Wikis

The article that I read for today’s class is titled "Wikis-What are they?" by Brian Lamb. Wikis are described as “a diverse set of systems, features, approaches, and projects” (p.38). Many people use wikis today in many different ways, but there are some principle features of the medium. Some of the features are: it can be edited by anyone, it uses hypertext markup language, wiki pages can be linked to one another and the content on the page is never complete (Lamb, 2004). Wikis can be quite fascinating and they are often used in large group collaborations (Lamb, 2004).

According to Lamb, many people are concerned about their work being edited (Lamb, 2004). This is a concern because there is not someone organizing and constantly monitoring the page. This also makes it hard for people to navigate their way around the page. Many people have no idea where to go and what to look for, but eventually they learn to operate it. There has also been an increase in the use of wikis in the academic world. Many institutes of higher education have been experimenting with this medium and teachers have been using them as a learning tool (Lamb, 2004). Although the use of wikis has increased over years, it is still an underused medium that, hopefully, in years will continue to grow.

I thought it was interesting to read that people were concerned with the wikis appearance. Some people complained that the interface was unattractive. I think that should not be a concern as long as they are able to use it effectively. When things are unappealing to someone they do not take the time to look at it (Lamb, 2004). People are often unsatisfied with things when they do not understand it and they may lose the opportunity to experience something new.