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"Colin" == Colin Johnson colinj@ccs.neu.edu writes:

Colin> I'm working on building a set of howtos for the users here. I Colin> like the format and control that a mediawiki gives me. What I Colin> want to do is be able to limit who has write access to the wiki Colin> and from where.

Colin> I'd like to be able to do the following:

Colin> 1. limit write access to machines only on our local network Colin> 2. limit write access to users who login so we can track changes Colin> 3. limit user accounts to specific people.

Colin> I'm working at a college of computer science and so I don't Colin> want to, right off the bat, enable all of the students with Colin> write access. I would like to get there eventually but I'd like Colin> to start out with only a small number of users who have write Colin> access and then grow that group over time.

Hi Colin.

I'm not going to try to answer your questions, but instead make a few comments that you might consider.

The main suggestion is that you consider letting the wiki be open initially and shutting off access as need be, rather than locking it down from the outset with a plan to selectively open it. I think a far more interesting and potentially rich experience is to move (if needed) from open to closed. There's nothing to be too concerned about: if it doesn't work, you tighten things up. Lawyers might disagree, I know. Plus, your aim to develop Howto documents in a wiki is a perfect scenario for having many people making improvements and adding information that a few people would take for granted, get wrong, leave out, under-describe, etc. You can't predict the content of the wiki, and that's great and well aligned with user manuals (or howtos) which are notoriously bad at predicting the needs of actual users. So it feels to me like you've chosen the right tool (the wiki) and are now looking for a way to (initially) turn off the power it brings you rather than just letting the thing fly and seeing what happens. You might be surprised. If you lock it down, the whole project loses interest, becomes somehow much less attractive, you're just making another set of manuals.

Here's a perhaps relevant example. I'm teaching a (graduate level, admittedly) class on computer science theory and algorithms. I set up a wiki for the class - with just a few basic pages: the syllabus, the evaluation, some admin details, a page with some of my info on it. I introduced the wiki on day 1 and pushed them to start using it (everyone made a page about themselves and linked it in). Plus, each class has an assigned note taker, and the note taker (and others, of course) puts stuff into the wiki. The people in the class can do anything they want to the wiki: change the syllabus, change the page that says how they will be evaluated, write stuff about each other or me, deface things, delete things etc. But.... none of this has happened. I was expecting I'd perhaps have to lock down some pages or restrict write access to logged-in users, etc., but no. On the other hand, good things you would not anticipate have happened: students start taking notes on the class before the class happens! - they're out there digging up stuff they think is interesting on upcoming subject and writing and linking it up in the wiki. I go and look at the syllabus for the day to see what I said I'd teach, and I find notes already done with stuff someone thinks is important and wants to hear about. I've had a kid sitting in class taking notes and updating the wiki as the class happens (while I simultaneously have the wiki up on an overhead projection system). There are also little things that I would never have thought of (and didn't have to), like someone putting a link to the Greek alphabet onto the front page of the wiki - to help everyone learn the various letters seen in the math. It's pretty cool.

Maybe that's some food for thought for you. And no, you can't have the URL of the class wiki :-)

Regards, Terry Jones.