Ebersbach / Glaser / Heigl Wiki

Web Collaboration
2. Auflage 2008
ISBN: 978-3-540-68173-1
Verlag: Springer
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 483 Seiten, Web PDF

Reihe: Computer Science (R0)

Wikis are Web-based applications that allow all users not only to view pages but also to change them. The success of the Internet encyclopedia Wikipedia has drawn increasing attention from private users, small organizations and enterprises to the various possible uses of wikis.

Their simple structure and straightforward operation make them a serious alternative to expensive content management systems and also provide a basis for many applications in the area of collaborative work. We show the practical use of wikis in carrying out projects for users as well as for maintainers. This includes a step-by-step introduction to wiki philosophy, social effects and functions, a survey of their controls and components, and the installation and configuration of the wiki clones MediaWiki, TWiki and Confluence. In order to exemplify the possibilities of the software, we use it as a project tool for planning a conference.

Zielgruppe

Professional/practitioner

Autoren/Hrsg.

Ebersbach, Anja

Glaser, Markus

Heigl, Richard

Warta, Alexander

Weitere Mitwirkende

Dueck, Gunter

Adelung, Andrea

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1;Foreword;5 2;Foreword, Take Two – Into the Blue … almost;9 3;The Authors;13 4;Content;14 5;Preface;23 5.1;Who Needs this Book?;23 5.2;The Content Concept;24 5.3;How to Use this Book;24 5.4;We Wish to Thank …;26 5.5;Thanks …;28 6;Typography;29 7;I. Wiki!?;31 7.1;1 The Wiki Concept;32 7.1.1;1.1 What is a Wiki?;32 7.1.2;1.2 The Technology of Wikis;37 7.1.3;1.3 Characteristic Wiki Functions;40 7.1.4;1.4 Wiki Clones;42 7.1.5;1.5 The Wiki Phenomenon;43 7.1.6;1.6 Wiki Pages;54 7.1.7;1.7 Important Resources on the WWW;55 8;II. Our First Wiki: MediaWiki;56 8.1;2 The Installation;57 8.1.1;2.1 A Test Environment with XAMPP;58 8.1.2;2.2 Installing MediaWiki;62 8.2;3 First Steps;69 8.2.1;3.1 The Wiki at First Glance;69 8.2.2;3.2 Hello World;70 8.2.3;3.3 Initial Formatting;72 8.2.4;3.4 Vive la Difference: Versions;74 8.2.5;3.5 Registering as a User;75 8.3;4 The Core Functions of MediaWiki;77 8.3.1;4.1 Editing;77 8.3.2;4.2 Discussions;81 8.3.3;4.3 Comparisons;81 8.3.4;4.4 Moving and Renaming;83 8.3.5;4.5 Watching;84 8.3.6;4.6 Protect;86 8.3.7;4.7 Deleting;87 8.4;5 Formatting;88 8.4.1;5.1 Formatting Characters;88 8.4.2;5.2 Special Characters & Co.;89 8.4.3;5.3 Headings and Paragraphs;91 8.4.4;5.4 Lists and Lines;92 8.4.5;5.5 Tables;94 8.4.6;5.6 Table of Contents;99 8.5;6 Multi-Page Structures;100 8.5.1;6.1 Linking Methods;100 8.5.2;6.2 Organizing Content;104 8.5.3;6.3 Multi-Page Design I – Images;109 8.5.4;6.4 Multi-Page Design II – Templates;117 8.5.5;6.5 Forwarding with Redirects;124 8.6;7 Components: the Function Pages;125 8.6.1;7.1 Navigation;127 8.6.2;7.2 Search Function;131 8.6.3;7.3 User Administration;132 8.6.4;7.4 Information about the Wiki;137 8.6.5;7.5 Maintenance;138 8.7;8 Administration;141 8.7.1;8.1 File Structure and LocalSettings.php;141 8.7.2;8.2 Database Structure;147 8.7.3;8.3 Design: your own Skins;149 8.7.4;8.4 Design of the Homepage with

