Thanks, Jimbo

Jimmy Wales' visit has come and gone. He spent some time at the Library and then he taught a class at Converse College. The day ended with a speaking engagement for about 400 people. He talked about the development of Wikipedia and his new search engine Wikia.

Folks have asked me what Jimmy Wales is like and what did I learn about him. Well, he is extremely approachable, but shy. He finds all of the attention that he is receiving as "ridiculous." His mother clips out the newspaper articles, and she is the only one who really keeps up with the articles and publicity. To Wales, home is wherever his wife and daughter are. They try to travel together whenever possible. Yes, he edited his own entry in Wikipedia. Did he violate the wiki etiquette? To him, that's questionable. He likes room temperature Dasani bottled water, almonds and cashews. He uses a Macintosh. He finds Richard Branson (Virgin Air and adventurer) just a regular guy. He is about 2-3 weeks behind on returning email. He does text message to keep in contact with folks as needed. Three guys are traveling around the world with him to produce a documentary on Wikipedia and Wales. Apparently, they have been chased by monkeys in some far off country.

In my mind, Wales is sort of a Pied Piper. In the end, what gets Wales charged up about Wikipedia? The development of community. "Bringing people together."

Channel 4 WYFF interviewed Wales for their 11:00 news. Here is the video link: www.wyff4.com/video/11609089/index.html?taf=gs