Wiki: Pedia

<p>Wikis are websites built for collaborative authoring, allowing numerous contributors to add, edit, and structure content online. They emphasize simplicity and openness — pages can be created or modified without special technical skills, and most maintain an edit history so revisions can be reviewed or reverted. Key features - **Collaborative editing:** Several contributors can edit pages, sometimes at the same time. - **Edit history:** Each change is logged with a time and the editor’s name or IP. - **Interlinking:** It’s easy to create links between pages, forming an interconnected knowledge base. - **Lightweight markup:** Formatting is usually handled by lightweight markup languages (e.g., WikiText or Markdown). - **Permission settings:** Some wikis are open to anyone; others limit edits to registered users or specific groups. - **Discussion pages:** Dedicated discussion pages enable contributors to coordinate and discuss content. Common uses - Community knowledge bases such as Wikipedia - Project docs and corporate knowledge repositories - Collaborative writing and shared note-taking - Educational and classroom projects Advantages - **Fast collaboration:** Multiple people can add and refine content quickly. - **Openness:** Transparency through revision histories and discussions. - **Expandable:** They scale organically as users add more pages and topics. Drawbacks - **Vandalism and false information:** Open editing may allow intentional or accidental inaccuracies. - **Inconsistent quality:** Entries may vary in accuracy, style, and completeness. - **Organizational issues:** Lack of structure or rules can lead to disorganization and conflicts. Example - **Wikipedia** — a well-known wiki operated by the Wikimedia Foundation and written by volunteers around the globe.</p>