From printed to "wikified" encyclopedias: sociological aspects of an incipient cultural revolution

Abstract

1. Introductory remarks; 2. The new "asymmetric competition" between open source networks and conventional bureaucratic organizations; 3. The Wikipedia as an encyclopedic project; 4. “Wikis” as tools for focused and cumulative intellectual productions; 5. Six Dimensions of WP growth and evolution; 5.1 Worldwide multilingual diffusion; 5.2 Staff expansion; 5.3 Diversification; 5.4 Elaboration; 5.5. Increases in internal cohesion; 5.6. External Embedment; 6. On the potentials and limits of wiki-based open source encyclopedias: some preliminary conclusions after six years of experience; 6.1 Free self-recruitment of collaborators; 6.2 Extensive and efficient exploitation of intrinsic motivations; 6.3 Low needs for capital and organization; 6.4 Multicultural segmentation; 6.5 Flexible polymorphic organization; 6.6 Community embedment; 6.7 Keeping pace with current events and discoveries; 6.8 Changing usage patterns and user roles; 6.9 Public visibility of production processes and resilient adaptation; 5.10 Unguided incrementalism and unplanned “memetic evolution”; 6.11 "WP-Notability" as a new digital divide; 7. Conclusive remarks; References