Well, if they won't search for the answer via google, they aren't going to search for it in the wiki. The key is not putting up a page on how to modify a doc. The key is putting the doc itself in the wiki. I know this doesn't translate really to spreadsheets, but you get what I'm saying.
JT
----- Original Message ---- From: Frederik Dohr fdg001@gmx.net To: MediaWiki announcements and site admin list mediawiki-l@Wikimedia.org Sent: Tuesday, November 28, 2006 1:44:12 PM Subject: Re: [Mediawiki-l] corporate wiki: success factors?
In order for the wiki to succeed you have to first and foremost have the stamp of approval by someone with authority. They don't need to be 100% sold on it, they just have to allow you to use it and to give others access to it. That should be an easy sell.
Done; I got approval and set it up a couple of weeks ago - but it's more like being tolerated rather than being promoted or encouraged. Also, it's currently running on my local workstation (using XamppLite), but hopefully I'll get the access data for the dedicated server soon (internal bureaucracy delayed this by about two or three weeks already - some people were worried that adding a new database might corrupt the data of another MySQL-based PHP-site running on that server... ).
Second, you have to put relevant useful content on the wiki that people need access to. Pay attention to docs that people are always looking for, modifying, etc.
Actually, this gives me a great idea; I'm known to be an Excel pro (not exactly true in absolute terms, but certainly in relation to most of my colleagues), so people occasionally approach me for help with their spreadsheets. Some of these issues require a little macro programming, but often I can just point to existing functions (e.g. autofilter) - if I'd gather some FAQs there and publish them on the wiki, that might be the perfect "gateway drug"...
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Well, if they won't search for the answer via google, they aren't going to search for it in the wiki.
Well, it can be quite challenging to find answers for specific Excel issues via Google. Plus our wiki's database would be a lot smaller than Google's, and its content custom-tailored for frequently recurring issues, so there wouldn't be as many irrelevant results.
The key is not putting up a page on how to modify a doc. The key is putting the doc itself in the wiki. I know this doesn't translate really to spreadsheets, but you get what I'm saying.
Sure, but the workspace is polygamous; there's will always be many different applications, instead of one app to rule them all. And wikis certainly won't replace Excel any time soon. So if the doc itself is help for another app, that's valid wiki content... :)
-- Frederik
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