Wiki Writing Experience

Managing a WikiHow article is a very detail oriented task that requires copious amounts of time and the ability to tweak small characteristics here and there. Trying to convey the intended message is hard and an author can use different strategies to do so. One could do such through pictures, step-by-step procedures, bullet points and tips among other things. Formatting the page and correcting the article to make sure it fits the correct standard was a difficult process in terms of adding or subtracting little points that may change the layout of the page entirely. Being able to view other similar accounts was also a beneficial step in making sure an article is formatted in a way that is reader friendly.

           

One of the top three most influential ways in correctly communicating your point is through using a step-by-step format. By using this in a wikihow article, the author can give the reader or viewer extensive detail and a specific process on how to do the idea the wiki is trying to produce. For example, say somebody wants to learn or try to cook baked spaghetti. By searching how to make baked spaghetti and going through a wikihow, a reader would most likely find a step-by-step process on how to make baked spaghetti. Using a process such as this will simplify things for the reader and make sure they are taking the necessary steps and requirements to complete the dish. The step-by-step format is the easiest way to convey exactly what to do and how to do it to ensure the reader does everything the right way.

Here is an Example of 4 Different Ways to Make Spaghetti!

Using photos is another effective way to demonstrate communication through a wikihow post. By using photos, the author can give the reader and audience a physical look into the steps and requirements in terms of what the will be needing for the project, dish, assembly, etc. For example, when making a dish, it is important to show the step-by-step process. Yet, equally as important would be providing imagery to each step to give a visual representation of what each step includes and the ingredients needed. Using photography is an extremely effective way for the audience to understand the step-by-step process and compare what they are doing, to the directions on the wiki page.

          

Another helpful way to communicate your wiki is by simply comparing it to similar topics. See what another topic close to your wiki page looks like. It is important to reference other wiki pages, especially when writing the html code. The coding process is very precise and something as small a space can alter the way a page looks, so if needed take a glance and compare another’s coding to assure that your own wiki page is correct and will be displayed properly. One can get ideas on how to lay out a wiki page and format it in a step-by-step display.

          

Debatably the most effective way of communicating a wiki properly is from one’s own personal experience. Having experience and knowledge of one’s own is extremely beneficial to being able to communicate a topic. For example, it is hard to write a wiki about how to raise a dog if one has never owned a dog or currently does not own a dog. Personal experience can provide the author with understanding of what they are actually writing a wiki about. If raising a dog, the writer of the wiki would have extensive knowledge and detail about raising a dog that would be very beneficial to someone who is trying it for the first time. With experience, one can give little pointers and tips about personal struggles and insight into how smaller details.

Here is an Example of my own Wiki: How-To Raise a Puggle

            

Video can also be a great way to demonstrate a performance, step-by-step process, or simply examples and demonstrations that would be beneficial for the reader. Although it may provide a little more difficult of a process when coding, it can be very effective for idea like cooking to use in a step-by-step process instead of pictures if the process is a little more hands on. For example, videos can be a great way to demonstrate the steps of a dance performance or the steps on how to build a tree house. Video can dive a little deeper in the process of how to do something that sometimes pictures cannot provide.

           

It is also important to hear feedback from other wiki users in order to manage a better overall wiki. Feedback can be beneficial to anybody trying to make a wiki for the very first time. A wiki alone is a difficult task so feel free to absolutely reach out to others for advice and let them see the page you have been working on. Any feedback is good feedback and can help the wiki page. It is always good to receive constructive criticism so that a wiki page can be as effective as possible and collaborating with others is a great way of communicating and understanding the best techniques to make a wiki page as promising as possible. Anytime an author has the ability to receive some advice from somebody who had made a wiki before, it is extremely beneficial.

            

Writing a wiki has been a very difficult task and any of these techniques can and should be used in order to have the most effective wiki. The overall experience of writing a wiki has been helpful to say the least. Learning to write some html code, and communicating with other about how to construct a wiki and what to use on a wiki has been helpful in terms of ever creating one again. Once a wiki writer understands how to format everything and what the most effective ways of communicating are, it becomes very easy to write a wiki and be sure it will be published. The experience has been beneficial in terms of trying something new and familiarizing with a media that not many people know how to operate. It gives a person a chance to be creative as well as work on something one finds interesting or enjoyable.