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=Welcome to Lime Michael's Wiki Page = **__Top Ten Reasons To Wiki__ ** 10. If you've ever organized work with a pack of index cards, you already know how to wiki.

9. Just like your classroom's location, everyone knows where to gather.

8. Your wiki is searchable.

7. Many hosted* wikis offer free or low-priced plans for education-based users.
 * wiki.com and wikispaces.com (THIS wiki) both offer wikis for teachers that are ABSOLUTELY FREE! **

6. You format a wiki with the same familiar tools you've been using online for years.

5. Attaching files, uploading graphics and videos. Placing internal and external links. Easy!

4. You'll get notified when a page changes, by email or even an RSS feed.

3. Older versions of a page are automatically archived in case you need them later.

2. Your wiki pages can be printed (with navigation or as printer-friendly).

1. When you meet another teacher who has a wiki you get to say, “If you'll show me your wiki, I'll show you mine.”

//***Hosted Wikis**//
 * //A wiki is actually just a type of software program or engine. Many wiki programs offered online (both free and for a fee) are __software only__ - they include no hosting, which is kind of like having the CD for Microsoft Word but not having a computer. A "hosted wiki" is the software __and a place to put it__. Unless you or your school have their own server available for your wiki, you'll probably want to look for a Hosted Wiki. A brief resource list of free and modestly-priced hosted wikis can be found at the end of Lime Michael's wiki page.// **

= __Community is What Wiki is All About__ =




 * Ward Cunningham created the Wiki concept as a way of bringing together people who share common goals or interests, giving each member equal opportunities to contribute and participate. In that sense the wiki is //<span style="color: #000000; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">truly //<span style="color: #000000; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;"> a "community" software program. Given its highly inclusive nature it might (arguably) be considered __//<span style="color: #000000; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">the //__<span style="color: #000000; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;"> community software program. **

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">As has been noted repeatedly about the wiki's origin, Cunningham -- a highly capable programmer -- could have made a fortune on his concept by making it a proprietary program, but instead he generously created it as open source software so that //<span style="color: #000000; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">everyone //<span style="color: #000000; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">could participate and benefit from it -- and without cost. Sadly, you should be made aware that your wiki could be at risk to vandalism if it is left unsecured in the way that Cunningham originally envisioned. Most hosted wikis now allow you to establish community accessibility and privileges at several levels: typically administrative (organizer), member, visitor, and guest. While this precaution is contrary to the intended design of wiki, it's become a necessary evil. In fact (and ironically), the entry about Wikis on the world's largest wiki -- Wikipedia -- is padlocked! The padlock contains the following statement: "This article is semi-protected indefinitely in response to an ongoing high risk of vandalism." So it goes.

=__ **Origin of The Name "Wiki"** __=
 * [[image:wiki-wikishuttle.jpg width="240" height="180"]] ||
 * Wiki means "fast" in Hawaiian. Cunningham named his creation after the Wiki Wiki Shuttle at the Honolulu Airport. ||=  ||

= __**Resources for Hosted Wikis with Free or Low-Cost Plans for Education-based Wikis**__ =

Wikispaces wikispaces.com
<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',arial,helvetica,sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline;">"The free, easy way to get your classroom online. <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande','Lucida Sans Unicode',sans-serif;">Class schedules and goals, notices for parents, and showcases of student work could all be online in minutes, in a wiki as public or private as you want it to be." (This is the hosted wiki service being used by Limes On lime.)

**PBWorks** pbworks.com
Create a FREE Online Workspace for your class with their Basic Edition, <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;">which <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #414141; display: block; font-family: helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;">is free for instructional use.

**WikiDot wikidot.com**
The educational sites are absolutely free for educational / research purposes.

Edit Me editme.com
"If you're an employee of a qualified educational or non-profit organization, we offer significant discounts if you are wiulling to commit to a year of service. If you're interested, please contact us for details."

=__ HAVE FUN IN THE SANDBOX __= (Hopefully Ms Melon-Kitty-Cat-Meow-Meow didn't get there before you.)

Many Wiki software providers have a "Sandbox" area so that you can become more familiar with their particular wiki set-up by "playing" in their sandbox without messing anything up. Give them all a try, including ours!

= __From School Library Journal: Which Wiki Is Right For You?__ = Here's a link to a brief evaluation and "Report Card" on several Wikis (including two listed above) from a school library organization. While the article is directed at school media specialists, it considers wikis in a way that will be useful to teachers, too.

**http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6438167.html**

= __50 Ways to Use Wikis for a More Collaborative and Interactive Classroom__ = can be found at site. smartteaching.org

**http://www.smartteaching.org/blog/2008/08/50-ways-to-use-wikis-for-a-more-collaborative-and-interactive-classroom/**

//Resources for content on this page include: Wikis For Dummies, Dan Woods (2007); Wikinomics, Don Tapscott and Anthony D. WIlliams (2006); Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikis)//.

=** CHALLENGE: **=

**[I ADDED THE FOLLOWING TEXT BY FIRST CLICKING ON THE "EDIT" BUTTON, then played with the formatting buttons for C O L O R, etc, and then clicked SAVE .]**
**>>>>** Here's a brief description (barnesandnoble.com) from one of many books about wikis in education offered there: this one entitled "//<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Wikis: The Educator's Power Tool //<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">". "T<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">he author shares her vast knowledge to unlock the capabilities of wikis for every educator. __Educational wiki use can be categorized into three major types: the library wiki, the reciprocal wiki, and student-produced wiki__. This book gives real examples of all three uses, as well as straightforward instructions on how to set up, dress up, and lock down a wiki for optimal practicality, attractiveness, ease of use, and security. Student and content-specific examples are included.

**>>>>** Here's a small screen shot (snagged with Jing) taken from the digital edition of our Pratt & Palloff, saved to the wiki space and then inserted below.

//**>>>>**// __//**TWO MORE THOUGHTS ON WIKIS FOR TEACHERS:**//__

1) If you are interested in learning to wiki over the summer and have a friend who already wikis, as Sherri mentioned in the Week 11 discussions, you could conceivably set up a free education wiki and invite your friend and other interested teachers to wiki together at that site, sharing (and most important) practicing with it. Kind of like what LOL is inviting you to do for a few days at this site.

2) This may be a bit of a stretch but working with students on a wiki involves entrusting them with a certain amount of responsibility and maturity because unlike most CMS that I am familiar with, they CAN go in and "mess around" with other people's work, which will "probably" happen at least on a innocuous level - which is a great opportunity to examine the moral responsibilities and obligations attached to community property (online and restroom walls). Short of "hacking," it's definitely a dimension of community that wikis present.