I thought it interesting that for the Twilight Wiki, not only is there the main article, but another Wiki for every main character. Wow. The above are just a tiny sampling of Wikis out there on the web. Apple has a Wiki, as does Baywatch and Nintendo.
Building a Wiki from scratch is a huge task. A legitimate Wiki engine can be downloaded, but as the examples above define, it might be easier to find a host site. Wikis are group efforts; there might be one head Admin and a bunch of Moderators. This helps establish what gets posted and if it stays there or not. The Geekgirls website says it perfectly; for those not technology savvy, building a Wiki from the start can be a painfully annoying process. If anyone has ever toyed with HTML and computer codes, I can tell you how long it took for me to create just a simple box.
Wikia is a host site, but all the Wiki articles look different. This is an easier way to make Wiki articles, and each topic looks unique. The Harry Potter Wiki has affiliates, fun facts, and tons of community links. The Pokemon Wiki has featured characters and polls. Each article is different to what the fanbase desires.
Building a Wiki isn't easy. It takes a knowledge of HTML and coding, a lot of time and a steady flow of people who want the article to work. The topic has doesn't have to be popular, but it needs to be decently well-known. Zoids aren't so big anymore, yet the Wiki still exists. Silly Bands are insanely popular yet no Wiki on them exists, because the demand isn't high enough.
Now for some questions. Do you personally think Wikis are useful? Should colleges and universities have Wikis, where students can post unbiased opinions about their school? Are Wikis becoming too numerous, and do you think some of them are flat-out ridiculous or just good intentions? (I personally think having a Wiki page for every Twilight character is a little much.)
Personally, I think wikis are useful. Wikis provide basic information about a place, movie, book series, etc. Although I think people should be able to express their own opinions about Saint Rose, I don't necessarily think the wiki page is the place to do it. I think one useful tool for people who want to find out what others think about the school could be a link to a website where people could post their own opinions. That way, people can post their own opinions, but not directly on the wiki page so people aren't immediately turned off by the negative comments. I think in some instances they are becoming too numerous. I agree with you, although I like the twilight series, I definitely think it's unnecessary to have a wiki page for every character!
ReplyDeleteWikis can be useful when I want to find basic, easy, and quick, information about a particular topic. However, some wikis, such as those about the specific twilight characters are too much. When you do a wiki search you want easily accessed basic information, not a life story. Necessary, relevant information should be on a wiki article.
ReplyDeleteWikis are supposed to be unbiased information about a given topic. With that being the purpose, Colleges should not have wikis. Students or college faculty will not be able to provide unbiased opinions about the school. However, I do think that the school's website can be biased. But the school's website is the best place to obtain any information about any particular college. I do believe students should share their opinions on their school experience but wikis are not the place to do it.
I like wikis. I think that it is cool to have a page that gives you information on a topic. I also think colleges should have wiki pages where students can post. This would be very helpful to people looking into various colleges. I don't really think wikis are too numerous because it is not like I have to see them all. There are many different interests that people can have and I guess have wikis for all of those interests isn't too much as long as people can find what they are interested in.
ReplyDeleteI don't use wikis too often but when I have used them I found them useful. They contain a great amount of information which is convenient; however, I have to make sure the information is accurate, especially since learning that anyone can change the information on Wikipedia. Schools can benefit by having Wikis. Students can learn more about how to use Wikis and interact with this new source of media.
ReplyDeleteI persnally am not a huge wiki user but when I need fast, basic information I turn to wikis. To me they are pretty useful because they give you what you need to know without going to far in depth, which is extremely useful when you need the quick facts. I feel that having wiki's for schools is a good thought but if they actually did exist I feel as if it wouldn't be used for the right purposes. I think some students would abuse the purpose of them and post negative comments which could then be seen by new incoming students and could alerter their decisions. I feel that wiki's arent too numerous yet. There are a lot of different interests out there and its only natural to have a wiki for each in my opinion. I do somewhat agree that having a wiki for each character is a bit much and in those cases I feel like it is a overload. But having a wiki for the big picture of each topic is useful.
ReplyDeleteI think Wiki’s can be useful to a certain extent. They are useful and helpful but some the wiki pages available are pointless, just as you said a wiki page for every Twilight character…that’s going too far. As for schools and universities allowing students to post unbiased opinions about their schools, well there are some good and bad things to that. First it could lead to a bad reputation for the school, but at the same time incoming students should know the worst and best things about the school their attending. There are a lot of Wikis but this is a somewhat good thing because it provides you with a lot of information. Unfortunately some of this information is useless. Of course there are going to be outrageous and ridiculous Wikis but that’s what freedom of speech is all about, and if you feel like making a page about something ridiculous but with a good intention then that’s your choice.
