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What is a WIKI?

Brief introduction to the tool for participatory document writing. What is a WIKI?. Imagine the situation:. A group of 10 scientists spread all over the world working together on a joint proposal…

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What is a WIKI?

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  1. Brief introduction to the tool for participatory document writing What is a WIKI?

  2. Imagine the situation: • A group of 10 scientists spread all over the world working together on a joint proposal… • A group of program administrators developing common procedures on how to handle programs or office visitors… • A secretary assisting five scientists, organizing and facilitating their travel and work plans ... • Laboratory technicians developing manuals of laboratory procedures… How do they handle these tasks (at CIMMYT)?

  3. Now, imagine the situation: • …all members of the group have instant access to the most up-to-date version of the document… • At any moment in time they can: • make changes • see who is making changes • be alerted whenever the document is changed • recover any of the previous versions • attach any reference materials (files) • link to other pages / documents / files • print, send and export the document in a user-friendly format

  4. …all that without knowing much about web page creation, languages, technical issues, etc…

  5. Wiki can help! A wiki is a collaborative website which can be directly edited by anyone with access to it. Public Wiki x Private Wiki • A wiki is essentially a program (database) that allows users to create, comment on and change one another's text in a simple markup language using a web browser. • Development started in mid 90s. Today wiki is increasingly adopted by businesses as collaborative software. Some companies use wikis as a replacement for static Intranets. • Common uses include project communication, Intranets, and documentation, initially for technical users.

  6. What do wiki critics say? • “These systems could be easily tampered with.” • “ It sounds like offering free spray cans next to a grey concrete wall.” But is it really happening? Is there a way of protection? What do wiki proponents say? • “The community of users can catch malicious content and correct it immediately.” • “ There are enough examples that it works very well.”

  7. What does that mean for CIMMYT? • CIMMYT’s wiki is a private one. (Do you already have your username and password?) • A critical mass of users is needed. • If you DON’T HAVE serious commitment of all group members to use wiki (instead of email attachments), than don’t use wiki.

  8. Wiki is not a repository for documents … • Some examples of public wiki spaces: • http://miniproject-FS.wetpaint.com • http://miniproject.wikidot.com • The most well-known wiki website: • www.wikipedia.com Join wiki family! Become a happy ‘wiker’ !

  9. To login into CIMMYT’s wiki go to: • http://cril.cimmyt.org/confluence/login.action • To learn basics about CIMMYT’s wiki see the flash tutorial !

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