It's not that I think Wikipedia's a bad idea. On the contrary—I think it's brilliant.
What's not brilliant is seeing a giant banner with the founder's photo with the headline:
"Please read: An urgent appeal from Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales."
For being ad-free, this sure feels like a whopping ad staring me in the face.
It's a great site, yes. It's also a giant pain in the ass. Anyone who has ever tried to create a Wikipedia page will attest. Wikipedia is, in my opinion, moderated by a multi-national cult of informational meter maids—minimum-wage/volunteer bullies—venting their insecurities in the form of cut-and-paste "flags" with twelve pages of stipulations and no apparent intention of helping to further my—or Wikipedia's—cause.*
Desperation doesn't become anyone.
I don't know what the Google guy's face looks like. Why? Because he's never put a giant ad pleading for money on Google's homepage. Instead, they put up some unobtrusive text ads, allowing them to continue offering their services while not starving to death. A pretty damn good business model if you ask me.
The reason that Google has failed to conquer Facebook or Twitter or Apple is because those companies are as masterful in their own arenas as Google is in theirs—delivering user-specified information. Fast.
So: Dear Google Guy, please make poor Jimmy an offer so he can put his unappealing appealing to rest and his idea can flourish. Then give it some serious Google streamlining. Most people use your site to get to his site already anyway.
The well-paid Googlepedia® staff will have nineteen references for every other word within weeks. Sure I'll see a text ad for car insurance while researching the Madagascar Day Gecko. I'll live.
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*my oneword.com page has been flagged for deletion since May 2009. (I'm waiting.)
