Wiki backlash?
Elizabeth Lane Lawley: I see a backlash building on wikis, mostly in a good way. The choice of a tool for online group-forming or process facilitation is an important one, and the pros and cons of specific tools need to be carefully considered by anyone wanting to implement them.
In defense of the wiki - had this merely been a weblog post or a mailing list, I am confident that we wouldn't be having a naming discussion right now. Or any discussion. Quite simply, it was the wiki that made this project possible.
Phil's concern never materialized. I am confident that if it had, it would have been quickly fixed. Wiki's are like that.
Dare and Shelley have not had as much time as they would have liked to devote to this in the past month. This would have been just as true had another means of communication been chosen.
This being said, it must be noted that Dare and Shelley are far from unique in this case; few are able to keep up with the breakneck pace of developments.
People like Danny Ayers, Joe Gregorio, and myself have tried to pull things off wiki in more digestible chunks onto our weblogs. In fact, Shelley originally was doing likewise. Despite this - we need to do better. I continue to explore more ways to make this project accessible to everybody who wishes to participate. Mailing lists. IRC. Face to face. Got a suggestion? Let me know!
In short, I truly believe that the wiki was necessary for this project. Necessary, but not sufficient.