Thing #16: Wikis

I like wikis a lot. Personally, I have been using Wikipedia for quite a while now--I find it to be a useful, informative source for a variety of topics, but especially those that are not current. It has rarely disappointed me. I am well aware that there are many (especially instructors of various sorts) who scoff at Wikipedia and will not allow students to use it, because they don't trust the accuracy of a wiki. Probably in large part to my education, I find that I have a sort of sixth sense about whether or not I can trust the accuracy of the information. I realize that not everyone has this ability, and therefore I guess wikis may not be reliable sources for all users. I believe that wikis have a lot of terrific applications for creating bodies of knowledge of various sorts. Even though one may add and subtract information from them, I truly think that the accurate information will outweigh the inaccurate in the end. Libraries could use wikis for various and sundry purposes, especially to disseminate book information and local library information to customers. The Bull Run library wiki is a good example. I also found the library practices wiki to be interesting, and it is certainly a good place for librarians to look when they are cruising for ideas for their own libraries.