Wiki: Pedia

<p>A wiki is a website designed for collaborative editing, letting many people create, update, and organize content directly in a web browser. Simplicity and openness are central to wikis: anyone can often add or change pages without technical knowledge, and edits are usually logged for review or rollback. Main features - **Collaborative editing:** Numerous contributors can work on pages, sometimes simultaneously. - **Edit history:** All edits are stored with timestamps and the author’s name or IP. - **Interlinking:** Links between pages are simple to create, helping build connected content. - **Lightweight markup:** Formatting is usually handled by lightweight markup languages (e.g., WikiText or Markdown). - **Permission settings:** Wikis may allow public editing or restrict changes to registered or authorized users. - **Discussion pages:** Separate talk pages allow contributors to discuss edits and structure. Frequent uses - Crowd-sourced knowledge resources (e.g., Wikipedia) - Project documentation and internal company knowledge repositories - Cooperative writing and shared notes - Classroom and educational projects Advantages - **Fast collaboration:** Multiple people can add and refine content quickly. - **Openness:** Edit histories and talk pages reveal how content decisions were made. - **Expandable:** Wikis expand easily as contributors add and organize content. Limitations - **Vandalism and false information:** Open editing may allow intentional or accidental inaccuracies. - **Inconsistent quality:** Content quality may vary widely between pages. - **Organizational issues:** Lack of structure or rules can lead to disorganization and conflicts. Illustration - **Wikipedia** — a well-known wiki operated by the Wikimedia Foundation and written by volunteers around the globe.</p>