h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Sure, you've seen Wikipedia, but have you seen http://www.wickerpedia.org/?

Ok, it only has one article (on Wicker) and a main page with a bit of info, but I didn't find it any more boring or dry than the real thing

A friend sent me the link - made me smile.

The dryness of Wikipedia is like an art form. We take the source material, and remove opinion, and remove stuff that is suggestive of opinion, and think long and hard about whether using "The Prophet Muhammed" over "The prophet Muhammed" could be considered biased.

What you end up with, with most articles, is a very dense collection of facts, and the abundance of links just makes it feel even more tightly packed. Very dry, certainly. I like dry humour, and I like a dry encyclopedia. They share the same gloriously barren feeling.

Golly. I didn't realize dryness could be an art form. I consider it just boring.

I only use wikipedia for quick dates and basic facts that slip my mind. Otherwise, I do believe my brain would drip out my ear.

Art is of course subjective. Modern art anyway. I am reminded of those paintings full of just a single colour. Empty of... everything, and yet when the first ones were made, they had something new to say about the nature of art and artistry. They say little interesting now, simply because the thing they said then so quickly entered the popular discourse.

Wikipedia is an artwork, in that it is so full and yet so empty. It is an artwork of extremes, an artwork showing what is possible. In a way, it parallels MetaBaby, which is an artwork showing what is impossible.

An interesting comment from someone who left h2g2 for Wikipedia. Do you still hang out over there, Lucinda?

About as much as I hang out here. It is an interesting thing, to come back to a place I've left, to be a wandering ghost over my old haunts, some still left as they were, untouched and dusty, whilst others are barely recognisable. It makes me philosophical, and given to saying shallow things in a deep way.

Dancing came after wikipedia. Nowadays, I'm more likely to be slaying virtual dragons. I don't know what next. Dancing still appeals - I may go back to that.

It is an odd thing, having a past.