Wikitopia Community-based interactive communication and information-sharing tools Emily Bush Margaret Norris

Wiki Quick Quick! Web application that allows users to add content, as on an Internet forum, but also allows anyone to edit the content

Wiki Overview Power law distribution (90/10 rules) Supernodes  People who both produce and can connect with lots of people Hypertext medium with non-linear navigational structure

Wiki Philosophy Put a flier on the wall. Just don't put a flier over someone elses. Your house will be the next builder's brick. Goal: Achieve a flow of meaning (dia-logos) as compared with breaking down one side of an argument (debate). Having diverse opinions, yet still getting along

Case Studies

Clustering

Organization Most Popular Categories Toward top of page Topics become more general as you scroll down Hierarchal vs. Alphabetical

Cognitive Analysis Fuzzy Set Theory Entertainment? Popularity and Graded Structure

User Experiences “Davis is a uniquely community centered place where people care about keeping up a community site, because it really helps support the community” -- Davis User

User Experiences “Message boards are lame, because it tends to just be people who just talk about funny things or talk shit to each other.” -- Davis User “A wiki is more than just a message board and a place to discuss things, it is a valuable resource for the community.” -- Davis User

Future Considerations And Recommendations

Wiki Security and Managing Legitmacy “As on most wikis, this is done by the people who contribute the material. If someone sees something demonstrably false, etc., it will get edited pretty quickly. Same with keeping information up to date.” -- Michael Ivanov Davis Wiki co-creator

Marketing

Wiki Practices/Ethics Listen to others Suspend you certainties. Respect opposing views Voice your opinion.

Implementation and Recommendations Because of its diverse array of features, we recommend using MoinMoin as the Wiki engine. Particularly pertinent features: Available at no cost No need for a database Anti-spam programming and IP blocking Support for many means of searching

Implementation and Recommendations MoinMoin’s only major requirement is a hosting service that supports the Python language; the Auckland Wiki uses Python-Hosting.com.

Implementation and Recommendations There should be a navigation bar that appears on every screen of the Wiki. Current Web programming languages such as HTML and XML can easily create such an aid. Navigation should be done through text as much as possible—image links’ destinations are not always obvious.

Implementation and Recommendations In addition to standard Web page organization, the Wiki should incorporate some form of folksonomy. A folksonomy is a non-hierarchical form of indexing that allows users to tag content. Folksonomy organization is simple: all tags generally appear on a central page, and the larger the tag, the more popular it is.

Implementation and Recommendations A folksonomy would give Wiki users power over its organization, further increasing interactivity.

Questions?