VassarWiki:An encyclopedia and more

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This page reflects the position of User:EdwardNWM. It is not meant to reflect VassarWiki consensus. If you disagree, consider discussing on the talk page or writing another page.

Most people have only been exposed to wikis through reading Wikipedia, or perhaps a fan wiki like the Minecraft wiki. As a result, many people erroneously believe that "wiki" is just another term for an online encyclopedia. The term "wiki" describes any website collaboratively edited and managed by its audience through a web browser. As a result, wikis are able to serve a variety of purposes beyond encyclopedias, including collective note-taking, code documentation, and project management.

VassarWiki aims to primarily serve as a way to share knowledge among the Vassar community. As such, it can be viewed an encyclopedia in a loose sense, a compendium of knowledge about Vassar. However, the term "encyclopedia" fails to encompass the community-building that is integral to the project.

VassarWiki is also not "Wikipedia for Vassar". There already is a Wikipedia for Vassar: Wikipedia. VassarWiki has a similar but distinct mission to Wikipedia, which can hopefully be made clear through the table below:

	VassarWiki	Wikipedia
Purpose	To facilitate the sharing and organization of knowledge for the Vassar community, archiving it along the way. It serves as a host for primary, secondary, and tertiary sources.	To organize and archive the world's knowledge in an encyclopedia, a tertiary source.
Scope	There is no "notability" requirement for inclusion. Inclusion is contingent on being somehow related to Vassar College, whether that's campus life, history, scholarship, or something else.	Inclusion is contingent on notability, generally determined through inclusion in reliable sources. All subjects can be written on, within limits.
POV	Articles are written from a neutral point of view, but non-neutral content on user pages is encouraged.	All articles are written from a neutral point of view.
Tone	As of June 9, 2026, there are no guidelines on tone for articles. User page content can be written in any tone.	Articles are written in a formal, impersonal, and dispassionate tone.
Audience	Articles are written primarily to the Vassar community, especially when an encyclopedia article on that subject already exists.	Articles are written to a global audience.
Sources	Content should generally be accompanied by sources of many types, including oral history. The reliability of sources is considered only to resolve disputes. "Original research" is allowed, but must be designated as such through sourcing.	All content must be supported by sources deemed reliable by the community. Original research is not allowed on articles.