USB-sticks and WIKIS

Sat Feb 18 02:31:44 PST 2006

Hi Frank, Diane

I am a little bit late jumping in on this but wanted to add to the discussion.

> Frank asked: Does anyone have any thoughts on the pros and cons of >wiki  vs. floppy/usb?

There was an interesting thread started by Lisa on the "Use of Wireless, wiki and other high-technology for documentation" on Sept 16, 2005. It may not directly highlight the pros and cons that you are looking for but it sounds as though it might be relevant reading.

I have used wikis, floppies and usbs but lean towards wikis provided (i) the technical infrastructure is solid ie. internet access is not an issue and I have a printer in the news room and (ii) the majority of the group are comfortable with wikis. Unfortunately, I don't find that this is often the case so I most often end up using one or two usbs. 

Most of the reasons why I like wikis (the pros) have been shared by others except for one. My organisation (and many of our partners) promotes the use of FOSS (free and open source software) and technologies that nurture communities. The wiki provides both - it is an alternative to using Microsoft Office word to type up the reports and it is a living document in that others can contribute.

We do have other options. I know of two - (1) using a  rich text file (rtf) format or (2) using alternative open office apps like OpenOffice (OO). These share one of the biggest drawbacks that I see in using wikis - there is a learning curve which, if not addressed, can be a great source of frustration for those unfamiliar with the technology. In addition, most computers have MS Office installed but not OO so the additional steps of downloading (for free), installing and testing OO on the newsroom desktops would be required.

Diane wrote...

DG> An alternative technology: In another OS,  people from across
DG> Canada were connected, not via a wiki but via a web site on  which
DG> reports were posted as is and comments from anywhere about any of
DG> the  reports or about the OS theme could be given on a separate
DG> page that was posted  on the News wall. People were also invited
DG> to have their own OS in regions  and to send in their reports for the News  wall. 

Can you provide more details about this. Did participants enter their reports directly on the website or did they type them up in some kind of word document and then have them posted on the website?

If there are other options out there, I would be interested in learning about them.

Thanks,
Allison

At 10:42 AM Tuesday, February 14, 2006, Diane Gibeault wrote:

DG>   
DG>  
DG>  
DG> Hi  Frank,
DG>  
DG>  
DG>  
DG> You asked: Does anyone have any thoughts on the pros and cons of wiki  vs. floppy/usb?
DG>  
DG>  
DG>  
DG>  
DG> The nice thing about the wiki is that it becomes like an OS on
DG> line, a  chat room on each report topic. Participants on site or
DG> other members of the organization not  present physically
DG> can continue interacting electronically after  the group
DG> discussion and even after the OS. I had participants from Los
DG> Angeles and India connected  to an Ottawa OS. 
DG>  
DG>  
DG>  
DG> One draw back I found with wiki was in the naming of reports
DG> especially with people used  to working with wickies. They just
DG> went and did what they normally do  without paying any attention
DG> to the verbal  and written instructions about naming the report.
DG> This made it much harder to track which reports where  completed
DG> so they could be printed for the News  wall and the Book.  
DG>  
DG>  
DG>  
DG> Also, other participants are able  to change the report before
DG> the News Room prints a copy of the initiator's report that will go
DG> in the  Book of reports. On the printed version, there is no way
DG> to see that someone has  changed the original report. This can
DG> cause a bit of frustration on the part of  the initiator who took
DG> responsibility to communicate the group's discussion and  can see
DG> his or her name attached - without their knowing - to a document
DG> that is  not reflective of their work. On the screen, one  can
DG> verify what changes have been made but when reading the reports
DG> for  convergence, participants read from a hard copy - there isn't
DG> a computer screen  for each participant.
DG>  
DG>  
DG>  
DG>  
DG> At another OS, reports were entered  into the wiki at the end of
DG> day only which eliminated the above  problem.
DG>  
DG>  
DG>  
DG> An alternative technology: In another OS,  people from across
DG> Canada were connected, not via a wiki but via a web site on  which
DG> reports were posted as is and comments from anywhere about any of
DG> the  reports or about the OS theme could be given on a separate
DG> page that was posted  on the News wall. People were also invited
DG> to have their own OS in regions  and to send in their reports for the News  wall. 
DG>  
DG>  
DG>  
DG> I am looking forward to hearing more about the  experience with wikis
DG>  
DG>  
DG>  
DG> Diane 
DG>  
DG> Diane Gibeault & Associé.es-Associates
DG>  
DG> www.dianegibeault.com 
DG>  
DG> diane.gibeault at rogers.com   Ottawa Canada   (613)  744-2638
DG>  
DG> Facilitation and Training in Support of  Transformation
DG> Facilitation et formation en appui à la  transformation
DG>  
DG>   
DG> -----Original Message-----
DG> From: OSLIST    [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU]On Behalf Of Frank    Deitle
DG> Sent: February 13, 2006 10:45 PM
DG> To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
DG> Subject: Re: USB-sticks and computer    station during OST + some more..

DG>   
DG> Hi everyone,
DG>   
DG> I recently attended the RecentChangesCamp Open Space in Portland.
DG> It was    facilitated by Michael Herman and we used an online wiki
DG> to compile the book    of procedings (there were a lot of wiki
DG> folks at the conference). This was the    first Open Space I've
DG> been to where we've even used the banks of computers so    I have
DG> nothing to contrast the experience to. Does anyone have any
DG> thoughts on    the pros and cons of wiki vs. floppy/usb? 
DG>   
DG> Peace,
DG>   
DG> Frank Deitle
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---
Allison Hewlitt
Bellanet International Secretariat <www.bellanet.org>
Tel: +1 613.236.6163 x2393

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