Knowledge sharing – the wiki
Howard G. “Ward” Cunningham, pioneer of the wiki, began programming the
WikiWikiWeb software in 1994 and installed it on the website of his software
consultancy in 1995. Back then he described a wiki as “The simplest online
database that could possibly work.” 13 years later this is probably still the most
accurate description.
Essentially, a wiki is a piece of software which users can create and edit online,
using simple mark-up language via a web browser. They support hyperlinks
and have a simple text syntax for creating new pages and links between
internal pages. In its most basic form, a wiki is a website that supports user
collaboration through a variety of functions.
There are numerous types of wiki software available that share the following
characteristics: