Hurray for Wikipedia!

[Smasherman]

Thanks to Wikipedia, I can study for my history test quicker! Instead of utilizing the index, flipping pages, and scanning, I can just type and read!

[mattmns]

Wikipedia rocks!!!!!!

[Skyhunter]

Thanks to Wikipedia, I can study for my history test quicker! Instead of utilizing the index, flipping pages, and scanning, I can just type and read!
Wikipedia is not always accurate.

An example in the worst presidents thread, Townsend decided Taft wasn't so bad because he read in Wkii that Taft founded Yellowstone National park, which is not true.

I checked and Taft's profile has been edited, the claim is no longer there.

[wolram]

True.

Welcome to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

So some things may need an edit, but it is the best first port of call.

[Mental Gridlock]

So then it doesn't count as a valid source when you're arguin' right?

[ShawnD]

So then it doesn't count as a valid source when you're arguin' right?
It's about as valid as snopes. Sure snopes is accurate a lot of the time, but they make a lot of mistakes. They originally had that Mr Ed really was a zebra, then they took that down and put it under the joke section to cover the mistake they had made.

Overall you can trust the wiki most of the time when dealing with undisputed things like how chromatography works. It gets sketchy when you try to lookup things that are heavily influenced by opinion, such as the history of Hitler. Did he have 1 testicle, or was that a myth made up to make people think of him as less of a man? Did he start up the holocaust because he was addicted to methamphetamines? Was he actually gay? I've heard rumors of all three of those. Which ones are true? Who knows.