After you have a basic idea of how to use Wiki, you should check out WorkingOurWeb and PlanForOurWeb to put that knowledge to use.

Feel free to play around and try things out in the Sandbox Web.

Essential Concepts

• Wiki is an approach to web-based colaboration
• TWiki is the specific Wiki software we use
• The TWiki system is divided into major sections, called Webs
• Each web consists of web pages called Topics
• Topic pages are mostly plain text, with a few special TextFormattingRules
• Topics are named by using a WikiWord

Creating and Editing Topics

Click "Edit" to make changes to an existing Topic page. "Edit" buttons can be found at the upper right and lower left of each page.

You can create a new Topic page in a few different ways:

• By linking to it
  1. Edit an existing Topic
  2. Add a reference to the soon-to-be topic, complete with a WikiWord
  3. Save you changes
  4. When the revised page comes up, click the red link to your new WikiWord
  5. Your new Topic will spring into existence automatically
• By using the tool bar at the left of the page
  1. Click/tap: Create New Topic
  2. The system will prompt you to enter the topic name and begin editing

Text Formatting Basics

• Paragraphs are separated by multiple sequential line breaks (press ENTER twice)
• Bare URLs are automatically turned into hyperlinks
• Typing a WikiWord in the text automatically creates a hyperlink
• Use WebName.TopicName to link between webs
• Lists
  • Three spaces followed by a star create an unordered (bullet) list item
  • Three spaces followed by a number create an ordered (numbered) list item
  • Increase spaces in multiples of three to increase indentation level
• Section Headings
  • Three dashes (-) followed by a plus sign (+) create an H1 (title) header
  • Increase the number of plus signs for sub (or sub-sub) sections

Learn By Example

Look at this page's Wiki source to learn by example. To do so, click the "Raw View" link in the toolbar at the bottom of the page. You will find that the syntax is almost self-explanatory, once you see it. Tip: Open two browser windows, one with the source, one with the "rendered" view, and compare them side-by-side.

More Information

TWiki comes with a wealth of documentation, all of it online in the TWiki Web:

• WelcomeGuest - The introduction that comes with the TWiki software
• TWikiTutorial - An introduction to all the basic features of TWiki
• TextFormattingRules - How to make TWiki turn simple text into formatted HTML
• GoodStyle - A few "best practices" for TWiki
• TWikiUsersGuide - The complete user's guide

There are also a few short instruction pages hosted locally:

• WebLeftBarUsage - What do all those icons in the bar on the left do?