We are using a program called Wikispace — and the group is a professional quilt art organization. We are trying to collect all kinds of information for our membership — from business and marketing to technique to art history and theory — all in a single wiki — if not the actual info, then links to places to get it.

Wikispace has been relatively easy to use, although I’m not involved in the more technical stuff. I had a bit of a learning curve when I first started dealing with it (we had to start from scratch with organizing the field), but I am now pretty familiar with it. If the membership of the organization finds it useful, it could be a terrific tool.

The theory is that this will make the organization more valuable to its members. The practice is yet to be tried.

What kind of wiki is your organization setting up?

I’m involved in an organization that’s setting up a huge wiki. It’s a rather mind-boggling endeavor. The format is thoroughly useful but daunting in set-up.

Jer says that the founder (Ward Cunningham?) of Wikipedia says that the wiki format is one that in theory doesn’t work but in practice, does. A conundrum, for sure.

And as Jer has become more and more familiar with the way Wikipedia works, he has found the comment to be true.

I hope they expand the videos beyond the interview format. I imagine a lot of artists could be interesting to view at work, though they might not interview well.