"Thing 16: Learn about wikis and discover some innovative ways that libraries are using them."

Wikis

"What is a Wiki?
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A wiki allows a group of people to collaboratively develop a Web site with no knowledge of HTML or other markup languages. Anyone can add to or edit pages in a wiki -- it is completely egalitarian. Anyone can create new wiki pages simply by creating a new link with the name of the page. Pages are connected not hierarchically, but by hyperlinks between pages.
According to the creator of Wiki, Ward Cunningham, wikis can be identified by the following characteristics:
"A wiki invites all users to edit any page or to create new pages within the wiki Web site, using only a plain-vanilla Web browser without any extra add-ons."
"Wiki promotes meaningful topic associations between different pages by making page link creation almost intuitively easy and by showing whether an intended target page exists or not."
"A wiki is not a carefully crafted site for casual visitors. Instead, it seeks to involve the visitor in an ongoing process of creation and collaboration that constantly changes the Web site landscape."
(From Leuf, Bo and Ward Cunningham. The Wiki Way: Quick Collaboration on the Web. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson, 2001: 16.) "


For me, Wikipedia is a common wiki that most internet searchers have experienced. It still is a little unsettling to me that wiki users can constantly change the information on the website. Close monitoring for spam and misinformation seems warranted. Despite this, wikis work very well for many groups. Library applications include disseminating information about conferences, training, subject guides, programming highlights and generally sharing knowledge and innovations among colleagues and the public.