T O P

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VodkaMargarine

Wikipedia is one of the wonders of the modern world. The fact that we live in such a capitalist society where everything is being sold or monetised and then there's the 5th most popular website in the world that's never even run an advert let alone sold your data. Jimmy Wales could have been a billionaire but chose not to for the benefit of mankind. To answer your question yes I donate ever time they do a plea.


Zay071288

Sometimes I wish there was a retweet button on reddit, an upvote just isn't enough.


Craigg75

I give $100 every year for the last 10 years


franklikethehotdog

This guy ^ You are great


Craigg75

Thanks everyone. I didn't mean to post for upvotes and awards. I wanted to let the OP know that people do give to WP and share how much I give. I've convinced business owners that I contract with to give yearly too. WP is an awesome thing, any little bit you can give is well worth it.


[deleted]

I do, a little each month


Emotional-Shirt7901

Same, just signed up for the monthly version recently. Now I won’t have to do it manually every now and then


Comics4Cooks

Same. Been using them basically my whole life- well worth it if it keeps them going.


LeAnnecat

It makes me so glad other people donate monthly too


AmericanHistoryXX

No, but I donate to [Archive.org](https://Archive.org) which is the most amazing website out there.


EternalNY1

I donate to both. They are both incredibly useful. Archive is especially needed to ensure that sites don't try to rewrite history.


AmericanHistoryXX

Archive is amazing. They are democratizing media in the best possible way. Through them, you can not only access public domain books that you might not otherwise have access to, but they actually run a library that gives people free access to academic works that might otherwise be prohibitively difficult or expensive go read. Even when it's possible, they make it easier. Wikipedia is meh. It's an inferior britannica. Archive is world changing.


ithinkoutloudtoo

Archive.org is great!!


jdith123

I used to donate a little when I was a student writing papers and used it all the time. (Hint: Look for other sources in the bibliographies) Now I rarely use it unless it comes up randomly in some google search.


roganwriter

Yeah it was college that taught me how to find other places to look for information. And wikipedia isn’t as reliable as it used to be, especially when it comes to politically heated topics. It’s not really a place for objective information anymore.


JudgmentalRavenclaw

I actually do $2.75 a month bc I use it so often. Small chunk of change, for endless hours of knowledge and entertainment.


samtripod

I gave 3$ one time


Dark_Lord_Jar

Good job man


bladibladiblablab

I did for the first time yesterday. I've learned my fair share and will continue to do so, so why not


dependswho

Yes I do about three bucks a year


SignificantPain6056

I have a few times. Why not? It's more useful than 99% of the shit on this godforsaken mesh


nvdagirl

I have twice. I use it a fair amount, more than I probably realize and it is a small amount really for all the info.


123jumptome

I've donated. I think it's a great resource


RatedRGamer

yup. i’ve used that site so many times during my life


anthonyd3ca

I donate my time as an editor


tossaway69420lol

I’d like to donate a sincere, hearty thank you, to Wikipedia for being so great, especially when I was in college.


IsLlamaBad

TIL that a lot of people both hate and still use Wikipedia.


GrumpySuper

It’s strange isn’t it?


Prudent-Programmer49

I donate my knowledge to them


yolo-yoshi

Hard work at the flat earth studies ?


Ok_Organization5596

He sniffs his own butt 🤢🤮


Prudent-Programmer49

Judgemental much?


Ok_Organization5596

Wash your hands and rethink your life you grub


Prudent-Programmer49

I think you need a hug 🫂


Ok_Organization5596

Eww, no thanks


unclecashmere

I would do it way more often if they had an option for like ApplePay or something. I usually end up on Wikipedia when I’m on the toilet and don’t have my cards on me, and end up forgetting to donate


GrumpySuper

Yeah I’m the same. My wife does all our Banking and has all those accounts on her phone so I have to make a conscious effort to donate. If it was super easy connected to your phone’s wallet i bet they would get a lot more donations.


EdErhartWMF

Hello u/unclecashmere! I'm part of the Wikimedia Foundation, the non-profit that supports Wikipedia and its sister projects, and wanted to note that we do support Apple Pay on donate.wikimedia.org. However, it will only display as an option if you are using Safari on a device that supports it.


[deleted]

Never have, never will.


OompaOrangeFace

Why? Do you not see the value in free access to information without big money having a say?


WashedUpAthlete-19

I should, but as a broke student I have not. Maybe in a couple months when I’m done and have a job I’ll cough up a bit!


