikipedia is probably one of the most impressive Pro'Am project and there's plenty of interesting thoughts and informations in this presentation.

The Wikipedia is having a dramatic and unexpected impact as an open source-based, community-driven method of creating and disseminating valuable knowledge and information on a global basis. How is a free and open online encyclopedia, entirely written and edited by its users, managing to outstrip conventional media in audience, breadth, and depth? What are the implications for other kinds of content, for publishing, and for information technology, especially open source-based business models in general?

Mitchell Kapor, President of the Open Source Applications Foundation discusses the controversial aspects of the Wikipedia, particularly the fact that anyone can edit any article at any time. He believes that while the user-written model has problems, it can succeed with the right mix of community and peer review. He states that it is not necessary for someone to be in charge. In the end, he says that the Wikipedia can't possibly work... but it does.