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Beverly J. Obert, Executive
Director
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Web 2.0 - The Wiki
It is November, the month of the Wiki. Your first
question may be, “What is a wiki?”
According to
Dictionary.com,
a wiki is a collaborative Web site set up to allow user editing and
adding of content. Wikipedia’s definition is: A wiki
is a page or collection of
Web pages designed to enable anyone who accesses it to contribute or
modify content, using a simplified
markup language. I see a wiki as a tool for collaboration.
There are many options for wiki development. One
helpful guide is Wiki
Matrix. It gives information on wikis, lets you compare software and
more. There are three ways to set up a wiki: one is to participate in a
free wiki hosting site, the second is to pay a subscription cost to a
provider for hosting, and the third is to set up the wiki on your own
server. Some wiki tools you may have heard of are
PBWIKI, WIKISPACES
or WETPAINT.
The wiki you have probably heard of is
Wikipedia.
Librarians have a love/hate relationship with this wiki. Anyone can add
information to Wikipedia,
thus it is not vetted by a subject specialist before it is made live.
However, many people have found that those who know the subjects well
monitor what is put up and correct facts frequently. There is no way to
stop people or students from using
Wikipedia. What
they need to know is that if they start at
Wikipedia, they
should not stop there, but continue their search and verify the facts they
find. If you have never been to
Wikipedia, check out
what it says about
wikis.
Your second question might be, “Is a wiki right for my
library?” To help you answer that question come to Web 2.0—Why Wiki?
on Thursday, Nov. 20th at Lincoln Library in Springfield. You
will see three presentations about wikis, learn why they were set up and how
you can use them. There will also be a panel discussion on the pros and
cons of wiki resources. See the schedule below and sign up now in
L2 to attend this workshop!
9:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
Registration & Welcome
10:00 a.m.- 10:45 a.m. Lincoln Library Wiki
Lincoln Library, Springfield's Public Library has created a wiki to aid in
communication with and dissemination of information to their library staff.
Brandy Hansen, reference librarian and Mandy Magill, branch library
assistant will present the reasons behind using a Wiki at their library.
They will discuss training and development issues, as well as the pros and
cons of using the Lincoln Library Wiki. They will also demonstrate how the
Wiki works.
10:55 a.m. to 11:40 a.m. Illinois Author's Wiki
The
Illinois Authors Wiki is a project of the
Illinois Center for the Book. It is a comprehensive resource for
information on authors, photographers and illustrators who have published
books, have lived in Illinois or write about Illinois. Author searches can
be performed in several ways - alphabetically by last name, genre, intended
audience and by keyword search. Illinois author profiles can also be viewed
through a random search and author photos can be viewed at the bottom of
this page. Bonnie Matheis, Illinois Center for the Book and Mortenson
Programs Coordinator for the Illinois State Library, will be discussing the
development of the Illinois Authors Wiki, as well as opportunities for
librarians to participate in
Illinois Authors Wiki. Bonnie will demonstrate how the
Illinois Authors Wiki works.
11:40 a.m. to 12:25 p.m. Lunch (Bring a brown bag or buy a
Panera's box lunch.)
12:25 p.m. to 1:10 p.m. Programapedia Wiki
Prairie Area Library System and Shawnee Library System using an LSTA grant
have created a wiki,
Programapedia, to aid in sharing programming resources throughout the
state of Illinois. Sandy Ringstrom is the Director of Consulting and
Continuous Learning. Responsible for overseeing consulting and continuous
learning services throughout the Prairie Area Library System service area.
She facilitates continuous learning programs, oversees professional
educational opportunities including an MLS program from the University of
Wisconsin-Madison and Northern Illinois University. Promote programs and
training throughout the PALS area. Sandy will be discussing the development
of Programapedia, as well as opportunities for librarians to participate in
Programapedia.
Sandy will demonstrate also how the
Programapedia
Wiki works.
"The project is supported through grant funding awarded by the Illinois
State Library (ISL), a Division of the Office of Secretary of State, using
funds provided by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), under
the federal Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA)."
1:20 p.m. to 2:05 p.m. Panel Discussion
Panel discussion of pro's and con's of wiki resources available.
2:05 p.m. to 2:30p.m. Wrap-up and evaluation
Rolling Prairie Library System
A Library for Librarians
Helping Libraries Serve Illinois Citizens |