For anyone interested in learning about Wikipedia, here is a great brand new podcast worth checking out:
Jason Calacanis Interviewing Andrew Lih about Wikipedia
Watch Calacanis Cast
I have watched three episodes of Calacanis cast and am amazing how much Jason’s combative blog persona contrasts with his pleasant real life demeanor. Jason is curious, insightful, humble and charming. This from the guy responsible for three of the Ten Great Blogger Temper Tantrums?
Who is Andrew Lih
Andrew Lih earned the top two slots on my Twelve Great Wikipedia Blogs and Resources. Andrew’s personal blog covered some of the best reporting and analysis of the Essjay scandal. Moreover, Andrew is a host of Wikipedia Weekly, a great in depth resource for anyone interested in Wikipedia.
Highlights of the Podcast
*Andrew is writing what, amazingly, may be the first book entirely about Wikipedia
*Jason Calacanis believes Wikipedia will soon become the most popular sight in the world
*Jason believes Wikipedia will eventually become 10 times more popular than any other site
*Andrew admits that Wikipedia’s search is inadequate. Many Wikipedians (myself included) use Google to search Wikipedia. This is something we eventually hope to fix on ValueWiki.
*Jason respectfully proposes interesting revenue models for Wikipedia, that could generate enourmous amounts of money
*Andrew Lih presents the case for Wikipedian resistance to advertising
…And that’s just the first 20 minutes.
The Only Problem With Podcasts
The only problem with podcasts, in my humble opinion, is when they often run to 49 minutes. Why not just offer two episodes?
Why I am Pleased With Calacanis
Launching ValueWiki, I have learned how incredibly insular and intimidating the Wikipedia community can be. It seems as though people are either wiki insiders, or complete outsiders. I want everyone to understand wiki, and bloggers like Calacanis can facilitate that.
I am amazed and grateful for how quickly the finance blog community welcomed and accepted this blog, and equally astonished at how reluctant the finance community is to try out ValueWiki. It seems people either understand wiki or understand finance, but rarely both!
The more writers like Andrew and bloggers like Jason open up the world to understanding Wiki, the more resources like Wikipedia and, ahem, ValueWiki will be able to change the way we share human knowledge.
