SL is not Wikipedia

Keywords: SL description

It is tempting to draw comparisons between Sensei's Library and [ext] Wikipedia. Both sites are wikis. Both are relatively open communities in which anyone can contribute without needing to register first.

However, there are some important differences.

Wikipedia is intended to be an encyclopedia. It aims to be objective, reliable and consistent. It operates according to strict guidelines.

Sensei's Library is intended to be a library. It plays a dual role as a collection of articles of various sorts and a community centre. It is more diverse and less strict than wikipedia. It is also less reliable.

Sensei's Library does not contain a clear and comprehensive statement of what is allowed here (but the links at the bottom of this page contain some ideas).

Visitors to Sensei's Library sometimes try to apply Wikipedia rules and concepts here, with mixed results. Here are some things which apply to Wikipedia but not necessarily to Sensei's Library:

Neutral point of view. At Sensei's Library, many contributions reflect somebody's personal opinion. It is recommended that opinions are clearly marked as such, but it is not forbidden to express opinion here. There are many aspects of how to play go on which even professionals disagree; it is difficult to find "objective truth" for this subject. Apart from the technical side of go playing, Sensei's Library also contains opinions on many other topics.

Verifiability. At Wikipedia, all contributions should in principle be justified by reference to publications elsewhere. Given the current small size of the English-language go literature, this policy is not feasible at Sensei's Library. Many pages consist of someone's best guess, or a consensus amongst Sensei's Library contributors.

No original research. Wikipedia, like many printed encyclopedias, largely summarises work published elsewhere. At Sensei's Library, "original research" may seem like too grand a name for some of the discussions here, but there is a lot of material that can not be found elsewhere.

The page Wiki Wiki Web states:

In addition to being quick, Sensei's Library also aspires to Zen ideals generally labeled wabi-sabi. Zen finds beauty in the imperfect and ephemeral. When it comes down to it, that's all you need.

Sensei's Library certainly is imperfect in many respects (and this has provoked a lot of discussion--see the links below), but trying to "fix" those imperfections by means of strict rules would cause a fundamental change in the nature of the site.