Plant Services - August 2007 - (Page 13) PLANTSERVICES.COM Share your experience KEN SCHNEPF Our wikis allow plant professionals to add their knowledge to the Web site edit tab. en, it’s as simple as using word processing softf you like to have your voice heard, now’s a good time to ware, much like Microsoft Word, complete with a toolbar be alive. Whether it’s calling into “American Idol” or ratfor formatting. To start, it’s best to add to an existing article, ing the latest story on www.msnbc.com, the whole world rather than begin a brand-new one. You will be able to more is becoming more interactive. We no longer sit idly by and easily follow the wiki formatting rules, such as the enlarged let our game-show contestants become winners of their own subheadings, etc. When you’ve finished modifying the page, volition. And we no longer do pretty much anything online remember to click “save” at the bottom. You can review all of where we aren’t prompted in some way to participate. the edits to the page with the “history” tab. And if what you One of the more interesting examples of this phenomenon modified doesn’t read or look like you’d hoped, then add as is the wiki software first introduced at www.wikipedia.org. many edits as you’d like. ere is no cap on the amount of is grass-roots, nearly entirely voluntary Web site, origitimes you can edit a page. nated by Jimmy Wales, provides a neat, tidy and cool way to aggregate knowledge. And since that’s exIf you’re feeling a little Magellanic and want actly what we’re trying to do at PlantServices. to claim new ground, make a new page by addcom, we’ve added the first of what we expect You determine ing double brackets – [[ ]] – around the word to be many wikis to the site: e Best Pracor phrase you entered. After saving the page, the direction, tices – Energy Wiki (www.PlantServices.com/ you’ll notice that your new phrase is in red (all quantity and wikis/best_practices_energy). categories that need content are in red, while quality of the all populated content areas are in blue). Click e Best Practices – Energy Wiki is dedion the new red hyperlink and it’ll bring you to cated solely to industrial energy sourcing, information. your new page to begin adding your thoughts. strategy and efficiency. It’s your place to learn and share industrial energy best pracFor example, if you have something to tices with your peers. You determine the direction, quanadd about oil prices, and nothing yet exists, you click the tity and quality of the information. You have free reign to edit tab, add the double brackets around the phrase “oil build on, change or move existing writings, as well as to prices,” and save. en, click on the new red link and type start new topics. away. ere’s even a discussion tab where users can talk about the article. e major categories are: ere are similar easy ways to make sure that your new • Energy Management addition is being referenced in all the right spots. For that • Energy Concerns in Manufacturing tutorial and other tricks (like adding useful external links), I • Energy Efficiency in Industrial Systems and point you in the direction of the wiki’s excellent help section • Industrial Energy Sources (www.PlantServices.com/wikis/best_practices_energy/ Each has some content seeded, but needs your help to index.php?title=Help:Contents). fully develop. e quality of a wiki is completely depene important thing to remember about the wikis on Plant dent on the community that populates it. e onus is on Services.com is that they’re not a test of your Internet savvy. the PlantServices.com reading public to make the energy ey’re about adding your piece of knowledge to everyone’s wiki, and any wikis that follow, a resource that all can benefit. And that can be done with two simple clicks. readily rely upon. Energy is the fi rst of many subjects we’re going to tackle e sure-fi re questions that come with such a project with wikis. If you have a particular subject you’d like covare, “How do I participate? How do I add my little piece of ered, please contact me with your suggestions. In today’s knowledge?” Contributing to a wiki isn’t as easy as selecting media, you can be heard, and we are eager to listen. a button on an online poll. But, it’s not much harder either. e primary purpose of the wiki is information-sharing, and you can add to any article by simply clicking on the E-mail Senior Web Editor Michael Ermitage at mermitage@putman.net. A .PLANTSERVICES. 13 I http://www.plantservices.com/voices/ps_files.html http://www.msnbc.com http://www.wikipedia.org http://www.PlantServices.com/wikis/best_practices_energy http://www.PlantServices.com/wikis/best_practices_energy http://vices.com/wikis/best_practices_energy/index.php?title=Help:Contents http://vices.com/wikis/best_practices_energy/index.php?title=Help:Contents http://www.plantservices.com http://PlantServices.com http://www.plantservices.com http://www.plantservices.com
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