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The other day a friend of mine was talking about Wikipedia (http://www.wikipedia.org). He had just looked up something on the site and commented, “Why is this site so awesome? I mean, seriously, have you figured out that it’s really the best way to find what you’re looking for?”

At first, I wasn’t so sure.

It is true that I have been a little hesitant to jump on the Wiki bandwagon. After all, what’s wrong with referencing your standard, tried and trusted online encyclopedia? For years I had searched American Heritage’s free online dictionary, encyclopedia, and thesaurus with abandon for my information. What could a user-influenced site like Wikipedia offer me besides irrelevant data and riddled with errors?

Comments like my friend’s, however, made me wonder if I was missing something useful. All around me, people were talking about Wiki-this and Wiki-that; Could there be any benefit to searching in the middle of editable content?

The more I thought about it, the more I realized that the typical descriptions in run-of-the-mill encyclopedias are maybe a little too clichéd and outdated. What users are really looking for these days is not so much a verbatim write-up on the platypus, but rather an interactive approach to providing and receiving information. Users are drawn to Wikipedia because it allows them to showcase their individual expertise and inform the general public about their vast knowledge of what it has.

Squidoo (http://www.squidoo.com) is another site where users are responsible for its content. Based on the premise that “there should be a way for everyone to benefit from what everyone knows”, Squidoo offers users a unique way to obtain and publish information. The same appeal that applies to Wikipedia also applies to Squidoo. Essentially, it all seems to come down to this: users have something to say, and if the site allows it, they will say it. Allowing John Doe to give his opinion on the Ohio State Buckeyes for all to see gives others the opportunity to see a “real” person’s point of view, while giving Mr. Doe a boost to the ego. Better yet, let him tag other pages or “lenses” to his delight and you’ll have a site indexed (quite accurately) by your users and a community based on technology and common interests.

Also noteworthy is http://www.KnowItNow.org. According to the website,

“KnowItKnow is a live, online information service provided free of charge to Ohioans by the Ohio State Library and your local public library. Professional librarians are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to answer your reference questions and assist you in finding information Once you’ve logged in with your Ohio ZIP code, you and a librarian will engage in a “chat” session. The librarian “pushes” authoritative and to your screen. You can watch and participate as librarians skillfully navigate the Internet to find accurate answers to your questions. At the end of each KnowItNow session, you will receive a full transcript of your session via email that includes links to all resources online shared during that session”.

Although KnowItNow is only available in Ohio, several other sites of the same type are popping up in quite a few states. Although underutilized, KnowItNow is an important resource for a number of reasons. For example, it allows users at home to benefit from library services and promotes internet awareness and education for the less tech-savvy crowd. It also serves as an indication that libraries are keeping abreast of evolving technology and are striving to integrate it into the services they offer.

Another online site that is gaining momentum is AccessMyLibrary (http://www.AccessMyLibrary.com). This site functions as an online magazine/newspaper library and, like Squidoo and Wikipedia, AccessMyLibrary provides valuable information over the Internet. With over 16 million articles (and growing), there is literally something for everyone on this site. The content ranges from the obscure (Sticky Tech) to the very popular (O, Oprah Magazine) and, of course, it’s free.

While its number of articles is certainly impressive, it’s actually the quality of the content that really stops the show for many users (i.e. Macworld, The New Yorker, Allure, Booklist and the list goes on from there).

AccessMyLibrary has proven to be a gold mine of searched content. With relevant articles on valuable topics for all interests, its appeal is widespread.

And meanwhile, web users love it. Free content, free access, free speech (online). Fundamentally, the Internet is changing for the better.