Wikipedia offers access offline
BBC News, UK - 34 minutes ago
Nearly 2000 Wikipedia articles will be sold on compact disc to give people without a net connection access to highlights of the popular web resource. ...

Wikipedia articles are sold on CD to give people without a net connection access to the web resource.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...ogy/6566749.stm

Pop quiz:

(1) What percentage of the world's functioning computers with access to electricity and a working CD-ROM drive, do not have access to the Internet?

My guess is -- 3%.

(2) What percentage of the people or organizations who own such a computer would have the means and desire to spring $14 for a collection of less than 2,000 encyclopedia articles?

My guess is -- 1%.

If there are a billion functioning computers with a CD-ROM drive, then one percent of three percent would predict sales of 300,000 of these discs. Why do I get the impression that I am erring way too far on the optimistic side?

Greg

Online encyclopedia reaches out to unconnected

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...ne-57dbc65.html

Wikipedia offers access offline
BBC News, UK - 4 hours ago
Nearly 2000 Wikipedia articles will be sold on compact disc to give people without a net connection access to highlights of the popular web resource. ...

As far as I remember, I paid ?ú9.99 for the entire Encyclopaedia Britannica on CD. Even at current exchange rates, that's not vastly more than $14.

I think I read somewhere that 1/3 of Americans do not have Internet access and do not wish it. They may have computers, but they'd have to buy the Wikipedia CDs in order to see what Wikipedia has to offer.

Hmmm... No disrespect intended of course, but I think that's a fundamentally flawed premise. People with CD-ROM drives but no internet access might comprise the majority of the target market for a product like this, but I doubt they'd be a majority of the actual buyers. I would think most buyers would be people who just happen to like/enjoy/appreciate Wikipedia, for some weird reason or other...

And as Guy suggests, why pay $14 for something you can get online for free, when there's a better and more extensive alternative out there that only costs a few bucks more? So there goes the non-fan demographic right out the window.

No disrespect inferred, Somey. Sometimes, I just like to play around with a Fermi problem when it presents itself.

Greg

Wikipedia offers access offline
Reformatorisch Dagblad, Netherlands - 1 hour ago
ST. PETERSBURG - Nearly 2000 Wikipedia articles will be sold on compact disc to give people without a net connection access to highlights of the popular web ...

Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors in the collaborative online encyclopedia by adding or changing entries themselves.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...kipedia_on_cd_1

Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors in the collaborative online encyclopedia by adding or changing entries themselves.



http://www.newsvine.com/_news/2007/04/24/6...available-on-cd

Static Wikipedia now available on CD
Macon Telegraph, GA - 20 minutes ago
By ANICK JESDANUN - AP Internet Writer. Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors ...

So it may seem odd that Wikipedia volunteers are now working on a static version on CD, a preliminary version of which was released earlier this month.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...rynumber=392785

Static Wikipedia Now Available on CD
Wyoming News, WY - 18 minutes ago
By ANICK JESDANUN Tuesday, April 24, 2007. NEW YORK - Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new ...

Static Wikipedia Now Available on CD
San Francisco Chronicle, CA - 15 minutes ago
By ANICK JESDANUN, AP Internet Writer. Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors ...

Static Wikipedia Now Available on CD
FOX News - 1 hour ago
NEW YORK — Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors in the collaborative online ...

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...L&feed=rss.news

Static Wikipedia Now Available on CD
Lompoc Record, CA - 12 minutes ago
By ANICK JESDANUN. NEW YORK - Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors in the ...

Wikipedia to be made available on a CD
TechWhack, India - 15 minutes ago
The people behind the open source encyclopedia project are working on a static version of the Wikipedia to be stored on a CD. ...

Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors in the collaborative online encyclopedia. So it may seem odd that Wikipedia volunteers are now working on a static version on CD.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...om/id/18292264/

Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors in the collaborative online encyclopedia by adding or changing entries themselves.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...kipedia_on_cd_3

WIKIPEDIA volunteers have begun working on an offline version of the online encyclopaedia that can be distributed on CD.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...from=public_rss

So it may seem odd that Wikipedia volunteers are now working on a static version on CD, a preliminary version of which was released earlier this month.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...rynumber=393568

Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors in the collaborative online encyclopedia by adding or changing entries themselves. So it may seem odd that Wikipedia volunteers are now working on a static version on CD.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...cd_N.htm?csp=34

Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc.../d8on3jvo0.html

Static Wikipedia Now Available on CD
Wyoming News, WY - 12 minutes ago
By ANICK JESDANUN Wednesday, April 25, 2007. NEW YORK - Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new ...

