How To Create A Wiki — And Why

Do you know what a wiki is? You most certainly know Wikipedia and MediaWiki, which is its engine. In fact, thousands of wikis are dedicated to every subject imaginable. Let’s talk about how to create a Wiki.

Why you might need a wiki

Wikipedia was such a successful idea that many people wanted one of their own. That resulted in the appearance of multiple separate wikis dedicated to TV shows, real people, professions, and everything in between. Unlike a website, a wiki can be totally free for everyone, and the spirit of collaboration results in incredibly detailed wikis.

But wikis aren’t just for fans of entertainment: even businesses use them for documenting and organizing information, team collaboration, learning and onboarding, as well as retaining knowledge.

How to create a wiki

There are a few ways to create your own wiki, most of which are very easy. You can even create your own free wiki if you don’t mind using a subdomain.

Most people use wiki hosting services that provide you with the tools to create and manage your wiki. There are a lot of free hosting services like Wikia, Wikidot, or Fandom.

If you need more flexibility, use wiki software — a program that lets you create and run your own wiki on your own server. It’s not as easy, and you’ll need to know at least a bit of HTML, PHP, or Java. Here are some of the apps we can recommend: MediaWiki, Wikidot, SlimWiki, DokuWiki, and Tiki Wiki. Some people — and businesses — use OneNote.

Creating your own wiki can be a great way to express yourself, share your knowledge, and learn new things. Whether you want to create a wiki for your company or your passion, you have various options. You can use a wiki hosting service or wiki software. You should carefully weigh the pros and cons of creating your own wiki and decide what suits you best.