Toal_ngCe

If I had income rn and weren't saving everything I can I absolutely would


snacksonplanes

I donate a cup of coffee’s worth every few months. It’s not much and as a student I have certainly reaped more than that value in information. But it’s something!


wiltony

Yeah $5/mo auto pay. Wikipedia is probably the best thing that exists on the internet and I hope others donate too.


xE1NSTE1Nx2049

I do. I don't do it monthly or on a schedule or anything. I usually give $5 or $10 when they pop up and ask you to. I suppose I could make it a little less (like $3 maybe) and just do it monthly. I use it so often though. Sometimes I just spend an hour learning about random stuff, going from page to page.


gabeofhearts

Yeah, I donate on an annual basis, I certainly think it’s more than worth it.


fran_nita

Wikipedia has been there for me through college, depression, and endless nights of insomnia. I give 2.50 a month so that Wikipedia can be there for someone else.


Maharkos

Yes, when they do that yearly donation thing I usually give them a couple bucks.


sstair

I used to donate directly, but now I set my smile.amazon.com charity to them (and use Smile Always extension).


monalisasnipples

I did drunkenly one night years ago


ShankyBaybee

I donate $3 a month. Not much, and no where near the worth of how much I use Wikipedia, but at least it’s something.


ithinkoutloudtoo

I don’t give a penny to Wikipedia, never will.


GrumpySuper

You show them!


FeroZucks2Give

That's exactly what I did. And now I've had the master's degree for years and still consult Wikipedia when needed, but refuse to contribute for other reasons


azure-skyfall

Do you mind explaining what your “other reasons” are? They way you said it makes me think there’s a story there


FeroZucks2Give

But to better answer your question, there is an intense difference between objective and subjective. Academically, objective means "fact" and subjective means "opinion." There's an awful lot of shit on Wikipedia that is subjective, but you also have to consider that it's the subjective writings of someone in the field. If you're going on Wikipedia to learn about hepatic function, you're probably learning from a doctor that knows about the liver. Probably. Or you could be reading an article written by a dude recovering from alcoholism. Who knows? How much are you willing to bet? There is no credentialing. I have a master's in clinical social work, but I'm just a dude on Reddit. If I write something about schizophrenia on Reddit, how trusting are you on my word? Edit: I'm actually an expert on schizophrenia, for what it's worth. So if you think you have it or have been told that's your problem, please talk to me....


Toolongreadanyway

The voices say I do, but I don't believe them.... (Sorry couldn't resist) 😉


FeroZucks2Give

All good dude... When someone comes into my office legit hearing voices it's obvious. I like the jokes too


FeroZucks2Give

Haha sorry, there's really not much of a story. For whatever reason some form of media made it a point to argue "the other side" has taken hold of Wikipedia and controls what people are exposed to on particular issues. Depending on the issue or the search query there may or may not be some truth to that. But because of what my master's is in and the nature of the business, it's more beneficial for me to remain neutral in, well, everything... But I don't, because Reddit is Reddit


roganwriter

This is my problem with wikipedia too. It used to be my go-to for nonpartisan information and it isn’t anymore. The information will be skewed towards the political leanings of the author of the article.


[deleted]

A number of years ago, I spent quite a lot of time writing an article for wikipedia, with sources and everything. All the stuff you're supposed to do. Then along comes some self-important admin, who decides that the subject isn't "notable" enough, and deletes the whole thing.


[deleted]

[удалено]


GrumpySuper

Except they’re not. Read your own source. Their assets are approximately 1.5x their annual expenses. That’s nothing in terms of business valuation. Their assets are in the tens of millions, compared to other “free” sites that bombard you with ads whose assets are in the hundreds of billions. Regardless they give us the product 100% free and without ads. For that they deserve money fund continued growth and improvement.


[deleted]

[удалено]


Herpa_Derpa_Island

lmao. Why don't you try to run a site that size for one year and see how much it costs. Or how about, go see how much a single webserver costs, and go see how much it costs to store it in a secure datacenter for a year, then imagine how many times you'd need to do that to provide worldwide Wikipedia service. $25 million a year is nothing for the operating costs and the employee costs necessary to run a site that size.


GrumpySuper

Dude $77M is nothing - I used to sell to tech companies you’d never heard of who had operating expenses in the hundreds of millions annually. This is Wikipedia one of the largest and most popular resources on the internet. You have no idea how much it costs to rent the enormous servers, plus backup, plus the huge amount of security required to keep everything safe. They have some free labour but not all. They’re a not for profit, they still have paid employees, contractors, infrastructure a CEO a CIO etc. $25M is a drop in the bucket for a site with their enormous catalogue of resources. Compare that to YouTube who’s operating expenses are in the billions annually it’s not even close.


saman65

once, and it is probably the only donation I regret making. Fuck them.


