Blogs Vs. Wikis

It appears that there are many similarities amongst these two publications. Mostly that you can pretty much post any opinion or thought you might have about a certain topic. These announcements are supposed to teach or inform an individual. You do not necessary need a legit source of information to prove your point, which makes it a very unreliable broadcast.

A very clear definition of a blog was written by Loren Baker on searchenginejournal.com. He states a blog is: " A publication of content and Web links, sorted in chronological order, with the most recent at the top. The content reflects personal or corporate interests, and is almost always written by an individual. Blogs were originally called web logs or weblogs. However, as “web log” can also mean a server’s log files, the term was confusing. To avoid this confusion, the abbreviation “blog” was coined, and became the common term".

On the contrary wikis are not created and edited by one user. Anyone can add or delete information posted, this has become a social process. As said by Jakes David on wikisacrossthecurriculum.wikispaces.com:   "Wikis are the way to take the educational experience to a new level. The sharing of information is made accessible to everyone and encourages everyone to be a part of the process. Wikis allow students, parents, teachers, staff, and administrators, a platform where everyone is an equal contributor to the educational process". 


To conclude, both publications are posted by a person who should but must not have the knowledge about a certain topic. Major difference is that a viewer cannot modify or delete comments on blogs, but is allowed to contribute on the wikis. Even though these sources are seen as reliable tools of communication, i would not use them to find out when King Edward III Reigned in England.