2026-10-29 23:43 UTC
Replies (36)
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@gerowen@mastodon.social 2026-10-29 23:45
@Gargron@mastodon.social When I was a kid we got commercials for Brittanica all the time. I don't even know if they're still a thing, but that's the first one that popped into my head. We never had that, but we had "World Book" encyclopedias at home.
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@MauroV1968@mastodon.online 2026-10-29 23:52
@Gargron@mastodon.social I think that the Britannica in English or the Treccani in Italian could do.
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@KerryMitchell@mastodon.social 2026-10-29 23:54
@Gargron@mastodon.social World Book is still available in print: https://www.worldbook.com/encyclopedias.aspx?srsltid=AYCX9vIzBdO0W796Rk56DfnO6oCl0UFxM3Zap8lSnENHMOPizwPbYY-z
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@peaoPerdido@datasci.social 2026-10-29 23:55
@Gargron@mastodon.social my Grandpa had the Britannica. It was beautiful in the shelf, taking a huge space. I recall the paper was very thin so we were not allowed to flip the pages without his supervision.
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@ranx@mastodon.social 2026-10-29 23:57
@Gargron@mastodon.social I don't think this is the case but if you are looking for an italian printed encyclopedia you have two options: Treccani (high budget) or UTET (kind of high budget). I have the second one and it's probably 60 years old, inheritance of my father
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@meta_blum@mastodon.social 2026-10-29 23:58
@Gargron@mastodon.social Die größte Sammlung an gedruckten Enzyklopädien habe ich im Flur von Wikimedia gesehen, als sie noch in dem kleinen Büro waren. Jetzt im Foyer immer noch, wir wissen ja, in welcher Tradition wir stehen 😌. You're welcome to visit! (Tempelhofer Ufer, Berlin)
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@Violettethegreat@cyberpunk.lol 2026-10-30 00:04
@Gargron@mastodon.social https://www.encyclopaedia-universalis.fr/pdf/universalis-education-english.pdf
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@axel_hartmann@digitalcourage.social 2026-10-30 00:08
@Gargron@mastodon.social - I have a ninth edition Encyclopedia Brittanica from 1888. It does look lovely and it really depends on your interests whether that is outdated or not. It has rabbit-hole potential when you're not sure and start cross-checking other sources. It does give you, lets say, other perspectives at times ;-)
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@photoncollector@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 00:11
@Gargron@mastodon.social Ask ChatGPT.
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@noondlyt@hellions.cloud 2026-10-30 00:20
@Gargron@mastodon.social World Book from 2024
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@noondlyt@hellions.cloud 2026-10-30 00:22
@Gargron@mastodon.social Do not look at 2026 World Book - it's gross
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@CStamp@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 00:27
@Gargron@mastodon.social I think the biggest issue isn’t outdated info, but up-to-date info.
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@kristinHenry@vis.social 2026-10-30 00:28
@Gargron@mastodon.social I've been thinking the same thing, lately.
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@penpencilbrush@mstdn.social 2026-10-30 00:34
@Gargron@mastodon.social I'd bet the Reference Dept at your library could answer for you. They won't have one to sell but they're very good at answers
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@aran@localization.cafe 2026-10-30 00:48
@Gargron@mastodon.social Why the pre-LLM condition? I would assume that no authoritative encyclopedia sold today would use them, if anything because LLM creations are not copyrightable.
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@lety@doesstuff.social 2026-10-30 01:23
@Gargron@mastodon.social World Book Encyclopedia 2022 has a big ole dinosaur on it!!! That's pretty aesthetically afaic 🦖 It's out of print now, but you can find library copies on eBay!
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@lety@doesstuff.social 2026-10-30 01:23
@Gargron@mastodon.social World Book Encyclopedia 2022 has a big ole dinosaur on it!!! That's pretty aesthetically pleasing afaic 🦖 It's out of print now, but you can find library copies on eBay!