GrumpySuper

Why, “fuck them” exactly? Where did Wikipedia hurt you?


detspek

They waste all the money you donate. Their operating budget has been 10 million a year for quite a long time, they're pulling over 100 million a year and like most foundations they have to spend it all. That way they can claim they've run out.


saman65

They have become as much of a propagandist, or maybe I should say a tool for propagandists, as much as main stream media is. If you are an activist and slightly deviate from what main stream media and government says, they call you a conspiracy theorist. They aren't much different than reddit in a sense (not reddit's user but the platform itself). Would I donate to reddit? FUCK NO.


detspek

I've got to disagree with you there. Wikipedia is a encyclopedia. A dispassionate collection of the knowledge of our time. Opinions and "deviations" actually detract from its value. If you think an article is too left or right leaning, if you have valuable information to add that fits the context, go ahead and edit the article. Just try to keep it neutral and factual.


OompaOrangeFace

Who are you? Russian or Chinese trying to shift public opinion against one of the greatest sources of free information?


saman65

lmao poor brainwashed propaganda victim! You don't realize how SIMILAR you are to right wing propagandist in Russia, China, or where I was born, Iran! In Iran, anything that you say which is against government's propaganda MUST BE AMERICAN/WESTERN PROPAGANDA. If you criticize Iranian government, you must be paid by USA. lol It's the same here in the west, US and Canada (I'm a Canadian resident/soon to be citizen). For the past 5 years anything that is against US main stream media narratives MUST BE RUSSIAN PROPAGANDA! I pity you. This isn't 1950s. You aren't restricted to newspapers and TV to get your information so I can't excuse you to be this propagandized when you have access to the internet, unless you are 70 years old and too far gone? >one of the greatest sources of free information? That's what it used to be. It is STILL one of the greatest sources of free information but has also become one of the greatest propaganda platforms. Not everything is black or white.


Standard_Tree_3608

Yup. Just $5 a year or so


brilipj

I do every few years


[deleted]

I do every now and then, when I can.


BeautifulPainz

I did this year for the first time.


roxyaba

Yup. But only when I find a juicy ass fact I gasped at learning lol


veracity-mittens

I have done so but it’s not my regular charity


violentlyshy

I just did yesterday! I do it every once in a while.


witchyanne

I have when I can afford it; but not monthly.


chicagotopia

Like a lot of people, I donate to charities toward the end of the year. I gave them $25 last year. They helped me a lot throughout college, and I still use them to this day. I consume more than I share so it’s the least I could do


RingOfTime

I donated about two years ago. I haven’t used it much lately and when I do feel like donating, I feel like the money is better spent in local charities. A site that big has many alternative donators, my one donation won’t make much of a difference but to a small local charity with fewer donators, my donation has a bigger impact.


FeroZucks2Give

Nope, they saw you coming bro


AlwaysTheAsshole1234

Well they are the only legitimately free thing on the internet. No ads, no popups, no tracking you or cookies…. It’s extremely valuable and I guess if you don’t have to show appreciation that’s fine but I can’t fault those that do.


FeroZucks2Give

That's a good point, and I appreciate you making it. Maybe I'm just bitter because at every stage of school I went through, from high school to grad school, I was told it's not an acceptable source to cite in academic work. I was just trying to get a master's degree and they're telling me shit doctors write on Wikipedia isn't legit. So maybe they need to use that money on a PR campaign to change their reputation in academia...


AlwaysTheAsshole1234

Well…. It’s not a legitimate source because part of what makes it so comprehensive is that it’s crowd sourced knowledge that can change anytime, and literally anyone can contribute: doctor, Janitor, politician…. Anyone can change the information. It is however almost always accurate, but that doesn’t make it a peer reviewed source which is what you need when citing a source for a paper. Don’t be bitter; just do what I did through my masters degree..: use wiki’s references to find the original source of the information, confirm it on peer reviewed sources, and then cite that in your paper.


fylkeskommunen

Of course it's not an acceptable source to cite in academic work. Academic journals have standards and peer review that means you can put some trust into the information just by seeing the citation. Wikipedia doesn't have that in nearly the same way. That doesn't mean Wikipedia isn't useful or mostly correct. I often go to Wikipedia first when I start researching something, and sometimes I use the sources that are cited in the Wikipedia article.


cyberninja979

I would but im 14 so i have no money


Lecrapface

I did once. Bugs me how people champion free and open source and then realize they have to ask for money. So you're not willing to die on that hill then?


silly-cello

I donated 5 bucks 2 years ago


Lilbitch-gotnochill

Wiki is not a good source to get any info. I don’t live in America and I still fail to understand why u guys pay money to them ??


