What are Wikis?

 

A wiki is a website that allows users to collaborate, by creating and modify content with a Web browser. Anybody can access the web page to view the information, as well as create new content, or make changes. Wikis have many different purposes both public and private, including note-taking, community websites, and intranets. There are simple and advanced wiki programs. The simple wiki allows for editing and hyperlinks only, and advanced allows to create or change images, tables, and games. Wikis are essentially one place to keep all of your stuff organized such as creating To-do list, or planning an event, etc. It was invented by programmer Ward Cunningham in 1995, and the word “Wiki” is Hawaiian meaning “fast”. Wikipedia is a well-known example of a wiki Web site, which is an online encyclopedia.

  

Applications for Wikis

   

Wikis could help businesses of any size, from sharing information across large teams of people to enhancing the business profile. Businesses can use wikis to maintain up-to date product information online, plan and manage project meetings, intranet portal for all of employees, log client work, notes and snippets, and track invoices. Also, wikis can be a great marketing tool to help promote the business, by setting up a wiki with product information that the business is selling.

 

Advantages/Disadvantages of Wikis

 

Wikis are versatile, which means it accommodates whatever you need to do. It’s a flexible tool with a wide range of applications. Other advantages include: easy to use and learn, anyone can edit and work on the same document, and keeps track of every edit made. There are some disadvantages that stem from the advantages in one context. It is easy for a person to vandalize a wiki, since anyone can edit any page.  For instance, someone may add profanity or inappropriate images to a page, and or erase all the content of a page. The flexibility of a wiki’s structure can be a disadvantage, because the information becomes disorganized due to the growth of the wiki. 

Products/Vendors/Cost/Technical Requirements for Wikis  

  

Most wiki engine software is open-source and free, and there is no special software required. All you need to do is register to setup a wiki. However, installing your own wiki engine requires technical knowledge of servers and database software. Technical support is offered at ServiceNow Wiki site for wiki help assistance, and provides demos. Here are some free wiki products sites: EditMe, Swiki.net, and WikkiTikkiTavi. They are easy to use, password-protected, record changes to postings, allow previous postings to be viewed, and account-locking (prevents users from editing content). Some wiki products charge for the service such as MediaWiki, Seedwiki, and Socialtext. MediaWiki is mostly used by educators, and has many features such as tracking edits, records users contributions, sectional editing, separate discussion pages, unicode support, printable versions of articles, RSS feeds, and certain pages can be locked. It can be hosted internally for a monthly fee of about $15. Seedwiki is a hosted wiki service that has a “blue” account, costing $9.95 per month, provides unlimited wikis and pages, and password protection, and a “red” account, at $19.95 per month, provides the same features, plus the ability to create members-only wikis and to create customized collaborative applications. Socialtext is used by business as a communication tool. It provides a secure way to schedule events, manage projects, share information, and tutorial and help section. The price is $30 per month per user. 

https://wiki.servicenow.com/index.php?title=Main_Page

http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/MediaWiki

http://www.wikimatrix.org/show/SeedWiki

http://www.socialtext.com/

In Conclusion

 

In conclusion, wikis are a set of Web-based applications that allows users to work together, by editing and contributing to the content. They are worth the investment, especially for businesses, because they can make money for marketing their products and services. Wikis are a great tool for personal use to keep things organized. I think the growth of wikis will keep rising, because they are flexible and user-friendly with many features. However, you may need technical assistance if you choose to host your own wiki. There are many wikis to choose from, most are free, but some charge for service. All you need is internet access to setup a wiki with no required software.

Wiki Clip