Wiki

A Wiki is a web-based writing space based on the original Wiki Wiki Web. It is typically collaborative, but doesn't have to be. Why do it? To make the WikiWeb, Webs Of Thinkers And Thoughts.

WikiWay: What are its defining characteristics (to me): (see also WikiStandards, WikiWikiWeb:ElementsOfWikiEssence)

browser-based WebApp, so anyone can author from anywhere
uses lite pseudo-markup (SmartAscii), so easy to author, and easy to read in ASCII mode (I often copy stuff over into an MsOutlook note to synch to my Pilot so I can edit offline).
Smashed Together Words method of Automatic Linking makes it easy to build up a bushy hypertext space (Intertwingularity).

A WikiWord is a word with an initial cap and at least one other cap in the middle (aka Camel Case - there are various special cases here, but I'll ignore those for now). When the page is viewed, the wiki app checks every WikiWord to see if there's a node in the WikiSpace with that name: if so, it automatically links to it (renders the HTML href); else, it generates a '?' as a suffix to the WikiWord, which if clicked on takes you to an empty form so you can create that node. This provides a Shared Language and Accidental Linking.
almost every WikiEngine has a BackLinks feature, which is a way of providing the Two Way Links that Ted Nelson and other HyperText gurus have always wanted to be added to the World Wide Web.

In a Collaboration Ware Context (which is what it was originally designed for), the ability of anyone to edit any page (vs each page having a single 'owner') encourages involvement.

Some categories of wiki (which may overlap) (WikiTypes):

private NoteBook
publicly-readable WikiLog (maybe readers can append comments, but can't edit every page)
TeamWiki/WikiForCollaborationWare - see interview
wide-open CommunityWiki: anyone can edit any page - this is the case that most people think of first, based on Wiki Wiki Web and Wikipedia
- CommunityWiki:DegreesOfEditorialControl notes that not all users-with-edit-privileges have the same power

There's a fair amount of wiki-theory discussion at Meatball Wiki.

first Wiki-type app was written by Ward Cunningham in HyperCard (so it was a single-machine writing space) at TekTronix in the 80s! WikiWikiWeb:WikiWikiHyperCard
the first web-based space was Wiki Wiki Web, launched in 1995. WikiWikiWeb:WikiHistory

There is a Wikipedia project to build an encyclopedia on top of a wiki engine. It was noted in the end-2001 Ny Times "Year in Ideas" issue (the article was written by Steven Johnson).

I was thinking that Justin Hall's old stuff is like a manually coded Wiki.

Some wiki sites I want to visit: (MeatballWiki:TourBus)

Things I want to work on next (Jun2004)

Are wikis ugly? need CSS?

2003-04-28-WikiUgly, 2003-05-18-ShirkyUglyMedia
CommunityWiki:WikisAreUgly includes some links to wikis people think are not ugly. I rather like the below. But, amusingly, one thing that seems to make pages more "attractive" is having some sidebar stuff, which ironically I find rather a distraction most of the time and something that gets in the way of having lots of pages open at the same time in smaller windows....
Nov'2009, during Clone Zwiki - do I want to look more like some other site/blog?
- in general, I realize I don't care much, as long as things aren't too ugly
- should probably drop gray background, esp on single-node pageviews
  - maybe a super-light blue (or purple) on Front Page?
    - with also-light similar color for sidebar-boxes?
- rather like lots of Matt Haughey's site, though not having the 3rd column

Bill Seitz