FAQ
From ilmpedia
What is ilmpedia?Read here. ilmpedia is not a Muslim-only site, we welcome visitors of all faiths to read our articles, and enhance their knowledge about Islam. We wish to showcase what Islam offers to the world (hence written by Muslims), and we recognize ilm or Knowledge as a common heritage of all humankind. We believe a niche exists for an encyclopaedia written by Muslims, and hence here we are- our difference lies in our value system, which is driven by the Qur'an. Why should ilmpedia exist at all?The Internet hosts a plethora of sites catering to different tastes and styles. ilmpedia is a proposed Muslim encyclopaedia seeking to throw light on everything and anything from the Islamic perspective. We believe Islam to be a wholesome religion that offers insight on each and every aspect of an individual's life- ilmpedia exists to present the same information in an undiluted format. How is ilmpedia different from say, Wikipedia or Encyclopaedia Britannica?The primary reference in ilmpedia is the Qur'an and Prophet's (s) Sunnah. We believe the Holy Qur'an to be the uncorrupted message of God/Allah for all humanity- in Ch. 16, V. 89, Allah Most High says: وَنَزَّلْنَا عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ تِبْيَانًا لِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ "..and We have sent down to thee the Book explaining all things.." Other encyclopaedias are written with their own biases. For example, Wikipedia has this to say about its authenticity. This doesn't mean we are a mumbo-jumbo encyclopaedia- we believe human reason is inherently embedded in the message of the Qur'an, as our articles will convey, in due course of time InshaAllah. What are your credentials to be working on an Islamic project?ilmpedia is started off because a need exists for the same with the mushrooming of hate sites on the Internet, which give patently false and libelous information about Islam, and do not leave any stone unturned in vilifying it. Besides, there is an obvious advantage in utilizing the site in a positive manner by making it a means of Da'wah. Our credentials are the same as that of any ordinary believer who has basic knowledge about Islam, and knows a bit about technology :). We hope to involve Muslims who are more learned than us to make this project a successful venture. What is your infrastructure?A domain name, a server hosting account (and storage space), a host of improvised open-source software and our volunteers. In future, we may have our own foundation to professionally manage the project. Later, we can have a dedicated server and even later we may have our own data centres, InshaAllah. What is your project roadmap?For a project like this, we can only have a starting point, and a base model on which to develop content. See our list of categories here. If you are an active contributor, you may even take on an admin role- you can help in deciding on the future articles. But broadly speaking, we have 5 main areas to work on simultaneously: - Technical optimization - Content generation - Content organization - portals, categories (to ensure order over randomness) - Monitoring the quality - Promotion for search engines Since ilmpedia is not owned by anyone, it can/should continue for as long as possible. At this time, it is difficult to pinpoint a time in the future, when we will have sufficient articles to be recognized as an authentic reference on the Internet. We hope that this time comes soon, and we are working towards it incessantly. What is the importance of having a site like this?Today, if you Google (or use any other search engine) anything on the Internet- say, fish, potato, India - invariably the first result that is returned is a Wikipedia article. The impact of such an online and free encyclopaedia is huge- it gets a high page rank on search engines, and like it or not, it is considered an authentic reference source by many people across the world. The wiki format works in two ways - interlinks on pages which carry forward the user to other pages, and also by acting as a platform for users' articles to reach viewership in millions. The term 'wiki' itself is a common noun meaning a website that consists of an inter-linked collection of pages. Why can't I login/create an account?ilmpedia is currently in Beta mode. Visitors to the site can read only the preview articles. If you would like to edit and write articles yourself, contact us [1]. Please indicate why you would like to write and why you consider yourself the right person for the job. Why are you using the MediaWiki software, if you claim to be different from Wikipedia?Firstly, we are not dependant on any entity for future software releases/bug fixes. Our infrastructure is in place and intact, InshaAllah. Now, we use MediaWiki because it is an open-source software that anyone can download from the Internet and install on his home PC, it supports 141 languages, and is a great tool to grow content quickly. Haven't we seen these types of Muslim wiki efforts before?Some of these efforts are : muslimencyclopaedia, madinah.com - we tried contacting some of these so that we dont work in a disjointed manner- but either they showed lack of interest or had a different methodology on how to go about the project. There is a hadith (saying of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)) in Sunan Bayhaqi - Planning is the best of intelligence. We are all for optimal resource allocation and pooling of efforts. If someone has a better site, we will definitely shut shop and lend a helping hand there instead. Note, however, that building a site of this magnitude requires years of sustained effort as well as proof that the credentials of the site administrators are not mala-fide, something that is borne out only by experience. How will you ensure authenticity?Authenticity/quality of an article is judged by the references it includes. As stated before, for us the Holy Qur'an is a valid reference. So are classical Islamic books and works. Generally, we give credence to printed material over online material (the latter may be more susceptible to manipulation). Different articles will have different authentication requirements. For example, an article on Christianity will obviously require citations from the Bible, while an article on Sports may even involve a citation from a FIFA Manual. Why don't you involve scholars/ulama to ensure authenticity, if