"was going write my dissertation today"

I wasn't aware that dissertations were a one-day sort of project.

I wasn't aware that Wikipedia was a valid source for research at the level of a dissertation.

Maybe Wikipedia should do this on a frequent but unannounced basis, just to screw with the lazy and stupid.

Of course, if we get laws like SOPA/PIPA, Wikipedia would go from a semi-useful research tool to either a PR source for the rich and powerful or non-existent every day. But you probably already knew that because us bunnies iz smarts!

A lotta "WTFs" in those tweets, heh.

The blackout was a terrifically effective stroke to raise awareness of SOPA & PIPA... or it would be if the complaining, confused users bothered to read the blackout page. Those tweets suggest that many of them haven't. WTF TWEETERS?

I knew this was coming, but it still jolted me when I woke up in the wee hours with a story idea and wanted to do some quick research on a particular piece of folklore before I started typing. I wouldn't use it as a scholarly source but Wiki is a mighty handy resource for quick-and-dirty info gathering.

Very proud to support Wikipedia and Matt today. A little dash of cold water may help some people take a closer look at SOPA before it shuts down our favorite sites for real.

"How do you expect me to study/learn anything this quarter?"

Wellll dude, I really hadn't had a lot of hopes in that direction anyway, to be honest.

I don't think the disdain for annoyed students from non-student adults is really a good response. Non-students are not on a deadline and being affected...

I can assure you, Firas, that my disdain is not for students but for anyone who takes Wikipedia seriously as a source for anything more than informal enlightenment/entertainment.

As a more-or-less perpetual student myself, my own head-shaking at this outcry springs from a few sources:
- Wikipedia has been promoting this for days; every time I've visited this week, there's been a banner announcing the blackout. How is it that frequent users, people who apparently depend upon Wikipedia for their daily well-being, didn't know this was coming?
- Wikipedia is generally a pretty lousy source for academic writing, though I acknowledge that it's one way to jumpstart a search for primary sources. I'm skeptical about the academic dedication of students who A) think of it as a primary source and B) didn't head there until the last minute.
- Even a non-techy like me can think of ways to get around the blackout: read the cached version, stop loading the page before the blackout. The info actually is available.
- It's not Wikipedia's fault that they didn't plan ahead for their deadlines.

But mostly I think it's odd that so many frustrated would-be Wikipedia users seem to be mystified by the blackout, when just reading the blackout page explains it.

What's a primary source? I thought Wikipedia had everything? Heh.

Anyway, some of those are clearly jokes (what does Wikipedia have against soap?) but others are too tragic to be anything but real (If Wikipedia gets shut down.. It's all Obama's fault and that's gay as hell)

I want to reply to each and every possibly serious tweet, and that is the key reason I am happy I don't have a twitter account. I'd spend my time shouting at the internet.

I love all the misguided outrage against Obama, despite the fact he has already promised to veto any PIPA/SOPA legislation that crosses his desk.

Cue the music: "I believe that children are our futuuuuuuure...."

Everything Elsa said!