Template:2011FR/appeal-isaac-letter/en

Here in Kenya, and all around the world, Wikipedia is an indispensable resource.

When I was in university, the first place students rushed for research was Wikipedia. So I thought, like many other dominant Internet giants, Wikipedia must be making millions in profits.

Then a year ago I saw a photo of Wikipedia’s founder Jimmy Wales and when I clicked, it directed me to a link about grassroots donations. I must admit I was surprised.

I did some research and found out that Wikipedia is not about profits. It’s supported by donors. And it’s even much smaller than the other Internet giants:


 * Google: 1,000,000 servers, 24,000 employees.
 * Facebook: 60,000 servers, 2,000 employees.
 * Microsoft: 220,000 servers, 90,000 employees.
 * Yahoo: 50,000 servers, 13,900 employees.

Wikipedia is #5 on the Internet and only has 370 servers and 73 employees!

I learned that Wikipedia is each and every one of us, building a giant encyclopedia. It’s updated all the time, and with so much to know, in any field—Wikipedia is the way to go.

It opened up a world that I never knew existed, and I hope now you will know how Wikipedia needs your contribution, and help support it today.

Imagine if we had one million people each giving ten dollars, just ten dollars…of course we’d have ten million dollars, and that would be good. That’s what allows Wikipedia to have a neutral point of view.

Knowledge is power. And without interference from adverts popping up, you get the full impact—just the real information that you wanted on the screen.

All of Wikipedia is through your support so I must say thank you so much, you’re changing the world. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Isaac Kosegi Kips

Wikipedia Author