Aplikasi New Media untuk Pembelajaran atau Edukasi

Aplikasi New Media untuk Pembelajaran atau Edukasi

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Wikipedia, ensiklopedia
Logo Wikipedia
Dalam dunia Teknologi dan Informasi, nama Wikipedia sudah tidak asing lagi bagi sebagian besar orang pengguna internet khususnya. Seolah situs Wikipedia sudah menjadi sumber rujukan  wajib untuk membuat sebuah artikel-artikel baik di media cetak seperti buku-buku pelajaran di sekolah. Pernah juga saya melihat dan membaca ada sebuah buku pegangan siswa SMK (Sekolah Menengah Kejuruan) yang seluruh konten halamannya copas dari Wikipedia.
Wikipedia juga tak luput dari sumber copy paste untuk artikel-artikel di dunia blog (sama dengan saya, bikin sampah di dunia maya. Wkwkwkwk).

Lalu apa dan siapa itu Wikipedia ?
Untuk mengatahui apa dan siapa itu Wikipedia, informasinya bisa diperoleh langsung dari situs tersebut. Kata Wikipedia, dia adalah :
Wikipedia merupakan ensiklopedia isi bebas yang dimulai pada tahun 2001 (versi bahasa Indonesia dimulai pada tahun 2003). Artikel-artikel di Wikipedia merupakan hasil kolaborasi oleh para penyumbangsih dari seluruh dunia. Situs ini merupakan situs WIKI, yang berarti siapapun dapat menyunting artikel, memperbaiki dan menambahkan informasi, hanya dengan mengklik pranala sunting yang berada di atas setiap halaman. 



Ensiklopedia adalah



Ensiklopedia (/énsiklopédia/) adalah sejumlah tulisan yang berisi penjelasan yang menyimpan informasi secara komprehensif dan cepat dipahami serta dimengerti mengenai keseluruhan cabang ilmu pengetahuan atau khusus dalam satu cabang ilmu pengetahuan tertentu yang tersusun dalam bagian artikel-artikel dengan satu topik bahasan pada tiap-tiap artikel yang disusun berdasarkan abjad, kategori atau volume terbitan dan pada umumnya tercetak dalam bentuk rangkaian buku yang tergantung pada jumlah bahan yang disertakan.

Pendiri Wikipedia



Wikipedia merupakan merek dagang dari Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. yang juga telah membuat keseluruhan keluarga Wikipedia, antara lain Wikiquote, Wiktionary, Wikisource, Wikibooks dan Wikinews. Di Wikipedia dan proyeknya yang lain, Anda diharapkan berani menyunting, dan turut menyumbangkan pengetahuan di bidang yang Anda minati.
Wikipedia, Wikimedia
Logo Wikimedia
Wikimedia Foundation Inc. atau Yayasan Wikimedia adalah organisasi pusat dari Wikipedia, Wiktionary, Wikiquote, Wikibooks, Wikisource, Wikispecies, Wikiversity serta proyek-proyek kolaboratif Meta-Wiki. Wikimedia merupakan organisasi nirlaba yang berada di bawah undang-undang Florida, Amerika Serikat. Keberadaannya secara resmi dicanangkan oleh CEO (direktur) Bomis dan salah satu pendiri Wikipedia, Jimbo Wales pada tanggal 30 Juni 2003.
Nama "Wikimedia" ditetapkan oleh Sheldon Rampton dalam posting milis WikiEN-l pada bulan Maret 2003. Kemudian nama domain wikimedia.org dan wikimediafoundation.org didapatkan untuk yayasan Wikipedia oleh seorang kontributor, Daniel Mayer.
Tujuan yayasan ini adalah mendukung perkembangan pengetahuan bebas, proyek-proyek berdasarkan, WikiWiki dan menyediakan isi daripada proyek ini kepada khalayak ramai secara bebas dan gratis, tanpa iklan.
Wikipedia dimulai pada 15 Januari 2001 oleh Jimmy Wales, Larry Sanger, dan beberapa kolaborator antusias bahasa Inggris. Kini ada 13.000 kontributor aktif yang mengerjakan 7.000.000 artikel dalam lebih dari 250 bahasa. Saat ini terdapat 213.344 artikel dalam bahasa Indonesia; setiap harinya ratusan ribu pengunjung dari seluruh dunia membuat puluhan ribu suntingan dan membuat ribuan artikel baru di Wikipedia berbahasa Inggris.

