Askville
Encyclopedia
Askville is a user-driven research site founded by Amazon.com
and opened to the public on December 8, 2006.
, previously co-founder of Kozmo.com
(closed in 2001). The documentary film e-Dreams
(2001
) portrays the fate of the company. Amazon.com
was an investor in Kozmo.com.
Unlike the Google Answers
service (2002-2006), Askville is designed to run much like a computer game. Users gain or lose "experience points" in particular topics as they answer questions in those topics, depending on how good their answer is. Users also receive "quest gold" by asking and answering questions, and by voting on the worth of other people's answers. In the past, these coins could be redeemed for items in an Askville store. The store is out of stock at present and there is no indication when, or if, it will open again.
Also unlike other question-answer sites, Askville has evolved into a social community as well as an information site. This is primarily due to their discussion boards, where Askvillians can enter into long discussions sparked by individual questions. Though indeed sparked by the questions, discussions often take on a personality of their own. No "experience points" or "quest gold" are awarded for discussions, but many Askvillians have come to value the give-and-take, the bickering, and especially the supportive friendships made there.
There are a variety of topics for questions, many user created. Besides answering factual and opinion questions, members can help others identify a book remembered from childhood or find a special recipe. There is a strong camaraderie among many of the members.
As of August 2008, members of the Askville community complained of a lack of moderation and participation from the Askville administrators. In response, Askville appointed a community manager to track and handle user feedback, and the site management made a commitment to more effectively enforce their policies. The voting system underwent a major revision, including the addition of anonymous voting.
In 2009, staff announced that work on Questville, a planned addition to Askville, had stopped.
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
and opened to the public on December 8, 2006.
History
Askville was co-founded by Korean-American former investment banker Joseph ParkJoseph Park
Joseph Park is a Korean American investment banker that founded Kozmo.com in 1997. He was profiled in the documentary film e-Dreams. He is a co-founder of Askville, which is owned by Amazon.com...
, previously co-founder of Kozmo.com
Kozmo.com
Kozmo.com was a venture-capital-driven online company that promised free one-hour delivery of "videos, games, dvds, music, mags, books, food, basics & more" and Starbucks coffee in several major cities in the United States. It was founded by young investment bankers Joseph Park, Yong Kang and...
(closed in 2001). The documentary film e-Dreams
E-Dreams
e-Dreams is a 2001 American documentary film directed by Wonsuk Chin portraying the rise and fall of Kozmo.com, an online convenience store that utilized bike messengers to deliver goods ordered online within an hour....
(2001
2001 in film
The year 2001 in film involved some significant events, including the first of the Harry Potter series and also the first of The Lord of the Rings trilogy...
) portrays the fate of the company. Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
was an investor in Kozmo.com.
Unlike the Google Answers
Google Answers
Google Answers was an online knowledge market offered by Google that allowed users to post bounties for well researched answers to their queries. Asker-accepted answers cost $2 to $200. Google retained 25% of the researcher's reward and a 50 cent fee per question. In addition to the researcher's...
service (2002-2006), Askville is designed to run much like a computer game. Users gain or lose "experience points" in particular topics as they answer questions in those topics, depending on how good their answer is. Users also receive "quest gold" by asking and answering questions, and by voting on the worth of other people's answers. In the past, these coins could be redeemed for items in an Askville store. The store is out of stock at present and there is no indication when, or if, it will open again.
Also unlike other question-answer sites, Askville has evolved into a social community as well as an information site. This is primarily due to their discussion boards, where Askvillians can enter into long discussions sparked by individual questions. Though indeed sparked by the questions, discussions often take on a personality of their own. No "experience points" or "quest gold" are awarded for discussions, but many Askvillians have come to value the give-and-take, the bickering, and especially the supportive friendships made there.
There are a variety of topics for questions, many user created. Besides answering factual and opinion questions, members can help others identify a book remembered from childhood or find a special recipe. There is a strong camaraderie among many of the members.
As of August 2008, members of the Askville community complained of a lack of moderation and participation from the Askville administrators. In response, Askville appointed a community manager to track and handle user feedback, and the site management made a commitment to more effectively enforce their policies. The voting system underwent a major revision, including the addition of anonymous voting.
In 2009, staff announced that work on Questville, a planned addition to Askville, had stopped.
Askville Awards
Askville launched the Askville Awards in April 2009. These awards are an attempt by Askville to reward its long-standing and active members and motivate the newer members. There are currently several different awards, including the Veteran Award and the Orientation Award. The former for members who have been with Askville for a year or more, and the latter for the members who are new to the site. Awards show up on the Public Profiles of all members.See also
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External links
- Askville
- Turker Nation - a forum created by workers to discuss requesters, HITs, and MTurk in general