Monday, February 11, 2008

Week 5 - Wikis


Off into the world of wikis.....

Had you ever used a wiki before completing this exercise? If yes, which?
I had used PB Wiki to create a wiki for a workshop. Once again, I never went back to it after the workshop was over. *my bad* I have also used Wikipedia, IMDB, and a couple of specialized wikis for informational purposes.

Do you think wikis can be a reliable and valuable source of information?
Yes, of course they can, especially if they are internal wikis created and used by a particular group or insitution or are created and maintained by knowledgeable experts in a field. General wikis that allow for public imput without any sort of oversight, however, can be very uneven in terms of their accuracy. An example might be IMDB. The information on the site is only as good as the contributors' knowledge or expertise. Mistakes or incomplete data can happen, sometimes often. Part of our job as information specialists is to evaluate the source of information for accuracy, bias, or other factors that can help determine reliability. It is the same whether the resource in question is in print or on the web.


What favorite did you add to the Library 2.0 Challenge Wiki? Did you find the process difficult?
I added my favorites in books, movies, TV shows, and travel destinations. The process of editing the page and adding information was very simple. However, when I tried to broaden my skills by adding a page, that proved to be an exercise in sadomasichsim. I created a new page, but was unable to add a link to it. I had watched the tutorial video twice, but obviously I hadn't "gotten it." *old age is a curse* I also tried the Help screens. I don't really know why, since they are usually little or no help at all, and these were no exception. Even worse, if you were given several alternatives that might be what you are looking for, you choose one and it doesn't help, when you try to go back to the list of suggestions, you can't. You have to start your query all over again. *a pox on them* So, I tried watching the tutorial video again and this time, the light bulb went off over my head. *headdesk* Success. So, if you are trying to add a page, and you are as dimwitted as I seemed to be, watch that video.

How might the library make use of a wiki, either for internal processes or as an outreach/information tool for the public?
The first uses that come to my mind are internal. Out library policy manual could be converted to a wiki. Updates could then be done once and the process of photocopying pages and changing them out of several notebooks would be eliminated. All without abridging access, as the wiki would be available for the entire staff to view. Also, each section could use a wiki to create a procedural manual. All staff in the section could edit the wiki, with the supervisor providing editorial oversight as needed.

Some of the libraries included in the support material for this task are using wikis for the public in a number of exciting ways - subject guides, book lovers' wiki, etc. Subject guides would be particularly useful. However, once again, staff time to create and maintain wikis would be an issue.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Congratulations, you've qualified for the 2nd biweekly drawing. We will announce the winner the week of 2/25.

I like your idea of having digitized procedure manuals. It would definately be a convenient way for departments to keep track of shared information.

Remember, to be eligible for the 3rd biweekly drawing, be sure and finish weeks 6 and 7 before 3/10.