Wikis Assignments

Start using Wikipedia.

For this assignment I want you to:

1. Register for a Wikipedia Account
2. Login to your new account
3. At the top right of the screen, you will see navigation links, click on your name to go to your personal user page
4. Use the “Edit This Page” link to edit the page and add text describing yourself that uses the following elements:
   • Bold, italic, and underlined text
   • A bulleted list
   • A link to an external website
   • A link to a Wikipedia article you like or found useful
   • A horizontal line
   • Your wiki signature
     • Save Your Changes!

Hint: all of these formatting methods can be accessed using the small toolbar when you are editing a page.

While all wikis share certain characteristics, they are not by any means exactly the same (in layout, contact and editorial features). Many wikis, like Google Sites, nowadays have good visual editors that don’t require the knowledge of the structured text, but function according to the same basic principles. Just to be sure you have the concepts down, I want you to create a page about yourself (or some topic) in a wiki setup just for this class on a Google Site I have created for this purpose. If you are stuck, you can refer here for help with Google Sites.

Your assignment: surf to the class wiki pages, add your name and topic to the list under Student Pages, then follow that link and create a page on a technological topic of your choice. On that page, tell me about your topic (a definition, a few links… nothing huge) and at the same time demonstrate your mastery of the following formatting skills:

• Bold, italic, and underlined text
• A bulleted list
• A link to an external website
• A link to another page on the class wiki
• A horizontal line

You will not need a password to make changes. You just have to make sure you are logged in Google Apps with your UA Google user id.

There are many communities on the net that have been built around a shared interest, whether that interest be in a person (such as the Grobanites) or a work or kind of art (such as fan fiction sites), or some kind of entertainment (witness still very active communities built around long-cancelled television shows like Lost and Star Trek). Are you part of– or have you been close to anyone who has been part of– any such communities? What were your/their motives? How do these relate to the motives explored by Shirky, such as feedback loops and intrinsic motivation?

After you make your reflection post, comment on at least one other student’s post.