Semua teks dalam Wikipedia, dan kebanyakan gambar serta isi lainnya, dilindungi oleh lisensi ganda Creative Commons A-PS dan GFDL. Kontribusi tetap merupakan hak dari pembuatnya, sementara izin CC dan GFDL memastikan isinya akan tetap dapat didistribusikan secara gratis dan memungkinkan untuk direproduksi (lihat deklarasi hak cipta dan penyangkalan isi untuk informasi lebih lanjut)
Implemetasi Pemanfaatn Wikipedia dalam Dunia Akademik
Penggunaan wikipedia di kalangan akademik menjadi perdebatan yang hangat, bahkan banyak universitas yang meng-haram-kan penggunaan wikipedia dalam tugas pembuatan peper, hal ini juga berlaku ditempat saya menimba ilmu, Universitas Indonesia. Akan tetapi, tak bisa dipungkiri bahwa Wikipedia menjadi sumber yang paling banyak digunakan oleh pelajar maupun mahasiswa dalam pembuatan tugssnya. Umi Proboyekti mengungkapkan bahwa mahasiswanya dalam mencari sumber informasi bergantung pada sumber-sumber tertentu seperti:wikipedia.
Diskusi mengenai penggunaan Wikipedia pun menjadi topik yang menarik di milis pustakawan meneliti, pertanyaan mendasarnya adalah apakah wikipedia sudah termasuk kedalam kategori sumber rujukan seperti ensiklopedia dan sumber rujukan lainnya?, apakah sudah ada kebijakan bahwa isi dari wikipedia tersebut dapat dipertanggungjawabkan seperti ensiklopedia?
Dari berbagai sumber dan diskusi yang saya lakukan, saya dapat menyimpulkan tentang bagaimana pemanfaatan wikipedia sebagai berikut:
  1. Wikipedia tidak direkomendasikan untuk dirujuk secara formal (dikutip isinya), tapi kita bisa menggunakanya untuk mengkomparasikan dengan sumber lain, banyak yang meragukan validitasnya karena (salah satunya) banyak yang berkontribusi, isinya bisa benar atau bisa juga tidak benar, karena tidak ada sistem yang menfilter itu, filternya ada pada diri kita.
  2. Wikipedia jangan dijadikan sumber informasi, tapi wikipedia hanya portal saja, dimana kita bisa mendapatkan informasi awal dan juga mendapatkan link ke sumber yang sebenarnya. Jadi yang digunakan sebagai sumber informasinya adalah pranala luar.
  3. Wikipedia bisa gunakan untuk mencari informasi awal tentang sebuah topik yang paling mutakhir.

 Cara Kerja Wikipedia
Cara kerja dari Wikipedia ialah, seorang pengguna membuat artikel, misalnya satu baris saja, katakanlah mengenai band XYZ, lalu ditandai sebagai "Stub". Di Wikipedia, stub berarti bahwa artikel tersebut masih berbentuk kecil, masih rintisan, masih belum lengkap. Anda dipersilakan untuk memperbaiki artikel-artikel stub. Stub seringkali dibuat dengan sangat bersahaja, seperti satu baris ini:“Band XYZ adalah sebuah band rock Indonesia yang didirikan pada tahun 1930. Band ini berbasis di Bandung.”
Maka kelak, akan ada seorang pengguna lain yang melengkapi artikel band XYZ tersebut. Pengguna tersebut akan menambahkan hal-hal yang terkait dengan band tersebut.
Itu semua dipicu oleh ditambahkannya template stub ke artikel tersebut. Penambahan template tersebut otomatis menambahkan artikel tentang band XYZ tadi ke sebuah kategori khusus stub. Pengguna lain dapat melihat daftar artikel yang berstatus stub di kategori tadi, dan dapat memilih artikel mana yang dapat ia kembangkan.
Proses ini berlangsung setiap hari, dan begitulah Wikipedia bekerja. Memang, terkadang ada artikel yang masih berbentuk stub selama bertahun-tahun. Dan kasus tersebutlah yang banyak sekali diterima para pengurus Wikipedia, tentang mengapa artikel tersebut hanya satu baris saja. Tak jarang, para pengurus bosan untuk mengingatkan bahwa Wikipedia boleh disunting siapa saja.
Maka para pengurus menciptakan suatu akronim, SOFIXIT. Betulkan saja. Apabila Anda merasa ada yang kurang lengkap dengan artikel, misalnya, sekolah Anda di Wikipedia, perbaiki sendiri. Anda bahkan tidak diharuskan untuk mendaftar. Perbaikilah. Tidak ada yang melarang. Wikipedia ibarat sederetan paku yang belum dipalu. Wikipedia menyediakan palu untuk Anda memalu paku-paku itu. 


