Blogs, Wikis & You.ash bhoopathy | vince laconte

i can has blogz?

I. “should I blog?”

hm... maybe....

...but if you decide to, it’s really not very hard.

do it:

don’t:

it’s free. it’s fun. xit can get you noticed. xwe need x New Idiom articles.

“No one really cares.” x“I have nothing interesting to say.” x

basic stuff you should know.

rss x

del.icio.us x

jing x

open source x : why’s that good?

alternatives x : typepad, MT, blogger

on to wordpress!

pages, posts, categories, tags xtechnorati xfeedburners x

the basics.

themes.

finding, choosing, configumerating. x

xhtml/ x css.

plugins.

sidebar widgets. x

comments. x

prevent . x

now reading. x

other cool stuff. x

now that you’re 1337...

domain x spotting - buying hosting

podcast x ing

stats / x feedburner

II. “wiki who?”

Wiki is an appropriation of a Hawaiian word for "fast". Some have suggested* that wiki stands for "What I Know Is." However, this is a backronym.. – Source: en.wikipedia.org

(* unsourced assertion = very bad form)

A wiki is software

that allows any users (or only some)

to collaboratively create, edit & organize

the content of a website

usually for reference material.

for reals:

good for:

aggregating group knowledge x

self-policing x

connecting people with similar interests x

introducing us to random yet relevant xideas (“surfing”)

not good for:

keeping information secure x

maintaining flawless quality x

requires human editorial commitment x

rudimentary interface/interaction x

basics & getting started

ID wiki (accessible thru seeID) x

copy, play, and make it your own! x

en.Wikipedia.org > Help sections x

To make your own wiki you will need:server host space x (that meets certain common standards)

MediaWiki server software x (FREE from www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Download)

basic FTP / client-server awareness x

basic HTML/CSS if you want to customize x

for the 1337 among you

a community of x real peoplesome degree x of organization and command/control

to manage many volunteers and levels of xengagement (see: the 80/20 rule)

But most importantly, you will need

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blog resources:

60+ Unusual WP Blog Designswww.noupe.com/design/60-unusual-wp-blog-designs.html

100 Excellent Free WordPress Themeswww.smashingmagazine.com/2008/01/08/100-excellent-free-high-quality-wordpress-themes/

Powerful guide to master Your WordPresswww.noupe.com/wordpress/powerfull-list-of-wordpress-lifesav-ers-plugin.html

Blogging in Academiahenryjenkins.org/2008/04/why_academics_should_blog.html

Wiki resources: Wikipedia Cheatsheeten.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Cheatsheet

Wiki resources: How To Edit A Pageen.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:How_to_edit_a_page