Google's New User-Based Encyclopedia

After months of anticipation, Google launched its latest project - an online collection of user-generated articles. The new site, called Knol, is expected to rival Wikipedia. Google explains:

"The web contains vast amounts of information, but not everything worth knowing is on the web. An enormous amount of information resides in people's heads: millions of people know useful things and billions more could benefit from that knowledge. Knol will encourage these people to contribute their knowledge online and make it accessible to everyone."

Knol is based on authorship, rather than the anonymity of Wikipedia. Knol writers identify themselves and any edits suggested by users must be approved by the writer before going public. Knol also allows for comments, images, and reviews.

Hopefully, Knol will become a useful starting point for online student research.

See Also: Free Web Resources for Online Students