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Askville is a user-driven research site founded by Amazon.com and opened to the public on December 8, 2006.[1] Askville was co-founded by Korean-American former investment banker Joseph Park, previously co-founder of Kozmo.com, a now-defunct delivery service that is held up as an example of dot-com era excesses.[2] The documentary film e-Dreams (2001) portrays the fate of the company. Amazon.com was an investor in Kozmo.com. Unlike the defunct Google Answers service, Askville is designed to run much like a computer game. Users gain or lose "experience points" in particular topics as they answer questions in those topics, depending on how good their answer is.[3] Users also receive "quest gold" by asking and answering questions, and by voting on the worth of other people's answers.[3] In the past, these coins could be redeemed for items in an Askville store. The store is out of stock at present and there is no indication when, or if, it will open again. Also unlike other question-answer sites, Askville has evolved into a social community as well as an information site.[4] This is primarily due to their discussion boards, where Askvillians can enter into long discussions sparked by individual questions. Though indeed sparked by the questions, discussions often take on a personality of their own. No "experience points" or "quest gold" are awarded for discussions, but many Askvillians have come to value the give-and-take, the bickering, and especially the supportive friendships made there.[citation needed] As of August, 2008, members of the Askville community complained of a lack of moderation and participation from the Askville administrators. In response, Askville appointed a community manager to track and handle user feedback, and the site management made a commitment to more effectively enforce their policies.[5] The voting system underwent a major revision, including the addition of anonymous voting. In 2009, staff announced that work on Questville, a planned addition to Askville, had stopped. There are a variety of topics for questions, many user created. Besides answering factual and opinion questions, members can help others identify a book remembered from childhood or find a special recipe. There is a strong camaraderie among many of the members.[citation needed]
[edit] Askville Awards
[edit] See also[edit] References
[edit] External links
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