User:Notquiteleet/support wiki

Support Wiki
Support Wiki's are implemented as a form of contextual knowledge management primarily to facilitate a commune-based information repository. The function of wiki software as implemented in a support wiki is aimed at user, or client support within an organization. This kind of information repository enables many types of support to include technical support, collaboration between organizations or entities therein, project management and even gaming. 

This type of wiki, as wiki's themselves, are commune-based by nature and are dependent on the collective contribution of the whole, rather than a single dictatorial authority. Recently Forty-four percent of those surveyed by CIO Insight in November 2007 agreed that technologies that "gather and present the wisdom of crowds" will be among the most important technological developments in 2012-2017. This consensus among Chief Information Officer's is suggestive of the growing acceptance and use of wiki software within organizations. 

Support wiki's can operate on any available wiki software. Network Computing, part of the Information Week Business Technology network, performed a thorough test of several wiki software distributions for the aforementioned needs. In their evaluation they noted that is important to consider hosted service vs. un-hosted service wiki distributions, as well as open source vs. commercial distributions based on the type of support required from wiki software. 

Given the nature of a support wiki within an organization, it may be a public or private facing website. The flexibility of implementing public facing wiki website can be disastrous if not done correctly. In June 2005, the Los Angeles Times attempted to supplement coverage of the Iraq War by using wiki software to publish an opinion article, "War and Consequences". The newspaper subsequently removed it after combating spam and underestimating the overall adolescent nature of some users on the web. 

Examples
There are several notable companies who implement both public and private support wiki's. Some of the more prominent companies are:

Technical Support
Cisco Systems Support Wiki

Novell Cool Solutions and OpenSUSE Project

Red HatFedora Project

Secure Works

Collaboration and Knowledge Management
British Telecommunications

Cingular Wireless

Cmed

DHL Packstation

Lost Boys

Hammarskjold Information

Michelin

SAP

Texas Instruments

Thompson Learning

Wind River

Yahoo!

Disney

Motorola

Gaming
World of Warcraft