you claim to be Islamic?Apart from ensuring that the content has references, the volunteers also act as whistleblowers if they find something out of tune with established practice. It is difficult to foresee scholars having the time to go through each and every word that is written on our site (do they actually do this for other vetted sites?). [1] Inviting others to the truth is a duty upon all individuals. What is prohibited is mindless innovation in Deen (eg- making a new Tafseer of the Qur'an without any prior basis, having 3 Eids instead of 2). The Prophet (s) has commanded us to make Da'wah, even if it consists of just one aayah. Why not allow everyone to edit?We wish to maintain real-time authenticity, hence have restricted Edit access. See this [2] for an example of issues faced by encyclopaedias when they allow everyone to edit. We are trying out a proposal wherein everyone can edit articles, but the edits still do not go 'live' unless approved by authorized users. This can meet both requirements- greater involvement for all site visitors, and maintaining real-time authenticity. What about Copyright issues?Read here What kind of articles are hosted on ilmpedia?Read here. Any article which is fit to be listed in an encyclopaedia can be included on ilmpedia. We are not restricted to Islamic religious articles, though that is our initial focus. These articles look like notes- why don't you call ilmpedia a personal blog?ilmpedia is currently in Beta mode. Upon a public release, we will have a sufficient number of finished articles. We believe we are on the right track when compared with similar projects at this stage of their/our lifecycles. Also, there is nothing like a finished article- improvement and editing can potentially continue forever. We are only releasing for public viewing those articles, which we believe are readable, in terms of a proper structure and finish. Which Islamic sect do you belong to?We neither promote nor ridicule any so-called Islamic sect. We are happy to stick with the name chosen for us by Allah in the Qur'an - viz, to be Muslims. How will you resolve inter-sect differences?Simple - state both points of view (are there any sects in Islam, are there supposed to be :)?). Our primary reference point is the Qur'an - for that we can very well say that any differences in interpretation are minor - most of the Qur'anic verses are clear (muhkam) in their meaning. If you feel any article is not neutral, and is pushing a particular POV (point of view), you are welcome to edit it (if you are a contributor) with better or equal references. If you are not a regular contributor, please provide us the relevant feedback on such issues. What is the source of funding for ilmpedia?ilmpedia is a volunteer collaborative effort involving individuals from across the globe. The funding requirements- domain registration and server hosting - are already in place. Besides, our main 'fund' is the considerable amount of time contributed by volunteers. If you would like to donate, please contact us [3] with your pledge regarding the same. We will respond accordingly on how best you can help us :). Who is behind ilmpedia?As stated above, ilmpedia is run and managed by a group of volunteers. When we do have the scale, we may form an ilmpedia Foundation (through mutual agreement) in order to professionally manage the project. ilmpedia is partnered by Milli Gazette, Indian Muslims' leading English newspaper. The website is hosted on the server account of Brother Mazin Khan from New Delhi, India, and the domain is registered in the name of Brother Shaad from India. Regarding other volunteers, you can see their names at the end of some of their articles (if they choose to display it). For any further queries, feel free to contact us. Which other sites are you affiliated with?We are not affiliated with any other site. We may channel readers to other sites, which our team believes has good content (and if we ourselves lack the same content). Organizations are free to write articles on themselves and get them hosted on our site, as normal articles. We welcome any links to our site, hosted anywhere on the Internet. In particular, we would like to point out that we are NOT affiliated to the following sites: Wikipedia, WikiMedia Foundation (or any of the Wikipedia sister projects), MediaWiki, Madinah.com, WikiIslam, Muslimwiki, Islamipedia.org, MuslimWikipedia, ilmpedia.com, ilmpedia.org, Madina.com You are recruiting both experienced writers as well as novices- how will that enhance the credibility of your site?Firstly, we are not recruiting anybody- we only ask for volunteers who have time and working knowledge of Islam. It is obvious that only people who identify with our mission will contribute towards our site. Formal Islamic knowledge is not a must to write articles (though of course it is a welcome plus that will enhance the quality of the article)- our only requirement is dedicated people who can access appropriate resources (in the form of Islamic or other texts) to write properly referenced articles. As with any open-source project, the more time spent by volunteers, the more likely is the project to succeed. Will the people working on the same project/topic have a forum/discussion medium to interact?Apart from the user discussion page, there also exists a Message Board to post and discuss topics of concern in a threaded format. Basically, ilmpedia sees itself as only a platform to enable us to showcase the Islamic perspective (through articles). The difference with so many other Islamic sites, is that we can enable our content to reach millions of users, by ranking higher on search engines. You are permitting interaction between opposite genders, yet you claim to be an Islamic site?This is not a counseling service nor a social networking site. The interaction is limited to exchange of ideas about the encyclopaedia. The Prophet peace be upon him interacted with women within the boundaries of the Shar'iah. What is the answer to my "specific question" in Islam? Can I get a fatwa from you?Sorry, we do not provide such a service. Please consult an Islamic scholar. Further queriesVia email: admin at ilmpedia dot net. Via post: ilmpedia.net c/o The Milli Gazette D-84 Abul Fazl Enclave-I, New Friends Colony P.O. New Delhi 110 025 India Tel.: (+9111) 2694 7483, 2695 2825 References
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