[Taxacom] Wikispecies is not a database: part 1

[Stephen Thorpe]

I prefer to reply in this forum rather than the blog...

OK, it is true that Wikispecies is not a database, meaning that it  
cannot do some (important?) things that databases can do. However, we  
need to consider the bigger picture:

(1) everything has pros and cons. Wikispecies has two BIG things going  
for it - it is free, and it is easily kept up-to-date

(2) Wikispecies can do MANY of the key things that a database can do

(3) there is a proliferation of database initiatives in the world  
today, all soaking up funding like a sponge

(4) all other database initiatives suffer more or less from a  
difficulty in obtaining good information and keeping it up-to-date, so  
the reality with such databases is that although they have the ability  
to answer useful questions, the answers they give you will be limited  
by the quantity, quality and up-to-date-ness of the information that  
they contain. In other words, they will give you an answer, but what  
is that answer worth?

So, my only message is: how many more times do we need to reinvent the  
wheel? Wikispecies exists, is free, and can be used to store and  
retrieve vast amounts of taxonomic information, so let's all just make  
sure that we use it to full advantage. I may have said in a previous  
email to this list that we ought to discourage the use of databases  
other than Wikispecies, but this is wrong. Instead, we ought, I  
suggest, to discourage the proliferation of such databases, and make  
the most out of what we already have.

Part 2 shortly ...

Stephen



Quoting Tony.Rees at csiro.au:

> Also a reply from me on the same site...
>
> Regards - Tony
>
> ________________________________________
> From: taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu  
> [taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu] On Behalf Of Stephen Thorpe  
> [s.thorpe at auckland.ac.nz]
> Sent: Friday, 7 August 2009 6:09 PM
> To: taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu; r.page at bio.gla.ac.uk
> Subject: Re: [Taxacom] Wikispecies is not a database
>
> replied on blog
>
> S
>
> Quoting Roderic Page <r.page at bio.gla.ac.uk>:
>
>> The recent discussion about Wikispecies has prompted me to write a
>> short blog post:
>> http://iphylo.blogspot.com/2009/08/wikispecies-is-not-database.html
>>
>> Regards
>>
>> Rod
>>
>>
>> ---------------------------------------------------------
>> Roderic Page
>> Professor of Taxonomy
>> DEEB, FBLS
>> Graham Kerr Building
>> University of Glasgow
>> Glasgow G12 8QQ, UK
>>
>> Email: r.page at bio.gla.ac.uk
>> Tel: +44 141 330 4778
>> Fax: +44 141 330 2792
>> AIM: rodpage1962 at aim.com
>> Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1112517192
>> Twitter: http://twitter.com/rdmpage
>> Blog: http://iphylo.blogspot.com
>> Home page: http://taxonomy.zoology.gla.ac.uk/rod/rod.html
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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