this post was submitted on 26 Dec 2024
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politics

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[–] Glide@lemmy.ca 150 points 2 days ago (1 children)

A freely accessible collection of human knowledge? Of course authoritarians hate it. An informed populace is their enemy.

[–] kchr@lemmy.sdf.org 12 points 2 days ago

All under the guise of "free speech". Which, as we all know, means speech that align with Elon's currently held opinions.

[–] shoulderoforion@fedia.io 86 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Just made my donation to Wikipedia, never have before, this news is as good a prompt as I could have ever received Fuck Elon Musk

[–] MegaUltraChicken@lemmy.world 47 points 2 days ago (2 children)

You inspired me. Let's keep it rolling.

[–] ReducedArc@lemmy.world 1 points 3 hours ago* (last edited 3 hours ago)
[–] ahhhuevo@lemmy.world 9 points 2 days ago

Just donated

I donated last night. The Christmas spirit moved me

[–] satanmat@lemmy.world 51 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Do you want me to donate to Wikipedia? Because NOW I’m going to donate to Wikipedia

[–] AlecSadler@sh.itjust.works 24 points 2 days ago (2 children)

This news caused me to set up a recurring monthly donation, where I haven't actually donated to Wikipedia historically.

[–] satanmat@lemmy.world 16 points 2 days ago

Actually thank you. Yep monthly I’ve have now set up

Thanks Elon.

[–] buddascrayon@lemmy.world 6 points 1 day ago

Same. $5 a month is a small price to pay to ensure that Wikipedia remains free of this turd's influence.

[–] 474D@lemmy.world 18 points 2 days ago

I will join you

[–] BlameThePeacock@lemmy.ca 68 points 2 days ago
[–] lolola@lemmy.blahaj.zone 61 points 2 days ago (3 children)

Guess who's getting their first donation ever from me.

Wait, maybe that's what he wanted to have happen. Maybe?

[–] 9point6@lemmy.world 37 points 2 days ago (1 children)

I'm at the point now where I believe every possible thing he wants will be to the detriment of humanity.

He almost certainly does not want that

I think I'll do the same

[–] IchNichtenLichten@lemmy.world 12 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Eh. He wants to be king of Mars. Making life as shit as possible on Earth would certainly help speed that process up.

[–] pelespirit@sh.itjust.works 7 points 2 days ago (1 children)

King of Mars while living on earth. Do you really think he'd want to live there? He might visit once, but probably by VR.

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[–] riskable@programming.dev 5 points 2 days ago

We should speed that along and send him there soon.

[–] buddascrayon@lemmy.world 8 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Please do not assign reverse altruism to horrible actions being done by horrible people.

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[–] 58008@lemmy.world 46 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Could someone please take aim at Elon Musk?

[–] danekrae@lemmy.world 32 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Will no one rid me of this turbulent apartheidist?

[–] satanmat@lemmy.world 6 points 2 days ago

Nice deep cut reference there. Well done

[–] AlecSadler@sh.itjust.works 6 points 2 days ago

One can dream.

[–] ininewcrow@lemmy.ca 36 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Reminds me to donate to Wikipedia ..... and download another updated copy of the entire Wikipedia database.

[–] Plagiatus@lemmy.world 10 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Got any links on how to do that?

[–] kchr@lemmy.sdf.org 15 points 2 days ago (1 children)

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Database_download

Kiwix seems to be the most popular app to browse offline web pages like this.

[–] ininewcrow@lemmy.ca 5 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

I've only ever used Kiwix ... it's the easiest and most easily installable on different devices.

I've downloaded the entire database about six times now over the past few years. I keep a duplicated copy everywhere ... laptop, tablet, storage drive, portable drive, smartphone ... in multiple places at home / cottage / relatives place

My latest download will only be to have an updated copy as my last one is about a year old.

I don't like doomsday prepping and I don't really prepare for anything. I've been self sufficient all my life and if the world ends, I'll be able to make do on my own, I always have. But when it comes to knowledge and information, keeping a copy of Wikipedia is no-brainer for me.

[–] kchr@lemmy.sdf.org 2 points 1 day ago

I'm not the prepper person either, but I like to be self-sufficient and not be overly reliant on modern technology. My primary use case has been during travels.

