I would imagine it was harder to get information on topics as you would’ve had to buy/borrow encyclopedias to do.

Were there proprietary predecessor websites?

Tell me about the dark ages!

  • AbouBenAdhem@lemmy.world
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    9 days ago

    All information was passed down orally by people specially-trained to serve as “oral repositories”—in various cultures they were called bards, makars, aoidos, and various other terms. Important information was often set in verse to aid memorization.

    There was a transitional period when writing and printing were used, and an even briefer period when these were supplemented by encyclopedias on CD-ROM before the birth of Wikipedia.

    • protist@mander.xyz
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      9 days ago

      TIL the entirety of recorded human history was just a transition period between the oral tradition and Wikipedia lmao

      • superkret@feddit.org
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        9 days ago

        When you plot the development of modern humans on a timeline, oral tradition makes up 95% of it.

        • protist@mander.xyz
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          9 days ago

          “What was life like before Wikipedia?”

          “Well, you see, in the year 7000 BC…”