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Did You Say Wiki? By Lori Cummings Did you ever wonder how to connect all of your students in a safe and interactive online environment? If so, a Wiki is the perfect solution for your needs. Wikis are fast and easy to set up, and allow educators the ability to work with their students in a safe and protected environment. For this article, I will review two Wiki software options: Wikispaces http://www.wikispaces.com and PBwiki [|http://pbwiki.com].

What’s a wiki, you ask? A wiki is a website collaboration tool where the web pages can be changed and instantly published using only a web browser (no programming required). In case you’re new to all of this, a web browser is what you use to access the internet, such as [|Firefox] or [|Internet Explorer]. In a wiki, the web pages are easily created and linked to each other. You do not have to be a programmer or have any programming background to be able to quickly and easily establish your wiki and begin to use it. A wiki serves many purposes, the best of which is to make your job as an educator easier (yes, //easier//). There is nothing complex about setting up and maintaining a wiki. You can use wikis to communicate more efficiently with students and parents, post homework assignments, and receive homework projects or lessons, or work together with another teacher at your school or anywhere in the world. You can even set up videos or other presentation materials. I can hear you asking “is it REALLY easy to set up?” My answer to you is “yes!” To set up a wiki in either Wikispaces or PBwiki, you just need a user name and password to get started. There is no cost to have a wiki on either of these two sites. Once you have created an account, you can start to make your pages. Here is a tutorial to help you set up your own wiki on Wikispaces: http://www.wetheteachers.com/viewfiles.php?fid=249 Here is a tutorial to help you set up your own wiki on PB wiki: http://www.slideshare.net/JenniferW/pb-wiki-tutorial How do you know which wiki site to use? Here are some of the features of both Wikispaces and PBwiki to help you make an informed decision about which site to use. First, let’s talk about wiki software and how to edit a wiki. Is it What You See Is What You Get (WYSIWYG)? Let’s find out! Wikispaces – this software is easy to edit. You simply set up your page, click “Edit Page” and start to type (just like word processing). The toolbar on the top allows you to easily edit your text, insert links, images, tables, etc. It is what you get! Once you save it, it will look nearly identical to what it looked like as you were editing (of course, you can hit the Preview button to check it out before saving any edits). There aren’t too many choices on fonts, but there are plenty to get started. If you are someone who likes a lot of choices in your editor, PBwiki might be better for you. It offers more text editing functions, and is still easy to use. For example, you cannot undo what you have done in Wikispaces without canceling everything (there’s no undo button). It’s almost too basic. You might be wondering if there are any templates or automatic headings in Wikispaces. You can visit this link to see a tour of different options in Wikispaces: http://www.wikispaces.com/site/tour#introduction. Wikispaces offers several choices of automatic headings, but nothing too fancy. They also do not have anything too fancy as far as “templates” (themes). Wikispaces was created to share content information and therefore is less concerned with how something looks and more concerned with what it says. It’s like using Microsoft Word. Just type your text, format it, and you’re done. It’s very straight forward. It doesn't offer a lot of options. If you want to edit your page, go to the //Space Setting//, //Look and Feel. //You can make changes to the theme, colors, CSS stylesheet, logos, and ads. There are default themes that you can chose from, or if you are a paid subscriber, you can create your own theme using html. To make a new template, go to 'Manage Space' and 'Manage Templates'. Choose a name for your new template, and you'll then be able to edit the content of the template like a normal wiki page. To make a new page based on one of your templates, click 'Make New Page' and select the template to start from. Introduction on how to manage templates: http://blog.wikispaces.com/2006/11/introducing-page-templates.html. PBwiki has created 14 different templates for you to choose from. Any of these templates can be used to create a new page. They come with pre-defined structure and formatting, as well as instructions. In addition to the pre-built PBwiki templates, you can convert any page on your wiki into your own template. All you have to do is tag that page with the keyword, "template". Here is a link to a PBwiki webinar on how to use templates or customize your own. This is a one hour webinar. http://www.archive.org/details/UsePbwikiTemplatesToRunYourBusinessMoreEfficiently You can easily track the changes made to your wiki. Each version of each page on Wikispaces is saved and you can easily see the differences between any two versions. What if you don't like the new version of a page? Go back to a previous version with one click. Look at the //Recent Changes// page, which lists changes made in the last 30 days. You can also look at changes through the //Notify Me// tab. There is a //Feed Reader// that can be set up for your wiki using RSS or ATOM feeds. This tour will explain how to easily track changes made to your wikispaces: http://www.wikispaces.com/site/tour#notify. Wikispaces will also notify you via e-mail when any change is made to your wiki. PBwiki allows you to track changes to your wiki using FrontPage and the Sidebar features, as well as the Accounting, Easy Editor and Engineering features for changes made in the past. If you get stuck, you can go to PBwiki http://getsatisfaction.com/pbwiki/ for suggestions and support. You can also subscribe to RSS feeds on PBwiki. Both Wikispaces and PBwiki have a place to include a discussion forum or blog. Wikispaces allows you to import your blog directly into your wiki. Wikispaces are created by the teacher and permission is given to students to be able to edit the pages. Sites can be edited by anyone if the setting is “Public” or can be “Protected,” allowing editing by only those with permission. If you don’t want everyone on your wiki, protecting it is a good option. For $5.00 per month you can also upgrade your account making it visible only to members of your space. You can also create a Private Label (see http://www.wikispaces.com/site/privatelabel) for your entire district or school. PBwiki’s login procedures require that students have a wiki invite key and then enter a name and email address to access the wiki. One benefit of PBwiki is that you can manage folders and allow students access to one page versus the entire wiki. If you have multiple classes and want to have one page for each class, PBwiki might be a better option for you. In conclusion, Wikispaces and PBwiki share many commonalities, and would both be great places for you to host your wiki. They are both free, they both offer similar security features, and they are both very easy to set up and manage.