Wiki, Wiki, Weeeee.

A brief history - the very first wiki was WikiWikiWeb.  Developed in 1994, and first installed on the Internet on March 25, 1995, wikis have exploded in a mere 6 years. The word “Wiki” even entered the online Oxford English Dictionary on March 15, 2007. 

No exact numbers on how many wikis are out there can be found. One site suggests that there are over 9000 wikis, and that seems like as good a guess as any. The adeptness of wikis to be used for resourcing of databases, as well as policy or reports, is one of its most appealing features.

Three wikis that I have recently viewed are PBwiki, Wetpaint, and Wikia. They are quite different in their approach to wiki, and I have a definite preference for which one I enjoy the most.

P.B. Wiki has an unmistakeable corporate look. It seems like it would please accounting firms, or law offices. It’s probably useful for larger businesses with quite a few employees and/or departments, or for conventions to keep participants informed.

Next is Wetpaint. I found it difficult to navigate with far too much advertising. The featured wikis are for television shows I would NEVER watch – Jersey Shore and The Kardashians – ugh! Thanks, but on that alone I’ll pass.

Last, but most favoured, Wikia. I prefer this wiki over the other two for a few reasons:

•     It is easier to navigate.
•    If you register, you can skip the ads.
•    I found a couple of pages that I enjoy and may visit again.

As a tool for libraries, wikis can be used to train staff or inform them of policies and procedures. Antioch University New England has an extensive training and support Wiki for library staff, ranging from emergency procedures to the method for replacing vacuum cleaner bags. Utilizing seedwiki, it is a fairly straight forward, easy to use site.

The same cannot be said for the Chattahoochee Technical College library wiki. Although it serves the same function as Antioch, it uses PBworks and the interface is rather sterile. Can`t say I`m a fan of the layout or colour scheme, which seems to be identical for all its clients.

Because wikis are now quite simple to develop, more and more libraries should be taking advantage of them (http://www.libsuccess.org/index.php?title=Wikis, and http://www.squidoo.com/librarywikis). If laid out suitably, they are a quick and easy way to access information, both internally like Antioch University`s or as an external resource for patrons (e.g.   http://snozzcumber.com/wiki/index.php?title=San_Diego_Librarians_Wiki). Quite simply wikis are a great way to incorporate Web 2.0 into your library world.