Wikipedia or Encyclopaedia?

I would choose Wikipedia instead of Encyclopaedia.

First, Wikipedia allows everyone to post what we know on the system. It can collect as much information as we can. Take newspaper as an example, we know that an article was written by an editor in most condition. But is it really the truth? Before editors write articles or report news, they need to get information from others. What they write and express are the combination of others' words and information. The system of Wikipedia is like the process of making a news report. It combines information from you and me to make the coverage of the information more extensive and neutral.
So, when we search the Wikipedia, at the same time, we search information from others.

Moreover, everyone can be the editor of Wikipedia. It provides a way for us to express our knowledge.
Proprietary website only allow the owner to edit the information. If other wants to add more details into some issues, they can't find a way to do so. The openness of Wikipedia provides a place for people to debate for issues. With affluent discussion, the quality of the debate could be higher.

I know somebody may doubt the accuracy of information from Wikipedia. They may argue that those providing information to the Wikipedia are non-professional. So, the quality of data from Wikipedia would be very low. Nontheless, most of the active Wikipedian are elites from different aspects. Not only people who have high educated background could provide neutral and accurate comments and informtation. Even Encyclopaedia Britannica itself did errors. Like in 2005, they made some basic mistakes even a 12-year-old boy could correct it. (Schoolboy, 2005). And it is incorrect to think that there is no supervision on Wikipedia. The special characteristic of Wikipedia is that it shows the original draft of the articles. Which is the encyclopaedia don't have.
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1. Schoolboy spots errors in Encyclopaedia Britannica. (2005, 26 January). Gguardian.co.uk.
Retrieved September 13, 2010 from:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2005/jan/26/schools.uk2