Assignment 1-4

What about Wikis?

This week, I am writing about wikis. A wiki is a development tool whose power lies in its simplicity and diversity. It can be used to collaborate on a broad range of topics or a single topic. One of the most popular wikis is a site called Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page). As the name suggests, this site can be thought of as an online encyclopedia with a twist: anyone can update or add new content. While this is not without its drawbacks (there have been instances of malicious or erroneous content), Wikipedia is generally well policed by the community to prevent such incidents.

Today, you can find wikis ranging from diverse subjects, like Wikipedia, to a single topic, like my Motorola Q9 cell phone (http://www.motoqwiki.com/index.php?title=Motorola_Q_Wiki). In the business environment, wikis have become particularly helpful as collaboration tools. Take for example a technology help desk scenario. Since wikis can be updated by the internal help desk staff, it would be quite easy for them to be used to document a problem and have the solution be documented there as well. When another help desk person runs into a similar issue, they can simply search the internal wiki to find the solution. Another option would be to extend this internal resource to the outside to allow customers to find solutions to their problems as well.

Wikis are not only useful for solving problems, but they can be more general in nature as well. One example of this is a wiki that I have linked on my iGoogle page called wikiHow (www.wikihow.com). This is a How-To wiki that is constantly updated. I have seen articles ranging from how to rotate your car tires to how to chill a can of soda in 2 minutes. While it may not be totally useful, I find much of it interesting. As with anything, your mileage may vary.