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[–] Chainweasel@lemmy.world 18 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Well, I'd been putting it off so I figured this was the push I needed to donate again

[–] IDKWhatUsernametoPutHereLolol@lemmy.dbzer0.com 22 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Wikipedia is a good cause, but I feel like archive.org is in dire need of fundings.

Then English wikipedia is only about 100GB (excluding videos), archive.org is in the TERABYTES with some report of it being in PETABYTES. They need funding to keep up the maintenance of their storage and backups, and for the bandwith for people to access it. They've been attacked by hackers a few months ago so they'll need better security and that might cost money. They are under constant lawsuits over alleged copyright issues, lawsuits cost a lot of money. They're gonna need more funding than wikipedia to survive. I think Wikipedia already has enough funding to survive for quite a while.

Edit: What I means is, for every $5 wikipedia needs, archive.org might need like $50

So if you want to help both, the ratio of donations should be at least 10 to 1 (ratio between archive.org and Wikipedia)

[–] tiefling@lemmy.blahaj.zone 7 points 2 days ago

Just sent them $50 as well. Thanks for reminding me, Musk!

[–] phoneymouse@lemmy.world 39 points 2 days ago (1 children)

I have my issues with Wikipedia, and he’s not wrong about the concentration of power amongst editors. However, fuck Elon Musk. He’s just mad that he can’t control Wikipedia himself.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 16 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (3 children)

he’s not wrong about the concentration of power amongst editors

The classic problem of an open-edit document like Wikipedia is the manpower it takes to manage the project properly relative to the incentives to fuck with it by malicious actors. Elon's answer to this problem is to monetize the sinking ship to the hilt and then use the excess revenues to buy the next new thing. The Jimmy Wales approach is to build out a network of trusted administrators and semi-trusted volunteers to play wack-a-mole on this one single project forever.

Originally, the theory of Wikipedia was that you'd have far more good actors than bad. Therefore, the bulk of the encyclopedia would accumulate useful information that went largely unmolested and didn't need to be babysat by live humans. This... hasn't proven to be the case. So the costs of the website continue to expand as the content base does.

Automation of spammers, scammers, and malicious actors has made the problem even more difficult. And I have no doubt that Elon's own digital vandalism efforts have taken their toll as well. There's simply too much economic incentive to fuck with the public's understanding of the world for a project like Wikipedia to go ignored.

I'm afraid its days are ultimately numbered, precisely because too many people trust it.

[–] WhiskyTangoFoxtrot@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I'm proud to downvote this screed of baseless doomsaying but I'm dismayed at the fact that I'm the only one doing so.

Just goes to show that you come to Lemmy because of the potential of a federated platform, not for the reality of its current community (which is absolute garbage.)

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

this screed of baseless doomsaying

If you think enshittification can't come for you, its only a matter of time before you're proven wrong.

If you think that enshittification of all platforms everywhere is completely inevitable and we should just throw up our hands and give up at the slightest threat then you're unfortunately in good company here.

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[–] Live_Let_Live@lemmy.world 18 points 2 days ago (1 children)

this guy is really good at making enemies

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 10 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

He's a vulture capitalist. Very good at finding ways to cannibalize a nice public thing for the benefit of a handful of private malicious actors.

That's always going to make enemies. But so what? You're a vulture. You can always pick up and leave today, then find another wounded animal to prey on tomorrow.

[–] NocturnalMorning@lemmy.world 17 points 2 days ago

Never donated to Wikipedia in my life, but now I do, and its monthly. It's not much, but it's honestly work.

[–] FlowVoid@lemmy.world 12 points 2 days ago

Thank you Elon for reminding me to donate.

[–] MummifiedClient5000@feddit.dk 13 points 2 days ago

Leon Skum urges people not to donate? That's a good reason to donate.

[–] DogPeePoo@lemm.ee 12 points 2 days ago

He’s such a snowflake

[–] empireOfLove2@lemmy.dbzer0.com 12 points 2 days ago

Fuck you I'm gonna donate even harder

[–] CharlesDarwin@lemmy.world 9 points 2 days ago

Leave it to wingnut trolls like Musk to politicize everything.

Musk is such a dumbass.

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