I decided to practice using wikis by using the site, Wikispaces. I found the layout of the site easy to follow and customize. The site does require for the designer to be organized because the main board where you type information continues scrolling downwards. You can create new pages to help separate the information. To add, the outcome of the site seems quite basic, which can have its pros and cons.
The site was not extremely labour intensive, but I do find that the site is more difficult to manoeuvre around. I can see how wikis can be also difficult to read, as the entire page can just be filled with text. This challenge made it difficult to edit because I was not sure how to improve the clarity.
What worked well with Wikispaces is that I was able to create and upload a wiki in a matter of minutes. I feel that any site designer would appreciate the ability to have a functioning site in such a quick amount of time. As well, the site uses WYSIWG format which makes it extremely easy for anyone to use. I also like how I have the freedom to create an extensive wikispace with multiple pages for my audience to access. I do not feel restricted to how much information I can publish. This freedom is one that designers would definitely welcome. I also liked how you can create a discussion on the wikispace, but this would require for members to be added to your account.
I was surprised how this type of wiki was so easy to use. I once created a wiki using HTML codes and it was very difficult. I think teachers would appreciate having to not learn all the HTML codes to make a wikispace for their classrooms. This is what makes this specific wiki effective.
Here is a link to the wikispace that I am working on:
Ms. Wong’s English Resources Wikispace
Very nice! May I suggest you pop into Moodle and try its quickly too out for a comparison?