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Islaamic Website Ratings
Introduction
Written by Bilal Philips
Thursday, 13 April 2007
The World Wide Web (www) has put knowledge of all fields of human study at our fingertips. That it is a boon to mankind cannot be doubted. But at the same time it has its pitfalls. The major one being that anyone with a website or blog or even without that (read Wiki) can put up whatever they like on any subject onto the www.
Thus, the internet while being a source of sound authentic knowledge on any field is at the same time also a source of misinformation and hence needs to be utilized with caution, for there are many ‘quack’ sites on almost all topics under discussion on the net.
The field of Islamic studies is no exception to this phenomenon. In fact the problem here is compounded by the many deviant misinterpretations of Islam that have found a way to reach a world wide audience on a scale never seen before. This has made the internet a minefield for the knowledge seeker who has to walk through it at times while searching for authentic knowledge.
Sites on the net may be confusing and sometimes dangerous for those not strongly grounded in the basics of the religion. Concern on this issue led me to direct some of my student-researchers to compile a list of sound Islamic sites along with short reviews and ratings on a scale of 1-10. Concurrently a list of deviant sites and anti-Islamic sites has also been prepared so that surfers may know that they are to be avoided or studied only by persons at an advanced level of knowledge.
As in all human endeavors there will be some shortcomings in this work, not to mention the fact that sites appear and disappear daily while others may undergo drastic changes. Also, it is my desire to expand on this effort so that it becomes a true resource centre for knowledge of Islamic sites, good and bad. Therefore I ask viewers to give their constructive feedback, comments, corrections etc. on this work. Also we would like you to submit sites which we have missed for review along with your own reviews. However, we ask that you please indicate under which heading you include the site (Recommended/ Deviant/ Anti-Islamic). Reviews will be put up after due scrutiny by my researchers. Direct all correspondence on this issue to: projectsbilalphilipscom@yahoo.com. Please write ‘Reviews’ in the subject line before anything else you may wish to include in the subject line.
In closing, please note that while the researchers consider the sites in the recommended list to be mostly sound Islamically to the best of their knowledge, it does not mean an automatic approval of all the contents or views posted on that site. Also the external links provided on those sites are not included as part of the review. So surfer discretion is definitely advised.
The following criteria have been used in rating the sites:
1. Authenticity of material and closeness to the Qur'aan, Sunnah & understanding of the Salaf us Saalih.
2. Quality of the material in terms of language, referencing to the sources and in the case of Ahadeeth, referencing to books of Ahadeeth verification.
3. Quantity of material put up on the site
4. Presence of downloadable multimedia content (free downloads get a higher rating)
• Audio content.
• Video content
• any other type like Flash presentations, PowerPoint etc
5. Presence of streaming multimedia content (lower rating than downloadable multimedia)
6. Presence of downloadable complete E books (free downloads get a higher rating)
7. Presence of downloadable Islaamic software (free downloads get a higher rating)
8. Frequency of site updates
9. If site has a general name like Islaam.com or islamweb.com then it has been reviewed with the expectation that it would cover many aspects of Islaam and would have a good quantity of varied content matter. The rating reflects the extent to which the site meets these expectations along with the aforementioned criteria.
10. If the site has a name which specifies one or more aspects of Islaam e.g. understandquran.com or a clearly stated aim then it has been reviewed to see how well the specified aspect/ aspects or stated aim are covered along with the aforementioned criteria and the absence of other topics is not reflected in the rating.
Authenticity of material and sticking close to the Qur'aan, Sunnah & understanding of the Salaf us Saalih
1. Quality of the material in terms of language, referencing to the sources, and in case of Ahadeeth referencing to books of Ahadeeth verification,.
2. Quantity of material put up on the site
3. Presence of multimedia content
• Audio content.
• Video content
• any other type like Flash presentations, PowerPoint etc
11. Whether site allows free download of above material (free downloads get a higher rating)
12. Presence/absence of downloadable complete E books (free downloads get a higher rating)
13. Presence/absence of Islaamic software (free downloads get a higher rating)
14. Whether site is regularly updated or not.
15. If site has a general name like Islaam.com or islamweb.com then it is reviewed with the expectation that it would cover many aspects of Islaam (the more aspects covered the higher the rating.
16. If the site has a name which specifies one or more aspects of Islaam Site is reviewed to see how well those aspects are covered and the absence of other matter is not considered a drawback.
