- edit wiki pages
- create new pages
- format text with italic, bold and monospace (typewriter) typefaces
- create active links
- insert page dividers (horizontal rules)
- insert a picture or graphic
You can try these out in the Sand Box -- a doodling page expecially set aside for you to practice/play in without upsetting anything else in the wiki. Or you can create a Home Page - your own personal page on this wiki (where you can write what you please).
This Formatting Rules page just gives you the basics. If you can't find out how to do what you want to do here, visit the Extended Formatting Rules page. It tells you how to do more things like indenting text and making bulleted lists. You can also visit http://www.doiwalters.com/wiki/FormattingExamples.html which gives a very clear table with examples of all the wiki formatting rules (which is someone else's wiki, so remember to come back here :)
How to Edit a Wiki Page
Near the bottom of every wiki page (including this one) are two links - "Edit this page :: View page history". To edit the page, click the "Edit this page" link. This will bring up a new page with a white word processing box containing the "raw markup" -- the text containing the simple codes that were used to create the various formatting effects - italics, bold, horizontal rules, etc.
To edit the page, just look through the text in the white box to find what you want to change or the place you want to insert your new text. Then type what you want just as you would in a word processing document. The only difference is that when you want to format something, you'll need to use the Wiki rules given here and elsewhere, rather than the keystrokes and pull-down menus of your word processor.
When you are finished, click the "Preview"' button at the top of the white word processing box. That will give you a page that has '''''both''''' the white box '''''and''''', below it, the text of how your page will look when you save it. You can scroll back and forth between them, making any changes you want (and clicking the "Preview" button whenever you want to see the results of your work), until it is just the way you want it. Then you can just click on the '''"Save" button above the white box and - ''presto! - your newly revised wiki page pops up.
(Handy PS: That other button at the bottom of every page - "View page history" - allows you to recover text that may have been lost during revisions of a page.)
Adding or Creating New Pages
Adding New Pages and linking to existing pages is easy. After clicking on "Edit this page," Smush Words Together to create a page link (making sure the smushed words are all capitalized). After saving the edited page, click on the resulting "?" after your new page name to create some text for the page you've just created. Single words obviously can't be smushed together - instead, put double parentheses around them, e.g.
Participation level:
Innovation level:
Facilitator skill level, and other support required:
Can be used for:
Organizing Facilitation
How many people to organize?
Time required:
Cost:
References
Description
The simplest form of facilitation entails ensuring that all involved have a chance to speak and that the meeting starts and ends on time. Any group member can do this, especially if the group agrees to support them at it. (It can help to rotate the responsibility, giving all group members a turn at it. Participants rapidly come to appreciate what a creative challenge facilitiation is - it is simple, but not necessarily easy. Everyone is then more respectful when their peers try to play the role.) Alternatively an experienced facilitator can be brought in. This is especially necessary during a one-time event, or with people who don't know each other, or with a group that hasn't had good success facilitating themselves. Finally, the role can be held by one or a few group members who develop special skills in it - or even, in a mature, Consensus Process-oriented group, shared by all group members equally all the time (i.e., no one is "the facilitator" but the functions of faciltation are carried out by any and all participants in a fluid way as the meeting proceeds).
Good facilitators always explain their approach and get some agreement from the group as to what is going to happen. In a regularly-meeting group, this may just involve getting agreement on the agenda. Some facilitators discuss broad dialogue guidelines with participants and get them to agree to try applying them. Often such guidelines are posted on a wall where they can be referred to during the dialogue.
The facilitator says that he or she will be trying to shepherd the conversation along the guidelines described. Then the facilitator lets people talk, giving them gentle reminders as necessary.
Of course, to the extent all participants are brief, mindful, and curious about what each other has to say, little formal facilitation or gimmicks are necessary to ensure healthy dialogue.
Many facilitators give special attention to ensuring everyone feels well heard. They may also write important points that come up on chart pads in front of the room.
There are many approaches to facilitation, and many methods on this NCDD Wiki list have their own associated facilitation styles, professional networks and trainings.
References
Facilitation 101 by Edward S. (Ned) Ruete - http://www.iaf-world.org/about/facil/ReuteFac101.cfm
What is facilitation? by Lisa Heft - http://www.openingspace.net/facilitation_facilitation.shtml
Facilitators Guide to Participatory Decision-Making by Sam Kaner, et al. (New Society, 1996) - a very understandable guide to facilitated Consensus Process, organized so that pieces can be copied and used by the group. Includes an interesting model of group process.
Facilitation Points by Tree Bressen (consensus) - http://www.treegroup.info/toolbox/B11-facilitation_points.html
Organizations
Institute for Cultural Affairs (ICA). ICA/Chicago, 4750 N. Sheridan Rd., Chicago, IL 60640; 312-769-6393. Offers facilitation and group process trainings in U.S. cities and internationally. http://www.icaworld.org/.
International Association of Facilitators (IAF). 7630 W. 145th St., Suite 202, St. Paul, MN 55124; 612-891-3541; iafoffice@igc.org; http://www.iaf-world.org. Sponsors an annual conference, publishes a journal.
[What Is Facilitation][http://www.openingspace.net/facilitation_facilitation_defintions.shtml] - a brief description for those new to the term, by Lisa Heft
Formatting Text with Italic, Bold and Monotype Typefaces
(two single quotes) becomes ''italic text
(three single quotes) becomes 'bold text
(five single quotes) becomes '''''bold italic text
{{``````}} becomes
Making a Horizontal Rule (Divider Line) across the Page
At least four dashes like this becomes a horizontal rule like the ones dividing sections of this page:
Creating Active Links
To create an active link to any website (and most other web locations) simply type the URL like this (including http:''// in front of the URL) - http://www.thataway.org. When you save it, the Wiki will automatically make it into an active link.
For more rules tips....
Remember, this is just the basics. There are also some Extended Formatting Rules which tell you how to do things like indent text and make bulleted and numbered lists, headings, tables, etc..
Inserting a Picture or Graphic
You can put a picture on a page by typing the URL to the picture (it must end in gif, jpg, or png). For example, becomes this picture of a lion:
http://www.oakridger.com/images/042497/lion.jpg
. . . . . . . . . .
:(I'm just not sure why such pictures seem to show up on the right side of the page and push all the text over to the left. I guess this could be useful sometimes, if you plan for it...)
There's shorthand for linking to some other wikis (and other sites) by typing their name, a colon and the name of the page on the other site you're linking to. For example, Tavi:FormattingRules is the Formatting Rules page on the Wikki Tikki Tavi (aka Tavi) wiki. See Inter Wiki for more details.