Tags and CSS;152 8.7.5;8.5 Spam;154 8.7.6;8.6 Security;156 8.7.7;8.7 Update and Uninstall;157 8.8;9 Extensions;159 8.8.1;9.1 Integrating Existing Extensions;159 8.8.2;9.2 Employing Bots;160 8.8.3;9.3 Excursion: Making your own Extension;161 8.8.4;9.4 The HalloWiki;167 8.9;10 Life in MediaWiki;168 8.9.1;10.1 More than just Text;168 8.9.2;10.2 Make Access Easier;170 8.9.3;10.3 You’re not Writing Alone;171 8.9.4;10.4 Usage Examples;173 9;III. TWiki, the Jack of all Trades;179 9.1;11 Installing TWiki;180 9.1.1;11.1 Installation under Linux;181 9.1.2;11.2 TWiki without an Admin-Account;184 9.1.3;11.3 Installation under Windows;185 9.1.4;11.4 Completing TWiki Installation;191 9.1.5;11.5 Viewing TWiki Pages;192 9.2;12 Working with TWiki;194 9.2.1;12.1 What Are Webs?;194 9.2.2;12.2 A Website;195 9.2.3;12.3 The Edit Window;205 9.3;13 Formatting in TWiki;208 9.3.1;13.1 Formatting Text;208 9.3.2;13.2 Tables;211 9.3.3;13.3 Links;213 9.3.4;13.4 Integrating Images;214 9.3.5;13.5 HTML in TWiki;215 9.3.6;13.6 TWiki and JavaScript;215 9.3.7;13.7 TWiki Variables;216 9.3.8;13.8 The WYSIWYG Editor: Kupu;219 9.4;14 Searching in TWiki;223 9.4.1;14.1 The Search Function;223 9.4.2;14.2 Effective Searching;225 9.4.3;14.3 Searching with Regular Expressions;226 9.4.4;14.4 Embedded Searches;228 9.5;15 Structured Data with Forms;235 9.5.1;15.1 TWiki Forms;236 9.5.2;15.2 Generating a Form;236 9.5.3;15.3 Topics with Forms;239 9.5.4;15.4 Working with Structured Data;241 9.6;16 Installing TWiki;244 9.6.1;16.1 Authentication vs. Access Control;244 9.6.2;16.2 Activating User Registration;245 9.6.3;16.3 Setting up Password Protection;246 9.6.4;16.4 Access Control;247 9.6.5;16.5 Strategies for User Rights;251 9.7;17 Administering TWiki;252 9.7.1;17.1 Administering Webs;252 9.7.2;17.2 Topic Templates;255 9.7.3;17.3 Interwiki Links;257 9.7.4;17.4 User Administration;258 9.7.5;17.5 Email;259 9.7.6;17.6 Security Aspects;260 9.7.7;17.7 Backing up Data;261 9.7.8;17.8 Upgrading and Uninstalling;262 9.8;18 Designing a TWiki;264 9.8.1;18.1 Designing the Look;264 9.8.2;18.2 Plugins and Add-ons;275 10;IV. TWiki as a Project Kit;278 10.1;19 Preliminary Thoughts: What is a Project?;279 10.2;20 Conceptual Phase: Collecting Ideas and Outlining the Project;283 10.2.1;20.1 Establishing a Base;283 10.2.2;20.2 Collecting Cooperative Ideas and Generating Project Outlines;285 10.2.3;20.3 Keeping a Log with Wikis;288 10.3;21 Composing the Project Plan;290 10.3.1;21.1 Preparing Work Packages;290 10.3.2;21.2 The Project Schedule;293 10.3.3;21.3 Distributing Tasks and Forming Groups;295 10.3.4;21.4 Outlining Structures and Procedures with the TWikiDraw Plugin;297 10.3.5;21.5 The Tools;299 10.3.6;21.6 To- do List with EditTable Plugin;302 10.3.7;21.7 Planning Costs and Financing with Tables ( Spreadsheet Plugin);308 10.4;22 Preparing for your Event;316 10.4.1;22.1 Planning Your Event;316 10.4.2;22.2 Conference Registration;316 10.5;23 Executing and Documenting an Event;324 10.5.1;23.1 In the Event Office;324 10.5.2;23.2 Participant Administration/Registration Status;325 10.5.3;23.3 Lectures with the Presentation Plugin ( SlideShow);331 10.5.4;23.4 Generating Visuals for Statistics using Diagrams ( Chart Plugin);338 10.5.5;23.5 Final Steps: Feedback and Documentation;344 11;V. Go with the Flow: Confluence;345 11.1;24 Installing Confluence;346 11.1.1;24.1 Atlassian Software Systems;346 11.1.2;24.2 Licenses;347 11.1.3;24.3 Architecture;347 11.1.4;24.4 System Requirements;348 11.1.5;24.5 Installation Options;349 11.1.6;24.6 Standalone Installation;351 11.2;25 Overview;359 11.2.1;25.1 What are Spaces?;359 11.2.2;25.2 Dashboard;359 11.2.3;25.3 Page Overview;361 11.3;26 Formatting;370 11.3.1;26.1 The Difference between Wiki Markup and Rich Text;370 11.3.2;26.2 Headings;372 11.3.3;26.3 Text Format and Layout;373 11.3.4;26.4 Links;374 11.3.5;26.5 Lists;377 11.3.6;26.6 Inserting Images;377 11.3.7;26.7 Inserting Tables;378 11.3.8;26.8 Miscellaneous;380 11.3.9;26.9 HTML Input;381 11.4;27 Organization;382 11.4.1;27.1 Browse Space – Navigation;382 11.4.2;27.2 Full-text Search;393 11.4.3;27.3 Permissions Concept;395 11.4.4;27.4 Notifications;400 11.4.5;27.5 Drafts;401 11.4.6;27.6 Tiny Links;402 11.5;28 Settings;403 11.5.1;28.1 Space Admin;403 11.5.2;28.2 Confluence Admin;407 12;VI. Tools with a Future;420 12.1;29 Technical Challenges;421 12.1.1;29.1 Integration, Hybrids and Mashups;421 12.1.2;29.2 Editors;422 12.1.3;29.3 In Search of Standards;424 12.2;30 A few Wiki Projects;428 12.2.1;30.1 Projects of the Wikimedia Group;428 12.2.2;30.2 Other Wiki Worlds;432 12.2.3;30.3 Wikis in Companies and Organizations;437 12.3;31 The Art of “Sowing” Wikis;439 12.3.1;31.1 Collaborative Writing;439 12.3.2;31.2 Collaboration: Wikis as a Project Tool;440 12.4;32 Social Perspectives;448 12.4.1;32.1 Clash of the Wikis;448 12.4.2;32.2 Ownership;454 12.4.3;32.3 Forms of Work;457 12.4.4;32.4 Objectivity;458 13;Appendix;463 13.1;A Installations in TWiki;464 13.1.1;Perl;464 13.1.2;Shebang;465 13.1.3;Changing RCS Owners;466 13.2;B Comparison Chart;467 13.3;Glossary;469 13.4;Bibliography;475 13.5;Index;478

