You have reached a TWikiSite (pronounced twee-kee site). TWiki is a meeting place to collaborate on common interests. Everybody can contribute by just using a Web browser. It looks like a normal Web site, but then... everybody can (and is encouraged to) edit the web pages here and to contribute their questions and what they know. It really is very simple to learn and use.

How TWiki Works

1. Read: You can treat this web site like any other. Just read and follow interesting links.
   • Web: TWiki is divided up into webs; each one represents one area of collaboration. The webs are accessible at the upper right corner.
   • Topic: Each web has hyper-linked topics. A topic is one web page in your browser.
   • What's New: Visit WebChanges in any TWiki web to see what other people are doing here and what is currently being discussed.
2. Create an Account: Before you'll be able to write new content on this site you'll need to create an account for yourself. Its simple, and only takes a minute. Just visit TWikiRegistration and fill out the form. This will also create your personal home page.
3. Write: If you have something to say, you can and should (most of the time). Anyone can change or add to anything they see written in a TWiki topic. You can edit a topic from within your browser, using WikiSyntax, a very simple markup language (you could also use HTML if you wish, but this is optional). To contribute,
   • click the Edit link at the bottom of the page, edit the text, and then
   • click the [ Preview Changes ] button at the bottom of the page to see what your topic will look like (use the BACK button on your browser to go back and fix something.), and finally
   • click the [ Save Changes ] to save what you did.
4. But this is scary: Anybody can do anything! Collaborating the Wiki way works because of the WikiCulture. (You can define fine grained TWikiAccessControl based on groups if really necessary)
5. Experiment: To get your virtual hands dirty, visit Test in the TWiki.Test web.
6. Create a Link: To link to another topic, start by editing an existing topic.
   • To create a link to a topic that already exists, type its JoinCapitalizedWords name (topics are automatically linked if they are WikiWords, e.g. names composed of two or more words with initial capitals, run together).
   • To create a link to a page that does not yet exist, make up and type a NeverBeforeUsedPhrase. You are encouraged to include WikiWords in your content, for others to fill out later.
   • When you have saved the topic, and redisplayed it, the references to existing topics will be linked and the references to topics that don't exist will be followed by a linked "?" (question mark).
7. Create a Topic:
   • To write something up for a new topic, click on the "?" (question mark) that follows a WikiWord.
   • To create a free-floating topic, e.g. a topic that is not linked from anywhere, type its WikiWord in the entry field at the top of any page. If the topic already exists you'll then be taken to it. If it doesn't exist, you'll then have the option to create it.
8. See the History of a Topic: Check out the the various "Diff" entries at the bottom of page.
9. Attach Files: Upload and attach any file to a topic by following the "Attach" link at the bottom of page.
10. Forms: Use forms in topics to capture specific information e.g. for use in FAQs or bug tracking - see TWikiForms
11. Learn More: The TWikiTutorial gives you some more details on the TWiki. WikiReferences has links to articles and books around collaboration and the Wiki technology in particular.

Main Features of TWiki

• Edit existing pages or create new pages by using any web browser.
• Web pages are automatically linked. You do not need to learn HTML commands to link pages.
• Very simple text formatting. Basically, you write a web page like you would write an email.
• Full text search with/without regular expressions.
• All changes to pages and attachments are under revision control. Find out who changed what and when.
• Fine grained access control based on groups.
• Automatic email notification when web pages change.
• File attachments: Upload and download any file as an attachment to a page by using your browser. This is similar to email file attachments, but it happens on web pages.
• Topic locking: Users are warned if a page is being edited by an other person. This is to prevent contention, e.g. simultaneous page editing.
• Read more about the tool at http://TWiki.org/ .

Starting Points in the TWiki.TWiki web

• TWikiTutorial : Familiarize yourself with TWiki before you start editing content.
• WebHome: Entry point of this TWiki web.
• TWikiSite: Explains what a TWiki site is.
• GoodStyle: Things to consider when changing text.
• WikiSyntax: Easy to learn rules when editing text.
• WebChanges: Recent changes to the TWiki.TWiki web.
• TWikiRegistration: Before you leave add your name here.

Warning: Can't find topic TWiki.TWikiWebsTable

Revision r12 - 2001-09-12 - 06:51:29 - MikeMannix

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