[Web4lib] LIS Wiki Experiences and Thoughts for New Book?

[Gerry Mckiernan]

***Apologies for Receipt of Duplicate Postings***

Colleagues/

Jane Klobas, Professorial Fellow, Graduate School of Management, University of Western Australia, and currently Researcher, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy is in the process of editing a forthcoming book titled _Wikis - Tools for Information Work and Collaboration_ that is scheduled to be published by Chandos in Spring 2006:

Wikis as information sources, as a form of publishing, and as tools for collaboration, are discussed in this book. The applications of wikis in library and information services, education and business are explored, with examples. The book begins with an overview of wikis, in the context of the increasing use of 'social software' in general and the trend towards a more interactive World Wide Web. The different kinds of wikis are identified and described. The advantages and problems associated with using wikis in information work and collaboration are discussed. One of the problems is simply that of finding wikis that deal with a particular topic or activity, and this is addressed through a discussion of directories, search engines and other finding tools. Later chapters cover the options for creating wikis and the management of a wiki. The book concludes with lists of resources related to wikis

[ http://www.chandospublishing.com/catalogue/record_detail.php?recordID=111 ]

The book was conceived by the late Dr. L. Anne Clyde, University of Iceland, a lead researcher in the field of social software and libraries (and other areas), who died on September 18, 2005 [ http://www.hi.is/~anne/ ].

Prof. Klobas is interested in responses to the following questions:

* Why do you think wikis are important to LIS?
* What do you think are the most useful applications of wikis for LIS 
practitioners and educators?
* What 2-3 examples do you think should be show-cased in the book?
* What are the greatest pitfalls for the unaware?
* How would you summarise the status of wikis in LIS at the end of 2005?
* What else would you like the readers of the book to know about wikis in LIS (or, indeed, wikis in general)?

Please send any experience and/or thoughts to Jane directly (jane.klobas at unibocconi.it ) (and also post a copy to this list).

TIA!

Regards,

/Gerry 

Gerry McKiernan
Science and Technology Librarian
Iowa State University Library 
Ames IA 50011

gerrymck at iastate.edu