Leseproben

" (S. 37-39)

In order to become familiar with and test a wiki, it is a good idea to install a system on your own computer, instead of delving straight into the depths of the Internet. Firstly, you have complete control over the software used and its settings. On the Net, this is only the case if you are an administrator on a server on which the wiki is running. Secondly, almost all entries made to an online version can potentially be read by the entire world.

You need to ask yourself whether the world would really be interested in every little test, in addition, copyright issues could quickly crop up. In a local testing environment, on the other hand, you can control who has access to your computer, and you can experiment without needing to constantly worry about relevance or legal questions. Basically, installing wikis is always done according to a similar pattern. First you need to create and adapt the environment in which the wiki will run, which primarily means setting up the web server and, if necessary, the database.

Then you copy the wiki software files to the proper location and adjust one or more configuration files to the system environment, either manually or automatically. Such adjustments mainly include the indication of paths, language and connection to the database. In addition, some wikis offer the possibility of performing some settings directly over the browser. The individual steps for installing and setting up MediaWiki will be detailed below. Note: The installation described refers to the software version 1.10.1, which you can find on the supplementary CD. If you prefer to download the current packages from the Internet, there may be some deviations.

2.1 A Test Environment with XAMPP

Since it is the nature of wikis to be a component of the WWW, you need to create a test environment for the actual software for local operation on your computer. In the case of MediaWiki, such an environment consists of a web server, the script language PHP (Version 5.0 or higher) and the database MySQL (4.0 or higher). The installation and interaction of these components is complex, and descriptions of them fill bookshelves. However, that is not within the scope of our book. Luckily, there is a package that allows us to install all required components with a minimum of configuration effort: XAMPP.

This is the abbreviation for ""Apache MySQL PHP Perl"" (the X is a placeholder for the operating system) and thus for components that together result in possible standard equipment for a web server. If you should already have this software on your computer, you can skip this chapter and go straight to installing the MediaWiki. Tip: If you already have a web server installed on your computer, it is possible that XAMPP may not work. For instance, this is the case with IIS. At the time of this printing, XAMPP is available in Version 1.6.3. It can be found on the supplementary CD in the directory /xampp/ [operating system]. The newest version can be downloaded at the URL http://www.apachefriends.org /de/xampp.html. "

Über Autor(innen)

Anja Ebersbach is an information scientist. She is a university and technical college instructor, and is also active as a freelance IT trainer. She is working on her dissertation on the topic of "Wikis as Tools of Scientific Work." Markus Glaser, also an information scientist, primarily works as a web and application programmer, where he specializes in MediaWiki and TWiki systems. Dr. Richard Heigl, a historian, works as a freelance instructor, IT trainer and moderator of large group seminars. He is primarily occupied with the planning and moderation of wiki projects. Alexander Warta, information scientist, is a doctoral candidate employed at Robert Bosch GmbH in Stuttgart. He is a specialist for the wiki software Confluence.