[Web4lib] Access Control: Wiki vs. CMS

[Chris Gray]

I'd like to thank people for thoughtful comments they've sent both on and 
off list.

I'd have to agree with the point that there are many aspects of wiki 
software aside from open collaboration that make it attractive.  The value 
of software lies largely in the use that can be made of it.  I'm just 
wondering, in the case of wikis, where the dividing line is between 
creative reuse and adaptation of a tool and seeing every problem as a nail 
because you happen to have a hammer.

There are often good reasons for picking something with less capability 
because it is easier to use.  (I have Microsoft Office and OpenOffice on 
my PC, but I use Notepad daily and WordPad frequently while I hardly 
touch Word or OpenOffice Writer.)

I'm also interested in the progress I've witnessed from "let's try out 
this Lib 2.0 stuff" to "let's try a wiki" to "we don't want just anybody 
editing our pages".  There are certainly legitimate reasons for 
restricting access to a wiki depending on purpose, but sometimes I get the 
feeling it is partly a reaction of "whoa, this open access stuff is 
scary".

I've set up both open access and restricted access wikis for our staff to 
play around with and in part it was explicitly to allow them to become 
comfortable with the whole idea through experience.  But I think in some 
ways it would be better for them to learn (especially, if Lib 2.0 is their 
focus) by participating in a living open wiki like Wikipedia or Library 
Success.

Chris Gray
Library Systems
University of Waterloo

On Thu, 10 Aug 2006, Keith D. Engwall wrote:

> I'm not trying to put up a wiki for its own sake.  I'm trying to create 
> a staff intranet for policies, procedures, and other material not meant 
> for public consumption.  I just happen to be using a wiki as the tool to 
> do that.  In that context, access control is very appropriate.
>
> In fact, I think it's only natural for libraries to start with an 
> internal wiki until they comfortable with them.  Part of the goal of our 
> internal wiki is to train the staff so that later we can have one (or 
> more) public wikis.