Guide To The Sharepoint Wiki

Guide To The Sharepoint Wiki

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A SharePoint Wiki is a quick and easy and out of the box solution. Apart from being easy to implement, it has features that are more than adequate for most applications. But let's take things step by step, starting with a basic explanation for what a Wiki means, in general.

The term is derived from the Hawaiian term for 'quick' which is 'wikiwiki.' The correlation here is that it allows for quick and easy creation and editing of inter-linked web pages with a few clicks. The site's users do not need to have knowledge of HTML markups and the site's structure. Users can add links to target pages that don't exist, and these pages are created later simply by clicking on the link.

Such sites are often used where UGC (user generated content) is present, which typically need a large number of users who collaborate to create and manage the content. So there is a need to manage an enterprise level database of users and content that is constantly being edited and created. Needless to say, the software or scripts used will need to be especially robust and reliable to handle the flood of data and users.

There are plenty of dedicated solutions that are also just as capable of living up to the demands of a UGC site. But the concept of the whole idea is to make things simple - for both the site users and administrators. This is where Microsoft's SharePoint comes into the picture, with an out of the box functionality.

For the uninitiated, a quick word about SharePoint - it is one of Microsoft's 'servers' (server software) that can be used to quickly setup up intranet/extranet portals, websites and applications. These sites and apps facilitate collaboration between various groups in and outside the company. So a SharePoint Wiki fits perfectly as one of the components of this particular server.

Creating it is much the same as creating any other type of site, requiring a name and giving access permissions to specific users. If a 'Wiki' is selected as the site type, then some additional elements become visible. This includes a toolbar for easy access to page editing and keeping track of previous edits to the page. Another bar lists the latest pages that have been edited.

Note that there are two types of sites that can be created here. One is a library and one is a site. When the SharePoint Wiki Library is created, it includes two pages by default - the home page and a how-to help page. When a site is created, it automatically creates a library within whose home page is used as a default page for the site.

If the SharePoint Wiki is part of a bigger site, the user permissions can be inherited as is from the site. If it needs any special user access permissions, these can be specified separately. That's about all there is to it, and this simplicity in creation and use is one of the main reasons why it is an 'out of the box' solution.

About the Author:
Knowledge-worker components and tools to assist with Sharepoint Web Parts, Sharepoint List, Sharepoint Wiki, Calendar Web Part, Sharepoint Search & Sharepoint Calendar.



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