The Wiki'd Witch

Okay, so there are no witches in Bloggerland usually, but i have once again diverted down a strange path and have found an Endless Cavern where the Wiki'd witch hovers on her broom, maintaining wikis and monitoring contributions. This is what the Wiki'd Witch said to me:

"Wiki's i think are good in general provided you understand their purposes.

Wiki's, i believe (at least for now, maybe society will change in future), due to their very nature, should not seriously be used as a source of reliable, accurate and up-to-date information. Despite rigorous reviewing to try to maintain the integrity of the Wiki's information, with so many contributors, all with their own subjective viewpoints and opinions, the information provided can never be considered a solid resource, at least, as i said before, for the moment.

"However, they are still very useful and good and an important part of online communication and community. The Internet in general has seen the move away from traditional resources, and this should be embraced, with more information being available than ever before ( how useful or reliable this information actually is, is another matter ). With the input of several people with various knowledge areas, instead of a singular academic, information is broader and more inclusive. But i believe that we should always keep in mind what we are dealing with essentially: people's various and varying opinions.

"I think wiki's would be excellent for use in libraries as a book club/ review feature (as Miztres said in their post), allowing staff and borrowers to comment, provide links, etc. However, i think most people would also like their contributions to stay intact, instead of being edited by someone else, as they are opinions not textbooks. Perhaps it would be best used as an internal source of information, for describing procedures and policies and what-to-dos, which can be edited and reviewed as necessary. I have seen many libraries taking up this option. As long as the contributors are registered and controlled, and people understand how to use them, wiki use for any use should be fine."

And with that, the witch flew up high into the sky, laughing a hearty laugh, and vanished into the night where the stars sparkled and the wiki's remained in need of more wiki'd witches.