I’ve only just discovered and become a follower of Darren Rowse’s excellent Problogger blog and have just finished reading his
“Google Knol – A Wikipedia Killer or a Blog Killer?”

At first my heart sank as I thought…

Well here we go my Blogging career over before it really got started.

A swarm of fears buzzed thru my head like:

• - Google Knol would become the sole directory of information.
• - It would only be admissible to a select inner circle of accepted authors.
• - That if you weren’t in the In Crowd you were nowhere.
• - That my lowly blog would be pushed out of the ether.
   

It was Time to Pack Up and Go Home.

But then, after a while I thought…

“Hang On, Thinking about it…”

“Why didn’t Wikipedia kill off Blogging ages ago ?”

If Google Knol is going to kill off Wikipedia (maybe even killing off at least us lowly bloggers in the process), why weren’t blogs or blogging killed off by Wikipedia ages ago.

It was then that I realised that its because of what it is and how I use it and probably how you do too.

I use it more like a reference library.

There are real world examples to this.

If I want to know what a Digital Camera is, I will look it up in a reference book, which to me is the same as using Wikipedia.

If I want to know which are the best Digital Cameras out there, or how to use a Digital Camera or the best prices for a Digital Camera, then I will get a magazine which is the same to me as finding the info in blogs.

For example…

Only today I needed to know what Ideation meant (I know, strange, but true).

Here’s a snapshot of the results in Google…

Without thinking I went straight to the number one result from Wikipedia and got what I wanted.

Ideation – “the process of creating new ideas, normally for new products”

And that’s when it dawned on me, it was without thinking, I naturally chose Wikipedia.

But if I then wanted to find tips on how to go about Creating New Ideas then this time, again without thinking, I’d pretty much blank out and skip over any entries from Wikipedia, to get to the tips results.

And there’s a good chance that it would be Blogs providing the answers.

Here’s what I’m trying to say in a picture:

So that’s how I’ve naturally filtered out Wikipedia results when they’re not relevant to what I’m looking for and why as far as I’m concerned it hasn’t been the death of Blogs.

All well and good, but what’s that got to do with Google Knoll I hear you ask ?

Well…

It lead to me asking myself other questions like…

“So Is Google Knol really the same as Wikipedia ?”

Like many have said, Knol looks like it has more in common with Squidoo and HubPages than with Wikipedia.

1. Wikipedia has one entry about a topic which is moderated so that even though its open to all, its aim is to provide a single reference on a subject, that will tend to improve in time.
   In that sense Wikipedia is what is says on the box – a free encyclopaedia.
    
2. From what I’ve seen so far, Google Knol on the other hand, isn’t following that model.
   At face value it seems to be offering something similar, but the difference is that it could have loads of pages for one particular subject.
    
3. Wikipedia pages are built by open collaboration where anyone has the opportunity to edit, with editorial safeguards in place to prevent or at least try to prevent them being abused as it moves towards becoming a quality reference.
    
4. Knol pages on the other hand, will be owned and controlled by just a single or a group of authors that have offered themselves as being an authority on the topic.
   Although the intention is for each page in Knol to be an authority page, at the moment at least, the authority of the author is on a voluntary basis and I’ve already seen plenty of Knols where the Biography is empty, never mind verified.
    
5. Also, unlike Wikipedia, the pages in Knol can be closed to editing or collaboration with anyone else, though comments can be posted, even on a closed page.

So to me, from what I’ve seen so far…

I can’t see what the difference is between a Knol and a Blog Post.

“Is Knol Going to be a Wikipedia Killer ?”

I’ve no Crystal Ball…

But having looked at it, I still can’t get past this feeling that Knol is going to me more like an Article Directory or in a funny way similar to a Blog Carnival for each topic, though with some notable differences like author rather than centralised moderation.

(Sorry, couldn’t resist using Wikipedia for the Blog Carnival definition.)

I’m now beginning to think that worrying about Knol killing off Wikipedia is more like me worrying about Blogger.com killing off Wikipedia, I can’t see it happening.

So I’d have to say No to the question.

I think that Wikipedia will continue to be an authority, reference site, that hopefully will maintain our trust and will carry on in the true spirit of a Web 2.0 site.

However…

I’m more than happy to be put straight on that if I’ve missed the big picture here.

“Is Knol really just another Article Directory ?”

I don’t know if it will be just another, but to me is does seem to be more that way inclined.

“Is Google Knol going to kill my Blog ?”

From what I’ve seen so far, I’d have to say No.

But don’t quote me if you see me on Skid Row.

If anything, I see it as yet another opportunity to publish quality content.

Though you may not thank it for adding to your publishing burden.

However…

If you’re producing quality content and if Google get it right and it becomes established as a place to find that quality content, then it could actually help rather than hinder you.

Time will tell as they say…

But at least for now, I’ve laid my fears on whether its going to kill off my Blog or Wikipedia for that matter.

“What Next ?”

Well I still didn’t answer all my questions, particularly about how Google Knol is going to affect search results, but I think I’ll leave that for another post.

What were your first thoughts on Google Knol ?
How do you think it will affect Search Results ?
Are you going to be a Google Knoller ?