Written by Bilal Philips
Thursday, 13 April 2007
The World Wide Web (www) has put knowledge of all fields of human study at our fingertips. That it is a boon to mankind cannot be doubted. But at the same time it has its pitfalls. The major one being that anyone with a website or blog or even without that (read Wiki) can put up whatever they like on any subject onto the www.
Thus, the internet while being a source of sound authentic knowledge on any field is at the same time also a source of misinformation and hence needs to be utilized with caution, for there are many ‘quack’ sites on almost all topics under discussion on the net.
The field of Islamic studies is no exception to this phenomenon. In fact the problem here is compounded by the many deviant misinterpretations of Islam that have found a way to reach a world wide audience on a scale never seen before. This has made the internet a minefield for the knowledge seeker who has to walk through it at times while searching for authentic knowledge.
Sites on the net may be confusing and sometimes dangerous for those not strongly grounded in the basics of the religion. Concern on this issue led me to direct some of my student-researchers to compile a list of sound Islamic sites along with short reviews and ratings on a scale of 1-10. Concurrently a list of deviant sites and anti-Islamic sites has also been prepared so that surfers may know that they are to be avoided or studied only by persons at an advanced level of knowledge.
As in all human endeavors there will be some shortcomings in this work, not to mention the fact that sites appear and disappear daily while others may undergo drastic changes. Also, it is my desire to expand on this effort so that it becomes a true resource centre for knowledge of Islamic sites, good and bad. Therefore I ask viewers to give their constructive feedback, comments, corrections etc. on this work. Also we would like you to submit sites which we have missed for review along with your own reviews. However, we ask that you please indicate under which heading you include the site (Recommended/ Deviant/ Anti-Islamic). Reviews will be put up after due scrutiny by my researchers. Direct all correspondence on this issue to: projectsbilalphilipscom@yahoo.com. Please write ‘Reviews’ in the subject line before anything else you may wish to include in the subject line.
In closing, please note that while the researchers consider the sites in the recommended list to be mostly sound Islamically to the best of their knowledge, it does not mean an automatic approval of all the contents or views posted on that site. Also the external links provided on those sites are not included as part of the review. So surfer discretion is definitely advised.
The following criteria have been used in rating the sites:
1. Authenticity of material and closeness to the Qur'aan, Sunnah & understanding of the Salaf us Saalih.
2. Quality of the material in terms of language, referencing to the sources and in the case of Ahadeeth, referencing to books of Ahadeeth verification.
3. Quantity of material put up on the site
4. Presence of downloadable multimedia content (free downloads get a higher rating)
• Audio content.
• Video content
• any other type like Flash presentations, PowerPoint etc
5. Presence of streaming multimedia content (lower rating than downloadable multimedia)
6. Presence of downloadable complete E books (free downloads get a higher rating)
7. Presence of downloadable Islaamic software (free downloads get a higher rating)
8. Frequency of site updates
9. If site has a general name like Islaam.com or islamweb.com then it has been reviewed with the expectation that it would cover many aspects of Islaam and would have a good quantity of varied content matter. The rating reflects the extent to which the site meets these expectations along with the aforementioned criteria.
10. If the site has a name which specifies one or more aspects of Islaam e.g. understandquran.com or a clearly stated aim then it has been reviewed to see how well the specified aspect/ aspects or stated aim are covered along with the aforementioned criteria and the absence of other topics is not reflected in the rating.
Authenticity of material and sticking close to the Qur'aan, Sunnah & understanding of the Salaf us Saalih
1. Quality of the material in terms of language, referencing to the sources, and in case of Ahadeeth referencing to books of Ahadeeth verification,.
2. Quantity of material put up on the site
3. Presence of multimedia content
• Audio content.
• Video content
• any other type like Flash presentations, PowerPoint etc
11. Whether site allows free download of above material (free downloads get a higher rating)
12. Presence/absence of downloadable complete E books (free downloads get a higher rating)
13. Presence/absence of Islaamic software (free downloads get a higher rating)
14. Whether site is regularly updated or not.
15. If site has a general name like Islaam.com or islamweb.com then it is reviewed with the expectation that it would cover many aspects of Islaam (the more aspects covered the higher the rating.
16. If the site has a name which specifies one or more aspects of Islaam Site is reviewed to see how well those aspects are covered and the absence of other matter is not considered a drawback.
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