What's a wiki? Forming communities online

Now, this is what I call a meaty, thought-provoking session.  Elizabeth Albrycht, Dan Forbush, and Constantin Basturea collaborated to present an introduction to the benefits and the mechanics of forming trusted communities online through blogs and wikis.

Wikis? Yes, I've often used Wikipedia, the collaborative online encyclopedia. But before this New Communications Forum session, if you had asked me, "What's a wiki?" I would have been at a loss for words -- a rare situation for me. Even at the end of the session, my feeling was one I attribute to many of those 38 percent of internet users in the recent Pew blog study who claimed to know what a blog is: I sort of get it, sort of not, I can't define it, and I'm not enitrely sure I always recognize a wiki when I see one.

Having said that, I know a lot more about wikis now that I did before and I'm motivated to make wikis part of my communication tool kit. I've even put my toe in the water by accepting Constantin's invitation to post to the New PR Wiki.

So what's a wiki? Wikipedia defines it as "a website (or other hypertext document collection) that allows users to add content, as on an Internet forum, but also allows anyone to edit the content." In other words, a wiki (pronounced wicky) is a kind of online collaborative workspace that's great for project planning, conferences, developing white papers, and other tasks that benefit from the contributions of many, geographically dispersed authors.

(Note for word lovers: In the Hawaiian language, wiki wiki means quick or super-fast. The etymology in itself is a motivating factor for learning more!)

Dan gave a short demo of how wikis work using EditMe, a hosted web service he describes as "a wiki on training wheels." At $4.95 a month with no longterm commitment, Dan recommends EditMe as a good way to experiment with the power of wikis.

Constantin spoke about wikis both in terms of their basic technology and -- more in sync with my own interests -- their integration with organizational cultures. I loved his use of the term wiki gardeners -- people who nurture the growth of the wiki and undertake to  keep it free of weeds. (See Joi Ito's and Bruno Essmann's posts for more on wiki gardening.) Constantin also demonstrated several wiki engines, or software packages that implement wiki technology.

I loved this session because it introduced so many ideas that carried both practical and social implications. I only wish it had been possible for all willing conference participants to actually participate in creating a wiki during the New Communications Forum.