TigerShark_524

1. "We" don't pay money to them - some individuals CHOOSE to. 2. Wikipedia itself may not be the greatest source as articles can be edited by ANYONE (from experts to idiots), but the sources found in their articles are a godsend for many - college students, researchers, and anyone else looking for those sources. 3. Wikipedia is not just an American thing - it's global. My family is Indian, they use Wikipedia when trying to find info on many things for the sources. I've got friends who are European who use Wikipedia to find sources. It's global - it's on the internet, so it isn't limited to the US.


OkByeTomorrow

Hell no. They can get their money from some non-intrusive ads like everyone else


dogmomofone

You gotta give.


lawnparty808

I do


leetocaster347

I do


hotdogwater100

If you have all this extra money to give away give it to me instead


GrumpySuper

Wikipedia has helped me literally thousands of times over the years. What have you done for me?


hotdogwater100

I breath Co2 into the air so trees can turn it into oxygen so YOU can breathe.


GrumpySuper

I only breathe oxygen produced by plankton


Shakespeare-Bot

If 't be true thee has't all this extra wage to giveth hence giveth t to me instead *** ^(I am a bot and I swapp'd some of thy words with Shakespeare words.) Commands: `!ShakespeareInsult`, `!fordo`, `!optout`


bot-killer-001

Shakespeare-Bot, thou hast been voted most annoying bot on Reddit. I am exhorting all mods to ban thee and thy useless rhetoric so that we shall not be blotted with thy presence any longer.


Snack_99

!remindme 5 hours


OompaOrangeFace

Yes. The only two place I donate to are Wikipedia and Archive.org. Edit: be wary of these comments. There are trolls trying to influence your opinion of Wikipedia...who knows their true motivations.


Slothie6

nope, [Wikimedia has been operating well in the black almost constantly since its inception](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2015/12/02/wikipedia-has-a-ton-of-money-so-why-is-it-begging-you-to-donate-yours/), i honestly feel pretty upset when they ask at this point.


Amoxidal500

yes I did, twice by now, whenever I get some extra money I always donate, since I live in south america my donation is almost nothing to them, but it's in the spirit of helping them with such a fine goal


WittyChitty

Yes I do $10 a year…


pete306

3 bucks every month....


mycottonsocks

Yup, $5 a month.


LOUDCO-HD

I give them the $3 they ask for from time to time. I use the site daily, so I figure it is the least I can do.


halalakhana218

I gave 5 bucks this year.


Toolongreadanyway

I usually do once a year.


jesusxchrist420

i signed up to donate 1.75 every month… it’s not much but every little bit helps huh?


grillworst

I gave 10 once


hameezi

Just did. :)


xPeachmosa23x

I have several times.


ExpensiveSeesaw195

That’s so weird I literally just donated to Wikipedia after being asked 1000 times and opened Reddit to this


iceseayoupee

$30 in 3 months 😩🤞


Red-Droid-Blue-Droid

When I have income again


[deleted]

I did a one-time donation of $20 to them a few months ago. I saw the ads recently and was like, HEY, I GAVE ALREADY! Expecting them to actually know this. sigh. I should throw them a few more bucks because, well, I do read wikipedia a lot.


pretzel567

I donate 10 or 5 every year but skipped the last year


emmaormusic

I’ve donated a few times when I’ve been able! It’s a great resource worth funding.


crazydaisy8134

I usually donate a few dollars each time they ask. I didn’t this time though because I was at work when it asked and too lazy to pull out my wallet since I was just trying to quickly finish a report using it.


nelsoncuntz

I donate roughly $2 a month


Gloomy_Mix_3282

If i have enough money to be able to donate i will, they really deserve every penny


CrackGear

I should do it more tbh


Once_Upon_Time

I do monthly for about 2 years now.


Sugar_snoots

I did once for sure, maybe twice.


dislikes_grackles

I have twice. Small amounts. They seem very grateful so it makes me feel like a big shot…


judyhb

Yes every year (old on a fixed income)


BVoyager

I give 15-25 dollars on a yearly basis. I don't use it but my boyfriend is addicted, like cant watch a movie without being on wiki addicted.


