1.+What+is+a+wiki?

Ward Cunningham, the man behind the very first wiki, described it as "the simplest online database that could possibly work." But, while this sounds good rolling off the tongue, it is not very descriptive, and to be honest, not entirely accurate. A better description would be a wiki is the simplest collaborative content management system that could possibly work. Sounds complicated, huh? That might be why Ward Cunningham chose not to describe it that way, but it really is a more accurate description because it pinpoints that special something that have caused wikis to burn through the web like a wildfire. Advantages **
 * What’s a wiki?
 * ** anyone can edit  **
 * ** easy to use and learn  **
 * ** Wikis are instantaneous so there is no need to wait for a publisher to create a new edition or update information  **
 * ** people located in different parts of the world can work on the same document  **
 * ** the wiki software keeps track of every edit made and it's a simple process to revert back to a previous version of an article  **
 * ** widens access to the power of web publishing to non-technical users  **
 * ** the wiki has no predetermined structure - consequently it is a flexible tool which can be used for a wide range of applications  **
 * ** there are a wide range of open source software wiki's to choose from so licensing costs shouldn't be a barrier to installing an institutional wiki **

Advantages in one context may be disadvantages in another. ** Sources: [] [] **
 * Disadvantages
 * ** Anyone can edit so this may be too open for some applications, for example confidential documentation. However it is possible to regulate user access.  **
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Open to SPAM and Vandalism if not managed properly. There are easy ways to restore a page however, and on Wiki Educator you must be logged in to edit pages so this reduces vandalism by automated spam bots.  **
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Requires Internet connectivity to collaborate, but technologies to produce print versions of articles are improving  **
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> The flexibility of a wiki's structure can mean that information becomes disorganized. As a wiki grows, the community plans and administers the structure collaboratively.  **
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Using wiki may have same disadvantage of using computers for long time. It may cause health related (posture, sight) problems if not used properly.  **
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