Wikis For Dummies®

Foreword

Foreword by Ward Cunningham

You have a thought. You want to write it down. You’re thinking your computer might be pretty good for that, but, surprise — it’s not.

You need two things when you want to write. You need the words to say what you are thinking, and you need a place to put them.

Before wikis, computer writing was all about the words. The computer could help you type them, spell them, hyphenate them, size them, shape them, and align them. But when it came to developing your thought, well, you were on your own.

Now, with wikis, you have a place to write. A wiki is a place to write in the same way that a party is a place to talk. There are thoughts all around you. Some are interesting, some less so. At a party or on a wiki, a word or two will be your trigger. Ideas start flowing. Talking or writing, you’re among friends, the stage is set, you say your piece, it fits in, your words trigger the next thought: conversation.

A wiki is like a party that doesn’t have to stop. It’s a party that doesn’t get crowded because new rooms appear when needed. It’s a timeless party where you can try each conversation over and over until you get it right.

You might be wondering how a page becomes a party. Maybe you’ve typed pages and pages before, and it never seemed like fun. “Where do words go if not on the page?” you might be thinking.

That’s what this book explains. It shows you in plain English and with many examples just how powerful your computer becomes when you’re at a wiki. Dan ...