Folksonomies

This document introduces folksonomies as a new way for users to collaboratively tag and classify content online. It discusses tools like Flickr and Delicious that allow users to tag photos and bookmarks, creating an emergent taxonomy. These folksonomies are seen as a less expensive alternative to formal classification systems created by professionals. However, folksonomies also face challenges around ambiguity, synonyms and spam that tools and social aspects may help address. The document suggests folksonomies could become another way for users to access information and be a complement to formal taxonomy.