I must be really ignorant. What the heck is a Wiki?

[TomInTib]

I just took a Zogby Poll that asked all kinds of questions about networking (whatever that is), these Wiki things and the differences of both public blogs and company blogs.

Aren't blogs (which I think are websites) all for profit?

I was just clueless.

Almost every response was "I don't know".

This is not a joke (I wish it was so I wouldn't feel so stupid).

Any help would be greatly appreciated. When this stuff comes up in conversation, I just sit mute so everyone won't realize how out-of-touch I am (I am one of the civic leaders in my community and can ill afford that kind of exposure).

Thanks to my relative anonymity here at DU, maybe I can finally become enlightened.

Many thanks in advance (I hope).

Tom

[DesertRat]

1. Wikipedia.org

an online encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

[Little Wing]

2. here

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiki

[Viva_La_Revolution]

3. The simplest online database that could possibly work.

Wiki is a piece of server software that allows users to freely create and edit Web page content using any Web browser. Wiki supports hyperlinks and has a simple text syntax for creating new pages and crosslinks between internal pages on the fly.

Wiki is unusual among group communication mechanisms in that it allows the organization of contributions to be edited in addition to the content itself.

Like many simple concepts, "open editing" has some profound and subtle effects on Wiki usage. Allowing everyday users to create and edit any page in a Web site is exciting in that it encourages democratic use of the Web and promotes content composition by nontechnical users.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Historical Note. The first ever wiki site was created for the Portland Pattern Repository in 1995. That site now hosts tens of thousands of pages.

http://www.wiki.org/wiki.cgi?WhatIsWiki


:D


:hi:


on edit: I checked my e-mail to see if I got that survey too... there was one for me but the subject was.... Flatware. No kidding. I have purchased one complete set in the past 10 years. Most of the silverware in my kitchen is mis-matched assorted cheap-but-does-the-job type stuff.

Every question included a picture "Do you know which brand this is?"

Every answer was "Don't know"

I wish they had an option for "don't freakin care, as long as it's cheap and durable."

:shrug:

[annabanana]

4. A "blog" is more like an online diary. .

Anyone can have one, not many are really read regularly.

[CrazyOrangeCat]

5. Wikis are often seen at Tiki bars.

Sorry.

[TomInTib]

8. And she wrapped her coconuts around my Tiki

and said, "Let's talk dirty in Hawaiian".

[Monkeyman]

12. You Funny Clean Our Mind Troop LOL

[CrazyOrangeCat]

13. you've met her too.

[Solly Mack]

6. It's like a nooner only weekly

:)

What is a Wiki

[Greyhound]

7. Here ya go, Google is (for the time being) your friend.

Don't worry about asking these questions, nobody is born with this knowledge and, contrary to what the under 30 crowd would like to believe, this is all very new stuff.

I've been in the field since the late 80's and I can hardly believe how much and how fast it all changes.

[TomInTib]

14. I felt like the village idiot while I was taking that poll.

I have a great big ego and am rarely embarrassed.

Man, I was humiliated.

[Greyhound]

18. Just think of how much more you know about the stuff you know than

some bunch of "latest Big Thing" geeks, I'm sure it is quite a bit.

OTOH, while it is currently hard to see, this is really a world changing revolution in the class of writing, the printing press, and later telephony. Every great leap in communications technology brings with it a whole new world so it is good that you are participating.

Keep on asking, we won't tell.

[uppityperson]

9. "blog" is short for web log, can be like a web diary or gathering of your personal stuff/thoughts.

[Duer 157099]

10. No, blogs are not all for profit

In fact, I'd guess many are not.

A blog is a "weB Log" of someone's postings -- it would be equivalent to the OP (Original Post) of a thread here at DU, and most blogs have space for comments (which would be equivalent to the rest of the thread here on DU). At least that's my understanding.

If you have a "journal" here at DU, that's essentially a blog.

A wiki is a very cool cooperative tool where multiple people can edit a site -- most typically used for encyclopedia type pages. They vary in how they are managed (who can update, who has authority to approve edits, etc).

You probably know much more than you realize, just maybe you don't know all the specific terms.

[TomInTib]

15. Thanks, dotcosm. You are too kind.

You are correct, I understand those principles, it was the terms that threw me.

Thanks

Tom

[Eric J in MN]

11. Most bloggers just want to share their writings...

...like us posting on this message-board (and aren't doing it for profit.)

[Gregorian]

16. Google it.

:)

[Duer 157099]

17. LOL

Google wiki then go blog about it

[Selatius]

19. Wikis are forms of witchcraft. If you engage in them, then you must be a witch!

You will burn for your heresy!

:)

[Leopolds Ghost]

20. And how do we know that he is a wiki?

These are indeed trying tymes. Even those who arrange and design vlog wiki google mashups are under considerable economic stress at this period in history.

[Generic Brad]

21. Doesn't "wiki-wiki" mean "hurry up" in Hawaiian?

I believe that even pre-dates Wikepedia.