Wikipedia is working on a CD version of their encyclopedia website.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...ect=IOLTechHome

Wikipedia released on CD
Inquirer, UK - 52 minutes ago
By Nick Farrell: Wednesday 25 April 2007, 09:49. WIKIPEDIA is to release 2000 of its articles on a CD so that it can be read off-line. ...

WIKIPEDIA is to release 2,000 of its articles on a CD so that it can be read off-line.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...eased%20on%20CD

Wikipedia Without the Web
TechNewsWorld, CA - 16 minutes ago
AP. "Plenty of people do not have Internet access. They have a computer and no Internet, or just a slow Internet connection," said Martin A. Walker, ...

Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors in the collaborative online encyclopedia by adding or changing entries themselves. So it may seem odd that Wikipedia volunteers are now working on a static version on CD, a preliminary version of which was released earlier this month.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...tory/57063.html

Wikipedia Without the Web
E-Commerce Times - 19 minutes ago
AP. "Plenty of people do not have Internet access. They have a computer and no Internet, or just a slow Internet connection," said Martin A. Walker, ...

Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors in the collaborative online encyclopedia by adding or changing entries themselves. So it may seem odd that Wikipedia volunteers are now working on a static version on CD, a preliminary version of which was released earlier this month.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...tory/57063.html

Wikipedia on CD
PC Retail, UK - 2 hours ago
Wikipedia is now available to buy on CD, giving those without internet connections access to its content. Some have speculated that success of the CD could ...

Wikipedia CD version now available
PC Advisor, UK - 49 minutes ago
Although it promises higher-quality articles that have been edited by volunteers, it provides covers far fewer topics than Wikipedia’s website. ...

Wikipedia is pushing ahead with plans to sell CD versions of its online encyclopaedia.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...RSS&newsid=9125

Wikipedia woos the offline world
CNET News.com, CA - 13 minutes ago
A CD featuring about 2000 of the online encyclopedia's "best" articles will be aimed at those without Internet access. By Jo Best ...

Jimmy Wales, co-founder of online collaborative encyclopedia Wikipedia, appears at a press conference at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan in Tokyo, 08 March 2007.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...ef-8b90b3ee5007

Wikipedia DVD to Become Available Soon
Gear Live, WA - 1 hour ago
Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia that depends on volunteers to create its content, is now utilizing some of those volunteers to create a static version. ...

An anonymous reader writes "WikipediaOnDVD, with cooperation with the Wikipedia community, has released its first offline test version. The articles were selected by Wikipedians and reviewed for accuracy, vandalism, and importance. Nearly 2,000 core Wikipedia articles will be sold on compact disc to give people without a net connection access to highlights of the popular web resource. The CD can ...

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...610202&from=rss

Wikipedia Goes Offline, Onto CD
NBC5i.com, TX - 15 minutes ago
NEW YORK -- Remember when an encyclopedia on a CD-ROM seemed like such a cool idea? It was, until the idea of having encyclopedias on the Internet came ...

Any user is allowed to edit the online Wikipedia. But a version will be preserved on CD-ROM.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...&psp=technology

Wikipedia On CD?
Hard OCP, TX - 28 minutes ago
Doesn’t putting a site like Wikipedia on to a CD sort of defeat the purpose? I’m not saying anything is wrong with the idea, it just seems like it runs ...

Wikipedia Goes Offline, Onto CD
WHIOtv.com, OH - 2 hours ago
NEW YORK -- Remember when an encyclopedia on a CD-ROM seemed like such a cool idea? It was, until the idea of having encyclopedias on the Internet came ...

Any user is allowed to edit the online Wikipedia. But a version will be preserved on CD-ROM.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...&psp=technology

Wikipedia working on static CD version for non-Web users
Taipei Times, Taiwan - 21 minutes ago
Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors in the collaborative online ...

Wikipedia's advocates like to tout its dynamic nature: Volunteers can quickly respond to new developments and errors in the collaborative online encyclopedia by adding or changing entries themselves. So it may seem odd that Wikipedia volunteers are now working on a static version on CD, a preliminary version of which was released earlier this month.

Article: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/searc...tory/57063.html

Wikipedia CD Version Now Available
PC World India, India - 20 minutes ago
By Zoe Mutter. A CD version of Wikipedia that’s designed for those with no access to the internet is now available. Although it promises higher-quality ...

Wikipedia to target the offline world
Crave, UK - 28 minutes ago
The world's biggest and best-known online encyclopaedia is going offline for its latest offering. The Wikimedia Foundation, the group behind user-generated ...