Wiki: Pedia

<p>Wikis are websites built for collaborative authoring, allowing numerous contributors to add, edit, and structure content online. 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:** Multiple people can edit the same pages, occasionally concurrently. - **Edit history:** All edits are stored with timestamps and the author’s name or IP. - **Interlinking:** It’s easy to create links between pages, forming an interconnected knowledge base. - **Lightweight markup:** Simple markup languages (such as WikiText or Markdown) are used to format pages. - **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. Common uses - Crowd-sourced knowledge resources (e.g., Wikipedia) - Project docs and corporate knowledge repositories - Group writing and collaborative note-taking - Educational and classroom projects Pros - **Fast collaboration:** Many people can collaborate and iterate quickly on content. - **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 contribution can result in deliberate or accidental misinformation. - **Inconsistent quality:** Articles can differ greatly in depth, tone, and reliability. - **Organizational issues:** Lack of structure or rules can lead to disorganization and conflicts. Illustration - **Wikipedia** — the best-known wiki, run by the Wikimedia Foundation and built by volunteer contributors worldwide.</p>