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'''Citizendium''' used to describe itself as a "citizens' compendium of everything", an open [[wiki]] project dedicated to creating a free, comprehensive, and ''reliable'' repository of structured knowledge. The community was to be built on the principles of trust and respect; contributors, or "citizens", would work under their own real names, and all were expected to behave professionally and responsibly. Additionally, experts were invited to play a gentle role in overseeing the structuring of knowledge. The Citizendium [[CZ:Charter|ratified a Charter in 2010]] as an attempt at governanceIt is no longer in effect.
'''[[Welcome_to_Citizendium|Citizendium]]''' is a wiki for providing free knowledge where contributors use their real names.  We regard information as a public good and welcoming anyone who wants to share their knowledge on virtually any subjectOur online community prides itself on being congenial and supportive.


As of 2020, there is a wide consensus that the wiki was unsuccessful in achieving its original goals (see https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-Wikipedia-and-Citizendium)A dedicated few writers have continued working in the wiki, improving articles that they believe are useful, and which for various reasons probably could not be written in Wikipedia.  On or about '''Sept. 30, 2020''', we plan to end Citizendium as a public "open" project, yet (possibly) keep the wiki running and editable by a combination of donations and subscriptionsHow this might occur is still being examined.  
Citizendium's contributors help create online encyclopedia articles that are different from what Wikipedia now offers. We recognize Wikipedia's limitations, and that's why we support Citizendium as an alternative or supplementThe Citizendium provides a different kind of collaborative environment than Wikipedia now offers: '''we use real names''', so you always know whom you are dealing with, and we have a modest number of active authors so that it becomes possible to know each other well.  We strive for objectivity and quality--and civilityPlease see [[CZ:We_aren't_Wikipedia|We aren't Wikipedia]] for more details about how the two platforms differ.  


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It is okay to use The Citizendium as a staging area for an article to be copied elsewhere later (such as to Wikipedia, where it will likely be seen by more eyes), as long as the article meets our stylistic and content guidelines.  Copying our articles to another platform is legal, with the following caveats: the article remains behind on The Citizendium (may not simply be deleted), and at its new home, attribution is given to The Citizendium as per our site license.  In fact, we find these cases interesting to watch over time, to see how the two parallel articles evolve in their different hosts.
We are a growing community, and we'd like to invite you to [[Special:RequestAccount|join us]] in building Citizendium!
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We are a growing community, and we'd like to invite you to join us in building Citizendium! Please use our ''[[Help:Index/Join|Application Process]]'' to join. It typically takes a few days to get a response for an application, so please be patient.

Revision as of 09:15, 19 July 2024

Citizendium is a wiki for providing free knowledge where contributors use their real names. We regard information as a public good and welcoming anyone who wants to share their knowledge on virtually any subject. Our online community prides itself on being congenial and supportive.

Citizendium's contributors help create online encyclopedia articles that are different from what Wikipedia now offers. We recognize Wikipedia's limitations, and that's why we support Citizendium as an alternative or supplement. The Citizendium provides a different kind of collaborative environment than Wikipedia now offers: we use real names, so you always know whom you are dealing with, and we have a modest number of active authors so that it becomes possible to know each other well. We strive for objectivity and quality--and civility. Please see We aren't Wikipedia for more details about how the two platforms differ.

It is okay to use The Citizendium as a staging area for an article to be copied elsewhere later (such as to Wikipedia, where it will likely be seen by more eyes), as long as the article meets our stylistic and content guidelines. Copying our articles to another platform is legal, with the following caveats: the article remains behind on The Citizendium (may not simply be deleted), and at its new home, attribution is given to The Citizendium as per our site license. In fact, we find these cases interesting to watch over time, to see how the two parallel articles evolve in their different hosts.

We are a growing community, and we'd like to invite you to join us in building Citizendium! Please use our Application Process to join. It typically takes a few days to get a response for an application, so please be patient.