A screenshot of wikipedia
Wikipedia is a web service used for editing and adding information to encyclopedia articles. The website goes on to list what it should not be used for. This is quite a long list, but some of the items it includes are original inventions, personal essays, discussion forums, and journalism. No credentials or verifiable sources are needed to update articles. Because of this, the articles contain many different viewpoints and are constantly changing. This could cause the site to be a blessing or a curse.
Users are able to modify information very quickly and easily, so information should always be accurate. Say one article is about a current author. Any news about the author can be easily added and old information can be updated. There is also a down side to this. Since it is so easy to add information, anyone could do it. There will always be a chance that incorrect information could be posted on the site.
A screenshot of Socialtext.
Socialtext is like wikipedia in the fact that users can add and edit information, but you must be a member in order to do so. You must pay to be a member, but there is a free trial available on the site. Some features that are included with membership are collaborative weblogs, wiki workspaces, dashboard “homepage”, social messaging, and distributed spreadsheets. This site is mostly for sharing information with coworkers or partners while working on some type of project.
Wikipedia is a site with a general audience and membership is not needed. Wikipedia seems like it would have more use in everyday life. Socialtext would be more useful in the corporate world, since it is geared toward project leaders and businesses. The downside to socialtext is its membership fees.
Overall, I would say socialtext is the most useful. It seems like it would be an excellent way for coworkers to collaborate on a business project if they were in different parts of the country or working different shifts.
I would disagree on the functionality and usefulness of Socialtext. Socialtext is functional in specific situations – if a group of people want to collaborate on a project. But even then, there are other Wiki-like project websites that allow you do do similar things that are completely free. They give the same functionality complete with secure logins, but without the signup fee. Granted, the spreadsheet functionality does seem useful.
Still, Wikipedia is far, far more useful in a global sense. Everyone I know uses Wikipedia; while the information is not always accurate or reliable, it is very fast. Indeed, I would go so far as to say that Wikipedia has changed the way we process information more than almost any other internet website. In an instant I can appear to be an expert on any subject.