Wikipedia

I have used Wikiedia before many times, although not for academic research, just idle pondering about people, things, events and places. I would certainly say that it should not be presented as an entirely accurate or reliable source, it certainly brings people and their knowledge together. In some ways, I think it is quite sweet as it lets people who are really knowledgeable (or obsessed!) with their topic have a contribution on such a widely used resource. I think that the references would make a good starting point for someone doing academic research who wanted to see what resources are out there. I found the pages about Wikipedia really interesting, especially the details about editing etc. It is something that I enjoy using, although it can get addictive, what with related things being only a click away!

Wiki

I was completely ignorant about wikis until Thing 17, so this was a steep learning curve. When I first checked out the recommended link, the first thing I noticed was the flashing message congratulating me on being the nth visitor to the site (I am so lucky; I am always 'selected' to win those prizes!) Anyway, I signed up using my Twitter account and have been looking around the site. I was really interested in the case studies section, where I was reading about lots of different types of library and the web 2.0 technology that they are utilising. I was unsure about editing, so I did some OULS spotting instead. I have to say that I haven't found anything to change yet, probably as I am lagging so far behind on this project! I can see that this is an excellent way to share information and experience, and it could obviously be used as a tool for group based projects. Aside from the annoying adverts, it was great; very simple to use and I didn't need to create another password.