Wikipedia users still mad about tech

Angus Kidman
Thursday, 21 December 2006 05:33

Your IT - Home IT

It might cover everything from science to sex, but Wikipedia's most popular entries are largely on technology topics, a new study reveals.

According to data from Nielsen Buzzmetrics, the most commonly cited Wikipedia entry amongst US users in 2006 was for Web 2.0, the catch-all term commonly used to describe interactive, community-driven Internet applications.

Other Web 2.0-related terms dominated the list, with blog coming in at number 4, AJAX in fifth place, and meme at number 8. The concept of a Wiki itself rated number 9, and RSS, the feed technology which drives many Web 2.0 sites, came tenth.

Even the news stories which made up much of the rest of the list had a clear technology orientation. The Mark Foley scandal. which saw the US congressman resign after sending sexually explicit instant messages to young male congressional pages, came in at number 3.

Snakes On A Plane, the Samuel L Jackson movie which proved that Internet hype doesn't always translate at the box office, took the number 7 slot.

Arguably, only two entries on the list -- the late Steve Irwin at number 2 and World War II and number 6 -- had no clear tech connection.

Irwin also topped a recent ranking of Yahoo!'s most popular searches in Australia. Paris Hilton, deemed the most newsworthy topic by Google searchers, was, perhaps fortunately, nowhere to be seen.

Nielsen BuzzMetrics Top 10 Cited Wikipedia Entries - 2006
1 Web 2.0
2 Steve Irwin
3 Mark Foley Scandal
4 Blog
5 Ajax
6 World War II
7 Snakes On A Plane
8 Meme
9 Wiki
10 RSS