My Experience with Wikis

Dissertation in one of the compulsory paper in the final semester library and information science subject in University of Mysore.

In the beginning of the dissertation I come to know lots of things through literature review, which are presently at the heart of LIS Research. I come across LISA, ULRICH's International Periodicals Directory and old dissertation of LIS in our department. By this I come to know how the title is chosen for dissertation.

I attended a conference on Web 2.0 which inspired me to take this particular title of my dissertation on wikis.

I started meeting my guide NSH regularly regarding guidance on my topic of study. In the beginning of our meetings, NSH told me to post all the happenings of my dissertation in my blog, which I created for this specific purpose and started posting all the developments regarding my dissertation work. This posting process and feedback helped me to improve my reading and writing skills.

I was unaware of wikis when I entered MLISc. After choosing title of my dissertation, I come to explore loss of things which were hidden to me. I created my own PBWiki to experience the tip of community sharing, online editing and its application in libraries.

My Teacher, My Mentor

"Teachers are like trees, providing us their shadow to achieve heights"

I was lucky to be selected in the group of students, under the NSH guidance I was happy to be involved with NSH team and in the beginning only I got very nice experience, when NSH made me to thorough literature search and work on the topic.

I felt very happy because, he used to inspire us by his words, deeds and used to give us freedom regarding our work as well as life experiences. He used to say on thing that we should always get involved in any work regarding our department because it is our department.

I never hesitated to get solutions for the problem I faced during this tenure. He used to inspire us by telling facts and supplementing them with stories which were practical in nature. In the end he pointed our strength limitations by telling a story of a sage and a thief, which I enjoyed and never forget in my life.

He is a perfect teacher, expected to be.

Happiness is the real sense of fulfillment that comes from hard work.

An Exploratory Study on the Use of Wikis in Libraries

The term Web 2.0 has been adopted by a growing group of libraries, librarians and information professionals to recalibrate the processes and the paradigms of the library and information services. This new model of library is all about amalgamation of – Ajax, Apollo, Web Standards, User Centric Design, RSS, Blogs, Wikis, Mashups, Tagging, and Folksonomies and so on into library and information services. Web 2.0 is not just a technology or a thing but a new paradigm and state of mind. The heart of Web 2.0 is user-centered change. It is a model that encourages constant and purposeful change, inviting user participation.

Libraries have just begun to utilize new interactive technologies, though in a fairly limited sense. Library users, however, are already adopting and making use of technologies that libraries should also be examining and adopting. For example, Wikis are becoming increasingly popular tools in a variety of arenas.

The term ‘wiki’ is commonly used to describe a set of interconnected web pages that can be edited by multiple users on the Internet. As described by Louridas however, the term also refers to the software that enables this open editing and the philosophy surrounding how users edit information.

The objectives of the study are:

1. To understand the purpose of wikis on library web sites.

2. To note the extent of use of wikis on library web sites throughout the world.

3. To know the benefits of wiki software in the library environment.

4. To know how wikis can be integrated in the library environment.

5. To analyze the development of a wiki in the context of data currency, and frequently changing information so that they could be particularly beneficial for subject guides, reading lists and discussion groups, conferences, information on news and or other events

In my analysis part, I tabulated the data collected into following tables based on the significance of those data.

1. Libraries and their links

2. Catagories of Libraries

3. Libraries and their Location

4. Contry wise distribution of Libraries

5. Distribution of libraries according to wiki forms

6. Number of postings in PBWiki

7. Purpose of Library wiki websites

8. Editing Frequency of PBWiki

Findings

Some interesting facts were found based on the study.

Use of wikis in developed countries is more compared to developing countries and situation is worse in regions Asia, Africa and Latin America.

Some barriers I found during my study in the use of wikis in libraries is the unfamiliarity of library professional and they are afraid of extra work which is big obstruction in the application of technology in libraries.

Conclusion

Contribution of this dissertation will particularly be important for the wiki research community. This study will provide empirical evidence on the use of libraries and information centers, which has been noted as one of the most common work activities supported by the use of wikis. In addition, the study may also provide empirical evidence for all positive claims about wiki technology such as its simplicity, ease of use, and support for information sharing.

Project Meetings at the end

After project meeting 9, I held 5 meetings with NSH but couldn't post it due to hectic schedule of dissertation work. Apart from personal meeting, I also had many telephonic conversations and had constantly been in touch with NSH about my Wiki through

E-mails.

In project meeting 9 NSH did insist me to study on MediaWiki, which I did. After that I studied remaining 5 types of wikis. After completing these studies I started analysing the data.