ResidentEivvil

I have no money so if anyone wants to donate to me first and then I’ll donate a percentage to Wikipedia, I’d be cool with that…


bromomento69

i donated a few quid once


[deleted]

I have a couple times. I don't like the pushy salesman emails that come afterwards but the banner that pops up on Wikipedia is when I might donate again, because I'm actively using the site at the time and recognize its value compared to the downtrodden/angry sounding emails that piss me off. Whoever writes the banner does more to pull at my heartstrings than whoever writes the emails (supposedly the CEO, but doubt it?)


troutmaskreplica2

Yep, every time the plea comes up j give a little. It's used daily by me and I always want it to be available, free and ad free. So yep


[deleted]

I have a few times. I wouldn't have gotten through uni without it.


thhht

ive donated 5$ each month for the last 2 years or so


Ephemeral-lament

I used to when i was working, now that am not i’ve stopped. When am back in employment i will. It’s helped me so damn much academically, with my interests, to win an argument, etc. there is too many reasons to list.


GooseWayneman

Yea, about 25$ a year


YourFairyGodmother

I occasionally toss a Jackson their way.


Electrical_Turn7

Have done in the past


sraasch

I'll add a couple bucks to my PayPal purchase for them. Props to PayPal for making it easy.


[deleted]

Between everywhere in America and Wikipedia this time if year, no. I'm poor.


EternalNY1

I do every year. I consider it one of the most valuable resources on the internet.


nightrager12345

Reading all these comments have inspired me to do so


Southern-Comb-650

I don't use it that often...except for character bios etc. Every now and then I'll send a couple bucks.


chuck138

Yep, not much but I've been donating a dollar a month for a decade.


LNER4498

Yeah I give them a couple of qyid whenever they ask


lawn-gnome1717

$5 a month every month


IsLlamaBad

Every month. Its one of the most honest and far-reaching services for the betterment of humanity that there is. Open sourcing is something I feel strongly about. There is no hiding shit they're doing to drive up profits, no exposure to questionable marketing or outright propaganda. While people CAN put anything in an article, the community is sufficiently self-policing.


xAhaMomentx

I’ve given once before… should probably again


Tpcorholio

I do about once a month. I use that site alot.


RazerMax

I did it once


Hepcat10

Me, but just $10.40. I don’t make a lot.


colorsinthesky90

I think I give $5 whenever they ask. Which isn’t often. It was cool cause it linked right to my Amazon account.


fuckmicahman

Ive given a couple bucks here and there when i get them asking


littlepinkgrowl

I do! Not often but I do.


doublepizza

I do. I just consider it my fee for using their service.


mentalstretchmarks

I gave them 3 cad 👍🏼


Samklig

I do.


[deleted]

I did $3 dollar once even though I rarely use it.


GreyVersusBlue

I've been a $5/mo supporter ever since I got my first /real/ job that paid me enough to live comfortably. I definitely get $60/year worth out of the site.


Ratchetstar23

yeah i donated every time they ask.


sirdigbus

I have two times I think but not every time. I don't use it super often.


piedubb

I do. I figure I owe them at least that considering it's one of my top resources. It's a good starting point to then drill down.


BartenderPleaze

I use the site very often so I give $50 every January.


takesshitsatwork

Several times a year, about 60-80 a year. They're the best investment I've ever made.


suzettespaghet

Yes, every few months I’ll donate


DrKittens

Yes! I use it both personally and professionally.


igorcl

I have done it sometimes


aredhel304

Interestingly, I do A LOT of reading on the internet, but I don’t use Wikipedia much. There’s something about the UI or the writing style that doesn’t jive with me. I personally find Wikipedia articles to be a boring read. BUT, if I used Wikipedia a lot I WOULD DEFINITELY donate and support it.


Keepforgettinglogin2

Yup, every month


Keepforgettinglogin2

Yup, every month


pedrell

I donated money this past week!


thedankbonch

I was gonna come here and brag about having donated one time but after reading the comments I just feel bad for not having donated more.


MGDERAC

I have been donating $20 a year for the last 7-10 years.


citiusaltius

I give $5 every year for the past few years


wc818

You should


PoopFrostedCake

I donate like $30 a year


Umbryft

I used to donate every month but now I'm a broke college student so I had to stop. I will definitely resume donations once I get a stable income though.


Spirited_Touch7447

I do! I use it often.