Wikis for Libraries

Welcome to the wonderful world of wikis! As the very able author, Lauren Pressley, states in her foreword, “Wikis for Libraries is a comprehensive guide to harnessing the power of the wiki as a collaboration tool, content management solution, and reference resource” (p. vii). Pressley is an excellent guide and patient and thoughtful teacher in this step-by-step reference work. Chapter contents are clearly identified, so the text may be easily accessed as a reference tool. For those who need more training, it is a very readable text. While I have used a wiki for MLA chapter meetings, I had no idea of the wide range of wiki uses. I also had no real knowledge of the origins of wikis or “wiki culture.” But this work is much more than a primer. While it is best for novices or those with little wiki experience, the seasoned librarian will also find some useful information. As Pressley gently admonishes, “If you're stuck wondering ‘what is a wiki?’, then you are already behind in providing the latest in Web 2.0 customer service” (p. ix). Readers can trust in Pressley's expertise and clear guidance, leave behind any prejudices based on mistrust of Wikipedia, and embrace and champion this vitally useful tool. Chapter layouts make for a particularly accessible ready reference. Succinct titles such as “Introduction: Wiki Basics,” “Planning,” “Implementation,” “Marketing,” “Best Practices,” and a notable and often overlooked topic in such texts, “Measures of Success,” are in bold print, followed by bullet-point subject divisions. For those novices who hold onto a built-in prejudice toward wikis based on Wikipedia, where content and authorship fly in the face of tried-and-true library criteria for reliable sources, Pressley offers an excellent observation that underscores the adaptability that health sciences information professionals must embrace in the dynamic, fluid field of information: the key is to realize that Wikipedia is a fundamentally different type of reference source. You cannot trust that the content is reliable because of the credibility of the author or publisher or that an editor oversaw the resource. You have to use a few more information literacy skills, new strategies, and a critical eye when deciding if the material is relevant for your work. These approaches are growing in importance with Web 2.0 sources of information and the emergence of online self-publishing, so they are useful skills to develop. (p. 10) With this different perspective, librarians can embrace wikis and use them for a variety of purposes in different settings, including “facilitated internal collaboration within” libraries (p. 46); creation of a wiki intranet; use of a wiki as a “knowledge base” (pp. 46–47) for such projects as employee handbooks, departmental projects, and meeting minutes; and “facilitated collaboration with people at other locations” (p. 49). Pressley is a master at clearly offering step-by-step instructions, complete with ample and truly useful illustrations, on setting up a wiki, both locally hosted and vendor hosted ones. Her instructions are sprinkled with intelligent and honest appraisals. When discussing using an automated installation hosting service, DreamHost , which offers a “one click” process for automatically installing MediaWiki, Pressley wryly observes that “This method is nearly as simple as it sounds” (p. 33). Pressley does not seem to miss any possible uses of wikis for libraries. Wiki uses discussed include creating wiki subject guides; using wikis for instruction (credit-bearing courses); and conference wikis, which many of us are familiar with even if we did not know they were wikis. Another fine example of Pressley's “human touch” is when she suggests that “If you choose to use a wiki to host your library Web site, you may want to look into ways to make the site look less like a wiki” (p. 54). Pressley devotes equal time to the human element of wikis, including which staff members should be involved and how they should be involved; what level of technical skills is needed for each wiki use; what helps to get administrative buy-in to wiki projects; and, of course, what the all-important marketing aspect is. The author explains how to create a marketing plan and how to advertise the wiki (including via social media). As Pressley states, “Once you have a wiki, a basic outline, seeded content, and designated wiki editors, all that is left to do is to roll the wiki out to the rest of the staff” (p. 43). In the chapter on “Best Practices,” Pressley includes how to maintain the wiki and how to keep software current and have a preservation plan. The concluding chapter, “Measures of Success,” explains how an organization knows if the wiki is being used and being useful. Pressley points out signs that the wiki is working, including growth of the site (users adding information) and heightened awareness of the site. However, as she points out, “The clearest indicator that the wiki is successful is when it is no longer your own project. At some point, a successful wiki will become part of the library's culture” (p. 91). Pressley offers numerous websites of interest throughout the text and concludes with a list of recommended books, book chapters, websites, and articles. An index is included. I highly recommend this readable and informative reference work for anyone who strives to create and implement a successful wiki that will become part of their library's culture.