WikiMashupPlatform
From MashupCamp
Some wikis such as TWiki and JotSpot are used as a platform to build web applications.
Contents |
Discuss this topic OnLine
This session led by PeterThoeny is an open ended discussion on how a wiki application platform can be used to build mashups, and what kind of framework users might expect.
Interests
Here are some of the things people are interested in:
- Eliminate Word documents and Powerpoint presentations and use the Wiki instead
- Use wikis for business collaboration with remote teams
- Use structured wikis to provide guidance for business processes
- Easy web site creation
- Extend wikis with gadgets so that people want use email attachments
- See what is possible with wikis and mashups to see what is possible
- Enhance productivity for companies
- Convert articles to graphs and interact with the graph
- Capture user generated contact
- Mobility community site to understand what users need
- How to incorporate data from a wiki site into a desktop product
- What is needed so people can easily integrate mashups into wikis
- How control and roles are initiated among wiki participants
Peter's Presentation
Peter gave a short presentation on "What is a Structured Wiki" that lead to a lengthy discussion. His web site has the full presentation
Q and A
Question: Doesn't including plug-in code that enables dynamic content make the markup very complicated?
Answer: Sometimes. But not always.
Question: How to structure the free-form nature of wikis so that information can be found?
Answer1: Have access control to limit what people can do.
Answer2: Have a wiki champion (electronic librarian) that monitors the wiki and suggests to people how to structure the wiki.
Answer3: Include mashup to structure pages. Example: Twiki tech support pages has a form where users can enter their information and pages are created and cataloged into the wiki.
Question: Can normal users be able to learn wiki syntax, or do we need WYSIYG editors before we should try to get normal users to use wikis?
Answer: Some people won't have a problem. Some things, like building tables, can be easier than Word. But others people won't be able to use it. And if not everyone can contribute to the wiki, its collaborative benefit is limited.
Question: Are we talking about making the wiki the platform or the service?
Answer: Yes, both.
Comments
- Even wiki markup codes can be confusing for some users.
- To make wikis useful for mashups, need to have a wiki mashup platform.
- An interesting aspect of wikis is that they are collaborative. Having a mashup in a wiki that is collaborative then explodes the value of the wiki.
- Sometimes it is a matter of language. If we talk about words that users understand instead of words like "markup language", they will be much more responsive.
Definitions
- End User: Person using the application in a generic web browser
- Mashup Assembler: The programmer creating that mashup
- Wiki Enabler: Programmer creating the plug-in
- Wiki Champion: Person evangelizing the wiki, sometimes the same as the Wiki Enabler