 A. Keunggulan Wikipedia

Keistimewaan Wikipedia adalah selain menyajikan informasi yang biasa ditemui di dalam sebuah ensiklopedia, Wikipedia juga memuat artikel-artikel yang biasanya ditemukan di dalam almanak, majalah spesialis, dan topik-topik berita yang masih hangat. Banyak orang yang menggunakan Wikipedia ini untuk menyelesaikan tugas dan pekerjaan rumah.
Wikipedia dan Larry Sanger berawal sebagai projek sampingan Nupedia, ensiklopedia bebas daring yang artikelnya ditulis oleh para ahli. Larry Sanger, yang mendirikan Nupedia bersama Jimmy Wales, melontarkan ide mengenai ensiklopedia berbasis wiki pada 10 Januari 2001 di milis Nupedia. Kemudian pada 15 Januari 2001, Wikipedia secara resmi diluncurkan.
Berikut ini beberapa karakteristik penting di dalam projek Wikipedia.
  • Wikipedia adalah ensiklopedia utama.
  • Wikipedia adalah sebuah wiki yang dapat diubah oleh setiap orang (kecuali untuk pengguna yang diblok dan pengecualian di halaman terlindung)
  • Wikipedia mengandung isi bebas dan menggunakan copyleft Lisensi dokumentasi bebas GNU.

    B. Jumlah Artikel Wikipedia

Sejak resmi diluncurkan pada tanggal 15 Januari 2001, Wikipedia Bahasa Inggris telah mengalami perkembangan jumlah artikel yang luar biasa. Tanggal 21 Januari 2003, jumlah artikel yang dimiliki telah mencapai 100.000 buah, kemudian pada tanggal 01 Maret 2006, telah memiliki 1.000.000 artikel. Angka ini terus bertambah menjadi 2.000.000 artikel pada tanggal 09 September 2007 dan menembus angka 3.000.000 artikel pada tanggal 17 Agustus 2009.
Hingga bulan Desember, proyek Wikipedia yang telah memiliki jumlah artikel lebih dari 1.000.000 hanya ada 4 bahasa, yaitu Bahasa Inggris, Bahasa Jerman yang telah menembus angka ini pada tanggal 27 Desember 2009, Bahasa Perancis yang telah melampauinya pada tanggal 21 September 2010 dan Bahasa Belanda yang mencapai angka ini pada 17 Desember 2011.
Sedangkan Wikipedia Bahasa Indonesia, pertama kali memiliki artikel pada tanggal 30 Mei 2003. Angka ini menjadi 1.000 artikel pada tanggal 16 Maret 2004, kemudian menembus angka 10.000 artikel pada tanggal 31 Mei 2005. Perolehan 100.000 artikel didapat pada tanggal 21 Februari 2009. Pada tanggal 7 Desember 2011, Wikipedia Bahasa Indonesia telah memiliki lebih dari 178.000 artikel.

    C. Bebas Unduh

Setiap orang yang ingin menggunakan isi bebas Wikipedia, kapan pun, dapat mengunduh artikel yang mendekati versi terbaru di dalam pangkalan data untuk tujuan bebas, dengan syarat LDBG.
Beberapa lokasi, seperti Wikinfo, wordiq, thefreedictionary.com, 4reference, dan nationmaster telah membuat salinan (mirroring) dan membuat 'data turunan' (forking) dari isi Wikipedia.

   D. Pengubahan

Isi Wikipedia dapat diciptakan oleh penggunanya. Pengunjung di Wikipedia juga dapat mengubah artikel, dan banyak yang melakukannya. Halaman-halaman selalu diubah, jadi, tidak ada artikel yang pernah selesai. Dan karena itu pula di Wikipedia sering terjadi "kesulitan" yang unik,. Tetapi ia pun memiliki sistem "penyembuhan sendiri" untuk menghadapi tantangan tersebut.

   E. Hardware

Wikipedia dijalankan dengan memakai perangkat lunak MediaWiki oleh server-server milik Yayasan Wikimedia. Sampai dengan 13 Mei 2006 Wikipedia dan proyek-proyek Wikimedia lainnya dijalankan oleh 175 server yang terletak di 4 lokasi berbeda yaitu di Tampa-Florida-Amerika Serikat, Paris-Perancis, Amsterdam-Belanda, serta di lokasi Yahoo!.
Perincian server menurut lokasinya adalah sebagai berikut.

