How to Start a Wiki

A wiki is a Web-based application that allows a group of users to edit and contribute content through a web browser. It's one of the most fascinating new technologies that have been introduced to the Internet in the past few years! Since the editable articles are generally available to anyone through the World Wide Web, wikis are also becoming more important to business operations as well--having a wiki that runs internally behind the corporate firewall is a very productive environment for employees to share company information, such as specifications and corporate tutorials, for example. Have you ever wanted to start your own wiki website, like wikiHow, Wikipedia or Wikitravel? Here's how to set up your own wiki, which is quite easy with just a bit of research!

Decide which features you want your wiki to have. There are several software packages available that have slightly different features. If you have a general idea of which features you want, you can start researching the different options and make your selection.

Research the various available software packages (see External Links below) and take a look at a few sites that operate on these systems. For instance, MediaWiki is the software that Wikipedia currently uses. If you would like the feature set that Wikipedia has, you would probably choose this one. MediaWiki is derived from UseModWiki, a wiki engine that is also publicly available and that has a simple interface and is used on some of the sites that WikiWikiWeb, the first wiki, considers its "sister sites". Other popular sites use TikiWiki.

Choose how you want to host your wiki. In most cases, you will want your wiki to be accessible from the Internet, so you will have to find a hosting package that either offers a wiki or meets the requirements for building your own wiki. Keep in mind the following:

• Most wikis require an environment that has MySQL, PHP and Apache to be run effectively, but other configurations are supported since there are several packages to choose from.
• If you are very ambitious, you can consider getting your own dedicated server to host your wiki. This generally provides much more flexibility for your wiki, but is much more expensive.
• Several free wiki hosting sites are available and relatively easy to set up (see External Links).

Carefully and thoroughly read through the instructions that accompany your wiki regarding the configuration. Sometimes you'll be required to change your Apache configuration or add MySQL databases and tables. Some wikis will have a configuration page that you can submit all of your relevant values and the page will set everything up for you.

Develop community guidelines and a focus for your wiki. Clearly present this information to visitors so that they have a basis through which to view and contribute to the wiki.

Spread the word about your wiki. Start by e-mailing fellow employees or contacting friends. Initially you can expect that your wiki will grow slowly, probably slower than you would like. Establishing a user base is a big challenge and finding dedicated users who are inspired by your ideas in the early phases can be quite difficult.

Most importantly, have fun with your wiki and enjoy the information that is being communicated between people! The Internet was built in order to facilitate communication and the wiki is currently one of the most effective environments for collecting and sharing information. Congratulations on starting your own!

Tips

• Ensure that you choose a license for your wiki's content before you even start up. The most common, although not the only licenses are the GNU Free Documentation License and Creative Commons license.

Warnings

• Submitting copyright-violating information on your wiki can get you into legal trouble if your wiki is publicly accessible.

Warnings

• Some people will remove the content you worked hard to add to your wiki. Be sure to keep a backup of your site and follow the "recent changes" page on your wiki, if the wiki engine supports such a feature.

External Links

Well-known wiki farms and wiki engines reviewed by users of

WikiWikiWeb, the first wiki ever.

WikiIndex lists over 3,400 different wikis, along with

Language, topics and wiki engine.

Wikipedia's List of Wikis.

MediaWiki, popular wiki engine (Used for Wikimedia projects

And wikiHow)

YourWiki, a new wiki host that provides MediaWiki services

Wikia, a free Wiki-hosting project owned by Wikipedia

Founder Jimmy Wales. Formerly known as Wikicities.

How to start a new Wikia

Intodit, Free hosted Wiki groups service.

Wikimatrix, comparisons of wiki packages.

PBwiki, a high-quality and easy to use wiki hosting service

That has free and premium versions.

Springnote, a free wiki-based online notebook, used for a

Wide variety of purposes - from writing notes, organization, scheduling, and group projects, among many other possible scenarios.