GettingStartedWithWikisTutorial

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Title: Getting starting with wikis

Abstract: Wikis may be the hot new buzzword, but they already have 10 years of history. Although often pitched as a simple technology, wikis really are a social practice that uses a simple technology to accomplish a powerful goal. This tutorial introduces wikis, and how they are typically used in actual practice to accomplish collaborative knowledge management. For those new to wikis, both the technology and social practices will be taught, typically in conjuction. Expect to learn the general user experience, how to create a wiki, attract participants, maintain it, and organize groups with it. Audience members will be invited to build their own wiki if they have Internet access during the session.

Main topic keywords [on-line submission form]: wiki how-to

Presenters:

Sunir Shah sunir@sunir.org University of Toronto / Socialtext

In April 2000, Sunir Shah founded MeatballWiki, which has grown to be the pre-eminent place to discuss wiki development and practice. Both Shah and Meatball have always taken a social view of wiki design and information technology in general. Currently Shah is a Masters candidate at the University of Toronto's Faculty of Information Studies and Knowledge Media Design Institute studying social information design. He works for Socialtext as a user-centred design specialist. Shah frequently coaches wiki proprietors on how to manage their wikis.

Level: Beginner.

Attendee background: Attendees with either no knowledge of wikis, or those with minimal knowledge of wikis in actual practice will benefit from this tutorial. Attendees who wish to build or improve their own wikis are encouraged to come prepared with an Internet-enabled laptop and an objective for some collaborative knowledge management problem (e.g. a company knowledge base; user manual for an open source project; organizing a neighbourhood civic action).

Tutorial objectives: Teach wiki use, both technically and the social practice. Guide new wiki proprietors through a successful deployment.

Presentation format: Hands-on development of a wiki with accompanying material in an online wiki prepared beforehand. Participants will be encouraged to bring their laptops to develop their own wikis during the session.

Scheduling constraints: none.

Half/Full-Day: Half-day

Can repeat: No. [ed: used to be Yes, but now I am doing a tutorial, a workshop, a panel, and organizing the demonstration, plus helping with two other workshops.]

Tutorial presentation history: new.

Target audience: Practitioners, managers, educators, and/or others.

Status:

The tutorial covers material for which some preliminary validation or proof-of-concept exists: being used in test applications or evaluation scenarios.

URL with additional info: http://meatballsociety.org/cgi-bin/wiki-guide

Are you willing to be taken out to lunch or dinner on the day of your tutorial by some of the attendees? Yes.

GettingStartedWithWikisTutorial

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