kcallaway

||= =Wikispaces = ||
 * ~ Comparison of Wikispaces and Google Sites ||
 * ===Ease of Use=== || ====    Wikispaces are very easy to set up and use. In just a few moments, after supplying a user name and password, you can be up and running with your wiki. It is also easy to invite others to join your space. In the Manage Spaces link, you can enter email addresses of those you wish to join, and a pre-formatted message will be sent to them.     ==== ||
 * ===Editing=== || ====    Editing is extremely simple in the visual editor mode. It is much like using any other word processing program, though much more limited. Formatting does not always work exactly as you expected once you save, which is an annoyance, especially when trying to format tables. Also the Undo feature did not always work for me. You may work in text editor mode as well. You can make templates, but I was unable to locate any preformatted ones. It does do automatic headings and does provide for comment.     ==== ||
 * ===Version===

Control
|| ====    A separate tab is part of each wiki tracing its history. You have only to click on the tab to look back over what changes were made and by who, (if it requires a log-in. The inserted and deleted text is highlighted, making it easy to track changes, and to figure out who is making up historical information.    ==== ||
 * ===Discussion=== || ====    Each page has a discussion tab to make it easy to make comments off the page and to add discussion threads. You may also add keywords to make it possible to search and filter the discussion threads.     ==== ||
 * ===Subscription=== || ====    Monitoring the space is also quite simple. When managing your space, there is a Notify Me tab.By clicking on it, you gain the ability to have an email sent to you regarding any changes made or you may choose one of the available RSS feeds options: Edit and Discussions, Edit Only, and Discussions Only.     ==== ||
 * ===Security=== || ====   Under Space Settings, found after clicking on the Manage Spaces link, you will see a link for Permissions. That allows you to make the space completely public, allow changes to be made only by those who are members, or you can choose to pay a small fee for a sight, which allows you to keep the pages completely private.    ==== ||
 * ===Contributions=== || ====   Keeping track of who contributed what is easy on a managed wiki. The Recent Changes link under the New Page link allows you to quickly see who said what and when. I'm not yet how this will work on a completely public site.    ==== ||
 * ===Overall Rating=== || ====   **92% on the Wikimeter** . Easy, free, and generally reliable. Performs as advertised. If you want to set up a wiki, for educational, personal, or business use, Wikispaces is definitely worth looking into. In the free version, ads take up a third of the page which is somewhat disruptive and unsightly. There really is no free lunch.    ==== ||

||= =Google Sites =

||
 * ===Ease of Use=== || [|Google Sites] is also very easy to set up and use. If you already have a gmail account, then you can be up and running literally in seconds. If you have to register, it will take a few minutes. The site settings allow you to easily invite people as owners, collaborators, or viewers. You can also make it public by simply clicking on the appropriate check box. ||
 * ===Editing=== || Editing is very simple, though I can only see a WYSIWYG editor, not a text editor. Since that is the only type I would use I don't see this as a weakness. I did not see any templates as they now have for Google Pages, but there are several different backgrounds to choose from. One of the nice features is that you can open up five different types of pages: Web Page, Dashboard, Announcements, File Cabinet, and List. This allows some flexibility in creating different looks and each type of page provides for a different service. Some allow comments, such as the web page format, while others do not. It appears to be the same way with automatic headings. ||
 * ===Version===

Control
|| Returning to earlier versions is a simple matter. Most of the pages types, (apparently not the dashboard) has a link at the upper right of the window to click on for different versions. By selecting that link, you can look over the changes made and revert to an earlier version if desired. ||
 * ===Discussion=== || As with version control most of the pages you can easily add comments for discussion outside the page itself. dashboard is once again the apparent exception. You can also easily attach files to each page, which is quite a nice feature. Again, the dashboard page does not allow this. ||
 * ===Subscription=== || Subscription is easy. Each page has a drop-down menu that allows you to subscribe to either changes on that particular page, or to changes to the overall site. ||
 * ===Security=== || Security is handled through the site settings, which is located in the upper right of the window once you are signed in. The creator of the site can keep it private or invite people in as collaborators or views only. By a simple click, you can make it viewable to the public, or keep it only for those that are invited in. ||
 * ===Contributions=== || The version history also keeps track of who contributed what and when. You have to invite people in, so the site is always managed, unlike Wikispaces where you can have a completely open environment. ||
 * ===Overall===

Rating
|| **96% on the Wikimeter**. From my perspective, Google Sites is a better wiki for most purposes. It seems easier to control and has more flexibility in how it is set up. There are no ads to deal with, which creates more space to work with, and provides a more attractive look. The main advantages with Wikispaces is that you can set up a site that anyone can get to without invitation. This might work well for some things, and if that is what is desired, you should go with Wikispaces. But if you're looking for a controlled, attractive wiki that is easy to set up and allows for a great deal of flexibility, look into [|Goggle Sites]. ||