I’ve been installing and setting up a DokuWiki. My hosting ISP provides automatic install for 4 different wiki engines and Doku is one of them. This is not something I do everyday so I’m being methodical (read slow) because it’s easier to get it right the first time rather than undo mistakes. At least for me it is.
Impressions:
- I’m impressed with Doku so far. Like most open source scripts it’s not quite as polished as a commercial script but it’s all very straightforward and workmanlike. It does not feel half finished.
- The instructions are well written. Even I could understand them.
- Doku has a plugin system similar to Wordpress. All the essential plugins are already installed on the default installation.
- Adding new plugins to extend and customize worked smoothly.
Why Wiki?
What has me excited about wikis is they work more like my brain works. I’ve never been a good outliner for stories or projects. My thought process is more like sticky notes all scattered around rather than an outline and that sticky note approach is sort of how wiki’s work.Blogs are fine and have their place, but they are linear. Wiki’s create something closer to a static site but the navigation gets built automatically as you create pages. I like that part.
I really won’t have a final judgement on Doku and wiki’s in general for a few weeks until I’ve started writing and editing. The setup of the script is just a one time thing, It’s the everyday use of the thing that is important. But in any event, if you want a wiki, I don’t think you will go too far wrong with Dokuwiki.