  • Tampa, Florida:
    • 14 buah server berbasisdata MySQL,
    • 18 buah server Squid,
    • 93 buah server Apache, dan
    • 12 buah server lainnya untuk beragam keperluan.
  • Paris, Perancis:
    • 3 buah server Squid.
  • Amsterdam, Belanda:
    • 12 buah server.
  • Yahoo!:
    • 23 buah server.


   F. Kesimpulan

(+) Kelebihan
1. Lebih cepat saat diakses
2. Info yang terdapat di dalamnya lengkap
3. Menjadi media yang sering digunakan oleh pelajar untuk mendapatkan informasi
4. Tampilan tidak begitu memusingkan pengunjung
5. Mudah untuk mencari informasi lain ketika sudah berada di area wikipedia
6. Pemantapan/pembelajaran bahasa inggris
7. Informasi mencangkup keseluruhan
8. Banyak link yang langsung menuju pengertian istilah-istilah
9. Jika ada kesalahan cepat diperbaiki
10. Mudah digunakan

(-) Kekurangan
1. Kadang-kadang informasinya tidak sesuai dengan apa yang dimaksud
2. Kurangnya kesimpulan yang mendetail
3. Banyaknya pelajar yang sering mengakses search engine ini
4. Bagi yang kurang paham akan bahasa inggris akan susah untuk memahaminya
5. Kepengarangan/sumber informasi kurang di kenal
6. Membuat ketagihan dan mengganggu kegiatan nyata

 