ReplyDeleteWikis, to me anyway, are very useful. If one desires in-depth information about a specific topic that Wikipedia overlooks, wikis are the place to go. As far as unbiased information goes, many wikis are created by fans of the topic they are writing about and the information they present may be skewed in favor of the topic. On the other hand, people who aren't fans of the topic and, in fact, may hate the said topic might log on to the wiki and spam or troll it with hateful language obviously to defame the topic they despise. This is the trouble with wikis. I've even been to some wikipedia articles where the administrators have overlooked some biased language or ridiculously slanted information. If this can occur on Wikipedia, then it is certainly possible on wikis of a specific topic.
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ReplyDeleteI have never actually heard of a Wiki before, nor stumbled across one previous to this class. After looking some up and hearing a little about them in class, I found that it was nothing really special. I supposed for those internet enthusiasts who would like to be more informed about a specific subject manner, it proves to be informative and beneficial. In terms of schools using Wikis, I believe it is something that schools could use to get opinions about specific issues on campus. It would have to be something that the school would need to really push and help the students to understand if they want it to be successful and beneficial to them. Since I am not very aware of Wikis, I have never really come across any that are too ridiculous. Like anything that is overdone, I'm sure there are ones that are quite unrealistic and fantasy-like.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think Wikis are a useful tool for quick research. I am wary of them when it comes to needing exact facts and details. But when I need to look up something small without wanting to read an entire webpage, they are incredibly useful. Wikis are a good place for people to go to spread their knowledge about certain things, places, people, and events. When it comes to schools and universities, I do believe that Wikis can be a useful tool. I think it is beneficial for students to have the ability to post their unbiased opinions about their college or university. In turn, many of these people have the opportunity to help prospective students or families of those who attend the college. I also think that while Wikis are becoming numerous, they are also increasing in their credibility. It is a smart idea to have people that look over the Wikis and control what information can be viewed by the public. I would say that most of the people who post Wikis do so with good intentions, and are just trying to relay what information they know. But of course there are always the exceptions of people just looking to throw other people off or play a joke.
ReplyDeleteI personally think that wiki's are useful being that they make finding information on whatever you desire easily accessible. I am however, on the fence about the idea of colleges and universities having wiki's available for students to post their unbiased opinion about the school. I think although it would be a useful tool for prospective students wanting to hear actual feedback from current students before making their decision, it could prove to become a bit of a pr nightmare for the college by having this public medium open to college kids who will be spilling the beans good and bad. I also feel that the amount of wiki's now days makes some just become annoying. I only say that because of the fact that just anyone can add to them without fact checking first! It kinda makes you not know what to believe or not. My final verdict on wiki's is that they can be useful when you can actually trust the information on them!
ReplyDeleteI have never used or visited a wiki before. In viewing the links provided, I gained some idea about the concept. Personally, I am not intrigued, though that is not to say others might not find it interesting. The constant editing of information by numerous contributors makes the information questionable. Who is to say it is accurate? Regarding colleges and universities having wikis where students could post unbiased opinions, are these opinions anonymous? If so, how and why should the opinion be respected? For fan sites, it is a different story. It is like a fan club. The technical aspects of the HTML and computer codes makes the whole process seem like work. It just seems like another layer of too much needless information.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I believe that wikis are incredibly useful. They teach us something quick and if you have time they go into further details. Colleges and universities should most definitely have wikis where students can post their opinions up, it will probably help them attract more students, and get funding for such a “good” community opinion.
ReplyDeleteThere is an extremely excessive amount of wikis out there, but I feel as if there should be because of all the info surrounding us every day. Some people may not be interested in squirrels but something else probably is; I feel like it caters to the needs of such a variety of different people throughout millions of subjects.
I believe wikis are useful to a certain point. As a tool to find information fast, they can be helpful, but I would be weary of using them as a source for school since people can post things that aren’t entirely true. In my opinion, having students post unbiased opinions of the college or university they attend is not really possible. Wikis aren’t really becoming too numerous. Because there are so many topics in the world, I don’t believe that wikis will ever be too numerous. However, some of them seem to be unnecessary, like the wikis on every character in Twilight.
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