Tuesday Feb 06, 2007

What is the distinctive feature about Wikis? Is it Wiki an online encyclopedia, a site that uses Wiki markup, or a website that is editable by everyone?

 I think the main distinctive trait of Wikis is easy editing. Wikis are webpages that are easily editable. This poses a number of results:

 

  • Wikis are web-pages so they should be be accessed and edited via the Web. In Mindquarry is is possible using the Web-based Wiki editor, but you can as well update and create Wiki pages using standard HTTP methods like (PUT, GET, DELETE)
  • Wikis are easy to edit. This is a question of usability. When Wikis were first introduced, easy editing meant using Wiki markup instead of HTML, but with todays availability of web-based WYSIWYG-HTML-editors  I agree with Adrian Sutton who says: "Need a Standard Wiki Syntax? Try HTML"
Consequently the Mindquarry Wiki offers easy HTML editing using a visual editor and cuts down the interface to the most important formatting options, as Wiki users want to communicate a message, collaborate and share ideas and do not want to spend much time thinking about fine-tuning the look of their pages.

 

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