If you've ever been to college, you've probably heard professors say how terrible Wikipedia is. In fact, for research purposes, the use of Wikipedia as a credible source is often completely prohibited. But this is not necessarily the case.
The main reason why Wikipedia is not considered particularly credible is that anyone can edit a Wikipedia page, put whatever they want on it without fact checking. People can easily add wrong information that can take weeks or months to be seen and updated properly by a Wikipedia administrator.
However, Wikipedia is not so bad. There are some amazing tools on Wikipedia that you can use when doing research that provide factually accurate and usable information. Here are our top three tips for accessing Wikipedia for research purposes.
Alright, so for the most part (see below for a few exceptions) it's true that you should probably avoid using Wikipedia articles for research. Many items are subject to change without notice. However, Wikipedia articles have a handy References section. This section contains links to real, believable websites and articles elsewhere on the internet from people who have actually checked the facts.
Suppose you are researching the history of the Apple Macintosh computer. You visit the Wikipedia for Macintosh page and start collecting information. From there, you can take one of two approaches.
The first is to head to the Contents table and click on References . This scrolls down the page to the section where you can see each reference used in the article and cited. This is where you can click on links to view real, reliable articles or even explore books or other offline sources that might have been used. In this way, Wikipedia acts as a sort of portal to many legitimate references – most of which should be fair game.
The second method is to simply read the Wikipedia article, then click on the next superscript number of an interesting tidbit you come across to be taken back to the appropriate citation.
Since Wikipedia realized its lack of credibility, it has taken steps in recent years to ensure that popular articles on the website are legitimate and factual. The best way to verify legitimacy is to look for a lock symbol at the top right of any Wikipedia entry. Wikipedia has several different colors representing several different protection standards, but these essentially signify that the public has limited or no access to modify the content of the page.
The two most common locks you will find are gold and silver. A gold padlock means that the article can only be edited by Wikipedia administrators, i.e. people who have a much better chance of actually knowing what they are doing. A silver padlock means the article is semi-protected, so anyone who hasn't registered for a Wikipedia account or confirmed their account can't edit the entry either.
If in doubt, try to find items with a golden padlock for complete editing protection, but keep in mind that sometimes even admins can get it wrong.
Tip: Also look for other icons in the upper right corner for "good" and "featured" articles - additional symbols of decent content.Did you know that Wikipedia actually has its own virtual reference desk, much like a library would? You can ask almost any question you want here (except legal or medical advice) and a Wikipedia volunteer will be happy to answer it.
Of course, any Wikipedia user can answer, which takes away the credibility. Be sure to ask your responder to provide one or more links to credible sources to back up their response.
To access the Wikipedia Reference Desk, scroll down the home page until you come to Other Wikipedia Areas section. Then click Reference Desk . Here, choose a category for your question, then on the next page, click Ready? Ask a new question!
It may take as little as a few minutes or as long as days to receive an answer to your question posted directly to Wikipedia, so please be patient.
Important: If you're researching for work or school, don't use these Wikipedia tips as an excuse to disobey your boss or teacher's instructions to avoid Wikipedia. However, for personal research and where permitted, making the most of what Wikipedia has to offer can be very effective.SEE ALSO: How to Effectively Search for a Topic on Android Like You Would on PC
