ABSTRACT
One of the most fascinating aspects of Wikipedia is the way the Byzantine structure has evolved since the comparatively simple wiki was first put on line by Wales and Sanger less than a decade ago. Internet communities, of which Wikipedia is one of the best-known, are continuing a long tradition of self-government that dates back to well before the coming of the Web. The fastest-growing sections include image pages and Wikipedia pages, as well as all kinds of talk pages. Talk pages are produced using the same wiki technology as article pages, but as is the case in other parts of the site, rules have been developed by the community as to their use. For instance, contributors are expected to sign every post with their user name and the date, and to indent related postings. Talk pages are never erased, but earlier contributions are archived so as to become dormant records of past discussions.
