I think the key to using Wikipedia (this is the only one reference of this sort I'm aware of) is knowing that all contents must be taken with a pinch -- or several handfuls -- of salt. I'd never use it as a main, or even a first point of reference, especially when there are so many other available sources out there, but I agree that for a quick, unimportant search it may be useful, and that in it one may find the pointers to continue searching elsewhere. Not to mention its updatedness (is there such a word?) for current information that would not have made its way to traditional reference sources yet.