William Offield - A Stub of Stub

---

---

William Offield!! Who was he?

He was probably the first settler of Indiana.

I teach American history in Punjab India in college affiliated to Punjab University. I am interested in the American history articles. Therefore, movement, I reached this article, and read the date 1821, I read the article. There is nothing in it. Is it a biography? No.

Is it trying to record one and only one event in the history of America that a settler (was a title holder or mere a squattor) came to a new place?

There are quite attractive photographs of wild on display. There are references to book of histories. But, the content does not qualify the heading William Offield.

There is no discussion as such. Even the editors have not found it a Stub class article.

It is a stub class article which tells only one event about a person and the person as such remains unidentified.

Check the link

William Offield - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

---

---

Mohammed Alim Khan : A new browsing

---

---

I reached the article through a different route. I call it a new route. However, I am not going to make a category for it.

Well, there are other links on the main page which can also be used for general browsing. There are categories displayed on the upper side. Among those categories, there is link to Biography.

Being a student of history, biography attracts. Biographies are generally accepted as a part of literature of the language in which it is written and historians use it as source. Mere biography is not considered history as such. That is other thing that in some definitions, History is generally rated as a subject which is based on biographies. Well, that is now fully discarded and such an approach is generally adopted while writing political history.

The article was shown under selected portrait.

Is it really a photograph of Mohammed Alim Khan?

I was attracted towards it because in a small snippet it was written that Emir ruled over Bukhara. Bukhara as a name of a place appears during the Medieval History of India. But, we generally do not find much details on the background of the people of that period. In case of A L Srivastva, I read with full attention the activities of Babar before he became the ruler of Kabul. However, similar details are not found as such.

I was highly disappointed with the contents of this article. The discussion virtually reflects the objections of even general readers who had participated in developing this article. First of the details of the family background of Emir is doubtful but it is displayed. On the discussion section, the right objection has been raised. Similarly, the very authenticity of the photograph is questioned and there is a point. However, there is no one there to authenticate it. Rather great stress is given to the caption or rather detail provided under the photograph. It is shown to have been clicked in 1911. But, the quality of photograph seems to be result of latest technology. Even Wilson, or for that Churchill or any other leader from 1910 to 1945 were not lucky to have such a photograph.

The contents are highly doubtful in nature.

Mohammed Alim Khan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dance and Dancers in Ancient Egypt - Flip to Selection

---

---

Dances and Dancers in Ancient Egypt seems to have many 'firsts' to it.

It has a different formatting.

It is a long article but does not have a single interlink.

There are references but all of them are from online digital sources. There is a book in reference and even that has a link on books.google.com.

There is no discussion at present.

It is a recent article which started on July 17, 2009. It is a long article but very few edits. It is started by editor N.said which does not have given any biodata about himself.

The article has only one category and that is Ancient Egyptian Culture.

The opening paragraph is very nicely written and shows that it is original writing written by a person who has good understanding of the topic from historic perspective.However, the rest of the detail is not all that impressive. It lacks the quality because there are very less number of references and quotes. Secondly, interlinks are not there.

On the whole, I have found it a unique article.

This link is as follows:
Dance and Dancers in Ancient Egypt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

---

---

Louis Boullogne - and one Random

---

---

Louis Boullogne was a Frnech painter. It does not have any discussion. It has few lines on the person as the subject.
Louis Boullogne - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

---

---

.
Dance and Dancers in Ancient Egypt
The title attracts. I must read it and make a separate posting on it. I change the heading of the post to one Random

---

---

Noble M15 - First Vehicle on Random Click

---

---

I am definitely interested in cars. I desire to learn more about sports car. However, I do not have much knowledge about them. Secondly, I do not know about the leading European car manufacturers.

This was the first such article on Sports Car or at least on a motorized vehicle which appeared on using Random article option. Noble M15 is a sports car of Noble automotive of England and designed by Lee Noble.

The article was created on July 31, 2006 by Jaganath, a word which sounds like an Indian word Jagan Nath.

There is no discussion on the talk page. Even the edit page is confined to one age only since 2006. In external links, there is link to the Homepage of the manufacturer.

Comment

There is only one link under External link category. The suggested link is the official page of the manufacturer. I have not visited the manufacturer page. I have developed this feeling that the Wikipedia is very discretely used as a Public Relation Device and advertisement board. I have collected some examples and developed an impression about their collective nature. I think that those who are in the filed of marketing may be interested in that. Or rather, they are already on the job and I am just discovering their game which is going on Wikipedia.

The link to the article is hinged below:

Noble M15 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

---

---

Italian War of 1542–1546 : Main page Featured Article

---

---

Today, it is September 25, 2009. It has again happened that the featured article has attracted my attention. I have not got the chance to open the Wikipedia for any purpose as the erratic electricity supply does not allow you enough time to spend on the computer and exploring net becomes a far cry for that. However, it is evening in India, an hopefully, the electricity will continue for couple of hours.

My interest is in Renaissance period. I am actually infatuated by this period of European history. It is the reading of this period, which has fixed my faith in the subject which I teach for my living. Renaissance as a cultural revolution had taken place when there was political instability. It is something which is opposite to established view that the cultural renaissance take place when there is political stability. Secondly, it was the reading of Hayes that raised my faith in the reading of history. Therefore, whenever I come across anything related to Renaissance period or any part of High Middle Ages or the Early Modern Age, as it is being now identified, I get attracted towards it. My interest is generally about 19th century, the age of Historians as Lyall would love to call it. It is not by the calendar reading that the history is generally studied. It is just a norm to study history after periodization. I should say that I am generally interested in anything between 1710 to 1910. For me, that is the nineteen century, the age of historians. The 1710, the age of Enlightenment, the age of Plutarch, just make you to look behind further and you are interested in Middle Ages.