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It's possible to trade profitably on the Forex, the nearly $2 trillion worldwide currency exchange market. But the odds are against you, even more so if you don't prepare and plan your trades. According to a 2014 Bloomberg report, several analyses of retail Forex trading, including one by the National Futures Association (NFA), the industry's regulatory body, concluded that more than two out of three Forex traders lose money. This suggests that self-education and caution are recommended. Here are some approaches that may improve your odds of taking a profit. Prepare Before You Begin Trading Because the Forex market is highly leveraged -- as much as 50 to 1 -- it can have the same appeal as buying a lottery ticket: some small chance of making a killing. This, however, isn't trading; it's gambling, with the odds long against you. A better way of entering the Forex market is to carefully prepare. Beginning with a practice account is helpful and risk-free. While you're trading in your practice account, read the most frequently recommended Forex trading books, among them Currency Forecasting: A Guide to Fundamental and Technical Models of Exchange Rate Determination, by Michael R. Rosenberg is short, not too sweet and highly admired introduction to the Forex market. Forex Strategies: Best Forex Strategies for High Profits and Reduced Risk, by Matthew Maybury is an excellent introduction to Forex trading. The Little Book of Currency Trading: How to Make Big Profits in the World of Forex, by Kathy Lien is another concise introduction that has stood the test of time. All three are available on Amazon. Rosenberg's book, unfortunately, is pricey, but it's widely available in public libraries. "Trading in the Zone: Master the Market with Confidence, Discipline and a Winning Attitude," by Mark Douglas is another good book that's available on Amazon, and, again, somewhat pricey, although the Kindle edition is not. Use the information gained from your reading to plan your trades before plunging in. The more you change your plan, the more you end up in trouble and the less likely that elusive forex profit will end up in your pocket. Diversify and Limit Your Risks Two strategies that belong in every trader's arsenal are: Diversification: Traders who execute many small traders, particularly in different markets where the correlation between markets is low, have a better chance of making a profit. Putting all your money in one big trade is always a bad idea. Familiarize yourself with ways guaranteeing a profit on an already profitable order, such as a trailing stop, and of limiting losses using stop and limit orders. These strategies and more are covered in the recommended books. Novice traders often make the mistake of concentrating on how to win; it's even more important to understand how to limit your losses. Be Patient Forex traders, particularly beginners, are prone to getting nervous if a trade does not go their way immediately, or if the trade goes into a little profit they get itchy to pull the plug and walk away with a small profit that could have been a significant profit with little downside risk using appropriate risk reduction strategies. In "On Any Given Sunday," Al Pacino reminds us that "football is a game of inches." That's a winning attitude in the Forex market as well. Remember that you are going to win some trades and lose others. Take satisfaction in the accumulation of a few more wins than losses. Over time, that could make you rich!
No car insurance resource would be complete without a comprehensive glossary of car insurance terms. We've compiled a list of terms and their definitions to better help you navigate the sometimes confusing world of insurance Accident - This is an unexpected sudden event that causes property damage to an automobile or bodily injury to a person. The event may be an at-fault or not-at fault and it may be report or unreported. An accident involving two vehicles may be termed a collision. Accident report form - This is the report filed by police, often called the police report, containing the important information regarding the vehicle collision. This report will include the names of all individuals involved, vehicles involved, property damaged and citations that were issued. Adjuster - This is the person who will evaluate the actual loss reported on the policy after an accident or other incident. They will make the determination on how much will be paid on the auto insurance policy by the Insurer. Agent - This is a licensed and trained individual who is authorized to sell and to service insurance policies for the auto insurance company. At Fault - This is the amount that you, the policy holder, contributed or caused the auto collision. This determines which insurance agency pays which portion of the losses. Auto Insurance Score - This is a score similar to credit score that evaluates the information in your consumer credit report. These scores are used when determining pricing for your auto insurance policy. Negative marks on your credit report can increase your auto insurance premiums. The use of this information to determine policy pricing does vary from state to state. Automobile Insurance - This is a type of insurance policy that covers and protect against losses involving automobiles. Auto Insurance policies include a wide range of coverage's depending on the policy holders needs. Liability for property damage and bodily injury, uninsured motorist, medical payments, comprehensive, and collision are some of the common coverage's offered under an auto insurance policy. Binder - This is a temporary short-term policy agreement put in place while a formal permanent policy is put into place or delivered. Bodily Injury Liability - This is the section of an insurance policy that covers the cost to anyone you may injure. It can include lost wages and medical expenses. Broker - This is a licensed individual who on your behalf sells and services various insurance policies. Claim - This is a formal notice made to your insurance company that a loss has occurred which may be covered under the terms of the auto insurance policy. Claims Adjuster - This person employed by the insurance agency will investigate and settle all claims and losses. A representative for the insurance agency to verify and ensure all parties involved with the loss, get compensated fairly and correctly. Collision - The portion of the insurance policy that covers damage to your vehicle from hitting another object. Objects can include but are not limited to; another vehicle, a building, curbs, guard rail, tree, telephone pole or fence. A deductible will apply. Your insurance company will go after the other parties insurance policy for these cost should they be at fault. Commission - This is the portion of the auto insurance policy that is paid to the insurance agent for selling and servicing the policy on behalf of the company. Comprehensive - This is a portion of the insurance policy that covers loss caused by anything other than a collision or running into another object. A deductible will apply. This includes but is not limited to vandalism, storm damage, fire, theft, etc. Covered loss - This is the damage to yourself, other people or property or your vehicle that is covered under the auto insurance policy. Declarations Page - This is the part of the insurance policy that includes the entire legal name of your insurance company, your full legal name, complete car information including vehicle identification numbers or VIN, policy information, policy number, deductible amounts. This page is usually the front page of the insurance policy. Deductible Amount - This is the portion of the auto insurance policy that is the amount the policy holder must pay up front before the Insurance Company contributes and is required to pay any benefits. This amount can be within a wide range in price and varies from approximately $100 - $1000. The larger amount you pay in a deductible the lower