Wikipedia: Order without orders Promovendidag 2006 Sander Spek Universiteit Maastricht [email_address] Supervisors: Jaap van den Herik Eric Postma Antal van den Bosch Picture by Brion Vibber (CC-BY-SA)

Sander Spek Universiteit Maastricht

[email_address]

Supervisors:

Jaap van den Herik

Eric Postma

Antal van den Bosch

Agenda Wikipedia Organised content Organised work division Conclusions and questions photo by Michael Dietsch (CC-BY-SA-NC)

Wikipedia

Organised content

Organised work division

Conclusions and questions

What is Wikipedia? Juggling? Self- managing team? Democracy? Anarchy?

My Wikipedia research Organisation despite the 'chaotic' fundament. Content: articles and their relations. Work division: author expertise and roles.

Organisation despite the 'chaotic' fundament.

Content: articles and their relations.

Work division: author expertise and roles.

photo by Marie Richie (CC-BY-SA) The Dutch Wikipedia article network is clustered scale-free a small-world?

The Dutch Wikipedia article network is

clustered scale-free a small-world?

Organised content Article types: All-round authorities; guru authorities; referring authorities; regular nodes. photo by Jonathan Ragan-Kelley (CC-BY-SA)

Article types:

All-round authorities;

guru authorities;

referring authorities;

regular nodes.

All-round authorities General time units Recent years Countries and other relevant geographical entities Template items photo by Jonathan Ragan-Kelley (CC-BY-SA)

General time units

Recent years

Countries and other relevant geographical entities

Template items

Guru authorities Known concepts Template legends photo by Jonathan Ragan-Kelley (CC-BY-SA)

Known concepts

Template legends

Referring authorities General lists A to Z lists Portals photo by Jonathan Ragan-Kelley (CC-BY-SA)

General lists

A to Z lists

Portals

photo by Jonathan Ragan-Kelley (CC-BY-SA) Regular nodes The big majority of Wikipedia articles.

The big majority of

Wikipedia articles.

Expertises in categories: almost a Pareto-effect (20-80 rule) Organised work division specialistic topics high average number of edits per editor e.g., chess player , Russian political party topics we can all talk about (party topics, lunch topics) low average number of edits per editor e.g., philosophy , investing photo by Piero Sierra (CC-BY-NC)

Expertises in categories: almost a Pareto-effect (20-80 rule)

specialistic topics

high average number of edits per editor

e.g., chess player , Russian political party

topics we can all talk about

(party topics, lunch topics)

low average number of edits per editor

e.g., philosophy , investing

User types (Sorry, no free license information. I actually stole this image from the web. But if one of you gets interested and goes out to buy the book, I'm sure the authors don't mind.) 0% contribution of largest category 100% 0% number of active categories 100%

Introducing entropy Expertise of users: calculated using author's entropy over categories photo by Kai Schreiber (CC-BY-NC)

Expertise of users:

calculated using author's entropy over categories

To wrap it up... Despite its 'chaotic', 'anarchistic', 'self-managing' fundament... ... Wikipedia articles are well-structured and form a coherent network; ... Wikipedia authors can organise themselves and take upon expertises themselves, without dirty jobs being left. photo by Aine D. (CC-BY-SA)

Despite its 'chaotic', 'anarchistic', 'self-managing' fundament...

... Wikipedia articles are well-structured and form a coherent network;

... Wikipedia authors can organise themselves and take upon expertises themselves, without dirty jobs being left.

Any questions? Any questions? Photo by Haley (CC-BY-NC)

Any questions?

Disclaimer: The contents of this presentation is available under a CC-BY-license. The images used in this presentation are available under the license mentioned at the slides. The juggling image on slide three is made by me, and is also CC-BY. The crowd image on slide four and the Russian puppets on slide eleven are public domain.

The contents of this presentation is available under a CC-BY-license.

The images used in this presentation are available under the license mentioned at the slides.

The juggling image on slide three is made by me, and is also CC-BY.

The crowd image on slide four and the Russian puppets on slide eleven are public domain.