Archived Event

Wiki: The Ultimate Tool For Online Collaboration

Date : Jul 13, 2006
Start Time : 11 a.m. Eastern
Length : 01:00:00

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Wiki is a social software tool that allows for unprecedented online collaboration. It enables a group of people to collaboratively develop a Web site with no knowledge of HTML or other markup languages. Any member of the wiki community can add to or edit anyone else's content, which is what makes Wikis so revolutionary and so controversial.

Wiki can be an excellent tool for certain projects and purposes, but it may not be the best choice for every population. Libraries are already using Wikis as subject guides, knowledge repositories, Intranets, and content management systems. They can also be used by librarians to share information and success stories online. A wiki is a good candidate for any project that requires quick and easy online collaboration.

This presentation will help you learn:

  • what a wiki is
  • how wikis have been (and can be) implemented in libraries
  • whether or not a wiki is the right tool for your library
  • how to implement a wiki in your library

Meredith Farkas ?Distance Learning Librarian, Norwich University

Meredith G. Farkas is the Distance Learning Librarian at Norwich University in Northfield, VT. In this position she has had the opportunity to implement many social technologies for use with her patrons and her colleagues. Meredith is the author of the book Social Software in Libraries: Building Collaboration, Communication and Community Online (Information Today, 2007) and writes the monthly column "Technology in Practice" for American Libraries. She also is the author of the blog Information Wants to Be Free and contributes to the collaborative blog TechEssence. She is the creator of Library Success: A Best Practices Wiki as well as a number of national conference wikis. Meredith is a passionate advocate for affordable online continuing education for librarians and developed the free online course, Five Weeks to a Social Library, to teach librarians about social software. In March 2006, she was named a Mover and Shaker by Library Journal for her innovative use of technology to benefit the profession.