Anyhow, it is Renaissance, the cultural revolution interest which made me to hurriedly go through the article. The main interest is that I have tried to read, with the constraint of not knowing European languages except English, anything about renaissance. One of the feature of Renaissance was the political instability. When you read about renaissance, every feature of it is found clubbed at a place in a book, but the books which I have read, there is reference to political fluid nature but the wars are not discussed as such. Therefore, here, were I read that there was a war between 1542 to 1546, the obvious thing was to get the peep into the whole article. It was a hurried reading. I found that it was not the only war but it had been preceded by another Italian war. Secondly, the references there were from titles which carried the term 'Renaissance'. However, the writers have used a specific set of sources only and one name repeats again and again.

In discussion section, there is a debate. It is for the first time I have observed that the debate remains among the people who want to discuss. The debate is short though under one heading there is a long dialogue. Secondly is among the best written article by the Wikipedia community as stated there.

I have yet to read it and read it with my approach of getting into every interlink. I needed an article wherein in wars during Renaissance period are discussed. I believe and hope, now I have one of it.

I will further add to it.

Link Structure:
One thing more I have identified in this case. It is the first url on Wikipedia which has a number in it.

The link is given below.
Italian War of 1542–1546 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

---

---

Ross Sea party

---

---

Ross Sea Party is today's Featured Article. I was not much interested in reading this article but the world Antarctica attracted my attention. I did not have conceptual clarity of both the poles. Therefore, I entered into the article. It was a story of adventure which took place in 1914-1917.

My interested was also evoked because India is establishing her third station Materi. Therefore, apart from reading the opening paragraph, I also went for interlink on Antarctica as well as the fresh sheet of North pole. All the three articles were worth reading but they are quite long. As far as the Ross Sea Party is concerned, it has equally interesting details which I have yet to read.

For reference check the link which follows: 

Ross Sea party - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


COMMENT:

It is interesting to note that article is quite long. Even the article on Antarctic is equally a lengthy affair. No doubt, the first comment in the discussion section of the Ross Sea party refers to that feature. It seems that this stands as it is now after the editing. Previously, there might have been some more details. It seems that those details were about the hardships and the related stories which the editors have pruned to bring it to the level of  encyclopaedia. However, for me, what actually is Encyclopaedia level? There are numerous references even.

On the other hand, Antarctica article is equally a long article but highly substantiated by graphs, maps and photographs. Secondly, the discussion is so alive that it has been archived. Some times I feel that Wikipedia is actually being used as Public Relation exercise and also a propaganda shout board and Wikipedia Foundation is just allowing that. I am going to write a post that how it is being used as a marketing place. I am having this plan for some days but it just happens that I am delaying it. On the whole, this article has not allowed me to push the Random button.

In addition to that, I have found that there is need of stating one more policy decision. It seems to be policy announcement day here on this blog. Most of the articles are having interlinks. Interlinks are those which take you to another article available on the Wikipedia itself. It is a very useful feature. I had even tried to develop my notes like that by using interlinks between various Word files and Paste Special Feature. Now, I am also going to make another category and that is Article of Interlinks.    

---

---

Flip Record and Sideline Comments

I add two new categories namely FLIP RECORD AND SIDELINE COMMENTS

FLIP RECORD
I have not posted for some days. It is not that I have not used the Random Button. However, I have not made any entries on the blog. I have added to zotero addon number of articles with note on what I am suppose to right on them. I am not lethargic. The main problem is long hour cuts and erratic supply of electricity. The Punjab Government is really following a wrong economics. It is giving free electricity to the farmers but make the urban lower Middle class income group to pay for them while their activities are being reduced. It is hampering my activity which is to study for my job. Whenever there is electric supply, the priority is to attend to the professional job. I am facing the same problem again. I am writing on what I am reading. The writing pads are piling up. They are to be preserved in electronic form so that I may use them when they are needed. It here that Wikipedia is having its value. I do not how people from other trade value the significance of Wikipedia. But for a teacher, research scholar and those who have to get the information at the shortest possible time, idea behind wikipedia is a blessing in disguise.

In any case, I have not stopped from flipping through wikipedia even in the time which is short for this activity. But, I am not able to read, evaluate and develop my classification on the basis of the information which I gather from the portal.

Hence, now onwards, I will make noting of all such articles, where I would have read few lines. It is goes against the earlier policy decision where I have envisaged that I will write only on those topics which attracts me when I locate them on wikipedia. That policy is still their but there is a corollary to it now. I believe that both the policies could go side by side.

SIDELINE COMMENTS.
Presently, there is a letter by Jimmy Wales and Michael Show displayed on the core section of the wikipedia and it is displayed on all pages. They have invited the readers to participate in Wikimedia project. There are many more sections on Wikipedia like Wikiuniversity, Wikiquotes, Wikidictionaries etc on this portal. However, I would like to remain confined to Wikipedia as an open encyclopaedia. I am not closed to their offer but I will like to concentrate on Wikipedia for the time being. But, there is a side story also. There is a controversy going on about the actual pioneer and founder of Wikipedia. In the letter, the Jimmy has shown himself as the founder. Now, there is story behind it. It is there on the main article on Jimmy Wales itself.

Similarly, there are many blogs which are spinoff of activities of Wikipedia. My blog can be cited as one of the example. Similarly there are other blogs also which can be located with the help of blogger search engines. They also deserve attention but they are not part of wikipedia. However, they are definitely related to the Wikipedia in one sense. I am sure that the officers of Wikipedia are watching them. I can discern from the details of my site meter that even my blog which is hardly three weeks old by now, is being visited by some specific visitors. I believe that my entry on Jimmy Wales has been visited by Jimmy or someone authorized by him on a mobile device. Such things are Sideline Comment categories.