I’ve been having trouble figuring out how to place content on Wikipedia at the head of the book, but I think I’ve got an idea that will work. Instead of saying “Here are Surowiecki’s 4 conditions (which will take a second for you to get your heads around) and I think Wikipedia is the best way to embody those,” maybe I could to frame it as “Look, here’s Wikipedia and it works. Perhaps the best reason why Wikipedia works is because it satisfies the 4 conditions.”
What it will allow me to do (I think) is give myself a bit of distance from some of Wikipedia’s particulars. For instance, I don’t have to deal with Jimbo’s objectivism, per se, but I can remain in a place where I mainly deal with him as the Benevolent Dictator for the community. Then I can ask questions about BDs without getting caught up in Jimbo being the prototypical BD while still using him as an example.
So, with that, here’s a stab at an outline.
Other than general thoughts (always welcome!), specific feedback I’m looking for:
- Is something missing that you expected to see or that you think is vital?
- Does the order flow well? Do the points hang together in a logical fashion (based on what I’ve given you in the outline)?
- Is there a consistency to the different parts? I want to make sure that items addressed in the top part are accounted for in the bottom part.
- Does it make sense?
UPDATE(4/13/10): I removed the some material at the head of the outline and have moved it to another chapter that will most likely be before this one.
