some-antics.com

On the topic of Wikipedia, here’s the Art of Wikigroaning:

You see, there are games you can play with Wikipedia. Fun games that you can pass hours upon hours with. I’m not talking about hiding a clue to the supposed sexuality of your high school nemesis in the article about Lieutenant Worf. A nondestructive Wikipedia game was invented last year by my good pals Dr. David Thorpe and Street Cactus, and I have to say that it blows that pedestrian-ass googlewhacking right out of the water.

The premise is quite simple. First, find a useful Wikipedia article that normal people might read. For example, the article called “Knight.” Then, find a somehow similar article that is longer, but at the same time, useless to a very large fraction of the population. In this case, we’ll go with “Jedi Knight.” Open both of the links and compare the lengths of the two articles. Compare not only that, but how well concepts are explored, and the greater professionalism with which the longer article was likely created. Are you looking yet? Get a good, long look. Yeah. Yeeaaah, we know, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. (We’re calling it Wikigroaning for a reason.)

Some of my favorites from the SA post:

Asperger’s vs. Self-confidence

Girlfriend vs. Video games

Gray’s Anatomy vs. Grey’s Anatomy

Armageddon vs. Armageddon (film)

Debate vs. Comparison of Battlestar Galactica (1978) and (2003)

Real life vs. Second Life

Steam vs. Steampunk

Normality (behavior) vs. Furry fandom

List of people who have disappeared vs. Characters of Lost

As of now, there’s still no Wikipedia article about Wikigroaning, but I’m sure someone will get around to it sometime soon. And when that happens, I look forward to Wikigroaning “Wikigroaning” and “Wikipedia”.

EDIT: I really like Girlfriend vs Girlfriend (Avril Lavigne song). Yay for my first stab at Wikigroaning!

emma :: Jun.06.2007 :: misc, pop-culture, nerdiness :: 5 Comments »

Today, while reading about various cults like the Children of God, I stumbled across this Wikipedia article about the Cult Awareness Network, CAN.

The Cult Awareness Network (CAN) was founded in 1978 in the wake of the Jonestown mass suicides. CAN is now owned and operated by associates of the Church of Scientology, an organization that the original founders strongly opposed. Prior to the takeover, CAN provided information on groups that it considered to be cults, as well as support and referrals to so-called deprogrammers.

Supporters and detractors alike use the terms “old CAN” and “new CAN” to refer to the two periods of the organization’s existence.

The whole article is a pretty good read, especially, of course, the part about “new CAN”: how the Church of Scientology sued the “old CAN” into bankruptcy and then bought CAN and all associated branding.

emma :: Jun.06.2007 :: misc :: 3 Comments »

I find the whole lolcat fad to be mostly obnoxious, but lolcode is actually pretty funny.

Here’s the almost familiar program “HAI WORLD”:

HAI
CAN HAS STDIO?
VISIBLE “HAI WORLD!”
KTHXBYE

emma :: Jun.06.2007 :: misc, pop-culture, programming language, programming, nerdiness :: No Comments »