Wiki Technology
What is a wiki?
' wiki' is a Hawaiian term meaning 'fast' or 'quick'. Wiki technology refers to a website that allows users to add and/or edit content quickly and easily, it is therefore good for collaborative working processes, such as global design.
One of the best known wikis is Wikipedia, which is an open content encyclopaedia with pages in many languages which can edited by anyone, however, wikis can be set up to be restricted to registered users if required and read/write/delete permissions applied on a page by page basis.
Educational wikis are being used to enhance learning as they provide a free, flexible learning environment that is easily adapted according to specific purposes. They can offer standard learning environment features such as controlled access, content storage, communication mechanisms such as discussions forums and chat, but also offer opportunities for collaborative group work and sharing of resources and information. The DIDET project is utilising these features to enhance the collaborative project work of design engineering students. The DIDET wiki requires authentication and is not open for general viewing.
There are many different types of wiki technology available. The DIDET Project used one of these, 'tikiwiki', to create a fully customised system called LauLima which incorporates a learning environment and digital library. Please see the wiki system web pages for further information on the LauLima system.
