Wikis

Wiki is a Hawaiian word that means fast or quick. A wiki is a website that can be easily updated and changed by multiple users. Wikis can be used in many of the same ways as blogs. The main difference is the higher level of collaboration and shared content creation available in the wiki environment.

A Few Key Wiki Features:

• Wikis can include text, images, audio, and video.
• Every version of every page is saved in the page history. So, you can revert to older versions, if needed.
• The history allows you to track what has been changed and by whom.
• A wiki's "permissions" may be set to public, protected or private.
• Public - Anyone can view and edit the pages;
• Protected - Anyone can view the pages, but only approved members may edit pages;
• Private - Only approved members (who are logged in) can view or edit the pages.
• You can track page changes by email or RSS reader.
• You do not need to know HTML to add content or apply styles.

To get a better understanding of how wikis work, please watch this short video, Wikis in Plain English, from CommonCraft. Then, go to the Wikis blog to access tutorials and get started with the exercises for this week.

Blogging

A blog is an online journal consisting of posts and comments generally on a specific topic.  Blogging sites, like Blogger, Wordpress, and Edublogs, make it easy for those without programming expertise to create a Web presence that is dynamic and includes links, video, images, RSS feeds, and other gadgets for an interactive experience.

Watch this short video, Blogging in Plain English, and then get started with the exercises for this week on the Blogs Page.