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@Bryan22@social.seattle.wa.us 2026-10-30 01:30
@Gargron@mastodon.social
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@Klaxun@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 01:43
@Gargron@mastodon.social You can download wikipedia for free
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@Bryan22@social.seattle.wa.us 2026-10-30 01:47
@Gargron@mastodon.social it depends on what your personality is and what you are looking for. They cover a vast array of topics in concise short sections. As a teenager I would spend hours reading from one subject to another. Even if the entry is out of date, it is interesting to see how it was thought of before. If you’re it a generalist and interested in everything, they are perfect if not they will be just books on a shelf. Good luck.
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@Catawu@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 01:51
@Gargron@mastodon.social Encyclopedias were considered “outdated” by their third or fourth year. Check your local library. If they have what you are looking for, they can also direct you to the vendor.
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@autolycos@beige.party 2026-10-30 01:52
@Gargron@mastodon.social I think you're asking about The Machinist Handbook
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@FreedomThruAstrology@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 01:53
@Gargron@mastodon.social As a LIbrarian I would recommend eithe World Book or Encyclopedia Britannica. Both still offer print editions.
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@hdante@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 01:56
@Gargron@mastodon.social do you speak Portuguese ?
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@stefan_hessbrueggen@fedihum.org 2026-10-30 02:16
@Gargron@mastodon.social if you are currently near a well-sorted library and can spare the time check out their holdings. The most recent encyclopaedias are mostly placed in the reading room. They are not on loan, so you can be sure to see them. It's like visiting a specialised shop, they just don't sell anything. It's like buying a car, first hand impressions count.
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@Sassinake@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 02:31
@Gargron@mastodon.social History has stopped
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@synlogic4242@social.vivaldi.net 2026-10-30 02:39
@Gargron@mastodon.social I loved Encyclopedia Brittanica in its a prime (edition up thru say the 1970s?). cant speak to its current condition, if any
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@phl@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 02:47
@Gargron@mastodon.social Tongue in cheek response: Révai Új Lexikona :D
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@CaseyL@mastodon.nz 2026-10-30 03:40
@Gargron@mastodon.social I bought a 2025 World Book encyclopedia, all 22 volumes. The spines when shelved in order have graphics that spell out "World Book" with an outer space image behind them. Quite lovely and unhackable.
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@GeePawHill@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 06:39
@Gargron@mastodon.social I grew up on the World Book Encyclopedia. I read it. The whole thing, I mean, I read it. And it was pretty good. I read bits of Britannica, and some of Colliers. But I thought the WBE was actually quite good.
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@blogdiva@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 07:42
@Gargron@mastodon.social Oxford has the Very Short Introduction series. it’s not an encyclopedia perse, but it’s an incredibly well curated introduction to topics in almost everything. i think Gallimard has a similar one in French i loooove the aesthetics of the DK Eyewitness books and they are also well edited and curated. if i were in Europe, i’d definitely go for the Larousse encyclopedias ―especially their gastronomique―, Oxford or Britannica i soooo want the whole RAE spanish lang collection OMG
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@okonow@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 08:37
@Gargron@mastodon.social Bei mir steht eine in schwarzem Leder gebundene mit Goldschnitt versehene Brockhaus Enzyklopädie im Regal.
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@connynasch@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 08:43
@Gargron@mastodon.social My father bought me a Britannica in the '70's which I loved to peruse. It was a huge help for school.
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@Chancerubbage@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 16:57
@Gargron@mastodon.social @cainmark@mstdn.social I’d probably look for a post 1980s Brittannica. They stopped publishing with the 2010 edition printing it for another couple of years
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@Chancerubbage@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 17:01
@Gargron@mastodon.social the AI shit started hitting the fan in late 2020. An enclopedia before that date would be less likely to be poisoned by the moneygrubbers.
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@Chancerubbage@mastodon.social 2026-10-30 17:06
@Gargron@mastodon.social I liked Brittannica after they subdivided their sets into general knowledge and knowledge in depth volumes. I often ended up using both. Machine learning and LLMs have been developing for a long long time. When web searches first matured 25-30 years ago, they had huge blind spots for the era immediately before their availability, as no one had posted such late 80s early 99s info yet.