your normal monthly/yearly policy will cost. This is the portion of the auto insurance policy that would be applicable only to comprehensive or collision coverage. Discount - This is a reduction in the overall cost of your insurance policy. Deductions can be given for a variety of different reasons including a good driving record, grades, age, marital status, specific features and safety equipment on the automobile. Emergency Road Service - This is the part of an auto insurance policy that covers the cost of emergency services such as flat tires, keys locked in the car and towing services. Endorsement - This is any written change that is made to the auto insurance policy that is adding or removing coverage on the policy. Exclusion - This is the portion of the auto Insurance policy that includes any provision including people, places or things that are not covered under the insurance policy. First Party - This is the policyholder, the insured in an insurance policy. Gap Insurance - This is a type of auto insurance provided to people who lease or own a vehicle that is worth less than the amount of the loan. Gap auto Insurance will cover the amount between the actual cash value of the vehicle and the amount left on loan should the care be stolen or destroyed. High-Risk Driver - If you have a variety of negative marks on your insurance record including driving under the Influences, several traffic violations, etc. you may be labeled as a risk to the insurance company. This will increase your insurance policy or may make you ineligible for coverage. Insured - The policyholder (s) who are covered by the policy benefits in case of a loss or accident. Insurer - Is the Auto Insurance company who promises to pay the policy holder in case of loss or accident. Liability insurance - This part of an auto insurance policy which legally covers the damage and injuries you cause to other drivers and their vehicles when you are at fault in an accident. If you are sued and taken to court, liability coverage will apply to your legal costs that you incur. Most states will require drivers to carry some variation of liability coverage Insurance and this amount will vary state by state. Limits - This is the portion of the auto insurance policy that explains and lists the monetary limits the insurance company will pay out. In the situation you reach these limits the policy holder will be responsible for all other expenses. Medical Payments Coverage - This is the portion of an auto insurance policy that pays for medical expenses and lost wages to you and any passengers in your vehicle after an accident. It is also known as personal injury protection or PIP. Motor Vehicle Report - The motor vehicle report or MVR is a record issued by the state in which the policy holder resides in that will list the licensing status, any traffic violations, various suspensions and./ or refractions on your record. This is one of the tools used in determining the premium prices offered by the insurance agency. This is also used to determine the probability of you having a claim during your policy period. No-Fault Insurance - If you reside within a state with no-fault insurance laws and regulations, your auto insurance policy pays for your injuries no matter who caused the accident. No-fault insurance states include; Florida, Hawaii, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Utah and Washington, DC.. Non-Renewal - This is the termination of an auto insurance policy on the given expiration date. All coverage will cease as of this date and insurer will be released of promised coverage. Personal Property Liability - This is the portion of the auto insurance policy that covers any damage or loss you cause to another person's personal property. Personal Injury Protection or PIP - This portion of an auto insurance policy pays for any lost wages or medical expenses to you and any passengers in your vehicle following an accident. PIP is also known as medical payments coverage. Premium - This is the amount charged to you monthly, yearly or any other duration agreed upon by insurance company and policy holder and paid directly to the auto insurance company. A premium is based on the type and amount of coverage you choose for your vehicle(s) and yourself. Other factors that will affect your insurance premium prices include your age, marital status, you're driving and credit report, the type of car you drive and whether you live in an urban or rural area. Premiums vary by insurance company and the location you live. Quotation - This is the amount or estimated amount the insurance will cost based on the information provided to the agent, broker or auto insurance company. Rescission.- This is the cancellation of the insurance policy dated back to its effective date. This would result in the full premium that was charged being returned. Rental Reimbursement - This is the portion of the auto insurance policy that covers the cost of an automobile rental of similar size should the covered vehicle be in repair from a reported incident. Replacement Cost - This is the amount of money it would cost to replace a lost or damaged item at it is actually new replacement value. This monetary amount would be based on a new identical item in the current local market. Salvage - This is the auto insurance policy holders property that is turned over tot eh insurance agency in a loss final settlement. Insurance companies will sell the salvage property in hopes to recoup some of its monetary loss due to the loss and settlement. Second Party - this is the actual insurance company in the auto insurance policy. Surcharge - This is the amount added to your auto insurance policy premium after a traffic violation or an accident in which you were found to be at fault. Third Party - This is another person other than the policy holder and auto insurance company who has faced a loss and may be able to collect and be compensated on behalf of the policy holder's negligence. Total Loss - This is complete destruction to the insured property of a policy holder. It has been determined that it would be a great sum of money to repair the item rather than replace the insured piece of property to its state prior to the loss. Towing Coverage - This is the portion of the auto insurance policy that covers a specified amount for towing services and related labor costs. Under insured Driver - This is the portion of an auto insurance policy which covers injuries to you caused by a driver without enough insurance to pay for the medical expenses you have incurred from the accident. This is portion of the policy can vary state by state as some states include damage to the car in this section. Uninsured Driver or Motorist - This is the portion of the auto insurance policy which covers injuries to you caused by a driver who was without liability insurance at the time of the accident. Uninsured driver or motorist coverage comes in two different sections; uninsured motorist bodily injury and uninsured motorist property damage. Uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage covers the injuries to you or any passenger in your vehicle when there is an accident with an uninsured driver. Uninsured motorist property damage coverage covers the cost for the property damage to your vehicle when there is an accident with an identified uninsured driver. Uninsured driver or motorist coverage must be offered when you purchase the required liability coverage for your vehicle. You must sign a declination waiver if you decline Uninsured driver or motorist coverage. The majority of states require drivers to carry some form of uninsured motorist coverage. Some states include damages to your car in this coverage. Vehicle Identification Number or VIN - A VIN is a 17 letter and number combination that is the identification of the specific vehicle. It will identify the make, modem and year of the automobile. This number is typically located on the driver's side window on the dash. It can also be found on the vehicles registration and title