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Google's "Knol" Reinvents Wikipedia

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the only-a-matter-of-time dept.

teslatug writes "Google appears to be reinventing Wikipedia with their new product that they call knol (not yet publicly available). In an attempt to gather human knowledge, Google will accept articles from users who will be credited with the article by name. If they want, they can allow ads to appear alongside the content and they will be getting a share of the profits if that's the case. Other users will be allowed to rate, edit or comment on the articles. The content does not have to be exclusive to Google but no mention is made on any license for it. Is this a better model for free information gathering?"

5 of 272 comments (clear)

  1. Trying to promote a new catchword too. by morgan_greywolf · · Score: 5, Informative

    Google is trying to promote knol as a new buzzword meaning "a unit of knowledge."

    I wonder how many knol's Slashdot is worth?

    --
    My blog
  2. Typo? by imstanny · · Score: 2, Informative

    The headline, blurb and link create a perfect storm of incomprehensibility -- that I had to go to Wikipedia to figure out what the hell this is about isn't an auspicious beginning, and I still have no idea what "Google'a" is. a=s... Google's.
  3. Rating Articles by mfh · · Score: 2, Informative

    This is a feature I've long since looked for in a website that has factual content, like Wikipedia (minus chip-on-shoulder admins). Krol should prevent astro-turfing well, as long as Google protects against dupes and has other beneficial restrictions.

    --
    The dangers of knowledge trigger emotional distress in human beings.
  4. Picking nits. by stomv · · Score: 2, Informative

    There's two ideas here:
    1. No charge; you don't have to pay any hard cash.
    2. No cost; you bear no burden at all -- money, labor, or attention to ads.

    Knol will have no charge, but it won't come at no cost.

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    Support a few technologists in Washington.
  5. More importantly, NOT OPEN by CarpetShark · · Score: 4, Informative

    Much more importantly, this is going to be owned by Google. They're highly unlikely to let everyone download their article database in the way that wikipedia does. Publically created information on the scale of wikipedia should not be owned by
    private organisations.