Practicum 8 Ashley

Doing my pracitcum over the semester, I've really been able to learn about how people get information for specific topics, their effectiveness and the most beneficial features to these sites. By looking at three different sites (knitting, poker, and snowboarding) I was easily able to compare and contrast. Some common features I found were a primary contributor (usually the creator the site) and areas where anyone could share and exchange ideas, ask questions, or gain knowledge. Some differences were in how the online public was able to contribute and participate. Some sites, like the poker site, encourage more of an observational approach to acquiring information, whereas, the knitting site encouraged others to share their information whether from video, comments, or photos, and actually learn from each other. Even information that is hard to learn over the internet, its almost guaranteed that their is a site for it, such as the snowboarding site. Granted the site provides tangible information like where to go skiing, or what type of gear is best, but also information about how to do tricks or simply carve on a snowboard.

One thing I wonder though is how these sites compete from larger information hubs online like How.com or About.com, or particularly, Wikipedia. I have been wondering this all semester because whenever I want to learn about something, I go to these sites because they are already known and I am usually assured that my topic will be in there. When I type what information I am looking for into google, I always go to Wikipedia first before I click on other sites, possibly informational sites devoted to that topic. I think many people do this also because it's easier than digging through a site when Wikipedia tells you the important information immediately. Another idea is that many people wanting to learn information go to these sites and merely take the information they need and leave the site. In my observations from looking at these three sites, I've noticed that those who ask questions are usually asking because the answer isn't elsewhere or it is something very specific. Those who answer questions are usually very committed to the topic, always on the site, or just have a lot of knowledge that they'd like to share. There weren't many people who continued to come back and ask questions, but those people do exist. Those people end up forming a community within these sites, setting the tone and the atmosphere, and building the pool of knowledge these sites have to share.

Although, I had a relatively positive experience with information sites, and learned some poker strategy, some knitting tricks, and snowboarding skills, I will still attend to larger information hubs first for my information unless I have a specific question or need an answer that is not mentioned in the quick and brief synopsis of sites like Wikipedia. I do think these information sites serve a purpose and that is why they still exist. It offers people a way to communicate information, build on ideas, and further their understanding of a topic, which may not have been possible otherwise.